The All-Inclusive, Extensive Christ Replacing Culture For the One New Man
Message Four
Being Renewed Day by Day with the Fresh Supply of the Resurrection Life to Replace Our Culture
and to Become the One New Man in Reality by Becoming as New as the New Jerusalem
OPENING WORD OF THE PROPHESYING MEETING
Reading the verses in each day.
Reading the main points in the outlines.
Pray-reading the verses:
Eph. 4:22-23 That you put off, as regards your former manner of life, the old man…and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind.
2 Cor. 4:16 Therefore we do not lose heart; but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.
Word of Appetizer
The only possibility of God’s purpose being fulfilled in this age, to have the one new man in reality, is if we would all be willing to be renewed in the spirit of our mind. What should we do to be renewed in the spirit of our mind?
Our spirit mingled with the Spirit of God must become the spirit of our mind; then all our living will be by the spirit, and whatever we do will be according to the spirit; as we are renewed by this spirit, we put on the new man; by our loving the Lord and by the exercise of our spirit in prayer and in reading the Word day by day, our mind is filled with the mingled spirit; this changes and renews our mind; for us to be renewed in our mind is to get rid of all the old concepts concerning the things of the human life and be made new again by the teaching of the Holy Scriptures and the enlightening of the Holy Spirit.
Spiritual Burden
The putting off of the old man and the putting on of the new man are accomplished facts; now we must experience and realize these facts by being renewed in the spirit of our mind.
We need to be those who are being renewed day by day with the fresh supply of the resurrection life to replace our culture and to become the one new man in reality by becoming as new as the New Jerusalem.
CONCLUDING WORD OF THE PROPHESYING MEETING
The Revelation of the Truth
Ephesians 4:22 says, “Put off, as regards your former manner of life, the old man.”
Since the new man in Ephesians 2:15-16 is a corporate man, the new man in 4:24 must also be corporate; according to Ephesians 4:24, we need to put on the very new man that has already been created in Christ.
The central point of Paul’s word to the Colossians concerns the renewing of the mind unto the full knowledge of Christ, who is the image of God; the new man was created in our spirit and is being renewed in our mind unto full knowledge according to the image of Christ.
We need to be those who are being renewed day by day with the fresh supply of the resurrection life to replace our culture and to become the one new man in reality by becoming as new as the New Jerusalem. The renewing of the new man depends on our seeking the things which are above.
The Experience of Life
Whenever we return to the old manner of life, we shall spontaneously sense that we are darkened within and estranged from God’s life; in baptism we put off the old man, which was crucified with Christ and buried; it was also in baptism that we put on the new man.
When we believed in the Lord Jesus, the life-giving Spirit came into our spirit, bringing with Him the new man as a finished product; the more we put on the new man, the more we are renewed according to what God is, and the more we bear His image, the expression of what He is.
Practice and Application
By our loving the Lord and by the exercise of our spirit in prayer and in reading the Word day by day, our mind is filled with the mingled spirit; this changes and renews our mind; for us to be renewed in our mind is to get rid of all the old concepts concerning the things of the human life and be made new again by the teaching of the Holy Scriptures and the enlightening of the Holy Spirit.
We need to be those who are being renewed day by day with the fresh supply of the resurrection life to replace our culture and to become the one new man in reality by becoming as new as the New Jerusalem; in order to be renewed day by day, we need to be revived every morning.
PROPHESYING TOPICS—
TWELVE TOPICS PER WEEK
Day 1
T1: Putting off, as regards our former manner of life, the old man (Eph. 4:22).
(What is Paul’s meaning here?)
T2: If we truly desire to be renewed, we need to put off the former manner of life (Eph. 4:22).
(Please explain by giving examples that the words “manner of life” imply a great deal.)
Day 2
T1: We are all unconsciously under the influence of culture (Col. 3:11).
(Why is that in the new man there is no possibility for Greek and Jew, Barbarian and Scythian to exist?)
T2: We must put off the former manner of life (Eph. 4:22; Rom. 6:6).
(Please explain that whenever we return to the old manner of life, we will spontaneously sense that we are darkened within.）
Day 3
T1: Not living according to the vanity of the mind but according to the spirit of the mind (Eph. 4:23).
(What is the key to the daily living of the corporate one new man?)
T2: “Be renewed in the spirit of your mind” (Eph. 4:23).
(Please explain that the mingled spirit spreads into our mind and thereby becomes the spirit of our mind.)
Day 4
T1: The new man was created in our spirit and is being renewed in our mind (Eph. 2:15; 4:23).
(Why does the new man need to be renewed?)
T2: When the mind is renewed, the emotion is spontaneously renewed as well (Eph. 4:23).
(Please explain according to our own experiences that the more our mind is renewed, the more we love Him.)
Day 5
T1: God has the best provisions to help us to receive the renewing (2 Cor. 4:16; Titus 3:3; Eph. 4:23; 5:26).
(What are the best provisions God has to help us to receive the renewing?)
T2: While we are in the midst of suffering, we need to receive the renewing (2 Cor. 4:16; Rom. 8:28).
(Please explain that when we are suffering, we have to learn how to turn to our spirit; that is our refuge to receive the renewing.)
Day 6
T1: The renewing of the new man depends on our seeking the things which are above (Col. 3:1-2; Eph. 2:5-6).
(Please explain that to seek the things which are above is to respond to and reflect Christ’s activities in His heavenly ministry.)
T2: Our church meetings should be a feast of the riches of Christ (1 Cor. 14:26, 31).
(Please explain according to our own experiences that a meeting in which all the saints are speaking for the Lord is full of nourishing, cherishing, adjusting, and correcting.)
