The place where God intends to lead His people to enter into

This message is such a good reminder to me. As a genuine child of God, I certainly have experienced the altar and the laver- believing into Christ as my Passover Lamb and me being washed and cleaned by the work of the Spirit. However, this message clearly shows that in order to further our experience of the Lord, we need to first differentiate the experience in the Holy Place and the experience in the Holy of Holies. The experience in the Holy Place is necessary for us, but it is not a place that we should be content with and linger on all the time. The goal is to enter into the Holy of Holies and experience Christ directly in a hidden way. This can be illustrated by the experience of the children of Israel in the wilderness and in Canaan. 

God is merciful. After leading the children of Israel out from Egypt into the wilderness, He provided manna and living water to satisfy them (1Cor. 10:1-4). However, God's mercy to satisfy them with the food and water in the wilderness did not justify the children of Isreal. Their experience to enjoy God's supply was a wonderful thing which showed God's wondrous deeds and tender care, yet that was still not God's goal towards His people. 1Cor. 10:5 says, "But with most of them God was not well pleased, for they were strewn along in the wilderness." This indicates that the children of Isreal's lingering in the wilderness did not satisfy God. He had purposed somewhere higher and better, Canaan, for His people to enter into rest (Hebrews 4). For we believers, we are encouraged to long for solid food to grow unto maturity (Heb. 5:13-14) and enter into the veil, the Holy of Holies, to be partakers of the Holy Spirit (Heb. 6:4; 19-20). This corresponds to Paul's entreaty for the Corinthian believers not be soulish men but to be spiritual men in order to truly know things of God (1Cor. 2:11-15).  

One sentence in the message struck me. We might enjoy "something of Christ, but not Christ Himself". Oh Lord, I repent. May I not be content with something of Christ or even be proud of having something of Christ. May You empty me daily and increase my hunger and appetite for You so I would long for entering into the Holy of Holies continuously and enjoy the hidden portion of Christ that is not known by everybody but only me. May this knowing be my cooperation with You to satisfy Your heart's desire and Your purpose in me and in Your people. 

(Prophecy on "The economy of God- Chapter 19")

Some points that I enjoy as the firstfruits

This week I enjoy the spoken message concerning the firstfruits. Brother Ron spoke from our individual experience to our corporate experience concerning how we can be the firstfruits that satisfy the Father. Then there's a result from such a continual experience, that is, we'll be the first fruits, the overcomers, to satisfy the Father. 

I've been considering and also discussing with the saints how, in our experience, we can be the firstfruits that satisfy the Father. After some fellowship, I enjoy the picture revealed in John 15.

1) We are the branches in the vine. 

As we abide in the vine, we enjoy the resurrected Christ. The life juice from the vine being dispensed into us so that we can bear fruits. 

2) Satisfying the Father. 

A particular verse in John 15:11 "These things I have spoken to you that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be made full". 

The experience of the sin-dealing life

Each one of us, more or less, is involved in serving people. So recently I have been considering how to experience and dispense the sin-dealing life because this is one of the most important services of the priests. We all know that we can never have a holy, clean, and rejoicing life if we dwell in sins. If I dwell in sins, you feel the pain, and if you dwell in sins, I'm bothered as well. 

The first picture is in week one in Leviticus 8:14-15 and 10:17  (the verses in day 4 and 5).

"And he brought the bull of the sin offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on the head of the bull of the sin offering. And Moses slaughtered it and took the blood and put some of it on and around the horns of the altar with his finger, and purified the altar, and poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar and sanctified it, to make expiation for it" (Leviticus 8:14-15). 

"Why have you not eaten the sin offering in the place of the sanctuary? For it is most holy, and He gave it to you to bear the iniquity of the assembly, to make expiation for them before Jehovah" (Leviticus 10:17).

These verses show us that whoever has the heart to serve the saints have to experience the sin offering before we can make expiation for God's people before Jehovah. 

And the sister verse in 1 Corinthians also tells us that whenever we notice some inappropriate situations among God's people, the first thing is not to come to this person to judge and point out the faults. Instead, we have to prove ourselves first. We enjoy the sin-dealing life within so that we have the grace to dispense such a life to our fellow believers. 

But again, what's the application for us in the new testament age? Previously when I read Philippians 3:3, Paul said, "For we are the circumcision, the ones who serve by the Spirit of God and boast in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh". And my reaction to this verse somewhat remains in that kind of impression which I should enjoy the Lord in the morning and be filled with the spirit, and by this experience, I serve the Lord. But I was just reminded that the children of Isreal could enjoy the manna every day and still roam in the wilderness instead of getting into the Goodland.  

So, with the help of week 2 message, I realised that it's very significant when we say "we serve by the Spirit of God" because God is the burning and consuming fire! Whenever we touch Him, we are exposed who we are, we get burned, and because we're burned so we want to burn others. But sometimes it might not be my experience. I can enjoy the Lord and pray and do whatever spiritual exercises but not being burned to that extent. And all these are just an indication that I'm still a person who is pretty much in the flesh and need the cross as the sin-dealing life. Praise the Lord, through the burnt offering, our sin offering is also accepted by God.

Eventually, we can have Paul's experience and boast in Christ Jesus as the source of our service to people, and have no confidence in the flesh. 

His banner over me is love

S.S. 6:4
You are as beautiful, my love, as Tirzah, as lovely as Jerusalem, as terrible as an army with banners.

So Tirzah means Palace and Jerusalem means the city of the Great King. Both of them indicate the new creation. Therefore, while we're more constituted with Him as the duplication of Him, we're beautiful in His eyes. However, this week I was considering the word "banners". More precisely, I want to know what's so special about the banners that terrifies the enemy so much.

The ministry in the week explaining banners as the following.

1). Banners indicate a readiness to fight and also are a sign that the victory is won!

2). An unfurled banner signifies the glory of the victory... Indicates this lady, Christ's corporate lover, has a future that is full of hope, and a life that is absolutely heavenly. She is a victor who constantly triumphs in her victory.

So here we see that on the one hand, the banners as a symbol that we've won the victory, and on the other hand, there's a process that we're winning battles constantly. But I wasn't sure whether I really understand the connections between the two points.

At the same time, another verse came to me,
SoS 2:4 He brought me into the banqueting house, And his banner over me was love. I would like to read several footnotes I came across that I really enjoyed.

In Rom 8:31-39 talks about God loves us so much that He delivered His son for us all, and the Son died and raised and is now at the right hand of God interceding for us. In verse 35, it says "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or anguish or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword?" Verse 37 "But in all these things we more than conquer through Him who loved us". The reason that we cannot be separated from the love of God is according to Rom 5:5 "And hope does not put us to shame, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us". And the reason why we can "more than conquer" is because such love in our hearts does something special. The love is a motivating power that while God's enemy tries to attack us with all kinds of sufferings and calamities, we respond to the love of God in Christ. Therefore, these attacks have become benefits to us and helped us to be conformed by the Lord Spirit to reach the ultimate goal of this salvation. That is to enter into the incomparable divine glory and be glorified together with God.

So now we know why the banners are so glorious to us and are terrifying to the enemy.

When we see the banner, we are declaring God's unchanging love for us and the fact that Christ has accomplished everything on our behalf, and thus neither tribulation nor persecution can suppress or defeat us. And again when we see the banner, the enemy is really terrified! He sees a group of crazy lovers of Christ who are really crazily loving Christ. Within their heart, the inseparable love of Christ is the motivating power that whenever they meet and go through the difficulties, they turn these difficulties as fuel to accelerate their conformation into the image of God. So in hymn 1198 stanza 4 "And now the Spirit flows, Brings God wherever He goes, All he could do, the foe, was just release the flow. And God just keeps on flowing!"

Praise the Lord for the banner over us declares His unchanging love for us and our crazy love for Christ! This really terrifies the enemy.

*Main references: Rom 5:5 (ft. 1a), Rom 8:37; 39 (ft.) Bible recovery version.

The Victorious Christ

To be honest, when the first day I saw this title until the very last message I read, I felt the message was not quite for me. On the one hand, I appreciate Christ has nullified sin, the death and Hades cannot hold Him, and He is victorious over the entire universe. But on the other hand, somehow it bothers me that the victorious Christ will come as the fighting General with His army to fight Antichrist (Rev. 19:11-21).

My question is, "Seriously, I'm not quite sure if I'm qualified to be in the army." My genuine situation is, I thought I could be strong by spending time and enjoying Christ, the Victorious One, but I often find myself "Oh, Lord, I don't what to do in the situation, how to deal with this and that thing, and the worst of all, I don't know what to do with myself."

However, as I was considering this matter, the story of Genesis 32:1-10 came to me. Jacob was quite scared of meeting his brother, Esau on the way back. So after Jacob met the angels of God, he divided his wives, children, and the rest of his possessions into two camps, or "two armies". Eventually, God changed Esau's attitude so there was no harm to Jacob's family and possessions. We can say that the two armies had won the victory.

If we link this case to Song of Songs 6:13 for more details. This verse talks about the dance of two camps. The reason why the two camps are dancing because they're celebrating the victory. In the same verse, we know the reason why the weak ones and feeble ones are victorious as armies. The country girl is no longer a country girl alone but becomes the Shulammite who shares the same life, nature, expression, and function as our Beloved Christ typified by Solomon.

Therefore, the entire picture here is that the victory is not gained by us but Christ. It is the Christ whom we experience and is wrought into us becomes the victory of the battle. In other words, it is not even because we enjoy Christ and become pretty strong and capable of many things that qualify us to be the victorious armies. It is simply the Christ that we love and enjoy and are constituted within us enabling us to cooperate with Him and gain the victory.

So praise the Lord that our first qualification to join the armies is our being weak and feeble. Corresponding to the message in day 6 of week 3 in the morning revivla, we cannot trust ourselves but depend on the redemption, life, light, and building that qualifies our fighting.And all we need is in the Word. Therefore, our military service, or our military training is simply to enjoy the Word, to love Him so that we can be the same as He is in life, nature, expression, and function. It is such a Christ that we put on qualifies us to gain the victory with Him!

We experience Christ for the church by having a proper heart and a strong spirit so that Christ can make home in our heart to know Him!

Recently, the Lord exposed me that my heart is busy paying too much attention and considering too many things. And because our heart is a loving organ, I realised that I've been sharing my love on too many other things other than Christ. I had a real repentance. Therefore, my enjoyment in the previous weeks was that I needed to have an open heart that loves the Lord so that whatever befalls, I can still be for the Lord and not be led astray.

However, this week I realised that simply having an open heart and loving the Lord is good but not enough. We also need a strong spirit to advance our experience of Christ for the church.

Eph 3:16 That He would grant you according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit into the inner man,

Eph 3:17 Thay Christ may make His home in your heart through faith, that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 

When we have a strong spirit, we are strengthed into our inner man so that Christ may make His home in our heart through faith. Christ can only make His home in a strengthened, supplied, and fully possessed heart through faith, and by this, we can be rooted and grounded in love. Such faith and love are necessary for our experiencing Christ. In verse 17 ft 4, Faith enables to apprehend Christ, and love enables us to enjoy Him. Both faith and love are not ours but His. However, Christ making home in our heart to apprehend and enjoy Christ.

Eph 3:18 May be full of strength to apprehend with all the saints what the breadth and length and height and depth are

This not only proves that Christ makes His home in our heart allows us to apprehend and enjoy Christ, but such apprehension and enjoyment of Christ also leads us toward a particular purpose- A genuine and prevailing recovery of God's people!

The Lord's recovery depends upon our renewed, purified heart and our renewed, strengthened spirit is thoroughly saturated with the Spirit, God will have a way, and the recovery will be prevailing. (2018 ITEROS HWMR- Week 4 The Heart and Spirit of a leading One- Outline point VIII)