THE SECOND PART: A BIRD’S-EYE VIEW OF THE NEW TESTAMENT

The Ministry of John

Message One
The Fellowship of the Eternal Life

Scripture Reading: 1 John 1:1-2:2; Rev. 22:1-2; Acts 2:42; 1 Cor. 10:16-18; 2 Cor. 13:14; Eph. 4:3, 13

I. John’s Epistles (especially his first Epistle) unfold the mystery of the fellowship of the eternal life—1 John 1:3-4, 6-7:

A. Fellowship is the flow of the eternal life within all the believers, illustrated by the flow of the water of life in the New Jerusalem; the reality of the Body of Christ, the church life in actuality, is the flow of the Lord Jesus within us, and this flowing One must have the preeminence within us—vv. 2-4; Rev. 22:1; Col. 1:18b; cf. Ezek. 47:1.

B. Fellowship is the flowing Triune God—the Father is the fountain of life, the Son is the spring of life, and the Spirit is the river of life; this flowing issues in the totality of eternal life—the New Jerusalem—John 4:14b; Rev. 22:1-2.

C. Fellowship is the imparting of the Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—into the believers as their unique portion and blessing for them to enjoy today and for eternity—1 Cor. 1:9; 2 Cor. 13:14; Num. 6:22-27.

D. Fellowship indicates a putting away of private interests and a joining with others for a certain common purpose; hence, to be in the divine fellowship is to put aside our private interests and join with the apostles and the Triune God for the carrying out of God’s purpose—Acts 2:42; 1 John 1:3.

E. Fellowship comes from teaching; if we teach wrongly and differently from the apostles’ teaching, the teaching of God’s economy, our teaching will produce a sectarian, divisive fellowship—Acts 2:42; 1 Tim. 1:3-6; 6:3-4; 2 Cor. 3:8-9; 5:18.

F. First John reveals the principles of the divine fellowship, 2 John reveals that we must have no fellowship with those who deny Christ, and 3 John reveals that we should stay in the one fellowship of God’s family by sending forward those who travel for the gospel and the ministry of the word in a manner worthy of God and by not loving to be first in the church—2 John 7-11; 3 John 5-10.

II. The fellowship of the eternal life is the reality of living in the Body of Christ in the oneness of the Spirit—1 Cor. 10:16-18; Acts 2:42; Eph. 4:3:

A. We enter into the vertical aspect of the divine fellowship by the divine Spirit, the Holy Spirit; this aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with the Triune God in our loving Him—2 Cor. 13:14; 1 John 1:3, 6; Mark 12:30.

B. We enter into the horizontal aspect of the divine fellowship by the human spirit; this aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with one another by the exercise of our spirit in our loving one another—Phil. 2:1; Rev. 1:10; 1 John 1:2-3, 7;1 Cor. 16:18; Mark 12:31; Rom. 13:8-10; Gal. 5:13-15.

C. The one divine fellowship is an interwoven fellowship—the horizontal fellowship is interwoven with the vertical fellowship—2 Cor. 13:14; 1 John 1:3; Phil. 2:1:

1. The initial experience of the apostles was the vertical fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ, but when the apostles reported the eternal life to others, they experienced the horizontal aspect of the divine fellowship—1 John 1:2-3; cf. Acts 2:42.

2. Our horizontal fellowship with the saints brings us into vertical fellowship with the Lord; then our vertical fellowship with the Lord brings us into horizontal fellowship with the saints.

3. We must maintain both the vertical and horizontal aspects of the divine fellowship in order to be healthy spiritually—cf. 1 John 1:7, 9.

D. The divine fellowship is everything in the Christian life—2 Cor. 13:14; 1 John 1:7:

1. When fellowship disappears, God also disappears; God comes as the fellowship—2 Cor. 13:14; Rev. 22:1.

2. In this divine fellowship God is interwoven with us; this interweaving is the mingling of God and man to bring the divine constituent into our spiritual being for our growth and transformation in life—Lev. 2:4-5.

3. The divine fellowship blends us, tempers us, adjusts us, harmonizes us, and mingles us together into one Body—1 Cor. 10:16-18; 12:24-25.

III. In order to remain in the enjoyment of the divine fellowship, we need to take Christ as our sin offering for the indwelling sin in our nature and as our trespass offering for the sinful deeds in our conduct—1 John 1:8-9; 3:20-21; Lev. 4:3; 5:6; John 1:29; Rom. 8:3; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 2:24-25:

A. Sin is the evil nature of Satan, who injected himself into man through Adam’s fall and has now become the sinful nature of lawlessness that is dwelling, acting, and working as a law in fallen man—Rom. 5:12, 19a, 21a; 6:14; 7:11, 14,.17-23; Psa. 51:5; 1 John 3:4; cf. 2 Thes. 2:3, 7-8.

B. Taking Christ as our sin offering means that our old man is dealt with, that sin in the nature of fallen man is condemned, that Satan as sin itself is destroyed, that the world is judged, and that the ruler of the world is cast out—Rom. 6:6; 8:3; Heb. 2:14; John 12:31:

1. The word ruler in “the ruler of this world” implies authority or power and the struggle for power—Luke 4:5-8; cf. Matt. 20:20-21, 24; 3 John 9.

2. The struggle for power is the result, the issue, of the flesh, sin, Satan, the world, and the ruler of the world—Gal. 5:16-17, 24-26.

3. The law of sin in our flesh is the spontaneous power, strength, and energy to struggle with God; the law of the sin offering is the law of the life of the pneumatic Christ, whom we enjoy, to automatically and spontaneously free us from the law of sin—Rom. 7:23; 8:2; Lev. 6:24-30; cf. 7:1-10.

C. We partake of Christ as our sin offering in the sense of enjoying Him as our life, the life that bears others’ sins, so that we may be able to bear the problems of God’s people by ministering Christ to them as the sin-dealing life for them to be kept in the oneness of the Spirit—1 John 5:16; Lev. 10:17.

D. Through our genuine, intimate, living, and loving fellowship with God, who is light, we will realize that we are sinful, and we will take Christ as our sin offering and trespass offering—1 John 1:5; Col. 1:12:

1. The more we love the Lord and enjoy Him, the more we will know how evil we are—Isa. 6:5; Luke 5:8; Rom. 7:18.

2. Realizing that we have a sinful nature and taking Christ as our sin offering cause us to be judged and subdued, and this realization preserves us, for it causes us not to have any confidence in ourselves—Phil. 3:3; cf. Exo. 4:6.

3. Man, created by God for the purpose of expressing and representing God, should be for nothing other than God and should be absolutely for God; thus, anything we do out of ourselves, whether good or evil, is for ourselves, and since it is for ourselves and not for God, it is sinful in the eyes of God; sin is being for the self—Gen. 1:26; Isa. 43:7; Rom. 3:23:

a. Serving the Lord for ourselves is sin; preaching ourselves is sin—Num. 28:2; 2 Kings 5:20-27; Matt. 7:22-23; 2 Cor. 4:5.

b. Doing our righteous deeds, such as giving alms, praying, and fasting, for ourselves to express and display ourselves is sin—Matt. 6:1-6.

c. Loving others for ourselves (for our name, position, benefit, and pride) is sin; raising up our children for ourselves and for our future is sin—Luke 14:12-14; cf. 1 Cor. 7:14.

4. The Lord uses our failures to show us how horrible, ugly, and abominable we are, causing us to forsake all that is from the self and to completely depend on God—Psa. 51; Luke 22:31-32; Rom. 8:28.

E. To take Christ as the reality of the trespass offering is to experience Him as the redeeming One, the shining One, and the reigning One in order to enjoy Him as the supply of life in the fellowship of life—1 John 1:1-2:2; Rev. 21:21, 23; 22:1-2:

1. In taking Christ as our trespass offering, we need to make a thorough confession of all our sins and impurity to have a good and pure conscience— Acts 24:16; 1 Tim. 1:5, 19; 3:9; 2 Tim. 1:3; Heb. 9:14; 10:22.

2. If we confess our sins, God is faithful in His word to forgive us our sins and righteous in His redemption to cleanse us from all unrighteousness; furthermore, Christ as our elder Brother is our Advocate with the Father to restore our interrupted fellowship with the Father that we may abide in the enjoyment of the divine fellowship—1 John 1:7, 9; 2:1-2.

3. The cleansing of the blood of Jesus the Son of God solves the problem of separation from God, the problem of guilt in our conscience, and the problem of accusations from Satan, thus enabling us to have a daily life full of God’s presence—Psa. 103:1-4, 12-13; 32:1-2; Rev. 12:10-11.

4. Taking Christ as our trespass offering with the confession of our sins in the divine light is the way to drink Christ as the living water for us to become the New Jerusalem—John 4:14-18.

5. Taking Christ as our trespass offering to receive the forgiveness of sins issues in our fearing God and loving God—Psa. 130:4; Luke 7:47-50.

IV. As we are enjoying Christ in the divine fellowship, we continually experience a cycle in our spiritual life of four crucial things—the eternal life, the fellowship of the eternal life, the divine light, and the blood of Jesus the Son of God; such a cycle brings us onward in the growth of the divine life until we reach the maturity of life to corporately arrive at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ—1 John 1:1-9; Heb. 6:1; Eph. 4:13.

 

Ministry Excerpts:

THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE ETERNAL LIFE

The Greek word for fellowship, koinonia, means joint participation, common participation. It is the issue of the eternal life, and is actually the flow of the eternal life within all the believers, who have received and possess the divine life. It is illustrated by the flow of the water of life in the New Jerusalem (Rev. 22:1). Hence, all genuine believers are in this fellowship (Acts 2:42). It is carried on by the Spirit in our regenerated spirit. Hence, it is called “the fellowship of the Holy Spirit” (2 Cor. 13:14) and “fellowship of [our] spirit” (Phil. 2:1). It is in this fellowship of the eternal life that we the believers participate in all the Father and the Son are and have done for us; that is, we enjoy the love of the Father and the grace of the Son by virtue of the fellowship of the Spirit. Such a fellowship was first the apostles’ portion in enjoying the Father and the Son through the Spirit. Hence, it is called “the fellowship of the apostles” (Acts 2:42) and “the fellowship which is ours [the apostles’]” in 1 John 1:3, a fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. It is a divine mystery. This mysterious fellowship of the eternal life should be considered the subject of this Epistle. (Life-study of 1 John, msg. 5)

The New Jerusalem Being the Totality of the Eternal Life in the Entire Bible

John 4:14b shows that the goal of God’s eternal economy is the New Jerusalem: “The water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life.” The Father is the fountain, the source, emerging in the Son as the spring, who flows out as the Spirit, the river, into eternal life. The phrase into eternal life means into the totality of the eternal life. Each human being is a totality of the human life. The totality, the aggregate, of the eternal life is the New Jerusalem. Our God is the flowing God, flowing to impart and dispense Himself as life into all His lovers. Eventually, this eternal life will have an aggregate, a totality, a consummation. That will be the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem is the totality of the eternal life in the entire Bible. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “The Vital Groups”, msg. 14)

The Fellowship with the Triune God

The fellowship among the churches is also the fellowship with the Triune God. First John 1:3b says, “The fellowship which is ours is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.” The fellowship of the divine life is between the believers and the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. First John 1:3 says that the believers first have fellowship with the apostles through the divine life, and then this verse says that the apostles have fellowship with the Father and the Son. By this we see that fellowship joins the believers to the apostles and to the Father and the Son. Therefore, in this fellowship there is the full oneness of the divine life.

In 1 John 1:3 only the Father and the Son are mentioned, not the Spirit, because the Spirit is implied in the fellowship. Actually, the fellowship of the eternal life is the impartation of the Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—into the believers as their unique portion for them to enjoy today and for eternity. It is in this fellowship of eternal life that we participate in all that the Father and the Son are and have done for us; that is, we enjoy the love of the Father and the grace of the Son by virtue of the fellowship of the Spirit (2 Cor. 13:14). (Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 203)

Joining with the Apostles and the Triune God for the Carrying Out of God’s Purpose

In the fellowship of the divine life we join with the apostles and the Triune God for the carrying out of God’s purpose. John’s word in 1:3 indicates the putting away of private interest and joining with others for a certain common purpose. Hence, to have fellowship with the apostles, to be in the fellowship of the apostles, and to have fellowship with the Triune God in the apostles’ fellowship is to put aside our private interest and join with the apostles and the Triune God for the carrying out of God’s purpose. According to John’s writings, this purpose is twofold. First, this purpose is that the believers may grow in the divine life by abiding in the Triune God (2:12-27) and, based upon the divine birth, live a life of the divine righteousness and the divine love (2:28—5:3) to overcome the world, death, sin, the Devil, and idols (5:4-21). Second, it is that the local churches may be built up as the lampstands for the testimony of Jesus (Rev. 1—3) and consummate in the New Jerusalem as the full expression of God for eternity (Rev. 21—22). Our participation in the apostles’ enjoyment of the Triune God is our joining with them and with the Triune God for His divine purpose, which is common to God, the apostles, and all the believers.

When we enjoy the Triune God in the divine fellowship, we shall be brought into a situation where spontaneously we join ourselves to the apostles and the Triune God for a common purpose. God has a purpose, and the apostles work out God’s purpose. By enjoying the divine life in the divine fellowship, we participate in this purpose and its outworking. (Life-study of 1 John, msg. 5)

Fellowship Being Created by Teaching

Teaching creates fellowship. If I were to teach foot-washing as a condition for receiving the saints, this teaching would immediately produce a particular fellowship. Fellowship comes from the teaching. There should be only one unique teaching—the teaching of the apostles. Furthermore, there should be one unique fellowship that is produced by the apostles’ teaching. What we teach will produce a kind of fellowship. If we teach wrongly and differently from the apostles’ teaching, our teaching will produce a sectarian, divisive fellowship. If I teach baptism by immersion as a condition or a term for receiving the saints, this teaching will produce a Baptist fellowship. (CWWL, 1987, vol. 2, “The God-Ordained Way to Practice the New Testament Economy”, ch. 17)

The Fellowship of God’s Family

2 John tells us that we have to be very strict with certain ones who claim to be Christians. Second John 7 says, “Many deceivers went out into the world, those who do not confess Jesus Christ coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.” This kind of person is similar to today’s modernists who proclaim that they are Christians yet do not believe that Christ is the very Son of God. Verses 8 through 11 continue, “Look to yourselves that you do not lose the things which we wrought, but that you may receive a full reward. Everyone who goes beyond and does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God; he who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not say to him, Rejoice! For he who says to him, Rejoice, shares in his evil works.”

We need to do our best to love the unbelievers and help them to be saved, but we must be very strict with the modernists, those who claim that they are Christians yet do not believe that Christ is the very Son of God incarnated as a man, opposing this teaching and going beyond it. These are antichrists and deceivers, and they have no share in our fellowship. We should not have any fellowship with them; they are in “another world.” We should not receive such persons into our house or even greet them. To greet them is to partake of their evil deeds. This is not our attitude alone; this is the plain word of the Scriptures.

Third John tells us that we should receive the saints into our home, extending hospitality to them, because we are all in the one fellowship. Verses 5 through 8 say, “Beloved, you do faithfully in whatever you have wrought for the brothers, and this for strangers, who testified to your love before the church; whom you will do well to send forward in a manner worthy of God; for on behalf of the Name they went out, taking nothing from the Gentiles. We therefore ought to support such ones that we may become fellow workers in the truth.” We should especially take care of the Lord’s servants who live by faith, taking nothing from the Gentiles.

This Epistle also shows that among the believers, there are often some who want to be the head. Verses 9 and 10 say, “I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not receive us. For this reason, if I come, I will bring to remembrance his works which he does, babbling against us with evil words.” In the fellowship of the saints, we should not have the expectation to be a leader, the “ruling class.” This is wrong. The more we desire to serve the Lord, the more we must be willing to be small. Among the believers, to be big is not a glory; it is a shame. To be small is a real glory. We should never try to be great; we must always learn to be small.

If we put the three Epistles of John together, we will see a clear picture of the proper fellowship among the members of God’s divine family. First John gives us the principles of the divine fellowship. Second John tells us to have no fellowship with certain ones who claim to be Christians, and 3 John tells us to extend hospitality in fellowship to all the dear saints, the more the better. However, we should not try to be a leader and to rule over others. If we do, we will damage the fellowship of God’s family. (CWWL, 1964, vol. 2, “A General Sketch of the New Testament in the Light of Christ and the Church (Part 3—Hebrews through Jude)”, ch. 31)

THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE BODY OF CHRIST IN THE ONENESS OF THE SPIRIT

This fellowship is the fellowship of the Body of Christ in the oneness of the Spirit. Ephesians 4:3 tells us to be diligent to keep the oneness of the Spirit, and then verse 4 follows immediately to say, “One Body and one Spirit.” These two verses indicate that the oneness of the Spirit is just the fellowship of the Body of Christ. This fellowship of the Body is in the oneness of the Spirit. If we do not have the oneness of the Spirit, we are not enjoying the fellowship of the Body. (CWWL, 1993, vol. 1, “The Ministry of the New Testament and the Teaching and Fellowship of the Apostles”, ch. 2)

The Vertical and Horizontal Aspects of the Divine Fellowship

First John 1 reveals a fellowship in two directions, vertical and horizontal. Horizontally we fellowship with one another, and vertically we fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. From life we have fellowship, and this fellowship is with the saints and with the Triune God. The vertical aspect of fellowship was initially established with the first apostles. The apostles then reported to the believers the eternal life in order that they might have fellowship with the apostles. Before the apostles reported the eternal life to them, the apostles themselves already had the vertical fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ (v. 3). The initial experience of the apostles was vertical, but when the apostles reported the eternal life to others, they experienced the horizontal aspect of the divine fellowship.

Verses 6 and 7 of 1 John 1 also indicate the vertical and horizontal aspects of the divine fellowship. Verse 6 says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth.” This is the vertical aspect of fellowship. Verse 7 says, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another.” This is the horizontal aspect of fellowship. Both aspects of the divine fellowship are closely related; it is difficult to say which aspect comes first. If you do not have the proper fellowship with the Lord, it is difficult to have fellowship with your fellow believers. In the same way, if you do not have the proper fellowship with your fellow believers, it is difficult to have fellowship with the Lord.

The Divine Fellowship Being Everything in the Christian Life

We must realize that when fellowship disappears, God also disappears. God comes as the fellowship. Today our meetings, our married life, the coordination among the co-workers, and the fellowship among the local churches are abnormal because we are short of this fellowship. The divine fellowship is everything in the Christian life. When we live in the divine fellowship, our Christian life becomes very living, active, and full of impact. We need to fully enter into the experience of the divine fellowship in its two aspects by the two spirits.

Eventually, in this divine fellowship God is interwoven with us. This interweaving is the mingling of God with man. All the meetings should be an interwoven fellowship with both the vertical and horizontal aspects. Our married life should also be an interwoven fellowship. The husband and the wife should not only be interwoven with each other but also with the Lord. The real Christian marriage should be the divine fellowship. In addition, our coordination and work together should be the divine fellowship. (Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 391)

SIN AND SINS BEING A SERIOUS PROBLEM CONCERNING OUR ENJOYMENT OF THE DIVINE FELLOWSHIP

The first condition of the divine fellowship involves both sin and sins. Sin and sins are a serious problem concerning our enjoyment of the divine fellowship, for they cause our fellowship with the Triune God to be frustrated and broken. Therefore, the apostle John devotes a number of verses to confessing our sins. Before we consider these verses, I would like to bring to our attention some matters that will help us to understand John’s writing concerning sin and sins.

Our sin, the indwelling sin in our nature (Rom. 7:17), has been taken care of by Christ as our sin offering (Lev. 4; Isa. 53:10; Rom. 8:3; 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 9:26). Our sins, our trespasses, have been taken care of by Christ as our trespass offering (Lev. 5; Isa. 53:11; 1 Cor. 15:3; 1 Pet. 2:24; Heb. 9:28). After our regeneration we still need to take Christ as our sin offering, as indicated in 1 John 1:8, and as our trespass offering, as indicated in 1 John 1:9. (Life-study of 1 John, msg. 6)

The Lord Jesus Being Able to Destroy Satan on the Cross

Moreover, when the Lord Jesus was crucified, Satan, the ruler of the world, was judged. This is confirmed by the Lord’s word in John 12: 31: ” Now is the judgment of this world; now shall the ruler of this world be cast out. ” Hebrews 2: 14 says concerning Christ that ” through death He might destroy him who has the might of death, that is, the devil. The Lord Jesus was able to destroy Satan on the cross because the sin in man’s flesh is Satan. When the Lord Jesus put on man’s flesh and was crucified, the sin that was in the flesh was crucified. At the same time, sin itself, that is, Satan, was destroyed. (CWWL, 1959, vol. 5, “Synopsis of Leviticus”, msg. 11)

Enjoying Christ as Our Sin Offering

The sin offering which was most holy and the blood of which was not brought into the Holy of Holies was eaten by the priests in the holy place that they might bear away the iniquity of the congregation to make propitiation for them before Jehovah (vv. 17b-18). This signifies that we, the New Testament priests, partake of Christ as the believers’ sin offering. This partaking is in the sense of participating in Christ’s life, the life that bears others’ sins, as our life supply, that we may be able to bear the problems of God’s people. We partake of this offering in the church life in order to minister Christ’s sin-dealing life to the believers that they may deal with their sins. The goal of such a dealing is to appease the situation of the believers with God and to restore their broken fellowship with God.

If we would bear the problems of God’s people, we need to have a rich enjoyment of Christ as our sin offering. Then with much prayer and consideration we should contact others in love and with wisdom, ministering Christ’s sin-dealing life to them that they may deal with their sins. If we contact others in this way, we will not damage them or the church but rather will do something to bear the problems of God’s people. (Life-study of Leviticus, msg. 34)

Discovering That We Are Sinful

Through our fellowship with God, who is light (1 John 1:5), we discover that we are sinful, that we have sin inwardly and sins outwardly. Hence, after our regeneration we still need to take Christ as our sin offering, as indicated in 1 John 1:8, and as our trespass offering, as indicated in 1 John 1:9. See note 1 John 1:73. (Holy Bible Recovery Version, Lev. 4:3, footnote 4)

The More We Loving the Lord and Enjoying Him,
the More We Knowing How Evil We Are

The more we love the Lord and enjoy Him, the more we will know how evil we are. Sometimes, when we love the Lord to the uttermost, we may feel that there is no place to hide ourselves. Paul had such a realization concerning himself. When he was seeking the Lord, he saw that there was nothing good in himself.

If we realize how sinful we are, we will know that our love as well as our hate may be sinful. Ethically, to hate others is wrong and to love others is right. We may think that in the eyes of God loving others is acceptable and hating others is not acceptable. But in the eyes of God we hate people for ourselves and also love people for ourselves, not for God. From this point of view, loving others is just as sinful as hating others. Whatever we do for ourselves and not for God—whether it is moral or immoral, good or evil, a matter of love or of hate — is sinful in the eyes of God. As long as you do a certain thing for yourself, it is sinful.

God created us that we might be for Him. He created us to be His expression and His representation. He did not create us for ourselves. But we live independently of Him. When we hate others, we are independent of God, and when we love others, we are also independent of God. This means that in God’s sight our hatred and our love are the same.

Anything We Do for Ourselves Being Sin

We need to realize that anything we do out of ourselves, whether good or evil, is for ourselves, and since it is for ourselves it is sin.

Because we may have hidden motives in doing spiritual things, the Lord Jesus spoke concerning those who do things apparently for God but actually for the purpose of advancing themselves. Therefore, He said, “Take heed not to do your righteousness before men to be gazed at by them” (Matt. 6:1). Concerning giving alms He said, “Let not your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (v. 3). Concerning prayer He went on to say, “When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites; for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners that they may appear to men” (v. 5). Concerning fasting He said, “Whenever you fast, do not be as the hypocrites of a sad countenance; for they disguise their faces so that they may appear to men to be fasting” (v. 16). Even in doing righteousness, giving alms, praying, and fasting there may be a power struggle with God. To do these things for ourselves and not for God is sinful in His eyes. Those who do such things for themselves give no ground to God; instead, all the ground is for themselves.

I would point out once again that sin involves a power struggle. We may love others for ourselves — for our name, position, benefit, and pride. This kind of love is in the power struggle with God. We need to pray, “Lord, save me from doing anything for my pride, for my name, for my promotion, for my benefit, for my interests.” This is to be saved from the power struggle with God. When we love others for our name and promotion, we are not for God. This kind of love is of Satan; it is in the flesh, and it is sin. Whatever is in the flesh is sin, whatever is sin in our flesh is Satan, and whatever is done there by Satan is the power struggle.

Some may wonder about our love as Christian parents for our children. Our love for our children may be in the flesh. The New Testament charges us to raise up our children in the Lord. However, we may raise up our children for ourselves and our future. This is sin.

Even in the church life we may do things that are not for God but for ourselves. We may do something that is very good, yet deep within our hidden intention is to do that good thing for ourselves. This is sinful. For example, in giving a testimony or in praying, we may want everyone to say “amen” to us. We may offer a high, spiritual prayer, but our aim in doing so may be to receive the “amens.” Such a prayer is sinful because it is not absolutely for God. From this we see that even in our prayer there is the power struggle with God. We desire position, not God. (Life-study of Leviticus, msg. 20)

Experiencing Christ as the Shining One, the Redeeming One, and the Reigning One

Out of our experience of Christ as the shining One, the redeeming One, and the reigning One flows the riches of life and the fullness of the Holy. Spirit as the living stream. The fullness of the Holy Spirit and the riches of Christ as life flow with the current that proceeds out of the throne of Christ. If we experience the shining of Christ, the redemption of Christ, and the reigning of Christ as the center on the throne in a practical way, we will experience all the fullness of the Holy Spirit and the riches of the divine life. There will be a living stream flowing within us all the time.

In this light we are absolutely and thoroughly exposed, and we realize what is in us and how sinful we are. If we have this experience, we will condemn ourselves all the time. The more we are under the Lord’s enlightening and the more we are brought into the light of God, the more we will see how sinful, dirty, and filthy we are. The real situation, condition, and essence of our fallen nature will be exposed, and we will realize how much we need the Lord’s redemption. If we experience this, we will surely say, “Thank You, Lord, that You are the Redeemer.” Through our experience we will realize that the Lord’s blood speaks something better than the blood of Abel (Heb. 12:24), for we will experience God as the redeeming One.

We should never think that the Lord’s redeeming blood is only for our initial believing into Him. After we initially believe into the Lord, we need the blood constantly. If at this moment we do not have the realization that we need the blood, we are most likely not in the light. If, however, we realize that we need the blood, this indicates that we are in the light. When we are in the light, we are brought to a point where we realize the redemption of Christ again and again. The more we enjoy the application of the Lord’s redemption, the more we will live a personal life with the Lord and have a proper church life. Our being enlightened results in our realization and experience of the redemption of the Lord Jesus. (CWWL, 1963, vol. 3, “Miscellaneous Messages”, ch. 6)

THE CYCLE IN OUR SPIRITUAL LIFE—LIFE, FELLOWSHIP, LIGHT, AND BLOOD

In 1 John 1:1-7 there is a cycle in our spiritual life formed of four crucial things—the eternal life, the fellowship of the eternal life, the divine light, and the blood of Jesus. Eternal life issues in its fellowship; the fellowship of eternal life brings us into the divine light; and the divine light causes us to sense the need for the blood of Jesus. Then the blood brings us more life, and with more life we have more fellowship. Then with more fellowship we have more light and more cleansing of the blood. This cycle of life, fellowship, light, and the blood repeats itself time and again as we grow in life unto msaturity. Just as a car travels by the turning of its wheels, so also a believer grows in life by experiencing cycle after cycle of life, fellowship, light, and the blood. Therefore, the fellowship of the eternal life helps us to grow in life. (CWWL, 1972, vol. 3, “Life and Building in the Bible”, ch. 6)