Message 75
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Scripture Reading: Exo. 23:20-33
In the foregoing message we considered from God’s side how to take possession of the land. In this message we shall consider the matter from our side.
In order to take possession of the promised land, God’s people must cooperate with Him in destroying the pagan tribes (23:31-33). Exodus 23:33 says, “They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me.” It is a fact of history that the pagan tribes were the source of Israel’s sin in the good land. When Israel lived in the promised land, their sins came from the source of the pagan tribes that were still in the land. This indicates that the natural life is the source of sin. Our sins come from our natural life. Whether our sins are gross or somewhat refined and cultured, they have their source in the natural life. Some people are refined and polite even in the way they lose their temper. Sometimes a husband may be very cultured and refined in the way he offends his wife. Such culture and refinement are actually a mask. Wearing this kind of mask, people often lie by speaking the truth. Even sins that appear to be rather refined come from the natural life. In the sight of God, all those who live according to the natural life are sinning continually, even when they give alms or donate to charity.
As the source of sin among God’s people, the natural life frustrates them from possessing Christ as the good land. Because the natural life keeps us from possessing Christ and enjoying Him, we must hate it and, as we grow, be willing to drive it out. As we have pointed out, without growth in Christ it is not possible for us to drive out the natural life.
The children of Israel were forbidden to make any covenant with the pagan tribes (v. 32). Today we should not make any covenants with the natural life. To make a covenant with the natural life is to compromise with it. Because it is not easy to eliminate the natural life, we may be tempted to compromise with it. To compromise in this way is to tolerate some aspect of the natural life. But we should not tolerate the natural life in any way. Whether or not we are able to drive out the natural life, we still must hate it. Instead of agreeing with any aspect of your natural life, hate it and do what you can to drive it out. Of course, without growth, your attempts to drive out the natural life will be in vain. The more you grow, the more you will be able to drive it out. If we take the initiative to drive out the natural life, God will come in to honor us and strengthen us in this matter.
This principle is found in Romans 8. Yes, Romans 8:11 indicates that God will give life to our mortal bodies. But this depends on whether or not we take the initiative to put to death the practices of our body (Rom. 8:13). If we take the initiative to do this, God will honor this by giving life to our mortal bodies. God is ready to give us life, but we must be willing to kill the practices of the body. If we are not willing to do this, not willing to cooperate with God, God has no way to impart life to our mortal bodies.
According to Romans 8, we should also take the initiative to walk according to spirit (v. 4), to mind the things of the spirit (vv. 5-6), and to be led by the Spirit. Verse 14 says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” This verse does not speak of the leading of the Spirit, but of our being led by the Spirit. The Spirit is willing to lead us, but we must be willing to be led by Him. If we are not willing to be led, there is no way for the Spirit to lead us. Therefore, it is first our responsibility to be led; then it is the responsibility of the Spirit to lead us. Even in this matter, we must take the initiative.
According to Romans 8:15, we should also take the initiative in crying “Abba, Father.” This verse says that we have received “a spirit of sonship in which we cry, Abba, Father.” A verse parallel to this, Galatians 4:6, says that it is the Spirit who cries “Abba, Father.” Who is it, then, who cries out, we or the Spirit? The answer is that both we and the Spirit cry together. Although the Spirit is ready to cry, we must take the initiative. He cries when we cry. But if we do not cry, He will not cry either.
Romans 8:16 says, “The Spirit Himself witnesses with our spirit that we are the children of God.” This verse indicates that we must be the first to witness, then the Spirit will witness. We are not told that our spirit witnesses with the Spirit, but that the Spirit witnesses with our spirit. When our spirit testifies, the Spirit honors our testifying and testifies with our spirit.
Romans 8:23 speaks of our groaning, and verse 26, of the Spirit interceding for us “with groanings which cannot be uttered.” When we groan, the Spirit intercedes. Actually, He intercedes in our groaning. If we do not groan, the interceding Spirit has no way to work. Therefore, we need to groan, the more the better. By taking the initiative to groan, we give the Spirit an opportunity to intercede on our behalf.
According to Romans 8, God gives life and the Spirit leads, witnesses, and intercedes. However, these four activities depend on our taking the initiative. When we put to death the practices of the body, God gives life. When we are willing to be led, the Spirit leads. When we cry Abba, Father, the Spirit cries. When we witness, the Spirit witnesses. Furthermore, when we groan, the Spirit intercedes. In the same principle, when we drive out the pagan tribes, the natural life, God also drives out these tribes. Hence, we and God together drive out the natural life. Nevertheless, we must again emphasize the fact that we must take the initiative. It is easy for God to drive out the tribes. He is always ready to do this, but we usually are not ready. Instead, we may make a covenant with them. In such a situation, God has no way to drive them out. Therefore, it is crucial for us to take the initiative to drive out the natural life.
Catholicism teaches that we must work for salvation. At the time of the Reformation, Luther fought against this teaching and declared that salvation is by grace, not by works. We are justified through faith, not through works. After the Reformation two schools of theology came into being: the Calvinist school, which emphasizes God’s sovereign mercy and grace, and the Arminian school, which claims that a person can lose his salvation and that good works are necessary to keep one from losing his salvation. Although the Calvinist teaching is far more accurate than the Arminian, it is not complete. According to the Bible, everything is by God’s grace. Nevertheless, man must cooperate with God.
This cooperation can be illustrated by a mother feeding her child. No matter how much the mother loves the child and how carefully she prepares nourishing food for him, she cannot eat for him. The child must take the initiative to eat the food prepared by his mother. In the same principle, we must take the initiative to cooperate with God’s working.
This was the reason on the day of Pentecost Peter commanded the people to repent and be saved (Acts 2:37-40). God cannot repent for us or believe for us. We ourselves must repent and believe. To be sure, we cannot save ourselves. God has done everything necessary to save us, but we must still repent and believe. We cannot save ourselves, but we can, in Peter’s words, “be saved.” The Savior is at hand, ready to save us. But we must be willing to be saved. In this matter we take the initiative. This is a basic principle in the Bible.
This principle is also illustrated in Philippians 2:12 and 13: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure.” Our working out of our own salvation is related to God’s operating in us. We take the initiative to receive God’s operation. When we receive it, we work out our salvation. Then the more we work out our salvation, the more God operates in us. In this way we have a practical salvation for our enjoyment.
Taking the initiative to drive out the pagan tribes, the natural life, depends on our growth in Christ. God promised the children of Israel that He would drive out the pagan tribes from before them. But the children of Israel had to take the initiative to drive them out. However, this was dependent on their growth, their increase. The more they grew, the more they could take the initiative to drive out the tribes. Likewise, the more we grow in life, the more we shall take the initiative to drive out the natural life.
We need to grow and be replaced by Christ. As we are growing, we shall take the initiative to deal with our natural life. God will honor this by coming in also to deal with the natural life. This is the proper way to drive out the frustraters that we may take possession of Christ, enjoy Him, and gain Him in an experiential way.
Do not think that driving out the natural life and possessing Christ depend on a sudden inspiration. In this matter, we should not wait for the Lord, because the Lord is actually waiting for us. In particular, He is waiting for our cooperation. Are you ready to cooperate with Him to drive out the natural life? If so, take the initiative and God will honor you.
Our Christ is with us not as a doctrine, but as a living Person. Furthermore, God has promised to work on our behalf. However, we must grow and be replaced by Christ. We must have the increase of Christ within us so that we can be replaced by Him. For this, we need to cooperate with God. We have already pointed out how Philippians 2:12 and 13 illustrate this cooperation. On the one hand, God is operating in us; on the other hand, we must work out our own salvation. In this matter we and God are partners. Prayer and mere waiting on the Lord are not the way for this to be accomplished. That is the religious way, not the biblical way. According to the biblical way, Christ is with us and God has promised to work for us. But we must grow to have the increase of Christ and be replaced by Him so that we may take the initiative to drive out the natural life. We know from our experience that when we take the initiative in this way, God comes in to honor us and to join us in driving out the natural life. Thus, the teaching of the New Testament and our spiritual experience agree with the type portrayed in Exodus 23.
Exodus 23:24 says, “Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and break in pieces their pillars” (lit.). This indicates clearly that the children of Israel were to destroy all the idols in the promised land. If we have anything within us which is an idol replacing the Lord, that thing will be a snare to us. Thus, we must overthrow it and break it. No idols are allowed in the Christian life. Nothing is permitted to replace the Lord within us. Anything that occupies the place of the Lord within us is an idol. If we would take possession of the all-inclusive Christ for our experience, we must destroy all idols.
In verses 25 and 26 we see Jehovah’s complete care for His people. Verse 25 says, “And ye shall serve Jehovah your God, and he will bless thy bread, and thy water” (lit.). God promised to bless His people’s food and drink. Without food and drink it would have been impossible for His people to take possession of the land and live in it. The same is true in our Christian life. Without proper food and drink we cannot enjoy Christ, experience Christ, gain Christ, and possess Christ. Our food is the Word and our drink is the Spirit.
The Lord’s recovery today is very much under God’s blessing. We certainly have the blessed Word and the blessed Spirit. If you visit a group of Christians and see that the Word and the Spirit are blessed there, you should say, “Lord, thank You. You are here.” Only by having the blessed Word and Spirit can we take possession of Christ, enjoying Him, experiencing Him, and obtaining Him to the uttermost. Hallelujah for the Word and the Spirit as our food and drink! This is a sign of God’s care.
In 23:25 the Lord said, “I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.” Sickness makes us weak, it hinders our growth, and it may even cause us to die. In 1 Corinthians 11:30 Paul refers to certain believers who became weak, sick, or died. When the Lord Jesus came, there was widespread sickness among God’s people: blindness, deafness, dumbness, and paralysis. Today many Christians are spiritually blind, deaf, dumb, or paralyzed. Are you healthy spiritually? How is your spiritual eyesight and your spiritual hearing? Are you healthy in your speech and activities? Many of today’s Christians are paralyzed. Spiritually, it is impossible for them to move. Only when we are healthy in our spiritual seeing, hearing, speaking, and moving are we able to take possession of Christ, experience Him, and enjoy Him. The proper church life is a healthy life, a life without blindness, deafness, dumbness, or paralysis. If we are spiritually healthy in every way, we shall be able to take possession of Christ as the good land and experience Him.
In 23:26 God promised, “There shall none cast her young, nor be barren, in thy land” (lit.). This means that God promised to give the people multiplication. They would not only grow and produce, but also multiply. Multiplication here has two meanings. First, it means to produce fruit; second, it means that one’s growth is multiplied. We should not simply grow — we should be multiplied. Usually when someone grows spiritually, he is also multiplied.
According to the promise in 23:26, to be multiplied means not to have any miscarriages. It is possible for saints to have a spiritual miscarriage. For a while, some may grow quite well in the Lord. But suddenly they have a spiritual miscarriage, and this causes their growth in life for production to cease.
Another problem is spiritual barrenness. Some Christians may have a spiritual miscarriage, but others are barren. They do not bear any fruit. We all need to grow constantly and to produce without miscarriage.
It is sad to see a brother who is the same today as he was many years ago. He is spiritually barren. With him there is no multiplication, no reproduction. It is also sad to see those who do well for a period of time, only to have a sudden spiritual miscarriage. We all need to pray, “Lord, I take Your word as a promise. I stand against spiritual miscarriage and barrenness. Lord I want to produce, to multiply without miscarriage.”
Exodus 23:26 also says, “The number of thy days I will fulfil.” This means that God would cause the people to live to full age, to maturity. Today there are very few persons who have come to full spiritual maturity. If you consider the writings of Christians today and what is spoken on the radio broadcasts, you will realize that most Christians are childish. Where can you find believers who are spiritually mature, who have come to full spiritual age? Such Christians are very rare indeed. This lack proves that the situation among most Christians is not under God’s blessing. God is willing to bless them, but He has no way to do so. This is why the Lord has need of the recovery. We look to Him that in His recovery we may always have the blessed food and drink, that we shall be spiritually healthy in every way — in our sight, hearing, speech, and activities — and that we shall not be afflicted with miscarriage or barrenness. We look to Him that we shall come to full age and become mature spiritually.
More than forty years ago in the church life, there were very few elders who were truly spiritual fathers. Most of those who were elders were not yet very mature in life. But I can testify that many who have been in the recovery for thirty or forty years have become very mature. They did not have a premature death, spiritually speaking. I am also encouraged by the fact that some of the saints among us today are much more experienced and mature than five years ago. I hope that during the next several years many more will come to maturity and that, spiritually speaking, none will die prematurely. Do not think that the elders are the only ones who need to be mature. No, all the saints must mature. I hope that even those who are young sisters today will become mature in the years to come.
Many who have been with us for decades are still growing. This means that God is still fulfilling the number of their days. This is important, for in the church life in the Lord’s recovery we need a good number of those who are spiritually aged. If the Lord delays His coming back for many years, I hope that all the saints will keep on growing. Even this aspect of growth is one of the details of the way to take possession of Christ and gain Him.
I am sorry that among most Christian groups you find miscarriage, barrenness, and immaturity. Much of the talk among them is on a kindergarten level. The situation must be different in the church life in the Lord’s recovery. If we have many among us who are spiritually aged, mature, this is a proof that we are taking Christ as our possession.
We have pointed out that God’s complete care of His people includes four items: blessing their food and water, taking sickness away from them, granting them multiplication, and causing them to live to full age. These matters are arranged in an excellent sequence. If we have proper food and water, there will be no disease among us. Then we shall be fruitful and not have miscarriages. Finally, our days will be fulfilled, and we shall have a long life.
The second, third, and fourth aspects of the Lord’s complete care are dependent on the first — His blessing on our food and drink. We all need the proper food of the Word and the proper drink of the Spirit. Then we shall be healthy, fruitful, and mature. We shall have a healthy and abundant life. As a result, we shall have the strength to take the initiative to drive out the pagan tribes, the natural life. Then the whole land, the entire Christ, will become our enjoyment.
I appreciate the picture in the Old Testament formed by putting together the different pieces of the puzzle. First we have Christ as the sent One, the Angel of Jehovah. Then we have God, the One working for us, and also the food and water under His blessing. If we eat and drink properly, we shall grow and multiply. Among us there will be no sickness, miscarriage, barrenness, or premature spiritual death. Through our growth, multiplication, and maturity we shall be qualified to drive out the natural life, allow Christ to replace it, and then enjoy Him and take full possession of Him. We thank the Lord for this picture in the Old Testament showing us in detail how to take possession of Christ as the good land.
