Scripture Reading: Ezek. 1:22, 26-28; 2 Cor. 5:14-15; Rom. 14:7-9; Col. 2:19; S. S. 1:1-4; 2 Cor. 11:2-3

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 8　DAY 1　»

　　Ezek. 1:22 …There was the likeness of an expanse, like the sight of awesome crystal,…over their heads…

　　26 And above the expanse…was the likeness of a throne, like the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was One in appearance like a man, above it.

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

　　Above the heads of the living creatures [in Ezekiel 1:26] is a clear expanse, a clear sky, that is expanding and yet was stable…. Above this clear sky there is a throne. We Christians need to maintain a clear sky with the Lord. This means that we need always to have a clear fellowship with Him. We should have nothing between us and the Lord. When there is nothing between us and the Lord, our sky will be crystal clear, and our conscience will be pure, void of any offense (Acts 24:16).

　　We need to be deeply impressed with the fact that, as Christians, …we need to have a conscience that is without offense. Whenever there is condemnation or an offense on our conscience, our sky immediately becomes cloudy, darkened, and foggy. At such times we should confess our failure and our sin to the Lord and receive His forgiveness and the cleansing of His precious blood (1 John 1:9, 7). This will cleanse our conscience so that it will be void of offense. We will again have a clear sky and a clear fellowship with the Lord, with nothing between us and Him. (Life-study of Ezekiel, pp. 111-112)

　　Whenever we have such a clear sky in our Christian life and in our church life, we will also have the throne, which is above the clear sky (Ezek. 1:26). The throne is the center of the universe, and it is where the Lord is. We often talk about the Lord’s presence, but we need to realize that the Lord’s presence is always with the throne. Where the Lord is, there His throne is. His presence can never be separated from His throne. The Lord’s throne is in the third heaven, but His throne is also in our spirit. Hence, the Lord’s throne is with us all the time.

　　As Christians and as local churches, we all should be under a crystal clear and expansive sky. Above this clear, expansive sky is the throne of the Lord. By having such a clear sky, we are spontaneously under the government of the Lord’s throne. We should always be under the ruling of the Lord’s throne. Because we are under the throne, we do not need policemen and law courts to rule over us.

　　The highest step in the spiritual experience of a Christian is to have the throne in our expanse, in our clear sky. To have the throne, or to arrive at the throne, is to allow God to have the highest and most prominent position in our Christian life. For God to have the throne in us means that He has the position to reign in us. Therefore, to reach the throne in our spiritual experience means that in everything we are completely submissive to God’s authority and administration. Then we are no longer a person without the throne, without authority, without government.

　　A believer who does not have a clear sky with a throne above it can easily be loose and careless in his daily living. On the contrary, a believer who has a sky that is crystal clear has the sense of being under divine government and restraint; therefore, he cannot be loose or careless in anything he says or does. A believer who has a clear sky above him is under an authority which restricts and restrains him in things such as speaking or a display of anger. This authority is a matter of the throne.

　　A sapphire stone signifies a kind of heavenly condition which exists when God is present in a particular situation…. A sapphire stone is blue in color, and blue is a heavenly color indicating the situation and condition of God’s presence. (Life-study of Ezekiel, pp. 112-114, 120)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Judges, msg. 1; Life-study of 1 & 2 Samuel, msg. 6; Life-study of Ezekiel, msgs. 10-12

«　WEEK 8　DAY 2　»

　　2 Cor. 5:9 Therefore also we are determined, whether at home or abroad, to gain the honor of being well pleasing to Him.

　　14-15 For the love of Christ constrains us because we have judged this, that One died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all that those who live may no longer live to themselves but to Him who died for them and has been raised.

　　Why in 2 Corinthians 5:15 does Paul speak of living to the Lord and not living by Him, for Him, or with Him? To answer this question, it will be helpful to read Galatians 2:19: “For I through law have died to law that I might live to God.” Although the phrase live to God is difficult to define, it is rich in its implications….To live to the law means that we are under the law, directed by the law, governed by the law, and have the responsibility to fulfill the law. To live to God, or to the Lord, means that we are under the Lord’s direction and control and that we want to fulfill His requirements, satisfy His desires, and complete what He intends.

　　Worldly people live to themselves. But the love of Christ constrains us to live to Him and not to ourselves. To live to ourselves means that we are under our own control, direction, and governing and that we care for our own aims and goals. This is to live not only for ourselves; it is to live to ourselves. But the apostles, who were ripe and ready for rapture, had the single ambition of pleasing the Lord by living to Him. They were absolutely under the Lord. They were under His direction, control, and governing. Everything they did was to fulfill the Lord’s purpose and desire. As such persons, they did not live to the law, to themselves, or to anything other than the Lord. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, p. 117)

　　Paul did not live to himself or to anything other than his Master, Christ. He was always exercised to do what would please the Lord. He was very different from the rabbis who lived to the law and did everything with a view to the law. As one who was mature, ripe, and ready for the rapture, Paul’s only aim was to please his Master, the very One whose coming he was awaiting. Paul sought to please the Lord not by doing a work, but by living to Him in every aspect of his daily life. Likewise, we today should not seek to please ourselves, but seek to please the Lord by living to Him. All that we do must be to Him. This is the vital matter in this portion of 2 Corinthians 5.

　　In verse 14 Paul explains, “For the love of Christ constrains us because we have judged this, that One died for all, therefore all died.” The love of Christ toward us was made manifest on the cross through His death for us (Gal. 2:20). This love constrains us. Literally, it presses on us from all sides, holding us to one end, forcibly limits, confines us to one object within certain bounds, shuts us up to one line and purpose, as in a narrow, walled road…. In such a way the apostles were constrained by the love of Christ to live to Him. The phrase beause we have judged this means having concluded this, probably at the time of conversion. Paul concluded that because One died for all, therefore all died. Christ’s loving death was the motivating factor of the apostles’ being constrained to live a loving life for Him. Since Christ died as our substitute, suffering the sentence of death on behalf of us all, in the eyes of God we all died. Hence, we do not need to die in the way it is reserved for men to die and face judgment (Heb. 9:27).

　　Christ died on behalf of all so that we may no longer live to ourselves but to Him. Christ’s death not only saves us from death so that we do not need to die, but it also causes us, through His resurrection, to live no longer to ourselves, but to Him. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, pp. 118, 120)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1967, vol. 2, “An Autobiography of a Person in the Spirit,” ch. 6; CWWL, 1991-1992, vol. 1, “The Central Line of the Divine Revelation,” ch. 1

«　WEEK 8　DAY 3　»

　　Col. 1:18 And He is the Head of the Body, the church; He is the beginning, the Firstborn from the dead, that He Himself might have the first place in all things.

　　2:19 And…holding the Head, out from whom all the Body, being richly supplied and knit together by means of the joints and sinews, grows with the growth of God.

　　In the divine economy Christ is the One having the preeminence in all things. The book of Colossians reveals that Christ is preeminent, that He has the first place in everything [Col. 1:18]…. Both in the first creation and in the new creation Christ occupies the first place….We need to see that in the divine economy Christ occupies the first place, the place of preeminence, in both the old creation and the new creation. Both in the universe and in the church Christ is the preeminent One. If we see this as a vision, not as a mere doctrine, our living and our church life will be revolutionized. We shall realize that in all things Christ must be the first. He must be the first in our married life, family life, business life, and school life. He must have the preeminence in the universe, in the church, and in every aspect of our daily living. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 260)

　　God’s eternal intention is to head up all things in Christ, who has been appointed to be the universal Head….One by one, God rescues His people from the heap caused by the universal collapse…and [places] us under the unique Head, Christ. Because of the angelic rebellion and the human rebellion, none of the created beings is under any head. There is simply no headship in the universe. But Ephesians 1:10 says that all things are to be headed up in Christ….God… is working to bring every item in the universal collapse back to the headship of Christ.

　　The first step is for God to bring His chosen ones, His sons, out of the collapse and to place them under the headship of Christ….Thus, the church life must be a life of being headed up. In the church life it is God’s chosen ones, not the world leaders, the unbelievers, or the animals, that are being headed up. God is heading up all His chosen ones to be the Body of Christ with Christ as the Head. Eventually, this Body with Christ as the Head will be the universal Head over all things. Today we in the church are taking the lead to be headed up in Christ. If we are not willing to be headed up in the church life, we shall delay the heading up of all things. In fact, God will not have a way to accomplish the heading up of all things in Christ if we, the chosen ones, are not willing to be headed up. It is important to see that the heading up in the church is a matter in life….To head up all things in the church without the growth in life is simply to have an organization. The proper heading up is the growing of life. The more you grow in life, the more life you will have, the more heading up there will be, and the more you will be rescued from the heap of collapse. (Life-study of Ephesians, pp. 76-77, 79)

　　Christ is the Head, and we are the members. Colossians 2:19 reminds us that we must hold the Head, “out from whom all the Body, being richly supplied and knit together by means of the joints and sinews, grows with the growth of God.” To hold the Head means that there is direct communication between us and Him. There is no separation between Him and all the members. The members correspond to whatever the Head ministers. The result of this correspondence is the growth in life. By holding the Head, there is an inward growth, not an outward move. In this close communication between the Head and the members, all His riches are ministered into the members, and all the negative things are swallowed up by the supply of life from the Head. (CWWL, 1980, vol. 2, “The Heavenly Ministry of Christ,” p. 97)

　　Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msgs. 24, 31; Life-study of Ephesians, msgs. 8, 32, 35, 69; CWWL, 1980, vol. 2, “The Heavenly Ministry of Christ,” chs. 1, 5

«　WEEK 8　DAY 4　»

　　Eph. 1:10 Unto the economy of the fullness of the times, to head up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth, in Him.

　　22-23 And He subjected all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, which is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all.

　　Through all the dispensations of God in all the ages, all things will be headed up in Christ in the new heaven and new earth. This will be God’s eternal administration and economy. God gave Christ to be the Head over all things to the church. The little word to [in Ephesians 1:22] implies transmission. It indicates that Christ’s headship is being transmitted to the church. (Life-study of Ephesians, pp. 73-74)

　　The church can share the headship of Christ because the church is the Body of Christ. The King is not just the Head, but the Head with the Body. Christ is not only the Head but also the Body (1 Cor. 12:12). Because the church is the Body and because Christ is both the Head and the Body, we may say that, in a sense, we, the Body, are also Christ. Although we are not the Head, we can share Christ’s headship. We are the Body of the Head, and the Head is the head over all things. We are not only head over insects, cats, and dogs but also over presidents, kings, generals, and industrial leaders. We are over them all. (Life-study of Ephesians, p. 74)

　　The Triune God’s threefold dispensing is included in the transmission of the transcending Christ and is completed and consummated in the all-inclusive transmission of the transcending Christ. Such an all-inclusive transmission brings us into union not only with the incarnated and crucified Christ but also with the resurrected and transcending Christ. In union with this transcending Christ, we have surpassed all the negative things and transcended them all. The incarnated and crucified Christ has brought God to man and has accomplished an eternal redemption for us. But the power of Hades and the rule, authority, power, and lordship in the air are still the frustration to the God-chosen people in their participation in what Christ has done for them in His new covenant. Through His resurrection and ascension, Christ has conquered the power of Hades and surpassed and transcended all the power of darkness in the air. In union with such a Christ, we are participating all the time in all His success in His resurrection and ascension. (CWWL, 1993, vol. 2, “The Issue of the Dispensing of the Processed Trinity and the Transmitting of the Transcending Christ,” p. 526)

　　We need to be strengthened with power through His Spirit into the inner man [Eph. 3:16]. This word into indicates transmission. You are receiving the divine transmission of this fourfold power, the resurrection power, transcending power, subduing power, and overruling [heading-up] power. In Ephesians 1 this power was toward us, but in chapter 3 the strengthening is with this power into our spirit, into our inner man. This power for the strengthening is not only within us but also in the heavens being transmitted into us.

　　The issue of this strengthening is “that Christ may make His home in your hearts” (v. 17). Not only is Christ in our spirit, but also, as a person, He must inhabit our whole inward being, our heart….Christ will take over our entire inward being. When we are strengthened into our inner man, into our spirit, it will be easy for Christ as the indwelling Spirit to saturate every inward part of our being. It will be easy for Christ as the indwelling Spirit to take over our mind, our emotion, and our will. Then Christ can settle down in our being, making His home in our hearts. (CWWL, 1970, vol. 2, “The Two Greatest Prayers of the Apostle Paul,” p. 414)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1993, vol. 2, “The Issue of the Dispensing of the Processed Trinity and the Transmitting of the Transcending Christ,” chs. 4-6

«　WEEK 8　DAY 5　»

　　S. S. 1:2-4 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine. Your anointing oils have a pleasant fragrance; your name is like ointment poured forth; therefore the virgins love you. Draw me; we will run after you—the king has brought me into his chambers—we will be glad and rejoice in you; we will extol your love more than wine. Rightly do they love you.

　　[In Song of Songs 1] the seeker longs for kisses, not just one kiss [v. 2a]. The most impressive thing about weddings in the Western world is the time of kissing. The bridegroom opens the bride’s veil to kiss her with his own mouth. He does not kiss the ears or the nose of the bride but her mouth. This is the most personal and affectionate thing….This is what it means to pursue Christ.

　　According to the New Testament, God’s ordained way for man to receive Him in this kind of personal and affectionate way is first to believe in Him. To believe in Him is to receive Him as the divine life into us so that we may have an organic union with God in the divine life.

　　Now that we have received Christ into us, what does God want us to do?…According to the New Testament, after we believe in Christ, after we receive Him as the divine life into us, we have to love Him [cf. 1 Cor. 2:9]. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 3, “Crystallization-study of Song of Songs,” pp. 255-256)

　　The seeker goes on to say, “Your love is better than wine” (S. S. 1:2b)….No wine can compare with His unrivaled love. Nothing is so cheering as Christ’s love.

　　Verse 3 says, “…Your name is like ointment poured forth; / Therefore the virgins love you.” Christ’s name signifies Christ’s person, His being, and Christ is the compound Spirit signified by the anointing ointment in Exodus 30…(1 Cor. 15:45b). This indicates that Christ’s name as His person is the anointing ointment….Christ is compounded with God, with man, with His death, with the effectiveness of His death, with His resurrection, and with the power of His resurrection. At least these six things are compounded together to be the anointing ointment, signifying Christ in His resurrection as the compound Spirit. If someone says your name, you respond because you are the person of that name. Christ’s charming name, His person, is the all-inclusive compound Spirit. His love is attracting, His name is charming, and His person is captivating. He has drawn and captivated millions of His lovers to pursue after Him and is still doing the same today.

　　After you have received Christ as your life, you must have a very personal seeking after Christ. No one can represent you or do anything for you in this matter…. Every believer’s relationship with Christ must be personal and affectionate.

　　The seeker said, “Draw me” [S. S. 1:4]. She did not say, “Draw us.”…We want a drawing from the Lord that is His personal and affectionate doing. We want Him to be with us in a personal and affectionate way. All the religions, including Christianity, …portray God merely as great, almighty, sovereign, majestic, and even unapproachable; no one can or even dares to touch God. To say that God is majestic is not wrong, but that is only one attribute of the Divine Being. Regardless of how great, sovereign, almighty, and majestic God is, when He wanted to build up His relationship with man, He took the personal, affectionate way. He took the way of becoming a man.

　　We all need to take heed to what the seeker says: “Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!”…”Your love is better than wine.”…”Draw me; we will run after you.”…We need this kind of personal and affectionate seeking after Him, and we need to build up such a relationship with Him that is so personal and affectionate. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 3, “Crystallization-study of Song of Songs,” pp. 256-258, 260)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Joshua, msg. 9; CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 3, “Crystallization-study of Song of Songs,” chs. 1-2; CWWL, 1991-1992, vol. 2, “The Christian Life,” ch. 15

«　WEEK 8　DAY 6　»

　　S. S. 1:4 Draw me; we will run after you—the king has brought me into his chambers—we will be glad and rejoice in you; we will extol your love more than wine. Rightly do they love you.

　　1 Cor. 15:45 …”The first man, Adam, became a living soul”; the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.

　　In saving us and in building up a relationship with us, God came to visit us personally and affectionately. How personal and affectionate Jesus was in the Gospels! But this was His visitation to His chosen people in the physical life. He was a man physically but was not yet the Spirit.

　　Through His death and in His resurrection He became “another kind of Jesus.” He was no longer physical, because He became a life-giving Christ, a life-giving Spirit.

　　When Christ was in the flesh, He could visit His disciples outwardly and openly, but there was no possibility for Him to visit His disciples inwardly and privately. Today Christ visits us privately and spiritually because He is the life-giving, compound, consummated, all-inclusive Spirit. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 3, “Crystallization-study of Song of Songs,” p. 263)