Learning the Secret of Sufficiency and Doing all things in Christ who Empowers us

As those converted to Christ, we need to learn the secret of how to take Christ as life, live Christ, magnify Christ, gain Christ, and have the church life; we need to experience Christ as the One who empowers us to do all things and cooperate with Him day by day.

We need to be converted from anything else unto Christ. If we want to be those who are part of the bride of Christ, we need to give ourselves to the Lord fully without any reservation; this means that we need to be converted from anything unto Christ.

What does this mean? We, believers in Christ had an initial conversion; we were converted to Christ. But our conversion experience does not stop here; we need to daily turn from anything else unto Christ.

Satan’s strategy includes bringing in many things that distract us from Christ; Christians today focus on many good things but not on Christ, and the Lord has no way to be expressed through His people. There are so many things in our life that are substitutes for Christ!

The Lord wants to convert us from any substitutes to Himself, for these substitutes prevent the Lord from occupying, filling, saturating, permeating, and possessing our inward being.

God’s plan and His ultimate intention is to work Christ into us; His desire is that we would be one with Christ, filled with Christ, and occupied by Christ so that we may live Christ.

Since this is His intention, we need to consider whether or not something in our life is taking the place of Christ.

Is something in our being or in our living that replaces Christ or is more important than Christ?

We may think that nothing can replace Christ or is more important than Christ, but what about our daily living with all its activities, is there anything that occupies us?

We need to be converted to Christ Himself in His excellency.

We need to see His supreme preciousness and be converted from everything other than Christ to the enjoyment of Christ in an experiential way.

Anything in our life that we love more than the Lord or that substitutes and replaces the Lord in our life is an idol. Oh Lord!

Idols are not just physical objects that we worship outwardly; idols are things in our hearts that we hold more dear than the Lord.

There are things in each one of us that take the place of Christ in our life, substituting Christ.

Even working for the Lord may be more preeminent in our being than Christ. Oh Lord! May we pay attention more to Christ Himself than to anything else.

Sometimes the Lord may stop us from working for Him outwardly so that we may be converted from any outward work for Him to an inner enjoyment and experience of Him so that we may gain Him and express Him for the church life.

We may pay more attention to teachings, doctrines, the knowledge of the Bible, or outward practices in the church life than to Christ; we need to be converted to Christ from anything that replaces Him. Oh Lord!

Learn the Secret of Sufficiency: enjoy and gain Christ for the Body of Christ

In Philippians 4:11-13, Paul says that he learned the secret, in whatever circumstances he is in, to be content. He knew how to be abased, and also knew how to abound.

In everything and in all things, he learned the secret both to be filled and to hunger, both to abound and to lack. He was able to do all things in Christ, the One who empowered him.

What is this secret? What does it mean to learn the secret? What is the secret of being content, the secret of sufficiency? What is the secret of experiencing Christ as our sufficiency?

In Greek, the phrase, I have learned the secret, means, I have been initiated. It is a metaphor referring to a person being initiated into a secret society and being instructed in its rudimentary principles.

In Paul’s time, among the Greeks, there were some secret societies, and they had a practice of initiating their converts into their principles and ways.

We believers in Christ became part of a “secret society” and we’re learning the rudimentary principles of this society. When we are converted to Christ, we are initiated into the church life and into the experience of Christ.

We are being instructed by the Lord in the Body in the secret of how to enjoy Christ, how to take Christ as life, how to live Christ, how to magnify Christ, how to gain Christ, and also how to have the church life.

The apostle Paul took Christ as the secret to experience Christ, being content and rejoicing in every kind of circumstance, in any situation, and in every matter because of Christ (v. 4).

We need to learn the secret of sufficiency, that is, we need to be initiated into the enjoyment of Christ and the gaining of Christ for the Body of Christ.

We need to learn the secret of being content and rejoicing in every kind of situation and circumstance, even in any matter in our daily living, because of Christ.

We believers in Christ need to be initiated into knowing Christ, enjoying Christ, experiencing Christ, and expressing Christ for the church as the Body of Christ (Col. 2:2; Eph. 3:3-4; 5:32).

Christ is our secret; we don’t live in a secret society, but we live in the Body of Christ, and for this we need to be initiated and learn the secret.

After Paul was converted to Christ, he was initiated into Christ and into the Body of Christ (Acts 9:3-19, 25-28; 22:6-21; 13:1-4).

It is the same with us today; from the time we believed into the Lord Jesus, we began having many conversions to Christ, and we are being initiated into the Body of Christ, into Christ and into the Body of Christ.

We need to learn the secret of sufficiency, that is, the secret of how to take Christ as life (Col. 3:4), how to live Christ (Phil. 1:21a), how to magnify Christ (v. 20), how to gain Christ (3:8, 12), and how to have the church life (1:8, 19; 2:1-4, 19-20; 4:1-3).

Paul testified this twenty-six years after being converted to Christ; he received Christ, he was converted to Christ initially and then he had many more conversions to Christ so that he may gain Christ, magnify Christ, and live Christ for the building up of the Body of Christ.

When we believed into Christ, He laid hold of us, and now we need to lay hold of Him. He grasped us and now we grasp Him. He gained us and now we need to gain Him.

The church as the Body of Christ is mysterious, but it is not a secret society; rather, the church is a bright city set on a hill. The church is open to all who are willing to come.

But the church also has a mysterious aspect, so there’s a need for a spiritual initiation in order to learn the principles of the church life.

These principles are very different from the basic principles of the world; we need to be initiated into the church life, to live the church life, that is, to live Christ for the Body of Christ.

In the world everyone lives the way they want, but in the church life we have Christ as the secret of sufficiency.

The secret of the Body is to take Christ as our life, live Christ, pursue Christ, gain Christ, and magnify Christ for the building up of the church as the Body of Christ. We need to learn these basic principles of the church, the Body of Christ.

The apostle Paul learned the secret, and now we are also learning the secret of sufficiency; we are learning Christ as the secret for the building up of the church.

May we be open to learn the secret of sufficiency, Christ as our secret for the church life, so that we may magnify Christ for the building up of the Body.

Lord Jesus, we want to learn the secret of sufficiency today. May we learn, in whatever circumstances we’re in, to be content. May we learn Christ as the secret of our sufficiency. Amen, Lord, we are open to You and to the Body to be initiated in living Christ for the building up of the Body of Christ. Thank You for converting us from anything unto Christ. We open to You, Lord, to be initiated into Christ and into the Body of Christ. We want to learn the secret of how to take Christ as life, how to live Christ, and how to magnify Christ! Amen, Lord, may we learn how to gain Christ and how to have the church life! We give You our daily living. Live in us today. May we learn how to live Christ by being converted from anything else unto Christ. Amen, Lord, may we learn the secret of being content and rejoicing in every kind of circumstance, in any situation, and in any matter because of Christ! Hallelujah, Christ Himself is the secret of sufficiency for us to live the church life today!

Learn the Secret to Do All Things in Christ as the One who Empowers us

The secret in Philippians 4 is to do all things in Christ as the One who empowers us (Phil. 4:13; John 15:5). We need to learn the secret of sufficiency today, that is, learn to do all things in Christ as the One who empowers us.

How could Paul be content in all circumstances and in all things? It is because of Christ as the One who empowered him.

As a person in Christ, the apostle Paul experienced Christ and applied Him in all circumstances (Phil. 3:9). This Christ was real to Paul, living, near, available and prevailing (4:5).

Christ needs to become real to us. He is living, near, available, and prevailing. We all can testify that there have been some times in our life when we sensed how real the Lord was to us.

We touched Him at one point, maybe in a meeting or after some fellowship with some saints, and we just realised how real and living the Lord is.

We need to remain in this realisation day by day. We do this by learning the secret of sufficiency, that is, learning to do all things in Christ as the One who empowers us.

Paul’s word about Christ as the empowering One specifically applies to Christ’s empowering us to live Him as our human virtues and thereby to magnify Christ in His unlimited greatness in every kind of circumstance (Phil. 4:8-13).

Today some say that Christ empowers them to do this or that great thing for God or to obtain this or that building or possession; in many ways, this is to take the name of God in vain.

Paul learned the secret of sufficiency, and yet he was still in prison; he learned the secret of doing all things in Christ as the One who empowered him.

By this empowering, Paul could live Christ, magnify Christ, and make his forbearance known to all men, for the Lord is near.

When we are empowered by the Lord, we can live Christ and magnify Him, and He is expressed through us.

By the empowering of Christ, we believers in Christ can live a contented life and be true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well-spoken of.

We may think that this is not that complicated or hard, but the reality is that not many of us live such a life habitually. Actually, for us to live a life of such virtues expressing the divine attributes, is much more difficult than doing a Christian work.

May we realise that Christ indwells us as our divine and mystical dynamo, and may we do all things in Him who empowers us.

May we pay more attention to life than to work; may we pay more attention to gaining Christ and living Christ for the building up of the Body of Christ than to doing a work for the Lord.

If we would experience Christ as the empowering One, we need to cooperate with Him practically in our daily life.

First, we need to be persons who pray continually by coming before God, entering into God, and living in the light of God’s face (Psa. 42:5,11; 80:1, 3, 7, 19).

In our daily living on earth, even in the practical things of our daily Christian life, we need to be those who continually come to the Lord to speak to Him.

We need to see His face and have our countenance uplifted by beholding Him and being infused with Him. His countenance is a salvation to us. As we enjoy the salvation of His countenance, He becomes the salvation of our countenance.

Many times we’re in meetings with the saints, but our countenance is not uplifted; we need to be saved by coming to the Lord again and again to behold Him and reflect Him!

We need to experience a thorough and fresh forgiveness of our sins, based on the shedding of the Lord’s blood on the cross (Heb. 9:14; 10:19, 22; Exo. 24:8; Matt. 26:28).

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us of our sins; we can experience a thorough and fresh forgiveness of our sins based on His shed blood.

We need to know what ascension is and know that the life we have received is a heavenly life (Eph. 2:6; Heb. 8:1-2; 4:14-15; 7:25-26).

We should be aware of the fact that we have ascended into the heavens with the Lord and are thus heavenly persons. Yes, outwardly we are still living on the earth, but inwardly, with respect to our inner life and mood, we are living in the heavens. May we realise this today.

May we remain in our spirit, one spirit with the Lord, experiencing being raised with Christ and therefore seeking the things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God!

Hallelujah, we can now set our mind on the things which are above and not on the things which are on the earth, for our life is hidden with Christ in God!

Lord Jesus, we want to learn the secret to do all things in Christ as the One who empowers us. Amen, Lord, may we experience You and apply You in all circumstances. We give ourselves to You today. Be so real to us. Be so living, near, available, and prevailing to us in all things. May we be converted from anything else unto Christ so that we may take Christ as the secret of our sufficiency. Amen, Lord, empower us to live Christ as our human virtues and thereby magnify Him in His unlimited greatness in every kind of circumstance! May Christ be magnified in us and through us! Hallelujah, by the empowering of Christ, we can live a contented life and be true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of! Amen, Lord, keep us coming to You today and every day, entering into You, and living in the light of Your face. Keep us confessing our sins and being cleansed by Your precious blood. Keep us in our spirit, one with You in ascension, so that we may live a heavenly life on earth! Amen, Lord, You are the secret of our sufficiency today!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by the brother Ed Marks in this conference, and portions from, Life-study of Philippians, msg. 59, by Witness Lee, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (part 3 – 2025 Summer Training), week 25, Christ as Our Virtues, the Peace of God, Our Secret, and the One Who Empowers Us – day 6.
• Similar articles on this topic:
  – Empowering and strengthening those who wait on Him, a portion from, Life-Study of Isaiah, Chapter 44, by Witness Lee.
  – The Existence of New Jerusalem Applied to Daily Life, via, New Jerusalem blog.
  – Realizing the sufficient grace of the Lord, a portion from, Enjoying the Riches of Christ for the Building Up of the Church as the Body of Christ, Chapter 10, by Witness Lee.
  – Philippians (Program #29) -The Apostle’s Secret of Sufficiency in Christ, via, Bible study radio.
  – Video 5: A Life Full of Forbearance but without Anxiety (5), via, LSM.
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  – The Ministry Produced through Revelation and Suffering, Part Two: Suffering (1), From chapter six of The Ministers in the Lord’s Recovery – Genuine Ministers of the New Covenant The Apostle Paul’s Suffering for His Revelations.
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  – Elevate Your Understanding of God’s Divine Nature, via, Lamb Follower.
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• Hymns on this topic:
  – I have learned the wondrous secret / Of abiding in the Lord; / I have tasted life’s pure fountain, / I am drinking of His word; / I have found the strength and sweetness / Of abiding ’neath the blood; / I have lost myself in Jesus, / I am sinking into God. / I’m abiding in the Lord / And confiding in His word; / I am hiding in the bosom of His love. / Yes, abiding in the Lord / And confiding in His word, / I am hiding in the bosom of His love. (Hymns #564 stanza 1 and chorus)
  – I know how to be abased, / And I know how to abound, / To be filled, to hunger or lack, / In all things and in everything / I’ve learned the secret. / I am able to do all things / In Him who empowers me. / Nevertheless you did well / To have fellowship with me / In my affliction. (New song, stanzas 2-3)
  – Christ is the way and Christ the light of life, / In Him we walk and by Him we are led; / Christ is the living water and the food; / Of Him we drink and we with Him are fed. / Christ is the truth, ’tis Him we testify, / Christ is the life, ’tis Him we minister; / Christ is the Lord, ’tis Him we magnify, / Christ is the Head, and we exalt Him here. (Hymns #863 stanzas 2-3)