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Scripture Reading: Rev. 1:4-5a, Rev. 1:11-13, 20; 2:7, 11, 17, 26-28; 3:5-6, 12-13, 21-22; 4:5; 5:6; 14:13-16; 21:1-3a, Rev. 21:9-12, 14, 18-19a, Rev. 21:21; 22:1-2, 14, 17
In the foregoing message we considered a chart that presents a summary of God’s New Testament economy. According to this chart, the entire New Testament may be divided into three sections: the four Gospels as the initiation, Acts through Jude as the development, and the book of Revelation as the finalization. In the first section we see the Son with the Father and by the Spirit to be the embodiment of the Triune God in Jesus Christ as God’s tabernacle and God’s temple, living the life of God to develop into the kingdom of God. In the second section we see the Spirit as the Son with the Father to be the consummation of the Triune God in the church as the Body of Christ, the temple of God, the kingdom of God, and house of God, living Christ unto the fullness of God. In the third section we have the seven Spirits out from the eternal One and of the Redeemer to be the intensification of the Triune God in the overcoming church, consummating in the golden lampstands and the New Jerusalem. In this message, the last message in this Life-study of Mark, let us consider the intensification of the Triune God consummating in the golden lampstands and the New Jerusalem.
According to the record of the Gospel of Mark, the disciples followed the Lord Jesus in the way of being brought into Him. They were carried on by the Lord, the all-inclusive One, wherever He went. Hence, He brought the disciples into Himself. He brought them into His all-inclusive death, the death that terminated all the old things, and also into His all-inclusive resurrection, in which they were germinated to be His reproduction and continuation. In the book of Acts we can see that the disciples participated in Christ and enjoyed Him through His all-inclusive death and resurrection. Furthermore, through the disciples the church came into existence. The twenty-one Epistles from Romans through Jude are needed to define what is presented in summary in the book of Acts.
After the detailed definition in the Epistles, we have the consummation of God’s New Testament economy in the book of Revelation. In this consummation the seven Spirits, the sevenfold intensified Spirit of God, play a major role. Through, by, and with the intensified Spirit the church becomes a pure golden lampstand. This is a great matter.
The golden lampstand is a symbol of the Triune God. The gold of the lampstand signifies the divine nature, the nature of God the Father. The shape or form of the lampstand signifies the Son of God as the embodiment of the Father. The seven lamps of the lampstand signify the Spirit of God as the expression. Therefore, in the lampstand we see God the Father as the nature, God the Son as the form, and God the Spirit as the expression.
The lampstand not only symbolizes the Triune God, but also signifies the church. But how can a church full of saved sinners be a lampstand of pure gold? Yes, we all are saved, but we are still too natural, too much in the flesh, the self, and the old creation. How can people such as we become a golden lampstand?
Some saints have told me that they are discouraged and even disappointed with the condition of the church. Some have said, “Years ago the situation was hopeful, but now the condition of the church is disappointing.” If you feel this way, it is an indication that you do not see the sevenfold intensified Spirit. The New Testament does not end in disappointment. On the contrary, the New Testament consummates with a full hope, with the seven Spirits transforming a seemingly hopeless church into a pure golden lampstand.
In 1961 I wrote a number of hymns on the church and the New Jerusalem. I was especially happy to sing the hymns on the overcoming church. One day a brother said to me, “Do you mean that we can have the New Jerusalem today?” I replied, “Brother, I do not say that we can have the New Jerusalem today. But according to the book of Revelation, the churches in this age should be a miniature of the New Jerusalem.” I went on to tell him that I definitely believe that the church can be a miniature of the New Jerusalem. I hope that you all will believe the same thing. The New Testament ends with a word of encouragement. Praise the Lord for the sevenfold intensified Spirit in the overcoming church, consummating in the golden lampstands!
In the first section of the New Testament, the four Gospels, we have the embodiment of the Triune God, and in the second section we have the consummation of the Triune God. What we have in the third section, in the book of Revelation, is the intensification of the Triune God. This means that the Spirit as the consummation of the Triune God is intensified to become the seven Spirits.
Do we not have the seven Spirits in the book of Revelation? Yes, Revelation emphasizes the seven Spirits. Do you prefer to stay with the Spirit in the book of Acts, or do you prefer the seven Spirits in the book of Revelation? Where are you today, in Acts or in Revelation? We all should be able to testify that we are in the book of Revelation. Since we are in the book of Revelation, all the churches should realize that now is not a time of discouragement or disappointment. Rather, today is a day of intensification, a day full of hope and encouragement.
In Revelation we have the sevenfold intensification of the Triune God for the church life. Nevertheless, if we set our eyes on the condition of the churches, we shall be disappointed. But if we turn our eyes to the sevenfold intensification of the Triune God, we shall be filled with praise to the Lord.
Do you believe in the condition of the church or in the sevenfold intensification of the Triune God? The condition of the church is not our salvation. Instead, the church’s condition may be a discouragement to us. Therefore, we should look at the sevenfold intensification of the Triune God, for this intensification is our salvation.
In the book of Revelation the sevenfold Spirit is emphasized again and again. In 1:4 we read of the seven Spirits who are before the throne of God. Then in chapters two and three the Spirit is stressed repeatedly. Seven times the following word is spoken: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22). Revelation 4:5 says, “And seven lamps of fire are burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.” Revelation 5:6 speaks of a “Lamb standing as having been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent forth into all the earth.” Here we see that the Spirit is intensified to be the seven Spirits who are the seven eyes of the Lamb, the Redeemer. In Revelation 14:13 we have this word: “Yes, says the Spirit.” Finally, in 22:17 the Spirit and the bride are mentioned together: “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come!” Here we see that at the very end of the book of Revelation, the bride, which is the church, becomes one with the Spirit.
In the book of Revelation the titles “the Spirit of God” and “the Holy Spirit” are not used. Instead, we have the Spirit and the seven Spirits. We need to appreciate the seven Spirits. The sevenfold intensified Spirit is able to transform a hopeless church into a lampstand of pure gold.
Concerning the church, we should not be discouraged or disappointed. Let us be encouraged with the golden lampstand and the New Jerusalem. The Bible ends with strong encouragement. Look at the golden lampstands shining in this dark age, shining in this perverted generation. In eternity the New Jerusalem will be the consummation of the intensification of the Triune God. This surely indicates that our God cannot be defeated by Satan. Even today God is not defeated, His church is not defeated, and we are not defeated. However, if you think you are defeated, you will be defeated. Instead of thinking like this, we should say, “Hallelujah, in Christ I am not defeated! Through the sevenfold intensified Spirit, I shall never be defeated!”
The ultimate consummation of the intensification of the Triune God is the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem is a sign of the aggregate of God’s chosen people both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. The New Jerusalem, therefore, is a composition of all the Old Testament saints, represented by the names of the twelve tribes of Israel (Rev. 21:12), and of all the New Testament saints, represented by the names of the twelve apostles (Rev. 21:14). Hence, the New Jerusalem is a living composition of God’s chosen, redeemed, saved, regenerated, and transformed people. God’s people will all be transformed into gold, pearl, and precious stones. These materials all point to the building up of God’s dwelling place.
Although in the New Jerusalem revealed in the book of Revelation we see the precious materials of gold, pearl, and precious stones, with these materials we cannot see the intrinsic essence of the divine building specifically. The intrinsic essence of God’s building is actually the Triune God as life to us.
At the center of the New Jerusalem is the throne of God, and out from the throne flows the river of water of life (Rev. 22:1-2). The tree of life as a vine grows along the two sides of the river. As the book of Revelation indicates, the water of life in the river is for us to drink, and the tree of life growing along the river is for us to eat. To drink water is to take it into our being. Likewise, to eat something is to take that thing into us. By eating and drinking we are supplied with the essence of what we eat and drink. The river of life and the tree of life thus indicate the intrinsic essence of the nature of this city. This intrinsic essence is the Triune God Himself as our life and life supply.
In the flowing river with the tree of life we see the Triune God. This river flows out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. According to John 7:38 and 39, this flowing river is the Spirit. Hence, we have God, the Lamb, and the Spirit. This is the Triune God flowing to supply us with Himself as life. This flowing Triune God not only saturates us, but also supplies us with the divine essence.
We may use the petrification of wood as an illustration of how the flow of the Triune God imparts the divine essence to us. The flowing of water causes wood to be petrified. The flowing water saturates the wood with the element of certain minerals. As the wood is saturated with the essence of these minerals, it is transformed into stone. This is a picture of the flow of the Spirit bringing the divine essence into our being. This essence accomplishes the work of transforming us, people of dust, into precious stones. This picture helps us to see that the intrinsic essence of the composition of God’s building, the New Jerusalem, is the Triune God Himself as life and life supply to us.
In Revelation 22 we see that we need to drink of the Triune God. In 1 Corinthians 12:13 Paul says that we were all baptized in the one Spirit and were all made to drink of this Spirit. Our destiny is to drink the Triune God. As God’s chosen people, we have been destined to drink the Triune God. This is our eternal destiny and our eternal enjoyment. For eternity our unique drink will be the Triune God as the divine life. Hallelujah for this all-inclusive drink!
In Revelation 22:1 and 2 we see that the tree of life comes with the water of life. God’s life is our drink to saturate us and also our food to satisfy us.
In the New Jerusalem the river of life flows in the midst of the street. This indicates that in the New Jerusalem we shall walk along the way of life. In this city there will be only one street, the street on which flows the river of life. The river is the river of life, the tree is the tree of life, and the street is the way of life. This way will direct, guide, regulate, and preserve us.
In the New Jerusalem the Triune God will also be our light. Revelation 21:23 says, “And the city has no need of the sun nor of the moon that they should shine in it, for the glory of God illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.” In the New Jerusalem the Lamb will be the lamp in which will be God as our light.
In the New Jerusalem the Triune God will be our life to saturate us, satisfy us, and regulate, guide, and direct us. The Triune God will also be our light to enlighten us. Here we have the intrinsic essence of the New Jerusalem.
The intrinsic essence of the New Jerusalem should also be the intrinsic essence in the church life today. In the church life there should be the throne of God out from which flows the Triune God as our drink, with the tree of life as our food to afford us the way of life and the light of life. This is the intrinsic essence of the church life, the essence that transforms us into a pure golden lampstand today and that will transform us into precious stones for the building up of the New Jerusalem in the coming age. By this intrinsic essence we may live a life fully according to and for God’s New Testament economy.
