THE THIRD PART: 24 CRUCIAL LINES IN THE BIBLE
The Divine Economy
Message Four—Seven Mysteries in the Divine Economy
Scripture Reading: Gen. 1:1; Zech. 12:1; Col. 2:2; 2 Cor. 3:17; Eph. 3:4; 5:32; Rev. 21—22
I. According to the New Testament, there are many mysteries; in this message we shall consider, in an introductory way, seven of these mysteries: God, the universe, man, Christ, the Spirit, the church, and the future; these seven mysteries cover the whole Bible—Gen. 1:1; cf. Acts 17:24; Zech. 12:1; Col. 2:2; 2 Cor. 3:17; Eph. 3:4; 5:32; Rev. 21—22: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
A. The greatest mystery is the mystery of God, who is the source, the origin, of the universe—Gen. 1:1; cf. Rom. 11:36: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
1. The Bible begins with the words, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”; as the origin of the universe, God is altogether a mystery—Gen. 1:1. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
2. Concerning the mystery of God, the Bible seems to contradict itself; (Actually, there are no contradictions in the Bible;) on the one hand, the Bible says that no one has ever seen God, but on the other hand, it says that Moses saw God; thus, whether or not man has seen God is a mystery—cf. John 1:18; Exo. 33:11. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
3. He is mysteriously visible and invisible; whether He is visible or invisible, He is mysterious. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
B. The second mystery is the mystery of the universe; the entire universe is a mystery—cf. Acts 17:24: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
1. We live not only on the earth but by the earth; if the earth did not produce so many things, including vegetable life and animal life, we would have no way to exist; day by day we eat what is produced on the earth and by the earth. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
2. Have you ever realized that everything you eat comes from one source, and that this source is the earth? Actually, we ourselves are earthy, for we were made of earth and with earth; nothing is closer to us than the earth—Gen. 2:7; 1 Cor. 15:47. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
C. Man is truly a mystery; according to the Bible, the meaning of the universe is man; although man is so small, man is nonetheless the meaning of the universe; according to the Bible, the heaven is for the earth, and the earth is for man—Zech. 12:1: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
1. The Bible has hundreds of verses concerning man and presents a full description of him—cf. Gen. 2:7; Eccl. 12. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
a. The Bible has much to say about our ears and our tongue; it also speaks about our eyes, nose, and hands. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
b. Moreover, the Bible reveals the true condition of our heart; in fact, we have two hearts, a physical heart and a psychological heart; although our physical heart may be healthy, our psychological heart is evil; it is incurably wicked; no other book gives us such a complete picture of our mind, will, emotion, conscience, and soul— Jer. 17:9. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
c. The real picture of man is found in the Bible; but the Bible shows us how ugly and evil we are inwardly; our eyes, ears, and nose are evil, and our heart is a dunghill—cf. Prov. 6:16-19; Rom. 1:29-31. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
d. None of us is an exception to the photograph of man presented in the Bible; by reading the Bible we come to realize how pitiful we are; we have no ground to be proud about anything; our mind is a beehive of evil thoughts; countless evil bees proceed out of our mind toward others, even toward the ones closest to us. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
2. The Bible reveals not only the negative side of man but also the glorious side—Gen. 1:26; Rom. 9:23: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
a. The Bible says that we are the image of God; although we are evil and corrupt, full of rotten thoughts, we nonetheless are the image of God; moreover, we are God’s vessel to contain Him—Gen. 1:26; Rom. 9:23. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
b. Our ears can listen to God’s word, our eyes can behold His revelation, and our tongue can utter something for Him; hallelujah, we are the image of God and the vessel of God! Our heart can think about God and our spirit can touch Him. This is the mystery of man—John 4:24. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
D. The Bible says that Christ is the mystery of God; He is the explanation, interpretation, and definition of God; Christ is the key to get into God—Col. 2:2: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
1. If we want to know God, then, we must know Christ; God is true and living, but He is mysterious; Christ explains Him; this He does, not only by His words, but mostly by His very Person—John 1:18. (Life Messages, ch. 65)
2. In Hebrews 1:3 He is called the effulgence of God’s glory and the express image of His substance: (Life Messages, ch. 65)
a. God is like the invisible electricity; Christ is His shining forth, the effulgence of His glory. (Life Messages, ch. 65)
b. All the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Him; where He is, there God is, for He Himself is God— Col. 2:9.(Life Messages, ch. 65)
3. The first chapter of the Gospel of John goes into this matter also; the Word was in the beginning, the Word was with God, and the Word was God—John 1:1. (Life Messages, ch. 65)
a. How could the Word be God? How could the Word become flesh (v. 14)? In our mentality the Word is one thing, God is something else, and the flesh is another thing—v. 14. (Life Messages, ch. 65)
b. John tells us that these three are one. “Great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh” (1 Tim. 3:16); when the Word became flesh, God was manifested in the flesh; this is the Lord Jesus, the mystery of God. (Life Messages, ch. 65)
4. We all need to be brought unto the full knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ; God is in Christ, and Christ is God; with God there is a mystery, but with Christ the mystery is revealed—Col. 2:2. (Life Messages, ch. 65)
5. God has been revealed; we can contact Him; we can fellowship with Him; we can walk with Him; we are even one spirit with Him, because we are one spirit with the Lord; we have God because we have Christ, who is the mystery of God—1 Cor. 6:17. (Life Messages, ch. 65)
E. Another mystery is the mystery of the Spirit; no one can see the Spirit or touch the Spirit, yet this mysterious Spirit is with us; the Spirit is the reality of Christ—2 Cor. 3:17: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
1. When we are filled with the Spirit, we may spontaneously repent for condemning others and ask the Lord to forgive us; because of the filling of the Spirit, we are beside ourselves in the Lord; this is mysterious—cf. Acts 4:31; 2 Cor. 5:13. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
2. His mystery of the Spirit can change people’s lives in a moment; one minute a person may be a thief; the next minute he may be a saint; however, when he is no longer filled with the Spirit, he may be just as bad as he was before; this is the experience of the mystery of the Spirit; no one can define this mystery; the real biography of the saints is the record of this mysterious Spirit.
F. The church also is a mystery—Eph. 3:4; 5:32: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
1. The church is holy, pure, righteous, spiritual, and heavenly—vv. 26-27. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
2. The church has rejected the soul-life to the uttermost—Matt. 10:39; John 12:25. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
3. The church has nothing to do with the world—17:14-16. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
G. Now we come to the last mystery, the mystery of the future; this mystery is the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and the new earth—Rev. 21: 1-2: (Basic Training, ch. 1)
1. In the new heaven and the new earth, the New Jerusalem will be God’s tabernacle among men; this is the future—v. 3. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
2. The New Jerusalem is an eternal reflection of the church today. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
3. What we are doing in the church today is reflected there. (Basic Training, ch. 1)
II. These seven mysteries cover the entire Bible; the span of these mysteries is vast, extending from eternity past to eternity future—Eph. 1:4; Rev. 21—22. (Basic Training, ch. 1)