I.　God's economy is to work Himself into His chosen and redeemed people in order to make Himself one with them and to make them one with Him— Eph. 3:9, 14-19:

A.　In His economy God mingles Himself with His people to become one entity with them—4:4-6.

B.　Concerning this oneness and mingling, 1 Corinthians 6:17 says that we who are joined to the Lord are one spirit; the divine Spirit and the human spirit have been mingled together to be one spirit.

C.　The highest gospel is that we would be saved to the extent that God and we, we and God, are completely mingled as one, having one life and one living— 1 John 4:15; John 15:4-5; Gal. 2:20; Phil. 1:19-21.

II.　The expression one spirit in 1 Corinthians 6:17 indicates the mingling of the Lord as the Spirit with our spirit:

A.　The spirit, which is the mingling of our spirit and the Lord's Spirit into one spirit, is both the Spirit of the Lord and our spirit—Rom. 8:4; 2 Cor. 3:17; 1 Cor. 15:45b; 6:17.

B.　All our spiritual experiences, such as our fellowship with the Lord, our prayer to Him, and our living with Him, are in this mingled spirit—1:9.

C.　The implications of 1 Corinthians 6:17 are marvelous and far-reaching:

1.　To be one spirit with the Lord implies that we are in Him and that He is in us—John 15:4-5.

2.　He and we have been mingled organically to become one in life—Rom. 8:10; Col. 3:4.

3.　First Corinthians 6:17 reveals that we and Christ are one wonderful, living entity—12:12.

4.　We, the complete and entire person, and the Lord are one spirit—6:17-20.

III.　The mystery and depths of 1 Corinthians are the two spirits—the divine Spirit and the human spirit—12:13; 4:21:

A.　God has revealed the hidden things by means of the two spirits—2:9-12.

B.　These two spirits are for our eating and drinking of the Lord; we eat the Lord and drink the Spirit in our spirit—10:3-4.

C.　God requires us to turn to our spirit so that we may be spiritual persons, who live and walk in the mingled spirit—2:14-15.

IV.　By being one spirit with the Lord, we can experience and enjoy Him as the all-inclusive One—1:2, 24, 30; 2:8, 10; 3:11; 5:7-8; 10:3-4; 11:3; 12:12; 15:20, 47, 45:

A.　When we are one spirit with the Lord, we enjoy the fellowship of God's Son, Jesus Christ our Lord—1:9.

B.　For anyone who is one spirit with the Lord, the supply is inexhaustible—15:10.

C.　The spirit of faith (2 Cor. 4:13) is the Holy Spirit mingled with our human spirit; we should exercise such a spirit to believe and to speak the things that we have experienced of the Lord.

V.　First Corinthians 7 conveys the spirit of a person who loves the Lord, who cares for the Lord's interests on earth, who is absolutely for the Lord and one with the Lord, and who in every respect is obedient, sub-missive, and satisfied with God and the circumstances arranged by Him:

A.　Paul had a spirit that was submissive, content, and satisfied; in his spirit he was submissive to the Lord and content with his situation—vv. 17-24.

B.　Because Paul was one with the Lord, when he spoke, the Lord spoke with him; thus, in 1 Corinthians 7 we have an example of the New Testament principle of incarnation—vv. 10, 12, 25, 40:

1.　The principle of incarnation is that God enters into man and mingles Himself with man to make man one with Himself—1 John 4:15.

2.　In the New Testament the Lord becomes one with His apostles, and they become one with Him and speak together with Him—1 Cor. 6:17.

3.　In 7:25 and 40 we see the highest spirituality—the spirituality of a person who is so one with the Lord and permeated with Him that even his opinion expresses the Lord's mind.

VI.　Through baptism and by drinking we are mingled with the Spirit—12:13:

A.　To be baptized in the Spirit is the initiation of the mingling and is once for all.

B.　To drink the Spirit is the continuation of the mingling and is perpetual.

VII.　The church as the Body of Christ is the corporate Christ, the Body-Christ— v. 12:

A.　The Body-Christ is composed of Christ Himself as the Head and the church as His Body with all the believers as His members.

B.　Christ is both the Head and the Body—Eph. 4:15-16; 1 Cor. 12:12:

1.　Christ in Himself is the Head, but when Christ is constituted into us, He is the Body—Col. 1:18a; 3:4, 10-11; 2:19.

2.　Because Christ is both the Head and the Body, He is not only the indi-vidual Christ but also the Body-Christ.

C.　The bread on the Lord's table signifies both the physical body of Jesus and the mystical Body of Christ, the corporate Christ, the Body-Christ—1 Cor. 10:16-17.

D.　The Body-Christ is the issue of the full enjoyment of the riches of Christ—1:2, 30; 5:7-8; 10:3-4, 17; 12:12-13.

VIII.　The corporate Christ, the mystical Body of Christ, is the means for God to carry out His administration—Eph. 1:22-23; 1 Cor. 12:12-13, 27:

A.　The Body of Christ is for the Lord's move on earth—Eph. 4:16.

B.　The Head is now carrying out God's administration through the Body—Rev. 5:6; Eph. 1:22-23; Rom. 12:4-5; Col. 1:18a; 2:19; 3:15; 1 Cor. 12:12-13, 27.