God’s Will: Christ vs. the Church — the Body of Christ (According to the Bible)


Overview of the Theme

God has only one will—centered on Christ and for Christ; and this will is to gain the church as the Body of Christ, to be His fullness and expression.(Col. 1:9; Eph. 1:9, 22–23; Rom. 12:2, 5)

Colossians 2:2 — The full knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ.

Colossians 2:19 — Holding the Head, from whom all the Body… grows with the growth of God.

Ephesians 4:15–16 — Out from Him, all the Body… causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love.

 

Aspect

Christ — the Center of God’s Will

The Church — the Body of Christ

Meaning

God’s will is Christ Himself; in God’s will, Christ is everything. (Col. 1:9; 2:2, 9, 16–17)

God’s will is to obtain the church as the Body of Christ, His fullness and expression. (Eph. 1:22–23; Rom. 12:5)

Reason

Christ is the mystery of God, the all-inclusive and unlimited One, having the first place in all things. (Col. 1:18)

Christ needs a Body to express Him, testify of Him, and fulfill God’s economy. (Eph. 1:9, 11)

Distinction

Emphasis on being and content: Christ is all and the reality of all. (Col. 3:10–11)

Emphasis on expression and practice: the Body lives out and manifests Christ. (Eph. 4:16)

Purpose

To work Christ into people as their life, person, and everything. (Col. 1:27; 3:4, 11)

To produce a corporate expression so that Christ has a Body and fullness on earth. (Eph. 1:23)

Mutual Relationship

Christ is the Head, the life, the center, and the content. (Col. 1:18a)

The church is the Body, the fullness, the expression, and the practical living. (Col. 1:18b; 2:19)

Examples

Colossians reveals Christ as the mystery of God and the content of God’s will. (Col. 2:2)

Romans 12 reveals that offering the body and living the Body life proves God’s will. (Rom. 12:1–5)

Application

To know, experience, enjoy, and live Christ in all things. (Col. 3:4, 11)

To coordinate, function, and live in the Body in church life. (Eph. 4:15–16)

Burden

Not outward regulations, asceticism, or philosophy, but being saturated with Christ. (Col. 2:20–23)

Not individual spirituality, but a corporate Body life and testimony. (Rom. 12:5)

Proclaiming Guidance

Declare: God’s will is not a matter, but Christ Himself; God wants only Christ. (Matt. 17:5)

Declare: God’s unique will is to gain the Body; outside the church, one is not in God’s will.

Conclusion

To know God’s will equals to fully know Christ. (Col. 1:9; 2:2)

To live in God’s will equals to live in the Body and the church life. (Rom. 12:2, 5)

Key Scriptures

A. God’s Will Is Centered on Christ

•        Colossians 1:9 — That you may be filled with the full knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.

•        Colossians 1:18 — He is the Head of the Body, the church… that He Himself might have the first place in all things.

•        Colossians 1:27 — Christ in you, the hope of glory.

•        Colossians 3:4, 11 — Christ is our life; Christ is all and in all.

B. God’s Will Is to Gain the Church as the Body of Christ

•        Ephesians 1:9, 22–23 — According to His good pleasure… He gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, which is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all.

•        Romans 12:2, 5 — Be transformed by the renewing of the mind, that you may prove what the will of God is… we who are many are one Body in Christ.      

 

Core Summary:

 

l   God does not have two wills; He has only one will—Christ and the Body of Christ.

l   Christ is the content and center of God’s will; the church is the goal and outcome of God’s will.

l   Knowing Christ without living in the Body is still not fully walking in God’s will.

l   The genuine way to prove God’s will is not individual spirituality, but living the Body life.

l   Eternal value exists only in the Body; what God desires is not good individuals, but a Body.

 

Conclusion:

 

God’s will = Christ as everything → producing the church as the Body → becoming the corporate expression of the Triune God.

 

 

*Please refer to the May 2025 International Elders and Responsible Brothers Training: General Topic: Matthew Chapters 5-7 - The Most Important Aspects - Week 9: Fulfilling the Father's Will so that we may enter the Father's Kingdom on "that day," the day of Christ's judgment seat.