Search
In this message we shall cover six more symbols of the believers: a lamp, a city situated upon a mountain, the sun, virgins, plants, and living stones.
In Matthew 5:15 the believers are symbolized by a lamp: “Neither do men light a lamp and place it under the bushel, but on the lampstand, and it shines to all who are in the house.” In order to be the lamp shining upon others we need to be without any covering. As the lamp on the lampstand, the light should not be hidden.
In verse 15 the Lord Jesus speaks about placing the lamp under the bushel. A lighted lamp placed under the bushel cannot shine out its light. The kingdom people as the lighted lamp should not be covered by the bushel, an item pertaining to eating, a matter which causes anxiety (Matt. 6:25). Instead of being covered by the bushel, we must be on the lampstand.
The Lord Jesus wisely speaks about not being covered by a bushel. In ancient times a bushel, as a measure for grain, was something related to eating and therefore related to the matter of making a living. Thus, hiding the lamp under the bushel indicates anxiety concerning our living. If we Christians are anxious about our living and concerned about how much money we are making, this anxiety will become a bushel covering our light.
In order to shine upon others, we need to come out from under our covering. This indicates that, as kingdom people, we live without care and anxiety for our existence. We care only for Christ and the church. Day after day we are a happy people, a praising people. When others contact us, they will sense that we have no anxiety, that we are not worried about our living. From experience we know that such a lack of anxiety touches others. If every time someone contacts you, you are happy and enjoying the Lord, he will be deeply touched. Filled with anxiety and occupied with all kinds of worries, worldly people talk about the fear of losing their jobs or the difficulties they are having at work. But the kingdom people, those not covered by the bushel, care only to talk about Christ and the church. By being such a people we touch the hearts of others and shine upon them.
Matthew 5:15 speaks of the light shining to “all who are in the house.” We may think that the house here refers to the church. However, there is no need to interpret the house in this manner. According to the context, the main point is that the shining of the light has two aspects: the outward aspect and the inward aspect. The light as a city on a mountain (v. 14) shines over the outsiders, whereas the lighted lamp on the lampstand shines over those who are in the house. As the city, the light shines upon people, but as the lamp in the house, the light shines into people. This indicates that our influence over others should not be just outward but also inward.
The outward shining of the kingdom people, likened to that of a city situated on a mountain, is general, and all of society can see it. Society can see a group of people who are built up, situated upon the top of a mountain, and shining. The inward shining, on the contrary, is particular. When others see that we are not anxious about our living, the light of the lamp will penetrate into their being and shine within them. This is not the general shining from outside; it is the particular shining from within. If we are proper kingdom people, we shall be a lamp without any covering shining into others. This inward shining penetrates the inward being of others and convinces them.
Eventually our shining will give glory to the Father. “Thus let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in the heavens” (Matt. 5:16). The title “your Father” indicates that the Lord Jesus is speaking to those who are regenerated children of God (John 1:12; Gal. 4:6). The good works here are the behavior of the kingdom people through which others may see God and be brought to Him.
Our shining will glorify the Father because it expresses what God is. To glorify God the Father is to give Him the glory. Glory is God expressed. When the kingdom people express God in their behavior and good works, men see God and give glory to God. God hidden is God Himself. But when God is expressed, that is the glory of God. If as the kingdom people we have such a shining light, God will be expressed in this shining, and all those around us will see the glory, God expressed. When others see God in our shining, that is the glory of God.
In Matthew 5:14a the Lord Jesus says, “You are the light of the world.” Then in 14b He goes on to say, “A city situated upon a mountain cannot be hidden.” As the shining light, the kingdom people are like a city situated upon a mountain.
Some may wonder why the Lord Jesus uses a city on a mountain as an illustration of the believers as the shining light. If we are in the building of the church in a practical way, we shall realize that only by being built together can we be a city situated on a mountain. This city becomes a shining light. The saints in the churches are now grouping together in their neighborhoods. If this practice becomes prevailing and the saints in these groups are built together, every group will be a part of the shining city situated on a mountaintop.
The light in 5:14 is not an individual person; it is a builded city. This indicates that the kingdom people need the building. If the saints in the church in your locality are not built up, but are scattered, divided, and separated, there is no city there. And as long as there is no city, there is no light, because the city is the light; the light is not an individual believer. The light is a corporate city built up as one entity to shine over the people surrounding it. In order to shine upon others outwardly, we need to be built up as a city on the mountaintop. Every local church in the Lord’s recovery must be a builded city.
In the book of Revelation the churches are golden lampstands (Rev. 1:20). The principle of the city and the lampstand is the same: neither is individual; both are corporate. The lampstand, like the city, is not an individual believer but the church. If we are outside the church, we are not a part of the lampstand. In order to be a part of the lampstand, we must be built into the local church. The local church, which is the lampstand, is likened by the Lord to a builded city set on the top of a mountain. If we are built up in our locality, we shall be on the mountaintop. But if we are scattered, separated, and divided, we shall be in a low valley. In every locality there must be one lampstand, one city situated on a mountain. For this, we need to keep the oneness and remain one entity, a corporate Body. Then we shall be able to shine. But if we are divided, we are finished with the shining. When we have truly been built together, we shall be the city on a mountaintop shining upon those around us.
The city situated on a mountaintop is elevated above all the surroundings.
The Lord Jesus says that the believers as a city situated upon a mountaintop cannot be hidden. It is impossible for such a light to be hidden.
The city situated upon a mountain will consummate in the New Jerusalem situated upon the golden mountain, shining over and enlightening the new earth with the divine light. Revelation 21:18b says, “The city was pure gold, like pure glass,” and verse 11 says, “Having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, as a jasper stone, clear as crystal.” Revelation 21:23 and 24 tell us, “The city has no need of the sun nor of the moon that they should shine in it, for the glory of God illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. And the nations shall walk by its light; and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it.” Here we see that the ultimate consummation of the divine revelation shows us God as the light, the Lamb as the lamp, and the New Jerusalem as the stand. Furthermore, the nations will walk by the light of the city. Under the shining of the New Jerusalem with the divine glory, the nations will not be in darkness.
We, the kingdom people, are the light of the world. As light we are like a city on a mountaintop and like a lamp shining in a house. From without and from within we shine to express God, to let God have the glory in the eyes of others. May we exercise such an influence on those around us.
In Matthew 13:43a the Lord Jesus likens the overcoming believers to the sun: “Then the righteous shall shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” Today we shine as lamps, but in the coming age we shall shine as the sun. At present, this is beyond our experience and understanding.
Those who will shine as the sun are the sons of the kingdom (Matt. 13:38) as the righteous. According to Matthew 5:20, these sons of the kingdom will have the surpassing righteousness. They will be righteous to such an extent that their entire being will shine. This righteousness is the indwelling Christ lived out of us that we may live in the reality of the kingdom today and enter into its manifestation in the future. It is impossible for our natural life to gain this surpassing righteousness; it can be produced only by the resurrection life of Christ.
In Matthew 13:43a the Lord Jesus speaks not of the kingdom of God, nor of the kingdom of Christ, nor of the kingdom of the heavens, but of the kingdom of the Father. The kingdom of the Father is the heavenly part of the millennium (Rev. 20:4, 6), the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens as a reward to the overcomers. In this kingdom the righteous will shine forth as the sun. We are sons of God the Father, and God is light (1 John 1:5; 1 Tim. 6:16). The divine light, which is God Himself, is, of course, much greater than the light of the sun. When in the millennium the overcomers enjoy the Father as light, they will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
Another New Testament symbol of the believers is virgins. Matthew 25:1 says, “Then shall the kingdom of the heavens be likened to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom.” Virgins signify the believers in the aspect of life. Believers, who are the kingdom people, are like chaste virgins, bearing the Lord’s testimony (the lamp) in the dark age and going out to meet the Lord. For this they need not only the indwelling but also the fullness of the Spirit of God.
Being a virgin is not a matter of work, service, or activity; it is a matter of life. Moreover, we are not merely virgins but chaste, pure virgins. Being a virgin is not a matter of what we do or are able to do; it is absolutely a matter of what we are.
When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He was loved much more by His female followers than by His male followers. For example, Luke 8:1-3 tells us that certain women ministered out of their possessions to the Lord and His disciples. This was an expression of their love for the Lord. Also, it was a woman, a widow, not a bachelor, who put all she had into the treasury (Mark 12:41-44). Furthermore, it was a woman who broke the alabaster flask of ointment and poured the ointment of very costly, pure nard upon the Lord Jesus (Mark 14:3). The disciples, however, were indignant and said, “Why has this waste of the ointment been made?” (v. 4). The point here is that whereas males tend to consider matters before loving, the females love blindly and pour out everything on the Lord Jesus in genuine love for Him. For this reason, in the new creation God makes all the believers females, virgins loving the Lord Jesus. Therefore, Paul could say to the believers in Corinth, “I betrothed you to one Husband, to present a pure virgin to Christ” (2 Cor. 11:2). Moreover, Revelation 21:2 describes the New Jerusalem as “prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” This indicates that if we would participate in the New Jerusalem, which is an aggregate virgin, we ourselves must be virgins who love the Lord and wait for Him.
In the sight of God, all believers, brothers and sisters alike, are virgins. When the Lord Jesus comes back for the believers, He will meet only virgins; He will not meet any men. Anyone who considers himself a man and not a virgin will not be qualified to go to the air to meet the Lord. Hence, we all must regard ourselves as virgins and say, “I love the Lord Jesus. I love my Husband, although I have never seen Him. Because I love Him, I give myself to Him. I give up my future and everything for Him. Now, while I am working for Him, I am walking out of the world to meet Him.”
The virgins in Matthew 25:1 are all people of the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 5:3, 10).
Matthew 25:1 says that the virgins took their lamps. Lamps signify the spirit of the believers (Prov. 20:27), which contains the Spirit of God as the oil (Rom. 8:16; Heb. 1:9). The believers shine with the light of the Spirit of God from within their spirit. As a result, they become the light of the world, like a lamp shining in the darkness of this age (Matt. 5:14-16; Phil. 2:15-16) to bear the testimony of the Lord for the glorification of God. Thus, as virgins we take lamps for testifying, shining, and enlightening. In our hand is a lamp shining for the Lord’s testimony.
The virgins in Matthew 25:1 “went forth.” This indicates that the believers are going out of the world to meet the coming Christ. The virgins do not linger or settle in any place. Instead, they are going out of the world. As virgins, we are not settled in this world; we are going out of the world to meet the coming Christ as our Bridegroom.
The bridegroom in 25:1 signifies Christ as the most pleasant and attractive person (John 3:29; Matt. 9:15). How good it is that here the Lord Jesus likens Himself not to a victorious general or a great commander-in-chief but to a bridegroom, a most pleasant person! Thus, we are the virgins going, and He is the Bridegroom coming.
Matthew 25:4 tells us that the prudent virgins “took oil in their vessels with their lamps.” We are vessels made for God (Rom. 9:21, 23-24), and our personality is in our soul. Hence, “vessels” in Matthew 25:4 signify the souls of the believers. The five prudent virgins not only have oil in their lamps but also take oil in their vessels. Having oil in their lamps signifies that they have the Spirit of God dwelling in their spirits, and taking oil in their vessels signifies that they have the fullness of the Spirit of God saturating their souls. If we are prudent virgins, we shall have not only the ordinary portion of oil — the Spirit in our spirits — but also the extra portion of oil — the Spirit in our souls for our transformation.
Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:6-8 illustrates the believers as plants. The Lord’s word in Matthew 15:13 conveys the same illustration.
The believers are planted by God through His servants. This was what the apostles did with all the believers. It is altogether of life illustrated by the plant life. So there is the need of planting and watering and also the need of growth. The planting and watering are done by the apostles, but the growth is given only by God who is the source of life.
The believers, as God’s plants, are planted in the church, which is God’s farm (1 Cor. 3:9). In the farm of the church the believers are not only planted but also watered. It is also in the farm of the church that God gives the growth to the believers.
According to the context of the first few chapters of 1 Corinthians, the life with which the believers grow in the church is the crucified and resurrected Christ. It is to experience and enjoy Him in the church that we grow in the divine life as God’s plants.
According to 1 Corinthians 3:8-12, the believers, as God’s plants, are to be transformed with Christ as their life into precious stones for the building of God — the church. The church is not only God’s farm but also God’s building (v. 9). In the church the believers are not only planted, watered, and growing in the divine life, but also transformed with the divine life into precious materials for the building of God’s house (1 Tim. 3:15).
In the New Testament the believers are also symbolized by stones and are called living stones (1 Pet. 2:5). These living stones are actually transformed sinners. Once we were sinners, but we are now in the process of being transformed into stones.
According to John 1:42, when the Lord Jesus first looked at Peter, He said, “You are Simon the son of John; you shall be called Cephas (which translated means a stone).” The significance of a stone is that it denotes a work of transformation to bring forth material for God’s building (1 Cor. 3:12). The stone in John 1:42 signifies the believers in Christ, after being born of God, regenerated by receiving Him (John 1:12-13) to be transformed into living precious stones. This is for the building of the church, the house of God (Matt. 16:18). How wonderful it is to be transformed into living precious stones for the building of the church!
First Peter 2:5 says, “You yourselves also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house.” We, the believers in Christ, are living stones, like Christ (v. 4), through regeneration and transformation. We were created of clay (Rom. 9:21). But at regeneration we received the seed of the divine life, which by its growth in us transforms us into living stones. At Peter’s conversion the Lord gave him a new name, Peter — a stone. When Peter received the revelation concerning Christ, the Lord revealed further that He also was the rock — a stone (Matt. 16:16-18). Peter was impressed by these two incidents that both Christ and His believers are stones for God’s building.
According to 1 Peter 2:5, as living stones we are being built up a spiritual house. Although the nourishing milk of the word (v. 2) is for the soul through the mind, it eventually nourishes our spirit. It makes us spiritual, suitable for building up a spiritual house for God.
God’s goal in the believers is to have a house built up with living stones. He does not want separated and scattered stones, nor even a pile of stones merely gathered together. He wants stones built up with one another.
The spiritual house into which we are being built is God’s building. Eventually, this building will consummate in the New Jerusalem. In the New Jerusalem there will not be any clay, for all the clay will have been transformed into precious stone. This means that the New Jerusalem is built with precious stones. We are now becoming the precious stones that will be built up into the New Jerusalem.
