In the last chapter we saw that life is the primary thing in the practicality of the church life. We need life and growth in life, and for life and growth in life we need the eating of the Lord. Eating results in growth unto a full-grown man. Then, after eating, we must feed the lambs. The issue of all this is the building.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. He who eats Me shall also live because of Me” (John 6:35, 57). Jesus is the bread of life, but how do we eat this bread? Most Christians know that Jesus is the bread of life, but they do not know how to eat Him. Also, they do not know where He is, and further, they do not know what He is. If we are going to eat something, we first of all need to know the nature, the element, the essence, of the food that we are going to eat. Depending on the nature of the food, we will know what kind of utensil to use in eating. The way we eat something depends on the element, the essence, of the food. Therefore, we need to know what Jesus is.
What is Jesus? Second Corinthians 3:17 says, “The Lord is the Spirit.” This verse tells us not only who Jesus is, but also what Jesus is. Jesus is the Spirit. Spirit is His substance, His essence.
To eat Jesus, first of all we must know that He is the Spirit. He is not only God, not only Man, not only our Redeemer, not only our Savior, not only our Lord; He is even the Spirit. Some say that Jesus is now in the heavens and that He works in us through the Spirit. Others say that He is in the Spirit. However, it is really hard to find some verses in the New Testament which say that Jesus works in us through the Spirit, and there are no verses which say that Jesus is in the Spirit. But it is easy to find verses which tell us that Jesus today is the Spirit (John 14:16-20; 1 Cor. 15:45; 2 Cor. 3:17). Because many Christians are not clear that today the Lord is the Spirit, they do not know how to eat Him.
In John chapter six, when the Lord said that He was the bread of life and that they must eat Him, the Jewish disciples were bothered. Some did not understand. So the Lord Jesus answered them saying, “It is the Spirit Who gives life” (v. 63). This indicated that if He was going to be the bread that gives life, He had to be the Spirit. Later He went to the cross, died there, and was resurrected, becoming a life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45). What is Jesus? He is Spirit.
Second Timothy 4:22 clearly tells us where the Lord Jesus is. It says, “The Lord be with your spirit.” Where is the Lord Jesus today? Praise the Lord for 2 Timothy 4:22! We should never forget this verse. It tells us where the Lord Jesus is today. He is in our spirit. These two spirits, the Lord Jesus as the life-giving Spirit and our spirit, are joined together as one spirit (1 Cor. 6:17).
Then we have the third verse, 2 Timothy 1:7. The spirit we have, our human spirit, is not a spirit of cowardice. It is not a weak spirit, but a spirit of power, and of love, and of a sober mind.
After realizing that we have such a spirit, what shall we do? There is a fourth verse, 2 Timothy 2:22. It says, “Pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” This verse tells us that we should pursue spiritual virtues by calling on Him out of a pure heart. Number one, the Lord Jesus is the Spirit. Number two, He is in our spirit. Number three, our spirit is a spirit that is strong. Number four, we have to pursue with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart by exercising our spirit.
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