Who can fully comprehend “the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come”? Eph. 1:19-21. It is written that God condemned the world through Noah’s ark. All the ungodly drowned in the flood, but Noah and his household were saved in the ark. Heb. 11:7. While Noah and his household were being saved, the ungodly were perishing. Christ has been raised up for our justification. When we are found in Him, we are in the Ark of Salvation that God has prepared for His people. God condemned the world through Noah’s ark. In the same way, He has now condemned those who have not come into Christ Jesus. That is why it is written in Romans 8:1 that there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. They have entered the ark; so now they are free from the law of sin and death. But just as Noah and his household took their flesh and blood into the ark, we, too, have taken our flesh and blood into Christ. Thus it is written, “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?” (1 Cor. 6:15), and “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same.” Heb. 2:14. Noah also entered the ark with another law in his members, which warred against the law of his mind. Rom. 7:23. Salvation in the ark did not cleanse him from the impurity of the flesh. Neither can baptism (the equivalent) save us from the impurity of sin in our flesh. Nevertheless, there is salvation from this other law in our members, or, if you will, from the impurity of the flesh. This salvation takes place very slowly. As long as the old man remains on the cross by faith, the body of sin (the other law in our members) will be destroyed. This happens after we have been baptized into one Spirit, to become one body with Him. “For what the law could not do . . . God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh . . . .” Note that God sent His Son on account of sin and that He condemned sin in the flesh. Sin received its judgment and punishment in the flesh, and the lusts and desires were also put to death in the flesh. They were never allowed to rule; they were denied and put to death. This is the work God did in Christ. Jesus offered Himself in the power of an eternal Spirit and suffered death in the flesh. Because of this, He was also made alive in the Spirit. This is how a new and living way was made through the veil, His flesh. All this was accomplished in the power of an eternal Spirit. The last Adam has become a life-giving Spirit, and He jealously yearns for the spirit that He has caused to dwell in us (our human spirit). James 4:5. He wants to make our spirit alive. That is what it means to be saved through His life. Rom. 5:10. This salvation takes place after we have entered the ark—the body of Christ—after God has reconciled us to Himself through the death of His Son. This salvation also takes place by the power of the resurrection, by obedience to the faith, by walking in the light just as He is in the light. Then the blood of Christ cleanses us from all sin. The sin referred to here is passive, indwelling sin; for he who walks in the light cannot commit sin—he cannot commit works of darkness. Sin in the body is destroyed through fellowship with Christ in His sufferings as we continually give ourselves into the death of Christ, so that Jesus’ life can be revealed in our mortal flesh. Rom. 6:6 and 2 Cor. 4:11. Paul relinquished everything to win Christ, to “know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” Phil. 3:10. The power of the resurrection requires that we, too, relinquish everything on this earth. Noah could not cling to anything from the former world; his heart and his mind had to be completely freed. During the long period of time it took to build the ark, he became more and more freed from the world. That is why it took so long to build the ark; but by the time it was finished, Noah was also finished with this world. At the same time, the sinfulness of the former world had fully developed, and God’s patience with men had endured long enough. Now we, too, have entered the ark where we are being built together as a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. During this building period, we are being liberated more and more from the world and its lust. When the whole ark (the body of Christ) is completed, we will be caught up in the clouds to become like Christ and to see Him as He is. What did the authorities of this world do with the Lord of glory? They persecuted Him and nailed Him to the accursed tree. This was the extent of their wisdom. They saw Christ Jesus as a threat, despite the fact that He only did good. God raised Jesus from the dead, and He thereby condemned the world through Him, just as He also condemned the ancient world through the ark. Jesus’ words to the Pharisees were fulfilled: Their last state is worse than their first—because Christ has been resurrected. God received Him whom the world rejected. Thus, the world has brought condemnation upon itself. God has subjected all things to sin, so all salvation and, likewise, all condemnation are entirely dependent upon a person’s relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ. There is hope in the power of the resurrection. That is why it is written that even the creation yearns for the revelation of the sons of God. Rom. 8:19. The power of His resurrection even has an effect on the creation. This shows us how infinitely powerful the power of His resurrection is. We who have the firstfruits of the Spirit also groan inwardly, longing for the redemption of our body. With a deep, quiet strength, the power of the resurrection has a drawing effect on all of creation. Jesus says, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” John 12:32. At the same time, His Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment; of sin because they do not believe in Him; of righteousness because Christ is raised up and has gone to His Father; of judgment because the prince of this world is judged. The spirit of the prince of this world is the spirit that is active in the children of unbelief, so, naturally, they sense the same condemnation that rests over the prince of this world. But there is no condemnation in Christ or in His Spirit, for He was resurrected for our justification. God’s Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. We are convicted of righteousness, because we are raised up with Him and are seated in heavenly places with Christ Jesus. He is now seated far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. God has made Him the Head of the church, which is His body. Satan did his best to hold Him in death and Hades. Roman soldiers were even posted in front of His grave. But to no avail! The power of the resurrection rolled the huge stone away, and Jesus rose from the dead. He was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. The pangs of death could not keep Him in Hades. God raised Him up and made Him Lord and Messiah—this Jesus whom the Jews crucified. Acts 2. In this resurrection power we experience “the fellowship of the saints,” where we are built up with the others to become a dwelling place for God in the Spirit. This fellowship eclipses all other fellowship. The dead have fellowship as long as their egos benefit from it, but the “fellowship of the saints” is exalted far above this, because it flourishes in the power of the resurrection. The body of Christ cannot be split into factions or parties. Parties are formed because of unbelief. Shepherds gather the sheep around them to make a living, but God’s Word says that if we have food and clothing, we should be content. God has promised that if we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these things will be added to us. There are no factions in Christ. No partisan attitude or partisan spirit can survive in Him. Party spirit divides God’s people—it is of the devil. It is imperative that we keep ourselves pure from this spirit. If some groups do include or exclude others, that is their business, but the Scriptures do not give anyone authority to create such cliques. Christ is exalted above all such authority. The church that Christ has formed is living (the church of the living God), where He is the Head and we are the members. But the church created by man is pure theater. There people are appointed as apostles, shepherds and teachers who could never occupy such a position in the body of Christ. Their ignorance of the knowledge of God demonstrates this. This is playacting. Just as little girls play with dolls and little boys play with wooden horses, these men play at church. But God’s church is no game; it is a living reality.Johan O. Smith

Man’s content is pure vanity. Sin has put so many holes into the “tub” that its content has run out. The “tub” becomes whole again only after a person has been crucified with Christ, so it can hold water. Most preachers are also empty. When they speak about God, it is not spirit and life but the letter—concepts and human feelings. In their daily lives it is the world that fills their hearts, thoughts, minds, and mouths. It is altogether vanity. I recently traveled together with two preachers in the same train compartment. Their entire conversation and joy, their lively interest concerned—without stopping and without a pause—mahogany furniture and furniture decorated with floral motifs, where they could be displayed to best advantage and where they would not be displayed to best advantage, whether in the country, in the city, or in museums. They talked about earning money and saving money, and whether it was more advantageous to live in one place or another, about holiday resorts, swimming, and nice company, about beautiful nature in various places, about automobile trips and hiking tours, about illegal driving, about traffic laws and ordinances, about changes that should be made or should not be made, about the use of language and dialects, about the curious origins of various place names and their meaning, about narrow gauge and wide gauge railroads, about public transportation, about how far a wooden cross was placed inside or outside the church walls in former days, that undoubtedly one idea was more probable for one thing rather than for another, etc., etc. It wasn’t just that they spoke about such things (for a spiritual man can also speak about earthly things), but it was the manner in which they spoke about it. Here they were without a doubt in their natural element while God’s Word and laws were assuredly ever so foreign to them. It is best to put off empty talk, for it will soon drain the power and the energy that may be found in one’s heart. It is a “little” fox that destroys things of great value.Elias Aslaksen