How Does God Get the One New Man in Colossians 3:10?

The Bible tells us that Christ died to produce one new man.  

       For He Himself is our peace, He who has made both one and has broken down the middle wall of partition, the enmity.

      Abolishing in His flesh the law of the commandments in ordinances, that He might create the two in Himself into one new man, so making peace.  Ephesians 2:14-15

     It's obvious from these verses that the peace that Christ made on the cross is very powerful.  It blasted through centuries of Jewish religion and Gentile pagan living.  This peace dissolved all the differences between not only those two cultures but every kind of culture on the face of the earth today.  Now that's amazing peace!   

  It touched me In Chapter 32 of the Life-Study of Colossians that the peace Christ made on the cross produced the oneness between all the Lord's believers. 

      And in Colossians 3:10 we can see how strong Paul is to point out that in this new man that the Lord created on the cross there isn't any cultural distinctions:  And have put on the new man,…where there cannot be Greek (those who favored philosophical wisdom) and Jew (those who favored miraculous signs), circumcision (those who observed Jewish religious rituals) and uncircumcision, barbarian (an uncultured person), Scythian (considered the most barbarous), slave, free man, but Christ is all and in all.  All the definitions in parentheses come from excerpts from the footnotes in the Recovery Version of the New Testament.

    For about ten chapters in the Life-Study of Colossians Witness Lee talks about how the people in Colosse were distracted by their cultures.  Paul uses the words deluded in Colossians 2:4 and defrauded in 2:18 to describe what had happened to them.  in Chapter 41 brother Lee gives a bit of a background and says Asia Minor, now present day Turkey, was actually a melting pot of cultures and eventually it pervaded the church life there.  

   The problem he says in chapter 33 is that by default we unconsciously live out the culture we're born in.  After we're saved, we begin to meet with other believers from different cultures.  And it's only a matter of time before our cultural opinions explode, and that is probably one of the reasons there might be so many divisions out there among believers.  But God desires to gain one new man, and I appreciated this clear explanation on why:

"However, God's eternal purpose is to have a corporate people to be the Body of Christ for His expression.  But if mankind remains divided by cultural opinions, how can God's purpose be carried out? It would be impossible. But according to Ephesians 2:15, Christ's death on the cross has abolished all the cultural ordinances and differences terminating them…This very peace, the peace of Christ, is what Paul refers to in Colossians 3:15 (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Colossians. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1979, Print). 

   After reading this I looked up Colossians 3:15 in my Bible, I was like wow this arbitrating peace is really like our brother said for the Body of Christ:  And let the peace of Christ arbitrate in your hearts, to which also you were called in one Body,…" He then points that after this verse Paul talks about letting the word of Christ dwell in us, and later he speaks about persevering in prayer because all of these spiritual practices help swallow up  all of our cultural opinions that cause division in the Lord's Body.  

     As I was thinking about everything I've been reading these past few weeks on culture this sentence in Chapter 38 stood out to me:  "The goal of God's dispensation of Himself into us is the one new man (Page 322).   I think what touches me with these excerpts is that God's eternal purpose centers around His gaining this one new man.  

You can listen to excerpts from the Life-Study of Colossians given in 1979 on The Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee. 

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Colossians:

What is God's Will in Colossians 1:9?
What is the Stewardship of God in Colossians 1:25?
What is the Hope of Glory in Colossians 1:27?
What is the Mystery of God in Colossians 2:2? (Part 1)
What is the Mystery of Christ in Ephesians 5:32?   (Part 2)
What is the Greatest Mystery?
What is God's Intention for Your Life?
From the Life-Study of Colossians - What Happens When We Pray?
How Does God Get the One New Man in Colossians 3:10?
What Does Colossians 2:7 Say About Spiritual Growth? (Part 1)
What is the Goal of Spiritual Growth in Colossians 2:19?  (Part 2)
What is Christ Doing at the Right Hand of God in Colossians 3:2?

Beautiful Eggs Florentine

   Presentation matters.  Especially when it's for a birthday breakfast.   Eggs Florentine are not only delicious tasting but they also look pretty on your plate!


   I wanted a way to make poached eggs, and found this one by Rachel Ray.  I only made a few minor adjustments to it-- some fresh basil and cheese (of course).   

 

 Eggs Florentine

1.  Line  muffin tins with slices of turkey bacon.

2.  Prepare vegetables, mix together & add to muffin tins:
(1)  Chop 1 tomato
(2)  Rinse and chop 1 1/2 - 2 cups of spinach.
(3)  Slice 2-3 green onions.
(4)  1-2 T of freshly chopped basil
(5)  Place chopped vegetables into each muffin tin.

3.  Crack a raw egg over each muffin and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
     Or whisk the eggs together with some milk, salt, and pepper and poured it into muffin tins to make individual frittatas.

4.  Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.  Add some grated cheese and cook for 3-5 minutes more.

Other breakfast recipes on this blog:

Pancakes
Fantastic Gluten Free Blueberry Pancakes  (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)
Gluten Free Banana Split Pancakes  (Another recipe from my daughter-in-law's family!)
Outstanding Gluten Free Oatmeal Pancakes  (From my Heritage School Cookbook, where I worked 3 1/2 years)
Yummy Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes (From About Gluten Free Cooking)
Crunchy & Delicious Potato Latkes  (From a flier in my sweet potato bag)
Tasty Gluten Free Swedish Pancakes    (From my Syre School Cookbook)
Protein Packed Gluten Free Ricotta Cheese Pancakes  (From my daughter-in-law's family)
Family Favorite Gluten Free Buttermilk Pancakes (From my daughter's home ec teacher)

Waffles, Crepes,  Fritters & Dutch Babies 
Gluten Free Gingerbread Waffles   (This is one I adapted from Rachel Ray)
Easy to Make Gluten Free Waffles  (From my Syre School Cookbook)
Incredible Gluten Free Crepes  (Mix of 2 recipes)
Old Fashioned Gluten Free Banana Fritters   (My grandmother's recipe!)
Amazing Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Dutch Baby  (From an Internet search)

Egg Dishes
Sweet Potato Hash With Poached Eggs  (From my daughter's Internet search)
Hash Brown Egg Casserole  (From my friend Lisa)
Mexican Migas Breakfast Casserole  (An adaptation from a recipe from an airport cookbook)
Baked Zucchini Frittata  (I picked this up from a Whidbey Island farmer's market)
Jan's Sausage & Vegetable Frittata  (From a friend who was a home ec teacher)
Huevos Rancheros - A Fantastic South of the Border Breakfast  (I learned this years ago!)
Beautiful Eggs Florentine (Adapted from an Internet search)

Cereals
 Honey Almond Granola   (From the Heritage School Cookbook)
 Gluten Free Baked Oatmeal   (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)

Breakfast Muffins
Banana Nutty Muffins   (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)
Bursting with Blueberries Gluten Free Muffins  (From the Heritage School Cookbook)
Gluten Free Tremendous Pumpkin Muffins  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
Scrumptious Gluten Free Blueberry Scones  (From Heritage School Cookbook)
Thanksgiving Gluten Free Pumpkin Scones  (From an Internet search)
Sassy Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Muffins  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)

From the Life-Study of Colossians - What Happens When We Pray?

     Why pray?  When I was growing up, prayer wasn't a fun thing to do, especially when I had to pray something like ten Our Fathers and five Hail Marys in penance for my sins.  For years prayer was mechanical and punitive. I really didn't know what it was about.  And on the wall outside my bedroom was the quote--Prayer Changes Things, but I didn't know how.  

   Even after I was saved, I didn't pray much.  Maybe before dinner but nothing personal. But when I was a sophomore in high school, I started talking to God.  Here's how it happened.  When I was at my grandparent's farm I used to like to walk along the fields, and at that time in my life I was going through some major life events. 

   With the sky spreading above me and the beauty of nature surrounding me, it just opened my heart, and one day I just started talking to God about everything. Looking back I don't even think I would have told anyone I was praying on those walks.  

    Since that time I have grown in both my understanding and experience of prayer.  There are a lot of lessons to learn here. Over the years I have learned a lot about prayer by simply praying with others. And I've been greatly helped by the writings of both Watchman Nee and Witness Lee on prayer.  A few outstanding books that come to mind are:  The Prayer Ministry of the Church and Lessons on Prayer.  And whenever a verse is on prayer in a particular Life-Study, Witness Lee  shares some practical experiences and fellowship (you'll see an example of that below). 

    I also like to journal some of my prayers. Several years ago my friend Patty's mom showed me a shelf filled with her prayer journals.  She had been a missionary in Madagascar when Patty was little, and her mother told me she liked to record her prayers and also any answers.  Years after that when a teacher gave me a journal as a gift, I started writing my prayers in it. 

         This week I read a striking section in Chapter 39 of the Life-Study of Colossians  on prayer. Colossians has a few verses on prayer; in chapter 4 Paul writes--"Persevere in prayer, watching in it with thanksgiving." Anyway in this section Witness Lee wonderfully connects prayer in Colossians to living Christ in Philippians 1:19. This verse  says, "For to me to live is Christ…."  These excerpts come from pages 334-335:

"If you would experience Christ and live Him, we need to remain in an atmosphere of prayer.  Many of us can testify that by prayer we are brought into the spirit, where we are one with the Lord and take Him as our life.  This experience is so precious that when we are enjoying it, we do not want it to end….However, as soon as our time of prayer is over, much of the time we revert to our natural way of living.  We are no longer in an atmosphere of prayer. ...When we pray ourselves into the spirit, we are one with the Lord, we enjoy His presence, and we spontaneously live Him".  (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Colossians.  Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1979, Print). 

A lot of times I only think of praying because I need  answers.  But I don't always see that bigger than that answer is prayer brings me into touch with the living Lord.  And like it says in this chapter, we spontaneously receive the grace to express the Lord in all the situations we're going through each day.  And by the way, a lot of my talking to the Lord I still do on my walks!  

I had to buy this when I found this at the book store
 because now I know He does!

You can listen to excerpts from the Life-Study of Colossians given in 1979 on The Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee. 

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Colossians:

Do You Know What God's Will is in Colossians 1:9?
What is the Stewardship of God in Colossians 1:25?
Have You Seen What the Hope of Glory is in Colossians 1:27?
From the Life-Study of Colossians - Have You Seen the Mystery of God Revealed in Colossians 2:2? (Part 1)
From the Life-Study of Colossians - Have You Seen the Mystery of Christ?   (Part 2)
From the Life-Study of Colossians - What is the Great Mystery in Ephesians & Colossians?
What is God's Intention for Your Life?
From the Life-Study of Colossians - What Happens When We Pray?
How Does God Get the One New Man in Colossians 3:10?
Do You Know How the Believers Grow in Colossians 2:7? (Part 1)
Do You Know What the Goal of Spiritual Growth is in Colossians 2:19?  (Part 2)
What is Christ Doing at the Right Hand of God in Colossians 3:2?

Other Related Posts on Prayer

From the Life-Study of Matthew:

What is the Crucial Significance of Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13?

Have You Seen the Battle Between the Two Kingdoms in Matthew 12:26-28?

From the Life-Study of Luke:

Why is Persistent Prayer Important in Luke 18:1-8?

From the Life-Study of Acts:

How is Acts a Book on God's Move & Prayer?

Seeing God's Move & Satan's Frustration in Acts 14

From the Life-Study of Galatians:

How Do We Practically Enjoy Grace in Galatians 5:18?

From the Life-Study of Ephesians:

How Do We Apply the Armor of God in Ephesians 6?

From the Life-Study of Philippians:

Why Does Paul Put Anxiety and Prayer Together in Philippians 4:6?

From the Life-Study of Colossians:

From the Life-Study of Colossians - What Happens When We Pray?

What is Christ Doing at the RIght Hand of God in Colossians 3:2?

From the Life-Study of 1 Timothy:

What is Paul's First Exhortation in 1 Timothy 2:1?

Other Posts:

Why Prayer Matters

Calling on the Lord Makes a Difference! 

Hearing God   (From Collected Works of Watchman Nee, Vol. 18 - Tell Him)

Great Cajun Cooking - Gluten Free Shrimp & Sausage Jambalaya

Tried any new recipes lately?  This last weekend my daughter and I made jambalaya for the very first time!  We've heard of this southern recipe, but never had it before.  It's a lot of fun trying out a new recipe with someone who likes to cook!!   
We adapted this recipe from Real Simple.

We were just astounded at how good this dish was!  I think the Cajun sausage made everything else taste fantastic!

Shrimp & Sausage Jambalaya - for 4

1.  Prepare the meat:
(1)  Rinse 1/2 pound of medium shrimp 
(2)  Chop up 1/2 - 1 pound of Cajun sausage (We bought the kind that was precooked, so we didn't have to cook it too long.)

2.  Prepare vegetables:
(1)  Dice 1 large onion
(2)  Dice 1 red pepper and 1 orange pepper (My daughter wanted to use these instead of the green pepper--your preference!)
(3)  Dice 2 stalks of celery
(4)  Mince 4 cloves of garlic
(5)  Chop 1/2 cup of parsley

3.  Prepare jambalaya:
(1) Put 2 T of coconut oil into a Dutch oven and heat it up on high, then add the shrimp and cook for 2-3 minutes.
(2)  Remove shrimp and put in a covered bowl.
(3)  Then add the sausage and cook for 3-5 minutes.
(4)  Now reduce the heat to medium and add garlic, celery, bell peppers, and onion  Cook until tender about 5 more minutes. 

(5)  Then stir in 1  cup of long-grain rice, 1 14.5 oz diced tomatoes (some people omit this), 2 cups of chicken broth, 1 t salt, 1/4 t cayenne pepper, 1 bay leaf, and half of the parsley.  
(6)  Reduce the heat to low, covered and simmer for 20 minutes until liquid is almost absorbed. Note: We liked having a little bit of liquid left in our bowls.
(7)  Stir in the shrimp and  the remainder of the parsley.
(8)  Cover it again, and cook about 3-5 minutes more. 

List of Other Fish Recipes on this Blog:

Our Best Gluten Free Recipes for Grilling Salmon

Crispy Gluten Free Oven Fried Fish Sticks

Asian:
Salmon & Vegetable Curry

Steamed Scallion Ginger Fish with Stir Fried Bok Choy

Fantastic Mahi & Vegetable Stir Fry

Make Your Own Sushi!
Tasty Gluten Free Sweet & Sour Fish

Mexican:
Rachel Ray's Recipe for the Best Fish Tacos  - My-Oh Mahi That's a Good Fish Taco!

What is God's Intention For Your Christian Life?

  What is God’s intention for your Christian life?  I heard a message this week that put it all together in one enlightening sentence.  All week long I’ve been thinking about that message which was a Wednesday night sharing on Living Stream Ministry’s website (If you click on the link Webcast Subscription Service, you can register.).  The speaker started off by asking three thought provoking questions:

What is the governing vision of the Bible?

 Has that governing vision been worked into you?         Are you directed by that vision?

Then he went on to give the best definition of this vision:   "The governing vision of the Bible is that God wants to work Himself in the Trinity into His chosen and redeemed people to saturate their entire being for the producing of the Body of Christ consummating in the New Jerusalem.” He said it’s a huge job for God to work Himself into millions of believers.  Think about it—we're not inanimate objects; we're living beings with a will!

 So in order to accomplish this he said the Triune God had a council for each one of us what sequence of events would be necessary to work Christ into us. Step back from your life and take a good look at it from this perspective. I was very touched by this particular statement: “God has a detailed arrangement for your whole life.”

Anyway on Friday I was reading on my break Chapter 36 of the Life-Study of Colossians, and after the opening paragraph on page 303 was the subtitle—God’s Intention.  I’m thinking to myself, wait a minute I just heard a message on Monday on this subject. 

“…we need to see that according to the full revelation in the Bible God’s intention is to work Himself into His chosen people. This intention is the focal point of the divine revelation in the Scriptures.  In order for God to work Himself into us, He must be triune….This indicates that the Father cannot be separated from the Son, nor the Son from the Father.

….Through the process of death and resurrection, the Son became the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45), the Holy Spirit who gives life.…As the all-inclusive Spirit, the Triune God is working Himself into our being. The deepest part of our being is the spirit, which is surrounded by the soul and the body. Christ as the processed, all-inclusive life-giving Spirit is in our spirit, seeking to spread Himself into all the parts of our  soul and eventually to saturate our bodies to make us absolutely the same as He is.  When this takes place, our whole being will be permeated with Himself (Lee, Witness.  Life-Study of Colossians. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1979, Print).

 I'm going to close this post with the prayer at the end of this chapter:  "We need to pray, 'Lord Jesus, I want to be taken over, occupied, and possessed by You  I want to give You my full capacity and all the room in my being.  Lord, I don't want to be limited or frustrated in my experience of You.'" (Page 311).

You can listen to excerpts from the Life-Study of Colossians given in 1979 on The Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee. 

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Colossians:

What is God's Will in Colossians 1:9?
What is the Stewardship of God in Colossians 1:25?
What is the Hope of Glory in Colossians 1:27?
What is the Mystery of God in Colossians 2:2? (Part 1)
What is the Mystery of Christ in Ephesians 5:32?   (Part 2)
What is the Greatest Mystery?
What is God's Intention for Your Life?
From the Life-Study of Colossians - What Happens When We Pray?
How Does God Get the One New Man in Colossians 3:10?
What Does Colossians 2:7 Say About Spiritual Growth? (Part 1)
What is the Goal of Spiritual Growth in Colossians 2:19?  (Part 2)
What is Christ Doing at the Right Hand of God in Colossians 3:2?

Downright Delcious Potato & Kale Soup

   Potato soup has always been a comfort food for me.  It's been a winter favorite of our family for years. When my kids were little I used a potato soup recipe that called for 2 cups of cheddar cheese.  Every kid I know will eat anything with cheese on it.  Even to this day my kids still like potato soup!

  Besides being so downright delicious, potato soup is also a flexible kind of soup. You can sneak all kinds of vegetables you need to get rid of into that soup, and when it's mashed up they'll never know what they're eating!  

    Every mom needs a standard clean the frig soup.  This recipe comes from my daughter-in-law's family cookbook. To it I added kale, carrots, and parsley--I saw the the kale and carrots as additions in other recipes.  And, of course, I added some cheese

 Potato Kale Soup

1.  Prepare vegetables:
(1)  Scrub and cut up 4-5 medium  potatoes.
(2)  Chop up 1 large onion
(3)  Mince 2 cloves of garlic
(4).  Scrub and chop 1-2 carrots
(5)  Wash a bunch of kale. 
(6)  Wash and chop 2-3 T of parsley.

2. Sauté onions and garlic: Melt 3 T butter in a large soup pot over medium heat then add onions and garlic. Cook, stirring, until onions are  just slightly brown.

3.  Make the soup:

(1)  Add 2 quarts of water.

(2)  Add the chopped potatoes along with the sautéed vegetables and cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender.

(3)  Then add kale and cook on medium low heat for 30 minutes.

(4)  Using a potato masher, mash potatoes until desired consistency is reached. As you mash the potatoes and the soup thickens, turn down the heat and stir frequently with a large spoon to prevent scorching on the bottom.

(5)  Add 1/2 cup of cream (I just used 1 cup of almond milk), 2-3 t of salt and 1 t of black pepper. (At this point I often take out my hand held mini blender and blend the vegetables up a bit more so they're really smooth.)
(6)  Add the cheese.  Taste and make any flavor adjustments

(7)  Cook for 15 minutes over low heat stirring frequently until ready to serve.

List of My Favorite Soups, Chili & Stew Recipes: 

Beef 

Grandma's Favorite Beef Stew  (My mother-in-law's delicious recipe!)

Mouth Watering Italian  Sausage Soup   (This is my friend Debbie's recipe)
Mulligan Stew (From my Come & Dine church cookbook)

Poultry

This is the Best Gluten Free Minestrone Soup!   (A recipe my son modified)

Mexican Fiesta Chicken Soup   (A recipe I got years ago from a Mexican cookbook)
My Thanksgiving Turkey Soup  (My very own special concoction!)
Gary's Incredible Gluten Free Arkansas Gumbo  (Given to me by a Bible study friend from Arkansas)
Jeannie's French Market Soup  (A friend from when my kids were little)
Southwest Turkey Soup  (From my Syre School cookbook)
Italian Wedding Soup - (A friend)


Fish
Northwest Salmon Chowder  (From my Heritage School cookbook)
Almost Like Ivar's Clam Chowder (From my Come & Dine Cookbook)

Bean & Legumes
Vi's Best Chili  (A  Bible study friend's great recipe)
Bethany's Crowd Pleasing Tortilla Soup  (One of my daughter's friends special soup)
Country Style Lentil Soup   (From my Heritage School cookbook)
Kathy's Texas Chili & Chips (From my Come & Dine cookbook)
Spicy Cuban Black Bean Soup (From a store recipe card)
Marilyn's Make It From Scratch Chili  (From my mother-in-law)
Lisa's Red Lentil Soup - From my friend Lisa
Texas Pinto Beans & Rice
Curried Lentil Medley   (From my Come & Dine Cookbook)

Vegetable

Downright Delicious Potato & Kale Soup  (From my daughter-in-law's family cookbook)
A Great Fall Soup - Make it From Scratch Corn Potato Chowder  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
French Pumpkin Soup  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
 

Asian
Chinese Chicken Soups  - Bok choy chicken, chicken & spinach, and chicken & cabbage (Modified from Internet search by our Chinese students)
Make Your Own Gluten Free Chicken Pho!  (Modified from a newspaper article)
Gluten Free Chinese Hot Pot  (Modified by a Chinese student)
Chinese Egg Drop Soup  &  Chinese Egg & Tomato Soup  (Modified  from a student's recipe)

Vegetarian & Gluten Free Tom Yum Soup (A delicious Thai soup) 
Deluxe Miso Soup (Kenchinjiru)   (Adapted from Internet search)
A Thai Mom Teaches Me How to Make Tom Yum Kung  (A student's mom's recipe)
A Vietnamese Cooking Lesson - Lien's Vietnamese Sweet & Sour Soup  (An International student's aunt's recipe)
Cooking Beef Pho for Vietnamese Students  (Modified Recipe)
Asian Curried Chicken Soup  (From my Come & Dine church cookbook)
Rose's Very Own Recipe for Chinese Beef Bone Soup  (from Rose my friend from Taipei)

 

What is the Mystery in Colossians 1:25-27?

   Everyone likes a good mystery, and probably the greatest mystery of all is in the Bible.  And if it weren't for Paul's writings, we still might be trying to figure it out. And I have to be honest and say, if it weren't for the ministry of both Watchman Nee and Witness Lee, I never would have seen what the Bible was talking about on this matter!

      Paul tells us clearly in Colossians 1:25-27:  I became a minister according to the stewardship of God, which was given to me for you,  to complete the word of God, 

     the mystery which has been hidden from the generations, but now has been manifested to His saints.

    To whom God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.  

  
      In all his years of ministry Witness Lee  shared a lot on this mystery, which he shows from the Word has two parts. One part is the mystery of God which is mentioned in Colossians 2:2:  "That their hearts may be comforted, they being knit together in love and unto all the riches of the full assurance of understanding, unto the full knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ."  

    It's almost like the whole focus of the gospels is that Christ wants to become the life-giving Spirit so that He can get into His disciples!  In John 20:22 it says,  "And when He had said this, He breathed into them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit." The second mystery is  the mystery of Christ which is mentioned in Ephesians 3:4--By which, in reading it, you can perceive my understanding in the mystery of Christ.  It's clear from the New Testament that God wants all His regenerated believers to meet as the church. 

My granddaughter making a snow angel.

   Anyway I’ve always liked Ephesians 5:32 because it brings both parts of this mystery together—"This mystery is great, but I speak with regard to Christ (the mystery of God) and the church (the mystery of Christ)."   Last week  I read chapter 32 of the Life-Study of Colossians,  and these parts on pages 266-267 jumped out at me:  

 Furthermore, according to verse 27, this mystery is Christ in us, the hope of glory. The goal of this mystery is to produce the church.   Paul was troubled by the situation at Colosse.  The Jewish and Gentile believers were neglecting Christ and the church; they were focusing their attention on such things as Judaistic observances and heathen philosophy….Therefore, Paul wrote the Epistle to the Colossians in order to complete the word of God.…What is the completion of the word of God, the completion of the divine revelation?  In simple terms, to complete the word of God is to experience Christ subjectively and to enjoy Him in our daily living so that the proper church life may come forth to express God. This revelation is the completion of the word of God” (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Colossians. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1979, Print).  

    Following this passage, he mentions that in order to minister Christ to others for the producing of the church we need to daily spend time with the Lord in His word with prayer. This will cause us to experience the riches of all that Christ is.  Then when we are with our fellow believers, there will be something bubbling up in us from our enjoyment of God's word to help build up the church.  

You can listen to excerpts from the Life-Study of Colossians given in 1979 on The Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee. 

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Colossians:

What is God's Will in Colossians 1:9?
What is the Stewardship of God in Colossians 1:25?
What is the Hope of Glory in Colossians 1:27?
What is the Mystery of God in Colossians 2:2? (Part 1)
What is the Mystery of Christ in Ephesians 5:32?   (Part 2)
What is the Greatest Mystery?
What is God's Intention for Your Life?
From the Life-Study of Colossians - What Happens When We Pray?
How Does God Get the One New Man in Colossians 3:10?
What Does Colossians 2:7 Say About Spiritual Growth? (Part 1)
What is the Goal of Spiritual Growth in Colossians 2:19?  (Part 2)
What is Christ Doing at the Right Hand of God in Colossians 3:2?