The New Creation - Part 2 — T. Austin-Sparks

Freedom from Personal Troubles Through Christ's Greatness

This evening we come to the close of these meditations in the new creation in Christ Jesus. 今天晚上我們要結束這個在基督裡新造的這個題目 And we shall take the letter to the Colossus. 我們要起頭先看俄羅斯書 And then if we have time just say a very brief word about the Thessalonians. Before we come to this letter to the Colossus Let me remind you that this is one of the letters that the Apostle wrote in his prison in Rome. 各位要記得這本書是他在羅馬的監牢裡所寫的 And I think that is a very wonderful thing. 我覺得這是一件很特別的事情 Paul did not know but that all his work was coming to an end. 他不知道他的工作差不多將要到一個段落了 He was no longer free to travel about visiting the churches. 他也不能再自由到各地去看望各地的教會 And he did not know but that any day the sentence of death would be passed upon him. 他也不知道有一天那死的判決在他的身上要發生的 He might have been a very sad man. 如果他知道恐怕他會覺得很痛苦 He might have been occupied with his own troubles. 他恐怕就一直在那裡忽略到他自己的難處 He might just have been thinking about himself. 他可能在那裡一直想到他的自己 But we find him writing these wonderful letters. 但是我們讀到他這幾封奇妙的書信 And in these letters he was moving over the greatest distances of spiritual life. 在這幾本書信裡面他寫到幫助他許多的宿命的經歷 The very greatest things that have ever been given to the church came from him at that time. 就是在這種在監牢裡的情形 他把他過去是沒有寫給教會的那些特別的經歷或者話語 這個時候他寫給這幾個地方的教會 The reason why I mention that is this 我提到這件事原因是這樣 The best way of getting free from our own troubles Is to be occupied with the great things of Christ. 我們要脫離我們自己的難處 我們就是要多注意到主基督耶穌他自己 So Paul went right back to the beginning 所以當他起頭寫這個書信的時候 And before the beginning of the world 他也寫到是沒有在這個創立世界之前 And then moved on through all time 那麼一直這個時間一直下來 And into the ages to come 一直到第二個永世 And as he thought about the great things of God 他一直在那裡想神一方面那個大的事情 He was delivered from all his own personal troubles 他就他這樣想到神大事 他就說自己的那個困難就被他拯救.

這一位使徒他實在是在靈裡面 並不是在監牢裡面 他的身體是在監牢 但是他的靈是自由的 因為他裡面都是充滿了基督的偉大. 我想這給我們一個很大的功課 什麼時候我們在那裡一直注意我們自己的難處 拯救的路就是多多想念到基督的偉大. 所以我們現在看哥羅西書 這本書是完全充滿了新創造的思想. 佛羅把我們帶到頭一個創造裡 他並且帶我們到這個頭一個創造以前的時候 他就把神在創立世界以前的神心理的意思告訴我們 他給我們看見神的心理的思想 就是關乎他永遠的兒子主耶穌基督.

Christ as the Image and Firstborn of Creation

我們現在看看這本書. We got this word creation in the first chapter and the fifteenth verse Speaking of the Lord Jesus The apostle says this Who is the image of the invisible God The first born of all creation 是守身裡 是在一切被創造裡之先 也就是創造裡開頭 說到基督 是在一切被造以前裡 一個守身裡.

Now we look at what Paul says here About Christ as the first born of all creation There is a little word which begins verse sixteen More in him He is the first born of all creation For in him were all things created.

Now you need to look very closely at the words For very little words are very big words. The first statement is that in him were all things created. 這裡說萬有都是靠他創造的 原文是說都是在他裡面創造的 What does that mean? 這是什麼意思呢?

It means that God created nothing outside of the Lord Jesus. 意思就是說神在基督之外並沒有創造什麼. That Jesus was the sphere of all God's creation. 基督是所有造物的範圍 神是把所有的東西都包裹在基督裡面 所以這裡是同一件事 講到這個創造的事情. 你的弟兄把那個窗門關起來. Very little things can upset very big things I hope you got hold of that very little word In him were all things created.

When you say all things you cannot leave anything out. In this first chapter that phrase all things occurs six times And all things just means all things. God created nothing that was to be outside of his son Jesus Christ.

神在他的兒子基督之外沒有創造別的 神在基督之外也看不見任何的東西 在神裡面的心意就是要基督 他的地位就是他在 神在基督裡面創造萬物. And then the same verse, verse sixteen Says that through him all things were created. He was not only the sphere of all the creation But he was the instrument of all creation.

The father used the son for the creation of all things. The father's instrument in creating all things was his son. The apostle John tells us that nothing was made without him. All things were made by him says John and without him nothing was made.

John says that all things were made by him. Without him nothing could be created. So the son of God is the creator of all things. Then the verse says another thing. In him were all things created. And through him And then unto him He was the object of all created things.

All the things that God created were to be given to his son. God created all things by Jesus Christ for his son's inheritance. And then another statement is made In him all things hold together. That is a very difficult thing to understand.

Christ as the Unity and Sustainer of Creation

But if we put it round the other way it means this. If you take the son of God out of the creation The creation will go to pieces. There is no reason at all why the creation should hold together when Jesus is put out of it.

And we have two illustrations of that in the New Testament. When they crucified God's son. When he said, Father into thy hands I commit my spirit. When he bowed his head and died. We are told that there was darkness over the face of the earth until the ninth hour.

That was the time when it ought to have been most light. But there was complete darkness over the face of the earth. It is as though the sun said, when you destroy God's sun there is no further purpose for me to shine.

All things were created for him. All things hold together in him. Destroy him and you destroy the very unity of the creation. And then we are told that at that time there was a great earthquake. It is as though the very earth said, put out the son of God and there is no reason for the earth to continue.

You see both the heaven and the earth was in a state of distress. It was as though heaven and earth were saying the very purpose of our existence has been destroyed. Because in him all things hold together.

Put him out and nothing holds together. Now how true that is in the new creation. Why are things as they are today in the world. No one will ever say that this world is in a state of unity. No one will ever say that this earth is in a state of harmony.

The whole world is in a state of discord and disintegration. And what is true of the whole world is true of every man. We know that as unconverted men and women we are not a unity in ourselves. We are a confusion.

We are a contradiction. We are a division. We are not one, we are two, more than two people in one. There is civil war in our nature. There is no harmony or unity in us. But when we are born again a great change takes place.

New Creation Unity in Christ

And peace comes into our hearts. We feel that the war has come to an end. We become one person. With one heart and one mind and one will. We are now united in the Son of God. But why is all this state in the world and in man.

This state of disruption and discord. It is because God's Son has not got his place. The real purpose of the creation has not been given his place. What I was saying the other evening is so true. As people who are not in Christ we belong to all kinds of nations.

There are all those national differences. We speak of one another as belonging to this nation and that nation. But when we are in Christ we forget all about that. We don't talk about one another as belonging to a certain nation.

All these national and international problems are solved in Christ. It is just very wonderful. I have known in some of our conferences in London 18 different nationalities to be represented. French, Swiss, Dutch Indian and Chinese Egyptian and others 18 different nationalities.

And we thought nothing about it. We were all together as though we all belonged to one nation. It was a time of wonderful fellowship. All the problems of the United Nations were solved. And that's how it is in the new creation.

In Him all things hold together. These nationalities which can never hold together outside of Christ do hold together in Him. And all the other things which in the old creation are disrupted are brought together in Christ.

It is always good to be able to prove the Scripture to be true. And in a very little way this very gathering tonight proves the Scripture to be true. You see on this earth we belong to different nationalities.

And we speak different languages. There are many other differences about us. But tonight we are all speaking one language. We are speaking a language which we all understand. It's the language of heaven.

When we speak about the Lord Jesus we all understand that. And we are not thinking about ourselves as on this earth. We are here as one family. The earthly differences don't count. We are all one in Christ Jesus.

So we are a testimony to this truth. In Him all things hold together. Now take Christ away from us. And see how long we'll hold together. Not very long. But this is the new creation In Christ Jesus. Now let us go on with this first chapter.

Reconciliation and the Supremacy of Christ

Verse 20. And screwed Him to reconcile all things unto Himself. Now let us go back over all these steps. In Him were all things created. Then He is the sphere of all things. Through Him were all things created.

Then He is the instrument of the creation of all things. Unto Him were all things created. Therefore He is the object of the creation of all things. In Him all things hold together. Then He is the unity of all things.

Now the fifth thing Through Him to reconcile all things. Therefore He is the reconciler of all things. There is a big space between the fourth and the fifth. It is in that space that all things became disunited.

The whole story of the entrance of sin. And the destruction of the creation. So that all things went to pieces. And then at number five He comes in to restore all things. Through Him to reconcile all things unto Himself.

The great story of redemption comes in there. Now what does all this amount to? What is the purpose of this letter? It is to set off the absolute supremacy of the Lord Jesus. This letter shows us that our Lord Jesus is to set off the absolute supremacy of the Lord Jesus.

And that explains the new creation. The new creation is that in which the Lord Jesus has His place. Has His place as the one who inherits all things. Has His place as the one who is the object of all things.

Has His place as the one who unites all things. And has His place as the one who reconciles all things. When it is like that then you have the new creation. Or to use one phrase in this chapter. That in all things He might have the first place.

The new creation is that in which Jesus Christ has first place. In all things He might have the preeminence. Now there is a second part to this letter. And that tells us that the church is the vessel of all this.

The Church as Christ's Body and Heir

We are told in chapter 1 verse 18. He is the head of the body, the church. As head of the body, the church. And as having all things in Himself He holds all things in the first place for the church. You see it says here that in Him all the fullness dwells.

And He is the head of the body, the church. Now He does not keep all things in Himself as head. And the body gets nothing. Our body is just for receiving what is in the head. Everything that our body does it gets from the head.

You know that the body has no meaning without the head. And the head has no meaning without the body. Cut the head off from the body and neither of them are of any use. So as head of the church which is His body.

All the fullness that is in Him is for the body. In the companion letter to the Galatians, the letter to the Ephesians. That is stated quite precisely. It says that God gave Him to be the head over all things to the church.

Now make sure that you recognize what that says. It does not say that He was made head over all things in the church. Of course that is quite true. But it does say He was made head over all things to the church.

Do you recognize what that means? Here are the all things which were created. And here is the church. Christ is head over all things to the church. All things in Him are for the church in the first place.

The apostle said to the Corinthians, all things are yours. Whether life or death. All principalities or powers. All things are yours. And ye are Christ's. And Christ is God's. So that He holds all things in the first place for the church.

His fullness is first of all for the church. So John says of His fullness have all we received. The church inherits all things in Christ. The letter to the Hebrews puts it in this way. We are heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is God's heir to all things. And we the church are joint heirs with Jesus Christ. This is a wonderful new creation too. Now look at that 18th verse. He is the head of the body, the church.

Who is the beginning, the first born from the dead. He, Jesus is the first born from the dead. But the church is also the church of the first born one. That is a quotation from the letter to the Hebrews.

The apostle there says We are come unto the church of the first born one. That means two things. Firstly it means that the beginning of Christ is with the church. Secondly it means that the beginning of Christ is with the church.

That is all that Christ is at the beginning is for the church. God begins with the church through His Son. After His Son the next thing is the church. These are the first two things in the mind of God His Son and His Son's church.

Now the first born is always the heir. He inherits all things. You know what an important place the first born has in the Bible. If the church is the church of the first born one. Then the church is the heir with Christ of all things.

The point is that the church comes first next to the Lord Jesus. And then there is one other statement here. Chapter 2 verses 9 and 10. For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And in Him ye are made full.

In the letter to the Ephesians that is put in this way. And gave Him to be head over all things to the church. The fullness of Him that filleth all in all. If the church is the church of the first born one.

If the church is the beginning with Christ. Then the church is chosen to be the vessel of His fullness. If the first part of this letter presents the greatness of Christ. And we all agree that it does.

There is no place in scripture where the greatness of Christ is set forth as it is in this letter. This is the greatest presentation of the Lord Jesus that we have in the Bible. If that is true as to the Lord Jesus.

And all that is to find its expression in the church. The church is the chosen vessel for all that. Then the church must be a very great thing. It must be a very wonderful thing. I think we all need to see in a new way what a great thing the true church is.

Living on Heavenly Ground

Then pass to the next thing. Let us look at chapter 2 verse 20. If ye died with Christ. Chapter 3 verse 1. If ye were raised together with Christ. Seek the things that are above. Where Christ is seated on the right hand of God.

Set your mind on the things that are above. Not on the things that are upon the earth. For ye died and your life is here with Christ in God. What does that mean? If we are to come into all the meaning of that fullness in Christ Then we must live on heavenly ground and not on earthly ground.

Our hearts must be occupied with heavenly things. Our lives must be taken up with heavenly things. We have died to merely earthly things as being our life. We were raised with Christ. And that means that we are alive only to heavenly things.

The sisters have to look after their homes and their children. The brothers have to look after their business. But one who is risen with Christ Has higher things than those. They do their business for the glory of Christ.

And while they should do their business thoroughly They ought to have the interest of the Lord more at heart than their business. And when they have done their day's work thoroughly And then their real interest begins.

It's the things of heaven. That's why you are here tonight. Many of you have had a busy day. In the home and in the business. You have done your work for the glory of Christ. Because you were glad when you could leave bed.

And come to the place where the things of the Lord are being spoken about. Perhaps you got your work done as quickly as you could. You got the things in the home settled up. And the business completed.

And your main thought was, let me get to that meeting. These things are all right in their place. But the main thing is the Lord. Your hearts are really set on heavenly things. If it is like that, we shall come into the fullness of Christ more and more.

If our homes or our businesses are the only thing we live for We certainly shall not come to the fullness of Christ. So here we are told that if we are to come to the fullness We must take our affections on things above.

There are a lot of other things in this letter. We are not really studying the letter to the Galatians. We are only looking at it from one standpoint. And that is the standpoint of the new creation. I think we have said enough to show what the new creation is.

The new creation, may I repeat, is first of all Christ in his place. Christ in all things having the preeminence. And then it is the church living on a heavenly ground. That is the new creation. Now seeing that we have to finish tonight.

The Thessalonians and the Coming of the Lord

And I cannot begin to give you the message of the two letters to the Thessalonians. There is only time for me to say this one thing. The two letters to the Thessalonians are occupied with one subject.

It is one subject in two parts. In the first letter to the Thessalonians It is the Lord's coming in relation to believers. In the second letter it is the Lord's coming in relation to the world. But it is one subject in two parts.

And I am so glad that these letters come where they do in the arrangement of the New Testament. You will remember when we began these meditations I said that the arrangement that we have in our New Testament Is not the arrangement in the order in which the books were written.

If we had the arrangement as the books were written it would be very different. For instance we should have to have the Gospel of John right at the end of the New Testament. Or it was practically the last thing written by an apostle.

But we have got the divine order. We have got the spiritual order. So we see that Romans comes first in these letters In the arrangement that we have. And Romans is the foundation of the new creation.

And in our arrangement the letters to the Thessalonians come last. And that is quite right because it is about the Lord's coming. Everything leads on from Romans to the coming of the Lord. And when the Lord comes the new creation will be completed.

Grace as the Crown of God's Work

All we have to say is to point to that upstone. And you will recognize that that is a quotation from the Old Testament. And they shall bring forth the topstone with shoutings of grace, grace unto it. The crown of all will be grace.

If you go through all these nine letters You will find that a large plate is given in every one of them to grace. Everything is through grace. So all his works are crowned with grace. When the work is finished And the Lord comes.

Then we shall all shout it is all of grace. They shall bring forth the topstone with shoutings of grace. We shall owe everything to the grace of God. Lord we do thank thee for the wonderful revelation that thou hast given us in thy words.

Worship, Praise, and the Hope of Christ's Coming

We thank thee for the greatness of thy son our Lord Jesus. We thank thee for the greatness of the church into which we are called. We thank thee for the glorious hope of his coming again. And if we thank thee for anything more than anything else it is for thy grace.

How wonderful is the grace of God. By which we have been called into the fellowship of his Son. By which we have been called into membership of his Body. And by which we have been called into the glorious hope of his coming again.

At the end of these hours together we want to worship thee. We want to praise the Lord together. We ask thee to write thy word deeply in our hearts. And although we do not understand it all may it make a very great impression upon us.

May we live from day to day under the impression of the greatness of Christ And the greatness of our calling in him. So we take up the words of the apostle. And we say unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all ages forever and ever.

And we say unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all ages forever and ever.