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Scripture Reading: Rev. 2:1, 7-8, 11-12, 17-18, 29; 3:1a, 6-7, 13-14, 22; 14:13b; 22:17a; 5:6; 1:10; 19:10b; 22:6b
The age of the book of Revelation is the age of the seven Spirits, and this is the day in which we are living. Hallelujah for the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation! It is entirely different from all the other books. In Matthew there are a number of quotations from the Old Testament. In John, the Acts, Romans, Hebrews, and other books, there are also many quotations. But here in the book of Revelation, a book of twenty-two chapters, we cannot find one Old Testament quotation. It is absolutely a new book; nothing in it is quoted from the old books. In this book there are no quotations from the entire Bible — nothing at all of the old way. Then what is here? The seven Spirits are here. There is a Lamb with seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God. This is all. We only see the Lamb, the Redeemer, with the intensified Spirit. Nothing is of the old source. All the utterances in this book are made by the sevenfold Spirit and are new and fresh. There is nothing religious, nothing old, nothing dead; everything is spoken by the living Spirit in a new and living way.
Furthermore, we never read in this book of any human utterances. We always read that it is the Spirit who is speaking. “Yes, says the Spirit” (14:13). “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22). Seven times in chapters 2 and 3 we read that it is the Spirit who is speaking to the churches. The messages here are quite unlike those of the Old Testament prophets who prophesied, “Thus says Jehovah...” The utterances here are also unlike those in the Epistles. The Epistles say, “This I [Paul] say” (1 Cor. 7:6), or “I [Peter] exhort” (1 Pet. 5:1), and so forth. The book of Revelation never says, “Thus says Jehovah,” or “This I say.” It says rather, “The Spirit says, the Spirit says, the Spirit says.” Have you noticed this same sentence with the same wording repeated seven times: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”? This sentence is repeated seven times because of the sevenfold Spirit. Eventually, the entire book is concluded in this way: “The Spirit and the bride say...” (22:17). We read first in this book that the Spirit is speaking to the churches. Then eventually, the Spirit and the bride become one — they speak together. The Spirit and the church in this verse are a compound subject. The two have been compounded; the two have become one. Hallelujah! The church is one with the seven Spirits, and the seven Spirits have been fully wrought into the church. This is God’s goal! This is the ultimate consummation of His eternal purpose.
Neither can we find in the book of Revelation any doctrines, any gifts, or even any gifted persons. There are no apostles, no prophets, no evangelists, and no shepherds or pastors here; neither are there any elders or deacons. What we see here are the messengers of the local churches. The messengers are the stars, and the stars are related to the seven Spirits just as the seven churches are also related to the seven Spirits. The seven Spirits are for the seven churches, and the seven Spirits are also for the seven stars.
What is the meaning of all this? We must realize that by the time of the book of Revelation the age has been fully changed from religion to the Spirit. In this book there are no more doctrines, gifts, gifted persons, elders, or deacons because all these things have been so extensively utilized by the subtle enemy to form a religion. Thus, at this point in the Scriptures and in the Lord’s recovery, the Spirit does not mention all these things. Could anyone form a religion of the seven Spirits? I tell you, the seven Spirits will wipe out all religious elements.
In a certain place recently two young people were much helped by the fellowship of other young people in the meetings of the local church. The following day these two, a boy and a girl, stood together with their mother in the meeting to declare, “Down with Satan!” The father of those two youngsters was there and was greatly offended. He came to the front and told the whole congregation how grieved he was with such an exclamation, “Down with Satan!” He said, “If Satan were here, you would all be terrified.” Upon hearing this, all the brothers and sisters in the meeting began to shout, “Down with Satan! Down with Satan!” The father then called the mother and, motioning for the children to follow, stalked out of the meeting. Later, I learned that these parents were godly members of a certain group of Christians famous for knowing the doctrines of the Bible. But consider: what is wrong with Christians saying, “Down with Satan”? On the contrary, I would say that it is marvelous. Yet godly members of a certain group with a name for knowing the doctrines of the Bible were offended. This is religion.
Brothers and sisters, I fear that if you were living in the days of John the Baptist and were accustomed to offering sacrifices in the temple in a well-ordered way, you would be utterly shocked at John the Baptist. If you went to the wilderness and saw John wearing the camel’s hair and eating the locusts and wild honey, you would say, “What is this? Is this a man or an animal? Could such a person be God’s prophet? Why doesn’t he speak in the temple?” But who are you? Are you the Lord? I am not rebuking you. What I am saying is that we must all realize that we have been trapped by religion, even by Christianity. Christianity is a subtle snare — it has ensnared all Christians. Let me say a word to you — I do not mean others; I mean you. You still have at least a few drops of religion in your blood.
Have you realized by reading the record of the Lord’s birth in the four Gospels that it was absolutely different from the expectation of those who held the Old Testament in their hands? All the religious people were well aware of the prophecies concerning the birth of Christ and were expecting the Messiah to be born. But eventually, when He was born, it was utterly contrary to their expectation. Those who held the Bible in their hands paid no attention whatever to the actual event, and when the Lord Jesus came forth at the age of thirty for His ministry, none of the religious ones recognized Him. Do you not believe that the same situation will prevail at the Lord’s second coming? So many New Testament believers hold the Bible in their hands today, knowing and proclaiming the second coming of the Lord. Eventually, when the Lord Jesus comes, He will come utterly contrary to their expectation. They will be blinded by religion.
We have been indoctrinated with so many religious concepts — we do not know how many. They have been indoctrinated into our nature, into our life, into our blood. It seems easier for the young people to rid themselves of religious blood, but this is just the outward appearance. Do not think that because you are released and shout, you are free from religion. The religious concept is not in your outward activity but in your inward disposition. It is in your blood, your nature. For the older ones, breaking the ties and getting the religion out of the blood is even more difficult. We simply do not know how many religious concepts have been wrought into our being.
Anything without the presence of Christ is just a religion to us. The spiritual experiences of yesterday applied to today’s situation are just a religion. When we come to the book of Revelation, suddenly everything is changed. There are even no more positions, no more titles. In the local churches of the Epistles, there are first the elders, or overseers, and then the deacons and so forth. There are the titles — apostles, prophets, evangelists, and shepherds and teachers. But when we come to the book of Revelation, all these are gone. Paul wrote to the churches as “an apostle of Christ Jesus” (Eph. 1:1), but John in the Revelation speaks of himself as “your brother” (1:9). By the time John wrote the book of Revelation, he was close to one hundred years of age. He was really qualified and experienced as an apostle; he did have the position. At the time he wrote Revelation, he was the last of the original twelve apostles left on the earth, but he never referred to himself as such in this book. Have you seen this? “I John, your brother,” he said. That is all. That was the position, that was the qualification, he assumed in this book. Why? It is because in the Lord’s economy in this book and in this age, all these things — position, title, and qualification — are over.
Today, in the age of the Spirit, there is no position, no title, and no qualification. There is only one thing — the sevenfold Spirit. There are no elders; there are only stars. You may presume to be a proper elder, but you can never presume to be a star. If you are a star, you must shine. It is a shame today to claim the position of being an elder. It is a shame today to claim any position because of your many years of experience. It matters not how long you have been in the work of the Lord, but it matters very much whether you are shining or not. Are you shining? Are you living? Are you burning? The Lord today in the age of the Spirit does not care for anything — your experiences, your position, or your qualifications — but for the seven burning Spirits. Have you been burned by the seven Spirits, and are you burning in the sevenfold Spirit?
Today is not the day of the Epistles; today is the day of the Revelation. Today is not the day of the elders; today is the day of the shining stars. Oh, the deadness, oh, the deadness of claiming the position of an elder! That is a religion, and it will eventually become a part of the great Babylon. The position which you claim will never be in the New Jerusalem. Those who claim positions are as dead as doornails. There is no flow among them. There is nothing living, nothing burning, nothing shining. To claim a position, to claim a certain title, is nothing but a kind of religion. That is not life; that is not Christ — that is religion.
After reading so much concerning Christ versus religion, you may still not know what religion is. You may be criticizing other brothers, criticizing the responsible ones, criticizing the co-workers. What is this? This too is religion. “Oh, the Lord be merciful to us! O Lord Jesus! O Lord Jesus! How much we need Your rescue, Lord! We need Your deliverance! Deliver us from the positions, deliver us from the titles, deliver us from the qualifications, and deliver us from the criticisms.” All of these things belong to Babylon the Great; they will never be in the New Jerusalem. In Babylon there are the pope, the cardinals, the bishops, and so forth — many positions, many titles. But in the churches there are no positions, no titles, and no qualifications. There is just the sevenfold Spirit with the shining stars.
You may claim that you are in the local church. But is that really the lampstand in your city? Is it shining? Oh, may the Lord be merciful to us! Do not ask, “Are we not the house of God? Are we not the local church?” What about the shining? Where is the lampstand? Is there anything shining in the darkness of your city, in the night of this age?
We must all see the character of today’s age. It is no more the age of religion. It is no more the age of mere quotations. It is no more the age of mere teachings or doctrines. It is no more the age of the gifts or the gifted persons. It is no more the age of the so-called elders and deacons. This is the age of the book of Revelation. This is the age of the seven Spirits for the seven churches with the seven stars. In this book the Lord Jesus declares that He is the living One (1:18). What good is it to hold the sound and scriptural doctrines as long as you are dead? Oh, the doctrines! Oh, the teachings! Oh, the gifts! Oh, the dissension! Oh, the deadness! How much we need to give up our concepts and our dissenting thoughts! How much we need to come to the book of Revelation and to the age of this book! The book of Revelation is the stepping-stone to the New Jerusalem. If we have never been in the reality of the book of Revelation, we can never be in the New Jerusalem. Let us drop all the oldness and get into the reality of the book of Revelation. Let us just take one word — Amen — and mingle it with the words of this book. The seven churches — Amen! The seven Spirits — Amen! Seven messengers — Amen! Seven stars — Amen! One city, one church — Amen! One church, one city — Amen! The church in Ephesus — Amen! The church in Smyrna — Amen! The church in Pergamos — Amen! Even if I do not understand, I still must say Amen. Even if I do not agree, I still must say Amen. I am not the Lord — He is the Lord. If we would do this, we would be exceedingly blessed; we would be the most favored people on this earth. We would have rest, and we would be so very happy. We would not care what people say — we would only care what the seven Spirits say.
I would not suggest that you burn all your books, but I beg you to put all your books aside and come to the last book of the Bible. The last book of the Bible is the last word of the Lord, and the last word of any person is the most important. The last word of the Bible is the book of Revelation. Let us pray-read every chapter with every verse, every phrase with every word, and say Amen every time. We need not attempt to understand or analyze it. We need only say Amen to every word. I challenge you to try it and see what the result will be. I have full assurance that you will be set on fire by the sevenfold Spirit.
The year is not 1770 or 1870, but 1970. The Lord is marching on. We thank the Lord for all His previous recoveries throughout the past generations — without them we could never have reached the present age. But we must be up to date with the Lord. We should not linger behind in some past age of the Lord’s move. Since we are in 1970, we should be in tune with the Lord’s move in 1970. May the Lord deliver us from being backward Christians. We need to be brought on and on. This month is different from last month, and today is different from yesterday. We expect that tomorrow the Lord will go on to accomplish something further. Why must we hold on to so many old things? That is Satan’s subtle snare. We all need to be rescued by the present Jesus. What was good for yesterday may be the snare of the enemy to you today.
Let me say a word to the senior brothers and sisters. I am not so young; I know all your problems. Your problems can be summed up in three categories: (1) the doctrines you have learned, (2) the experiences through which you have passed, and (3) all the things you have seen in the past. But in the book of Revelation, I say again, there are no doctrines, there are no experiences, and there is nothing of the past. We all need to have a new start. The apostle John in this book is absolutely new, absolutely different from the John in the Gospel and in the three Epistles. Listen to his tone in Revelation. There is such a change because he was in spirit and heard the voice; he turned and saw something new. Oh, how we need to overcome the old doctrines, the old experiences, and all the things we have seen in the past! We need to overcome, and we need to come over. Do not say that you sympathize with the young people because they are young and must be so active. There is no need for you to sympathize with them. Sympathize with yourself! No one is so pitiful as you. Ask the Lord to have mercy on you.
The seven Spirits of God are sent forth into all the earth (5:6). The seven Spirits today are just like the air throughout the entire earth. They are not only in Los Angeles — they are everywhere. Never say that such an intensified Spirit is only good for Los Angeles. You may say that Los Angeles is Los Angeles, and every church must have its own separate and distinct expression. But what is your expression? I fear that it may be the expression of deadness, the expression of your dissenting thought. Christianity is just the expression of dead religion, the expression of so many divisive things. The sevenfold intensified Spirit is sent forth into all the earth.
Never think that the book of Revelation is merely a book of prophecy. We have read Revelation 19:10, saying that “the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of the prophecy.” I agree that Revelation is a book of prophecy, but you must not merely care for the prophecy and forget the Spirit. We would rather forget the prophecy and care for the Spirit. When you come to this book, do not try to analyze and understand it. Just say Amen from your spirit to every word; then you will be endued with the spirit of the prophecy. To be concerned with the prophecies is one thing; to care for the spirit of the prophecies is another.
The last chapter of this book says that the Lord is “the God of the spirits of the prophets” (22:6). God is the God of our spirits; He is not the God of our mind; He is not the God of our outward activities. Never get into your mind; never get into the teachings; never get into the doctrines. You can never meet God in all those realms — He is not there. God is in your spirit. God is the God of your spirit. You must be in your spirit to be with God and touch God. Today I am at a certain address in Los Angeles. If you go to San Francisco, you will miss me. If you go to any other street in Los Angeles, you will miss me. If you stand outside my house on the street corner, you will miss me. You must come to the door and enter my dwelling to be where I am. God is the God of the spirits of the prophets. We all need to turn to our spirit. This is why the apostle John was in spirit.
Today is the age of the book of Revelation. In this age the sevenfold intensified Spirit of God is versus religion. Let us look to the Lord desperately that we all may be fully taken out of religion and religion fully taken out of us. May we only be the seven shining stars in the seven burning lampstands with the sevenfold intensified Spirit. O Lord! Amen!
