Ⅱ
We have to realize what the Lord’s recovery is; the Lord’s recovery is to build up Zion—Rev. 14:1; Eph. 4:16; Rev. 21:2, 9-10:
A
The characteristics, the life, the blessing, and the establishment of Jerusalem come from Zion—1 Kings 8:1; Psa. 51:18; 102:21; 128:5; 135:21; Isa. 41:27; Joel 3:17.
B
In the book of Revelation what the Lord wants and what the Lord will build up is Zion, the overcomers; this is the intrinsic reality of the spiritual revelation in the holy Word of God; we surely need to be desperate to pray at any cost and to pay the cost just as the apostle Paul did—2:7, 11, 17, 26-28; 3:5, 12, 20-21; Col. 4:2; Phil. 3:8-14.
C
Our response to the Lord’s calling of the overcomers in this age is for us to be vitalized; to be vital is to be living and active in oneness with our living and acting God; God’s move on the earth for the accomplishment of His eternal economy is ultimately through the overcomers—Dan. 11:32; Heb. 3:12; 9:14; cf. Rev. 3:1.
D
The overcomers, who are typified by Zion, are the beachhead through which the Lord as the King of glory will return to possess the whole earth as His kingdom—Psa. 24:1, 3, 7-10; Dan. 2:34-35; 7:13-14; Joel 3:11; Rev. 11:15; 19:13-14.
E
There is no other way to reach the high peak of God’s eternal economy, the reality of the Body of Christ, except by praying; our becoming the overcomers as the reality of the Body of Christ to be the bride of Christ will close this age, the age of the church, and will bring Christ as the King of glory back to take, possess, and rule over this earth with His overcomers in the kingdom age—vv. 7-9; 20:4, 6; Psa. 24:7-10.
Morning Nourishment
Psa. 24:7 Lift up your heads, O gates; and be lifted up, O long enduring doors; and the King of glory will come in.Rev. 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, then I will come in to him and dine with him and he with Me.
Psalm 24:3 asks, “Who may ascend the mountain of Jehovah, / And who may stand in His holy place?” The answer is, Christ and His brothers. The church is a mountain that is occupied by the Lord today as the very steppingstone, the beachhead, for the Lord to come back. The earth is the Lord’s, but today the earth is usurped; yet in this usurped earth there is a spot, a mountain, that is the steppingstone for the Lord to return to take the whole earth.
As the mountain of Zion, we must have our doors open that Christ may come in [cf. v. 7]... At the occasion of David’s returning the Ark to Zion,... David wrote Psalm 24. Zion was there, and the gates and doors were there... The Ark was the type of Christ. The Ark coming in typified Christ coming in. (CWWL, 1969, vol. 3, “Christ and the Church Revealed and Typified in the Psalms,” pp. 45-46)
Today’s Reading
Revelation 3:20... indicates that even some of the local churches shut the Lord Jesus outside. Do not imagine that as long as we are the local church, the Lord Jesus is among us. In a sense He is, but in another sense He may be shut out. Even today, while we are enjoying the Lord’s presence so much, we still must say, “Lift up your heads, O gates; / And be lifted up, O long enduring doors” [Psa. 24:7]. We all must be so open to the Lord. If Christ could not come in to the church today in an adequate and fuller way, how could Christ come back to the earth? If the church, if Zion, is not absolutely open to Him, how can we expect the earth to be open to Him? So today we must respond and say, “Yes, open the doors; let us all open widely to Him. Come in, O come in, Lord! Before You come back to the earth, come in to the church, come in to fully possess this little mountain, the mountain of Zion.” (CWWL, 1969, vol. 3, “Christ and the Church Revealed and Typified in the Psalms,” p. 46)We all have to endeavor to reach this high peak. If you think it is too hard to reach this high peak and that the price to pay is too high, be prepared. In the next age the price will be higher. Sooner or later, you have to be made God, either in the church age or in the coming kingdom age... The New Jerusalem is the God-men who have been transformed, glorified, and mingled with the processed and consummated Triune God. The holy city will be a mingling to be God’s increase and expression for eternity. We will enjoy and participate in this divine mingling for eternity.
We surely need to be desperate to pray at any cost and to pay the cost just as the apostle Paul did. There is no other way to reach this high peak except by praying. It is more than evident that Jerusalem is here as a big realm of Christians, but where is Zion, the overcomers? In the book of Revelation what the Lord wants and what the Lord will build up is Zion, the overcomers. The overcomers are the very Zion, where God is. This is the intrinsic reality of the spiritual revelation in the holy Word of God. We have to realize what the Lord’s recovery is. The Lord’s recovery is to build up Zion. Paul’s writings unveil this to the uttermost.
Paul said that all run in the race, but only one receives the prize. Then he said that we should run in such a way to receive the reward (1 Cor. 9:24). At the end of Paul’s life he said that he had fought the good fight, finished the course, and kept the faith. He testified that there was a crown of righteousness prepared for him (2 Tim. 4:7-8). I hope that when we end this life, we could say that we have done the same thing. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 1, “The Practical Points concerning Blending,” pp. 139-140)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1969, vol. 3, “Christ and the Church Revealed and Typified in the Psalms,” ch. 5