Scripture Reading: Rev. 4:2-3; 22:1-5; 21:23; Ezek. 1:22, 26-28
Ⅰ
The Lamb-God is on the throne within the city—Rev. 4:2-3; 22:1-5; 21:23:
A
The throne of God and of the Lamb shows that there is one throne for both God and the Lamb, indicating that God and the Lamb are one—the Lamb-God, the redeeming God, God the Redeemer—22:1; 4:2-3.
B
In eternity the very God who sits on the throne is our redeeming God, from whose throne proceeds the river of water of life for our supply and satisfaction.
C
This depicts how the Triune God—God, the Lamb, and the Spirit, who is symbolized by the water of life—dispenses Himself into His redeemed under His headship (implied in the authority of the throne) for eternity.
Ⅱ
The throne is the center of our Christian life:
A
In our daily life, in our family life, in our marriage life, in our business life, and in our church life, the center must be God’s throne; everything should be subjected to His headship.
B
Every morning after rising up, we need to say, “Lord, thank You for a new day for me to take You as my Lord. I subject myself under Your headship for the whole day. Lord, set up Your throne in my life. Set up Your throne in the center of my being. Lord, bring my whole day with my daily life under Your throne”; if we would offer such a prayer to the Triune God every morning, from that moment we would have the living water flowing within us.
C
In our experience, whenever we subject ourselves to the Triune God, taking Him as our Head, we enjoy a flow within us; the river flows with the God who purposed, with the Lamb who redeemed, and with the Spirit who is now the all-inclusive, processed, life-giving Spirit.
D
Under His headship we enjoy the flow of life with the supply of life and the way of life; in the flow of life we serve Him, we see Him, and we reign with Him—22:2-5.
Ⅲ
Ezekiel 1 reveals that the highest point in our spiritual experience is having a clear sky with God’s throne above it; to reach this point means that in everything we allow God to have the preeminence and are completely submissive to His authority and administration—vv. 22, 26:
A
The spiritual sky over the heads of the living creatures is crystal clear, like a great expanse of awesome crystal; furthermore, this sky is expanding and is as stable, unchanging, as crystal—v. 22.
B
In such a situation, there is nothing between us and God and nothing between us and one another; we have a thorough and clear fellowship with the Lord and with one another.
C
This requires the maintaining of a pure conscience without any offense toward God and men; the story of our sky is the story of our conscience—Acts 24:16.
D
The throne is Christ’s ruling presence:
１
The Lord’s presence is always with His throne; the Lord’s throne is both in the third heaven and in our spirit—Rev. 4:2-3; Heb. 4:16; cf. 2 Tim. 4:22:
ａ
The very Christ who is sitting on the throne in heaven (Rom. 8:34) is also now in us (v. 10), that is, in our spirit (2 Tim. 4:22), where the habitation of God is.
ｂ
At Bethel, the house of God, the habitation of God, which is the gate of heaven, Christ is the ladder that joins earth to heaven and brings heaven to earth—Gen. 28:12-17; John 1:51.
ｃ
Since today our spirit is the place of God’s habitation, it is now the gate of heaven, where Christ is the ladder that joins us, the people on earth, to heaven, and brings heaven to us.
ｄ
Hence, whenever we turn to our spirit, we enter through the gate of heaven and touch the throne of grace in heaven through Christ as the heavenly ladder.
２
The throne above the crystal clear expanse indicates that whenever we have a clear sky in our Christian life and in our church life, we will be under the ruling of the throne; the authority in the church is the throne above the clear sky.
３
The throne is not only for God to reign over us but also for God to accomplish His eternal purpose; if we have the throne in our spiritual life, God will not only rule over us but will also fulfill His purpose in us, with us, and through us—Rom. 5:17, 21; cf. Matt. 28:18-20.
４
The throne has the appearance of a sapphire stone; a sapphire stone, which is blue in color, signifies the heavenly situation, condition, and atmosphere of Christ’s ruling presence—Exo. 24:10.
Ⅳ
Ezekiel 1 reveals that the One on the throne looks like a man, yet with Him there is the appearance of the glory of Jehovah, indicating that the One sitting on the throne is both God and man; this is Jesus Christ, the God-man, the mingling of God and man—vv. 26, 28:
A
Jesus Christ was the complete God, and He was incarnated to be a man; having the nature of man, He lived, died, resurrected, and ascended as a man, and now as the One on the throne, He is still the Son of Man—John 1:1, 14; 6:62; Acts 7:56, 59-60.
B
Hence, since the ascension of the Lord Jesus there has been a man on the throne; in the millennium and in the new heaven and new earth for eternity, there will still be a man on the throne—Matt. 19:28; Rev. 22:1, 3.
C
God’s mysterious intention in His relationship with man is to mingle Himself with man and thereby to become the same as man and make man the same as He is in life, in nature, and in expression but not in the Godhead; man was created in the image of God to express God and to rule for God—Gen. 1:26-28; cf. Isa. 14:12-14:
１
The One on the throne and the four living creatures both have the appearance of a man, indicating that the four living creatures on earth are the expression of the One on the throne; this expression is the manifestation of God in humanity—Ezek. 1:5; 1 Tim. 3:15-16.
２
God in heaven desires to gain man on earth for His expression by working Himself into man; furthermore, God’s intention is to work on man in order that man will be on the throne—Eph. 3:16-21; Rev. 3:21; 5:10; 20:4; 22:5; Matt. 19:28.
３
As the Pioneer, the Forerunner, the Lord Jesus cut the way to enter into glory and sit on the throne, and we, His many brothers, are now following Him—Heb. 2:6-12; Rev. 3:21; 22:5.
Ⅴ
Ezekiel 1 says that the appearance of the man on the throne has two aspects: from His loins upward He has the appearance of electrum, and from His loins downward, the appearance of fire—v. 27:
A
The electrum is a glowing metal, a mixture of gold and silver; gold signifies the nature of God, and silver signifies redemption; thus, the electrum, composed of the elements of gold and silver, signifies the Lamb-God, the redeeming God—v. 4.
B
The upper part of a man, from his loins to his head, is the part of feeling, of sensation, signifying his nature and disposition; according to His nature and disposition the Lord Jesus on the throne has the appearance of electrum, signifying the redeeming God.
C
The lower part of a man’s body is for moving; the appearance of fire from the loins downward signifies the Lord’s appearance in His move with God’s burning and sanctifying power.
D
When the Lord comes to us, He comes as fire to enlighten, search, and burn; then through the fire He becomes the glowing electrum to us, and we are filled with the radiant expression of the redeeming God.
E
After all the negative things have been burned out of us by the Lord as the consuming fire (Heb. 12:29), what will remain in us is the electrum, the redeeming God.
Ⅵ
Ezekiel 1 says that there is a rainbow as the brightness around the man who is sitting on the throne, signifying the splendor and glory around the Lord on the throne—v. 28; Rev. 4:3:
A
At Noah’s time the rainbow in the cloud was a sign of God’s faithfulness in keeping His covenant with man and every living creature, signifying that He would never again destroy mankind with a flood—Gen. 9:13.
B
A rainbow can be considered as being produced from three basic colors—red, yellow, and blue: red, the color of fire, refers to God’s holiness; yellow, the color of electrum, signifies God’s glory; and blue, the color of the sapphire throne, signifies God’s righteousness—Psa. 89:14:
１
God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory are three divine attributes that keep sinners away from God—Gen. 3:24.
２
However, Christ came, died on the cross to satisfy the requirements of God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory, and was resurrected, and He is now our righteousness, holiness, and glory—1 Cor. 1:30.
３
Because we, the believers, are now in Christ, in the sight of God we bear the appearance of Christ as righteousness, holiness, and glory; this is the appearance of a rainbow as a testimony of God’s faithfulness in sparing us and saving us, the fallen ones, from His judgment on sinners.
４
In the New Jerusalem, a city whose foundations have the appearance of a rainbow (Rev. 21:19-20), we, the aggregate of the saved ones, will be a rainbow reflecting the brightness of God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory and testifying forever that God is righteous and faithful.
５
As portrayed in Ezekiel 1, the Christian life and the church life will consummate in such a rainbow; at that point God’s eternal plan will have been accomplished.