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Scripture Reading: 1 Cor. 15:46-47; Gen. 17:18-19; 25:23; Rom. 9:12-13; Gen. 48:18-19; 1 Sam. 8:5; 16:1; 2 Sam. 12:14, 24-25
The message that the Lord gives us this afternoon involves these few portions of the Word. These verses show us a principle that God reveals in the Bible. The subject of today's message can be called "The Principle of Being the Second" or "The Law of Being the Second."
In the portions that we have read, we can see that God chooses the second and not the first. First Corinthians 15:46-47 says that the first is earthy and the second is heavenly; the first is soulish and the second is spiritual. I have often considered that it is an amazing thing in the Bible that God always chooses the second one. Ishmael was the eldest son and older brother, and Isaac was the younger brother. Yet God chose Isaac. Esau was also the eldest son and older brother, and Jacob was the younger son and brother. But God chose Jacob, not Esau. Manasseh was the first son, and Ephraim was the second; yet God chose Ephraim. Bathsheba had two sons. God smote her first son and loved the second son, Solomon. God loved Solomon so much that He sent the prophet Nathan to give him the name Jedidiah which means "Jehovah's beloved." Our Lord was born from this lineage according to the flesh.
From the Bible, therefore, we see that God always chooses the second and not the first. This is not all. God did not want the first king, Saul; He chose David, the second king. God said that David was a man after His heart.
Why did God reject the older brother and prefer the younger? Why did God hate the first one and choose the second? This is what we have to find out.
God not only deals with the Israelites and the believers in this way, He also deals with sinners in this way. In Exodus, why did God want the Israelites to strike the blood on the side posts and on the upper doorpost for their firstborn? Why was the firstborn in danger and the secondborn not? Why did the Bible require the firstborn of the cattle and sheep to be redeemed, and if they were not redeemed, that their neck be broken? Breaking the neck damages the central nervous system and results in death. Why did the firstborn of the cattle and sheep need to be redeemed? Why did the secondborn of the cattle and sheep not need to be redeemed? Even the firstborn sons had to be redeemed, in addition to the firstborn of the cattle and sheep. The second son, however, did not need to be redeemed. If the firstborn was not redeemed with a price, he was not counted as one of God's people and had to be cut off. Why was God displeased with the firstborn? Why were they not favored? Why were the second sons loved by God? Why was God gracious to them? Why did He also cherish them? Why did God make the whole tribe of Levi the price of redemption for the firstborn of Israel? When the number was short, why did He demand silver to fill up the number? Why did God reject the first son and choose the second son?
We know that the Bible is not a careless record. The reason the Bible records things in a particular way reveals a very important principle, even though this principle may not be understood by many. God does not do things in a haphazard way. He repeatedly acts this way because this is His way. All of His acts are controlled by His ways. Therefore, if we can learn from this principle, we will greatly advance in our knowledge of God and spiritual things.
What is the significance of God choosing the second and rejecting the first? Let us read 1 Corinthians 15:46, "But the spiritual is not first but the soulish, then the spiritual." While 1 Corinthians 15 primarily speaks about the resurrection of the body, our purpose in reading this passage is not to focus on the resurrection of the body. Our focus is on the spiritual principle. According to this portion of the Scripture, there is first a soulish body and then a spiritual body. The principle here is that everything that comes first is soulish while everything that comes second is spiritual. This is the reason that God chooses the one that comes second and rejects the one that comes first.
What is the first? In John 3:3, "Jesus answered and said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Then 3:6 says, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." The Lord Jesus was speaking of regeneration. The Lord said that it is not enough to be born once; a man must be born anew. He said that only one birth is not sufficient; a man cannot see the kingdom of God in this way. But if he is born anew, he will have eternal life and be able to see the kingdom of God. Following this, the Lord Jesus explained that the first birth is of the flesh. He also explained that the second birth is of the Spirit. The first is everything that comes from our flesh, our natural birth, and what we possess at the time of our natural birth. The second is everything that is not of the flesh, that is born of the Spirit, and that comes as a result of the birth of the Spirit.
Let us consider the many things that are included in that which is born of the flesh. We inherit these things from our parents. They include our emotion, talent, intelligence, and all the meekness, humility, love, peace, decisiveness, patience, etc. that come from our natural birth. All the virtues that we possessed before we received the Spirit and were regenerated, and everything that others consider to be most desirable are included in the category which the Lord Jesus calls "that which is born of the flesh." Brothers and sisters, we have to ask ourselves: Is everything that we have, after regeneration, born of God? Or are there still things that are born of the flesh? We should not consider that only sinful and filthy things are born of the flesh and that they are the only things that need to be removed. We should not consider our meekness, patience, loveliness, intelligence, and talent as things that we can retain and that do not need to pass through the process of being born of God. Do we realize that everything we can obtain and do and which can exist without the Holy Spirit, without believing in the Lord, or without trusting in God is inherited from the first? Do we realize that they are from the flesh and from our parents? All these things should be rejected and abandoned. Only the things which we can obtain and acquire and which exist through the Holy Spirit, through believing in the Lord, and through trusting in God are pleasing to God; they are what God desires.
Therefore, the first thing is regeneration. Blessed are those who have two lives! Blessed are those who have two natures! Some people say with their mouth that they believe in the Lord Jesus; they may even attend church services. But if all they have is what they inherited from their parents, they are still sinners destined for perdition. If all that a man has and is and all that he has acquired and obtained are but things that he has from his birth, he is a hopeless and useless person before God. If one believes in the Lord and acquires the second, he is regenerated, saved, and has eternal life.
Christians should pay attention to the difference between the first and the second. They should be able to differentiate between what they have inherited from their parents and what God has given to them through the Spirit. Many Christians have very confused views; they cannot differentiate between the first and the second. They do not know what is of the first and what is of the second. Many Christians think that if they are zealous, patient, and speak nice words, if they pray well, zealously distribute tracts, and save people, their life, living, nature, and work will be sufficient.
Please pay attention to what I am saying. I am not speaking what I do not know; I am speaking what I know. God does not care for our good work. God only cares about where our good work originates from. Where does the work originate? What is the source? Even though you have done some good, where does the goodness come from? This does not mean that God hates meekness; rather, we have to ask where the meekness comes from? Does it come from our self or does it come from the Holy Spirit? Where does our zeal come from? Does it come from our self or does it come from the Holy Spirit? What is the principle? The principle is that in everything we must ask if it comes from the first or the second. God always rejects the first and always approves the second. Therefore, you have to see whether your zeal comes from the first or the second.
Suppose I have a quick temper. When I see others being patient, I may admire them very much and commend them. But God is concerned about another matter. He would ask about the source of the strength for this patience. He would ask where the power behind this patience originated. When we see goodness in the first, we say that it is good. But God will only say that something is good if the goodness is from Him. Only what God considers to be good is truly good. When we see a preacher with a loud voice, clear enunciation, zest for work, and zeal for saving souls, we often say that he is spiritual. But God asks if these attributes are from the first or the second. A brother once said that Christians today have no discernment at all. When they see a preacher banging the podium with his fist, they say that he is very powerful! But where does his power come from? Any talent, strength, and natural attribute that comes from the first should not be trusted. God only wants what is acquired after regeneration; He wants everything that comes from the second.
Not only should a preacher reject what is from the first, but every believer should reject what is from the first. Natural goodness and patience are like rubber bands; when the rubber is stretched to the limit of its elasticity, it is no longer flexible. They can never match God. If anything is from God, it can be stretched indefinitely. A fleshly source cannot supply a spiritual need; this fact is certain. Adam cannot help Christ, and that which is of Adam cannot help that which is of Christ. Many people think that as long as they love others, everything will be "all right." But this "all right" is not enough; we still have to ask if this "all right" is given to you by God.
A brother once said that only what proceeds from heaven will go back to heaven. I think the reason we often say that heaven is our home is because all we are and have comes from heaven; this is why going to heaven is returning home. If all that we have is of the earth, then heaven must be a guest house and not our home! God can never receive what did not proceed from Him. This is certain.
Is there a difference between the day we first believed and today? Does being a Christian merely involve the removal of the sins, failures, weaknesses, filth, and other negative things that existed before we believed? If this were so, then others will say that being a Christian is just removing all that is bad. But this is not good enough for God. God does not disapprove of only bad things; he also disapproves of many good things. God does not just remove all that is bad; He rejects everything that comes from the first. God rejects not only the sin in the flesh; He also rejects the cleverness in the flesh. He not only rejects the filth of the flesh; He also rejects the goodness and righteousness of the flesh. God is not pleased with anything that comes from the first — the fleshly and natural life. Nothing of the first can mix with that which is new.
In the four Gospels we see the Lord Jesus telling men that if they do not love Him more than their father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, and their own life, they were not worthy to be called His disciples. In another place the Lord said that if a man did not hate his own father, mother, wife, and children, he was not worthy to be His disciple. In Paul's Epistles he not only exhorts children to submit to their parents, but also for parents not to provoke their children. In another place we see a word for the husband and wife: the husband should love the wife and the wife should love the husband. The Gospels repeatedly say that we should hate, while the Epistles repeatedly say that we should love. If you cannot differentiate between the first and the second, and if you cannot differentiate between the flesh and the Spirit, you will not understand the meaning behind these words. If you cannot differentiate between the first and the second, the natural and the supernatural, you will think that you can treat your relatives any way you want when you read that the Lord said that he who does not love Him more than his father, mother, and children is not worthy to be called His disciple. When Paul says that parents, children, and couples should love one another, you will think that you can forget about everything else except loving your relatives. The Lord Jesus forbid natural love, while Paul commanded us to have spiritual love. If your love is natural, you will drift from the Lord, your fellowship will lessen, your love will be diverted, and your intimacy will be lost because of the relatives that you love. If you are willing to put your parents, wife, and children into God's hand, and if you are willing to hate them if God wants this, you will immediately be aware of God's second commandment, which is to love your parents, wife, and children. Then you will be delivered from the first and enter the second. Many people receive only the first half in the Gospels, while many others receive only the second half in Paul's writings. Both of them are wrong.
Brothers, our work and life must be delivered from the first. For example, it is easy to understand the terms fleshly and spiritual according to the letter, but it is difficult to differentiate between the two in our living. How can we tell if our goodness and righteousness come from the first or the second? Is there any mark that can help us clearly identify which is which? Let me tell you a law: everything that is spiritual has passed through death. Those who have experience will say "amen" to this. In other words, everything spiritual is in resurrection. Anything that comes from birth, that we can acquire without the need for God's strength, is of the first. All the cleverness, loveliness, goodness, and talents that we possess from the time of our birth until the time we believe in the Lord are considered to be fleshly by God. Everything that falls within this period cannot please God. Anything that God puts in after regeneration and that God adds to us through the Spirit from the time when we believed in the Lord Jesus is of the second. As far as natural virtues are concerned, they should be specifically rejected; we should not live by them and boast in them. Instead, we should trust helplessly in the Holy Spirit, looking to Him for guidance and beseeching Him for strength, victory, and the way to live out Christ. Everything that is of the second is from God and requires the specific denial of our own wisdom, strength, and natural abilities. Only after this denial do we have what is resurrected, spiritual, and from the second.
We have received too little of the second from God! We have lived too infrequently according to the second! What do we do all the time? We try to take away the evil things from the first and borrow the good things. But God says even though evil, filthy, and sinful things should be removed, our naturally clever, talented, meek, and lovely things should also be dropped and passed through death. We may think: if we should not use our own cleverness, should we be senseless? If we should not use our meekness, should we be blunt? No. It merely means that God wants to bring everything through death. For example, I may be a very clever person and may be able to find many new ideas in the Bible through my cleverness. However, I will not trust in my cleverness, but in God alone. I will trust in God in reading the Bible and in prayer. Without trusting in God, I can do nothing. The Bible says that "apart from Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). If we do this nothing apart from Him, we will pass through death, and our self will be abandoned. We will see God use our renewed wisdom, and we will see God take and use everything that has passed through death and the cross.
This is indeed a suffering life! How painful is this type of life! If we live this way, we will lose all our freedom. We should not do anything quickly. We have to wait on God, pray more, and know our uselessness and corruption. Yet only this life is a fruit-bearing life. "Unless the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24). Many people are not willing to adopt this attitude. Therefore, they live in the first all their life. They never live in the second because their natural being has not died. Although they look good outwardly, they cannot bear genuine spiritual fruit. Consider the example of the Lord Jesus who did not know sin. If He had said anything by Himself, He would not have been wrong. If He had done anything by Himself, He would surely have done it well because He was sinless, clean, and without blemish. His life and nature was perfect. Yet He said that He could do nothing or say nothing by Himself. He only spoke what He heard from the Father. Why would He not do things according to Himself? He realized that to do this would be natural and not be according to God. Even a person like the Lord Jesus, whose natural being was perfect, clean, and beautiful, did not follow Himself. How much more we should do the same! The Lord came from heaven. He did not trust in His perfect flesh, but trusted in the Holy Spirit. How much more should we do the same! The way that He insisted on walking according to God's will and by the power of the Holy Spirit shows us that being sinless alone is not enough. Our life must not be one that merely overcomes sin; it must also overcome the flesh. It must not only overcome filthiness, but must overcome the natural being. God's life has been too suppressed by our natural being. Our life and work have been too controlled by our own will and too motivated by our own wisdom. We have tried to serve God by our own strength too much. God's calling today is that we see the futility of everything that comes from the natural realm so that we will humble and empty ourselves before God, obey, and trust in Him entirely.
I admit that this is a painful way! This life is a dependent life, a lowly life, a life of bondage, imprisonment, and slavery. This kind of life is a suffering life. If you live by the second, you will be humbled and bound as a prisoner and slave every day. But this is the only kind of life that pleases God. Only this kind of work is spiritually effective. Everything from the flesh, whether it is fleshly holiness or fleshly zeal, amounts to nothing in God's eyes as long as it comes from the natural instinct or emotional impulse.
Finally, let us remember that anything we can do, will do, or are able to do without much prayer, without a full trust in God, and without the power of the Holy Spirit, is not pleasing to God and will be surely condemned by Him because it is something from the flesh. All that we have must be received humbly through trusting in God. May we put the natural life to death daily by God's life until the day the Lord returns. May God's new creation swallow up our old creation.
