In 2:1-2 Paul says that he had a great struggle for the saints 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.” We also need the full assurance of understanding, the full knowledge of Christ as the mystery of God. However, not many even among us have this full knowledge. We need the full knowledge with the full assurance of understanding that we have received the wonderful, unlimited, immeasurable, extensive Christ.
The Christ in Colossians is much more extensive than the Christ in whom most Christians believe. God has given us a gift more extensive than the universe. If we have the full assurance of understanding concerning Christ, we shall say, “Lord Jesus, You are everything to me. You are the mystery of God. Because You are everything, I don’t want anything that is not You, and I don’t need anything.” As the mystery of God, the all-inclusive Christ includes incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, glorification, divinity, and humanity. He is the reality of all the positive things in the universe: food, drink, feasts, new moons, holy days, Sabbaths, clothing, housing, transportation, light. The Apostle Paul was struggling on behalf of the distracted, deluded Colossians to help them have a full knowledge of such a Christ. Paul seemed to be telling them, “Colossians, you have the all-inclusive Christ. Why do you turn to Gnosticism, Judaism, and asceticism? Why do you become subject to so many ordinances? You have the all-inclusive, extensive One, the One who is the mystery of God. May your eyes be opened to see this One you have received.” Oh, we all need a vision of such a Christ!
We thank the Lord that we all have received Christ initially. As we have indicated, this receiving is also continual; it is much more than once for all. Just as we breathe continually, we need to receive Christ continually, even for eternity.
In a previous message we pointed out that one condition for walking in Christ is to be rooted in Him. Being rooted in Christ is equal to receiving Christ. A large tree absorbs moisture through tiny root hairs. Absorption depends on being rooted; it depends on receiving. Do not try to receive too much of Christ at one time. What we need is a continual receiving. In principle, it is correct to say that the more we receive of Christ, the better it is. But in practice we should not try to receive too much at once. We eat our food a little at a time. In like manner, we receive Christ also a little at a time.
We have seen that the Christ we receive is the mystery of God and history of God. Probably, in our initial stage of receiving Christ we did not have this realization concerning Christ. But as we go on with the Lord, we realize that Christ is all we need. Since He is everything to us, we should continue to receive Him without ceasing.
Now we come to the extremely important matter of how to receive Christ. Receiving Christ requires the exercise of our spirit. In order for a transistor radio to receive radio waves, the receiver must be working properly. Likewise, although it is good to improve our behavior, the important thing is that we tune, or adjust, our spirit. Our spirit must be clean, open, and properly adjusted.
The unique way to exercise our spirit is to pray. As we exercise our spirit in prayer, our aim should be to contact the Lord, not first to pray for certain people or things. Simply contact the Lord and allow Him to burden you to pray for certain ones. Do not go to the Lord with your mind filled with things to pray for. If you try to contact the Lord in this way, you will close your spirit. We should come to the Lord with a spirit fully open, worshipping Him, praising Him, and thanking Him. Then we shall know what to pray for, and we shall have much to utter to the Lord in prayer.
As we receive such a heavenly transmission from the Lord, we not only receive the riches of Christ, but we also experience His fullness. This means we are filled to the brim. The fullness is related to the riches. However, we may have the riches without the fullness. Whether or not the riches of Christ become the fullness to us depends on whether or not we are filled with these riches to the limit of our capacity. If the riches exceed the demand, the riches are the fullness. But if they are less than the demand, they obviously are not the fullness. The riches of Christ, being universally extensive, are never less than the demand. Whatever may be our capacity to receive, the riches of Christ will exceed our capacity. The riches are always able to fill us to overflowing. A certain man may be very rich, even a billionaire. But if his wealth is only sufficient to give one dollar to every person on earth, his riches cannot be regarded as fullness. He does not have sufficient riches to make everyone abundantly wealthy. The riches of Christ, however, are universally extensive. They are sufficient to fill everyone to his capacity.
John 1:14 says that the Word became flesh, full of grace and reality. According to John 1:16, we all have received of His fullness grace upon grace. According to John 1, the One whom we have received is the eternal Word, the Word who was with God and who was God, the Word through whom everything came into being. In this Word is life. One day, this Word became flesh and tabernacled among us, full of grace. This is part of God’s history, an aspect of His mystery. The mystery of God is Christ, who is full of grace. No demand can exhaust His fullness; no capacity to receive of Him can exhaust His supply. Christ’s fullness can never be diminished by our need or by our capacity. The Christ we have received is a Christ of fullness. Therefore, we need to keep on receiving Him by exercising our spirit to have direct contact with Him. As we pray from our open, adjusted spirit, we shall receive the unlimited source as our supply. Then we shall have the fullness, and in this fullness we shall be rooted and built up. Then we shall walk in Him.