Scripture Reading: Col. 3:5-11, 17; Eph. 2:15; 4:22-24
Ⅰ
The ultimate goal of God in His economy is to gain the new man constituted with the all-inclusive, extensive, preeminent Christ wrought into a corporate people—Col. 1:27; 2:2, 9, 16-17; 3:4, 10-11.
Ⅱ
The new man equals the Body of Christ—Col. 3:10, 15; Eph. 2:15-16:
A
The new man and the Body are synonyms and may be used interchangeably:
１
The emphases on the church being the Body of Christ is on life; the emphasis on the church being the one new man is on the person—1 Cor. 12:12; Eph. 4:4; 2:15; 4:24.
２
As the Body of Christ, the church needs Christ as its life; as the new man, the church needs Christ as its person—Col. 3:4; Eph. 3:17a.
B
Christ and we together form a universal man; as the One in heaven, Christ is the Head, and as those on earth, we are the Body—Col. 1:18a.
C
The new man is the corporate God-man, with Christ, the firstborn Son, as the Head and the believers, the many sons of God, as the Body; for the new man as the corporate God-man we need to live the life of a God-man—Col. 3:10; Rom. 8:29; Heb. 2:10; Phil. 1:19-21a.
Ⅲ
Although the new man was already created in Christ, we still need to put on the new man—Col. 3:10; Eph. 2:14; 4:24:
A
Since the new man is the Body of Christ, to put on the new man means to live a life by the Body, not individually but corporately:
１
Individualism is hateful in the sight of God; if we would know the Body, we need to be delivered from our individualistic life—1 Cor. 12:18-20.
２
The strongest proof that we have seen the Body is that we can no longer be individualistic—Acts 9:4-6; Philem 14.
B
Before our salvation, we were living in the old man, in the old society, but now we are members of Christ, living in His Body; thus, we should put off the old man with the old social life and put on the new man, the church—Col. 3:10, 15; Eph. 4:4, 22-24.
C
In order to put on the new man in an experiential way, we need to take Christ as our person—3:17a; Gal. 2:20:
１
The church is the new man, and in this new man there is only one person—Christ—Matt. 17:5; Col. 3:10-11.
２
The old man must be put off, and we must live by our new person—vv. 5-9; Rom. 6:6; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 4:22.
３
When we live by taking Christ as our person, especially in making decisions, our living will be the living of the new man—John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38; Rom. 15:32; James 4:13-15.
D
If we would put on the new man in a practical way, we need to do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus—Col. 3:17:
１
The name denotes the person, and the Lord's person is the Spirit—2 Cor. 3:17a.
２
To do things in the name of the Lord is to act in the Spirit; this is to live Christ—Gal. 5:16; Rom. 8:4; Phil. 1:21a.
Ⅳ
The new man is Christ constituted into us—3:10-11; Eph. 3:17a; 4:24:
A
As the One who indwells us and who is our life, Christ is the constituent of the new man—Col. 1:27; 3:4.
B
The Christ we enjoy as our God-allotted portion becomes the constituent of the new man—1:12; 3:10-11:
１
Through enjoying the all-inclusive, extensive, preeminent Christ we experience Him as the content and constituent of the new man.
２
The issue of our experience and enjoyment of Christ is the church as the new man; as we enjoy Christ, He is constituted into us, and we become the new man—1:27; 3:10.
C
Because Christ is all in all in the new man, in the new man there is room only for Christ; there is no room for the natural man—v. 11:
１
Since Christ is all in all in the new man and we are part of the new man, we are part of Christ.
２
Christ is everyone in the new man, and He is in everyone in the new man—3:11.
３
The only way Christ can be all in all in the new man is for Him to be constituted into us—Eph. 3:17.
Ⅴ
Concerning the new man, we need to be "renewed unto full knowledge according to the image of Him who created Him"—v. 10:
A
Because the new man was created with us, who belong to the old creation (Eph. 2:15), he needs to be renewed; this renewing takes place mainly in our mind as the mingled spirit spreads into our mind and saturates it—Rom. 12:2; Eph. 4:23.
B
The new man is being renewed unto the full knowledge according to the image of the One who created him—Col. 3:10:
１
This image is Christ, God's Beloved—the wonderful, glorious, all-inclusive Christ—as the expression of God—1:15.
２
We need to be renewed in our mind unto full knowledge according to the expression of God, according to what Christ is.
C
The renewing of the new man depends on our seeking the things which are above—3:1-2:
１
If we turn to the heavenly Christ with all His activities and set our mind on these things, the renewing of the new man will take place spontaneously—Heb. 8:1-2; 12:2; Col. 3:2, 10.
２
When we set our mind on the things above, the way is open for the divine element to spread from our regenerated spirit into our soul; this spreading of the divine element within us is according to Christ, who is the image of God, God's expression.