In the New Testament we see that the Spirit and the Word are one. The Lord Jesus said, “The words which I have spoken unto you are spirit and are life” (John 6:63). We should not separate the Holy Spirit whom we have within us from the holy Word which we have in our hands. These two are one divine reality. Apart from the Holy Spirit, the Bible is empty, altogether without reality. The reality of the Bible is the Holy Spirit. However, if we did not have the Bible, we would not have the embodiment of the Holy Spirit. Apart from the Word, there is no embodiment of the Spirit. On the one hand, the Bible is the embodiment of the Spirit; on the other hand, the Spirit is the reality of the Bible. We should never separate the two.
We thank the Lord for two wonderful gifts, the Holy Spirit within and the Holy Bible without. We have seen that the Holy Spirit is the Triune God reaching us in a consummate way. When the Holy Spirit reaches us, the Triune God is with us. The Spirit, however, is abstract and mysterious. Hence, it is important to see that the Spirit is embodied in the Word. Now if we would live Christ, we need to experience the Spirit within and enjoy the Word without. In our experience, the Spirit and the Word must be one. Whenever we read the Bible, we should also pray. This is to pray-read the Word. By pray-reading, we exercise our spirit to contact the Holy Spirit. In this way, we combine the Holy Spirit with the Holy Bible. As a result, in our experience the Spirit and the Word are one enjoyment, and this enjoyment is the Triune God.
Four basic verses in the New Testament are Colossians 2:9; Ephesians 3:8; Philippians 1:19; and Colossians 3:16. In these verses we have four strategic terms. First, in Colossians 2:9 we see that the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ bodily. Here the crucial term is fullness. Second, in Ephesians 3:8 Paul says that he preaches the unsearchable riches of Christ as the gospel. Paul’s gospel was the riches of Christ. The crucial matter here is the riches of Christ. Third, in Philippians 1:19 Paul speaks of the bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Fourth, Colossians 3:16 tells us that the word of Christ should dwell in us, inhabit us, richly. For the word of Christ to dwell in us richly means that it inhabits us in its riches and also in a rich way. Therefore, in these four verses we have the fullness, the riches, the bountiful supply, and the Word dwelling in us richly. The fullness is related to the Godhead, the riches are related to Christ, the bountiful supply is related to the Spirit, and the word of Christ indwelling us richly is related to the Word. In brief, we have the Godhead, Christ, the Spirit, and the Word. I strongly recommend that at the first opportunity you pray-read these four verses, enjoying the fullness of the Godhead, the riches of Christ, the bountiful supply of the Spirit, and the word of Christ inhabiting you richly.
The fullness, the riches, the bountiful supply, and the Word are mutually related. The fullness of the Godhead is actually the riches of Christ, and the riches of Christ are the bountiful supply of the Spirit. With the Godhead, there is the fullness; with Christ, the fullness becomes the unsearchable riches; and with the Spirit, the riches become the bountiful supply. Furthermore, this bountiful supply of the Spirit is embodied in the Word. When the Word of God inhabits us with the bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, it truly inhabits us richly.
When I was young, I could easily recite many Bible verses. However, although I could recite a verse like John 3:16, this verse did not inhabit me in a rich way. On the contrary, it dwelt in me in a poor way. But now I can testify that this verse, along with a great many others, inhabits me with all its riches. It dwells in me richly. Whenever I muse upon certain verses, I am filled with the enjoyment of the Triune God. My experience today is very different from what I used to have. Then I could recite Colossians 2:9, but I did not have much enjoyment of the fullness of the Godhead. But when I muse upon this verse today, the enjoyment is exceedingly rich.