All that we as believers may gain of God is received from God the Father who is one with and in Christ (John 17:21, 14:9). The Father reaches us via Christ in us. Paul says Christ “the Lord” now is “that Spirit,” by which believers actually realize all that they have of God now and forever dwelling within and one with their spirit (1Cor 6:17).

1 Corinthians 8:6 (AMP) Yet for us there is [only] one God, the Father, Who is the Source of all things and for Whom we [have life], and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through and by Whom are all things and through and by Whom we [ourselves exist].

Colossians 1:19 (Darby) … in him all the fulness [of the Godhead] was pleased to dwell,

2 Corinthians 3:17 NOW the Lord (Jesus Christ) is that Spirit…

Colossians 1:27 …the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is CHRIST IN YOU…

The resurrected and glorified “Jesus of Nazareth,” with his human element included, is now in His resurrected spirit-form. Lest there be any doubt that Jesus is now “the Spirit,” Paul uses these terms; “the Spirit,” “the Spirit of Christ,” “the Spirit of Jesus Christ,” “the Spirit of Jesus,” “the Spirit of Holiness,” “the Spirit of His Son,” “the Spirit of the Lord,” and “Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.”  

The fully processed “Jesus of Nazareth” is now resurrected and “glorified,” thus completing the Godhead anew. The Godhead has forever gained the actual human experience of “the Son of man”- “Jesus of Nazareth.” He was “born of a woman made under the Law” (Gal 4:4). Thus, He today “can be touched with the feelings of our infirmities” (Heb 4:15). First the eternal Godhead came to the man in the person of incarnated “Jesus of Nazareth”; then the crucified and resurrected Jesus brought His human element with His personal human experiences into the Godhead. Thus today Jesus’ Spirit includes both “the Son of God” and “the Son of Man.”

The “Spirit of Christ” now completes the believer’s creation (Col 1:10 below) with the everlasting life of “the fullness of the (now completed) Godhead,” which now includes the human element of Jesus of Nazareth’s experience.

Colossians 2:9-10 (AMP) For in Him (Jesus Christ) the whole fullness of Deity (the Godhead) continues to dwell in bodily form [giving complete expression of the divine nature]. ¹⁰ And you are in Him, made full and having come to fullness of life [in Christ YOU TOO ARE FILLED WITH THE GODHEAD—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—and reach full spiritual stature]. And He is the Head of all rule and authority [of every angelic principality and power].

Paul’s emphasis is always upon the crucified and resurrected “Christ who is our life” (Col 1:27), not “Jesus of Nazareth.” Note that Paul never once references anything Jesus said or did – except His cross, which is the very basis of our entire Christian experience. The resurrected Christ is “the fullness of the Godhead,” now as a purely “spirit-being.” The resurrected Christ is now “that Spirit” and “the head of the body” (Col 1:18), as He indwells every believing member of “the body of Christ” (1Cor 12:27), called “the church, which is His body” (Eph 1:22b-23a). Therefore every believing member of “the church, which is His body” also contains “the fullness of the Godhead” (Col 2:9).

Today the risen Lord, now as “the Spirit,” is the reaching of God to indwell believers personally (Col 1:27). This compares to the Old Testament and before John 20:22, when God’s Spirit only came “among” or “came upon” certain men. 1Samuel 10:6 And the Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee; Haggai 2:5 … I (the Lord) covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.

“The Spirit” in us is for our realization of the very life, righteousness, peace and joy that is “in Christ.”

Rom 14:17 the kingdom (realm) of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

In fact, all the attributes and benefits of God’s life are … in Christ; and they come to us … by the indwelling “Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.” All believers bear Jesus Christ’s spiritual DNA, life (Col 3:4a) and nature (2Pet 1:14).

Jesus in His earthly ministry had been with the disciples in His human form when He so often spoke to them. But it was only after He was crucified and ascended, that He returned as that “well of water of life springing up to everlasting life” to indwell believers. “But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give (bring forth to) him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give (bring forth to) him shall be IN HIM a well of WATER SPRINGING UP INTO EVERLASTING LIFE.”(John 4:14)

As seen throughout the Bible, “water flowing” is always a metaphor of the living “Spirit” as we see by the “river of life” that flows out from the throne of God bringing life wherever it flows (Rev 22:1).

“How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! …thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. ⁹ For with thee (O God) is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.” (Psalms 36:7-9)

Today “the Spirit of Christ” is available to believers on earth as what I call the “Comforter Spirit.” The “Spirit of Jesus Christ” in believers is the reality of the God/man Himself, as the believer’s personal indwelling “Comforter.” Most Christians do not realize the “Comforter” is also the “Spirit of Christ” Himself. There is only “one God” and “one Spirit” (Eph 4:4).

“And I (Jesus) will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; ¹⁷Even the Spirit of truth (the Truth is Christ as “reality”); whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he (Jesus) dwelleth with you, and shall be IN YOU. ¹⁸I (Jesus) will not leave you comfortless: I (Jesus) will come to you. ¹⁹Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: BECAUSE I LIVE, YE SHALL LIVE ALSO. ²⁰At that day ye shall know that I AM IN MY FATHER, AND YE IN ME, AND I IN YOU.  (John 14:16-20)

NOTE:

• Notice that in v16 & 17 the Lord Jesus refers to “another Comforter” as “the Spirit of truth” as “he,” but in verse 18, the pronoun changes from “he” to the “I” who was speaking to them at that time – The “I” who was speaking these words was Jesus.
• By changing the “he” who was with them (in verses 16-17) to “I” in v18 … the Lord was saying the “he” is the “I” who was to return as “the Spirit” to indwell them.
• The “Comforter” that Jesus spoke of in v16-17…is “the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:2a)

Let’s now compare two related Scriptures that will prove that Jesus as “the Spirit” is the “well of water” and “everlasting life” in believers. First note that in John 4:14 (below) that Jesus told the Samaritan women He is the source of the indwelling spiritual “well of water” that shall be “in him (the believer)” as “everlasting life.”  Now compare this to John 7:38-39 (below). This makes clear that it is Jesus’ Spirit that is the “river of living water” in believers … which would be available only after Jesus would be “glorified.” Therefore, we have proof that “the Spirit,” which is “the Spirit of Christ,” and “the Holy Spirit” are in fact the same “water” and “Spirit” (Eph 4:4).

John 4:14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I (Jesus) shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be IN HIM a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

John 7:38-39 (Darby)  He that believes on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. ³⁹ But this he said concerning the Spirit, which they that believed on him were about to receive; for [the] Spirit was not yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

There is only one genuine “life” in the universe and that is the everlasting life of “God (who) is Spirit” (John 4:24). Paul writes, the “Spirit is life” (Rom 8:2) and “Christ is our life (Col 3:4),” so “the Spirit” and Christ are One as the real “life,” which is the one “Spirit of life,” within all believers.  

John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life…

Romans 8:2 … the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus ….

Col. 3:4a When Christ, who is our life, shall appear…

“The Spirit” then is God the Father, in Christ, now as “the Spirit of life.” Note here again who it is that is indwells the believers as “the life-giver.”

1 John 4:13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him (Jesus), and he (Jesus) in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.

Romans 8:8-10 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. ⁹ But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God (the Father) dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. ¹⁰ And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

1 Cor. 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made (became) a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening (life-giving) spirit.

John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth (gives life) …