Outline
Ⅱ
The believers are symbolized by the good seed, the sons of the kingdom who are sown by the Lord to grow in His kingdom—Matt. 13:24, 38:
A
The seed is the word of God (vv. 4, 19; Luke 8:11), Christ Himself (1 Pet. 1:23), sown into us to make us the good seed, the sons of the resurrection (Matt. 13:38; Luke 20:36-38).
B
The word of God as a grain of wheat dispenses God as life into us to nourish us; also, the word as fire burns us and many of the things in which we have confidence, and the word as a hammer breaks down our self, our natural life, our flesh, our lusts, and our concepts—Jer. 23:28-29.
C
As the good seed, we must follow the Lord into the ground to die and bear much fruit in resurrection; to die and experience the cross is to deny and reject our soul-life, our natural life, to live by the divine life—John 12:23-26, 31-32.
D
The sowing of the good seed is martyrdom, for "what you sow is not made alive unless it dies" (1 Cor. 15:36); we can be martyrs physically, psychologically, or spiritually (2 Tim. 4:6; Matt. 16:25; 1 Cor. 16:12; 2 Cor. 2:12-14).
E
Christ's love of affection constrains us to live and die to Him and makes us martyrs for Him—5:14-15; Rom. 8:35-37; 14:7-9; Rev. 2:10; 12:11.
F
The putting to death of Jesus in our environment cooperates with the indwelling Spirit to kill our natural man and release the divine life—Rom. 8:2, 13; 2 Cor. 4:10-13; Jer. 48:11.
G
All our service to the Lord must originate from God, not from ourselves, as we allow His death to operate in us so that His resurrection life can be imparted through us into others—2 Cor. 4:12-13; 1:8-9; 4:5; 10:13:
１
David loved God, feared God, and cooperated with God in order to let God work; although he had the ability to build the temple of God, he stopped when God's word came to him—2 Sam. 7:18, 25, 27; cf. Luke 1:38.
２
David's stopping established a twofold testimony in the universe: first, all the work in this universe should come from God, not from man; second, all that matters is what God does for man, not what man does for God.
３
The builder of the temple and the site of the temple both came out of David's being forgiven of his sins, out of what God did for David—2 Sam. 12:24-25; 24:1-10, 18-25; 1 Chron. 21:18; 2 Chron. 3:1; Psa. 51.
４
Sister M. E. Barber said, "Whoever cannot stop working for the sake of God cannot work for the sake of God."
Ⅲ
The believers are the salt of the earth, those who kill and eliminate the earth's germs of corruption and rottenness—Matt. 5:13; cf. Lev. 2:13:
A
Lot's wife became a pillar of salt and lost her salting function because she took a lingering look backward at Sodom, indicating that she loved and treasured the evil world that God was going to destroy—Gen. 19:15, 24-26; Luke 17:32.
B
To make a career of following the Lord, we must give all we have and all we can do to it; otherwise, we will be a failure, becoming the tasteless salt and being thrown out of the glorious realm into a sphere of shame—14:31-35; cf. Rev. 3:21; John 16:33.
C
We should not be disappointed or discouraged but strengthened and enabled to live out the divine economy by the processed and consummated Triune God as the all-sufficient grace—1 Cor. 15:10; 2 Cor. 12:9; 2 Tim. 4:22; Col. 4:6.
Morning Nourishment
Matt. 13:24 Another parable He set before them, saying, The kingdom of the heavens has become like a man sowing good seed in his field.38 And the field is the world; and the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom…
[David] was zealous to build a temple for God (2 Sam. 7:1-3)…His desire to care for God and love God was accepted by God, but his intention and determination to build a house were rejected by God, who immediately sent Nathan the prophet to David to ask, “Is it you who will build Me a house for Me to dwell in?” (v. 5). God rejected David’s good intention.
No matter related to our service to God should be determined by us. It is right for us to love God, but God does not want us to think about doing something for Him. Our heart to serve Him is acceptable, but our decision to do something for Him is not acceptable. God said, “Is it you…?”…It was not up to David to decide whether or not to build the temple…God replied to David, “Jehovah declares to you that Jehovah will make you a house” (v. 11), as if to say, “David, you do not know what you are saying when you speak of building Me a house. It is I who will build you a house.” (CWWL, 1953, vol. 1, “Knowing Life and the Church,” p. 282)
Today’s Reading
David was one who truly feared God. He was not like some Christians today who build a “church” whenever they please. Such people think that as long as they have money and a heart, they can do what they want when they want. In David, however, we see one who feared God. Although he had the opportunity, saw the need, and had the ability to build the temple for God, he stopped…If something is initiated by man, God will say, “Slow down.” When man’s initiation ceases, God initiates and gives a command.When we read the Bible, we must see the light in [this] example. In the matter of service, no one can initiate anything for God. There is no limit to how much we should love God or turn our heart toward Him. What God demands of us is our love and our heart, but we cannot overstep the boundaries…God is the One who decides, and we must wait. When He gives a command, we can work. We should love God and wait for His command; we should seek His will and wait for His revelation. Just as the slaves in the Old Testament loved their masters and allowed their ears to be bored through with an awl to a doorpost, we must focus on waiting for our Master’s command (Exo. 21:6).
The confusion in Christianity is not caused by lukewarm ones but by zealous ones. Out of their zeal for God, they build one chapel after another; out of their love for God, they establish one school after another…It is right to love God, but in spite of a proper love for God, many Christians are walking on the wrong way. We should only love God; we should not initiate anything for God.
I truly admire David’s condition before God. If David did not fear God… he might have thought, “What are you talking about? I am in the palace; I have both money and authority. There is a need, and I want to cooperate by taking action. Is this not God’s will?”…Because David feared God, however, he did not react to Nathan; rather, he stopped. It is not a small thing to stop.
Sister M. E. Barber said, “Whoever cannot stop working for the sake of God cannot work for the sake of God.”…David knew that God needed a temple, but when God’s word came to him, he immediately stopped his work…The ability of David not to work for God shows his spirituality. If we were David, could we have stopped? Opportunities will come, but God’s word may also come, saying, “Do not do anything. Slow down. Change your plan. Only My decision counts.” Many who are zealous for God cannot hear such a word. This is the reason many workers of God cannot work for God. May God open our eyes. (CWWL, 1953, vol. 1, “Knowing Life and the Church,” pp. 282-284)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1991-1992, vol. 4, “The Overcomers,” chs. 2—3