«　WEEK 1　DAY 3　»

　　Matt. 23:10 Neither be called instructors, because One is your Instructor, the Christ.

　　John 14:6 Jesus said to him, I am the way and the reality and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.

　　Rev. 1:5-6 ...Jesus Christ, the faithful Witness, the Firstborn of the dead, and the Ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has released us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom...

　　This Christ, who is the meaning of the life of God's people, is God's testimony. In the Old Testament, the Testimony refers to the law. The two tablets on which the law was inscribed were called the Testimony (Exo. 25:21) and were placed in the Ark. Because the Testimony was put into the Ark, the Ark was called the Ark of the Testimony. (Life-study of Numbers, p. 4)

　　A law is always a testimony of the one who made it. In keeping with this principle, the law of God is a testimony of what God is; it tells us what kind of God our God is. The law tells us that God is love and light and that He is holy and righteous. Love, light, holiness, and righteousness are four of the divine attributes. The law, as a portrait of what God is, typifies Christ as the embodiment of God in all His divine attributes. In Christ we see that God is love and light and that He is holy and righteous. Thus, the New Testament tells us that Christ is the embodiment of God (Col. 2:9). For Christ to be the embodiment of God means that He is the portrait of God, and as such He is the testimony of what God is. Because Christ is the testimony of what God is, He is called "the faithful and true Witness" (Rev. 3:14; 1:5). As God's Witness, Christ bears God's testimony to show us what kind of God He is.

　　God's people should not only take Christ as the meaning of life but also live a life of testifying Christ. When God's people have this kind of living, Christ becomes their testimony. In Numbers we see Christ as the testimony of God's people.

　　Christ is also the center of God's people. This is portrayed by the way the children of Israel were encamped around the tabernacle with three tribes on each side. The four camps, each composed of three tribes, and the three families of the tribe of Levi all took the tabernacle with the Ark as the center. The children of Israel thus took Christ as the meaning of life, the testimony, and the center. This shows us that as the church today we should take Christ as our meaning of life, our testimony, and our center.

　　The book of Numbers reveals that this Christ, who is the meaning of our life, our testimony, and our center, is One who is moving, acting, and always proceeding onward. In His proceeding onward, He is our Leader (Matt. 23:10), our way (John 14:6), and our goal (Phil. 3:12-14). To take the lead is to proceed on the way. Today we are taking Christ as our Leader, and we are following Him. He is leading us on His way and toward His goal, both of which are actually Himself. Worldly people have neither a way nor a goal, but we have Christ not only as our Leader but also as our way and our goal.

　　In the New Testament there is a revelation of Christ in all these aspects, but it is not given there in detail. If we had only the New Testament and not the Old Testament with all its types, we could not see Christ in such a detailed and fine portrait. For a complete view of Christ as the meaning of life, the testimony, the center, and the Leader, the way, and the goal, we need the portrait in the book of Numbers.

　　For the journey of God's redeemed people and for their fighting, Christ is the meaning of life, the testimony, the center, and the Leader, the way, and the goal. If Christ were not all of this to us, there would not be a way for God to gain the ground on earth to build up His kingdom with His house, which eventually will consummate in the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem will be the consummation of God's kingdom and God's house. (Life-study of Numbers, pp. 4-6)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Numbers, msgs. 1-2