01.14. The Spiritual Man "Walks In Light"

Again, it is of the " spiritual " man that the Apostle John writes, " If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin . . . " (1 John 1:7). The walking in light can only be by the man living in the sphere of the God-consciousness, where God dwells in his spirit. Any descent into the realm of the soul may be likened to the " spirit" joined to Him Who is light-sinking into an opaque vessel, which brings a cloud or film over it, and obscures the light. The believer abiding in God Who is light, abides and walks in light, and in that light finds " fellowship " with God and with others who dwell in light, whilst the blood of Jesus goes on cleansing continuously from all unknown sin, which may unconsciously touch the abiding one by any intrusion of the " soul-life ", or from contact with sin in the world around. " God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." " He that loveth ... abideth in the light." This is the Ascensionlife, or life hidden with Christ in God, of which the Apostle Paul writes. It was spoken of to the disciples by the Lord Jesus in His farewell words in the upper room at Jerusalem, and brought into their real experience by the Holy Ghost on the Day of Pentecost, when the Spirit of the glorified Jesus entered their spirit, and they were lifted up out of the soul-realm into spiritual oneness with the glorified Lord. Abiding in Him, and He in them, the " world " believed. They saw the oneness of the Spirit filled company " made perfect in Love ", with all " fear " cast out; they saw them walking in such light that sinful selfishness, such as that manifested by Ananias, could not be allowed to exist among them. In the light of all this, and what it means to Christ and His Church, that all the members of His Body should thus become " spiritual ", and adjusted-or perfected-into their place in union with the Risen Head, the importance of the believer understanding the difference between " soul " and " spirit " cannot be over-estimated. For upon his ceasing to live " after the flesh "-in the senseconsciousness-depends his growth into a fully " spiritual " man, i.e., a man able to understand his spirit, and to discern and examine spiritual things. A man sanctified wholly, by the complete liberation of his spirit from the domination of either soul or body, indwelt by the Triune God; and, walking whereunto he has attained, is yet pressing on to fuller " perfection " or completeness (Php 3:15-16).

How long should be the stage between the first step of the new birth and full-grown in the life of Christ, in the sense of the spirit being liberated, and-in union with the Risen Ascended Lord-having complete domination of soul and body, we cannot clearly say. The language used by the Apostle to the Corinthians, and again by the writer to the Hebrews, suggests blame that many had continued too long in the stage of babyhood, " yet carnal ", and needing milk on account of their weak spiritual life, when they should have been teachers, leading other " babes " on into full growth. The babe-stage can evidently be protracted or shortened, and need not be measured by ordinary periods of time. Probably either is determined by the measure of truth apprehended, and the knowledge and self-surrender of the believer. At all events, the language of the writer to the Hebrews makes it clear that the attitude of the believer has much to do with his progress. Writing to those he had just rebuked by saying that they had become " dull of hearing ", and needed to be taught again the first principles of the Gospel, he says: " Let us leave the word of the beginning of Christ, and press on unto full growth . . . " (Hebrews 6:1 R. V. margin) almost the very words of Paul to the Philippians in Php 3:1-21, where he tells of his own eager pressing on, not considering that he was " already made perfect ", although he could say " Let us who are ... perfect ",i.e., complete, or full-grown-be thus minded in pressing on towards the goal of the upward calling of God in Christ Jesus.