Being a Vessel unto Honor,
a Fully Equipped Man of God,
by Being Empowered in the Grace
Which Is in Christ Jesus
to Fully Accomplish Our Ministry
in the Unique Ministry of God’s Economy –Week 4
Christ Nullifying Death
and Bringing Life and Incorruption to Light,
and Our Remembering Jesus Christ,
the Seed of David, Raised from the Dead
Related Verses
2 Tim. 1:10
10 But now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who nullified death and brought life and incorruption to light through the gospel,
Acts 2:24
24 Whom God has raised up, having loosed the pangs of death, since it was not possible for Him to be held by it.
2 Cor. 5:4
4 For also, we who are in this tabernacle groan, being burdened, in that we do not desire to be unclothed, but clothed upon, that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
Rom. 5:17, 21
17 For if by the offense of the one death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.
21 In order that just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness unto eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Related Reading
Through His resurrection [Christ] became the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b) to impart God’s life to us (John 3:15) and regenerate us (1 Pet. 1:3). Thus, having nullified death through His death, He brought life and incorruption to light through the gospel in His resurrection.
In the gospel the revelation is brought to us that Christ has nullified death and has brought us eternal, indestructible life. Life in 2 Timothy 1:10 refers to the eternal life of God, which is given to all believers in Christ (1 Tim. 1:16) and which is the main element of the divine grace given to us (Rom. 5:17, 21). This life has conquered death (Acts 2:24) and will swallow up death (2 Cor. 5:4).
Life is the divine element, even God Himself, imparted into our spirit; incorruption is the consequence of life’s saturating our body (Rom. 8:11). This life and incorruption are able to counter death and corruption. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 3677)
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It is through the gospel that Christ brought life and incorruption to light (2 Tim. 1:10). While we may know life and incorruption, the unbelievers know only death and corruption because they have not yet heard or received the gospel. If they hear and receive the gospel, it will bring eternal life and eternal incorruption to light so that they may know life and incorruption as we do. The more we preach the gospel, the more life and incorruption will be brought to light. On the one hand, Christ appeared with grace; that is, He came with grace. On the other hand, by His death and resurrection, Christ nullified death and brought life and incorruption to light through the gospel in order to fulfill the promise of life for a believer to be an apostle.
In verses 9 and 10 Paul tells us that the grace of God, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before the times of the ages, now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus. Grace is God’s provision in life given to us so that we may live out His purpose. This grace given to us in Christ was bestowed on us before the world began. God’s grace was given to us in eternity, but it was manifested and applied to us through our Lord’s first coming, in which He nullified death and brought life to us (Heb. 9:26). Because this grace was manifested through the appearing of Christ, Old Testament saints such as Abraham and David did not experience it. The grace destined to be given to us came with the appearing of the Lord Jesus. This grace is not merely a blessing; it is a person, the Triune God Himself, given to us to be our enjoyment. This grace came when the Lord Jesus appeared, and now it is with us today. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 3675-3676)
In Paul’s first Epistle to Timothy he says, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1:15), but in his second Epistle to Timothy the tone changes from saving sinners to nullifying death and bringing life to light. Paul emphasizes that it was for the nullifying of death and the bringing in of life that he was appointed a herald to announce and proclaim the gospel, an apostle to set up and establish churches, and a teacher to give instruction to the churches with all the saints (1:11). Paul emphasizes this because by that time the churches were distracted from the right track of life to the track of knowledge and religion…In this last letter he emphasizes the basic item of the Lord’s recovery—life. (CWWL, 1975-1976, vol. 2, p. 408)
Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 364; CWWL, 1975-1976, vol. 2, p. 408
© Living Stream Ministry, 2021, used by permission