At the end of 2:2 Paul speaks of the “full knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ.” The book of Ephesians is on the mystery of Christ, which is the church, the Body (Eph. 3:4). This book is on the mystery of God, which is Christ, the Head. It is crucial that we know Christ not only as our Savior and Lord, but also as the mystery of God.
All Christians love the Lord Jesus. The only difference among them in this matter is the degree of their love for Him. Even a backsliding believer loves the Lord to a certain extent. How much we love the Lord depends on how much we know Him and how much we realize concerning Him. For example, a child may appreciate a little box made to contain a diamond ring more than the ring itself. This shows that the degree of love is determined by the degree of appreciation. The more we know the Lord Jesus and appreciate Him, the more we shall love Him. Hence, we need to go on to know the Lord Jesus not only as our Savior and Lord, but also as the mystery of God.
If we would know Christ as the mystery of God, we need to have the full experience of everything covered in 2:2. In this verse Paul says, “That their hearts may be comforted, being knit together in love and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, unto the full knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ.” The word “unto” means “resulting in.” If the hearts of the Colossians were comforted and knit together in love, the result would be all the riches of the full assurance of understanding, an understanding no doubt related to the mystery of God, Christ.
We cannot contact the Lord or know Him as God’s mystery without exercising our spirit. As we shall see, our whole being needs to be exercised. Every aspect of man’s being—spirit, soul, and body—is complicated. If you spend time examining your face in a mirror, you will be impressed with the complexity of your physical body. Human beings are not simple organisms. In our soul we have the mind, the emotion, and the will. Furthermore, in our spirit we have the conscience, the intuition, and the fellowship. Every part of our complex being must be exercised to receive the revelation of Christ as the mystery of God.
God Himself is a mystery, and Christ is the mystery of this mystery. Surely we cannot fathom such a mystery simply by reading the letter of the Scriptures. Since Christ dwells in our spirit, we need to exercise our spirit in order to know Him as the mystery of God. Never regard Christ as a mere object to be known in an outward way. As the crucified and resurrected One, He is living both on the throne in the heavens and in our spirit as well. Hence, it is of utmost importance that we exercise our spirit to contact Him. This means that we must open up from the depths of our being and call on Him. Our spirit is our deepest part, deeper than the heart and all the parts of the soul. There fore, to exercise our spirit is to open the deepest part of our being to call on the name of the Lord Jesus and to contact Him as the living One within us.
We are complex, but Christ is far more complex. To know Him, we must not only exercise our spirit, but also have our heart comforted. This means that our heart must be cherished, warmed. Moreover, our mind must be sober, our emotion must be regulated, and our will must be subdued. Every part of our inner being must be proper and function in a normal way. This is the reason Paul speaks of the hearts being comforted in relation to having the full knowledge of Christ as the mystery of God.