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Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians reveals the living of the overcomers, who live in the reality of the Body of Christ by living in the mingled spirit:
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The reality of the Body of Christ is the highest peak in God’s economy and the top revelation of the Bible, revealed through a spirit of wisdom and revelation—1:17, 22-23.
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The reality of the Body of Christ is a living in the mingled spirit, which is the dwelling place of God, the house of God, today’s Bethel, the gate of heaven, and the Holy of Holies, the dwelling place of the pneumatic Christ as the embodiment of the Triune God, who is typified by the Ark—v. 17; 2:22; 3:5, 16; 4:23; 5:18; 6:18; Gen. 28:12-17; John 1:51; Heb. 9:3-4; 10:19-22.
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The reality of the Body of Christ is the reality in Jesus, the actual condition of the life of Jesus as recorded in the four Gospels, duplicated in His many members as the corporate living of the perfected God-men through the renewing of the mind by the renewing Spirit mingled with their regenerated spirit—Eph. 4:1-6, 15-16, 20-24; Gal. 2:20; Phil. 1:19-21a; 4:11-13.
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The church is filled with the beautifying, bride-preparing Spirit, who is mingled with our spirit, so that we may become Christ’s holy, beautiful, God-expressing bride, a bride without blemish or imperfection—Eph. 5:18, 26-27; Isa. 60:7, 19; 62:3; Exo. 28:2; cf. Psa. 27:4; 48:2; 50:2; 110:2-3, 7; Isa. 28:5; 60:21; 61:3.
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For Christ to be victorious in our entire being, we must experience the slaying Spirit mingled with our spirit so that everything of God’s adversary can be killed within us, enabling us to rule in the divine life of the Spirit over Satan, sin, and death for God’s dominion and to live a healthy Body life, a healthy church life—Eph. 6:10-18; Psa. 48:12-13.
Morning Nourishment
Eph. 4:23 And that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind.5:26-27 That He might sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing of the water in the word, that He might present the church to Himself glorious, not having spot or wrinkle or any such things, but that she would be holy and without blemish.
The book of Ephesians reveals that the church is the Body of Christ (1:22-23), the kingdom of God, the household of God (2:19), and the temple, the dwelling place of God (2:21-22). It reveals further that the church is the new man [2:15; 4:24]... As the Body of Christ, the church needs Christ as its life; whereas as the new man, the church needs Christ as its person. This new corporate person should live a life as Jesus lived on earth, that is, a life of truth, expressing God and causing God to be realized as the reality by man.
In the book of Ephesians there is great emphasis on the mingled spirit, the human spirit mingled with the divine Spirit. Ephesians 1:17 says, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him.”... The spirit in this verse is our regenerated spirit indwelt by the Spirit of God. It is the human spirit mingled with the Holy Spirit. Such a spirit is given to us by God so that we may have wisdom and revelation to know Him and His economy. The spirit in 4:23 is the regenerated spirit of the believers mingled with the indwelling Spirit of God. Such a mingled spirit spreads into our mind and thus becomes the spirit of our mind. (Life-study of Ephesians, pp. 402-403, 574-575)
Today’s Reading
In the past, Christ gave Himself up for the church; in the present, He is sanctifying the church; and in the future, He will present the church to Himself as His counterpart for His satisfaction. Therefore, loving is for sanctifying, and sanctifying is for presenting. In Ephesians 5:26 Paul says that Christ sanctifies the church by cleansing her by the washing of the water in the word. According to the divine concept, water here refers to the flowing life of God typified by flowing water (Exo. 17:6; 1 Cor. 10:4; John 7:38-39; Rev. 21:6; 22:1, 17)... The redeeming blood of Christ... washes away our sins (1 John 1:7; Rev. 7:14), whereas the water of life washes away the blemishes of the natural life of our old man, such as “spot or wrinkle or any such things” (Eph. 5:27),... in order that the church may be holy and without blemish. It is such a glorious church that Christ will present to Himself at His coming back... Eventually, the church presented to Christ will be a God-expressing one. Such a church will also be holy and without blemish. To be holy is to be saturated and transformed with Christ, and to be without blemish is to be spotless and without wrinkle, with nothing of the natural life of our old man.We need to experience the killing power of God’s word. As we pray-read, we are nourished on the one hand, but certain elements are killed on the other hand. Perhaps you are troubled by doubts, hatred, jealousy, pride, or selfishness... The more we take in the word with its killing power, the more our pride and all the negative elements within us are put to death. By pray-reading, the inward adversary is slain... by the word we have taken into us. The battlefield for the spiritual warfare...is within us; in particular it is in our mind... The way to slay [the adversary in our mind] is to pray-read the word. As we pray-read God’s word, the elements of the adversary within our mind will be killed one by one. In this way we shall gain the victory... When the negative things in us are killed through pray-reading, the Lord is victorious. Because He is victorious, we are victorious also. (Life-study of Ephesians, pp. 454-455, 457, 460, 820-821)
Further Reading: Life-study of Ephesians, msgs. 47, 54-55, 59, 69, 94-95, 97