Search
Scripture Reading: Rom. 8:4, 6, 14; Gal. 5:25; Eph. 6:18; 1 Thes. 5:17, 19; Rev. 1:10a
The Bible ultimately shows us one thing: God passed through creation, incarnation, more than thirty-three years of human living on earth, and death on the cross; then He came out of death and was resurrected. In this wonderful resurrection He became the life-giving Spirit as the consummate expression of the Triune God. This Spirit is on the throne today and is also moving on the earth, waiting for people to receive Him. Wherever one is, as long as he is willing to repent and believe into the Lord Jesus by calling on His name, the Spirit will immediately enter such a one. This wonderful Spirit thus becomes one spirit with the spirit of this believing one. This is the mystery of mysteries in the universe. This is also the greatest, highest, deepest, and richest mystery in the universe.
Since the Triune God went through creation, incarnation, thirty-three and a half years of human living, death, and resurrection, He possesses all these qualifications. He is the Creator, the Redeemer, the God-man, and the One who died and resurrected. He has divinity with humanity; in Him are the effectiveness of His marvelous death, the power of His resurrection, and the transcendence of His ascension. Furthermore, He is the Ruler on the throne with all authority; both the kingdom and glory belong to Him. All positive things are concentrated on Him and in Him. He is truly all-inclusive. As long as you receive Him and let Him come into you, the riches of His all-inclusiveness also will come into you. He is within you today as the Spirit. The Spirit, the rich Spirit, the all-inclusive Spirit, the Spirit who passed through death and was raised from the dead, the Spirit with the effectiveness of death and the power of resurrection, is now in you. Hallelujah!
Everyone who believes into Him has this Spirit. Furthermore, as He is in our spirit, He becomes one spirit with our spirit. “He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit” (1 Cor. 6:17). What a glorious thing it is that we and the all-inclusive Lord have become one spirit! He is we, and we are He. He and we, and we and He are one spirit. In this one Spirit there are divinity, humanity, power, life, holiness, and glory. All the fullness is in Him.
What then shall we do? We do not need to do anything; we simply need to live and walk according to the Spirit. I hope that you all can see this, remember this, appreciate this, and praise the Lord for this. Hallelujah, I have become one spirit with the all-inclusive Spirit! What a marvelous salvation this is! Oh, how glorious is the story of the new creation! His redemption is eternally effective and truly worthy of our praises. This is not religion, nor ethics, nor morality, nor culture. This is the all-inclusive Spirit dwelling in our spirit. How glorious! This is the Spirit according to whom we live and walk. This is all that we need. This is the crystallization of the entire Bible. This is what the sixty-six books of the Bible are all about.
We know that when people cook food in a kitchen, the food goes through many processes. They have to kill some items and cut them into pieces; they have to put some items in a pot to be boiled and other items in the fire to be roasted; they have to add this and that. If you go to the kitchen to take a look while they are busy there, you will find a mess. You will see grease, blood, water, and fire. However, after all these processes are completed, there will be many delicious dishes set before you for you to eat. Likewise, in His economy the Triune God had to pass through various processes that He might become the Spirit. He passed through the processes of creating all things, becoming flesh, living on the earth for thirty-three and a half years, entering into death, passing through death to subdue and conquer death, coming out of death, and entering into resurrection. After these processes, a delicious dish was ready. This delicious dish is the all-inclusive Spirit. All you need to do is repent and believe, call on the Lord’s name, pray and receive Him; then this delicious dish will become your portion. We do not need to do anything; we only need to enjoy this Spirit.
Brothers and sisters, this Spirit is the tree of life in Genesis 2. What is the tree of life? It is the Triune God who went through creation, incarnation, human living on the earth, death, and resurrection to become the Spirit presented to you. You should receive Him, eat Him, and enjoy Him, and you should live and walk according to Him. This is different from religion, morality, and culture, which all require that you do something. Only the tree of life does not require you to do anything. You simply need to receive, to eat, to drink, and to live and walk according to Him.
At this time I would like to impress you with this word: live and walk according to the Spirit. Whether it is ethics, religion, law, or anything else, each one tells you what to do. I want to tell you that as long as you ask what to do, that is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Do not ask what to do; simply eat and drink. That is the tree of life.
In Christianity we see that when a pastor marries a young couple, he says, “So-and-so, you are taking an oath before God today that you will marry So-and-so to be your wife. You have to promise before God in front of the congregation that you will love her forever. The Bible says that husbands should love their wives. Will you promise to do this?” The bridegroom will say, “I promise.” Let me ask you, what is this? Is this the tree of life or the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? Yes, this is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Then the pastor will turn to the bride and say, “So-and-so, now you are going to marry So-and-so. You also have to swear before God and promise me that you will take this man as your head and submit to him for your whole life. Will you promise to do this?” In that kind of a situation every bride and groom would promise to do so. Some would say, “Yes,” and others would simply nod their heads. Let me ask you, What is this? Is this the tree of life or the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? Anything that requires you to do something is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; only that which invites you to eat is the tree of life.
The Bible ends in a call and a promise. The call is: “The Spirit and the bride say, Come! And let him who hears say, Come! And let him who is thirsty come; let him who wills take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17). The promise is: “Blessed are those who wash their robes that they may have right to the tree of life” (v. 14). The call is to take the water, and the promise is to eat the tree. Do not ask, “How can I overcome? How can I be holy? How can I be spiritual? How can I be this? How can I be that?” All of these are the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Let me talk about marriage again. The pastors who marry people do have this experience. Not long after the wedding, the bridegroom will come to him and say, “On the wedding day you told me to love my wife. I tried my best to love her, but I have to tell you that up to this day it has not been possible. I simply cannot do it. This is why I am here to seek your advice. How can I love my wife? You just don’t know; my wife is the most difficult woman in the whole world.” The next day the bride also will come and say to the pastor, “Pastor, when you married us, you wanted me to take him as my head. I want to tell you today that I cannot take him as my head. You simply don’t know what kind of head he is. It is impossible! I am here to seek your advice. What should I do?” Every pastor has to be ready with a reply. The pastor most likely would turn to the verse in Ephesians 5 which says, “Husbands, love your wives.” He would tell the man, “So-and-so, you should not make comparisons, saying that Mr. Chang’s wife is better than your wife, Mr. Lee’s wife is better than your wife, and even all the wives are better than your wife. If you appreciate others’ wives, that is not to love your own wife. But God says that you should love your own wife.” The man would argue, “You don’t know. She is really unlovable; I cannot love her.” The pastor would say, “The Bible does not say that you should love your lovable wife; it only says that you should love your own wife. God has given you your wife. Whether she is lovable or not lovable, you have to love her.” The man would say, “I cannot do it!” Then the pastor would say, “Even if you cannot do it, you still have to do it. You should never get a divorce. Rather, you should pray!” Let me ask you, what is this? This is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Formerly, the devil seduced man to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; now the pastors compel people to eat of it.
Let me share a little bit of my testimony. Soon after I was saved, I began to love and seek the Lord and wanted to be an overcomer. First, I wanted to overcome my temper. My biggest problem was that I was quick-tempered; it was so easy for me to lose my temper. The person I loved the most was my mother, but this did not affect how I lost my temper. I did not care; I simply lost my temper before her. Afterward, I felt very sad. I truly wanted to be victorious, so I bought many books with titles, such as “How to Overcome,” “A Guide to Victory,” “How to Be Holy,” and “A Guide to Holiness.” When I first read them, I thought they were quite reasonable, but when I put them into practice, they did not work. Then I realized that those books simply teach people how to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which is not what the Bible teaches. What does the Bible say? The Lord Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life and may have it abundantly” (John 10:10b). He also said, “I am the bread of life….He who eats Me, he also shall live because of Me” (6:48, 57b). It seems He was saying, “I do not come as a teacher to teach you, nor do I come as a pastor to advise you to do certain things. I have come as the bread of life for you to eat. Don’t ask Me, ‘Teacher, what shall I do?’ Just eat Me.”
The Lord Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life and may have it abundantly.” The Lord Jesus came to be eaten by us. But what a shame it is that there are many who read the Bible, many who listen to sermons, and many who give sermons, but there is none who eats the Lord Jesus! May I ask you, How much of the Lord have you eaten today? The tree of life is not for studying but for eating. Where is the tree of life today? It is the Spirit of life in your spirit.
Forty years ago, the newly married young men always liked to come and ask me, “Brother Lee, please tell me how to be a husband.” At that time this was the kind of question I liked the most. I immediately gave them at least five commandments and told them, “Take these back with you and do them accordingly!” In doing that I also was helping people to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But today if you go to the United States and inquire of the young brothers and sisters, they will say, “If you have problems in your married life, don’t bother going to Brother Lee. He will not give you any method but will say to you, ‘Just eat the Lord Jesus, and that is good enough.’” Their word is true. Now I have no methods at all. This is not a joke. Simply eat the Lord Jesus. Dear brothers and sisters, no matter what question you bring to me, I can give you only one answer. There is only one way. There is no need for you to prepare to do anything. Simply say to the Lord, “Lord, You are in my spirit, and I am one spirit with You.” This is good enough; do not say anything more.
When I fellowshipped with the younger ones about this, someone would invariably ask, “Brother Lee, your way is very good. But suppose after I go home tonight, my husband loses his temper again with me, what shall I do? Can you tell me a good method to follow?” You see that by asking such a question, this one immediately turned to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. I would say, “I just told you not to do anything, think anything, or suppose anything. You only need to tell the Lord, ‘O Lord, You are the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit, You are in my spirit, and I am one spirit with You. O Lord, this is my life.’ This is enough. You can go home in peace.” However, she would say, “Yes, it is good that I go home, but what if my husband loses his temper again?” I said, “I have spoken this much, but it has all been nullified by your question. Don’t ask any more questions; just go home in peace.” Why should she not ask further? Because all she needs to do is constantly live and walk according to the spirit, and that is sufficient. When she walks through the door into her house, her husband may ask, “Where have you been? Don’t you care about this home any more?” Now that trouble has come, what should she do? Let me tell you, she should not do anything but just tell the Lord, “O Lord, You are the Spirit of life. You are in my spirit, and I am one spirit with You.” Her husband may say, “Are you so spiritual? Is the Lord in your spirit but not in my spirit?” Then what should she do? She still should not do anything but again say to the Lord, “O Lord, You are the Spirit of life, You are in my spirit, and I am one spirit with You.” Her husband may say, “Are we going to eat or not?” She should neither say yes or no but turn to the Lord and say, “O Lord, You are the Spirit of life, and You are in my spirit.” I believe that this Spirit will lead her to cook, so she should cook. While she is cooking, she should praise the Lord, “You are the Spirit of life who lives in my spirit. Hallelujah!” This is to live and walk according to the Spirit.
You do not know how to honor your parents, how to be a good wife, how to love others, and how not to lose your temper. You do not know anything. The only thing you know is: “Lord, You are in my spirit, and I am one spirit with You.” Oh, this is glorious! Try it. You need to exercise and practice doing this. This is not religion, ethics, or the law, but Christ.
Today you need to know what is the Lord’s inward desire. The Lord’s inward desire is to live in you as your life and person. This is neither a superstitious belief nor an empty doctrine but a true fact. I believe that you have had this experience at times when your prayer went well, and you prayed yourself into the spirit. Oh, how good it was! When you pray yourself into the spirit, you forget heaven and earth; you forget everything except the Lord. This spirit of prayer should be the atmosphere of our normal life. We should not be in such an atmosphere only when we are praying; rather, we should bring this atmosphere into our living. In our entire living, we should be living in an atmosphere of prayer. The Bible says, “Unceasingly pray.” This unceasing prayer does not mean that you pray unceasingly for many daily affairs. Rather, it means that you breathe and enjoy the Lord so that there is an atmosphere between you and the Lord, an atmosphere in which the Lord is with you, and you are with the Lord. The Lord and you and you and the Lord have become one spirit; you simply live in this spirit. This is to live and walk according to the Spirit. If you are willing to do this, you will see that the element of the Lord will be added into you day by day, and you will be sanctified. When the element of the Lord is added into you, spontaneously you would not like to play or joke, neither would you want to buy so many items of expensive clothing. You are not restricted by any outward regulation. However, because the Lord’s element has increased in you, this increase of the Lord has completely transformed you from within. Henceforth, holiness will be there, and also victory will be there. Without trying to overcome, you spontaneously will overcome. This is because you are one spirit with the Lord, and as you live in the spirit you live and walk according to this spirit.
In order for you to have this exercise, you need to do two things. First, every day you need to pray, “O Lord, I love You. Lord, draw me that I may love You more. O Lord, cause the love in me to be strong, burning, fresh, and sweet day by day. O Lord, I love You.”
Second, do not try to do anything for the Lord to prove that you love Him. Instead, tell the Lord, “Lord, I love You. Come and make Your home in me. I love You. I long for You to come and make Your home in me.” That the Lord will come to make His home in us is not a small thing; rather, it is a very great thing. As the Lord of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things, the Lord Jesus became flesh, passed through death, and entered into resurrection. Hence, all things belong to Him. The resurrection life and the riches of the Spirit are His. Today you need to tell Him, “Lord Jesus, I love You. Come and abide in me.” When you say this, He will accept and come into you to abide in you. The Lord Jesus 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” (John 14:23). Thank the Lord, He is the all-inclusive Spirit, and He is real and living. When He comes to abide with us, we enjoy His presence. The sweetness, the rest, the comfort, the strength, and the inward supply are beyond description. In this way we experience and enjoy Him.
The New Testament tells us, “Unceasingly pray” (1 Thes. 5:17); “Do not quench the Spirit” (v. 19); and “By means of all prayer and petition, praying at every time in spirit” (Eph. 6:18). Eventually, Revelation, the last book of the Bible, tells us, “I was in spirit on the Lord’s Day” (1:10a). What the Bible shows us at the end is a person who is in spirit. Every one of us should pray, “Lord, make me a person in spirit, and make every day of my life on the earth a Lord’s Day. I really want to be in spirit on the Lord’s Day.” This is good enough. Here you have the church life, not religion. Everyone is in spirit. You are in spirit, and I also am in spirit. Every brother is in spirit, and also every sister is in spirit. We are all in spirit. As a result, we are together here as the church today, and in the future we will be together as the New Jerusalem. This is the union and mingling of God and man; God is in man, and man is in God. The divine Spirit and our human spirit become one spirit, and we live and walk according to this spirit. Hallelujah! This is God’s eternal purpose and His greatest pleasure.
Dear brothers and sisters, do you love God? Do you love the Lord? What is the Lord’s greatest delight? It is that you and He become one spirit and that you live and walk according to the spirit. You would not care about others’ criticisms, neither would you care about any regulations. All you would care about is to love the Lord, to be one spirit with Him, to fellowship with Him in spirit, and to walk in the Spirit. You live, walk, and have your being in the Lord as the Spirit. This is glory, life, light, power, enrichment, victory, spirituality, and holiness; this is also the church life. One day this will be the manifestation of the New Jerusalem. Do you see this? This is different from religion. Hallelujah, the Triune God as the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit dwells in us to be joined with us as one spirit! Today we pray in this spirit, fellowship with the Lord in this spirit, and live and walk in this spirit.
