5以弗所一章说到基督的身体,就是那在万有中充满万有者的丰满。二章说到一个新人,并结束于神的建造。为著新人的缘故,神正在把祂自己分赐到祂所拣选的人里面,正如三章所启示的。神格中的三者都包括在这分赐里。我们被那灵加强到里面的人里,使基督能安家在我们心里,结果我们就被充满,成为神一切的丰满。在三章八节,保罗说到基督的丰富。如果新人要被建造成为神在灵里的居所,基督的丰富就必须分赐到这新人的每一部分。为了这样的分赐能发生,所有构成这一个新人的信徒,都必须被那灵加强到他们里面的人里。然后基督带著祂一切的丰富,就能安家在我们心里。至终,新人要被充满,成为神一切的丰满。这指明新人乃是一个充满神的人,就是一个与三一神调和的团体实体。以弗所三章结束于新人被充满,成为神一切的丰满。然而,这不是这卷书的结束。这里仍然需要人的合作。虽然基督已经废除了一切的规条,为要创造新人,但作为新人的召会仍然需要被建造。基督不是直接建造召会,乃是用使徒、申言者、传福音者、牧人和教师来成全圣徒,以完成召会直接的建造。元首基督,把一些恩赐赐给祂的身体,好成全圣徒。圣徒们藉著这些恩赐的供应就被成全,直接建造召会。因此,召会不是直接由基督建造的,也不是直接由使徒、申言者、传福音者、牧人和教师建造的,乃是由被成全的圣徒直接建造的。这指明召会的建造需要神子民的合作。
5Chapter one of Ephesians speaks of the Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all. Chapter two speaks of the one new man and concludes with a word about God’s building. For the sake of the new man, God is dispensing Himself into His chosen people, as revealed in chapter three. All Three of the Godhead are involved in this dispensation. We are strengthened by the Spirit into the inner man, so that Christ may make His home in our hearts, with the result that we are filled unto all the fullness of God. In 3:8 Paul speaks of the riches of Christ. If the new man is to be built up as the habitation of God in spirit, surely the riches of Christ need to be dispensed into every part of this new man. In order for such a dispensation to take place, the inner man of all those who makeup the one new man must be strengthened by the Spirit. Then Christ with all His riches will be able to make His home in our hearts. Eventually, the new man will be filled unto all the fullness of God. This indicates that the new man will be a God-filled man, a corporate entity mingled with the Triune God. Chapter three of Ephesians ends with the new man filled unto all the fullness of God. This, however, is not the end of the book. There is still the need for human cooperation. Although Christ has abolished all the ordinances in order to create the new man, the church as the new man still needs to be built up. Christ does not build the church directly. Rather, He uses the apostles, prophets, evangelists, and shepherds and teachers to perfect the saints to carry out the direct building up of the church. As the Head, Christ presents certain gifts to His Body for the perfecting of the saints. Having been perfected through the ministry of these gifts, the saints build the church directly. Hence, the church is not directly built by Christ or by the apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers; it is built directly by the perfected saints. This indicates that the building of the church requires the cooperation of God’sp eople.