There are two great steps in the manifestation of God in the New Testament: The first step is seen in Christ, and the second step is seen in the church. Christ is the expression of God, but the church also is an expression of God. This does not mean that the church expresses God more than Christ; rather, the church is an enlarged expression of God. Just as Christ expresses God, the church also expresses God. The principle of expression is the same, but the scope of the expression has been enlarged.
In addition to saying that Christ is the mystery of God, the Bible also says that the church is the mystery of Christ (Eph. 3:4-6). Whereas Christ is the only begotten Son of God, the church is the many sons of God as the enlargement of Christ. The only begotten Son of God who has been enlarged is the church composed of the sons of God. In brief, the enlarged Christ is the church. All that is of Christ is in the church. Therefore, the church is the mystery of Christ.
Christ also is a mystery. For two thousand years people have talked and preached concerning Christ everywhere, but no one has seen Christ for nearly two thousand years. Christ is a mystery! Some may say that Christ does not exist, because we cannot see Him; however, this is not logical. There are many invisible things that exist. Electricity is one of them. We cannot see electricity, but we can see manifestations of electricity, such as light and heat. In the same way, Christians and the church are expressions of Christ. For nearly two thousand years no one has seen Christ, but people have seen the church. The mystery of Christ, the intricate matters of Christ, the story of Christ, is seen through the church. If we want to know Christ, we must look at the church. The church is the mystery of Christ and the expression of Christ, just as Christ is the mystery of God and the expression of God. Just as all that is of God is in Christ, all that is of Christ is in the church. For nearly four thousand years no one had ever seen God, but Christ revealed Him. In like manner, for nearly two thousand years no one has seen Christ, but the church has revealed Him. First Corinthians 14 says that whenever we meet together and people come among us, they can declare, “Indeed God is among you” (vv. 23-25). We have seen this situation often in our meetings. When God is sensed among us, it is Christ who is being sensed among us. Only the church can manifest the mystery of Christ and express the story of Christ.
Just as Christ is the expression of God, the church is the expression of Christ. The church is the Body of Christ, the fullness of Christ, the surplus of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23). Christ is so full and so rich that He overflows with a surplus—the church. Someone told me that every male is missing a rib bone, because God took a rib out of Adam to build Eve. Although I have not studied medicine, I do not believe this. I do not believe that Adam had one less rib when a rib was taken from him to build Eve. If this were the case, Eve would have been Adam’s depletion rather than his surplus. After a part of Adam was built into Eve, he remained whole without lacking a rib. In the same manner, after Christ overflowed with the church, He did not become something less. As the fullness of Christ, the church is the overflow of Christ. The church is His Body, His expression. Our body is also our expression. If we were disembodied souls, would people still be able to recognize us? Could they tell us apart? Could they see us? We appear before others through our body. Our body is our manifestation. Sometimes we see someone’s shadow or see someone walking at a distance, but by his manner, we know who is coming. A person’s body is his best manifestation. Similarly, as the Body of Christ, the church is the best manifestation of Christ. Christ expresses Himself in, by, and through the church.
The church is the Body of Christ, and it is also the many sons of God joined to God to be one (Heb. 2:10-11). God in Christ is the substance of the church, and the church in the Holy Spirit is the expression of God. Thus, the church is a dwelling place of God (Eph. 2:20-21).
On the one hand, the church is the Body to Christ, and on the other hand, the church is the dwelling place to God. On the one hand, we are the many members of Christ, and on the other hand, we are the many sons of God. As the many members of Christ, we express Christ; as the many sons of God, we express God. Of course, these two matters—being the many members of Christ and being the many sons of God—are inseparable; they are the two sides of one matter. In regard to expressing Christ, the emphasis is on being the many members of Christ to be His one Body, and in regard to expressing God, the emphasis is on being the many sons of God to be His house. This house is the dwelling place of God, a place where God is expressed. Both a body and a dwelling are places in which one can rest and express himself. Therefore, both as the Body of Christ and as the house of God, the church is the place in which Christ and God can rest and find expression.
The church, which is composed of the many sons of God (Heb. 2:10), will enter into the glory of God in the future, just as Christ the firstborn Son of God entered into glory. This will be the time of our rapture and transfiguration. When all of God’s sons enter into God’s glory and are completely transformed, God will gain a complete and full expression. This will be the manifestation of the New Jerusalem. At that time, God will be completely in Christ, and Christ will be completely in the New Jerusalem, that is, in the church. Thus, the church will completely express God in Christ. Revelation 21 says that God will be the light shining in the New Jerusalem while Christ will be the lamp of the light (vv. 11, 22-23). Moreover, the New Jerusalem with its surrounding, transparent wall will be like a great transparent lampshade. God as the light dwelling in Christ as the lamp will shine forth through Christ, and Christ in the New Jerusalem will shine forth through the New Jerusalem. Therefore the glory, the splendor, of the New Jerusalem is God who is being expressed. God in Christ is completely mingled with the church as one, and the church in Christ is completely transformed to be like God; at the same time, God in Christ completely shines out of the church and is expressed through the church. This is God’s ultimate goal.
Therefore, from Adam to the New Jerusalem there is a line in the Bible showing that God wants to be mingled with man so that He may express Himself in man and through man. The final step of this line is with the church. The church is the ultimate, full expression of God, which is the goal of God’s eternal desire.