Let me give another example. A certain brother may have enjoyed wonderful fellowship with the Lord in the last two days, so he is very meek and humble. Please tell me: Is his being meek and humble a gift or a ministry? We all are clear that it is a gift. Perhaps after two days, when the inspiration is gone, his rough manner will reappear. But if Paul were here today, having been pierced by a thorn, pressed by burdens, and torn down by God, he would have been constituted by God to such an extent that even if you tried to make him lose his temper, he would not be able to do it. His meekness did not come from inspiration.

Therefore, 2 Corinthians does not deal with gifts at all. Rather, it deals altogether with the constituting work carried out by the Spirit in the depths of our being to write the meekness of Christ into us. It is not the inspiration of the outward power causing us to show some godliness, after which, when the inspiration is gone, our original form reappears. God’s purpose is for us to go on to 2 Corinthians and not to remain in 1 Corinthians, to enter Canaan and not to remain in the wilderness, to live continually in the Holy of Holies and not to turn back to the Holy Place.

Second Corinthians 3 depicts a life that is altogether in the Holy of Holies. Here we see a person who is living continually in the Holy of Holies, being written upon by God and constituted by the Spirit. Therefore, we can see that the entire chapter is speaking about the Spirit-not the Spirit of inspiration but the Spirit who gives life, not the Spirit of gifts but the Spirit of ministry, not the Spirit for us to experience in an outward, superficial, and shallow way but the Spirit who is constituting us from within. These two are altogether different.

Second Corinthians 3:17 tells us that the Lord is the Spirit. This is a unique word in the entire Scriptures. Only this portion in the Bible says it in this way. Today’s Christianity typically says that the Lord works through the Holy Spirit. I am not against this saying, because there is this kind of saying in the Bible, but this is shallow. You have to go further and see that today the Spirit in us who is constituting us and writing on us is the Lord Himself. Today even in Christianity if you say that the Lord Jesus is the Spirit, some people will oppose you. I have heard people opposing this, and more than one have argued with me. However, I did not argue much. I simply said, “Brothers, you are right. I also acknowledge the Trinity you talk about, but let me ask you: Second Corinthians 3 says that the Lord is the Spirit; who is the Lord here? Of course, He is the Lord Jesus. Then who is the Spirit? Can it be that the Spirit here is not the Holy Spirit? If you say that the Spirit here is not the Holy Spirit, then this means that besides the Holy Spirit there is another Spirit. This is truly a heresy! If the Lord Jesus is not the Spirit, then how many are living in you today? The Bible tells us that the Lord Jesus lives in you, and the Bible also says that the Holy Spirit lives in you. If the Lord Jesus is not the Spirit, then how many are living in you?”

When we say that the Father is the Son and the Son is the Spirit, this is not a doctrinal explanation. Rather, we are speaking altogether from experience. Isaiah 9:6 says that “a son is given to us” and that “His name will be called...Mighty God, Eternal Father.” Clearly He is the Son, yet He is also the Father. Furthermore, 2 Corinthians 3:17 says that the Lord is the Spirit. On the one hand, the Bible says that the Son is the Father, and on the other hand, it says that the Lord is the Spirit. This is the mystery of the divine persons, which I can neither comprehend nor explain. This is why the saints in the early days had to find a way to express it by using the term the Triune God. The persons are three, yet they are still one God, not three Gods. The Spirit who dwells in us is this God, the Lord Himself. The Lord is the Spirit.

The wonderful thing is that 2 Corinthians 3:17 says, on the one hand, “The Lord is the Spirit,” and on the other hand, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” It says, “The Lord is the Spirit,” and it also says, “The Spirit of the Lord”; how do you explain this? If you ask me, I also cannot explain it. This is the mystery of the Triune God. Moreover, John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.” This clearly indicates that the Word and God are two. Yet it goes on to say, “And the Word was God”; this shows that the Word and God are one. This matter is difficult to explain doctrinally, but once we have a deeper experience of the Lord, we will touch the fact. To be sure, the person in your spirit is the Spirit. According to your shallow experience, you may feel that the Lord Jesus is in the heavens, while the Holy Spirit is here on earth inspiring you. If you only feel that the Lord Jesus is in the heavens, while the Holy Spirit is moving within us, enabling us to know, apprehend, and believe in the Lord Jesus, this kind of experience is shallow. Forgive me for saying that although this is precious, it is shallow. When your experience deepens, and when you are truly mingled with the Spirit, then you will know that the Spirit who is in you and who has mingled with you is the very Lord Himself.
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