F
If we would enter, possess, and enjoy the all-inclusive Christ as the reality of the good land, we must do so by the presence of the Lord; the Lord promised Moses, "My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest" (Exo. 33:14); God's presence is His way, the "map" that shows His people the way they should take:
１
In order to fully gain and possess Christ as the all-inclusive land for God's building, we must hold on to the principle that God's presence is the criterion for every matter; regardless of what we do, we must pay attention to whether or not we have God's presence; if we have God's presence, we have everything, but if we lose God's presence, we lose everything—Matt. 1:23; 2 Tim. 4:22; Gal. 6:18; Psa. 27:4, 8; 51:11.
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The presence of the Lord, the smile of the Lord, is the governing principle; we must learn to be kept, to be ruled, to be governed, and to be guided by the direct, firsthand presence of the Lord—27:8; 80:3, 7, 17-19.
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As a representative of the reigning aspect of a mature life, Joseph enjoyed the presence of the Lord, and with it the Lord's authority, prosperity, and blessing—Gen. 39:2-5, 21; Acts 7:9.
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Moses was a person very near to God's heart and according to God's heart; hence, he had God's presence to a full extent—Exo. 33:11.
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The apostle Paul was one who lived and acted in the presence of Christ according to the index of His whole person expressed in His eyes—2 Cor. 2:10.
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"In my youth I was taught various ways to overcome, to be victorious, to be holy, and to be spiritual. However, not any of these ways worked...Nothing works but the Lord's presence. His being with us is everything"—Life-study of Joshua, 2nd ed., p. 50.
G
The entire New Testament is an Emmanuel, and we are now a part of this great Emmanuel that will consummate in the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and new earth for eternity; the New Testament begins with a God-man, who is "God with us," and ends with a great God-man, the New Jerusalem, which is "Jehovah Is There"—Matt. 1:23; 1 Cor. 6:17; Acts 9:4; 1 Tim. 3:15-16; Rev. 21:3, 22; Ezek. 48:35.
Morning Nourishment
Exo. 33:14 And He said, My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest.Psa. 27:8 When You say, Seek My face, to You my heart says, Your face ,
O Jehovah, will I seek.
Christ is God with us [Matt. 1:23]. This is revealed not only in Matthew 1 but also in Matthew 28, where the Lord Jesus said, “Behold, I am with you all the days until the consummation of the age” (v. 20). Actually, the entire New Testament is an Immanuel, and we are now a part of this great Immanuel that will consummate in the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and new earth for eternity. (Life-study of Isaiah, 2nd ed., pp. 53-54)
Today’s Reading
If we would go on to possess [Christ as the reality of the good land], we must do so by the presence of the Lord. If the presence of the Lord goes with us, we can enter and enjoy the land…The Lord promised Moses, “My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest” (Exo. 33:14). This means that He would bring the people into the possession of the land by His presence.This is quite a peculiar word: “My presence shall go.” It does not mean that He will go. He will go is one thing, and My presence shall go is another. Many times the Lord will go with you, but His presence will not. Many times the Lord will truly help you, but be assured, He is not happy with you. You will receive His help, but you will lose His presence. He will bring you to your destination, and He will bless you, but throughout the whole trip you will not sense His presence. Many times in past years while I was serving the Lord, I have realized His help. The Lord is bound to help me; He must help me for His own sake. But I can tell you that many times I did not have the presence of the Lord, simply because He was not happy with me…He went along, but He withheld His presence that I might know His displeasure.
Never think that as long as the Lord helps you, it is sufficient…We must have the Lord’s presence. We must learn to pray, “Lord, if You will not give me Your presence, I will stay here with You. If Your presence does not go with me, I will not go. I will not be governed by Your help but by Your presence.” We must go even further to pray, “O Lord, I do not want Your help, but I do want Your presence. Lord, I must have Your presence. I can do without Your help, but I cannot do without Your presence.”
Although it may be with tears in our eyes, we must say day by day, “Lord, nothing but Your smiling presence will satisfy me. I do not want anything but the smile of Your glorious face. As long as I have this, I care not whether the heaven comes down or the earth falls apart. The whole world may rise against me, but as long as I have Your smile upon me, I can praise You, and everything is well.” The Lord said, “My presence shall go with you.” What a treasure! The presence, the smile, of the Lord is the governing principle. We must be fearful of receiving anything from the Lord yet losing His presence…The Lord Himself may very well give you something, and yet that very thing will rob you of His presence. He will help you, He will bless you, and yet that very help and blessing can keep you away from His presence. We must learn to be kept, to be ruled, to be governed, to be guided simply by the presence of the Lord. We must tell the Lord that we do not want anything but His direct presence. We do not want His presence secondhand. Many times, be assured, you have the secondhand presence of the Lord. It is not firsthand; it is not direct. Try to be governed by the direct, firsthand presence of the Lord. This is not only a requirement and a qualification but also a power for you to go on to possess the land. The firsthand presence of the Lord will strengthen you with might to obtain the fullness, the all-inclusiveness of Christ. What a strength, what a power, is in the direct presence of the Lord! (CWWL, 1961-1962, vol. 4, “The All-inclusive Christ,” pp. 294-296)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1961-1962, vol. 4, “The All-inclusive Christ,” ch. 11