We had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: who delivered us from so great a death and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us (2 Corinthians 1:9). This was the supernatural secret of Paul's life; he drew continually in his body from the strength of Christ, his Risen Head. The body that came out of Joseph's tomb was to him a physical reality and the inexhaustible fountain of his vital forces. More than the other apostles he has imparted to us the secret of his strength. We are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones (Ephesians 5:30). The body is . . . for the Lord; and the Lord for the body (1 Corinthians 6:13). Marvelous truth! Divine elixir of life and fountain of perpetual youth! Earnest of the resurrection! Fulfillment of the ancient psalms and songs of faith! The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1). My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever (Psalm 73:26). Have we learned this secret, and are we living the life of the Incarnate One in our flesh?
