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God’s blessing is intrinsically related to oneness—Psa. 133:1, 3:
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The unity spoken of in verse 1 is a picture of the genuine oneness in the New Testament; this oneness is the processed and consummated Triune God mingled with the believers in Christ—John 17:21-23.
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There in Psalm 133:3 refers to the oneness upon which the Lord commands the blessing—life forever.
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Through His shepherding in His recovery by life, the Lord brings us into the enjoyment of His blessing and causes us to become a source of blessing under the showers of blessing—Ezek. 34:23, 26-27a, 29; Zech. 10:1:
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First, we ourselves enjoy the Lord’s blessing, and then the Lord will cause us to become a source of blessing to others so that they may be supplied—Ezek. 34:26.
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God will cause the showers of blessing to come down in season—Zech. 10:1.
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The greatest blessing that we receive from the Lord is not what the Lord gives us; it is what the Lord makes us, what He enables us to become—Rev. 3:12:
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The Lord’s promise in Revelation 3:12 is to make the overcomer a pillar in the temple of God:
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Becoming a pillar in the temple of God involves transformation and building—21:22; 2 Cor. 3:18; Eph. 2:21-22; 4:16.
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It is a great blessing for the Lord to transform us and build us into His temple; this involves our being, what we are in Christ—Col. 1:27-28.
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If we see this vision, we will realize that in the church life the Lord’s intention is not to do something outside of us but to transform us into another kind of being for His corporate expression—Rev. 21:10-11.
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In the church life we should not expect outward blessings; rather, it is crucial for us to realize that the Lord’s blessing is to transform us into precious material and then build us into His dwelling place—Eph. 2:21-22.
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The normal life of a Christian is a life of blessing, and the normal work of a Christian is a work of blessing—Num. 6:23-27; Matt. 5:3-11; 24:46; John 20:29; Gal. 3:14; 2 Cor. 9:6; Rom. 15:29.
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We must realize that in our work, in our Christian life, and in our church life, everything depends on the Lord’s blessing—Eph. 1:3; Mal. 3:10.
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We need to pray, “Lord, please give us a vision that we may see the meaning of Your blessing, and have mercy on us that, unhindered, we may be able to receive Your blessing.”
Morning Nourishment
Psa. 133:1-3 …How good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell in unity! It is like the fine oil upon the head that ran down…; like the dew…that came down upon the mountains of Zion. For there Jehovah commanded the blessing: Life forever.Ezek. 34:26 …I will make them…a blessing, and I will cause the showers to come down in their season; there will be showers of blessing.
Psalm 133 is the praise of a saint, in his going up to Zion, concerning Jehovah’s commanded blessing on brothers who dwell in oneness. When Zion is built up and when God is resting there and dwelling in Jerusalem,…we have a place where we can gather and where we can dwell together in oneness. How good and how pleasant this is! (Psa. 133:1, footnote 1)
The eternal life of God (John 3:16; Eph. 4:18)…is commanded by God as a blessing to those who dwell together in oneness in the church life….Psalm 133 typifies the church living—the highest living, a living in which the brothers dwell together in oneness. Such a living causes God to come in to bless us with the anointing Spirit, the watering grace, and the eternal life. (Psa. 133:3, footnote 3)
Today’s Reading
[In Ezekiel 34:26] the Lord promised not only that His people would receive His blessing but also that He would make them a blessing….First, we ourselves will enjoy the Lord’s blessing, and then He will cause us to become a source of blessing to others so that they may be supplied.The Lord promises that there will be “showers of blessing.”…Many times in the meetings of the local churches we sense that something is not only flowing but also coming down like a shower. Sometimes even at home after the meeting, we have the sense that the showers of blessing are still coming down upon us. This is the strongest sign that the Lord’s blessing is upon the local church. He sends us showers of blessing in season, so timely. (Life-study of Ezekiel, pp. 183-184)
The Lord’s promise in Revelation 3:12 is not to give us something but to make us something. Whenever we think of the Lord’s promises, we always think that He will give us something. According to our concept, a promise is related to a blessing. To us, without a blessing, there can be no promise. But in 3:12 the Lord did not say, “Him I will give”; He said, “Him I will make.” In 3:12 the Lord does not promise to give us holiness or a heavenly blessing. No, here He promises to make us become something—a pillar in the temple of God.
Becoming a pillar in the temple of God invol.ves two things—transformation and building. Since I came to this country, my burden has been on these two matters. The greatest blessing the Lord can render us is to transform us and to build us into His temple….[What does it mean] to be made a pillar in the temple of God?…Those who have reached the level of the church in Philadelphia have the proper understanding within them. If we are on this level, then we are ready for the Lord to transform us. If we use the little power we have received of the Lord on His word and mean business with Him, then we are ready to be transformed and are in the proper position for the Lord to make us a pillar. This requires that we firstly be transformed into precious material and secondly that we be built into a pillar. How can we, who are clay, become a pillar in God’s temple? There is no way except to be transformed from clay into precious stone and then to be built into God’s building….Revelation 2:17…indicates that we can be transformed into a white stone by eating Him as the hidden manna. This is truly the greatest blessing. This invol.ves our very being, for it is related to what we are. The greatest blessing is not what the Lord gives us, but what the Lord makes us. (Life-study of Revelation, p. 370)
Further Reading: Life-study of the Psalms, msg. 42; Life-study of Jeremiah, msg. 20; CWWL, 1957, vol. 2, “The Administration of the Church and the Ministry of the Word,” ch. 5