Message Four The Producing of the Overcomers (2)

THE THIRD PART: 24 CRUCIAL LINES IN THE BIBLE

The Overcomers

Message Four
The Producing of the Overcomers (2)

Scriptures Reading: 1 John 2:15; 3:8; Matt. 16:24; Gal. 1:4; 5:16; Rev. 2:1-17; 20:1-6; Rom. 12:11

I. Through the degradation of the church nearly all the believers in Christ became defeated, lost the enjoyment of the processed Triune God (cf. 2 Cor. 13:14), and were corrupted by Satan through sin, self, the world, and their flesh—1 John 3:8; Matt. 16:24; 2 John 2:15; Gal. 1:4; 5:16.

II. In His seven epistles to the degraded churches, Christ calls the defeated believers to be His overcomers by Himself as the sevenfold intensified Spirit for their experience of His organic salvation in His sevenfold intensification—Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 26-28; 3:5, 12, 20-21.

III. As the sevenfold intensified Spirit Christ produces the overcomers by saving them from the things related to the degradation of the church—2:7:

A. Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit worked to save the believers in the church in Ephesus from the formal church life, which has lost the first love to the Lord, the shining capacity of the lampstand, and the enjoyment of Christ as life—vv. 1-7; Rom. 12:11:

1. In the church life we need reality rather than formality; to be real is to be in the sprit and to do everything in the spirit—Eph. 4:15; Rom. 8:4.

2. We must recover the loss of the first love and give Christ the preeminence in everything so that Christ might be everything in our life—Col. 1:18b.

3. We must also maintain the eating of Christ as the tree of life—Rev. 2:7.

4. This will cause us to shine forth the divine light as the lampstand corporately rather than individualistically in the dark night of the church age, to be the testimony of Jesus in our locality, and to hate the works of the Nicolaitans—vv. 5-6.

B. Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit worked to strengthen the suffering believers in the church in Smyrna to overcome the persecution by being martyred so that they will be rewarded not to taste the second death during the kingdom age—vv. 8-11:

1. Christ’s love of affection constrains us to live and to die for Him—2 Cor. 5:14-15; Rom. 14:7-9.

2. Christ’s love makes the believers martyrs for Him—Rev. 2:10; 12:11; Rom. 8:35-37.

3. The Spirit of glory and of God rests upon the suffering believers—1 Pet. 4:14.

4. The more we are persecuted for the Lord and become poor, the richer we will be in Christ—Rev. 2:9; 2 Cor. 6:10.

5. Those who are faithful unto death will gain the crown of life—the overcoming strength that is the power of the resurrection life—Rev. 2:10; Phil. 3:10.

C. Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit worked to sanctify the believers in the church in Pergamos from the union with the world and from the teachings of Balaam and the Nicolaitans to be the overcomers so that they may be rewarded to eat the hidden manna and to have a white stone upon which a new name will be written in the kingdom age—Rev. 2:12-17:

1. While the church goes the way of the world, the overcomers come forward to abide in the presence of God in the Holy of Holies, where they enjoy the hidden Christ as a special portion for their daily supply—v. 17a; John 6:57.

2. If we do not follow the worldly church but enjoy the Lord in the proper church life, we will be transformed into stones for God’s building—v. 17b; 2 Cor. 3:18.

D. Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit works to rescue the believers in the church in Thyatira from idol worship, fornication, demonic teachings, and the deep things of Satan to be the overcomers so that they may be rewarded with the authority over the nations in the kingdom age—Rev. 2:18-19.

E. Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit is to revive the believers in the church in Sardis from their dead and dying condition to be the overcomers so that they may be rewarded with walking with the Lord in white and with not having their names erased from the book of life but confessed by the Lord before the Father and His angels in the kingdom age—vv. 3:1-6.

F. Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit works to encourage the believers in the church in Philadelphia to hold fast what they have that no one take their crown to be the overcomers so that they may be rewarded to be a pillar in the temple of God with the name of God and the name of the New Jerusalem and the new name of the Lord written upon them in the kingdom age—vv. 7-13.

G. Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit works to awaken the believers in the church in Laodicea from their lukewarm and Christless condition and exhorts them to pay the price for the refined gold, white garments, and eyesalve and to open their door to the knocking Lord to be the overcomers so that they may be rewarded to sit on the throne of the Lord in the kingdom age—vv. 14-22.

IV. The means by which the believers are saved from degradation are the speaking of the pneumatic Christ and the participation of the overcoming saints—2:1, 7-8, 29; 3:1, 6-7, 22; 1:10; 4:2:

A. In Revelation 2 and 3 the speaking of the unlimited life-releasing sevenfold intensified pneumatic Christ to the seven churches at the beginning of each epistle respectively becomes the speaking of the sevenfold intensified, all-inclusive, life-giving Spirit to all the seven churches at the end of each epistle universally—2:1, 7, 8, 11, 12, 17, 18, 29; 3:1, 6, 7, 13, 14, 22:

1. At the beginning of each of the seven epistles, it is Christ who is speaking, but at the end of each epistle it is the Spirit who is speaking; from this we see that Christ’s speaking and the Spirit’s speaking are one speaking—vv. 1, 7, 8, 11-12, 17-18.

2. Christ speaks to a particular local church, and the Spirit speaks to the universal Body; by this speaking, Christ saves us from the degradation of today’s church—vv. 1, 7, 8, 11-12, 17-18, 29.

B. Christ saves the believers also by the participation of the overcoming saints who are living in their spirit drawn by the Lamb; Christ and the Spirit speak, and the overcoming saints respond and say yes to the Lord; the believers who respond in this way will be saved—1:10; 4:2.

V. We need to see the goal of the intensified work of God’s organic salvation—2:7; 19:7-9; 20:1-6:

A. This salvation is for producing the overcomers to build up the Body of Christ for the initial consummation of the New Jerusalem in the kingdom age and the full consummation of the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and new earth—2:7; 21:2.

B. The intensified work of God’s organic salvation is also for the complete preparation of the bride of Christ so that the Bridegroom may have His triumphant wedding in the millennium for His satisfaction according to His good pleasure—19:7-9.

C. Next, Christ’s intensified work is for the formation of the bridal army for Christ to defeat and destroy His top enemies in humanity, the Antichrist and his false prophet—vv. 11-21; 17:14.

D. Furthermore, Christ’s intensified work is for the binding of Satan and the casting of him into the abyss for one thousand years—20:1-3.

E. Finally, Christ’s intensified work is for the bringing in of the kingdom of Christ and of God, which will be the millennium—vv. 4-6.

VI. The final outcome of Christ’s intensified work will be that the ultimately consummated Spirit as the consummation of the processed Triune God becomes the Bridegroom, and the aggregate of the overcoming saints becomes the bride of the universal romance between the redeeming God and His redeemed man as the conclusion of the entire Scriptures—22:17.

Ministry Excerpts:

CHRIST’S SEVENFOLD INTENSIFICATION BEING DUE TO THE DEGRADATION OF THE CHURCH

In considering the secret of the intensified work of God’s organic salvation, the first matter we need to pay attention tso is the degradation of the church. If there had been no degradation, there would have been no need for Christ to be intensified sevenfold. Christ’s sevenfold intensification is due to the degradation of the church. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

Through the degradation of the church nearly all the believers in Christ became defeated in their old man by Satan, sin, the world, and their flesh. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “The Vital Groups”, msg. 14)

The degradation of the church took place at the end of the apostle Paul’s ministry, around the A.D. 60s. All the believers in Asia turned away from Paul (2 Tim. 1:15). They turned away not from Paul’s person but from his ministry. Hymenaeus and Philetus said that the resurrection had already taken place (2:17-18). They taught the heresy that there would be no resurrection. Demas, a co-worker of the apostle Paul, loved the present age and abandoned Paul (4:10). This also was an aspect of the degradation of the church. Alexander the coppersmith, who might have been quite close to Paul, did many evil things to the apostle and greatly opposed the apostle’s words (vv. 14-15). At the apostle’s first defense no one was with him to support him, but all abandoned him (v. 16).

The degradation at the end of the apostle John’s ministry took place around the A.D. 90s. Many antichrists lied, denying that Jesus is the Christ, the One anointed by God (1 John 2:18, 22). Many false prophets, by the spirit of deception, did not confess that Christ came in the flesh (4:1-2, 6).

Many deceivers as antichrists, not confessing that Christ came in the flesh, taught beyond the teaching of Christ (2 John 7, 9-11). Diotrephes, who loved to be first in the church, did not receive the apostles, babbling evil words against them, and forbade those intending to receive the brothers and cast them out of the church (3 John 9-10). From all the foregoing we can see what kind of degradation had come in. At the end of the ministry of the three main writers of the New Testament—Paul, Peter, and John—there was degradation. Because of this degradation, the life-giving Spirit, that is, the pneumatic Christ, had to be intensified sevenfold.

CHRIST AS THE LIFE-GIVING SPIRIT BEING INTENSIFIED
TO BE THE SEVEN SPIRITS

Christ as the life-giving Spirit was intensified to be the seven Spirits, the sevenfold intensified life-giving Spirit (Rev. 1:4; 4:5; 5:6).

In Revelation 1:4 and 5 the Spirit becomes the second, the center, of the Divine Trinity. The sequence of the Divine Trinity in Matthew 28:19 is the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. There the Father as the source is the first, the Spirit is the last, and the Son is the center, the second. In Revelation 1:4 and 5 the sequence is changed: “Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is coming [the Father], and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful Witness, the Firstborn of the dead, and the Ruler of the kings of the earth.” This change of sequence reveals the importance of the function of the sevenfold intensified Spirit. There is a sense, however, in which the sequence actually has not changed, for as the Spirit, who is the consummation of the Triune God, Christ remains the center of the Divine Trinity.

The sevenfold intensified Spirit, as the seven Spirits, is the seven lamps burning before the throne of God (4:5). Because of the degradation, many things should be burned. However, the lamps are not mainly for burning but for enlightening. When the lamps enlighten, they also burn.

The sevenfold intensified Spirit, as the seven Spirits, is the seven eyes of the Lamb sent forth into all the earth, searching and infusing all the churches and all the saints with His eyes (5:6).

As the seven eyes of the Lamb, the seven Spirits are one with the Lamb. Your eyes are not separate from you yourself. When you look at someone, your eyes look at that one, and when your eyes look at someone, you yourself look at that one. The fact that the seven Spirits are the seven eyes of Christ the Lamb indicates that Christ and the Spirit are one. It is heretical to say the Spirit is not one with Christ. Just as the eyes of a person are not separate from the person, so the seven Spirits as the seven eyes of Christ are not separate from Christ. The seven Spirits are Christ Himself because They are the eyes of Christ. The seven Spirits are just Christ Himself pneumatically. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

In His seven epistles to the degraded churches, Christ calls the defeated believers to be His overcomers by Himself as the sevenfold intensified Spirit for their experience of His organic salvation in His sevenfold intensification. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “The Vital Groups”, msg. 14)

SAVING THE BELIEVERS FROM THE THINGS RELATED TO THE DEGRADATION OF THE CHURCH

As the sevenfold intensified Spirit, Christ saves the believers from the things related to the degradation of the church.

Being Saved from the Formal Church Life in the Church in Ephesus

The sevenfold intensified Spirit saves the believers from the formal church life, the loss of the first love to the Lord, the loss of the shining capacity of the lampstand, and the loss of the enjoyment of Christ as life in the church in Ephesus (2:1-7). The church in Ephesus had lost four things: the genuine and proper church life, the first love toward the Lord, the shining capacity of the lampstand, and the enjoyment of Christ as life. Such a loss is very serious.

Some of the churches in the Lord’s recovery may have lost these four things. Instead of a real and genuine church life, the saints in these churches have only a formal church life. The saints still love one another, but their love is quite formal. They do not have the real and genuine love toward the brothers. Furthermore, the saints in these churches still come to the meetings, but they attend the meetings merely in a formal way. A good number of saints have this kind of formality. We need to be genuine, and to be genuine is to be in the spirit and do everything in the spirit.

If we have lost our first love to the Lord, we will not be warm toward Him. Although we may continue to serve Him, we will be cold in our serving. We need to be saved from a formal church life and serve the Lord with a burning spirit (Rom. 12:11). (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

Being Saved from the Defeat Spoken of in the Lord’s Word to the Church in Smyrna

The believers need to be saved by the seven Spirits from the defeat that leads to the taste of the second death spoken of in the Lord’s word to the church in Smyrna (Rev. 2:8-11). Those who are defeated in the way described in verses 10 and 11 may taste of the second death, the lake of fire. We need to realize, therefore, that it is possible for a saved person to be hurt by the lake of fire as the second death. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

We all need to be overcomers. If you are not an overcomer in this age, you will be hurt by the second death in the next age. It is difficult for anyone to say clearly what it means to be hurt by the second death. Nevertheless, one thing is clear: if you do not overcome persecution, something will hurt you. I say again that this does not mean that you will be lost, that you will suffer perdition. No, every saved one is saved for eternity. John 10:28-29 show that no saved one can ever perish again. However, after we have been resurrected, we may suffer some dealing from the Lord. Do not hold to the traditional theology which teaches that after you have been resurrected everything will be all right. After the unbelievers are resurrected, they will be dealt with by God regarding their eternal destiny. In the same principle, after our resurrection, there will still be some dealings from the Lord. It all depends upon how we live and walk today. If we live and walk in an overcoming way, this will indicate that we have overcome death and that nothing remains requiring a further dealing from the Lord. (Life-study of Revelations, msg. 11)

Being Saved from the Worldliness in Union with the World as a Marriage and the Teaching of Balaam and the Nicolaitans in the Church in Pergamos

The believers need to be saved also from the worldliness in union with the world as a marriage and the teaching of Balaam and the Nicolaitans in the church in Pergamos (vv. 12-17). (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

The Lord promises to give of the hidden manna to the overcomer. The promise to the first church concerned the eating of the tree of life, and the promise to this church concerns the eating of the hidden manna. The worldlier the church becomes, the greater is the need for some to stand up and testify and to maintain intimate fellowship with the Lord. These will be privileged to enjoy the Lord as the hidden manna. Manna is a type of Christ as the heavenly food enabling God’s people to go His way. A portion of that manna was preserved in a golden pot concealed in the ark (Exo. 16:32-34; Heb. 9:4). The open manna was for the enjoyment of the Lord’s people in a public way; the hidden manna, signifying the hidden Christ, is a special portion reserved for His overcoming seekers who overcome the degradation of the worldly church. While the church goes the way of the world, these overcomers come forward to abide in the presence of God in the Holy of Holies, where they enjoy the hidden Christ as a special portion for their daily supply. This promise is fulfilled today in the proper church life and will be fulfilled in full in the coming kingdom. If we seek the Lord, overcome the degradation of the worldly church, and enjoy a special portion of the Lord today, He, as the hidden manna, will be a reward to us in the coming kingdom. If we miss Him as our special portion today in the church life, we shall surely lose the enjoyment of Him as a reward in the coming kingdom. (Life-study of Revelations, msg. 12)

Being Saved from the Fornication, Idolatry, Demonic Teaching
Signified by the Church in Thyatira

Next, the sevenfold intensified Spirit saves the believers from the fornication, idolatry, demonic teaching, and satanic depths in Catholicism, signified by the church in Thyatira (vv. 18-29). In the Catholic Church today, there are many demonic teachings—for example, the teaching that one’s prayers can shorten the time that someone else will spend in purgatory. Even though the Catholic Church correctly teaches certain things regarding God, Christ, and redemption, this teaching has been “leavened” by being mixed with pagan practices, heretical doctrines, and evil matters. Many of these are enumerated in the book entitled The Two Babylons. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

We should have nothing to do with this apostate church. It is not the Body of Christ. It is not the church of God — it is the embodiment of Satan. It is subtle and evil. If you would see even more about the apostate church, read Brother Nee’s book, The Orthodoxy of the Church. Anyone who has a heart for the Lord and for His recovery must thoroughly know this apostate church. Once we know her, we would not appreciate anything related to her. Rather, we must declare that she is the great harlot, the great Babylon, and that we must desert her.

As we shall see, the book of Revelation indicates that this great harlot has some daughters. We must be thoroughly enlightened about the apostate church. Once we are enlightened, we shall know where we must be as far as the church is concerned. We are in the Lord’s recovery. We are in the Body of Christ, the church of God, and we have nothing to do with Jezebel, the evil woman, the harlot, the great Babylon. And we have nothing to do with her daughters.

In verse 26 the Lord says that to the one who overcomes He will give authority over the nations. This is a prize to the overcomers of reigning with Christ over the nations in the millennial kingdom (Rev. 20:4, 6). This promise of the Lord strongly implies that those who do not answer His call to overcome degraded Christianity will not participate in the reign of the millennial kingdom.

In verse 27 the Lord says, speaking of the overcomer, “And he will shepherd them with an iron rod, as vessels of pottery are broken in pieces, as I also have received from My Father.” In the millennial kingdom, the ruler is a shepherd. In Psa. 2:9, God gave Christ authority to rule over the nations. Here, Christ gives the same authority to His overcomers.

Finally, in verse 28 the Lord gives a promise to the overcomer, saying, “I will give him the morning star.” At Christ’s first appearing, the wise men, not the Jewish religionists, saw His star (Matt. 2:2, 9-10). At His second appearing, He will be the morning star to His overcomers who watch for His coming. To all the others, He will appear only as the sun (Mal. 4:2). (Life-study of Revelations, msg. 13)

Being Saved from the Spiritual Death Signified by the Church in Sardis

Furthermore, the believers need to be saved from the spiritual death—from being dead and dying—in Protestantism, signified by the church in Sardis (3:1-6). Spiritual death is prevailing in today’s Protestantism. Some in the denominations are quite good, but the majority are either dead or dying. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

Although Christians condemn sin, they do not condemn deadness. People sit in the meetings like corpses and they see nothing wrong with it. I do not like to be near anything dead. One day, my mother died. Although we all loved her, none of us dared to stay near her dead body overnight. If your dear wife would dirty herself while doing something for you, you would love her more than ever before. But if she were to die, you would not want to be near her dead body. The Lord hates death. However, most Christians in the reformed churches do not have this concept of death. They may say, “What is wrong with the denominational churches?” They are not only wrong — they are filled with death. Though there may be nothing wrong with the corpses in a mortuary, they are full of death. Death is the greatest problem. How ugly it is! It is a stench to God, and He cannot tolerate it.

In the local churches, we all must hate death. I would rather see the people in the churches wrong than to see them dead. Many times I have asked the brothers and sisters why they do not function in the meetings. Often their reply was, “I’m afraid of making a mistake.” To this, I responded, “The more mistakes you make, the better. Living children make many mistakes. But the dead children in the cemeteries make no mistakes at all.” If you simply sit in the meeting without doing anything, you will never be wrong. Although you may be right, you will be dead right. I would rather be livingly wrong than dead right. I may make mistakes, but everyone will know how living I am. Which do you prefer — to be dead right or livingly wrong?

Speaking of these who have not defiled their garments, the Lord says that “they shall walk with Me in white for they are worthy” (v. 4). White not only signifies purity, but also approvedness. White garments here signify the walk and living which are unspotted by death and which will be approved by the Lord. It is a qualification for walking with the Lord, especially in the coming kingdom. (Life-study of Revelations, msg. 14)

Being Saved from the Losing of the Crown Signified by the Church in Philadelphia

Next, the believers need to be saved from the losing of the crown, which has been gained already in Brethrenism, signified by the church in Philadelphia (vv. 7-13). Philadelphia means “brotherly love.” Some in Brethrenism had gained the crown but eventually were defeated and were in danger of losing the crown at the Lord’s coming back. Thus, the Lord warned them, saying, “Hold fast what you have that no one take your crown” (v. 11). (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

What pleases the Lord is not that we are strong, but that we use our little power to do the best we can. Do not try to be strong. The strong ones may not please the Lord as much as those who do their best with the little power they have. You can never surpass what the Lord gives you. Simply spend what you have received from Him. Do not usurp the Lord’s grace. None among us can say that he has received nothing from the Lord. Even the least among us has received a certain amount of grace from Him. You must spend that grace, using it to do your best. If you do this, the Lord will appreciate you and say, “Good. You have a little power, yet you have kept My word with the power you have.” Do not seek to be a giant. The Lord is not happy with giants; He is happy with the little ones who have an amount of grace. Although that grace may be limited in its capacity, as long as we use it, spending it to do as much as we can to keep the Lord’s word, He will be pleased.

In the recovered church life we have no teachings of Balaam (Rev. 2:14), no teachings of the Nicolaitans (Rev. 2:15), no teachings of Jezebel (Rev. 2:20), and no mysterious doctrines of Satan (Rev. 2:24); we have only the pure Word of the Lord. Amen! The recovered church has no denominations (names), but the unique name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The deviation from the Word to heresies and the exaltation of so many names other than that of Christ are the most striking signs of degraded Christianity. The return to the pure Word from all heresies and traditions and the exaltation of the Lord’s name by abandoning every other name are the most inspiring testimony in the recovered church. This is why the church in the Lord’s recovery has the revelation and presence of the Lord and expresses the Lord in a living way, full of light and with the riches of life.

In chapter 3 verse 8 the Lord said, “Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one can shut.” As the One who has the key of David and who opens and no one can shut, the Lord has given the recovered church “an open door which no one can shut.” Since the recovery of the proper church life began, in the early part of the nineteenth century, until now, a door has always been wide open to the Lord’s recovery. The more that organized Christianity tries to shut the door, the wider it is open. (Life-study of Revelations, msg. 15)

Being Saved from the Lukewarmness and the Christlessness
Signified by the Church in Laodicea

Finally, Christ as the sevenfold intensified Spirit saves the believers from the lukewarmness and the Christlessness in degraded Brethrenism, signified by the church in Laodicea (vv. 14-22). We know that the church in Laodicea was Christless by the fact that He was outside the church, standing at the door and knocking (v. 20). This indicates that we may have Christ in name but not in reality. We need to be careful lest this become our situation today. We all should consider these matters not for others but for ourselves. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)

We see the condition of the church in Laodicea. In verses 15 and 16 the Lord says, “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I am about to vomit you out of My mouth.” Once the recovered church becomes degraded, it is lukewarm — neither cold nor hot. This is the actual condition of so many Brethren assemblies today. This should be a warning to us. Once we become lukewarm, we are not fitting for the Lord’s move and shall be vomited out of His mouth.

In verse 18 we see the Lord’s counsel to the church in Laodicea: “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined by fire that you may be rich, and white garments that you may be clothed and that the shame of your nakedness may not be manifested, and eyesalve to anoint your eyes that you may see.” To “buy” requires the paying of a price. The degraded recovered church needs to pay a price for the gold, white garments, and eyesalve, which she desperately needs. After having contact with the Brethren assemblies, I realized that probably no one among them understands what it means to pay a price. Perhaps they have never heard that they must pay some price in order to experience the riches of Christ. They know the knowledge and doctrine, but they do not know how to pay the price. They know how to learn, but they do not know how to buy. They know certain “truths,” but they do not know the cost of experiencing the riches of Christ.

In verse 19 the Lord charged the church in Laodicea, saying, “Be zealous therefore, and repent.” Dead knowledge has made the degraded church lukewarm. She needs to become crazily burning by dropping the deadening and cooling knowledge, and she even needs to break the bondage of her doctrinal forms. She needs to be boiling rather than to be dead right according to dead doctrine. She needs to love the Lord and pay any price to gain Him, even at the cost of sacrificing the “doctrines.” A lukewarm church needs to be hot, to be burning at any cost. She needs to repent of her lukewarmness, not to be proud of her knowledge any longer. She has been appreciating her dead knowledge too much. She needs to depreciate all her knowledge and repent of being satisfied with the vanity of knowledge and not with the reality of Christ. (Life-study of Revelations, msg. 16)

THE MEANS BY WHICH THE BELIEVERS BEING SAVED
FROM THE DEGRADATION

Now we need to see the means by which the believers are saved from the degradation of the church.

The Speaking of the Pneumatic Christ

Christ saves us from degradation by His speaking. In Revelation 2 and 3 the speaking of the unlimited life-releasing sevenfold intensified pneumatic Christ to the seven churches at the beginning of each epistle respectively becomes the speaking of the sevenfold intensified, all-inclusive, life-giving Spirit to all the seven churches at the end of each epistle universally (2:1, 7, 8, 11, 12, 17, 18, 29; 3:1, 6, 7, 13, 14, 22). At the beginning of each of the seven epistles, it is Christ who is speaking, but at the end of each epistle it is the Spirit who is speaking. The speaking of Christ therefore becomes the speaking of the Spirit. From this we see that Christ’s speaking and the Spirit’s speaking are one speaking. Christ speaks to a particular local church, and the Spirit speaks to the universal Body. By this speaking, Christ saves us from the degradation of today’s church.

The Participation of the Overcoming Saints

Christ saves the believers also by the participation of the overcoming saints who are living in their spirit drawn by the Lamb (1:10; 4:2; 17:3; 21:10; 14:4). Christ and the Spirit speak, and the overcoming saints respond and say yes to the Lord. The believers who respond in this way will be saved.

THE GOAL OF THE INTENSIFIED WORK OF GOD’S ORGANIC SALVATION

For what are the believers saved from degradation by the sevenfold intensified Spirit? In order to answer this question, we need to see the goal of the intensified work of God’s organic salvation.

Producing the Overcomers

This salvation is for producing the overcomers to build up the Body of Christ for the initial consummation of the New Jerusalem in the kingdom age (2:7) and the full consummation of the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and new earth (21:2). As we look at the situation of today’s Christians, we may wonder who will build up the Body of Christ. Without the overcomers the Body of Christ cannot be built up, and unless the Body of Christ is built up, Christ cannot come back for His bride. Christ will come back not only as the Savior but also as the Bridegroom to marry His bride, who will be the totality of the overcomers. The building up of the Body of Christ is by the overcomers produced by God in the intensified work of His organic salvation.

The building up of the Body of Christ by the overcomers in this age is for the initial consummation of the New Jerusalem in the kingdom age and eventually for the full consummation of the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and new earth.

The Preparation of the Bride

The intensified work of God’s organic salvation is also for the complete preparation of the bride of Christ so that the Bridegroom may have His triumphant wedding in the millennium for His satisfaction according to His good pleasure (19:7-9). John 3 indicates that Christ is the Bridegroom coming for the bride, who is composed of all the regenerated people. But nearly two thousand years have passed, and the bride still has not been prepared. The overcomers produced by Christ’s intensified work will build up the Body of Christ, which will become the bride of Christ. Thus, Christ’s wedding will take place as a result of His intensified work.

The Formation of the Bridal Army

Next, Christ’s intensified work is for the formation of the bridal army for Christ to defeat and destroy His top enemies in humanity, the Antichrist and his false prophet (Rev. 19:11-21; 17:14). At the end of this age Antichrist and his false prophet will rise up to be the top enemies of Christ in humanity. Who will defeat them? These enemies will be defeated by Christ’s bridal army, formed with the overcomers. Christ and His bride will fight against His human enemies and destroy them.

The Binding of Satan

Furthermore, Christ’s intensified work is for the binding of Satan and the casting of him into the abyss for one thousand years (20:1-3).

The Bringing in of the Kingdom

Finally, Christ’s intensified work is for the bringing in of the kingdom of Christ and of God, which will be the millennium (vv. 4-6).

THE FINAL OUTCOME OF CHRIST’S INTENSIFIED WORK

The final outcome of Christ’s intensified work will be that the ultimately consummated Spirit as the consummation of the processed Triune God becomes the Bridegroom, and the aggregate of the overcoming saints becomes the bride of the universal romance between the redeeming God and His redeemed man as the conclusion of the entire Scriptures (22:17). (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, The Secret of God’s Organic Salvation—“The Spirit Himself with Our Spirit”, msg. 6)