© 2013 Jasper Life Publications 1st Edition in English – June 2013 1st Edition in Portuguese – December 2012
Preparados para Reinar Translated from Portuguese with permission of Editora Árvore da Vida All rights reserved by Jasper Life Publications Inc. 725 Viscount Road London, Ontario, Canada N6J 4G9 Email: info@jasperlife.com http://www.jasperlife.com 978-1-926970-51-6 Printed in Brasil All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Other versions of scripture are indicated as follows: NKJV NU-Text New King James Version variations according to the twenty-seventh edition of the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament and the United Bible Societies’ fourth edition ASV American Standard Version
CONTENTS
Preface.................................................................... 7 1 God’s Purpose in Creating Man............................. 9 2 The Emergence of the King of the Kingdom of the Heavens................................................ 31 3 The Reward to the Overcomers.......................... 51 4 The Father’s Will: Our Full Sonship.................... 75 5 The Standard of the Living of Those Who Will Reign with Christ............................ 97 6 Encouraged to Press On without Hesitation..... 115
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PREFACE To be prepared in this age to reign in the coming world is the subject of this book, composed of messages given at the conference for young people from high school and college students (17 years and older), in January 2010, at the Estância Árvore da Vida, Sumaré-SP, Brazil. In Matthew 13:11, the Lord Jesus says, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.” Verse 16 shows that we are blessed: “But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear.” Having the opportunity to know the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens is the Lord’s mercy and blessing. Do not take as common or banal what the Lord wants to speak to you through this book. Its content is simple, easy to understand, and extremely practical. Through this book, you will surely be helped to get into the reality of the divine truths with regards to reigning with Christ in the coming world (Heb. 2:5). Additionally, you will find that you can make God’s Word real and practical in your life today (Matt. 7:24). As you read these chapters, ask the Lord for a pure and simple heart (2 Cor. 11:3) for you to hear the divine speaking and practice the words contained therein. The editors. 5
Chapter One GOD’S PURPOSE IN CREATING MAN Attitude Before you begin reading this book, it is important that you have a mind and heart open to the Lord. We must exercise our spirit to penetrate into His Word and extract more of His inexhaustible riches. What you, reader, will find here is not a supernatural or splendid word; but believe that the Lord has a word for you that can transform your life (James 1:21). At the beginning of the New Testament, there are very clear examples of how to take the Word of God. When the Lord Jesus was born, some wise men came out from the East to Jerusalem to worship Him, for they had been guided by a star and knew that the King had been born (Matt. 2:1-6). There in Jerusalem—a city very close to Bethlehem—were the priests and scribes who had access to the Scriptures and interpreted them, but they always took the word as mere information. They knew what was written about the place where the Christ was to be born, but their problem was their heart had no desire to practice the Word. Young man, may you have a heart willing to not only hear the Word and understand it, but above all to practice it! Do not be like the priests and scribes who, although alarmed by 7
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the news of Jesus’ birth, did not have their lives changed. The magi, on the other hand, who obeyed the direction that the Lord had given them and acted according to His Word, not only met the King, but they had their ways and life changed. Do you expect to change the path you are on? Do you want to be prepared to walk the path of life and be taken to reign with the Lord in the coming age? It all depends on your attitude towards these words. Therefore, may your spirit be very much exercised when reading each chapter of this book!
The Gospel of Grace and the Gospel of the Kingdom We are separated unto the gospel of God. In the New Testament, besides the four gospels, Paul refers to his epistle to the Romans as the gospel of God (Rom. 1:1), the good news of God to man. The book of Romans presents the gospel concerning the Son of God (vv. 1, 3) in His two aspects: according to the flesh, He was a descendant of David (v. 3b) and, according to the Spirit of holiness, He was appointed the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead (v. 4). Thus, this gospel is of two aspects: the gospel of grace and the gospel of the kingdom. Since in Adam we fell and became sinners, the Lord Jesus became a man; He came as the Son of man to solve the problem of the sin of mankind and eventually give eternal life, the divine life, to man. However, we cannot stop there, being satisfied only with having the life of God. The redemption of the Lord aims to give us life, but He wants us to grow in this life to lead us to full sonship, to lead us to be mature sons to become people who will rule with Him in the coming world (Heb. 2:5). 8
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Young one, this vision needs to change your life! Do not think that the final goal of the gospel is just save you in your spirit; do not be satisfied with only that. The gospel aims to save you completely and that includes the salvation of your soul (1 Pet.1:9). Thank the Lord, salvation is something great! Besides solving our problem of sin and reconciling us with God, salvation is also intended to solve another big problem, to establish God’s authority on earth. The earth was usurped by Satan, God’s enemy. So God needs coworkers, mature children who cooperate with Him, to once again subject the earth to His government, to His authority. Revelation 1:5 says that Jesus Christ is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and ruler of the kings of the earth, the One who loves us, and freed us from our sins by His blood. This relates to the gospel of grace. But the biblical text continues, “and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen” (v. 6). The Lord has made us kings. The salvation of God, the redemption of Christ, has a goal to establish a kingdom for Him and prepare the people who receive His life to reign with Him.
The Full Gospel Presented in the Book of Romans The gospel presented by Paul in Romans chapters 1-8 gives us an overview of God’s salvation and concludes with mature children, conformed to the image of the Firstborn Son; that is, it concludes with full sonship (Rom. 8:17). Romans chapters 9-11 are a parenthesis, a strong warning, showing us how the Jews, who were the chosen nation of God in the Old Testament, were put aside, and we, the Gentiles, were grafted 9
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into Christ. In these chapters of warning, we realize that there is only one thing that can actually separate us from the love of Christ: it is our soul-life, our affections, our natural being, our self, the “I”. We could say that even the mere knowledge of the Scriptures, just something doctrinal, theoretical, can lead us to be cut off from the Lord. That is the reason why we have a great fear that you, young person, would be content with receiving much of the Word and just turn it into information, making it mere knowledge, which easily leads one to pride and arrogance. Israel took the path of self-sufficiency and was cut off. The example of this people serves as a warning for us now. We must beware, because if we walk in the same way of self-sufficiency and mere objective knowledge, relying on what we know, we may be cut off as they were. It is better to take the path of the Spirit and life, the path of depending on the Lord. Young one, we hope that you learn to depend on the Lord more and more. In the last part of the book of Romans, chapters 12-16, Paul shows us something wonderful—the Lord has placed us in the church life. This is the best place where we can grow, where we can present our being to serve Him and thus exercise our gifts, the talents He has given us. It is also the place where we can practice brotherly love and mutual care. Do not despise the church life, because it has masters and stewards, people who care for us, as Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12: “as you know how we exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children, that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.” Young person, have you been exhorted? Have you been comforted? Have you been admonished? The Lord has placed you in the church life, where there are people 10
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who care about you like parents. There are many parents in the church life, brothers and sisters who care about you and they expect you to live a life worthy of the Lord, because He calls you unto His kingdom and glory.
Treasuring the Church Life In Colossians 1:28-29 we read, “Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.” In the church life there are people who teach us and warn us that we may be presented mature in Christ. Take the example of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32). Even with the father still alive, the young man asked for his share of the inheritance. When he received it, he left his father’s house, deluded that there would be a better place for him to be and that it would be better to be independent. He went on to live unrestrained and very immorally. After squandering his possessions, his life became so miserable that he wanted to eat pig food, but even that he did not have. When he finally repented and returned to his father’s house, he returned to where he could be supplied with food, shelter and clothing. Young person, you have the church life; you need to live it. Do not despise the church in your home town. The burden of God for us is that we enter into the kingdom of heaven to receive the reward of reigning with Christ for a thousand years. For this, the Lord showed us a wonderful way: actually stay on the path of Spirit and life, calling on His name, and praying and reading His Word. He has advanced in us through this path. We are now entering a new stage, which is 11
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the burden He has given us: to help the children of God to see that we are not called to be mere citizens in the millennium, but those who will govern with the Lord in His kingdom. Isaiah 32:1 says, “Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, And princes will rule with justice.� The King who will reign with righteousness is the Lord Jesus, and the princes will be the overcomers. Young one, by believing in the Lord Jesus, you have received God’s life, the divine, eternal and indestructible life, which made you a child of God (John 1:12). We can also say that today you are a prince. But for a prince to reign, rule with the king, he needs to be ready. Similarly, as a child of God, you need to be prepared. The Lord will come to bring us into the manifestation of His kingdom and wants to make us mature children who will rule with Him in the coming world. For this we need to grow spiritually, and the most important item in this growth process is to deny ourselves. We need to deny the self so that the divine life may grow in us.
Being Prepared in Two Aspects: Life and Work Our Christian experience has two aspects: life and work. Growth relates to the aspect of life, but this does not exclude the experiences with the work, with services, that is, we need to negotiate our talents (Matt. 25:16). If a young man was informed that within a year, he would take over the corporate management of a large company, how would he spend this year? Would he behave the same way he was before, or would he try to prepare himself? The Lord showed us that, similarly, we must prepare to reign with Him in His coming. Although we do not know when it will be, we know that it is at hand. 12
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Helping Others to Have Living Experiences with the Lord Another item that the Lord has shown us is that we need to take care of the “garden of Joseph” (Gen. 49:22). Although we are part of the spread of the gospel in other cities and even in other countries and continents, we still need to strengthen the roots in the city where we are. Once in Ilha Grande, off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, there was a large landslide that at first was attributed to the effect of deforestation caused by people. Later, however, it was found that, at the inlet, trees grow on a large rock, and the earth layer where the roots could grow was only one meter and half deep. No matter how beautiful the trees were, they were on an impenetrable rock. When continuous rain came, there was slippage. So we need to strengthen our roots and be planted near the fountain. Young man, are you planted by the fountain or are you in the church life only outwardly? This landslide, which caused the death of so many people, drew attention to its base, that is, to the shallowness of the land on which these trees were. The Lord showed us that we must also be attentive to our garden. We need to help the saints to have deep spiritual roots, helping them to call on the name of the Lord, pray and read the Word. Not only that, but we also need to strengthen the church life where we are, actively cooperating with the saints. If a young person does not attend the church meetings and services, he remains in the position of observer, analyzing others and saying, “Yeah, nothing happens in the church....” It is very easy to get into the position of a spectator who does not put his hand to the plow, has no initiative to help, and just 13
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criticizes those who are doing something. Young people should rise up, get out of their comfort zones, and strengthen their roots! Young one, you should pray, “Lord, I want to strengthen my roots! I no longer want to live like I did in the past. “ The burden of caring for the “garden of Joseph”, the sphere where we are, comes from a big concern of the Lord for us. In spreading the work of the Lord we have brothers who are trainees of GPP–those who are being perfected for the propagation of the gospel of the kingdom; colporteurs–those who go out with spiritual books to contact people wherever they are; and those who move to other cities. There are also those who lament: “I still have my studies, my work. I really want to serve the Lord, but I do not have the time that these brothers have.” This is the condition of most saints. But God does not want them left out of His service, nor to deprive them from ruling in the coming kingdom. Revelation 11:18 says that the reward is both for small and great. It is for everyone! What an encouragement! Everyone can practice expanding the work of the Lord in his city. They can consecrate a weekend to preach the gospel of the kingdom, pay a visit to saints who are meeting, go to neighborhoods where there is no family group of mutual care and preach the gospel there. Those who cannot afford to travel to do the work of the spread, can do it in their home town. The Lord counts on everyone! Besides, we cannot be content with just staying in the neighborhood where we are and say, “We have a good church life here; there are brothers with cars who can easily go to the meetings.” We cannot ignore that there are brothers who live far away and come to the meetings by bus. In large cities, some get home very late after the meeting on Saturday night and wake up very early to attend the meeting on Sunday morning. 14
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They do this after having to deal with the traffic jams in the city, and the situations at work, at school, and throughout the week. These brothers are overcomers! We must bear the burden of increasing the number of places of prayer to facilitate the participation of all in the church life. These points we covered so far are practical points that lead us to have an adequate living to grow spiritually in order to reign with Christ. This is an introduction to the subject of this book—prepared to reign.
God’s Purpose in Creating Man One of the first items about which we need to be clear while we are being prepared to reign, is God’s purpose in creating man. This is a difficult matter. If you approach people on the street and ask, “Why were you created?”, many would not know how to answer and would give different answers. Even to those who are Christians, God’s purpose in creating man is not entirely clear. How many today can talk about it? By the Lord’s mercy, He revealed it to us; we are not in the dark! Genesis 1:26 says that man was created in God’s image and after His likeness. Just as the glove has the image and likeness of the hand, and is made to contain it, likewise man was made in the image and likeness of God in order to contain Him. Furthermore, we read in Genesis 1:28: “Then God blessed them [Adam and Eve], and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’” To be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it by ruling over the fish, over the birds, and over every creeping thing, was God’s purpose in creating man. 15
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Young one, this passage from Genesis 1:28 should be part of your life. Today, this verse has a totally spiritual application. When we believe in the Lord and receive Him, we become God’s children with His life and nature. Therefore, to be fruitful and multiply in our days means to preach the gospel of the kingdom so that the divine life is also infused into others. Thus we will multiply, not according to the flesh but according to the spirit, to have spiritual children.
The Function of the Angels The Gospel of John 1:3 says that “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” In Hebrews 1:2 we read that God made the universe through the Son. And in Romans 11:36 we read, “For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things.” All things were made through Him and for Him. Among the beings created by God are the angels. Psalm 103:19-20 says, “The Lord has established His throne in heaven, And His kingdom rules over all. Bless the Lord, you His angels, Who excel in strength, who do His word, Heeding the voice of His word.” Angels were created to execute the Lord’s orders and obey His word.
The Three Main Angels Mentioned in the Bible Among the angelic beings, there are three specifically mentioned in the Bible, the archangel Michael (Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1; Jude 9; Rev. 12:7), the angel Gabriel (Luke 1:19, 26) and another a cherub, called the day star, the son of the morning. According to the interpretation of various Bible teachers, this is Lucifer who rebelled against God. When judged by God, he 16
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became Satan, the devil, which means adversary. He is God’s adversary and also ours (Zech. 3:1; 1 Pet. 5:8). Among these three, Lucifer had the highest position. Let’s see a little about it.
Lucifer’s Preeminence Before His Rebellion In Ezekiel 28 we have a passage about the king of Tyre, which can be applied to Lucifer. Verses 14-15 say, “You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.” At first, he was a good angel, perfect in all his ways until iniquity was found in him. In order to better understand, we need to read Isaiah 14. Verses 13-14 say, “For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’” This is the statement of someone who is smug and conceited. He was not the origin of the universe and had not done anything great. He only received a commission and was enabled by God to execute it, but he became proud in his heart because of that. He exalted, overestimated himself, and on top of this wanted to rise “above the clouds”. Being on the holy mountain of God was no longer enough for him; he wanted to ascend above the highest clouds and be like the Most High. This is the way that Satan took— the path of pride, of self exaltation and ambition. This is surely a bottomless pit. The result of Satan’s pride was that God cast him down to the ground. 17
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Being like God was not what He had given to Satan. That was not his position. Do you know who God established among His creatures to be like Him in life and nature? The regenerated men. It was God Himself who established that one day we shall be like Him! One day we shall see Him as He is! (1 John 3:2). God had made Lucifer to be perfect in his ways but not to be like the Lord. The result of his pride was to be cast down to earth. Revelation 12:4 and 9 indicates that one third of the angels, probably those who were under the authority of Lucifer, followed him in his rebellion.
The Rulers of the Darkness of this Age The angelic beings who followed Satan became fallen angels, principalities and powers of the air, the rulers of this dark world (Eph. 6:12). Besides them, there were creatures on earth in the pre-Adamic age, which turned into demons, the so-called evil or unclean spirits. Today, there are many young people involved in worshiping demons and vampires. Today, these things no longer cause revulsion as before, for they are interpreted by young attractive actors, in order to gain sympathy of everyone, especially teenagers. However, they are just as evil as Satan who is able to transform himself into an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). Young one, do not think that the things of darkness will come to you with an “ugly face.� Although they are the rulers of this dark world, they disguise themselves even in things such as fashion, pornographic images on the internet, drugs, etc. We should stay away from them, because we are children of light and we walk as such (Eph. 5:8). The ones who are dominating the world today are not 18
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organized criminals or gangs; they are the fallen angels and demons. Wherever Satan goes, chaos sets in. In society and their governments, there is much injustice and corruption. Even in the relationship between husband and wife, between parents and children, in schools or universities, Satan only knows how to do one thing—to bring in chaos. Feelings such as prejudice, anxiety, dissatisfaction, sadness, confusion, rebellion are all caused by him. However, we who believe in the Lord and are His, have one thing to say to Satan: “The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Rev. 20:10). We not only know God’s purpose in creating man, but we also know the devil, God’s enemy and our accuser, and his fate.
The Lord Jesus—a Principle of Humility Satan—a Principle of Pride For those who follow the path of pride, presumption, and self-exaltation, the Bible warns: “God resists the proud” (1 Pet. 5:5). God humbles the proud (Luke 14:11). It’s not us; it is God Himself who humbles those who are proud. Thank the Lord, for He has shown us a much better way, as described in Philippians 2:5-11: “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above 19
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every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Satan boasted, exalted himself, uplifted himself, but the Lord emptied Himself. How about us? What way will we take? The way of uplifting ourselves, becoming proud, exalting ourselves, or to empty ourselves? We must be poor in spirit, for “theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:3). We need to take the way of the Lord. Hebrews 5:8-9 says that the Lord, “though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.” Young one, the Son Himself was perfected; even more, we need to be. Our major concern is that we who hear the words of the Lord, become proud because of the knowledge we have acquired. Everyone comes into the church life humble, considering himself nothing. When we received the first day light, the initial light of the Lord, which came to separate light from darkness, we could only humble ourselves and confess: “Lord, I am a sinner. I did not deserve anything, but you died for me.” We were humble because we were under the light. However, the Lord entrusts us certain responsibilities as time passes, we begin to serve in the church, we supply the saints, caring for others and someone might say, “Your service is very good.” Someone else might pat us on our back and say, “What you shared really touched me.” This is not totally bad, because we need encouragement. The problem is not the encouragement we receive from others, but what is in our heart. After a while, we began to think that everything comes from us and we begin to think: “Wow! ...”. At the end of the year there is always an exchange of soccer 20
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stars among soccer teams: the star of a team goes to another team, the star from there to yet another. These are the stars of the moment. Young one, we often begin to feel, “Actually, the brothers made a good choice about me! What would this service be if I were not here? It would be a mess, because I am the seal of perfection. Everything I do, I do very well.” Then we begin to think that we are really good and our heart begins to deceive us. After we begin to read many spiritual books and hear brothers sharing the message in the ministry meeting, maybe we think, “Ah! these brothers know nothing.... Why do I come to the ministry meeting to hear these brothers?” The problem lies in the heart. Therefore the Lord tells us that we need to take His way which is not wide nor broad, but narrow and difficult (Matt. 7:13-14). It is the way of the Spirit, the path that leads to life, the path of those who receive help. Young one, do not think of yourself as a self-sufficient brother. When you receive an assignment from the brothers, do not say, “I’m going, but I’m going alone. If there is someone to coordinate, I’m out.” And if there is a problem, do not say, “Do you know who the problem is? It’s him!” or, “It’s her! If I were alone here, you would see how this thing would do well.” Which way is that? It is Satan’s way, the way of pride. Let’s see 2 Chronicles 26:15-16: “And he made devices in Jerusalem, invented by skillful men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and large stones. So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong. But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction, for he transgressed against the Lord his God by entering the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.” This passage refers to King Uzziah. Young one, let us not walk the path of self-sufficiency, but let’s take the way of the Lord! 21
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The Divine Speaking Removes Chaos and Brings Building The Lord created the heavens and the earth in perfect order (Isa. 45:18), but Satan brought chaos with his rebellion (Gen. 1:2a). God had to intervene and then recreate everything. The earthquake that happened in Haiti caused death and chaos; then they started to do the work to remove the debris and rebuild the country. It is not enough just to build; first, chaos must be removed. God removes chaos through His Word, His speaking. Young one, you need the Lord’s speaking to remove chaos from your life. Instead of listening to rock, listen to CDs of hymns and messages whose content is the Word. Apply more time in spiritual things. Thus, chaos is spontaneously removed.
The Work of the Father—to Separate Us from Darkness through Light In Genesis 1:3, God came and said, “Let there be light” and there was light. Darkness brings confusion, but the Word of God enlightens (Psa. 119:105). Who is Light? God is light (1 John 1:5), and His Word is light. So God began His work of recovering the creation devastated by the rebellion of Satan. The first day light—a general and diffuse light—which came to divide light and darkness, is the work of God the Father, who has shone in our hearts the day we believed in the gospel (Gen. 1:4; 2 Cor. 4:6). There should be a separation of light from darkness in your life too. You cannot have both at the same time. In order to have this separation in your life, allow God to speak to you. 22
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The Work of the Spirit—to Separate Us from the Earthly Things On the second day the Lord made another separation: the waters under the firmament from the waters above the firmament (Gen. 1:6-8). This is another separation that should happen in your life. When God judged the rebellion that was in the pre-Adamic age, He did it with water, just as when He judged Noah’s generation (6:5-7, 11-13, 17). So these were waters of judgment. While the separation of light from darkness can be considered the work of the Father, the separation of the water is the work of the Spirit. Today He still separates in our lives whatever is from above from whatever is earthly (Col. 3:1-3).
The Work of the Son—Resurrection to Produce Life The dry land emerged from the waters of death on the third day (Gen. 1:9-10, 13). This is the work of the Son in His resurrection which generates life. The third day represents resurrection because it was on the third day that the Lord rose from the dead (Matt. 16:21; 17:23; 20:19). That day the dry land began to produce life: bringing forth grass, herbs with their seeds, and fruit trees which bear fruit and seeds (Gen. 1:11-12).
A Specific Light to Grow and Bear Fruit On the fourth day, God made two great lights: a greater, the sun, and another smaller, the moon (Gen. 1:14-19). The sun represents Christ (Mal. 4:2; Luke 1:78), and the moon represents the church. Just as the moon has no light of its own, 23
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but only reflects the sunlight, the church reflects the light it receives from Christ. Plant life arose on the third day and could germinate because it already had the first day light. Even though generic, that light allowed plants to germinate and grow. However, for these plants to flourish and bear fruit, the sunlight and moonlight were needed. Both the sunlight and the moonlight are specific, definite and important for plant life to grow, flourish and bear fruit. For plants to grow and bear fruit, they need another light: the fourth day light, the light of the light-bearers, which were created to divide day and night (Gen. 1:14-19). For the growth of life in us, it is not enough to have a diffused light—the first day light—which is the “I know, I know, I’ve heard,” but we need a more specific light, a light that penetrates more. We can hear and know quite a lot, but what change is this word we are hearing or this knowledge we are acquiring causing in us? The fourth day light usually exposes things that we do not see. It is relatively easy to see the bad things in us, but our good intentions, our natural way of being, is much more difficult to see. God’s light is shining to expose such things. And this light comes for us to deny our soul-life, which is the most important word of exhortation in the church life. When we are under the fourth day light, we see who we are and how we must deny ourselves. When you believed in the Lord and came into the church life, that is, when you were saved and began to meet, could you see certain things in your life? Maybe you could see some sins and realized that you were a sinner and needed a Savior. But to see that within you there is a soul-life, your self which is against God, with your natural affection, natural preferences, service done to the Lord in yourself, pride, and things like that, light 24
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needed to grow and become more intense. As we are living in the church, the fourth day light will be shining and showing us more. If this great light came suddenly and completely, we could not stand it. But the Lord enlightens us little by little in a continuous and gradual way (Prov. 4:18).
Being Purified by the Infusing of the Divine Light In the beginning of our service in the church, we began to learn to coordinate with others. Then we may see many shortcomings, not only in others, but also in ourselves. With that, we began to call on the Lord more, and because of His growing light, we surely should have prayed, “O Lord Jesus! I need You! I cannot serve; I cannot help others. I cannot help anyone! Lord, I need You.” So light was shining and we started to realize much that we did not realize before. Thank God, as light exposes us, we have fellowship with the Lord, our Sun, and also with the church, the moon, which reflects sunlight. The meetings of the church are opportunities in which the Lord comes to help us through the moonlight. Actually, it is the Lord’s light shining through the saints. Do you receive this light or reject it? It may be that your parents are also in the church life, so they can also shine and help you. When they come to help you, do you receive this help or reject it? Revelation 1:16-17 says, “His countenance [the Lord’s] was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead.” Many times, when the Lord enlightens us with any intensity, we may even fall down. Hopefully by reading this book, many may see the Lord whose face shines like the sun in its strength, and fall at His feet as dead. That is the death of our natural being, our old man, the soul-life. 25
Prepared to Reign
Once enlightened, we can deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow the Lord. Verses 17-18 continue, “But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, ‘Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.’” It was as if the Lord said to John, “It’s all right, you really need to be enlightened.” The light of the Lord must enlighten us and burn the negative things in us. So young one, we want to give you this warning: Do not reject the help of parents who are in church life. Of course they are interested in your spiritual growth. Do not reject the help of brothers who serve you in the church. This certainly is the Lord coming to talk to you. Even though nobody likes to hear “No,” we know that we must learn to hear “No” because we need help. Many times the help we need is the “No” that parents and the saints tell us. We have to take that as a “No” from the Lord through them. Do not be like King Uzziah; don’t think, “I do not need anyone’s help” (cf. 2 Chron. 26:17-19). Thank God for the fourth day light. This light comes shining, enlightening, and showing how much impurity there is in us! We need to get help through reading the Bible and reading spiritual books. We want to be those who will govern over the millennial kingdom with the Lord Jesus. For this, we need growth, and this growth comes through the fourth day light.
God Created Man with Spirit, Soul and Body On the fifth day the Lord created the fish and the birds to put life into the seas and into the air (Gen. 1:20-23). On the sixth day He created the wildlife, domestic animals, and 26
God’s Purpose in Creating Man
reptiles to populate the earth (vv. 24-25). Finally, to fulfill His purpose, God created man (vv. 26-28). Hallelujah! God created man in His image and likeness. He created him from dust and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul (2:7). Perhaps many of us have already thought, “Would it not be much simpler if the Lord had created only body and spirit, without our problematic soul? It would be very easy; God would not have to do any work in us.” But here lies the secret: He created us with a spirit, a body, and also a soul. The soul is very important; it is the decisive factor, because if He gains our soul, He will defeat the proud one, His adversary. If he had just created us with a body and a spirit, we would be like robots. God would speak, and we automatically would say, “Yes.” But today for God to do something, He needs our soul. It’s as if He needs our approval. Can you believe that? Man has to want God! Therefore, it is important for man to believe. Believing is an attitude; it is to say, “I believe, I receive, I embrace! It’s mine!”
Receiving the Vision of the Kingdom to be a Volunteer God created the human soul with a mind, a will, and an emotion. The mind was made to understand God’s plan, the emotion to appreciate His will, and the will to cooperate with Him voluntarily and spontaneously! Young one, we hope that by reading this book, the Lord would gain in you a volunteer heart. Rather than your father needing to say, “Go to the meeting,” you are the one who should say, “Dad, let’s go to the meeting.” No one needs to tell spiritual volunteers, “Read the Bible, listen to messages, and read spiritual books.” If you 27
Prepared to Reign
receive the vision that God is preparing you to reign, you will stand up and proclaim, “I will not be the same person! I have a soul. Yes, I have a choice, and I choose the Lord.” So in Matthew 16:24 the Lord did not say, “You must follow Me!” But rather, “If anyone desires to....” Young man, do you want to follow Him? If you want to follow the Lord, tell Him from all your heart, “Lord Jesus! I do not want to be a puppet! I do not want to be indifferent, someone without initiative in the Christian life. I do not want to only move when someone tells me I must! Lord, I want to get up! Thanks for Your great love, Your great mercy. Include me in Your purpose to eliminate chaos, purify the earth, and bring your kingdom! I want to consecrate myself to You! I regret the days, the years, in which I lived for myself. I want to open myself to You! Speak to me, gain my heart! Enlighten me with the fourth day light! Jesus is Lord.” May the Lord still speak much more to you in the following chapters!
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