Scripture Reading: Ezek. 40:4; 43:7a, 10-12; 44:4; 48:35b
Ⅰ
God's building is the desire of God's heart and the goal of God's salvation—Eph. 1:5, 9; Exo. 25:8; 40:2-3:
A
The central and divine thought of the Scriptures is that God is seeking a divine building as the mingling of Himself with humanity; He is seeking a living composition of living persons redeemed by and mingled with Himself—John 14:20; 1 John 4:15:
１
The principle of God's building is that God builds Himself into man and builds man into Himself; God mingling with man is God building Himself into man, and man mingling with God is man being built into God—Eph. 3:17a.
２
God intends to have a building in which God is built into man and man is built into God so that God and man, man and God, can be a mutual abode to each other—John 15:4a; Rev. 21:2-3, 22.
B
Whatever God is doing today—in preaching the gospel, in edifying the saints, and in establishing churches—is part of His building work; these activities are part of God's main work, the work of building—Matt. 16:18; Eph. 2:21-22.
Ⅱ
The book of Ezekiel begins with a vision of the appearance of the glory of the Lord and ends with a vision of the holy building of God; this indicates that God's goal is the building and that the glory of the Lord, the judgment of God, and the recovery of the Lord are all for the holy building of God—40:1—48:35:
A
In Ezekiel 40—48, a section on God's building, three main things are covered: the holy temple, the holy city, and the holy land:
１
The recovery of the land signifies the recovery of the experience and enjoyment of the riches of Christ; once the land has been recovered, the temple can be built on the land.
２
The temple is God's house for His rest, and the city is God's kingdom for His authority—48:35b:
ａ
The temple signifies the fellowship of God, and the city signifies the government of God.
ｂ
In the temple God has fellowship with His people, and in the city God reigns among His people.
B
The vision of God's building in Ezekiel describes the place where God dwells—His holy temple; if we want to meet God, we need to know His particular place, His exact location—41:1; 48:35b.
C
In Ezekiel, the altar is the center of the whole compound of the building of God; when we come to the altar at the center of God's building, we experience the cross in a particular way—40:47; 43:13-27.
D
Ezekiel saw the glory of the Lord coming back to the house of the Lord; the glory could return only after the building of the temple was completed—44:4.
E
"This is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever"—43:7a:
１
The Lord's throne is for His administration, and the soles of the Lord's feet are for His move on earth.
２
Apart from the temple as the place of His throne and the place of the soles of His feet, the Lord has no base for His administration and for His move on earth.
Ⅲ
The Lord instructed Ezekiel to describe God's house to God's people—40:4; 43:10-12:
A
It was God's intention to check the living and conduct of the people of Israel by the house; in the book of Ezekiel, God measured His people by the temple:
１
Because the house of God was to be their regulation, God charged Ezekiel to show them the form of the house.
２
The temple of God is a pattern, and if the people examine themselves in light of this pattern, they will know their shortcomings—v. 11; 41:16-20.
３
The living of the people must match the temple of God—1 Cor. 3:16-17.
B
We need to see from the book of Ezekiel that the requirements of the indwelling Christ are according to His house; everyone must be measured and checked according to the measurement of God's house—43:10:
１
Our behavior and conduct should be examined not only according to moral regulations and spiritual principles but also according to the church, the house of God—1 Tim. 3:15-16.
２
Our main concern should not be with behaving ourselves or with becoming spiritual but with fitting into God's house—1 Cor. 14:12.
３
If what we are and what we do cannot match God's building, it amounts to nothing in the sight of God—Eph. 4:16; 1 Cor. 8:1b; 12:28—13:3; 16:14.
４
The Body life is the greatest test of our spirituality; if we cannot pass the test of the Body life, our spirituality is not genuine—12:23-27.
５
Spirituality is a Body matter; everything we have is in the Body, through the Body, and for the Body—Eph. 4:16.