In a brief way we have presented the complete revelation of Christ in the four Gospels. We need to see such a view in our spirit. We need to see that Jesus Christ was prophesied and typified in the Old Testament, that He was conceived in the womb of a virgin, that He was born of a virgin to become the God-man, that He lived a life of expressing the divine attributes in His human virtues, that He passed through death and entered into resurrection, becoming the reaching Spirit, and that in resurrection He breathed Himself into His disciples as the life-giving Spirit. Then, having charged them to wait for Him to pour Himself out upon them economically as the Spirit from the throne of God, He ascended to the heavens.
We have seen that the Lord Jesus was conceived, that He was born and lived on earth, that He died and resurrected, and that now in His ascension He is in the heavens. It is impossible to describe this wonderful One with a few sentences. We need a great many words to portray the One who is now on the throne in the heavens.
Different terms are needed to describe the ascended God-man. He is the eternal God, Jehovah, and He is the almighty Creator of the entire universe. One day He was conceived in a virgin’s womb and born of her to become the God-man. Then He lived on earth a life that was the mingling of God with man. After accomplishing eternal redemption, He came forth out of death, and in resurrection He became the life-giving Spirit. In His resurrection He breathed Himself into His disciples essentially. Then economically He ascended into the heavens. Therefore, economically the Lord Jesus is now in the heavens as the glorified One, and essentially He is in His disciples as their life. Hallelujah for the One who is both within His disciples essentially and on the throne in the heavens economically! May we all have such a view of our wonderful Savior.
Where is Christ today? The way to answer this question is to say, “Essentially Christ is in us, and economically He is on the throne in the heavens. Our Savior is the essential One and also the economical One.”
Many of today’s Christians do not realize that our Savior is both the essential One and the economical One. As the essential One, He dwells within us. But as the economical One, He is sitting in heaven. We have quoted the line of the hymn that says, “Lo! in heaven Jesus sitting.” The Lord Jesus is sitting in heaven not essentially but economically. Simultaneously, He is within us essentially. How wonderful! This is the revelation that precedes the book of Acts.
We need to see this revelation as we come to Acts. This means that as we study Acts we need to have the view of the Lord Jesus as the One who is on the throne economically and within us essentially.
Following Acts we have the Epistles. If we would understand the Epistles, we must have a thorough study of the book of Acts. If we do not have the proper understanding of Acts, we shall not be able to understand the Epistles adequately. Many readers of the New Testament do not have the right understanding of the Epistles, because they do not have a clear vision concerning Acts. Therefore, we look to the Lord to open this book to us and give us a clear view of what is revealed in it.