Search
Scripture Reading: Rev. 3:7, 8b, 10-13, 14-21; 2:20; 3:2; 1 Pet. 1:7; Exo. 25:11; Rev. 1:20; 21:18; 1 John 2:27; 1 Cor. 15:45b; Eph. 3:8; Rev. 20:4, 6
By reading the Lord’s epistles to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3, we can see what we need to overcome. The epistle to Ephesus shows that we need to overcome the leaving of Christ as our first love so that we may eat Him as the tree of life to be the lampstand, corporately shining out the divine light (2:4-5, 7). The epistle to Smyrna shows that we need to overcome persecution, comprising tribulation, poverty, trial, imprisonment, and the slander of the deformed religion of Satan (vv. 9-10a). Furthermore, we have to overcome the worldliness of Pergamos so that we can eat the Lord Jesus as the hidden manna for our nourishment, for our supply, and for our support that we can become a white stone, justified and approved by the Lord for His divine building (vv. 13, 17b). Instead of being worldly, we need to become the enjoyers and eaters of the Lord Jesus in a particular, hidden way. This will make us precious material for His building. In order for us to participate in His divine building, we have to be rescued and delivered from worldliness.
We have also seen that we need to overcome the spiritual death of Sardis (vv. 1-2). The crucial point concerning those in the church in Sardis is that they are dead and dying. While they have a name that they are living, they are actually dead. To overcome spiritual death, we need to be watchful and establish the things of life, which are about to die. We must overcome so that we are not defiled with the stain of spiritual death (vv. 2, 4).
We have also seen that we need to overcome the three deformed religions—Judaism, which is referred to as the “synagogue of Satan”; Catholicism, seen with the church in Thyatira; and Protestantism, seen mainly with the church in Sardis. We can overcome these “isms” by giving the preeminence to Christ. We should tell the Lord that in our dealings with these “isms,” we want to give the preeminence to Him. We need to give Him the preeminence in everything, in the small things and in the big things. In Revelation 2 and 3 the Lord called us to be overcomers. The overcoming in these two chapters is not mainly to overcome in our daily life but mainly to overcome the big things concerning the deformed religions. We have to be those who overcome degraded Christianity.
In this chapter we want to see that we need to overcome the trend of not keeping the Lord’s word, the tide of denying the Lord’s name, and the lukewarmness in the Lord’s testimony.
The church has been in the world for over nineteen centuries. On the day of Pentecost three thousand were saved and baptized to begin the church life (Acts 2:41). They all received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Then they began to meet in their homes, and they were together to continue in the fellowship and the teaching of the apostles (v. 42). The teaching of the apostles is the Lord’s word. They continued day and night in two things—in the fellowship and in the teaching of the apostles. No doubt, they were very strict in keeping the word of God.
That was wonderful, but since that day this kind of diligent, strict keeping of the word of God has become loose. How many Christians today keep the word of God strictly, continuously, and daily? It is difficult to find anyone who keeps the Lord’s word in such a way. Today among the Christians there is a trend of not keeping the Lord’s word. They have the Bible, but the Bible remains mostly on their bookshelf. Many of them do not even bring their Bible when they attend their Sunday morning service.
In Catholicism the Lord’s word is put aside and even locked. Those in Catholicism maintain that the so-called laymen are not qualified and do not have the capacity, the ability, to understand the holy Word. Thus, they feel that they should let the pope, the cardinals, the archbishops, the bishops, and the priests study the Bible, understand it, and interpret it. To them, what matters is not what the Bible says but what the pope says, what their church says. According to Revelation 2:20, they keep the word of the prophetess Jezebel’s teaching of heresies. Jezebel, typifying today’s Catholic Church, is the woman mentioned in Matthew 13:33 who leavened the entire teaching concerning Christ. This is the condition of Catholicism toward God’s word.
In Protestantism the Lord’s word is unlocked, but it is not kept with absoluteness (Rev. 3:2). From Martin Luther’s time the Bible became unlocked, but it was not open to people’s understanding. Today it is not kept with absoluteness. It is very rare to meet Christians who are fearful and trembling in dealing with the Word of God.
Many times Christians will say, “I know what the Bible says, but...” There is always a “but” in their attitude toward what God’s Word says. We should not say “but” to the Word of God. This is a big offense to the Lord. The Lord says, “Deny yourself” (Matt. 16:24). We say, “But I cannot afford to do it.” The Lord says, “Love one another” (John 13:34). We say, “Lord Jesus, I want to love all Your believers, but some of them are not lovable.” We need to be corrected by the Spirit not to say “but” to the Lord. Instead, we should say, “Yes, Lord.”
We have a hymn in our hymnal that says, “To the foe my word is always, ‘No,’ / To the Father it is ‘Yes’” (Hymns, #880). We have to learn to say yes to the Father and no to the devil all the time. But often our experience is the opposite of this. We say no to the Father and yes to Satan. When the sisters see something on sale in the newspaper, there is a struggle within them. Something within is urging them to go buy it, and something within is telling them not to go. Thus, they have to decide what to say. Will they say no to Satan and yes to the Father? They may say to the Lord, “Lord, I ask You to give me the freedom to go this one time. I will never do it again.” All of us have this same “illness.” We read the Bible, but do we keep the word of the Bible? We should be those who keep the Lord’s word with absoluteness.
In the recovery the Lord’s word is kept absolutely, even by the “little power” that we can afford (Rev. 3:8b). The Lord commended the church in Philadelphia by saying that they kept His word even with the little power that they had. Today on the earth it is difficult to meet one who is faithful to the word of God every day and even every moment. We have to overcome today’s trend of not keeping the Lord’s word.
In the recovery the Lord’s word is kept absolutely. If there is not such an absolute keeping of the word of God with us, we are not in the recovery. We have to keep the Lord’s word even according to the “little power” that we can afford. We should keep the Lord’s word as much as we can. I have learned from the Bible and also from my experience that the Lord is fair. The Lord would never “over request” anything from us. He would never request anything that we cannot afford to do. We should be at peace, and say yes to Him all the time.
I learned the lesson of always saying yes to the Lord, but after I said yes, I said, “Lord, I like to keep Your word, but You know that I am weak.” The Lord then rebuked me by saying, “Don’t tell me that you are weak. I know that you are weak, but I am your grace, and My grace is sufficient for you to keep My word.” We need to return in a full way to the Lord’s word and keep the word absolutely by the Lord as our all-sufficient grace.
Today there is a trend of not keeping the Lord’s word, and there is also a tide of denying the Lord’s name. Today’s Protestant churches have taken many names other than the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Lord’s word is the Lord’s expression, and the Lord’s name denotes the Lord’s person. The recovered church not only has returned in a full way to the Lord’s word but also has abandoned all names other than the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In Protestantism there is a strong tide of denying the Lord’s name by replacing it with many other names, such as Lutheran, Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, etc. Many Christians say that they go to the Lutheran church, the Methodist church, or the Presbyterian church. There is also the Episcopalian church, the Anglican church, the Church of England. The word Episcopalian is from the Latin word episcopus, meaning bishop. The Church of England is a state church under the rule of bishops.
We can see that Protestantism has replaced the unique name of Christ with many other names. Today it is very convenient for people to set up a church and give a name to it. There are many Chinese churches in California with many names other than the name of Christ. One denomination calls itself the Taiwan Presbyterian Church. Another one is called the Taiwan Gospel Church. To denominate the church by taking any name other than the Lord’s is spiritual fornication. The church, as the pure virgin espoused to Christ (2 Cor. 11:2), should have no name other than her Husband’s. All other names are an abomination in the eyes of God.
It is serious for a woman to take another name besides that of her husband. If a woman is married to Mr. Jones, she should not call herself Mrs. Smith. When believers designate themselves with a name other than Christ’s name, this indicates that they are taking someone or something other than Christ as their Husband. If Mrs. Jones calls herself Mrs. Smith, this means that she has two husbands. The church is a chaste virgin espoused to Christ, so the church is the wife of Christ, and Christ is the Husband. A wife should have only one husband, and her husband’s name becomes her name. From the day of her wedding, she belongs to her husband, and her last name must be her husband’s name. But today the so-called churches use other names, names replacing Christ. This is a big insult to Christ.
In the early 1800s some brothers raised up by the Lord in England dropped all these divisive names. They would keep only one name, that is, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Eventually, others did not know how to denominate them, so they called them the Brethren. This is because they called themselves “brothers,” or “brethren.”
When we were raised up by the Lord in China, we realized that we should not denominate ourselves with any name. A denomination is a group of Christians who have denominated themselves with a certain name such as Lutheran, Wesleyan, Anglican, Presbyterian, Baptist, etc. They do not realize that this is an insult to Christ. Strictly speaking, it is spiritual fornication. If our Husband’s name is Christ, and we take the name Lutheran, this means that we are taking another husband.
Furthermore, the many names taken in today’s Protestantism strongly imply divisions. The recovered church has only the unique name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Every group taking a name other than Christ is a division. Christ is unique and is not divided, but all the different names are very divisive. In 1 Corinthians Paul says, “Each of you says, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ. Is Christ divided?” (1:12-13a). This is exactly the same as saying “I am a Lutheran,” “I am a Wesleyan,” “I am a Presbyterian,” “I am an Episcopalian,” etc. All such designations should be condemned and rejected. Furthermore, to say “I am of Christ” in the way of excluding the apostles and their teachings or of excluding other believers is as divisive as to say “I am of” this or that. The divisions can be eliminated and terminated only by taking Christ as the unique center among all the believers. Brother Watchman Nee in his book Further Talks on the Church Life says that those in the denominations may say that they love one another, but they “shake hands over the fence” of their denominations (ch. 4). We must overcome to tear down all the fences so that we can have the fellowship of the Body of Christ in oneness.
In the recovery the Lord’s name, Jesus Christ, is unique, without any replacement. The church in the Lord’s recovery does not take a name. We are simply the church. The moon is just the moon. It is not designated with another name. The church should not be designated. If we designate the church, it becomes a denomination, a division. Denominations cut the Body of Christ into pieces. Any name of any denomination is a divisive and evil thing. We need to overcome the tide of denying the Lord’s name. To take another name besides that of Christ is abominable in the eyes of God because it is spiritual fornication.
Now we want to see the reward for keeping the Lord’s word and not denying the Lord’s name.
The first reward to the overcomers is to be kept out of the hour of trial, which is about to come on the whole inhabited earth, to try them who dwell on the earth (Rev. 3:10). Trial here undoubtedly denotes the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21), which is about to come on the whole inhabited earth. The Lord Jesus promised the Philadelphian overcomers that before the tribulation begins, He will take them away. This indicates that the saints who keep the Lord’s word and do not deny the Lord’s name will be raptured before the great tribulation. This is a great promise and a great reward.
The overcomers will receive the crown (Rev. 3:11), which indicates their victory and authority. In New Testament usage, a crown always denotes a prize that is in addition to salvation (2:10; 3:11; James 1:12; 2 Tim. 4:8; 1 Pet. 5:4; 1 Cor. 9:25).
The overcomers who keep the Lord’s word and do not deny His name will be made pillars (for the building of God) in the temple of God, upon which are written the name of God, the name of the city of God, the New Jerusalem, and the new name of Christ (Rev. 3:12). In Revelation 2:17 the overcomer will become a transformed stone for God’s building. In 3:12 the overcomer will become a pillar built into the temple of God. Because he is built into God’s building, he shall by no means go out anymore. This promise, as a prize to the overcomer, will be fulfilled in the millennial kingdom.
The pillar in the temple of God will bear the name of God, the name of the New Jerusalem, and also the new name of Christ. This indicates that the overcomer is possessed by and is one with God, the New Jerusalem, and Christ. This also indicates that the overcomer belongs to these three names. When someone purchases a new Bible, he may sign his name in it. His name indicates that this Bible is his possession. The overcomers will be the possession of God, the possession of Christ, and the possession of the New Jerusalem. Actually, they are a part of the New Jerusalem, so they bear the name of the New Jerusalem.
The overcomers bear the new name of Christ. This does not mean that Christ has a new name. It means that Christ will be experienced by these overcomers in a new way. Thus, the very Christ they are experiencing is new to them. If we would make up our minds to take the overcoming way, we will experience Christ in a new way, and Christ will become new to us. Our Owner will be God, the New Jerusalem, and the new Christ.
To many of us Christ is old, not new. At the beginning of our Christian life, Christ was new to us, but gradually that new Christ became old to us. We have Christ, but is Christ new to us? Mostly our experience of Christ is too old. It may be that our experience of Him is the same as it was ten years ago. He is old to us. But if we make the decision to be an overcomer in this age, we will have the sense that Christ is so fresh and new. We will enjoy Him as God’s new mercies refreshing us every morning (Lam. 3:22-23).
Thus, those who overcome the trend of not keeping the Lord’s word and the tide of denying His name will be raptured before the great tribulation, will receive the crown, and will be made a pillar for the building of God, having the name of God, the name of the New Jerusalem, and the new name of Christ.
We also need to overcome the lukewarmness in the Lord’s testimony (Rev. 3:15-16; 12:17b). To be lukewarm is to be neither hot nor cold.
To overcome lukewarmness, we have to hate and abhor our pride. We may be too proud and content with our present situation. We also have to hate and abhor the boast of being wealthy and rich in the vain doctrinal knowledge (3:17a). We may have been in the recovery for a number of years, and during this time we may think that we have accumulated many truths. We may think that we are wealthy, but we may be wealthy only in vain doctrinal knowledge. We can know doctrines but not have the spiritual insight to comprehend the genuine reality in God’s economy. We have to hate this because such knowledge is vain and meaningless.
In order to overcome lukewarmness, we also have to realize our spiritual condition. According to Revelation 3:17, the condition of those in Laodicea was wretched (because of the pride and boast of vanity), miserable (because of poverty, nakedness, and blindness), poor (in the experience of Christ and in the reality of God’s economy), blind (lacking spiritual insight in the genuine spiritual things), and naked (without the covering of Christ as the subjective righteousness). We have to realize our spiritual condition and have a new start in our spiritual life.
Buying requires the paying of a price. The degraded recovered church must pay a price for gold, white garments, and eyesalve, which she desperately needs (v. 18).
We need to buy the refined gold, which signifies the living faith (1 Pet. 1:7) for the gaining of the Triune God embodied in Christ as the pure gold (Exo. 25:11) so that we may be the pure golden lampstand (Rev. 1:20) for the building of the golden New Jerusalem (21:18) to make us truly rich. Our living faith is gold, and this very Christ embodying God is also gold. Actually, our faith and Christ are one, so they are the same gold.
In the New Testament our faith, the living faith, is a person, and that person is Christ. This is why we have to look unto Him, pray to Him, have fellowship with Him, and read His Word. The more we read His Word and listen to His word, the more the living Christ will be inwardly unveiled to us, and this inward Christ will be the spontaneous faith to us. Faith is not a mere action but a living person, living in us and acting in us. The living faith, which is Christ Himself, is the gold that we have to buy.
We also need to buy white garments, signifying Christ lived out of us as our subjective righteousness to cover our nakedness. How much do we have Christ as our subjective righteousness, which is Christ Himself living out from within us? We all have to confess our shortcoming in this matter. We need the Lord Himself lived out of us as our white garments for the covering of our nakedness.
We also need to buy the eyesalve, signifying the anointing life-giving Spirit (1 John 2:27; 1 Cor. 15:45b). This is so that we may have the sight to see the divine and spiritual things for the healing of our spiritual blindness. All of us need to pay the price for these three things: the refined gold, the white garments, and the eyesalve.
In order to overcome lukewarmness, we need to open ourselves to the Lord, who is shut outside the door of the lukewarm church. Revelation 3:20 reveals that the Lord is outside the door of the church in Laodicea. Thus, He is not within the church in Laodicea but is outside knocking at the door. The door is the door of the church, but the door is opened by individual believers. To the one who opens the door, the Lord will enter into him to feast with him. We should have the assurance that every morning our door is wide open to the Lord so that He can come in to dine with us, to feast with us.
The overcomers will be rewarded by Christ. They will feast with the Lord, signifying the rich and full enjoyment of the unsearchable riches of Christ (v. 20b; Eph. 3:8). When we open to the Lord, He and we will enjoy each other. Then His presence becomes our feast, and our presence becomes His feast. Thus, we dine with each other, feasting together. This is the practical and full enjoyment of Christ in our daily life. Every day we should have such a feast.
Eventually, the overcomers will participate in sitting with Christ as the King on His throne for the fellowship, the participation, in His kingship as His co-kings in authority to rule over all the nations (Rev. 3:21; 20:4, 6).
We can see from this fellowship that we all need to aspire to be the overcomers. We have to overcome big things like the three deformed religions and small things like our attitude and the way that we dress. When a husband loses his temper with his wife, at that moment he is no longer an overcomer but a failure in his daily life. Day by day we have to overcome in all the small things.
We should not say no to the Lord and yes to Satan. We should always practice to say yes to the Lord and no to Satan. We should say no to all of the “isms.” We should say no to the denominations, to the exalting of all the names other than the unique name of Christ. For a Christian to take another name besides the name of Christ is a shame and an insult to Him. We must make a definite decision to take the Lord’s way, the way of being an overcomer. We must overcome the trend of not keeping the Lord’s word, the tide of denying the Lord’s name, and the lukewarmness in the Lord’s testimony.
