Ⅰ
In order for His will to be done on earth and for His eternal purpose to be fulfilled, God needs our cooperation—1 Cor. 6:17; Matt. 7:11; 12:50:
A
God can carry out on earth what He has planned in heaven only when He has people who will cooperate with Him—John 7:17; 15:4-5:
１
God needs to gain people on earth who will cooperate with Him and work with Him according to His mind—Phil. 3:15; Col. 3:2.
２
As long as there are those who are of the same mind as God and are willing to work with Him, God's work will be carried out on earth—1 Cor. 15:58; 16:10.
B
Our eyes need to be opened to see that God has His limitations and to see how we should cooperate with Him—Matt. 6:10; 18:18-19; 2 Cor. 6:1:
１
God is omnipotent, but His omnipotence is subject to limitations because He must have certain conditions suitable for His working—John 7:17; Matt. 7:21.
２
Man was created with a free will; the limitations of God began at this point—Gen. 1:26:
ａ
In creation God put His almighty power under the limitation of the human will—v. 28; 2:9, 16-17.
ｂ
God wants the human will to be on His side; therefore, He accepts the limitation that this desire entails—John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38; Rom. 12:2-3.
３
As members of Christ's organic, mystical Body, we are either expressing Him or limiting Him—1 Cor. 12:12-13, 18-20, 27:
ａ
The Lord needs to bring us to the point where we have nothing to hinder Him from doing whatever He wills—6:17; Matt. 6:10; 7:21; 12:50; Eph. 1:1, 9; 5:17.
ｂ
Once the Lord has brought us to a place of total responsiveness to Him, He will have a free and unhindered way to accomplish His will; then there will be nothing that God cannot do to carry out His purpose on earth—Matt. 6:10; 26:39, 42; Heb. 13:21.
Morning Nourishment
Matt. 6:10 Your kingdom come; Your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth.1 Cor. 12:27 Now you are the Body of Christ, and members individually.
16:10 Now if Timothy comes, see that he is with you without fear; for he is working the work of the Lord, even as I am.
When God wanted to speak to the children of Israel and to work among them, He first asked Isaiah, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for Us?” (Isa. 6:8). Although God had already decided to speak to the children of Israel and to work in their midst, He had to find someone on earth who would work with Him according to His mind. God is still calling and looking for people. He wants to preach the gospel unto the uttermost part of the earth so that all the nations could receive His salvation (Matt. 28:19; Acts 1:8; 13:47). However, He must first find and gain people on the earth who will cooperate with Him and work with Him according to His mind. As long as there are those who are of the same mind as God and who are willing to work with Him, God’s work will be carried out on the earth by them. If God cannot find such ones on the earth, His desire and plan will remain in heaven, but it will not be carried out or fulfilled on the earth. God can carry out on earth what He has planned in heaven only when He finds people who will cooperate with Him. (CWWL, 1950-1951, vol. 2, “Serving according to Revelation,” p. 231)
Today’s Reading
God is omnipotent, but His omnipotence is subject to limitation because He must have certain conditions suitable for His working. The question is whether or not we are in the position for Him to show forth His power. I know that I cannot help God; I cannot further anything of His. But it is possible that something of me can hinder Him. Sin, unbelief, natural energy, etc., will hinder the very power of God. The Lord has to give us light to see what He can do, and He has to give us light also to see what we can hinder Him from doing. We can put Him into a position where He cannot do what He wants to do. The Creator of heaven and earth can be limited by us. May the Lord search our hearts and deal with us in a drastic way. Is there anything in us that is hindering Him? Are there props in our Christian life? Is there a leaning to sight or feeling or are we walking by faith? Is only God in our lives? He is our life and power, but are there plans, programs, that substitute for Him? Are we trusting Him to bring something out of nothing? Are we trusting Him to bring the dead back to life? He is always the God of resurrection. If we abide in Him, we will see light. It is not by self-examination that we find out what is hindering; it is by being before Him.The Body of Christ is that which expresses Christ….The Body can either be for His expression or His limitation. On earth He moved in a limited body of flesh; today He moves in a spiritual Body—His church—to express and manifest Himself. He is moving within His Body in the Spirit. On earth He manifested Himself in His body, and today He is doing the same. We are the members of this spiritual Body, and we are either being used to express Him or we are limiting Him. It will be a great day when the light dawns and we realize how great our responsibility is. We are the only expression that Christ has. The Body is the way for Him to express Himself. Outside of our bodies, what expression do we have? None. In the same principle we are in the position to give Him a full expression or to limit His expression. For this reason the complete sovereignty of Christ is of supreme importance. In order to bring Him to bear on evil situations in the spiritual world and to express Himself, we must not limit or restrict Him in any way. (CWWN, vol. 46, pp. 1226-1227)
Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 46, ch. 183; CWWL, 1955, vol. 3, “The Central Work of God and Proper Spiritual Experience,” ch. 12