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Scripture Reading: Rev. 1:4; 2:7, 11, 17, 26-29; 3:5-6, 12-13, 21-22; 14:13; 22:17
In this chapter we come to Revelation, which is the last book of the Bible. From the time I was saved, I loved to read the Bible, and I loved understanding the Bible even more. From my youth I began to pay attention to the book of Revelation. Later I heard many expositions on Revelation and read many books expounding this book. Some emphasized the numbers, while others emphasized the prophecies; some were historical, others were dispensational, and still others were doctrinal. However, after hearing and reading these things and after having quite a number of years of experience in the church, the Lord Himself eventually showed me that this book is not a book of prophecies, numbers, history, dispensations, or doctrines. Rather, this book is on the Spirit and the churches. In its very beginning, it says, “John to the seven churches which are in Asia:...from Him who is and who was and who is coming, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne” (1:4). The seven epistles were written from the seven Spirits to the seven churches. Immediately in chapter 1 the seven Spirits and the seven churches are shown. Here we see that the seven churches need the seven Spirits: How they deal with things, how they have their living, how they bear the testimony, and how they go on, all depend on the seven Spirits. The seven churches need the seven Spirits, and the seven Spirits are for the seven churches.
However, if you have spent some years in Christianity, you can testify that Christianity does not touch the seven Spirits, nor does it touch the seven churches. Many there avoid speaking on the book of Revelation with the result that in Christianity today Revelation is not a revealed book but a veiled one. We thank the Lord, however, that in these years the Lord has certainly removed the veil from us. This book of the Bible has truly become a revelation; it is not covered but revealed. Over these past few years the thing that has made me the happiest is the fact that the entire New Testament from the first page of Matthew to the last page of Revelation is as clear as crystal to us. Particularly in the last pages of Revelation is the light especially bright. The light is shining on these two points: the seven Spirits and the seven churches. Simply put, the shining brightness of this book lies with the Spirit and the churches. In chapters 2 and 3 seven times in a row it says that he who has an ear should hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Then at the end of chapter 22, it says that the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” In the beginning the Spirit is the Spirit, and the seven churches are the seven churches. But at the end the Spirit and the bride are one. The Spirit’s saying, “Come!” is the bride’s saying, “Come!” and the bride’s saying, “Come!” is the Spirit’s saying, “Come!”
There is yet another marvelous matter; that is, in Revelation we cannot find the title Holy Spirit; it is not mentioned even once. The book of Revelation speaks of either the seven Spirits or “the Spirit.” We cannot find the title the Holy Spirit. Due to their old concepts the people who translated the Chinese version of the Bible did not include in their translation the word the in the term the Spirit. The Bible does not use words carelessly. In Genesis, the first book of the Bible, when it first mentions the Spirit of God, it does not say “the Holy Spirit” or “the Spirit”; it says that “the Spirit of God” was brooding upon the surface of the waters. Later there is the term the Spirit of Jehovah, but it still does not say “the Spirit” or “the Holy Spirit.” In the Old Testament there are “the Spirit of God” and “the Spirit of Jehovah,” but there is not yet “the Holy Spirit.” Some translations may use the term Holy Spirit, but that is an inaccurate translation. There is not yet the term Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. The term Holy Spirit is not used until the incarnation of the Lord Jesus. The Holy Spirit is a New Testament term to describe the Spirit of God. But eventually in the New Testament, the Spirit appears: “This He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive; for the Spirit was not yet” (John 7:39). By the time of Revelation, the Spirit had been there for a long time, and furthermore, the Spirit became the sevenfold intensified Spirit. This sevenfold intensified Spirit cannot be found in Genesis, Matthew, Acts, or even the Epistles. It is in Revelation that the Spirit becomes the sevenfold intensified Spirit. Today we are neither in Genesis nor in Matthew; we are even beyond the Epistles. Today we are in Revelation in the sevenfold intensified Spirit. The Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, and the life-giving Spirit are the Spirit in us.
We all know that the Spirit is especially rich and all-inclusive, with an abundantly rich supply. Ephesians 4 speaks of one Body and one Spirit, and this one Spirit is “the Spirit.” Impoverished Christianity has not seen that the Spirit of God is the Spirit, who is the all-inclusive Spirit. As the Spirit, He is both in us and outside of us. This Spirit is not only the Holy Spirit; He is also the Son and the Father. He is the Triune God. In this Spirit there is not only divinity but also humanity. This Spirit passed through incarnation, put on humanity, and lived on earth for thirty-three and a half years. He entered into death, and in death He solved all the negative problems and met all God’s demands. He passed through death and has with Him the effectiveness of death; He resurrected and has with Him the power and the freshness of resurrection. He is Lord, He is God, and He possesses the resurrected and uplifted humanity. He has the glory of God and the virtues of man. This One is referred to in the Bible as “the Spirit.” In the New Testament there are many symbols of the Spirit. For example, the Spirit is like air for us to breathe, like water for us to drink, like wind that is full of power, and like a mantle for us to put on.
We have said that this Spirit is our life with respect to the Body of Christ and our person with respect to the new man that God wants. Our regenerated spirit and the Spirit can be mingled into one spirit. This is a marvelous thing. I would like to tell you that for the Lord to obtain His Body and gain the one new man on earth today, we need to realize that this is altogether a matter in the Spirit, not in doctrines, regulations, or practices. Moreover, this Spirit today is not high above us so that He is unreachable; rather, He is in our spirit. The Spirit is in our spirit today.
Poor Christianity has degraded into a religion that pays attention only to outward actions and outward corrections. I can truthfully say that through our Chinese heritage we all understand ethics and morality, and we all know how to improve ourselves. Concerning self-improvement and ethics or morality, the books written by Confucius and Mencius are already sufficient. In my youth I was born into Christianity, and at first I loved and defended Christianity until one day I heard a Western pastor say that Christianity teaches us to honor our parents, to respect our elder brothers, to be upright, and to be honest, just as what Confucius taught. This caused me to question Christianity, and my heart became cold. The Western missionaries did not know enough about God’s economy and about the Spirit in God’s economy. They saw only the things in the Bible that matched their concepts. When they read Ephesians, they never found the truth of the spirit of wisdom and revelation, nor did they discover that the church is the fullness of the One who fills all in all. They could see that chapter 5 tells wives to submit to their husbands and husbands to love their wives, and they could also see that you must be humble and that you must honor your parents. But concerning the verses on the one Body, being members one of another, and putting off the old man and putting on the new man, of which we have been speaking, they could not understand, and they would not touch them. Some of them even said that the Bible is not for man to thoroughly understand, so one should read only whatever he can understand, and whatever he cannot understand, he should just let it go. This has been the pitiful condition of Christianity in the past.
We praise and thank the Lord that today the Bible before us is not like this. Today the depths of the Bible are shining before our eyes. We know that the church is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all. We know what the church is, what the Body is, what the fullness is, what being filled is, and what is meant by the word all. We also know the one new man and the one Spirit. We know the all-inclusive Spirit, the Spirit, the seven Spirits, and the life-giving Spirit. Today the Bible is so clear, and the book of Revelation is truly revealed and not concealed anymore. I know that this is the Lord’s marvelous work in His sovereignty.
I would like to say again that I am so happy that I can see the second generation, numbering even thousands, in the churches. There are young people rising up everywhere. Moreover, the light of the truth at this time is clear and bright. When we began the work here twenty-nine years ago, we did not have such clear light. We did not understand the life-giving Spirit, the sevenfold intensified Spirit, or the matter of eating the Lord to live by Him, but now the younger generation understands all these things. Therefore, I have the confidence that all these precious truths will be released quickly to the entire earth. Let the denominations oppose us today, but in ten years many may speak our language. This is because what is good is good, and what is superior is superior. Today we are here speaking about one Body, one Spirit, and one new man. In five years those outside the Lord’s recovery will also speak about one Body, one Spirit, and one new man. The Lord will prevail.
Now I would like to show you that Revelation 2 and 3 speak again and again about what the overcomers must do and how those with an ear must hear what the Spirit is speaking to the churches. This word includes four things: first, the Spirit; second, the churches; third, those with ears (those who can hear); and fourth, the overcomers. One day a young brother asked me, “We in the local churches realize that we must be the new man. Then what about those who are in the denominations? What should our attitude be toward them?” I would like to answer this question here. We must know this one principle in the Bible: When the majority of God’s people have failed God and cannot meet His need, God calls a small number of overcomers. You must see that even though the Spirit is speaking to the churches, not everyone in the churches will follow closely; therefore, there is the call for the overcomers. Although the word spoken by the Spirit is to all the churches, the Bible also says that whoever has an ear let him hear. If you hear it, you will be an overcomer. I am not saying that everyone in the local churches in the Lord’s recovery is an overcomer. I dare not say this. However, everyone in the churches today can easily have an ear to hear. Today many in the denominations oppose the Spirit’s speaking. Those in the local churches, however, listen respectfully instead of opposing. “O Lord, speak, and we will hear.” We are here in a position to hear the Spirit’s speaking, and we can easily have ears. Now I am happy because I know that almost everyone here has an ear to hear. We all have ears that can hear. We have the Spirit and the churches, and we also have ears to hear. As a result, the overcomers will be produced.
Today our attitude toward Christians is that we are broad and loving. We are blunt in speaking of Christianity because the “anity” is a bad thing, but despite this fact we love the Christians. We must distinguish Christianity from Christians. Regardless of what denomination Christians are in, even if they are in Catholicism, they are still the believers and our brothers. But the religion, the organization, is not of God. What we criticize, condemn, and oppose is the “anity” or religion. We do not oppose Christ; we oppose the “anity.” Neither do we oppose the Christians; we love our brothers and sisters. It does not matter what denomination they are in, we love them. It does not matter how much they oppose us; we still love them because they are children of God. However, you must remember that it is one thing to sympathize with them, and it is another thing to be faithful. Today many do not have an ear to hear, but you have an ear, so you cannot listen in the same way that they listen; you need to overcome. Whoever has an ear to hear what the Spirit speaks to the churches should hear and then be an overcomer.
At this time I cannot tell you in detail what the overcomers are, but if you read through Revelation 2 and 3, the condition of the overcomers and the requirements for overcoming will be shown to you. When you overcome, you can enjoy Christ as the tree of life and as the manna, and you can become a white stone as the material for God’s building. When you overcome, you can be a pillar in the temple of God. When you overcome, you can wear white garments and walk with the Lord. When you overcome, one day you will have authority to reign with the Lord and rule over the nations. By what way do the overcomers come? They come by having ears to hear. The ear to hear is produced through the Spirit’s speaking to the churches. All those with an ear should hear what the Spirit speaks to the churches, and those who hear will be overcomers.
Brothers and sisters, in conclusion I would like to say that if you would like to be a top Christian, you must be a Christian in the churches of the Lord’s recovery. You must also learn to live in the Body and not ever be individualistic. Furthermore, you must also understand that the churches in the Lord’s recovery on the entire earth are just one new man. Never be individualistic, and never be divisive; instead, be in the one Body and in the one new man. Moreover, in everything and in every matter in your living you must also continuously follow what the Spirit within you is speaking to the churches. Simply put, you must follow the Spirit, live in the Body, and live in the new man. This is our way today. Whatever would cause you to be separated from the Body is heretical. Whatever would cause you not to live in the new man is also an error. Whatever is not spoken by the Spirit within you is conceived only in your own mind. We must see the one Body, the one Spirit, and the one new man. We all need to hear what the Spirit within us is speaking to the churches today.
Moreover, we should always live in the Body, never being individualistic. We should never separate from the Body or divide the Body. Instead, we should continuously live in the new man. By this way I believe there will be a ninety percent possibility that we can be overcomers. One Body and one new man and one Spirit. We should always listen to and follow the Spirit.
From now on there should not be doctrinal disputes among us, nor should there be arguments about insignificant matters or anything outward. We should all simply seek to arrive at the oneness of the faith, endeavoring to keep the oneness of the Spirit. We should listen to and follow the Spirit. We do not listen to mere objective doctrines; instead, we listen to what the subjective Spirit speaks within us. We should absolutely not be individualistic, divisive, or separated from the one new man. This is our way, and this is the Lord’s testimony. I believe that after this training, the Lord’s word will begin to operate in all the localities, and His light will shine brightly in every place. Our younger generation will aggressively develop these truths and bring all the children of God into the voice of the Spirit so that they may live in the Body and have the living of the one new man together. In this way the Lord’s purpose will be accomplished, and His heart’s desire will be satisfied. I believe that this will bring the Lord back.
