THERE is currently a great deal of confusion about whether sin was condemned in the flesh of Christ. The Scriptures refer to this truth as “a great mystery of godliness,” and those who partake of the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings find it to be a great comfort. Therefore, you cannot expect to understand such truths with your intellect, no matter how intelligent you might be. Christ must be believed on in the world, and by this faith we understand and experience His sufferings, death, and also the glory that follows.

It is the word of faith which we preach. Not many people understand this, but neither do all have faith. It is by the Holy Spirit—who is received by faith—that these truths are revealed; and because we believe, we also speak. The fact that some people are unbelieving does not nullify our faith. Just as this faith overcomes the world, it will also overcome the difficulties that arise within the church because of unbelief.

Death no longer has dominion over Jesus. Rom. 6:9. Doesn’t that mean that death once did have dominion over Him?

Christ suffered death in the flesh but was made alive in the Spirit. 1 Pet. 3:18. How could Jesus suffer death in the flesh if He had not taken upon Himself—in His flesh—the first Adam, on whose account death had begun to reign? As it is written, “As in Adam all die . . . .” 1 Cor. 15:22. Consequently, Christ had to be manifested in flesh in order to destroy him who had the power of death in the flesh, that is, the devil.

We need to distinguish between two kinds of death. The death of Christ is carried out by the Holy Spirit. This death, which He suffered in the flesh, is a continual death that reigns over all flesh and is subject to the Father of spirits, through the same Spirit. This death is the destruction of the flesh.

There is another death, a death that came about through the will of the devil in the first Adam. This death is destroyed in the second Adam by the death of Christ, so that life and immortality are brought to light.

It was as the Son of Man that Jesus had to fulfill this blessed work in the flesh through the power of an eternal Spirit, since it was the seed of the woman that crushed the serpent’s head.

Through obedience to the Spirit of God, these truths—truths which the natural man will never understand—will be revealed to you in the Spirit. If you are personally broken down according to the flesh, thus causing you to suffer and to discover in the Spirit that these are the sufferings of Christ, then it will be very easy to understand that He also was broken down and had to suffer in just the same way, in order that the will of the Father could be fulfilled in Him.

However, if you live as a natural man—even if you live a very respectable life—these truths will forever remain hidden to you. If you received the forgiveness of sins at one time, but after that you did not live according to the will of God, you will never grasp them. Your objections will simply reveal your own ignorance, disobedience, and unbelief.

“‘A man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.” Eph. 5:31-32. It is a great mystery that Christ and the church are to become one flesh. Have you examined what your own flesh is like? If so, you should know that He who became one flesh with you had the same flesh. If that were not the case, it would say two or more fleshes.

The Scriptures call this a great mystery. If you have not partaken of this mystery because of your unbelief, does that mean you can bring to nothing the mystery of faith and godliness? Just try it! Your own wretchedness will be thoroughly exposed when you fight against these eternal truths. These truths will always emerge from the darkness to overwhelm you as an unconquerable, life-giving force, breaking down your pride and your kicking against the goads.

You say that you want to understand it, if only you were able to, but that unfortunately all your efforts to grasp these truths have been in vain.

Yes, they have been in vain and will continue to be in vain because you are trying to understand it by using your cleverness to search the Scriptures.

How could it be a great mystery of godliness if intelligent minds were able to figure it out without any godliness or godly fear?

We have plenty of examples of people who are very uneducated by human standards and yet are rich in the wisdom of God. They possess a spiritual intelligence and can easily grasp spiritual truths. This is something that can only be given from above, through the Spirit. But we also see that people who think they are wise in this world commit the most shocking, spiritual blunders. They are slow to comprehend and are poorly equipped according to the Spirit. Why is that? Is God a respecter of persons?

No, God is not a respecter of persons; but people show partiality. The more worldly wisdom they think they have, the more difficult it is for them to let go of it in order to gain the wisdom of God. However, someone who is poor in spirit and has nothing is happy to receive something. This is why the last often becomes the first, and the first becomes the last.

But whose fault is that? Examine yourself.