The oneness
of the Body of Christ
is the oneness
in the Triune God,
revealed in the Lord’s prayer
in John 17;
the oneness
of the Body of Christ
is the enlarged oneness
of the Divine Trinity.
The oneness
for which the Lord prayed
in John 17
is the oneness
typified by the tabernacle
in Exodus 26;
because the forty-eight boards
of the tabernacle
typify the believers
built together
to be
the dwelling place of God,
the tabernacle
is a clear picture
of the oneness
in the Triune God:
The first aspect
of the oneness
in the Triune God
is seen with
the three gold rings
(the receptacles
for the uniting bars),
which signify the initial Spirit,
the regenerating and sealing Spirit,
the all-inclusive Spirit
of the Triune God
in resurrection
for the uniting of the believers.
The second aspect
of the oneness
in the Triune God
is seen in
the overlaying of the boards
(signifying the believers
with the human nature)
with gold
(signifying God
with the divine nature):
The oneness
of the boards
of the tabernacle
was not in the acacia wood
but in the gold
that overlaid the wood;
this portrays
that the oneness
in the church
is not in our humanity
but in the Triune God
with His divine nature.
The oneness
of the boards
was not only in the gold,
signifying God,
but also in the shining of the gold,
the expression of the gold,
signifying the glory of God;
our oneness today
is in the Triune God
and in His glory, His shining, His expression.
The initial Spirit,
who is the Triune God
typified by the gold,
is the oneness
of the Spirit;
the overlaying of the gold
is actually the spreading
of the oneness:
The more
we are overlaid with gold,
the more oneness
we have;
the more
we have of God,
the stronger
our oneness is.
Instead of being overlaid with gold,
we may be merely gilded with gold,
like Babylon the Great
in Revelation 17;
the amount of gold
we have
may not be enough
to keep us
in the genuine oneness.
Only when the boards
were adequately overlaid with gold
were they perfected into one;
this indicates
that to be perfected into one
is to gain more of God.
It is
not an easy matter
to acquire enough gold
to thickly overlay
a board of acacia wood
fifteen feet long
and twenty-seven inches wide;
the gold (signifying God)
must be weighty, thick, and sufficient
to support a heavy board
and hold it together
with other boards (the believers).
The oneness is
not in our humanity;
it is
altogether in the Triune God;
to be perfected into one
means to gain more of God.
“Not having
an adequate amount of God
can create a serious problem
with the oneness.
The Lord’s recovery
is not a movement.
We do not desire
to gain a large number of people.
In the recovery
we are concerned for
the genuine weight of gold.
The important question
is this:
How much of God
do you have?
The Lord’s recovery
consists of God
overlaying His recovered people
with Himself”
(Truth Messages, p. 84).
Oneness is
a matter of sinking deeply
into the Triune God
until we
are fully overlaid
with gold;
our problem
is that we
are short of God,
and our need
is to gain
more of Him:
Everything depends upon
how much gold
we have;
we all
can become dissenting
if we are short of gold.
Today
the Lord
needs this genuine oneness;
if we do not have this oneness,
we cannot go on
in the recovery.
The only way
to be kept
in this solid, real oneness
is to have
an adequate amount
of the experienced God.
The golden nature of God
will never overlay
our fallen nature
but will overlay
only our regenerated
and transformed nature,
signified by acacia wood:
The overlaying of gold
occurs simultaneously
with this transformation;
wherever transformation is,
there
the overlaying of the gold
is also.
Transformation
depends upon
our loving the Lord,
our contacting Him,
our listening to His word,
our praying to Him,
and our walking according to the spirit;
as long as we
have these five things,
we are living Christ.
Only when we all
have been transformed
and overlaid with gold
will it no longer be possible
for there
to be dissension
among us;
the only safeguard
is to be overlaid with gold.
The third aspect
of the oneness
in the Triune God
is seen with
the uniting bars,
which held the forty-eight boards together
and brought them
into oneness;
these uniting bars
signify the initial Spirit
becoming the uniting Spirit
to join all the members of Christ
into one Body:
The uniting bars
were made of acacia wood
for connecting strength
and overlaid with gold
for uniting;
that the bars
were made of acacia wood
indicates that the oneness of the Spirit
involves not only Christ’s divinity
but also His humanity.
In actuality,
the uniting bars
signify not the Holy Spirit alone
but the Holy Spirit
mingled with our human spirit
—the mingled spirit,
which includes
both divinity and humanity.
The uniting
of the boards of the tabernacle
involved the passing of the bars
through the rings
on each board
to join the boards together;
this signifies that the believers in Christ
are united
when their spirit
cooperates with the Spirit,
thus allowing the uniting Spirit
to pass through them
to join them
to other believers.
In order for the uniting Spirit
to pass through us
and thus join us with others,
we need to receive the cross,
for the uniting Spirit
always crosses
the standing boards:
We are joined into one
by our spirit
(with our mind, will, and emotion)
cooperating with
the crossing Spirit;
whenever our spirit
is one with the crossing Spirit,
we experience
the uniting Spirit.
The initial Spirit
must become
the uniting Spirit within us;
then
we will have
the oneness and the building
and will be safeguarded
from dissension and division.
“This message
is not the result of
Bible study;
it is
the result of
intense suffering.
Because of this suffering,
I have been greatly exercised
before the Lord
in an attempt
to understand the situation.
Gradually,
the Lord
showed me
that certain dear ones
had nothing
more than the three rings.
With them,
there was
no spreading of the gold
because there was
no transformation.
The reason
there was no transformation
was that in the experience
of these dissenting ones
there was
no dealing of the cross”
(Truth Messages, p. 95).
We are conformed
to Christ’s death
through the power
of His resurrection.
Everything
that we do and say
must be
through the cross
and by the Spirit
to dispense Christ
into others
for the building up
of the Body of Christ.
Hits: 7
7 replies on “The Oneness in the Triune God Typified by the Tabernacle”
Prophecy note, 9 October 2016
The oneness
of the Body of Christ
is the oneness
in the Triune God,
revealed in the Lord’s prayer
in John 17;
the oneness
of the Body of Christ
is the enlarged oneness
of the Divine Trinity.
The oneness
for which the Lord prayed
in John 17
is the oneness
typified by the tabernacle
in Exodus 26;
because the forty-eight boards
of the tabernacle
typify the believers
built together
to be
the dwelling place of God,
the tabernacle
is a clear picture
of the oneness
in the Triune God:
The first aspect
of the oneness
in the Triune God
is seen with
the three gold rings
(the receptacles
for the uniting bars),
which signify the initial Spirit,
the regenerating and sealing Spirit,
the all-inclusive Spirit
of the Triune God
in resurrection
for the uniting of the believers.
The second aspect
of the oneness
in the Triune God
is seen in
the overlaying of the boards
(signifying the believers
with the human nature)
with gold
(signifying God
with the divine nature):
The oneness
of the boards
of the tabernacle
was not in the acacia wood
but in the gold
that overlaid the wood;
this portrays
that the oneness
in the church
is not in our humanity
but in the Triune God
with His divine nature.
The oneness
of the boards
was not only in the gold,
signifying God,
but also in the shining of the gold,
the expression of the gold,
signifying the glory of God;
our oneness today
is in the Triune God
and in His glory, His shining, His expression.
The initial Spirit,
who is the Triune God
typified by the gold,
is the oneness
of the Spirit;
the overlaying of the gold
is actually the spreading
of the oneness:
The more
we are overlaid with gold,
the more oneness
we have;
the more
we have of God,
the stronger
our oneness is.
Instead of being overlaid with gold,
we may be merely gilded with gold,
like Babylon the Great
in Revelation 17;
the amount of gold
we have
may not be enough
to keep us
in the genuine oneness.
Only when the boards
were adequately overlaid with gold
were they perfected
into one;
this indicates
that to be perfected
into one
is to gain
more of God.
It is
not an easy matter
to acquire
enough gold
to thickly overlay
a board of acacia wood
fifteen feet long
and twenty-seven inches wide;
the gold
(signifying God)
must be
weighty, thick, and sufficient
to support
a heavy board
and hold it together
with other boards
(the believers).
The oneness is
not in our humanity;
it is
altogether in the Triune God;
to be perfected
into one
means to gain
more of God.
“Not having
an adequate amount of God
can create
a serious problem
with the oneness.
The Lord’s recovery
is not a movement.
We do not desire
to gain
a large number of people.
In the recovery
we are concerned for
the genuine weight
of gold.
The important question
is this:
How much of God
do you have?
The Lord’s recovery
consists of God
overlaying His recovered people
with Himself”.
Oneness is
a matter of sinking deeply
into the Triune God
until we
are fully overlaid
with gold;
our problem
is that we
are short of God,
and our need
is to gain
more of Him:
Everything depends upon
how much gold
we have;
we all
can become dissenting
if we
are short of gold.
Today
the Lord needs
this genuine oneness;
if we
do not have this oneness,
we cannot go on
in the recovery.
The only way
to be kept
in this solid, real oneness
is to have
an adequate amount
of the experienced God.
The golden nature of God
will never overlay
our fallen nature
but will overlay
only our regenerated
and transformed nature,
signified by
acacia wood:
The overlaying of gold
occurs simultaneously
with this transformation;
wherever transformation is,
there
the overlaying of the gold
is also.
Transformation
depends upon
our loving the Lord,
our contacting Him,
our listening to His word,
our praying to Him,
and our walking
according to the spirit;
as long as we
have these five things,
we are living Christ.
Only when we all
have been transformed
and overlaid with gold
will it
no longer be possible
for there
to be dissension
among us;
the only safeguard
is to be overlaid
with gold.
The third aspect
of the oneness
in the Triune God
is seen with
the uniting bars,
which held
the forty-eight boards together
and brought them
into oneness;
these uniting bars
signify the initial Spirit
becoming the uniting Spirit
to join
all the members of Christ
into one Body:
The uniting bars
were made of acacia wood
for connecting strength
and overlaid with gold
for uniting;
that the bars
were made of
acacia wood
indicates that the oneness
of the Spirit
involves not only Christ’s divinity
but also His humanity.
In actuality,
the uniting bars
signify not the Holy Spirit alone
but the Holy Spirit
mingled with our human spirit
—the mingled spirit,
which includes
both divinity and humanity.
The uniting
of the boards
of the tabernacle
involved the passing of the bars
through the rings
on each board
to join the boards together;
this signifies
that the believers in Christ
are united
when their spirit
cooperates with the Spirit,
thus allowing the uniting Spirit
to pass through them
to join them
to other believers.
In order for the uniting Spirit
to pass through us
and thus join us with others,
we need to receive
the cross,
for the uniting Spirit
always crosses
the standing boards:
We are joined
into one
by our spirit
(with our mind, will, and emotion)
cooperating with
the crossing Spirit;
whenever our spirit
is one with the crossing Spirit,
we experience
the uniting Spirit.
The initial Spirit
must become
the uniting Spirit
within us;
then
we will have
the oneness and the building
and will be safeguarded
from dissension and division.
“This message
is not the result of
Bible study;
it is
the result of
intense suffering.
Because of this suffering,
I have been greatly exercised
before the Lord
in an attempt
to understand the situation.
Gradually,
the Lord
showed me
that certain dear ones
had nothing
more than the three rings.
With them,
there was
no spreading of the gold
because there was
no transformation.
The reason
there was no transformation
was that in the experience
of these dissenting ones
there was
no dealing of the cross”.
We are conformed to
Christ’s death
through the power
of His resurrection.
Everything
that we do and say
must be
through the cross
and by the Spirit
to dispense Christ
into others
for the building up
of the Body of Christ.
Day 6
Exo. 26:26-28
And you shall make
bars of acacia wood,
five
for the boards
of the one side
of the tabernacle,
and five bars
for the boards
of the other side
of the tabernacle,
and five bars
for the boards
of the side
of the tabernacle
at the rear westward.
And the middle bar
shall pass through
in the center of the boards
from end to end.
This oneness
has three aspects.
The first aspect, the initial aspect,
is with the golden rings.
I am quite certain
that the golden rings
were attached
to the boards
before the boards
were overlaid with gold.
Thus,
the first step
was to attach the rings
to the boards,
and the second step
was to overlay the boards
with gold.
The third step
was to make
the uniting bars,
which held the forty-eight boards together
and brought them
into oneness.
This oneness
is the building,
which is
the dwelling place of God.
The rings
signify the Triune God,
and the gold covering the boards
signifies the spreading of God.
Just as the rings
are a symbol of the initial Spirit,
the bars
are a symbol of the uniting Spirit.
The boards
stand upright,
and the bars
unite them
by crossing them horizontally.
The bars
were made of acacia wood
for connecting strength
and overlaid with gold
for uniting.
They signify the initial Spirit.
..becoming the uniting Spirit
to join all the members of Christ
into one Body.
The boards stand
in silver,
signifying Christ’s redemptive work,
and they are united
by gold,
signifying Christ’s divine person.
That the bars
were made of acacia wood
indicates that the oneness of the Spirit
involves not only Christ’s divinity
but also His humanity.
…In actuality,
the uniting bars
signify not the Holy Spirit alone,
but the Holy Spirit
mingled with our human spirit
—the mingled spirit,
which includes
both divinity and humanity.
There were
five bars
for the boards
on each side of the tabernacle,
the middle bar
stretching from end to end and
being twice as long as the other bars.
Hence,
the five bars
formed three lines,
indicating that there
were three rings
on each board
to serve as holders
for the bars.
The uniting
of the boards
of the tabernacle
involved the passing of the bars
through the rings
on each board
to join the boards together.
This signifies
that the believers in Christ
are united
when their spirit
cooperates with the Spirit,
thus allowing the uniting Spirit
to pass through them
to join them
to other believers.
Whether or not
the uniting Spirit
can actually join us
into one
depends on
whether or not
we are willing
to cooperate with this Spirit.
If the Spirit
does not have a way
to pass through us,
there can be
no oneness.
In order for the uniting Spirit
to pass through us
and thus join us
with others,
we need to receive the cross,
for the uniting Spirit
always crosses
the standing boards.
If we are willing
to receive the cross,
our spirit
will cooperate
with the uniting Spirit.
Then
the Spirit with our spirit
will join us
to another believer in Christ.
We are joined into one
by our spirit
cooperating with
the crossing Spirit.
The uniting Spirit
is seeking to cross
through us
to others.
The question is
whether or not
we are willing
to go along with Him.
Whenever our spirit
is one with the crossing Spirit,
we experience
the uniting Spirit.
Every time
we walk according to the Spirit,
we experience
the crossing of the Spirit.
We stand,
but we are crossed
by the Spirit.
The Spirit
will never cross through us
unless our spirit
goes along with Him.
When our spirit
agrees with the crossing Spirit,
we have
the uniting bar.
…This understanding
of the uniting bars
is confirmed
by our experience.
In order for this
to take place,
our spirit, with our mind, will, and emotion,
must go along with Him.
Only then
do we have
the uniting bars,
the five bars
in three rows
to unite the believers
into one.
When we
have all these aspects,
we have
the oneness
in the Triune God
revealed in John 17.
This means that we
have the building
in the overlaying and uniting gold.
Day 5
Eph. 1:13
In whom you also,
having heard
the word of the truth,
the gospel of your salvation,
in Him also believing,
you were sealed
with the Holy Spirit of the promise.
2 Cor. 3:18
But we all
with unveiled face,
beholding
and reflecting
like a mirror
the glory of the Lord,
are being transformed
into the same image
from glory to glory,
even as from the Lord Spirit.
After we
are regenerated,
the sealing Spirit
begins to spread
throughout our being.
…Many of us
can testify
that the spreading of the gold
has increased
since we came
into the Lord’s recovery.
…Being overlaid with gold
always goes along with transformation,
for the gold
overlays only acacia wood.
The golden nature of God
will never overlay
our fallen nature,
but will overlay
only our regenerated
and transformed nature.
Our fallen nature
is corrupt wood,
but our regenerated
and transformed nature
is acacia wood.
I have no doubt
that you all
have the three rings,
the Triune God
as the initial Spirit
sealing you,
giving you
the sense of discernment,
and enabling you
to express the Lord
whom you love.
But I am concerned
that day after day
may go by
without you
allowing the Lord
to transform you.
…A particular part
of our being
cannot be reached
by the overlaying gold
until that part of us
has truly been transformed.
The overlaying of the gold
is actually the spreading of the oneness.
We already have
the oneness of the Spirit
spoken of in Ephesians 4.
This oneness of the Spirit
is the gold
of the three rings.
The initial Spirit,
who is the Triune God,
is the very oneness
of the Spirit.
Now
this oneness
must spread
until it overlays
our whole being.
We have seen
that God does not overlay
anything natural.
Whatever is not acacia wood
must be transformed,
that is,
changed in nature and form.
No matter how good
our natural being
may seem to be,
we
still need to be transformed.
Transformation
has nothing to do with
self-correction
or self-improvement.
Transformation
depends upon
our loving the Lord,
our contacting Him,
our listening to His word,
our praying to Him,
and our walking according to the spirit.
As long as we
have these five things,
we are living Christ.
We are taking Christ
as our life.
Therefore,
transformation
takes place spontaneously.
The overlaying of gold
occurs simultaneously
with this transformation.
Wherever transformation is,
there
the overlaying gold
is also.
This message
is…the result of
intense suffering.
…Gradually,
the Lord
showed me
that certain dear dissenting ones
had nothing
more than the three rings.
…There was
no spreading of the gold
because there
was no transformation.
…This is
because in the experience
of these dissenting ones
there was
no dealing of the cross.
…The standing boards
are crossed by
the uniting bars.
This indicates
that although we
may be standing upright,
the uniting Spirit
crosses us.
Some today
hate the cross;
they even despise
the word cross.
But without the cross
there can be
no resurrection.
The cross is very positive
because it ushers us
into resurrection.
It is
in resurrection
that our natural life
is transformed.
This transformation in resurrection
brings in
the overlaying gold.
Only when we all
have been transformed
and overlaid with gold
will it no longer be possible
for there
to be dissension
among us.
Until we
are thus transformed and overlaid,
we will always be
in danger of falling
into dissension.
The only safeguard
is to be overlaid with gold.
We must not go on
according to the natural being;
instead of a natural humanity
we must have
a transformed humanity
with the very humanity of Jesus
as its element.
…Only the humanity of Jesus,
which is
a humanity in resurrection,
is qualified
to be overlaid with gold.
I beg you
to bring this matter
to the Lord
in prayer.
We need much prayer
in order to realize
that the steps
to the genuine oneness
come from
our experience of God.
…In order to have
the reality of this word,
we need
time and much prayer.
Day 4
Phil. 3:8-10
But moreover
I also count all things
to be loss
on account of the excellency
of the knowledge
of Christ Jesus my Lord.
..that I
may gain Christ
and be found in Him,
…to know
Him
and the power of
His resurrection
and the fellowship of
His sufferings,
being conformed
to His death.
Recently,
some among us
became dissenting,
although they claimed
to have seen
the ground of oneness
and to be
for the Lord’s recovery.
Because they
had not been solidly overlaid
with gold,
they caused the oneness
to be damaged.
The same thing
may happen in the future
to anyone
who is not fully overlaid
with gold.
Not having
an adequate amount of God
can create
a serious problem
with the oneness.
The Lord’s recovery
is not a movement.
We do not desire
to gain
a large number of people.
In the recovery
we are concerned for
the genuine weight of gold.
The important question
is this:
How much of God
do you have?
The Lord’s recovery
consists of God
overlaying His recovered people
with Himself.
Whenever I see
that any are dissenting,
I feel sorry for them.
At the same time
I realize
that such a situation of dissension
is a test, an exposure, and a purification.
It is
a test
of what is real,
of how much gold
we actually have.
We all
need to gain
more gold.
It is
not sufficient
only to have
a good heart,
to know the truth,
and to care for the Lord’s recovery.
Everything
depends upon
how much gold
we have.
We all
can become dissenting
if we
are short of gold.
This should be
a warning
to us all.
Again
I say
that genuine oneness
is possible
only in the Triune God.
We need to say
a word
now
about the golden rings.
Even after the boards
had been overlaid
with a heavy layer of gold,
they could not be held together
without the rings,
which were receptacles.
The overlaying gold
was the ordinary gold,
but the golden rings
were the top portion of gold.
This indicates
our need
for the top portion of God.
For the practical oneness
we need
this special portion of Him.
In order
for there
to be the oneness
among the standing boards
of the tabernacle,
every board
had to have
this portion.
It was the rings
made from this portion of gold
that held the uniting bars.
If we seriously consider
the picture
of the standing boards
in Exodus 26,
we will be deeply impressed
with how much
we are short of God.
From 1925
I began to read
articles in Christian magazines
about the overcoming life.
Although these articles
provided help on
how to be victorious,
they did not say
that we needed
more of God.
We do not need to learn
so many methods.
Our need
is simply to sink
into the Triune God
and to gain
more of Him.
God is
our truth, our way,
our life, our everything.
If we do not have God,
we have nothing.
Our problem
is that we
are short of God,
and our need
is to gain
more of Him.
Perhaps
you are one
who is standing firmly
in the church life.
This is
very good,
but what about
the oneness in the Triune God?
We all
need an adequate portion of God
for the overlaying of the boards
and the top portion of God
for the rings
that hold the uniting bars.
When we have
both the ordinary gold
and the top portion of gold,
we will have
no problems
with the oneness.
However,
if we do not gain
the necessary gold,
sooner or later
we will have
a problem.
We need
the solid oneness.
This oneness
is the adequate amount of God
we have obtained.
Do not rely on
teachings
or doctrines.
Moreover,
do not depend on
your own love
or your natural affection.
Not even your steady will
is trustworthy
in keeping the oneness.
Only one thing
is dependable
for oneness,
and that is
the adequate amount of God.
Just as the standing boards
could be one
only in the gold,
we can be one
only by sinking into God.
Today
the Lord
needs the genuine oneness.
If we
do not have this oneness,
we cannot go on
in the recovery.
Hence,
the most vital and crucial matter
is the genuine oneness.
The only way
to be kept
in this solid, real oneness
is to have
an adequate amount
of the experienced God.
This is
our need today.
Day 3
John 17:21
That they all
may be one;
even as You, Father,
are in Me
and I in You,
that they also
may be in Us;
that the world
may believe
that You have sent Me.
John 17:23
I in them,
and You in Me,
that they
may be perfected into one,
that the world
may know
that You have sent Me
and have loved them
even as You have loved Me.
Exo. 26:29
And you
shall overlay the boards
with gold…
In our humanity
it is impossible
for us
to be one.
Instead of oneness,
there is friction.
The picture
of the standing boards in Exodus 26
clearly shows
that the oneness of the boards
is altogether in the gold.
And this gold
must be weighty, thick, and sufficient
to support a heavy board
and hold it together
with other boards.
How important
it is
for us
to have
an adequate layer of gold!
We need enough gold
to bear
the weight of the board.
It is
not an easy matter
to acquire enough gold
to thickly overlay
a board of acacia wood
fifteen feet long
and twenty-seven inches wide.
Humanly speaking,
it is impossible.
Likewise,
it seems impossible
for the saints
to be truly one.
Nevertheless,
the fact that the tabernacle
was built in the wilderness
indicates that although it
is impossible with man,
it is possible with God.
…Nothing written
in the Word of God
is vain.
Eventually,
everything written in God’s Word
will be fulfilled by Him.
With God
there are
no impossibilities.
Therefore,
we need to believe
what is written
in the Word
regarding genuine oneness.
I believe
that the time
has come
for God
to see
the actual oneness
among us
in His recovery.
My burden
…is to point out
that genuine oneness
is absolutely not to be found
in our humanity.
Do not think
that if you
are humble or meek,
you can be
one with others.
No matter whether we
are meek or rough,
slow or quick,
proud or humble,
educated or uneducated,
we all
have a problem
with oneness.
In ourselves, by ourselves, and with ourselves
we simply cannot be
one with others.
In fact,
we are
not always one with ourselves.
…The oneness
is in the gold,
not in the acacia wood.
This means
that the oneness in the church
is not in our humanity;
it is
altogether in the Triune God.
In the past
I wondered
why the Lord
did not mention such virtues
as humility, meekness, and kindness
in His prayer
for oneness.
Instead,
He spoke mainly about
being in the Triune God.
The concept of John 17:21-23
is that of oneness in the Triune God.
This reveals
that oneness is
not in humanity;
it is
only in the Triune God.
In no other portion of the Bible
is the Triune God
revealed in such a practical way
as in chapter 17 of John.
The various pronouns used
—I, Us, You—
indicate that the Triune God
is related to our oneness.
It is
in the Triune God
that we
are perfected into one.
To be perfected
means to have more gold.
Only when the boards
were adequately overlaid with gold
were they perfected into one.
This indicates
that to be perfected into one
means to gain more of God.
Surely
mere teachings about oneness
can never make us one.
Oneness is
not a superficial matter.
It is
a matter of sinking deeply
into the Triune God
until we
are fully overlaid
with gold.
We all
need a great deal more of God.
It is
not sufficient
simply to be coated
with a thin layer of Him.
If we truly have light
on our need
to be overlaid with gold,
we will repent and say,
“Lord,
I repent
that I am
only gilded with gold.
I have
not yet been overlaid.
What I
have experienced of You
is merely gilding.
It is good
for causing others
to praise me,
but it is
not good
for the real oneness,
for holding me
together with others.
When even a small problem arises,
my layer of gold
is not sufficient,
and the oneness
is damaged.
Lord,
for the oneness,
overlay me
with an adequate amount of gold.”
The more
we are overlaid with gold,
the more oneness
we have.
Nothing can damage the oneness
that comes from our being overlaid
with an ample quantity of gold.
The more
we have of God,
the stronger
is our oneness.
Day 2
Exo. 26:29
And you shall overlay the boards
with gold,
and make their rings of gold
as holders for the bars;
and you shall overlay the bars
with gold.
Eph. 4:3
Being diligent
to keep
the oneness of the Spirit
in the uniting bond of peace.
The gold rings
in Exodus 26:29
signify the sealing Spirit,
the initial Spirit,
that is, the regenerating Spirit,
given to us by God
at the time of
our believing in Christ.
Since the number three
signifies the Triune God
in resurrection,
the three rings
indicate the all-inclusive Spirit
of the Triune God
in resurrection
for the uniting of the believers.
In order to become one entity
as God’s dwelling place,
the forty-eight boards
in the tabernacle
had to be united in oneness.
The oneness
of the boards of the tabernacle
was not in the acacia wood
but in the gold
that overlaid the wood.
Gold signifies the Triune God
with His divine nature,
and the shining of the gold
signifies the glory of God.
The oneness
of the boards
in the overlaying gold
symbolizes the oneness
of the believers
in the Triune God
and in His glory, His expression.
This is
the practical oneness
for which the Lord
prayed in John 17:21-23.
This oneness
is the building up
of the believers
to be God’s dwelling place.
Nearly all the spiritual realities
in the New Testament
are abstract.
However,
for most of the spiritual realities
there are
types or pictures
in the Old Testament.
In Exodus 26
we have a picture
of the oneness
in the Triune God.
The standing boards
of the tabernacle
make up a corporate structure.
The Ark
inside the tabernacle
was an individual item,
but the tabernacle
was a corporate entity.
The Ark
typifies Christ.
However,
the same materials
used in making the Ark
were also used
for the standing boards.
Both the Ark and the boards
were made of acacia wood
overlaid with gold.
There was
a total of
forty-eight boards.
When these boards
were put together,
they composed
God’s dwelling place.
To be sure,
God’s dwelling place
is a corporate matter.
Hence,
in the tabernacle
with the forty-eight standing boards
we see
a picture of
real oneness.
In order to become one entity
as God’s dwelling place,
the forty-eight boards
had to be brought
into oneness.
The gold
was not only the oneness
of the standing boards;
it was also
their glory.
By being overlaid with gold,
the standing boards
bore the glory of the gold,
for the shining of the gold
was their glory, their expression.
Anyone who entered
into the tabernacle
could see
on every side
the shining of the gold.
Hence,
the oneness
of the forty-eight boards
was not only in the gold,
signifying God,
but also in the shining of the gold,
signifying the glory of God.
In the same principle,
our oneness today
is in the Triune God
and in His glory, His shining.
To prepare the wooden boards
was not too difficult;
however,
to overlay these large boards
was quite a difficult task.
Although we all
are boards,
we may be overlaid
with a very thin layer of gold.
Yes,
we may be
in the Triune God,
but we
may not be deeply in Him.
Instead of being overlaid with gold,
we may be merely gilded with gold,
like Babylon the Great
in Revelation 17.
If the standing boards
had been only gilded with gold,
there would have been
no gold
for the rings
that supported
the weight of the boards.
In order for the forty-eight heavy boards
to be held together,
they each
had to be overlaid
with a heavy layer of gold.
Although gold
is glorious and shiny,
it is somewhat soft.
In like manner,
the uniting God
is also rather “soft.”
If we have
just a little of Him,
we shall not have
a sufficient amount of gold
for the oneness.
…However,
if you have been overlaid
with a heavy layer of gold,
you will not be offended,
no matter how much unpleasantness
you may have to face.
…Although you
may have a certain amount of gold,
the amount you have
may not be enough
to keep you
in the genuine oneness.
Day 1
Eph. 4:3-6
Being diligent to keep
the oneness of the Spirit
in the uniting bond of peace:
one Body and one Spirit,
even as also you
were called in one hope of your calling;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all,
who is
over all and through all and in all.
The Trinity
is implied
even here in Ephesians 4:6.
Over all
refers mainly to the Father,
through all
to the Son,
and in all
to the Spirit.
The Triune God
eventually enters into us all
by reaching us as the Spirit.
The oneness
of the Body of Christ
is constituted of
the Trinity of the Godhead
—the Father as the source and origin
being the Originator,
the Son as the Lord and Head
being the Accomplisher,
and the Spirit as the life-giving Spirit
being the Executor.
The Triune God Himself,
when realized and experienced
by us
in our daily life,
is the fundamental basis
and very foundation
of our oneness.
The genuine oneness
of the Body
…is just the processed Triune God,
who mingles Himself
with us,
the redeemed and transformed Christians.
…This consummated, processed Triune God
mingles Himself
with His chosen people
in their humanity,
and this mingling
is the genuine oneness.
The genuine oneness
is not merely a matter of
our meeting together.
The worldly people
meet together,
and in their gatherings
they have
their kind of oneness.
However,
that is
not our oneness.
Our oneness
is the oneness of
the organic Body of Christ.
The Body of Christ
is a mingling
of the Triune God
with His redeemed and transformed people.
Because it
is such a mingling,
the Body itself
is the oneness.
The Three of the Triune God
—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—
are three divine factors
of this oneness,
and these three divine factors
are mingled
with one human factor,
consummating in the Body.
This Body
is the genuine oneness.
First,
this oneness
was something
in the Lord’s desire.
This desire of the Lord’s
became His aspiration,
and this aspiration
was expressed
in the prayer
offered by the Lord
in John 17.
The subject
of the Lord’s prayer
in John 17
is oneness.
…At that time
this oneness
was not yet a reality;
however,
a model of this oneness
—the oneness
among the Three of the Divine Trinity—
was there.
The Father and the Son
are one,
and this oneness
implies or includes the Spirit.
In John 17
the Lord
used the plural pronouns
We (v. 11) and Us (v. 21)
to signify the Triune God.
The Triune God
is one,
and that oneness
is a model of the oneness
of the Body of Christ.
Because the oneness of the Body
has the oneness
among the Three of the Trinity
as a model,
John 17 tells us
that this oneness
is altogether wrapped up
with the Triune God (v. 21).
The oneness
of the Body of Christ
is just the enlarged oneness
of the Divine Trinity.
The model
was there
at the time the Lord prayed,
but the enlargement
was still to come.
This enlarged oneness
came on the day of Pentecost.
Through the outpouring of the Spirit,
the Body of Christ
was produced.
That Body
is the solid oneness.
The genuine oneness,
which is the mingling
of the Triune God
with the redeemed humanity,
has three aspects.
The first aspect
is the oneness
in the Father’s name
by His divine life,
and the second
is the oneness
in the Triune God
by His sanctifying word.
The first aspect
concerns the source and the element
of the oneness,
and the second
concerns the standing
of the oneness.
…To practice the oneness,
we must be separated
from the world
and kept away
from Satan’s hand.
The third aspect
of the genuine oneness
is the oneness of the believers
in Christ
in the divine glory.
…God’s glory
is His divine life
with His divine nature
to express Him.
If we
did not have the Father’s life
with the Father’s nature,
it would be impossible
for us
to express the Father.
The expression of the Father
comes from the Father’s life
with the Father’s nature.
This expression of the Father
is the glory.