Message Eight

The Dispensing of the Triune God as Life
into the Tripartite Man according to His Righteousness,
through His Holiness, and unto His Glory

Scripture Reading: Rom. 1:17; 6:19, 22; 8:2, 6, 10-11, 18, 21; 9:23; 11:36; 12:1-5; 16:27

Rom. 1:17  For the righteousness of God is revealed in it out of faith to faith, as it is written, ¡°But the righteous shall have life and live by faith.¡±

Rom. 6:19  I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to uncleanness and lawlessness unto lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness unto sanctification.

Rom. 6:22  But now, having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end, eternal life.

Rom. 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life has freed me in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and of death.

Rom. 8:6  For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace.

Rom. 8:10-11  But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of the One who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you.

Rom. 8:18  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the coming glory to be revealed upon us.

Rom. 8:21  In hope that the creation itself will also be freed from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

Rom. 9:23  In order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He had before prepared unto glory,

Rom. 11:36  Because out from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.

Rom. 12:1-5  I exhort you therefore, brothers, through the compassions of God to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be fashioned according to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and well pleasing and perfect. For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think, but to think so as to be sober-minded, as God has apportioned to each a measure of faith. For just as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we who are many are one Body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

Rom. 16:27  To the only wise God through Jesus Christ, to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

I.      God¡¯s eternal economy is to dispense Himself as the law of the Spirit of life into man so that His divine attributes of righteousness, holiness, and glory would become man¡¯s human virtues for God¡¯s corporate expression as the reality of the Body of Christ in the local churches to consummate the New Jerusalem as the city of righteousness, holiness, and glory¡ªGen. 2:9; John 10:10b; 14:6a; 1 Cor. 15:45b; Rom. 8:2; 2 Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21:2, 9-11:

Gen. 2:9  And out of the ground Jehovah God caused to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, as well as the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

John 10:10b  I have come that they may have life and may have it abundantly.

John 14:6a  Jesus said to him, I am the way and the reality and the life¡­

1 Cor. 15:45b  The last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.

Rom. 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life has freed me in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and of death.

2 Pet. 3:13  But according to His promise we are expecting new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

Rev. 21:2  And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Rev. 21:9-11  And one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, Come here; I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he carried me away in spirit onto a great and high mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, as clear as crystal.

A.    God¡¯s desire is to work Himself into us to the extent that He becomes us and we become Him, that we and He become completely identical in life, nature, and image; this is the pinnacle of His economy¡ªJohn 1:12-13; 2 Pet. 1:4; 2 Cor. 3:18.

John 1:12-13  But as many as received Him, to them He gave the authority to become children of God, to those who believe into His name, who were begotten not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

2 Pet. 1:4  Through which He has granted to us precious and exceedingly great promises that through these you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption which is in the world by lust.

2 Cor. 3:18  But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit.

B.     Man was created in the image of God as a living vessel to receive and contain God as life for the reproduction, the duplication, of God in life¡ªGen. 1:26; 2:7; Rom. 9:21, 23; 2 Cor. 4:7; John 12:24.

Gen. 1:26  And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of heaven and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.

Gen. 2:7  Jehovah God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.

Rom. 9:21  Or does not the potter have authority over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel unto honor and another unto dishonor?

Rom. 9:23  In order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He had before prepared unto glory,

2 Cor. 4:7  But we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not out of us.

John 12:24  Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

II.    Christ died on the cross to satisfy the requirements of God¡¯s righteousness, holiness, and glory and was resurrected to become the life¡ªdispensing Spirit as the reality of the tree of life to be our righteousness, holiness, and glory¡ªGen. 3:24; 1 Cor. 15:45b; 1:30; cf. Eph. 5:25-27:

Gen. 3:24  So He drove the man out, and at the east of the garden of Eden He placed the cherubim and a flaming sword which turned in every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.

1 Cor. 15:45b  The last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.

1 Cor. 1:30  But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became wisdom to us from God: both righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

Eph. 5:25-27  Husbands, love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her 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.

A.    The life of the Triune God dispensed into our tripartite being makes us men of life to be God¡¯s sons and the members of Christ to constitute the Body of Christ for His expression, thus fulfilling God¡¯s original intention¡ªGen. 2:7, 9; Rom. 8:14; 12:5:

Gen. 2:7  Jehovah God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.

Gen. 2:9  And out of the ground Jehovah God caused to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, as well as the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Rom. 8:14  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

Rom. 12:5  So we who are many are one Body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

1.      ¡°The law of the Spirit of life [Gk. zoe] has freed me in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and of death¡±¡ª8:2.

Rom. 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life has freed me in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and of death.

2.      ¡°If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life [Gk. zoe] because of righteousness¡±¡ªv. 10.

Rom. 8:10  But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness.

3.      ¡°The mind set on the spirit is life [Gk. zoe] and peace¡±¡ªv. 6.

Rom. 8:6  For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace.

4.      ¡°If the Spirit of the One who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life [Gk. zoe] to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you¡±¡ªv. 11.

Rom. 8:11  And if the Spirit of the One who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you.

B.     The three primary colors of the rainbow around God¡¯s throne are blue (the color of the sapphire throne, which signifies God¡¯s righteousness¡ªEzek. 1:26; Psa. 89:14), red (the color of the sanctifying fire, which signifies God¡¯s holiness¡ªEzek. 1:4, 13, 27; Heb. 12:29), and yellow (the color of the glowing electrum, which signifies God¡¯s glory¡ªEzek.1:4, 27; Heb.1:3):

Ezek. 1:26  And above the expanse that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, like the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was One in appearance like a man, above it.

Psa. 89:14  Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; / Lovingkindness and truth go before Your face.

Ezek. 1:4  And I looked, and there came a storm wind from the north, a great cloud and a fire flashing incessantly; and there was a brightness around it, and from the midst of it there was something like the sight of electrum, from the midst of the fire.

Ezek. 1:13  As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches; the fire went to and fro among the living creatures, and the fire was bright; and out of the fire went forth lightning.

Ezek. 1:27  Then I saw something like the sight of electrum, like the appearance of fire encased all around, from the appearance of His loins and upward; and from the appearance of His loins and downward, I saw something like the appearance of fire. And there was brightness all around Him.

Heb. 12:29  For our God is also a consuming fire.

Ezek. 1:4  And I looked, and there came a storm wind from the north, a great cloud and a fire flashing incessantly; and there was a brightness around it, and from the midst of it there was something like the sight of electrum, from the midst of the fire.

Ezek. 1:27  Then I saw something like the sight of electrum, like the appearance of fire encased all around, from the appearance of His loins and upward; and from the appearance of His loins and downward, I saw something like the appearance of fire. And there was brightness all around Him.

Heb. 1:3  Who, being the effulgence of His glory and the impress of His substance and upholding and bearing all things by the word of His power, having made purification of sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

1.      The rainbow around God¡¯s throne signifies that God is the covenanting God, the faithful God, who will keep His new covenant to impart the newness of life into His chosen ones to make them the New Jerusalem while executing His judgment upon the earth¡ªGen. 9:13; Rev. 4:3; 21:2; Rom. 6:4; Ezek. 1:26-28; 36:26-27.

Gen. 9:13  I set My bow in the clouds, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth.

Rev. 4:3  And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance, and there was a rainbow around the throne like an emerald in appearance.

Rev. 21:2  And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Rom. 6:4  We have been buried therefore with Him through baptism into His death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so also we might walk in newness of life.

Ezek. 1:26-28  And above the expanse that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, like the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was One in appearance like a man, above it. Then I saw something like the sight of electrum, like the appearance of fire encased all around, from the appearance of His loins and upward; and from the appearance of His loins and downward, I saw something like the appearance of fire. And there was brightness all around Him. Like the appearance of the rainbow that is in the cloud on a day of rain, such was the appearance of the brightness all around. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Jehovah. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and I heard the voice of someone speaking.

Ezek. 36:26-27  I will also give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and My ordinances you shall keep and do.

2.      The spiritual reality of this rainbow should be manifest in the church today; we need to allow God to fill us with His righteous presence by giving Him the full opportunity to work in us as the sanctifying fire for His radiant expression of glory through our coordination as the corporate Christ¡ª1:5-14, 26-28.

Ezek. 1:5-14  And from the midst of it there came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: They had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one of them had four wings. And their feet were straight feet, and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf¡¯s foot; and they sparkled like the sight of burnished bronze. And the hands of a man were under their wings on their four sides. And the four of them had their faces and their wings thus: their wings were joined one to another; they did not turn as they went; each went straight forward. As for the likeness of their faces, they had the face of a man; and the four of them had the face of a lion on the right side, and the four of them had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four of them had the face of an eagle. And thus their faces were. And their wings were spread out upward; two wings of each were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies. And each went straight forward; wherever the Spirit was to go, they went; they did not turn as they went. As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches; the fire went to and fro among the living creatures, and the fire was bright; and out of the fire went forth lightning. And the living creatures ran to and fro like the appearance of a lightning bolt.

Ezek. 1:26-28  And above the expanse that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, like the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was One in appearance like a man, above it. Then I saw something like the sight of electrum, like the appearance of fire encased all around, from the appearance of His loins and upward; and from the appearance of His loins and downward, I saw something like the appearance of fire. And there was brightness all around Him. Like the appearance of the rainbow that is in the cloud on a day of rain, such was the appearance of the brightness all around. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Jehovah. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and I heard the voice of someone speaking.

3.      Christ Himself, signified by the rainbow of righteousness, holiness, and glory, is the covenant of God given to His people for their ¡°Christification,¡± which is to make them exactly the same as He is in life, nature, and expression but not in the Godhead¡ªIsa. 42:6; Heb. 8:10-12.

Isa. 42:6  I am Jehovah; I have called You in righteousness; / I have held You by the hand; / I have kept You and I have given You / As a covenant for the people, as a light for the nations;

Heb. 8:10-12  For this is the covenant which I will covenant with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will impart My laws into their mind, and on their hearts I will inscribe them; and I will be God to them, and they will be a people to Me. And they shall by no means each teach his fellow citizen and each his brother, saying, Know the Lord; for all will know Me from the little one to the great one among them. For I will be propitious to their unrighteousnesses, and their sins I shall by no means remember anymore.¡±

C.     Christ is wisdom to us from God, transmitting Himself into us as righteousness (that we might be reborn in our spirit), sanctification (that we might be transformed in our soul), and redemption (that we might be glorified in our body)¡ª1 Cor. 1:30; Rom. 8:10; 12:2; 8:23; Phil. 3:21.

1 Cor. 1:30  But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became wisdom to us from God: both righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

Rom. 8:10  But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness.

Rom. 12:2  And do not be fashioned according to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and well pleasing and perfect.

Rom. 8:23  And not only so, but we ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan in ourselves, eagerly awaiting sonship, the redemption of our body.

Phil. 3:21  Who will transfigure the body of our humiliation to be conformed to the body of His glory, according to His operation by which He is able even to subject all things to Himself.

D.    The transmission of Christ, as the multifarious wisdom of God, into our being makes us the masterpiece of the Triune God as the wise exhibition of all that He is, a poem expressing His infinite wisdom and divine design¡ª1 Cor. 1:30; Eph. 2:10; 3:9-11.

1 Cor. 1:30  But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became wisdom to us from God: both righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

Eph. 2:10  For we are His masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand in order that we would walk in them.

Eph. 3:9-11  And to enlighten all that they may see what the economy of the mystery is, which throughout the ages has been hidden in God, who created all things, in order that now to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenlies the multifarious wisdom of God might be made known through the church, according to the eternal purpose which He made in Christ Jesus our Lord,

E.     In eternity as the New Jerusalem (a city whose foundations have the appearance of a rainbow¡ªRev. 21:19-20), we will be a rainbow to testify of God¡¯s faithfulness to carry out His new covenant in making us exactly the same as He is as righteousness, holiness, and glory¡ªvv. 10-11.

Rev. 21:19-20  The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every precious stone: the first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.

Rev. 21:10-11  And he carried me away in spirit onto a great and high mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, as clear as crystal.

III.  Romans reveals that in every church there must be the base of God¡¯s righteousness (God¡¯s procedure), the process of God¡¯s holiness (God¡¯s nature), and the goal of God¡¯s glory (God¡¯s expression) to bring us into the heart of God to have the reality of the Body of Christ through the local churches¡ª1:17; 8:10; 6:19, 22; 8:18, 21; 9:23; 11:36¡ª12:5; 16:27:

Rom. 1:17  For the righteousness of God is revealed in it out of faith to faith, as it is written, ¡°But the righteous shall have life and live by faith.¡±

Rom. 8:10  But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness.

Rom. 6:19  I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to uncleanness and lawlessness unto lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness unto sanctification.

Rom. 6:22  But now, having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end, eternal life.

Rom. 8:18  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the coming glory to be revealed upon us.

Rom. 8:21  In hope that the creation itself will also be freed from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

Rom. 9:23  In order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He had before prepared unto glory,

Rom. 11:36-12:5  Because out from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen. I exhort you therefore, brothers, through the compassions of God to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be fashioned according to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and well pleasing and perfect. For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think, but to think so as to be sober-minded, as God has apportioned to each a measure of faith. For just as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we who are many are one Body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

Rom. 16:27  To the only wise God through Jesus Christ, to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

A.    Romans reveals the tabernacle of God as the Body life realized in the church life (chs. 12¡ª16) with the basic structure of righteousness (3:21¡ª5:11), holiness (v. 12¡ª8:13), and glory (vv. 14-39):

1.      Justification through Christ¡¯s redemption is in the outer court, sanctification is in the Holy Place, and glorification is in the Holy of Holies.

2.      The church life is the Triune God mingled with His chosen people, who are justified, sanctified, glorified, and built together to be the tabernacle, the reality of the Body of Christ in the local churches to consummate in the New Jerusalem, the ultimate tabernacle of God¡ªRev. 21:3.

Rev. 21:3  And I heard a loud voice out of the throne, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will tabernacle with them, and they will be His peoples, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.

3.      The dispensing of the Triune God is according to His righteousness, through His holiness, and unto His glory; the ultimate goal of the dispensing of the Triune God as life is glory, the expression of God in and through the church as the Body of Christ¡ªRom. 5:17; 6:19-23; 8:18, 21; 16:27; Eph. 3:16-21.

Rom. 5:17  For if, by the offense of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Rom. 6:19-23  I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to uncleanness and lawlessness unto lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness unto sanctification. For when you were slaves of sin, you were free with regard to righteousness. What fruit then did you have at that time? Things of which you are now ashamed, for the end of those things is death. But now, having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Rom. 8:18  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the coming glory to be revealed upon us.

Rom. 8:21  In hope that the creation itself will also be freed from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

Rom. 16:27  To the only wise God through Jesus Christ, to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Eph. 3:16-21  That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit into the inner man, that Christ may make His home in your hearts through faith, that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be full of strength to apprehend with all the saints what the breadth and length and height and depth are and to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, that you may be filled unto all the fullness of God. But to Him who is able to do superabundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power which operates in us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all the generations forever and ever. Amen.

B.     Christ¡¯s death is for God¡¯s righteousness, Christ¡¯s resurrection is for God¡¯s holiness, and Christ¡¯s ascension is for God¡¯s glory; when Christ comes back, the glorification of His saints will be consummated.

C.     As our Substitute, Christ died on the cross for us in order to fulfill God¡¯s righteous requirements for our justification so that He could dispense Himself as life into us¡ªJohn 19:34; Rom. 1:17; 3:23-25; 5:18; Rev. 22:14:

John 19:34  But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water.

Rom. 1:17  For the righteousness of God is revealed in it out of faith to faith, as it is written, ¡°But the righteous shall have life and live by faith.¡±

Rom. 3:23-25  For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God set forth as a propitiation place through faith in His blood, for the demonstrating of His righteousness, in that in His forbearance God passed over the sins that had previously occurred,

Rom. 5:18  So then as it was through one offense unto condemnation to all men, so also it was through one righteous act unto justification of life to all men.

Rev. 22:14  Blessed are those who wash their robes that they may have right to the tree of life and may enter by the gates into the city.

1.      A proper Christian is one who has died with Christ and who conducts himself daily according to this fact; if a believer lives in a natural way, he will be unrighteous, but if he experiences the death of the cross, he will be righteous in everything, with everyone, and in every way¡ªGal. 2:20; 2 Cor. 3:9.

Gal. 2:20  I am crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

2 Cor. 3:9  For if there is glory with the ministry of condemnation, much more the ministry of righteousness abounds with glory.

2.      Only the death of Christ and our death with Christ fulfill the requirements of God¡¯s righteousness and give God the ground to righteously dispense Himself as the divine life into our entire being so that we may be swallowed up by life to be the city of life¡ªRom. 8:10, 6, 11; 2 Cor. 5:4.

Rom. 8:10  But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness.

Rom. 8:6  For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace.

Rom. 8:11  And if the Spirit of the One who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you.

2 Cor. 5:4  For also, we who are in this tabernacle groan, being burdened, in that we do not desire to be unclothed, but clothed upon, that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.

3.      To live and serve as a minister of the new covenant is to take the way of righteousness, the living out and genuine expression of Christ, by recognizing that we do not have any qualification to be a servant of God, that as a man in the flesh we are good for nothing except death and burial¡ªMatt. 3:13-17; 21:32.

Matt. 3:13-17  Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized by him. But John tried to prevent Him, saying, It is I who have need of being baptized by You, and You come to me? But Jesus answered and said to him, Permit it for now, for it is fitting for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness. Then he permitted Him. And having been baptized, Jesus went up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming upon Him. And behold, a voice out of the heavens, saying, This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I have found My delight.

Matt. 21:32  For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the harlots believed him. And you, when you saw it, did not later regret it to believe him.

D.    Sanctification is the subjective activity of holiness; it is holiness in action:

1.      Sanctification is the resurrected Christ as ¡°the Spirit the Holy,¡± the sanctifying Spirit in our spirit, working Himself as God¡¯s holy nature into our being to make us the holy city¡ª1 Thes. 5:23; Rom. 6:19, 22; 15:16; 8:4.

1 Thes. 5:23  And the God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly, and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Rom. 6:19  I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to uncleanness and lawlessness unto lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness unto sanctification.

Rom. 6:22  But now, having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end, eternal life.

Rom. 15:16  That I might be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, a laboring priest of the gospel of God, in order that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, having been sanctified in the Holy Spirit.

Rom. 8:4  That the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the spirit.

2.      The divine sanctification is the holding line in the carrying out of the divine economy, the process of God¡¯s organic salvation as God¡¯s move to deify man, making man God in life and in nature but not in the Godhead¡ªHeb. 2:10-11; Eph. 1:4-5; Rev. 21:2.

Heb. 2:10-11  For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in leading many sons into glory, to make the Author of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of One, for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brothers,

Eph. 1:4-5  Even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and without blemish before Him in love, predestinating us unto sonship through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,

Rev. 21:2  And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

3.      To live and serve as a minister of the new covenant is to walk in newness of life and serve in newness of spirit as a laboring priest of the gospel of God in order to present the saved sinners to God as an acceptable offering sanctified in the Holy Spirit¡ªRom. 6:4; 7:6; 15:16.

Rom. 6:4  We have been buried therefore with Him through baptism into His death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so also we might walk in newness of life.

Rom. 7:6  But now we have been discharged from the law, having died to that in which we were held, so that we serve in newness of spirit and not in oldness of letter.

Rom. 15:16  That I might be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, a laboring priest of the gospel of God, in order that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, having been sanctified in the Holy Spirit.

E.     The ultimate goal of the dispensing of the Triune God is that God would be expressed through the Body of Christ for His glory in the church¡ªEph. 3:20-21; Rom. 8:19, 21, 28-30; 16:27:

Eph. 3:20-21  But to Him who is able to do superabundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power which operates in us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all the generations forever and ever. Amen.

Rom. 8:19  For the anxious watching of the creation eagerly awaits the revelation of the sons of God.

Rom. 8:21  In hope that the creation itself will also be freed from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

Rom. 8:28-30  And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Because those whom He foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brothers; and those whom He predestinated, these He also called; and those whom He called, these He also justified; and those whom He justified, these He also glorified.

Rom. 16:27  To the only wise God through Jesus Christ, to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

1.      The oneness in John 17 is the church; when the oneness is realized in a thorough way, by the full denial of the self, the Son glorifies the Father in the church¡ªvv. 1, 21-23.

Rom. 16:1  I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is a deaconess of the church which is in Cenchrea,

Rom. 16:21-23  Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you, as well as Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsmen. I, Tertius, who write this epistle, greet you in the Lord. Gaius, my host and host of the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, greets you, and Quartus the brother.

2.      This indicates that wherever there is the proper church life, there is the glorification of the Father, for the church life expresses the Father.

3.      To live and serve as a minister of the new covenant is to do all to the glory of God for the exaltation of Christ¡ªRom. 11:36; 1 Cor. 10:31; Phil. 1:20; 2 Cor. 4:5.

Rom. 11:36  Because out from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.

1 Cor. 10:31  Therefore whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Phil. 1:20  According to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I will be put to shame, but with all boldness, as always, even now Christ will be magnified in my body, whether through life or through death.

2 Cor. 4:5  For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus¡¯ sake.

F.The dispensing of the Triune God as life according to His righteousness, through His holiness, and unto His glory is for us to become the New Jerusalem with Christ as our solid foundation of righteousness, our pure constituent of holiness, and our radiant expression of glory¡ªRev. 21:2, 9-11.

Rev. 21:2  And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Rev. 21:9-11  And one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, Come here; I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he carried me away in spirit onto a great and high mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, as clear as crystal.

G.    Thus, the Spirit, as the processed and consummated God, and the bride, as the processed and consummated church, are joined to become a loving pair of one entity in life for eternity¡ª22:17a; cf. 1 Cor. 6:17.

Rev. 22:17a  And the Spirit and the bride say, Come!

1 Cor. 6:17  But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.