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Scripture Reading: John 14:19-23; Exo. 33:14
In John 14:19-20 the Lord said, “Because I live, you also shall live. In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.” In these verses the Lord said that after He resurrected from the dead, He would regenerate us by entering into us to be our life. Therefore, we live because He lives; we live in His resurrection life with Him. This is the reason we will know that the Lord is in the Father and is one with the Father, that we are in the Lord and are one with the Lord, and that the Lord is in us and is one with us. This is the situation of everyone who has been saved.
Verses 21 through 23 go on to say, “He who has My commandments and keeps them, he is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him. Judas, not Iscariot, said to Him, Lord, and what has happened that You are to manifest Yourself to us and not to the world? Jesus answered and said to him, If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make an abode with him.” This shows that after we are saved, our living should be one in which the Lord manifests Himself to us and makes an abode with us.
Let us look at the Lord’s manifestation from the example of Moses in the Old Testament. In Exodus 33:14 God said, “My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest.” In this verse the word presence in the original language means “face.” This means that God’s countenance, His face, would go with Moses and give Moses rest.
God asked Moses to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt. When they left Egypt and arrived at Mount Sinai, God called Moses to the top of the mountain while the children of Israel waited at the base of the mountain. However, when they saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, they made a golden calf and worshipped it (32:1-6). Worshipping the idol greatly offended God. God said that Moses would still lead the children of Israel into the land of Canaan, a land flowing with milk and honey, but He Himself would not go up in their midst (33:1-3). God seemed to be saying, “Moses, take the Israelites up to the land. I will send an Angel to help you drive out all your enemies so that you may gain the land of Canaan as your dwelling place, but I will not go with you.”
When Moses heard this word, he prayed and negotiated with God (vv. 12-17). Moses seemed to be saying, “You brought the children of Israel out of Egypt. It was not I who brought them out of Egypt. I was not looking for You when I was shepherding the flock of sheep in the wilderness; You looked for me and asked me to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt into the land of Canaan. I did not initiate this; You did. These are Your people, not mine. Yes, they committed a sin and worshipped the idol. But since You brought them out of Egypt, You still have to bear this responsibility. If You will not bear this responsibility, neither will I. If You withdraw, I will also withdraw. If You want me to bring them into the land, You must go with us. If You will not go with us and lead us, we will not go further.” In verses 15 and 16 Moses uttered a strong prayer in which he negotiated with God. After he prayed, God was bound and had to agree. God told Moses not to withdraw. God also assured Moses that He would bear the responsibility and that His presence, His face, would go with Moses.
God’s face is His presence. A brother once asked, “What is the difference between God’s face going with us and God going with us?” I replied, “Many times the Lord goes with a person, but He hides His face from that person. It is not that the Lord does not go with you. He goes with you, but He hides His face. His face is not manifested.” I gave an illustration: “Suppose five of us travel to another city to preach the gospel. However, while we are traveling, I hide my face. Even though I am traveling with you, you do not see my face.”
While Moses led the children of Israel on their journey to the land of Canaan, Moses did not lose God’s presence, God’s face. God was always manifested to Moses. God did not only accompany Moses by walking with him; God also manifested Himself to Moses throughout the journey. Every day Moses saw God face to face. Moses had God’s face, God’s presence.
In the New Testament age the Lord’s salvation is to save us into Himself so that we are joined to Him in life and in essence. The Lord’s salvation is not focused on our being forgiven of our sins so that we are spared from perdition to wait for the enjoyment of some eternal blessing in the future. This is not the focus of the Lord’s salvation; rather, this is only a human concept. It is true that the Lord’s salvation solves the problem of our sins and that there is forgiveness of our sins and deliverance from perdition. However, this is not the meaning or the goal of salvation. The meaning of salvation is to bring those who are outside the Lord into Him. We often address believers as “brothers and sisters in the Lord,” or when referring to a believer, we say, “He is a person in the Lord.” Sometimes when we speak of unbelievers, we say, “They are not in the Lord. They do not have the Lord. Only believers are in the Lord.” Do not think that this is merely an expression; it is a fact. Being in the Lord is a fact. God is saving us from being outside of the Lord to being in the Lord. We are people in the Lord.
Some may ask how to become a person who is in the Lord. The Lord shed His blood on the cross for our sins. Therefore, when we believe into the Lord, we are forgiven of our sins and are cleansed (Heb. 9:22; Acts 10:43; 1 John 1:9). The Lord became the life-giving Spirit in His resurrection from the dead (1 Cor. 15:45b). Now the Lord is the Spirit (2 Cor. 3:17), and He is able to enter into us so that we can be joined to Him (John 1:12-13). We can use a microphone as an example. As soon as it is plugged into an outlet, electricity enters into it. When electricity is transmitted into the microphone, the microphone is in the current of electricity; it is in electricity. We can all understand this example. A three-year-old child, however, would not be able to understand that the microphone is in electricity, because he thinks that electricity is intangible. To him, it is incomprehensible that the microphone can be in electricity. Those who have some knowledge of physics know that since electricity has been transmitted into the microphone, the microphone is in electricity.
Similarly, those who believe in the Lord Jesus are in Him because the Lord is the Spirit, and His Spirit has come into us. We are in Him because we have the Lord Spirit. If we were to tell unbelievers that we are in the Lord Jesus, they would say that this is superstition, because Jesus Christ is intangible to them. It is hard for them to believe, because they can neither see nor touch Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, this is our experience. We know that the Spirit is in us, and therefore, we live in Him. We are joined to the Lord (1 Cor. 6:17). A saved person has the Lord in him, and he is in the Lord. He is joined to the Lord.
What kind of living should we have after we are saved? This is the focus of our fellowship in this chapter. After we are saved, the Lord should continually manifest Himself to us. We should have His face and His presence. Moreover, the Lord should make His abode with us.
We will first consider the Lord’s manifestation and then consider the Lord making an abode with us. Suppose two people are sitting together, facing each other. Each one has the other’s manifestation. If one person goes to another room, he will become hidden, and the other person will no longer have his manifestation. As long as one cannot see the other, he does not have the other’s manifestation. The other will be manifested only when he returns. Hence, in order to have someone’s manifestation, we must be able to see his face. After a person is saved, if his living is normal and overcoming, he should constantly have the Lord’s manifestation, the Lord’s face.
I believe that we all have had this kind of experience. Many times we have had the Lord’s face. We did not see His face physically, but we had His face within us. In our inner being we were very clear that the Lord was manifesting Himself to us and that His presence was with us. However, there have been many times when we knew that the Lord was not manifesting Himself to us; instead, He was hidden from us. The young brothers and sisters are often concerned about watching movies. Many of them have argued with me, saying, “Why can we not go to the movies?” I do not have to argue. I only ask, “While you are watching the movie, is the Lord Jesus with you? Does He manifest Himself to you? Is His face with you? Do you have the shining of His face?”
Being a Christian is not a matter of sin or of love for the world. These are negative things. Being a Christian is a matter of having the Lord’s presence by seeing His face. Fundamentally, being a Christian is not a matter of dealing with the world or sins, nor is it a matter of doing good or evil. Being a Christian is entirely a matter of having the Lord’s presence. Hence, our primary concern is not our dealing with sin or the world. Our primary concern is our dealing with the Lord, that is, our relationship with the Lord. Whether or not a person is saved does not depend on whether he sins or loves the world. Rather, it depends on his relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the only thing that matters.
Similarly, whether or not a believer can have an overcoming life does not depend on the things he does, nor does it depend on whether he deals with sins and the world. His life depends on how he deals with the Lord. Even if we do not sin, if the Lord hides His face from us, it will be difficult for us to have a good Christian life.
Losing the Lord’s presence is something that Christians should fear more than anything else. Sometimes people say, “Brother Lee, you are always giving messages; you speak daily and even many times a day. We are concerned for you. Even if you have three hundred topics, sooner or later you will exhaust them. Then what will you do? Will you still give messages?” I always say, “I am not worried about running out of messages. What I fear is losing the Lord’s presence, His manifestation, His face. I am not concerned about whether I have something to speak in the meetings. To me, the most fearful thing is that the Lord would hide His face from me. I am fearful that the Lord would not manifest Himself to me and would not be with me. This is what I fear. If the Lord’s presence is with me, everything will be all right.” If we have the Lord’s face, everything is all right. There will be messages to give and words to speak. If we have the Lord’s face, all sinful things will be under our feet, and the world will be behind us. Hence, a Christian must not lose the Lord’s face, the Lord’s presence.
Do you have the Lord’s face, His manifestation, His presence? You should not take this as a matter of doctrine. When you leave your home, does the Lord say, “My face will go with you”? What do you say? Perhaps you say, “Lord, I am going out. If You do not go with me, I will not go. My going out is Your business, not mine. If Your face, Your presence, does not come with me, I will not go.” If you contact the Lord in this way, the Lord will say, “I will go with you,” and you will always have His manifestation, His face. You must always ask whether you have the Lord’s presence, His manifestation.
How can we have the Lord’s manifestation? The Lord says, “He who has My commandments and keeps them, he is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him” (John 14:21). A person who has the Lord’s manifestation loves the Lord and keeps His commandments. Such a person is loved by the Father and the Son. Not only so, the Son also manifests Himself to him. Whether you have the Lord’s manifestation depends on whether you love the Lord and keep His commandments. This is a practical and serious test.
We have received the Lord’s salvation, and the Lord is in us. We are people in the Lord. However, it may be difficult for us to take a further step and have the Lord’s manifestation. The problem is whether we love the Lord and keep His commandments. Some people are saved but do not love the Lord or keep His commandments. Others are saved and love the Lord, but they have only a partial love for the Lord. A person who has a partial love for the Lord keeps the Lord’s commandment when it suits him. When the Lord’s commandment is disagreeable to him, he will not keep it. At such a time, he does not let the Lord win; rather, he defeats the Lord. Any dispute between us and the Lord in which we defeat the Lord instead of letting Him defeat us, proves that we do not love Him enough. Some may ask when and in what matters they have defeated the Lord. The Lord has been defeated by us in many things. Going to the movies is an example. We may have a strong desire to go see a movie, but the Lord gives an inward command, saying, “No.” This is the Lord’s speaking to us in love. Even though we know that we should obey Him, we disobey and go to the movies. This is the way that we defeat the Lord.
The Lord speaks to us because we love Him. If we did not love Him, He would not bother to speak to us. Our love for a person is an encouragement for him to speak to us. If someone does not want a person to speak to him, he should not love him. If he ignores a person and does not bother with him, the person will not come to him, much less speak to him. Conversely, whomever he loves will come to him. This also applies to all of us. Those whom we do not love or whom we dislike will not bother to speak to us. But the more we love someone, the more he will come to be near us and speak with us.
Similarly, as a result of even a little love toward the Lord Jesus, He will come to bother you. He will say, “Did you not say that you love Me? Did you not say that you would consecrate yourself to Me?” Because you have consecrated yourself to the Lord, you love Him. Therefore, now when you want to go to a movie, the Lord will say, “Do not go.” This is the Lord’s commandment. He who has the Lord’s commandments and keeps them loves the Lord. However, after you receive the Lord’s commandment, you may argue with Him. The Lord says, “Do not go,” but you say, “I want to go.” The Lord says, “Do not go,” but you say, “I will go only this once.” The Lord says, “You must not go,” but you insist, “I will go this time but not again.” The Lord says, “No, not even this time.” This is the argument that you have with the Lord. I believe that you all have had this kind of experience. It may not have been concerning movies, but we have many such arguments with the Lord, and it seems that we always defeat the Lord. We all have had the experience of defeating the Lord. The Lord Jesus is so great and we are so small, yet we often defeat Him and overthrow His throne in us. The Lord is daily being defeated by many people whom He has saved. We should consider how many times we have defeated the Lord Jesus.
Many times, when the Lord asks us to do something, we argue with Him. This argument is a battle between the Lord and us. The Lord gives us a commandment, but we receive it grudgingly, or we say that we would rather do something else. If the Lord says no, we argue with Him, and we defeat Him again. Although it seems as if we have only defeated the Lord, we have actually disobeyed His commandment. Many of us have had this experience.
Every time we defeat the Lord and disobey His commandment, we lose His presence within us, and we no longer have His face, because He hides Himself from us. However, there are also times when He gives a commandment, and we say, “O Lord, because I love You, I will let myself be defeated. I will receive Your commandment, listen to Your commandment, and obey Your commandment. I will go along with what You say.” Whenever we respond in this way, we experience sweetness, joy, and light. We sense that the Lord is with us, and we see His face, His manifestation.
There was a young child who was saved and properly shepherded. He often prayed, “O Lord, I belong to You, and I am in You. I give myself to You. Lord, I love You. I am willing to live to You.” This is a good prayer. One morning his mother gave him ten dollars. He was very happy and said, “Thank You, Lord. You love me so much that You have caused my mother to love me and give me ten dollars. Lord, I thank You and praise You.” Immediately after he gave thanks, the Lord Jesus said to him, “I want you to give the ten dollars to the child from a poor family who sat next to you in children’s meeting.” This made the child sad, and he could not pray anymore. The ten dollars became a problem. The Lord wanted him to give the ten dollars away, but he treasured the money and wanted to keep it. After that the child lost the Lord’s presence. This does not mean that the Lord was not with him; it means that he could not sense the Lord’s presence. The Lord’s presence was hidden from him. He could not see the Lord’s face, so he no longer had any joy.
When his mother noticed that something was wrong, she asked why he was unhappy. However, the child was not willing to talk about it; he said that everything was okay. It seemed as if the problem was the ten dollars, but the real problem was his love for the Lord.
The Lord might have asked, “Do you love Me more than the ten dollars?” This would have bothered the child. The Lord said, “He who has My commandments and keeps them, he is the one who loves Me...If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word” (John 14:21-23). Christians may appear to have no problem, but there is a problem concerning their love for the Lord. This child had a problem because he regarded the ten dollars more than the Lord’s word, the Lord’s commandment. It seemed as if he would rather have the ten dollars than the Lord.
Because the child did not want to let go of the Lord, he wished that the Lord had not given him this commandment. He hoped in his heart that the Lord would change this commandment, but the Lord insisted on his giving the ten dollars away. Therefore, the child struggled for a period of time. While he did not obey the Lord, he had no light, and he did not have the presence of the Lord. Therefore, he was unhappy. This is the story of a Christian. We have had this kind of experience often. Even a person who has followed the Lord for many years often argues with the Lord. In the midst of his argument, he often realizes that the Lord has withdrawn and is hiding His face. His argument with the Lord is the result of his partial love for the Lord. Genuine love is unconditional. If our love for the Lord is genuine, we will keep His word. Whatever He says, we will do. Whatever He wants, we will give. Whatever He requires of us, we will accept. If we genuinely love the Lord, we will keep His commandments, and we will have His manifestation.
Having the Lord’s manifestation is the first step, and His making an abode with us is the second step. There are two sides to the Lord making an abode with us: His coming to abide in us and our abiding in Him. Hence, this is a matter of rest. The Lord’s manifestation is a matter of joy, whereas His making an abode in us is a matter of rest. If we love the Lord and obey His commandments so that there is no barrier between us, and we obey all that He asks of us, we will have the Lord’s manifestation, and we will have joy within. If we continue to love the Lord and obey His commandments, we will not only experience His manifestation; the Lord will also make an abode with us. When we argue with the Lord, if we are willing to say, “Lord, I let You win. I am willing to surrender, to love You, and to listen to You,” we will still experience His manifestation, and He will come to make an abode with us. He will abide in us, and we will abide in Him. Then we will have joy and also rest within.
Many Christians have the Lord’s manifestation, but few experience the Lord making an abode with them. They love the Lord, but they love Him today and do not love Him tomorrow. They are willing to listen to Him in one matter but are not willing to listen to Him in another matter. They often sense the Lord’s manifestation but also sense the Lord withdrawing. In one matter they have the Lord’s presence, but in another matter the Lord hides Himself from them. They do not have the Lord’s manifestation in a consistent way. Their experience of the Lord can be compared to a person staying with us for an hour and then leaving. This kind of manifestation is not continuous. A person who lives with us and is a member of our family will abide with us in a consistent way. His manifestation to us will not be temporary; it will be a long-term abiding. This illustration explains why some people have a temporary manifestation of the Lord but do not experience Him making an abode with them.
In order to experience the Lord making an abode with us, we must have an unchanging love toward Him and listen to His words without preference. Some brothers and sisters love the Lord, but they are selective when they listen to His words. When they feel that they can obey the Lord’s command, they do so, and thus, they have the Lord’s presence. However, when the Lord gives them a command that does not correspond to their preferences, they argue with the Lord and defeat Him. As a result, they lose not only the Lord’s presence but also the Lord’s making an abode with them. The most precious thing for a believer is to experience not only the Lord’s manifestation but also His making an abode with him. It is not enough for us to have the Lord’s presence in individual matters. We should have the Lord’s manifestation in our entire living so that the Lord will make an abode with us. He abides in us, and we also abide in Him. When He is able to obtain a dwelling place in us and have rest, we are able to obtain a dwelling place in Him and have rest as well. We become those who abide with the Lord. The Lord abides in us, and we abide in Him; thus, we have rest.
These two matters, the Lord’s manifestation and His making an abode, depend on our loving the Lord and obeying His commandments. We must know and be able to recite John 14:21-23. These verses clearly show how we can experience the Lord’s manifestation and His coming to make an abode with us. In verse 21 the Lord said, “He who has My commandments and keeps them, he is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him.” Both the Father and the Lord Jesus love a person who keeps the Lord’s commandments, and They manifest Themselves to him. This is entirely a matter of love. If we love the Lord and obey His commands, we will have the Lord’s manifestation. In verse 23 the Lord said, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make an abode with him.” When we love the Lord and keep His word, He will make an abode with us.
As Christians, we must experience the Lord’s manifestation and His making an abode with us. How much has the Lord manifested Himself to you? How much has the Lord made an abode with you? This is the Christian life, and it is an overcoming and sanctified life. You do not have to deal with anything except whether or not the Lord manifests Himself to you and whether or not He makes an abode with you. This kind of spiritual life is very practical. The Lord’s manifestation is something you sense within, and His making an abode with you is also something you can sense within. Whenever you experience the Lord’s manifestation, you will have joy. Likewise, whenever you experience the Lord making an abode with you, you will have rest.
The Lord is real in us, His manifesting Himself to us is also real, and His abiding in us is real. Furthermore, the Lord who indwells us speaks and makes demands of us. The Lord does not necessarily speak to us when we are listening to a message or reading the Bible. Often the Lord speaks to us when we are not listening to a message or reading the Bible. We only need to lean toward Him or love Him, and He will speak to us. Nine times out of ten when He speaks to us, He makes a demand. Sometimes He asks us to put aside our plans either to go somewhere or to obtain something. Sometimes He asks us to give something away or to go along with His will. Most of the time, His speaking to us is a demand. Such demands cause us to argue with Him.
If the Lord promised to give us something, we would surely praise the Lord and say, “Thank You!” If He gave us something every time He spoke, none of us would have a problem with His speaking. However, this is not our situation. Most of the time the Lord’s words to us are demands, either forbidding us or requesting something of us. Hence, we are easily aroused to argue with Him. When He loses and we win, we lose His manifestation, and His face is hidden from us. Furthermore, we have no joy and no rest. We have no peace and no security.
We must understand that we have no rest, because the Lord is not making His abode in us, and we are abiding outside of the Lord instead of abiding in the Lord. If, by the Lord’s grace, we continually obey His demands, His face will be manifested in us. His face will be toward us continually. We will touch His presence, and we will be full of joy. Not only will we have joy; we also will have no problems and no barriers between the Lord and us. He will make an abode with us and dwell in us securely, and He will also cause us to dwell in Him securely. When we abide in Him, we will be persons who are secure and settled. Then we will have not only joy but also rest.
Do you have joy? Are you secure and at peace within? The only reason that you would not have joy or be secure or at peace is that there is a dispute between you and the Lord. If we love the Lord, do not argue with Him, and listen to His words and obey them, He will appear to us moment by moment. We will have His face, and we will have joy. Moreover, He will dwell securely in us and will cause us to dwell securely in Him. This is the way for us to have full rest.
