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Scripture Reading: Heb. 11:24-27; Phil. 3:7-9a; 1 Cor. 9:17; Eph. 3:2; Col. 1:25; Eph. 2:20-22; 1 Cor. 3:10; 2 Tim. 4:7-8, 18a; 2 Cor. 12:15a; Luke 16:9; 1 Thes. 2:19-20; Matt. 25:21, 23; Eph. 4:11-16; 1 Tim. 3:15-16
I. Examples in the Bible:
А. The footsteps of Moses — Heb. 11:24-27:
1. By faith refusing to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter — v. 24.
2. Choosing rather to be ill-treated with the people of God than to have the temporary enjoyment of sin — v. 25.
3. Considering the reproach of the Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt — v. 26a.
4. Looking away to the reward — v. 26b.
5. By faith leaving Egypt — v. 27a.
6. As one seeing the unseen One — v. 27b.
B. The image of Paul — Phil. 3:7-9a:
1. What things that were gains to him being counted as loss on account of Christ — v. 7.
2. Counting all things to be loss — v. 8a.
3. On account of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ — v. 8b.
4. Suffering the loss of all things and counting them as refuse that he may gain Christ — v. 8c.
5. Being found in Christ — v. 9a.
II. Rewards from gaining Christ:
А. Moses:
1. Becoming the one to usher in the Old Testament ministry:
а. Establishing the law — a testimony of God among men — Exo. 25:16.
b. Building the tabernacle — a habitation of God among His people — vv. 8-9.
0. Being qualified to enter the kingdom — Matt. 16:28—17:3; Heb. 11:26b.
B. Paul:
1. Becoming the one to usher in the New Testament ministry — 1 Cor. 9:17; Eph. 3:2:
а. Completing the word of God — the revelation of God’s New Testament economy — Col. 1:25.
b. Building up the Body of Christ — the habitation of God in the universe — Eph. 2:20-22; 1 Cor. 3:10.
2. Receiving the kingdom — 2 Tim. 4:7-8, 18a.
III. The coming joy that results from being spent for Christ — 2 Cor. 12:15a:
А. Being received into the eternal tabernacles by those who have received benefit from you — Luke 16:9.
B. Having the ones that have received your help as your crown and joy at the coming of Christ — 1 Thes. 2:19-20.
C. Participating in the joy of Christ in the kingdom — Matt. 25:21, 23.
IV. Completing the New Testament ministry — Eph. 4:11-12:
А. Building the church of God — 1 Tim. 3:15-16:
1. As the pillar and base of the truth — v. 15.
2. As God’s manifestation in the flesh — v. 16.
B. For the building up of the Body of Christ — Eph. 4:12-16:
1. Arriving at the oneness in practicality — v. 13a.
2. Arriving at a full-grown man — v. 13b.
3. Arriving at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ — v. 13c.
4. No longer little children — v. 14.
5. Holding to truth in love, growing up into Him in all things, who is the Head, Christ — v. 15.
6. Out from the Head all the Body, being joined together and being knit together through every joint of the rich supply, and through the operation in the measure of each one part, causing the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love — v. 16.
In these last three chapters of training for the working saints, I hope to release all the burden I have within me. In the last chapter we saw that the working brothers and sisters are the backbone of the church life. They are extremely important. This time our subject is, “Give up the world, Christ to obtain.” We should give up the world to obtain the Lord Jesus, who is the all-inclusive Christ.
In the Bible there are two examples. One is Moses in the Old Testament; the other is Paul in the New Testament. Both were willing to give up the enticing, tempting, and entangling world to gain Christ. Soon after Moses was born, he was taken into the house of Pharaoh and became the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, which means that he was the heir to the Egyptian throne. However, because he knew God (who was the coming Christ in the New Testament and who at the same time was Jehovah in the Old Testament) he refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter (Heb. 11:24). Je- in the name Jesus is a short form of Jehovah. Therefore, Jesus is Jehovah in the Old Testament, and Jehovah in the Old Testament is Jesus in the New Testament. The suffix -sus in the name Jesus means “Savior.” Hence, the name Jesus means “Jehovah as Savior.” The one who appeared to Moses was this Jehovah-Savior (Exo. 3:15). As far as the world was concerned, it was a rare opportunity to enter into the palace and be a prince. This could be considered as the highest and most honorable place on earth. However, because Moses knew Jehovah, who was simply Christ, he refused by faith to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.
Moses chose rather to be ill-treated with the people of God than to have the temporary enjoyment of sin (Heb. 11:25). This signifies the enjoyment of Egypt, which is the enjoyment of the world and is sin in the eyes of God. The world is joined to sin. Sin occupies a great part of the world, and sinful things are also joined to the enjoyment of the lusts and the flesh. However, these enjoyments are temporary and transient. Because Moses knew Christ, he was willing to be ill-treated with the people of God rather than to stay in Egypt to have the temporary enjoyment of sin.
Moses considered the reproach of the Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt (v. 26). Moses made an estimation and reckoned that no matter how noble and precious the treasures of this world are, they cannot be compared with Christ. The last stanza of Hymns, #473 says,
I hope that all the working brothers and sisters would have an estimation that would consider what is noble and what is base. I made such an estimation sixty years ago. At that time I was still young and was as one charging on a great and tall horse into the world, ready to make gains. It seemed as if the Lord took just one look at me, and I fell from my horse. When I fell down, I began to reckon, “Should I choose the world, or should I choose Christ?” In the end I was very clear that Christ is the best. From that day on I chose to have Christ.
After Moses chose Christ, he began to have a hope, which was to receive a reward from Him. Because of this, he looked away to this reward (v. 26b). This is not merely a reward for this life but one that is for the life to come.
Not only did Moses refuse to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter through faith, but he also left Egypt by faith (v. 27). This means that he left the world, signified by Egypt.
By faith Moses “left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king, for he persevered as one seeing the unseen One” (v. 27). Moses saw a vision there, and he was strengthened in his faith. In that vision it was as if he had seen the invisible Lord. He met the Lord, and the Lord was seen by him. This is a tremendous thing. I hope that all the brothers and sisters, whether old or young, could say that they have seen the Lord. Although the Lord is invisible, I have definitely touched Him. This is why I know the way I am taking, and I know the kind of future that is ahead of me. These are the footsteps of Moses.
In the New Testament we have the image of Paul. The word image signifies a character and a model. Paul was a model of one who gives up the world to obtain Christ. Paul had a lot that he could boast of. He could boast of his birth, education, upbringing, and his ambitions and goals. One day on the way to Damascus, the Lord’s light shone on him, and he fell to the ground. A voice said to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” (Acts 9:4). From that time on, his eyes were opened. He also had a reckoning. He considered “that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the coming glory to be revealed upon us” (Rom. 8:18).
In Philippians 3:7 Paul says, “What things were gains to me, these I have counted as loss on account of Christ.” The words gains and loss are both terms used in gambling. He counted all things that were gains to him now as loss because all those things which were gains to him result in the loss of Christ.
Not only did Paul reckon as loss his Hebrew heritage, his Greek education, and his ambitions and goals, but he even counted all things to be loss (v. 8a).
Paul counted it excellency to have the knowledge of Christ (v. 8b). This excellency does not refer only to Christ but also to the knowledge of Christ. Paul considered it a matter of excellency to have more knowledge of Christ. The Jews considered the law given by God through Moses as the highest treasure in human history. This is why they were so zealous for the law. Formerly, Paul was such a person. But when God revealed Christ in him (Gal. 1:15-16), he saw a preciousness, an excellency, an unparalleled worth, and an extraordinary value that far transcended the law. Because of such a knowledge of Christ, he was able to count it a matter of excellency to have the knowledge of Christ.
Paul says, “I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as refuse that I may gain Christ” (Phil. 3:8b). Here Paul uses the words loss and gain again. To the outsiders the way that he chose was a gamble. It was risky and could be dangerous. He had a very good background, he had received a high education and enviable positions, and he had a bright future. But he gave all these up for another choice. Was this not a dangerous gamble in the eyes of his contemporaries? But to Paul this was not dangerous because he knew God and His word. Paul knew what he was doing.
The reason I am speaking this message to the working brothers and sisters is that they are standing at the edge of a cliff. On the one side is Christ, and on the other side is the world. You can step over to the side of the world and fall, or you can step to the side of Christ and be lifted up. Today I have a burden to save your life. This is an eleventh-hour decision. You must not make the wrong choice. I am most thankful that on the afternoon I was saved in 1925, I made a right choice. I chose to have Christ and to reject the world. I have not regretted even until today. I believe that I will never regret this choice.
Many brothers and sisters among you are very clear within that they have to love the Lord and to stand on His side. But I am not sure about your condition. It seems that you are standing on the Lord’s side. Yet you have left a bridge that links you to the world. You have not removed the bridge, much less burned it down, after you crossed the river. Abraham our forefather went to Canaan from Ur of the Chaldees. When he became weak, however, he did not return to Ur but went down to Egypt. Egypt is a place that is easy to return to. This message is my warning. Today, not only have I burned the bridge, but I have even lost my way of return. But you are all young and ambitious, or at least middle-aged and ambitious. What then shall you do? My burden this time is to infuse grace into you so that hopefully through the grace of the Lord your problems could be solved once for all and that you could say to the Lord, “Lord, burn my bridge! I cannot burn it, but please burn it for me.” I hope that when you go home tonight, you would all have a bridge-burning prayer.
Not only did Paul suffer the loss of all things and count them refuse, but he pursued to be found in Christ (v. 9). Paul desired to be seen by others as a man in Christ. In all things, great or small, and especially in his daily living, he was seen by others to be a man in Christ. When we love the world and pursue after it, others will surely not recognize us as Christians, because our goals, inclinations, and tastes are all worldly. Christ is not manifested that much in us. Paul desired earnestly for Christ to be manifested in him. Not only was he free from sin and the world, but he was full of Christ. This is what he was pursuing after.
The rewards received from gaining Christ are twofold. One reward is in this life, to be gained while one is alive on earth. The other is in the coming life, to be gained in the kingdom when the Lord comes back.
Moses was made a person to usher in the Old Testament ministry. Although Abraham was noble, he did not bring in the Old Testament ministry. What is the Old Testament ministry? First, it is the establishing of the law. We are too familiar with grace and have therefore overlooked the law and have even despised the value of the law. Actually, the law is not only the Ten Commandments with their many regulations and ordinances for man to keep; the law is a description depicting the nature of God. Before Moses brought in the law, not one patriarch could describe God in a way that could compare with the way the law did. In God’s laws, especially in the Ten Commandments, God’s characteristics are fully depicted. The Ten Commandments depict God as the One who is love, light, holiness, and righteousness. Today the whole world bases its laws on the Roman law. But the Roman law has as its basis the Ten Commandments of Moses. Hence, the reward of Moses is a tremendous one. He was the one who brought in the Old Testament ministry. The first thing this ministry did was to bring the law of God to man as a testimony of God among men.
The second item in the Old Testament ministry is the building up of the tabernacle. None of the patriarchs, including Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, brought God’s habitation to earth. It was Moses who built a habitation for God on earth among the Israelites, making it possible for God to dwell with His people. This is the second great reward that Moses obtained in this world.
Moses may have been the first one to enter into the kingdom. The Lord said in Matthew 16:28, “There are some of those standing here who shall by no means taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” After six days the Lord took Peter, James, and John to a high mountain, and He was transfigured before their eyes. There He unveiled His glory. Moses and Elijah were also there conversing with Him. This is a miniature of the millennial kingdom. There is the law represented by Moses. Hence, Moses took the lead to enter into the kingdom.
In principle, Paul was a person more or less the same as Moses. Paul brought in the New Testament ministry and completed the word of God. In Colossians 1:25 he says, “I became a minister according to the stewardship of God, which was given to me for you, to complete the word of God.” To complete the word of God is to complete God’s revelation. This revelation centers mainly on two things: the mystery of God, which is Christ, and the mystery of Christ, which is the church. On these two points, Paul completed the word of God and revealed to us God’s economy in a full way.
Moses’ building of the tabernacle is a type. In the New Testament the apostle Paul’s building up of the Body of Christ is a reality.
In 2 Timothy 4:18 Paul says, “The Lord will deliver me from every evil work and will save me into His heavenly kingdom.” Hence, Paul was also able to enter into the kingdom. Please remember that when he spoke this word, he was being rejected by all the churches in Asia. Nevertheless, he knew that although he was rejected by earthly men, God would save him into His kingdom because he had given up the world to gain Christ.
Second Corinthians 12:15 says, “But I, I will most gladly spend and be utterly spent on behalf of your souls.” It is worthwhile for us to spend and be utterly spent for Christ. Paul said that he would most gladly spend for the saints not only his money but himself. He spent both his money and himself for the Body of Christ. Paul put out all his money, time, energy, and even his own life. His labor for the saints was such that it was unto death. Today we should not keep our money in our own hands. Rather, we should give it away for Christ’s sake. Not only do we have to give our money, but we have to give ourselves as well.
In Luke 16:9 the Lord said, “Make friends for yourselves by means of the mammon of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they may receive you into the eternal tabernacles.” Mammon belongs to Satan’s world. It is unrighteous in position and in existence. When the satanic world passes away, mammon will become useless in the kingdom of God. For this reason we have to seize the opportunity today to make friends by means of our mammon, which is to spend our money to preach the gospel and to bring sinners to salvation. When the Lord comes back, all those who have been saved by the gospel through your help will line up to receive you into the eternal tabernacle. If you have never brought one to salvation, on that day others will have those who receive them. But you will be all alone and will be put to shame. If we are busy day in and day out all day long here on earth, in the end what eternal value will there be to our labor? The only result that is eternal is our sacrifice for the Lord in bringing others to salvation and helping them to be perfected.
When the Lord comes back, there will be those who line up to receive Paul. There will also be those who are Paul’s crown and joy. In 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20 Paul says, “What is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at His coming? Are not even you? For you are our glory and joy.” When the Lord comes back, those who have been saved through you will line up to receive you. Those who have been edified, supplied, shepherded, and led by you will even be the crown on your head and will be your joy before the Lord and before the whole universe.
In Matthew 25 the Lord repeated twice the word about participating in the joy of Christ in the kingdom. The Lord said the same word to the good slave who gained five talents from five and to the one who gained two talents from two: “Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful over a few things; I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your master” (vv. 21, 23). The reason for their reward is that they cared for others, bringing them to salvation and gaining them for the Lord. When the Lord comes, they will be rewarded by participating in the joy of Christ in the kingdom.
The ones who have given up the world to gain Christ are working to complete the New Testament ministry. The work of the New Testament ministry is first the building up of the church of God. The church of God is the pillar and base of the truth in a locality. Truth here refers to the real things concerning Christ and the church according to God’s New Testament economy. The church is the supporting pillar and holding base of all these realities. A local church today should hold, bear, and testify the truth of Christ and the church.
Those who are newly saved in the church have been saved recently out of the world; they do not know much about the truth. If you can speak some truth in the meeting, you will render them much help. The result is that the local church will become the pillar and base of the divine truth. Today we have the preaching of the gospel. We also have the home meetings, the small group meetings, and the district meetings. All these provide ample opportunity for you to minister the truth. If you would indeed give up the world to gain Christ and would take upon your shoulders the burden of the building of the local church, you have to learn the truth properly, grow in life, and speak the truth in the meetings. Not only should you speak the truth in the home meetings, the group meetings, and the district meetings; you need to speak the truth to your neighbors as well. The church is the pillar and base of the truth.
When a local church becomes the pillar and base of the truth, it becomes God’s manifestation in the flesh (1 Tim. 3:16). First Corinthians 14:24-25 says that when all speak for the Lord in the meeting, if an unbeliever comes, he will be convicted to say that God is really among us. If our meetings are in such a condition, they will be God manifested in the flesh. The function of the local churches is to support the truth of God. It is also to express God in the different localities.
The building up of the Body of Christ is a very rich and profound subject. Due to the time, I can point out only a little bit. All six points in the outline are revelations from Ephesians 4:12-16. If the working saints can rise up, such a condition will be manifested in Taipei; that is, there will be a practical oneness seen. All the brothers and sisters will have no more opinions, because everyone will have grown in life. In a family the most talkative ones are the young children. The same is true when a church is young. One would say something, and another would say something else, and opinions are everywhere. By the gradual growth in life, everyone will arrive at the practical oneness — a oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God. By then no one will need to say anything else. Everyone will be speaking about the faith and about Christ.
If the working saints will rise up today, the church will become a full-grown man. This is not a dream. A full-grown man is a mature man. This kind of maturity in life is necessary for the practical oneness.
The fullness of Christ is His Body. This Body has a stature that has a measure. The arriving at the full-grown stature of the fullness of Christ is also a necessary step. Today in the church in Taipei, the measure of the stature of the Body of Christ cannot be considered as being full, because we have not yet arrived. That is why there is the need for the working ones to rise up.
At times some local churches are still in the stage of the little children. They are tossed by waves and carried about by the different winds of teachings, doctrines, concepts, and opinions. But if the working saints would rise up, they will be delivered from the condition of the little children.
The meaning of holding to truth in love is to hold to Christ and His Body in the love of Christ and to not be affected by the winds of teachings or to bring in elements foreign to the Body. To grow up into the Head in all things is to have Christ increase in us in all things until we become a full-grown man. Whether the church can arrive at this condition or not depends on the working brothers and sisters. Perhaps you would say that I am putting all the burden on your shoulders. That is right, because you are the backbone. The weight of the whole body is supported by the backbone.
First, we grow into the Head. Then out from Him we have something for the building up of His Body. The Body of Christ grows by itself and is built up by itself, through every joint of the rich supply, which refers to the specially gifted ones, and the functioning parts, which refer to every member.
The reason we have to take the new way is that in the old way, it is very difficult for the brothers and sisters to be built up organically. A human body not only needs food, but it also needs exercise as well. The way in the past of one speaking and all the others listening was to give people food without giving them the organic exercise. Now for us to change to the new way means for us to let the children roll and jump. It may not be too orderly. But the organic capacity of everyone will be realized. Hence, the present new way is to make everyone a living person. You can realize that now there are unlimited needs. We need people to visit men and preach the gospel to them. We need people for the home meetings, the small group meetings, and the district meetings. Everywhere there is the need for people to put in their share.
If all the working ones would rise up, some in the homes, some in the small group meetings, and some in the district meetings, with everyone being a pillar and a core member, they will become fully useful, and the situation will be very glorious. Imagine how many people you will be built up with if, from the beginning of the year to the end, you bring in people every week and take care of them and supply them. I fully believe that these people will line up to receive you in the future. Even today they are already your crown and joy. For many of us, we have two kinds of children, the spiritual ones and the natural ones. Those who have the experience can testify that although we rejoice in seeing our natural children, we have more joy in seeing our spiritual children. Do not have as much consideration for your natural children. You have to consider a little your spiritual children before the Lord. Today the new way is somewhat laid out in Taipei. The framework is quite complete. The opportunities that have been generated are countless. The Lord brought us into this way in order to put all the opportunities before us. He is waiting for all to come. It will be glorious if you would become a part of it. It will be glorious not only when the Lord returns but even right now today.
