Peace and grace in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Revelation 21:2-3
21:2. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
21:3. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
The new man is the permanent or perfect Tabernacle, so God is with us forever.
The process of reaching the permanent Tabernacle is as follows:
God blesses us.
Revelation 21:2-3
21:2. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
21:3. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
The new man is the permanent or perfect Tabernacle, so God is with us forever.
The process of reaching the permanent Tabernacle is as follows:
- We must enter the building of the Tabernacle on the earth.
Exodus 25:8-9
25:8. "And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.
25:9. "According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.
It is the same as taking the example of the heavenly kingdom or Jesus as follows:- Following Jesus' steps, namely the ones of death and resurrection.
1 Peter 2:21-25
2:21. For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:
2:22. "Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth";
2:23. who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;
2:24. who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness--by whose stripes you were healed.
2:25. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
The step of death is being dead to sin; not sinning anymore even not lying. We can repay good for evil.
The step of resurrection is living in righteousness. We are righteous in our whole life. - Being shepherded well and correctly in the true teaching Word or Jesus' Himself.
Proverbs 12:26
12:26. The righteous should choose his friends carefully, For the way of the wicked leads them astray.
It is the same as the branch that abides in the true vine.
John 10:4-5
10:4. "And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
10:5. "Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."
We follow the step of Jesus, the Good Shepherd by hearing His voice or the shepherding Word, namely the teaching Word which is entrusted by God to a shepherd to be preached to the congregation repetitively to become the food and guidance for them.
The shepherded sheep can eat and enjoy the shepherding Word. It means hearing and obeying the shepherding Word as well as being led by it.
The Word leads us to follow the steps of Jesus to the places as follows:- Leading us to enter the sheepfold through the narrow gate.
John 10:1-2
10:1. "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
10:2. "But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
It means that we willingly suffer in the flesh to keep being in the sheepfold, namely the perseverance in committing the three kinds of main service to God. We experience the spiritual growth as well as become firm in salvation, even we are purified. As a result, the physical thing will grow too. We are blessed by God.
Not being shepherded, one will be surely torn by the beast, so he falls into sins up to the peak. He is deceived by the false teaching, so he is lost and destroyed. - Leading us out of the sheepfold to enter the fellowship of the body of Christ.
John 10:3,16
10:3. "To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
10:16. "And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.
It means placing Jesus as the Head who is responsible to our life in the world up to eternal life.
Not entering the building of the body of Christ, one will be eaten by his own shepherd. It is fiercer than the beast.
- Leading us to enter the sheepfold through the narrow gate.
- [1 Peter 2:24] The healing powerof the impossible disease. We become healthy physically and spiritually--not sinning. Our marriage is healthy, so it can become righteous, holy, and one to reach the perfect one.
- We can become the example for others.
1 Peter 5:3
5:3. nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examplesto the flock;
1 Timothy 4:12
4:12. Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word(1), in conduct(2), in love(3), in spirit(4), in faith, in purity(6). - [1 Peter 2:25] Our body, soul, and spirit are taken care of until we say: "I shall not want." We are taken care of up to abundance, namely we give thanks to God. We become the blessing for others up to perfection.
- Following Jesus' steps, namely the ones of death and resurrection.
- We must become the spiritual temple of God or the spiritual Tabernacle, so Holy Spirit is always with us.
1 Corinthians 3:16
3:16. Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
The requirements are as follows:- There is no other spirit.
Galatians 4:9-11
4:9. But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage?
4:10. You observe days and months and seasons and years.
4:11. I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain.
The worldly spirit makes us observe days, doubt, and become unfaithful.
James 4:4
4:4. Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
The worldly spirit makes our ministry become the worldly ministry.
Mark 7:21-23
7:21. "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
7:22. thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.
7:23. "All these evil things come from within and defile a man."
The spirits of wickedness, uncleanness, and bitterness make our heart cannot be filled by the Word. - The heart must be like the face of the waters.
Genesis 1:2
1:2. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
It means as follows:- Being quiet or peaceful. We do not feel anything that flesh feels, but just feel God's love.
- The zero point refers to being humble. We humble ourselves as low as we can. We confess that we are unworthy, incapable, and worthless.
- Being quiet or peaceful. We do not feel anything that flesh feels, but just feel God's love.
3:17. If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.
The attitude to the spiritual temple of God is that we may not defile the temple of God. The physical meaning is not smoking, getting drunk, committing drugs abuse, or committing suicide, et cetera.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
4:3. But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,
4:4. whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
The spiritual meaning of defiling the temple of God is hardening the heart or rejecting the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ--the true teaching Word; the Bride Tidings--because of keeping sinning.
Matthew 8:23-26
8:23. Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him.
8:24. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep.
8:25. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!"
8:26. But He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.
The heart doubts to the power of God in facing the temptation, so one depends on others. Do not hear the false teaching and gossip! Hearing it just makes us doubt to the true teaching Word. - There is no other spirit.
- Becoming the permanent Tabernacle where God is with us forever.
Revelation 21:3
21:3. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
2 Corinthians 6:14
6:14. Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?
The firm separation must happen as follows:- The separation between the light--righteousness--and the dark--lawlessness. It is about the marriage.
We must keep the righteousness and holiness of the marriage up to perfection.
The beginning of the marriage must be blessed and affirmed by God, the shepherd, and the parents, namely being in one teaching, one faith, and one baptism.
The journey of the marriage must also be kept. There must be no hard-heart and violence in the marriage. There must be no infidelity, divorce, sexual deviation, as well as polygamy and polyandry. - The separation between the temple of God--holiness--and the idol--uncleanness. It is about the ministry or ordination.
2 Corinthians 6:16-17
6:16. And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people."
6:17. Therefore "Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you."
The requirement of the true ministry is holiness, oneness, and responsibility.
The more we are holy and faithful, the more we are entrusted to bear the tools of the temple of God up to the peak, namely we bear the ark of covenant. It means that we have a responsibility to keep the purity of the Bride Tidings as well as do, preach, or testify the Word.
Joshua 3:15-16
3:15. and as those who bore the ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of harvest),
3:16. that the waters which came down from upstream stood still, and rose in a heapvery far away at Adam, the city that is beside Zaretan. So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed, and were cut off; and the people crossed over opposite Jericho.
The results are as follows:- The purification power of the past sins or the burden of sin--the waters which come in the downstream go to the Dead Sea.
The purification of the sins in front of us that hinder or snare us--the waters which come down from upstream.
We live in holiness, so we are equipped with the ministry and gift. We are used in the revival of the building of the body of Christ. - The power of God's protection and preservation.
Joshua 3:17
3:17. Then the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan; and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan.
Isaiah 53:1-3
53:1. Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
53:2. For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him.
53:3. He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
The power of God's resurrection goes through dry ground which cannot be passed through by little root. It means that God protects and takes care of our life that is small and powerless in the midst of the difficulties of the world.
God's power finishes all of impossible problems in our life. - The lifting power.
2 Kings 2:5-6,11
2:5. Now the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho came to Elisha and said to him, "Do you know that the LORD will take away your master from over you today?" So he answered, "Yes, I know; keep silent!"
2:6. Then Elijah said to him, "Stay here, please, for the LORD has sent me on to the Jordan." But he said, "As the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you!" So the two of them went on.
2:11. Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
The power of renewal of life. We have beautiful and successful future. The failure, falling, and decadence are restored.
It continues until we are changed to become perfect. We become the permanent Tabernacle in the heavenly kingdom.
- The purification power of the past sins or the burden of sin--the waters which come in the downstream go to the Dead Sea.
- The separation between the light--righteousness--and the dark--lawlessness. It is about the marriage.
God blesses us.