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In this message we will continue to consider Christ as the Husband of the New Jerusalem.
Revelation 21:14 says, “The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” Christ’s twelve apostles will be the twelve foundations of the wall of the holy city, the universal wife of Christ. This indicates that the apostles are the foremost servants of God.
The apostles represent all the saints in the church; they are the representatives of the church. Hence, whenever the New Testament speaks of the apostles, the church is implied, for the apostles represent the church. This principle will still be in effect in the New Jerusalem.
Verse 12 says that on the twelve gates of the New Jerusalem there are names inscribed, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. This indicates that this city includes all the redeemed saints of Israel in the Old Testament times. Verse 14 says that the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. This proves that this city also includes the New Testament believers, who are represented by the twelve apostles. On the gates are the names of the twelve tribes, and on the foundations are the names of the twelve apostles. Putting these names together, it is clear that this city is a composition of all the redeemed saints of the Old Testament and the believers of the New Testament.
Luke 13:28-29 tells us that in the coming kingdom of God, there will be not only Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and other Old Testament saints but also believers who will come from the east and the west and from the north and the south. Many New Testament believers and Old Testament saints will be together in the kingdom. Hebrews 11:8-10, 13, and 16 tell us that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the other Old Testament saints eagerly waited for the city which has the foundations, which is the New Jerusalem. According to these verses, it seems that the New Jerusalem will be only for the Old Testament saints. However, verses 39 and 40 tell us that the saints in the Old Testament times could not obtain the promise of the city apart from us, the New Testament believers. Hebrews 11, therefore, corresponds with Revelation 21, showing us that the New Jerusalem is a living composition of both the Old Testament saints and New Testament believers.
The New Jerusalem is a living composition of the Old Testament saints, represented by the twelve tribes (Rev. 21:12), and the New Testament saints, represented by the twelve apostles (v. 14). The Old Testament is a history of the twelve tribes, and the New Testament is a history of the twelve apostles. Therefore, these twenty-four names indicate that the New Jerusalem is the ultimate consummation of the history of the twelve tribes and of the history of the twelve apostles. In other words, if we would understand the significance of the twelve names of the twelve tribes, we need to understand the entire Old Testament. Also, if we would understand the significance of the twelve apostles, we need to understand the entire New Testament. These twenty-four names are a part of the ultimate consummation of the things in the Bible.
The New Testament believers are not for the gates; they are for the wall. The gates are for propagation and entrance, but the wall is for separation, protection, and expression. First, the wall sanctifies all the things belonging to God. God would not let any of His things be mixed up with the things which are not of Him, so there is the need of separation. The New Jerusalem’s wall functions to separate the New Jerusalem unto God as something holy. This is why it is called the holy city.
Second, the wall protects. In ancient times cities had walls around them for protection. The wall of the holy city protects the interest of the riches of God’s divinity and the attainments of Christ’s consummation.
The third function of the wall is to express God. God’s appearance is like jasper, and the light of the New Jerusalem is like jasper; hence, the whole city will express God. God the Father is the gold as the base, God the Son is the gates to bring people in, and God the Spirit transforms people to express God. The base of gold is something within, but the wall can be seen. This wall is in the color of the stone that signifies God, that is, jasper. Revelation 21:11 reveals that the city’s glory is like the glory of jasper. That is God’s appearance (4:3). Today the function of the Body of Christ, which consummates in the New Jerusalem, is to express Christ.
The names of the twelve apostles are inscribed on the twelve foundations (21:14). The twelve names of the twelve tribes being inscribed on the twelve gates of the city indicates that the twelve gates are there to fulfill the requirement of the law and to satisfy the law’s demand upon sinners. The twelve foundations bearing the twelve names of the apostles, who are the representatives of the grace of the New Testament, signify that the New Jerusalem is built upon the grace of God according to the New Testament. The entrance of the city answers the requirements of the Old Testament law, and the foundations of the city show us the grace of the New Testament. The law is for the entry, and the grace is for the foundation. We enter into the New Jerusalem according to the requirement of the law, and we are in the New Jerusalem according to and based on the grace of the New Testament. The twelve apostles here represent the grace of the New Testament, signifying that the New Jerusalem is built upon the grace of God. The entrance to the holy city is according to the law of God, and the city is built upon the grace of God. The twelve tribes of Israel represent the law of the Old Testament, whereas the twelve apostles of the Lamb represent the apostles’ teaching of the New Testament. The gates of the New Jerusalem are the initial section of the building, and the wall is the consummated section. The twelve foundations of the wall, built with every precious stone (vv. 19-20), bear the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb (v. 14b). This indicates that the New Jerusalem, this precious organic building, is built according to the apostles’ teaching of the New Testament and that the New Testament believers are the main constituents of this organic building to be the consummated section of this building for the building of its main structure in order that the saints could be built together as God’s eternal enlargement and expression.
The apostles are the foundations of this city. Therefore, today we need to read the biographies, the experiences of life, and the teachings of the apostles. We must take the apostles as the foundation. Whether in our personal life or in the services of the church, the wall, the boundary, cannot be according to our discernment or view. Neither can it be according to public opinion or the ideology of this age. It must be according to the lives and teachings of the apostles. They are the foundation of everything, a foundation which cannot be destroyed.
That the wall is built upon the foundations of the apostles of the Lamb also means that the wall is built upon the Christ who is brought to us by the apostles. The apostles of the Lamb are the bearers of Christ. They are the transformed transmitting agents of Christ. This simply means that the wall is built upon the Christ who is brought to us through the apostles as the transmitting agents. The children of Israel are the entrances, but the apostles of the Lamb are the foundations because they have Christ, and they brought Christ to us. This is a picture of the church. The church is built upon nothing other than the Christ brought and taught to us by the apostles.
The foundations of the New Jerusalem are not the foundation mentioned in 1 Corinthians 3:10-11, which is Christ. Rather, they are the twelve apostles of the Lamb. Today the church is built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Eph. 2:20). This means that their teaching and their speaking concerning Christ laid a foundation. Since in eternity there will be no further need for the prophets, the foundations of the holy city will consist only of the apostles. When we enter into the new heaven and the new earth, all the four dispensations will have been completed, and there will be no need for prophecy. Everything will have been accomplished and fulfilled, and all the apostles will abide forever. The apostles will abide through eternity because they represent the testimony, mercy, grace, and faithfulness of God, and they have become the precious stones.
The apostles signify that the New Jerusalem, which is the building of God and the testimony of Jesus, is not of man but of God (Gal. 1:10-12). None of the apostles are of man; all are of God. This is the real testimony, and we must apply this principle to ourselves. In the church life everything must be of God; there must not be anything of man. The foundation of the church life must be only of God. If there is any human element, sooner or later that will be a weak point and will be heavily attacked by the enemy. Such an element cannot withstand the enemy’s attack. If we initiate anything that is of man rather than completely of God, the foundation will not be strong. In every city we must allow the church life to be initiated only of God and not of ourselves.
The apostles are also the real witnesses of God’s mercy. When we consider the twelve foundations, we must recognize the mercy of God. If God loves us and gives us a gift when we are in a pitiful state and unworthy of love, this is an act of mercy. Mercy is more far-reaching than grace. God is not only a God of grace but also a God of mercy. If we were worthy of God’s love and gift, we would qualify for God’s grace. But we are in a truly pitiful state. Therefore, we should praise God that His mercy is so far-reaching that it has reached poor sinners like us.
We need to look closely at the twelve foundation stones. When we study the four Gospels, we see that although Peter was poor and pitiful, he was nevertheless chosen and used by the Lord. He was adorned and equipped by mercy, and his name is on one of the foundations of the city. After the adornment of God’s mercy, Peter became qualified for God’s grace. If we are humble, we will realize how truly pitiful we are before the Lord and how worthless we are in His eyes. We need His mercy. But after we receive His mercy, we can praise Him and tell Him that now we qualify for His grace. It has nothing to do with our qualifications — it is all the Lord’s mercy.
Peter was a poor fisherman (Matt. 4:18-19), and Matthew was a tax gatherer (9:9; Luke 5:27). In those days the Jews scorned tax gatherers, men who collected taxes for Caesar and the Roman Empire, not for the temple of God. They were despised and hated by their own countrymen; hence, they were pitiful people. Yet one of them became an apostle and eventually one of the twelve foundations of the glorious city of God. What a mercy! These twelve foundation stones will eternally declare God’s mercy. We all must know the mercy of God.
The twelve foundation stones are also a witness of God’s grace. The grace of God is nothing less than God Himself. God gives Himself to us as our enjoyment to meet all our needs. In Galatians 2:20 Paul says that it is no longer he who lives but Christ who lives within him. In 1 Corinthians 15:10 he declares, “Yet not I but the grace of God which is with me.” By putting these two verses together, we see that grace is nothing less than Christ Himself. Grace is God in Christ as our strength, our power, and our enjoyment. A poor fisherman like Peter and a tax collector like Matthew could become such important parts of the foundation of the holy city not only because of God’s mercy but also because of His grace.
The colors of the twelve precious stones of the foundation, which signify the twelve apostles, are as follows: the first stone is green, the second and third are blue, the fourth is green, the fifth and sixth are red, the seventh is yellow, the eighth is bluish-green, the ninth is yellow, the tenth is apple-green, and the eleventh and twelfth are purple. The twelve layers of the foundation in the above colors give the appearance of a rainbow, signifying that the city is built upon and secured by God’s faithfulness in keeping His covenant (Gen. 9:8-17). Because the foundation of the city is built upon the faithfulness with which God keeps His covenant, it is trustworthy and reliable. The wall with its foundations guarantees God’s unfailing faithfulness for eternal security. The New Jerusalem standing upon the twelve layers of its foundations in the colors of the rainbow guarantees God’s faithfulness.
It is through God’s faithfulness that the apostles have become the city’s foundation stones. In the Scriptures the rainbow is a sign of God’s faithfulness. God’s faithfulness encircles His throne (Rev. 4:3). In the holy city the foundation is not laid block by block but layer upon layer, and each of the twelve layers is a different kind of precious stone. Every layer displays a special color. The layer upon layer of precious stones, which compose the foundation of the city, show forth the colors of the rainbow. This indicates that the faithfulness of God is the foundation of the city. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all looked for “the city which has the foundations” (Heb. 11:10). They looked for such a city because that city is built upon the faithfulness of God. Psalm 89:2 says that the faithfulness of God is established in the heavens. Strictly speaking, the twelve stones alone do not compose the foundations of this holy city; rather, the faithfulness of God bestowed upon the twelve stones makes up the foundations. The apostles themselves are not sufficient to constitute the foundation. We would not have any trust in Peter and Matthew by themselves, but we realize that the faithfulness of God is with them, and we trust the faithfulness of God upon them. These twelve layers of precious stones as the foundation appear as a rainbow, eternally declaring God’s faithfulness. God’s faithfulness is based on His righteousness. If there were no righteousness, there would be no faithfulness. Thus, the foundation of the New Jerusalem is the righteousness of God with God’s faithfulness.
According to Genesis 9:8-17, the rainbow is a sign that reminds us of God’s faithfulness in keeping His word. The rainbow surrounding the throne in Revelation 4 is the sign of God’s covenant. Therefore, for God to be expressed in the rainbow tells us that God is the covenant-keeping God, the faithful God. That the foundations of the wall have the appearance of a rainbow also tells us that this city, which is built upon the faithfulness of God, can never be destroyed. Man cannot destroy it; even God Himself cannot destroy it. God has to keep the covenant signified by the rainbow. Therefore, this city is built upon a foundation that is eternally indestructible.
The New Jerusalem is a city of foundations (Heb. 11:10). These are the twelve apostles of the Lamb (Rev. 21:14), each of whom is signified by a precious stone. Peter, the first of the twelve apostles, was originally named Simon. When Simon was brought to the Lord, the Lord changed his name to Peter, meaning “a stone” (John 1:42). Later the Lord called him by that name when He spoke concerning the building of His church (Matt. 16:18). Precious stones are not created but are produced by the transforming of things created. All the apostles were created as clay, but they were regenerated and were transformed into precious stones for God’s eternal building. Every believer needs to be regenerated and transformed so that he may be a part of the New Jerusalem.
The New Jerusalem is built of three kinds of precious materials, signifying that she is built with the Triune God. First, the city proper, with its street, is of pure gold (Rev. 21:18, 21). Gold, the symbol of the nature of God, signifies the Father as the source, from whom the element for the substantial existence of the city is produced. Second, the twelve gates of the city are pearls, which signify the Son’s overcoming death and life-imparting resurrection, through which entrance to the city is gained. Third, the wall of the city and its foundation are built of precious stones, signifying the Spirit’s work of transforming the redeemed and regenerated saints into precious stones for the building of God’s eternal habitation that they may express God corporately in His all-permeating glory. In the garden of Eden these three kinds of treasures merely existed as materials (Gen. 2:11-12), whereas in the city of New Jerusalem these precious materials become a builded city for the fulfillment of God’s eternal purpose, which is to have a corporate expression.
We all appreciate Peter, John, and the other disciples, but we may not realize how much pressure they experienced. They were no longer clay — they became precious stones. They were transformed through intense heat and pressure. If we consider the histories of Peter and John, we will see the sufferings through which they passed. They were pressed and burned until they became strong and precious. On the day of Pentecost Peter and John were no longer clay; rather, they had become stones, so strong and precious. Eventually, we must also become precious stones through the transformation work of the Spirit. All the members of Christ’s Body must be transformed in order that God may have the foundation and the wall of the holy city.
The twelve foundations of the wall of the New Jerusalem with the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb show that the particular characteristics of the twelve apostles remain. The foundations of the wall of the city are adorned with every precious stone (Rev. 21:19). Although the light that shines forth from them is the same expression of God, their colors are different. These different colors are their personalities, and these personalities reflect the mingling of God with man.
The mingling of God and man does not mean that our person has been fully annulled. Even though Paul did say, “I am crucified with Christ,” he went on to say, “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith” (Gal. 2:20). “I” is still here; it has not been annulled.
In God’s eyes it is beautiful for Peter to have the element of God within him. However, it would not be beautiful if Peter was annulled and only the element of God remained. Peter’s Epistles show that he was not annulled. In reading his Epistles we can immediately recognize that they were written by Peter. The same is true with Paul’s and John’s Epistles. Peter, Paul, and John were not annulled; their particular characteristics were retained. In the New Jerusalem their characteristics will not be annulled; their names will still be there (Rev. 21:14). Salvation would not be very meaningful if our characteristics were annulled. We must realize that our flavor will be with us even when we enter into the New Jerusalem. Even in the New Jerusalem, we will not lose our personal identity and flavor.
God’s salvation is to mingle Himself with our person. Every apostle had a strong character and was very capable. Yet they all shared one characteristic — they were mingled with God. We should never think that our personality has been annulled because we are mingled with God.
The wall and its foundations of precious stones signify the transforming and building work of the Holy Spirit. The foundations of the wall of the city are of twelve layers. The number twelve shows the completion in God’s eternal administration. The first layer is jasper, indicating that the likeness of God is the predominant appearance. The first layer of the wall’s foundation, as well as the entire wall of the New Jerusalem, is built with jasper. This indicates that the main material in the building of the holy city is jasper. Since jasper signifies God expressed in His communicable glory, the main function of the holy city is to express God in bearing His glory (v. 11).
We must now consider a very important matter regarding the twelve foundations. Although the entire wall is jasper, the twelve foundations are different stones with various colors. Each layer is different from the others. The reason for this is that the apostles had different ministries. Paul’s ministry was different from Peter’s, and Peter’s was different from John’s. However, these twelve foundations are not laid side by side; rather, they are laid one on top of another. The top layer, the layer that met the bottom of the wall, is jasper, the same color as the wall. Thus, all the work of the apostles issued in the same appearance, jasper. All twelve layers lead to and support the unique testimony in the unique expression.
The work of many so-called Christian workers leads to an individualistic appearance. But the work of the apostles led to one appearance. Today’s Christian workers not only have different colors, but instead of being one on top of another, they are side by side. Thus, they have an individualistic expression, often striving against one another in competition. The work of the apostles, on the contrary, was layer upon layer and led to the unique appearance of jasper, the appearance of God in Christ.
If we examine the ministries of the apostles in the New Testament, we will see that each ministry was upon the top of another, not side by side. Peter, a fisherman, brought in the fish, the material. Paul, a tent maker, built up the tent with the materials brought in by Peter. Eventually, after the tent had been torn, the apostle John came in to mend it. Thus, Peter’s ministry was a fishing ministry, Paul’s was a building ministry, and John’s was a mending ministry. These three apostles worked one on top of the other. Paul’s work was upon Peter’s, and John’s work was upon Paul’s. As a result, they produced one building, not three distinct houses. Unlike Peter, Paul, and John, many of today’s Christian workers build up their own houses, each with its own design, shape, color, and expression. Therefore, in Christianity there are thousands of different houses. But in the entire universe there will only be the unique New Jerusalem, built upon the foundation of many ministries laid one on top of the other. May this matter become crystal clear to us.
We must realize that in the Lord’s recovery it is absolutely wrong to have another side-by-side work. Our work must be a layer laid upon the present layer, and it must produce the same appearance. We do not believe that the Lord will raise up any side-by-side work. Although there will be different ministries, they will be layer upon layer, and they will lead to the one appearance of God in Christ. No matter how many ministries we may have in the recovery, we will have the same mind, the same concept, and the same opinion, and we will all speak the same thing. However, this does not mean that all the ministries must be the same. We need different ministries, yet they must be layer upon layer. All the ministries must lead to one appearance — the appearance of today’s church and of the coming New Jerusalem.
All the ministries support and bear the same unique testimony. We are for the unique expression of the Triune God, not for any specific practices or particular doctrines. Although our ministries may differ, our expression, our testimony, is just one. We are not building side by side; we are building one on top of another to bring forth the unique testimony of God in the universe.
