Scripture Reading: Exo. 17:6; Num. 20:8; 21:16-18; 1 Cor. 12:13; John 4:10, 14; 7:37-39; 19:34; 1 Cor. 10:4; Rev. 22:1-2

DAY 1 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 2 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 3 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 4 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 5 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 6 Outline　MorningRevival

«　WEEK 4　DAY 1　»

　　Exo. 17:6 I will be standing before you there upon the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it so that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

　　1 Cor. 10:4 And all drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank of a spiritual rock which followed them, and the rock was Christ.

　　Although it is rather easy to grind coriander seed, it is difficult to smite a rock so that it splits open. It is one thing to beat manna with a mortar, but it is quite another thing to cause a huge rock to be cleft. The Lord told Moses to use his rod to”strike the rock, and water will come out of it so that the people may drink” (Exo. 17:6). We need to pay careful attention to the fact that the rock was smitten by the rod of Moses. In typology, Moses signifies the law, and the rod represents the power and authority of the law. The rock, of course, typifies Christ. The smiting of the rock by the rod signifies that Christ was smitten by the authority of God's law. In the eyes of God, the Lord Jesus was put to death, not by the Jews, but by the law of God. During the first three hours of His crucifixion, Christ suffered under the hand of man. But during the last three hours, Christ suffered because He was smitten by the power of God's law. (Life-study of Exodus, pp. 471-472)

　　In many places the Bible tells us that God is our rock. Deuteronomy 32:18 refers to God as the rock who begot us. This indicates that as our rock God is our Father. This rock is a begetting rock, full of life. In 2 Samuel 22:47 and Psalm 95:1 we see that God is the rock of our salvation. Furthermore, this rock is our strength (Psa. 62:7) and our refuge (Psa. 94:22). This rock is our hiding place, protection, covering, and safeguard. Isaiah 32:2 speaks of the Lord as”the shadow of a massive rock in a wasted land.” When we are weary [wasted], we can rest under the shadow cast by this rock and be refreshed. This rock, which was waiting in a dry place for God's people, has been smitten so the people may have living water to drink.

　　The water flowing out of the smitten rock typifies the Spirit. John 7:37 and 38 say,”Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes into Me, as the Scripture said, out of his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.” This word was uttered on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles. John 7:39 goes on to say,”But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive.” This indicates clearly that the flowing water signifies the Spirit.

　　Many years ago I read an article which said that in Jerusalem in ancient times, when the Israelites celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles, they set up a rock. According to this article, over the rock waters were flowing as a reminder that the forefathers of the Jews had wandered in the wilderness and had drunk of the waters which flowed out of the smitten rock. Near the rock there also may have been tents showing that the forefathers lived in tents and wandered in the wilderness, but had the smitten rock with the living water to quench their thirst. Such a picture may have literally been in the background when the Lord Jesus stood up to call the thirsty ones to come to Him and drink.

　　Another reference to flowing water is in John 19:34. Here we are told that after the Lord had died on the cross,”one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water.” This was prefigured by the water flowing out of the smitten rock. (Life-study of Exodus, pp. 472-473)

　　The blood was for redemption, and the water was for life impartation. Christ as the living rock had to be smitten by the power of the law in order for the living water to flow out from Him. (CWWL, 1969, vol. 2,”The Crucial Revelation of Life in the Scriptures,” p. 417)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Exodus, msgs. 40-41

«　WEEK 4　DAY 2　»

　　John 7:37-39 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes into Me, as the Scripture said, out of his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water. But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive; for the Spirit was not yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

　　Resurrection denotes something which has been put to death and which is alive again. It also denotes life which springs forth out of something that has passed through death. The living water in Exodus 17 came out of a rock…. In the Bible this rock speaks of God's redemption and Christ's incarnation. It also speaks of Christ's humanity and of His death. The water that flowed out of the smitten rock sprang forth after incarnation, human living, and death. It flowed only after these major steps of Christ had been accomplished. The Bible tells us clearly that the rock was Christ [1 Cor. 10:4]. How could Christ, who is God, become a rock? This implies incarnation and human living. In order to be the rock, Christ had to become incarnated and live among men for a period of time. Eventually, when He was on the cross, He was smitten by the authority of God's law. Hence, Exodus 17:6 is a profound verse. It implies Christ's incarnation, human living, and death. (Life-study of Exodus, pp. 488-489)

　　According to John 7:38 and 39, the rivers of living water are related to Christ's resurrection. Here we see that the Spirit as the living water could be received only after the Lord Jesus had been glorified, that is, only after Christ had been crucified and had entered into resurrection. The glorification spoken of in John 7:39 refers to Christ's glorification in His resurrection. Luke 24:26 indicates that in resurrection Christ entered into His glory. Thus, when He was resurrected, He was glorified. After Christ's glorification in resurrection, the living water flows. The Spirit as the rivers of living water could be experienced by the believers only after Christ had passed through incarnation, human living, and death, and after He had entered into resurrection.

　　Because the water of life is in resurrection, it is victorious and triumphant. It transcends every negative thing. Actually, the water itself is resurrection. This means that the Spirit, signified by the flowing water, is resurrection. Resurrection is the Triune God, the Father as the source, Christ the Son as the course, and the Spirit as the flow….The more we drink [this water], the more we are out of our natural condition and are triumphant over hardships and difficulties. This living water delivers us from the world and from every kind of negative thing.

　　The life-giving Spirit as the water of life flows out of God on the throne (Rev. 22:1). On the one hand, the One sitting on the throne is God; on the other hand, the water of life proceeding out of the throne is also God. The living water flowing from God's throne conveys to us the riches of the divine life. This is indicated by the fact that the tree of life grows in the water of life (Rev. 22:2). Because the riches of the divine life are carried in the flow of the living water, we receive these riches whenever we drink this water.

　　The flowing of the water of life in resurrection is for the formation of the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13). Because we all drink of the same …one Spirit in resurrection, [this] makes us members of the Body and builds us up as the Body.

　　The flowing of the living water in resurrection is also for the preparation of the bride of Christ. According to Revelation 22:17, the Spirit and the bride sound forth the call to come and drink of the water of life….The water which the bride drinks is the Spirit. By drinking the Spirit, the bride becomes one with the Spirit…. If we drink of the living water day by day, the Body of Christ will be built up, and the bride of Christ will be prepared. (Life-study of Exodus, pp. 489, 491, 493, 495-497)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Exodus, msgs. 42-45

«　WEEK 4　DAY 3　»

　　John 4:14 But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall by no means thirst forever; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life.

　　Num. 20:8 Take the rod, and gather the assembly, you and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock before their eyes, so that it yields its water…

　　The Triune God flows in the Divine Trinity in three stages. [In John 4:14b] when the fountain springs up, that is the fountain emerging. Then a river flows. The Father is the fountain, the Son is the spring, and the Spirit is the river.

　　This flowing Triune God is”into eternal life.” The Greek preposition translated as”into” is rich in meaning. Here it speaks of the destination. The eternal life is the destination of the flowing Triune God. A fountain is in us springing up as a river into a destination. This destination is the eternal life. The New Jerusalem is the totality of the divine, eternal life. The eternal life eventually will be the New Jerusalem. Thus, into eternal life means into the New Jerusalem. We must have something flowing into that divine New Jerusalem in order for us to arrive there.

　　We have [these three] within us at the same time. The fountain emerges, the spring gushes, and the gushing is the flowing as a river into the New Jerusalem. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4,”Crystallization-study of the Gospel of John,” pp. 455, 458)

　　Moses took the rod from before Jehovah, and he and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock (Num. 20:9-10a). Then Moses said to the people,”Listen now, you rebels: Shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?” (v. 10b). Having said this,”Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his rod twice; and abundant water came forth, and the assembly and their livestock drank” (v. 11). Moses was wrong both in word and in deed. No doubt, he was angry with the children of Israel, and he even might have lost his temper. Whenever we are angry and do not control ourselves, it is easy for us to make mistakes. At such times we, like Moses, may speak wrongly or act wrongly.

　　When the children of Israel caused God trouble concerning necessities, He was not offended, but when they lusted, He was offended. In Numbers 20 the people contended because they did not have water. Because water was a necessity, God was not angry with them. Actually, it was His responsibility to supply them with water. Moses failed to sanctify God in being angry with the people of Israel and in wrongly striking the rock twice. In being angry, he did not represent God rightly in His holy nature toward His people. In striking the rock twice, he represented God wrongly in God's action. Hence, he and his brother were punished by God by not being allowed to enter into the good land (20:12-13, 24; 27:12-14).

　　We must not give people the wrong impression concerning the God whom we serve….All that we say and do concerning God's people must be absolutely according to His holy nature. Otherwise, in our words and deeds we will rebel against Him and offend Him. Moses offended both God's holy nature and divine economy. He represented God wrongly, and he broke the principles of God's economy. Because of this, even though he was intimate with God and may be considered a friend of God, he lost the right to enter into the good land.

　　Through our study of chapter 20 of Numbers, we may learn how to behave when others contend with us in the church life…. After the people had contended with Moses…, he should have gone to the Lord and said,”Lord, what should I do concerning the need of Your beloved people?”…Moses …should have simply spoken to the rock, telling it to flow forth with water. If we deal with the contending of God's people in this way today, the church life will be glorious. (Life-study of Numbers, pp. 210-212, 215-217)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4,”Crystallization-study of the Gospel of John,” msg. 14; Life-study of Numbers, msgs. 29-30; CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5,”A Word of Love to the Co-workers, Elders, Lovers, and Seekers of the Lord,” ch. 2

«　WEEK 4　DAY 4　»

　　Num. 21:16-18 … [At] Beer,…the well where Jehovah said to Moses, Gather the people together, and I will give them water,…Israel sang this song: Spring up, O well! Sing to it! The well, which the leaders sank, which the nobles of the people dug, with the scepter, with their staffs…

　　The rock in Numbers 20:8 and Exodus 17:5-6 typifies Christ crucified (smitten) on the cross by God so that the living water, the consummated Spirit of the processed Triune God, might flow out into us, whereas the well at Beer typifies Christ within us (John 4:11-12, 14). The digging of the well (Num. 21:18) signifies the digging away of the”dirt,” the barriers in our heart—our mind, emotion, will, and conscience—so that the Spirit as the living water may spring up within us and flow freely. (Num. 21:16, footnote 1)

　　The fourth occasion of the children of Israel's drinking is recorded in Numbers 21:16-18. They came to a place called Beer, which means”a well.” When the children of Israel came to Beer, they came to a well. This is a type of Christ being a well in us. He is not only the cleft rock but also a well of water. The Lord Jesus tells us in John 4:14 that if we drink of Him, we will have a fountain or a well of water within us. Christ is the rock outside of us, and He is the well within us. As the rock outside of us, He needs to be struck. Regarding Christ as the well within us, we need to be dug. There is no need for Christ to be struck again, but there is the need for us to be dug so that Christ as the well can spring up within our inward being. There is much dirt in our inward being blocking the flowing of Christ. All this dirt needs to be dug away.

　　Numbers 21:18 says,”The well, which the leaders sank, /Which the nobles of the people dug, / With the scepter, with their staffs.” A scepter is a royal rod in the ruler's hand related to authority. Psalm 23 indicates that the staff or staffs are for guidance (v. 4). Thus, scepters are for authority, and staffs are for guidance. We need to be dug under the Lord's authority and according to His guidance. The leaders and nobles of the people would not normally be the ones to dig the well. The people of the lower class would do the digging. But Numbers 21 tells us that the leaders and nobles of the people of God dug the well at Beer. If we are going to enjoy Christ as the well springing up all the time in the local churches, all the leading ones have to take the lead to dig away the dirt under the Lord's authority and according to His guidance. Then we will have a well springing up with living water all the time in the churches because we have the digging by the leaders and the nobles of the people with the scepter and the staffs. (CWWL, 1969, vol. 2,”The Crucial Revelation of Life in the Scriptures,” pp. 420-421)

　　[We need to] learn how to have the flow of the Spirit within our inward parts. In Numbers 20 the smitten rock, which typifies Christ, …flowed with living water (cf. 1 Cor. 10:4). Then in Numbers 21 the well dug by the people of God sprang up with water. Therefore, in these two chapters of the same book there is first a rock that must be smitten for the living water to flow out and then a well that must be dug for the water to spring up.

　　For believers, it is not a matter of the rock but the well. Christ as the rock has already accomplished His work on the cross, which issued in the water of life flowing into us, but today Christ as the well of living water springing up continuously within us is something else and has much to do with the present process of digging. I believe that…the flow of the spiritual life, or the spring of the living water, is not free within us. There is much dirt within us that must be dug out. You may ask,”What is this dirt?” It is the dirt in our conscience, our emotion, our will, and our mind. Our heart has much dirt, which needs to be dug out, and even in our spirit there is some dirt, which must be dealt with. (CWWL, 1964, vol. 3,”The Economy of God,” pp. 227-228)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1969, vol. 2,”The Crucial Revelation of Life in the Scriptures,” ch. 4

«　WEEK 4　DAY 5　»

　　Acts 24:16 Because of this I also exercise myself to always have a conscience without offense toward God and men.

　　Matt. 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

　　Our conscience is not so pure. Perhaps at this very moment some accusation which we have not confessed to the Lord is still upon our conscience. These accusations are the dirt that needs to be dug away. We do not sense much liberty within because of the accusations in our conscience. What are the accusations? You must ask yourself; only you know. You know what is within you that is wrong with others. When you are not right with others, the accusations persist. When you refuse to do what the Lord demands, this becomes an accusation in your conscience. Then you wonder why you are bound and without freedom. It is simply because there is a demand of the Lord which you will not answer, and it has become an immediate accusation in your conscience. Your conscience is not pure from accusations and without offenses. (CWWL, 1964, vol. 3,”The Economy of God,” p. 228)

　　If we would experience a free, inward flow of the Spirit, our conscience must first be dealt with and purified. The dirt can only be dug away by going to the Lord several times each day. I would suggest that during this week we go to the Lord again and again, even while we are walking along the street. We have to go to the Lord in our spirit and be dug in His presence. By the help of the Holy Spirit we must dig away all the dirt.

　　After dealing with the accusations in our conscience, we must also dig away the many things condemned by the Lord in our heart. Not many brothers and sisters have a pure heart in seeking only the Lord Himself. On one hand, many are seeking the Lord and His way, but on the other, they are still seeking too many things other than the Lord Himself The heart then becomes complicated and is not free and pure. We must go to the Lord once again to dig away all the things other than Christ in our heart.

　　You may ask,”What things need to be dug away?” Perhaps one of the first things is your concern about the future and the guidance of the Lord. You should not be bothered by this; the future is not in your hands but in the Lord's. In fact, you should not have any future—the Lord Himself is our only future. We do not know how”sticky” our heart is. Many years ago flypaper was used to catch flies, and how sticky it was! Whatever touched it stuck to it. Our heart is just like the flypaper—so sticky. Whatever touches the heart sticks to it. These things must all be cut off. It seems that we are all seeking the Lord. Many of us are living only for the Lord and have given up our homes and our jobs. Day by day we are seeking the Lord's guidance, but we do not know how many things complicate our heart. Can we forget these things? To dig away the dirt from the conscience is easy, but to dig away the dirt from the heart is not so easy. In so many things we are kind to ourselves; we do not like to dig our heart severely. It is easy to dig away the accusations from our conscience, but it is not so easy to dig away the things that we love from our heart. We are stuck to the things we hold dearly. This is why the Scriptures tell us that we need a good conscience and a pure heart.”Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8).

　　There is no doubt that we love the Lord and are seeking Him, but our loving and seeking the Lord is with a complicated heart. The aim and the goal of our heart are not so pure. We do not know how many goals are within our heart. What about our family? Our job? Our degree? What about this year and next year? There are so many things still in our heart. I tell you, brothers and sisters, all this dirt is frustrating the flow of living water within us and must be dug away. Since the day that we received the Lord Jesus as our Savior, He has come into us as the springing well of living water. But the problem today is that there is too much dirt in our conscience and in our heart. (CWWL, 1964, vol. 3,”The Economy of God,” pp. 228-229)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1964, vol. 3,”The Economy of God,” chs. 8-9

«　WEEK 4　DAY 6　»

　　1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from every sin.

　　9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

　　[There are] many layers in us through which we have to dig. We have a layer of the conscience, a layer of the heart, and…a layer of our mind, which holds much dirt. We do not know how many imaginations we have day by day. We not only dream during the night while we are asleep, but we are still dreaming during the day while we are awake. All our imaginations are different dreams….Satan blinds our minds…merely by the imaginations. Sometimes while you are listening to a message, I do not know where your mind is perhaps it has traveled to the moon! Outwardly you are nodding your head, but inwardly your mind is imagining something in space. During the message you hear the voice, but you do not receive anything. Your mind has been blinded by imaginations. When there is a lot of dirt in your mind, how can the flow of living water within you be free?… The heaps of dirt are simply the many thoughts, imaginations, and dreams, which must be dug away before the living water can freely flow. (CWWL, 1964, vol. 3,”The Economy of God,” pp. 229-230)

　　The will also contains much dirt. There are not many who are absolutely and utterly obedient to the Lord. We need to be more submissive in our will. How many times we do not submit ourselves to the Lord's sovereign arrangement! Sometimes we think that we are quite submissive to the Lord, but when He puts us into certain circumstances, we are exposed. It is easy to submit to the invisible Lord, but it is rather difficult to submit to visible persons. You say,”I am submissive to the Lord. With the Lord I have no problem. But…” Yes, there is a big but!”…But with the church…Oh, I cannot be submissive to them!” The Lord especially put you into your local church in order to break your will.

　　“If my husband could be such a dear brother, I would gladly be submissive to him.” How many times have you sisters thought this?…The Lord gave you such a suitable husband; he is just the husband you need. If you could have the husband of your dreams, you would never be exposed. Many experiences and circumstances under His sovereignty simply expose us to the light so that we may know how stubborn our will is…. If the living water is to flow in us, we must be dug. The flowing is the Lord's business, but the digging is our business. We have to dig ourselves.

　　After digging away the dirt from the will, we need to deal with our emotion… When we are emotional, we are occupied with ourselves. We are under the control and bondage of our emotions….It is so easy for us to like one thing and dislike another….It is not very easy to change our will, but it is easy to have many changes in our emotions. Our emotions fluctuate even more than the weather.

　　Forget about your needs, your job, your future, and your circumstances. Only seek the Lord's presence, and ask Him to bring you into His light. Then follow His light to dig away the dirt in your conscience, heart, mind, will, and emotion. The more you dig away the dirt, the more you will be alive….You must maintain the flow of living water, that is, the fellowship of life flowing freely within you. When the living water flows freely within you, then there is victory. All the problems will be solved spontaneously and even unconsciously.

　　We have to spend more and more time with the Lord and pray according to His inner leading. According to that leading, we must confess and dig away all the dirt within us….Sometimes we need to pray with others, but the digging prayer is more prevailing in privacy. It is extremely necessary to spend more private time with the Lord. All the dirt within the conscience, heart, mind, will, and emotion must be dug away by our prayers. (CWWL, 1964, vol. 3,”The Economy of God,” pp. 230-232)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1964, vol. 3,”The Economy of God,” ch. 10