Message One The Son of Man Walking in the Midst of the Golden Lampstands

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

Revelation

Message One
The Son of Man Walking in the Midst of the Golden Lampstands

Scripture Reading: Rev. 1:3; Exo. 30:7; Rev. 1:14a; Dan. 7:9; Job 15:10; Ezek. 1:7; Matt. 16:18, 21-26

I. Christ as the Son of Man is the High Priest, “clothed with a garment reaching to the feet, and girded about at the breasts with a golden girdle”, to cherish the churches in His humanity and nourish them in His divinity—Rev. 1:13:

A. The Son of Man is in His humanity, the golden girdle signifies His divinity, and breasts are a sign of love.

B. Christ takes care of the churches in His humanity as the Son of Man to cherish them—Rev. 1:13a:

1. He dresses the lamps of the lampstands to make them proper, cherishing us that we may be happy, pleasant, and comfortable—Exo. 30:7; cf. Psa. 42:5, 11:

2. He trims the wicks of the lamps of the lampstand, cutting off all the negative things which frustrate our shining—Exo. 25:38:

C. Christ takes care of the churches in His divinity with His divine love, signified by the golden girdle on His breasts, to nourish the churches— Rev. 1:13b:

1. He nourishes us with Himself as the all-inclusive Christ in His full ministry of three stages so that we may grow and mature in the divine life to be His overcomers to accomplish His eternal economy.

2. As the walking Christ, He gets to know the condition of each church, and as the speaking Spirit, He trims and fills the lampstands with fresh oil, the supply of the Spirit—Rev. 2:1, 7.

3. To participate in His move and enjoy His care, we must be in the churches.

II. The heavenly ancientness of the Lord is depicted by His head and hair being as white as white wool, as snow—Rev. 1:14a; Dan. 7:9; Job 15:10; cf. S. S. 5:11:

A. The black hair with which the Lord is depicted in Song of Songs 5:11 signifies His unfading and everlasting strength, but the white hair with which He is depicted here signifies His ancientness—Rev. 1:14.

B. White wool, both here and in Daniel 7:9, signifies that the ancientness of Christ is of His nature, not of His becoming old, while white snow signifies that His ancientness is heavenly, not earthly—v. 14.

III. The Lord’s seven eyes are like a flame of fire for watching, observing, searching, and judging by enlightening and infusing—Rev. 1:14b; 5:6; Dan. 10:6:

A. Christ’s eyes are for God’s move and operation on earth, since seven is the number for completion in God’s move.

B. The Lord’s eyes being like a flame of fire is mainly for His judgment—Dan. 7:9-10; Rev. 2:18; 19:11-12.

IV. The Lord’s feet are like shining bronze, as having been fired in a furnace, signifying that His perfect and bright walk qualifies Him to exercise divine judgment—Rev. 1:15a; Ezek. 1:7; Dan. 10:6:

A. Feet signify the walk; in typology, brass signifies divine judgment—Exo. 27:1-6.

B. To be “fired in the furnace” is to be tried by being burned; Christ’s walk was tried by His sufferings, even by His death on the cross; hence, His walk is bright as the shining brass, which qualifies Him to judge the unrighteous—Rev. 1:15.

V. The Lord’s voice is like the sound of many waters, which is a tumultuous sound, the sound of the voice of the Almighty God in its seriousness and solemnity—v. 1:15b; cf. 14:2; Ezek. 1:24; 43:2; cf. Rev. 10:3:

A. Sometimes the Lord’s voice is gentle and tender, but at other times His voice shocks us like thunder—Rev. 1:15.

B. Whenever we are sloppy or sleepy, the voice of the Lord will wake us up; his voice, which is that of the Almighty God, warns us and wakes us up—v. 15.

VI. Christ is the Holder of the bright messengers of the churches—1:16a, 20:

A. The messengers are the spiritual ones in the churches, the ones who bear the responsibility of the testimony of Jesus—v. 16.

B. The messengers, who are of the heavenly nature and in a heavenly position like stars, are those who have a fresh message from the Lord to His people—Rev. 2:1a.

C. Because the leading ones are in His right hand, there is no need for them to shrink back; Christ truly takes the responsibility for His testimony—1:16.

VII. Out of Christ’s mouth proceeds a sharp two-edged sword, which is His discerning, judging, and slaying word for dealing with negative persons and things—1:16b; Heb. 4:12; Eph. 6:17:

A. The speaking Spirit today is just this Christ who speaks with a two-edged sword; because of the church’s degradation, we all need a certain amount of judgment; today all Christians need the judgment of the Lord by His word—Rev. 1:16.

B. Many times we have experienced this judgment because of our being mistaken and going astray from the Lord; since we had wandered away from Him, He came to judge us—v. 16.

VIII. Christ’s face is as the sun shining in its power for judging enlightenment to bring in the kingdom—Rev. 1:16c; 10:1; Matt. 17:2; cf. Mal. 4:2; Judg. 5:31; Matt. 13:43; cf. Dan. 10:6:

A. When He was transfigured and His face shone as the sun, that was His coming in the kingdom—Matt. 16:28—17:2.

B. When He comes to take over the earth for the kingdom, His face will be as the sun—10:1.

IX. Christ is the First and the Last, assuring us that He will never leave His work unfinished, and the living One for the churches as the expression of His Body to be living, fresh, and strong—Rev. 1:17-18a:

A. Christ is not only the First and the Last, but also the beginning and the ending; this assures us that, having started the church life, He will surely accomplish it—vv. 17-18.

B. We have a living Christ who has overcome death! Our Christ, who is the resurrected Christ, is living in us and among us; He is living forever and ever—vv. 17-18.

C. In the recovery, all the churches should be as living as Christ, full of life and overcoming death.

X. Christ has the keys of death and of Hades—v. 18b:

A. Death is a collector and Hades is a keeper, but Christ nullified death on the cross and overcame Hades in His resurrection—2 Tim. 1:10; Acts 2:24.

B. As long as we give the Lord the ground, the opportunity, and the way to move and act among us by our exercising to deny the self, take up the cross, and lose our soul-life, death and Hades will be under His control—Matt. 16:18, 21-26.

Ministry Excerpts:

THE SON OF MAN IN THE MIDST OF THE CHURCHES

In chapter one of Revelation there are eight crucial points: the revelation of Christ, the testimony of Jesus, the Triune God, the second coming of Christ, the joint partakers in the tribulation, kingdom, and endurance in Jesus, the local churches, the lampstands, and the Son of Man. Having covered the first seven points, we come in this message to the eighth—the Son of Man in the midst of the churches (1:12-20). In this book, Christ is firstly revealed as the Son of Man. Whenever He is related to the church, He is revealed in His human nature because the church is composed of human beings. The Head of the church is not only the Son of God but also the Son of Man. That the Lord is still the Son of Man after His ascension indicates that He has not put off His human nature after resurrection and that His dealings with us are based upon His humanity. As a man, He succeeded in being God’s testimony. Thus, we in the churches today, being human, can also be God’s testimony. The Lord was victorious as a man, and we can be victorious also.

Christ today is “in the midst of” the churches. On the one hand, as the High Priest, He is interceding in the heavens for the churches (Heb. 9:24; 7:25-26; Rom. 8:34), and, on the other hand, He is moving in the churches to care for them. If we would participate in His move and enjoy His care, we must be in the churches.

In His Humanity

Verse 13 says, “And in the midst of the lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment reaching to the feet, and girded about at the breasts with a golden girdle.” Christ is not only depicted here as the High Priest, as shown by His garments, but also unveiled “like the Son of Man.” He is still both divine and human. As our High Priest, He is caring for the churches in His humanity.

As the Priest

Verse 13 says that Christ is “clothed with a garment reaching to the feet.” This garment is the priestly robe (Exo. 28:33-35) signifying the fullness of Christ’s divine virtues and human attributes (cf. Isa. 6:1, 3). Although the word priest is not mentioned here, we know by His garment that Christ is depicted here as the High Priest. Today, the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, who is walking in the midst of the churches, is a Priest. Among the three offices of priest, prophet, and king, the most dear, intimate, precious, and lovely office is that of the priest. The priest is so dear and lovely because he takes care of the people. As Christ walks among the churches, He takes care of them. (Life-study of Revelation, msg. 9)

Being Girded About at the Breasts with a Golden Girdle

He is also girded about at the breasts with a golden girdle. This girdle is a long piece of gold. The girdle and the gold are not two separate things. The girdle is the gold. The golden girdle is one piece of gold to become a belt. The Son of Man is in His humanity, and the golden girdle signifies His divinity. This golden girdle is on His breasts, and the breasts are a sign of love.

The priests in the Old Testament were girded at the loins for their ministry (Exo. 28:4). In Daniel 10:5 Christ also was girded at His loins, with fine gold. To be girded at the loins is to be strengthened for the work. Christ has finished His divine work in producing the churches. Now by His love He is caring for the churches that He has produced. This is why He is girded at the breasts. Today Christ is our High Priest taking care of His churches established by His labor. But now He takes care of the churches with the girdle not on His loins but on His breasts, signifying love. I hope we all could realize that in these days even among us, Christ is wearing a golden girdle on His breasts.

The golden girdle is a sign, signifying Christ’s divinity becoming His energy. Christ’s energy is totally His divinity. A piece of gold is now a girdle. The totality of Christ in His divinity has become a girdle. The golden girdle signifies Christ’s divinity becoming His energy, and the breasts signify that this golden energy is exercised and motivated by His love. His divine energy is exercised by and with His love to nourish the churches.

Taking Care of the Churches in His Humanity

Christ takes care of the churches as the lampstands in His humanity as the Son of Man to cherish them (Rev. 1:13a). Christ as our High Priest takes care of the churches that He has established first in His humanity to cherish the churches, to make the churches happy, pleasant, and comfortable.

By Dressing the Lamps

He does this by dressing the lamps of the lampstand. The high priest in the Old Testament dressed the lamps of the lampstands every morning (Exo. 30:7). To dress the lamps is to make them proper.

By Trimming the Wicks

Christ cares for the lampstands by trimming the wicks of the lamps of the lampstand, just as the priest did according to the type in the Old Testament (Exo. 25:38). When the wick was burned out, it became charred and black, so the priest had to come to cut off the black part of the wick. This is what it means to snuff the wick so that the lamp may shine better. The charred part of the wick, the snuff, signifies things that are not according to God’s purpose which need to be cut off, such as our flesh, our natural man, our self, and our old creation. All the lampstands are organic. They are living lampstands. Since each church is a living lampstand, each church has much feeling. A church with charred wicks will not feel comfortable.

About eight years ago, there was no feeling of happiness or pleasantness with the church in Anaheim. This was because of the black, burned-out, charred wicks. But one day Christ as our High Priest came to dress the lamps of the lampstand, the church in Anaheim, by trimming the wicks to cut off all the black, charred wicks. This was a cherishing, to make the church in Anaheim happy, pleasant, and comfortable. There is no comparison between the way the church in Anaheim was eight years ago and the way it is today. Eight years ago it was full of burned, black wicks, with no shining. The saints felt unhappy, unpleasant, and uncomfortable. But one day the Lord Jesus as the High Priest in His humanity came to snuff all the negative things. Then we became happy, pleasant, and comfortable. This is Christ’s taking care of the church in His humanity to dress the lamps of the church.

I thank the Lord that today in His recovery He is the High Priest in His humanity. Hebrews 4 says that we do not have a High Priest who cannot be touched with the feeling of our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all respects like us, yet without sin (v. 15). Our Christ is the same as we are. He has been tempted in everything like us, so He can easily be touched with the feeling of our weaknesses. This means that He always sympathizes with our weaknesses in His humanity. He is the High Priest in His humanity taking care of us by cherishing us all the time.

Taking Care of the Churches in His Divinity

Christ, as the High Priest, takes care of the churches as the lampstands in His divinity with His divine love, signified by the golden girdle on His breasts, to nourish the churches (Rev. 1:13b). Christ is not only human but also divine. He is the Son of Man wearing a golden girdle, signifying His divinity as His divine energy. His divinity as the divine energy nourishes the churches in many ways.

Revelation 2 and 3 reveal Christ’s care for the lampstands. On the one hand, He trims the wicks of the church lamps, cutting away all the wrongdoings, shortages, failures, and defects mentioned in the seven epistles to the seven churches. Christ does the best trimming work in His humanity to cherish the churches. On the other hand, in each of these seven epistles, we see Christ’s nourishing.

Nourishing with His Divine and Mystical Ministry by Love in His Three Stages

He is also the High Priest with His divinity as the “energy belt” to nourish us with Himself as the all-inclusive Christ in His full ministry of three stages.

The Churches Growing and Maturing in His Divine Life

His nourishing the churches in His divinity is so that the churches may grow and mature in His divine life and become the overcomers in His sevenfold intensification.

Our Christ today is our High Priest. In His humanity He is easily touched with the feeling of our weaknesses. He sympathizes with our weakness because He was tempted in all respects like us. He is cherishing us in His humanity. Meanwhile, He is nourishing us in His divinity with all the positive aspects of His person revealed in the seven epistles to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3. He is taking care of the churches in the recovery in both ways. In His humanity He is cherishing us to make us proper so that we may be happy, pleasant, and comfortable. In His divinity He is nourishing us so that we may grow and mature in the divine life to be His overcomers to accomplish His eternal economy. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “The Vital Groups”, msg. 11)

BEING ANCIENT

Verse 14 says that “His head and hair were white as white wool, as snow.” White hair signifies great age (Job 15:10). The black hair with which the Lord is depicted in Song of Songs 5:11 signifies His unfading and everlasting strength, but the white hair with which He is depicted here signifies His ancientness.

Although Christ is ancient, He is not old. In this chapter we see that His head and His hair were white as wool and as snow. White wool issues from the nature of life, and white snow comes down from the sky, from heaven. Wool is not made white; it is born white, and its whiteness comes out of its nature. White wool is the color of Christ’s nature. His ancientness is of His nature. Snow is white because it comes from heaven and contains no earthly dirt or stain. Hence, white wool, both here and in Daniel 7:9, signifies that the ancientness of Christ is of His nature, not of His becoming old, while white snow signifies that His ancientness is heavenly, not earthly.

WITH WATCHING, OBSERVING, SEARCHING, JUDGING, AND INFUSING EYES

The Eyes of Christ Being the Seven Spirits of God
for God’s Move and Operation on Earth Today

In verse 14, we see that His eyes are as a flame of fire. In Song of Songs 5:12 the eyes of Christ are like doves. That is for the expression of His love. Here “His eyes” are “as a flame of fire.” This is for Him to observe and search in His judging by enlightening. In this book His eyes are not two but seven (5:6). Seven is the number of completion in God’s move. Hence, His eyes in this book are for God’s operation. These seven eyes of His are the “seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God” (4:5; cf. Dan. 10:6). The “fire burning” equals the “flame of fire” and is for observing and searching. The seven Spirits of God which are sent forth into all the earth are also for God’s move upon the earth. Thus, the eyes of Christ in this book are the seven Spirits of God for God’s move and operation on earth today.

Christ’s eyes are for watching, observing, searching, judging by enlightening, and infusing. We must experience all these different aspects of His eyes, especially the aspect of infusing. His eyes infuse us with all that He is. His infusing eyes are a flame of fire which is continually burning. This can be proved by our experience. Do not exercise your mind to understand this, but check with your experience. Since the day we were saved, Christ’s eyes have been like a burning fire enlightening and infusing us. His eyes also stir us up to be hot. After Christ has looked at us, we can never be cold as we once were. By looking at us, He burns us and stirs us up in the Lord. Many times the Lord comes to us with His piercing eyes. Perhaps when we are trying to hide something from our wives, the Lord comes with seven shining eyes piercing into our being and exposing our true condition. I have had this kind of experience hundreds of times. When I was arguing with others, especially with my intimate ones, the shining eyes of Christ were upon me, and I could not go on speaking. His shining stopped my mouth.

The Main Significance of the Lord’s Eyes as a Flame of Fire Being for His Judgment

The book of Revelation is a book with a judging nature. Fire is for divine judgment (1 Cor. 3:13; Heb. 6:8; 10:27). “Our God is also a consuming fire” (Heb. 12:29). His throne is like the fiery flame and its wheels as burning fire, and a fiery stream issues and comes forth from before Him (Dan. 7:9-10). All this is for judgment. The main significance of the Lord’s eyes being as a flame of fire is for His judgment (2:18-23; 19:11-12). When He comes to take possession of the earth by exercising judgment over it, even His feet will be like pillars of fire (10:1).

HAVING TRIED AND SHINING FEET

Verse 15 says, “His feet were like shining brass, as having been fired in a furnace.” Feet signify the walk. In typology, brass signifies divine judgment (Exo. 27:1-6). When Christ was on earth, His earthly walk and daily walk were tried and tested. Because His walk was tested, He came out shining. Now the feet of Christ are as shining brass, as mentioned also in Ezekiel 1:7 and Daniel 10:6, signifying that His perfect and bright walk qualifies Him to exercise divine judgment. To be “fired in the furnace” is to be tried by being burned. Christ’s walk was tried by His sufferings, even by His death on the cross. Hence, His walk is bright as the shining brass, which qualifies Him to judge the unrighteous. As we have already pointed out, when He comes to possess the earth by judging it, His feet will be like pillars of fire (10:1).

WITH A SERIOUS AND SOLEMN VOICE

Verse 15 also says that “His voice” is “as the sound of many waters.” “The sound of many waters,” a tumultuous sound, is the sound of the voice of the Almighty God (Ezek. 1:24; 43:2). It signifies the seriousness and solemnity of His speaking (cf. 10:3). Sometimes the Lord’s voice is gentle and tender, but at other times His voice shocks us like thunder. Whenever we are sloppy or sleepy, the voice of the Lord will wake us up. His voice, which is that of the Almighty God, warns us and wakes us up.

HOLDING THE MESSENGERS OF THE CHURCHES

The Messengers Being the Spiritual Ones in the Churches
Bearing the Responsibility of the Testimony of Jesus

Verse 16 says, “He had in His right hand seven stars.” As verse 20 makes clear, “the seven stars are messengers of the seven churches.” The messengers are the spiritual ones in the churches bearing the responsibility of the testimony of Jesus. Like stars, they should be of the heavenly nature and in a heavenly position. In the Acts and the Epistles the elders were the leading ones in the operation of the local churches (Acts 14:23; 20:17; Titus 1:5). The eldership is somewhat official, and, as we have seen, at the time this book was written the offices in the churches had deteriorated in the degradation of the church. In this book the Lord calls our attention back to spiritual reality. Hence, it emphasizes the messengers of the churches rather than the elders. The office of the elders is easily perceived, but the believers need to see the importance of the spiritual and heavenly reality of the messengers for the proper church life to bear the testimony of Jesus in the darkness of the church’s degradation.

Holding the Leading Ones in His Right Hand

Both the lampstands and the stars are for shining in the night. A lampstand representing a local church is a collective unit, whereas a star representing a messenger of a local church is an individual entity. In the dark night of the church’s degradation, there is the need of the shining both of the collective churches and of the individual messengers. As Christ walks among the churches, He holds the leading ones in His right hand. How comforting this is! The leading ones must praise Him that they are in His hands and that He is holding them. Since the leading ones are in His hands, there is no need for them shrink back, to be weak, or to be mistaken. Christ truly takes the responsibility for His testimony.

In the book of Revelation there are no elders in the churches; rather, there are messengers. At the time this book was written, the church had become degraded. Hence, in Revelation, the Lord repudiates all formalities. Being an elder may be somewhat legal or formal. Do not aspire to be an elder; desire to be a shining star. Do not be one with a mere position—be a shining star. Both the lampstand and the stars shine at night. Both the church and the leading ones in the churches must shine. All the leading ones must be stars.

PROCEEDING THE JUDGING WORD OUT OF HIS MOUTH

In verse 16 we are told that “out of His mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword.” In Song of Songs 5:16, “His mouth is most sweet,” and in the Gospels, “words of grace” proceeded out of His mouth (Luke 4:22); but here “out of His mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword.” This is His discerning, judging, “and slaying word” (Heb. 4:12; Eph. 6:17). The “words of grace” are for His supply of grace to His favored ones, whereas the “sharp two-edged sword” is for His dealing with negative persons and things. We often say that the Spirit speaks to the churches. Remember that the speaking Spirit today is just this Christ who speaks with a two-edged sword. There is judgment here, and we all have experienced this. Because of the church’s degradation, we all need a certain amount of judgment. Today all Christians need the judgment of the Lord by His word. Many times we have experienced this judgment because of our being mistaken and going astray from the Lord. Since we had wandered away from Him, He came to judge us. His speaking today is mainly a type of judgment. I can testify to you that if the Lord would speak to you, most of His words would be words of judgment. When He speaks, He judges. Every word out of His mouth in the churches today is like a sharp knife which judges us. The words which proceed out of the Lord’s mouth are sharp, piercing into our being, dividing our soul from our spirit, and discerning the intents of our heart. This is the Christ we experience today in the church life.

In Christianity, there are numerous opinions and frequent debates and fights because of these opinions. I have seen this myself. I know of one case of some Christians who were serving as board members. Once, as they were meeting together, they were discussing and debating with one another; eventually the debate turned into a fight. At a certain point one of the board members even threw a Bible at another member. But in the Lord’s recovery today we have One who is walking in our midst. He watches over us with His seven burning eyes, and out of His mouth proceeds a sharp two-edged sword. This sword has killed all the different concepts among us. This is the reason that there are almost no debates in the churches.

WITH A SHINING FACE

In verse 16 we are also told that “His face was as the sun shines in its power.” In the Song of Songs 5:10 and 13, His face appears lovely for His seeker’s appreciation of Him, and in the Epistles, His face reflects God’s glory (2 Cor. 4:6) for the imparting of life into His believers. Here, however, “His face” is “as the sun shines in its power,” as in Daniel 10:6, for the judging enlightenment to bring in the kingdom. When He was transfigured and His face shone as the sun, that was His coming in the kingdom (Matt. 16:28—17:2). When He comes to take over the earth for the kingdom, His face will be as the sun (10:1).

BEING THE BEGINNING AND THE ENDING, THE FIRST AND THE LAST

Verse 17 says, “And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead; and He laid His right hand on me, saying, Do not fear; I am the First and the Last.” Christ is not only the First and the Last, but also the beginning and the ending. This assures us that, having started the church life, He will surely accomplish it. He will never leave His work unfinished. All the local churches must believe that the Lord Jesus is the beginning and the ending. He will accomplish what He has begun in His recovery.

BEING THE LIVING ONE

In verse 18 we see that the Lord is “the living One,” the One who “became dead” and who is “living for ever and ever.” The very Christ who walks in the midst of the churches, who is the Head of the churches and to whom the churches belong, is the living One full of life. Hence, the churches as His Body should also be living and full of life. Hallelujah, we have a living Christ who has overcome death! Our Christ, who is the resurrected Christ, is living in us and among us. He is living forever and ever. What a living Christ we have in the recovery! In the recovery, all the churches should be as living as Christ, full of life and overcoming death.

HAVING AUTHORITY OVER DEATH AND HADES

In verse 18 the Lord also said, “I have the keys of death and of Hades.” Due to the fall and sin of man, death came in and is now working on earth to gather up all the sinful people. Death resembles a dustpan used to collect the dust from the floor, and Hades resembles a trash can. Whatever the dustpan collects is put into the trash can. Thus, death is a collector and Hades is a keeper. In the church life today are we still subject to death and Hades? No! Christ abolished death on the cross and overcame Hades in His resurrection. Although Hades tried its best to hold Him, it was powerless to do it (Acts 2:24). With Him, death has no sting and Hades has no power. But what about us? It must be the same. In the church life, the keys of death and Hades are in His hand. It is impossible for us to deal with death; we simply do not have the ability to handle it. Whenever death enters, it will deaden many. But as long as we give the Lord Jesus the ground, the opportunity, and the free way to move and act among us, both death and Hades will be under His control. However, whenever the Lord Jesus does not have the ground in the church, death immediately becomes prevailing and Hades becomes powerful to hold the dead ones. Praise the Lord that Christ has the keys of death and Hades. Death is subject to Him and Hades is under His control. Hallelujah! (Life-study of Revelation, msg. 9)