Peace and grace in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We are in Revelation 2-3 (it has been explained from General Service in Surabaya, July 27, 2014).
We are learning Revelation 3: 14-22 about the church of the LAODICEANS. This is the last or the seventh church in the book of Revelation that shows the condition of the church in the last days (it has been explained from General Service in Surabaya, June 14, 2015).
Revelation 3: 16-19
3:16. "So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.
3:17 "Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing' --and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked--
3:18 "I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.
3:19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
THE SPIRITUALITYof the church of the Laodiceans is in LUKEWARMNESS.
It means that they are rich physically and do not lack of anything, but the spirituality is wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.
Consequently, they are vomited by God. They are useless before God, disgusting, unclean, cursed, and separated from Him until they perish forever.
Therefore, in verse 18-19 God rebukes and advisesthe church of the Laodiceans with the teaching Word that is sharper than any two-edged sword to make them or all of us buy the treasure of heaven. If the rebuke and advice are ignored, God will chasten.
There are three kinds of heavenly treasurethat must be bought or possessed by the church of the Laodiceans or all of us as follows.
Matthew 6: 19-20
6:19. "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where mothand rustdestroy and where thievesbreak in and steal;
6:20 "but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
The worldly riches will be totally destroyed with the world in the doomsday. Therefore, God wants us to have the spiritual treasures up to the eternal heavenly kingdom.
There are three enemies as follows.
We learn about the RUSTdestroying the metals from heaven.
Exodus 25: 3
25:3. "And this is the offering which you shall take from them: gold, silver, and bronze;
The metals for building the Tabernacle or the heavenly kingdom are bronze, silver, and gold. They are the spiritual metals with the spiritual value.
As the conclusion, the heavenly treasure means as follows.
We must fight for keeping the bronze, silver, and gold now so that there will be no rust in them.
The source of the heavenly treasure or the faith, hope, and love is the sacrifice of Christ or the Holy Communion.
The gold, silver, and bronze were the framework of the Tabernacleor the power of our spiritual life so that we are firm and do not fall.
The functions of the heavenly treasure or the faith, hope, and love are as follows.
God blesses us.
We are in Revelation 2-3 (it has been explained from General Service in Surabaya, July 27, 2014).
We are learning Revelation 3: 14-22 about the church of the LAODICEANS. This is the last or the seventh church in the book of Revelation that shows the condition of the church in the last days (it has been explained from General Service in Surabaya, June 14, 2015).
Revelation 3: 16-19
3:16. "So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.
3:17 "Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing' --and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked--
3:18 "I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.
3:19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
THE SPIRITUALITYof the church of the Laodiceans is in LUKEWARMNESS.
It means that they are rich physically and do not lack of anything, but the spirituality is wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.
Consequently, they are vomited by God. They are useless before God, disgusting, unclean, cursed, and separated from Him until they perish forever.
Therefore, in verse 18-19 God rebukes and advisesthe church of the Laodiceans with the teaching Word that is sharper than any two-edged sword to make them or all of us buy the treasure of heaven. If the rebuke and advice are ignored, God will chasten.
There are three kinds of heavenly treasurethat must be bought or possessed by the church of the Laodiceans or all of us as follows.
- Gold refined in the fire (it has been explained from General Service in Surabaya, July 12, 2015to Prayer Service in Surabaya, July 15, 2015). It refers to the pure faithor permanent, tested, and perfect one that is ready to welcome Jesus' second coming.
- White garments (it has been explained from General Service in Surabaya, July 19, 2015) to Bible Study Service in Surabaya, August 17, 2015) that refer to the garments of mercy and trust of God.
- Shepherding garments (it has been explained from Bible Study Service in Surabaya, July 20, 2015to General Service in Surabaya, July 26, 2015).
- Ministry garments (it has been explained from Prayer Service in Surabaya, August 5, 2015to Bible Study Service in Surabaya, August 17, 2015).
- Eye salves to anoint the eyes (it has been explained from Prayer Service in Surabaya, August 19, 2015to General Service in Surabaya, September 06, 2015).
Matthew 6: 19-20
6:19. "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where mothand rustdestroy and where thievesbreak in and steal;
6:20 "but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
The worldly riches will be totally destroyed with the world in the doomsday. Therefore, God wants us to have the spiritual treasures up to the eternal heavenly kingdom.
There are three enemies as follows.
- Rust that destroys the metals.
- Moth that destroys the white garment to cause nakedness.
- Thieves that steal the anointing oil to cause the spiritual dryness.
We learn about the RUSTdestroying the metals from heaven.
Exodus 25: 3
25:3. "And this is the offering which you shall take from them: gold, silver, and bronze;
The metals for building the Tabernacle or the heavenly kingdom are bronze, silver, and gold. They are the spiritual metals with the spiritual value.
- Bronze.
It means the condemnation.
Deuteronomy 28: 23
28:23. "And your heavens which are over your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you shall be iron.
'And your heavens which are over your head shall be bronze' = the condemnation for the people who are not obedient.
The functions of the bronze are as follows.- For making the Altar of Burnt Offerings.
It is made of the black shittim wood that is overlaid with bronze inside and out so that the wood will not be burnt.
The shittim woodrefers to the human in flesh and blood that is so brittle although he is great.
The black colorrefers to the sin.
Thus, the Altar of Burnt Offerings refers to the sinful fleshly men that must be condemned to be able to repent.
Repenting means that we stop sinning to return to God or die to sin.
Repentance is the heavenly treasure. - For making the Brazen Laver.
Exodus 38: 8
38:8. He made the laver of bronzeand its base of bronze, from the bronze mirrors of the serving womenwho assembled at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.
It was made of the bronze mirrorr of the women that were melted.
The women negatively refer to the flesh.
The mirroris used to repair or grow the flesh with its wills and desires.
Thus, the Brazen Laver refers to the water baptism to melt the flesh with all of its wills and desires so that we can get the new life.
Romans 6 : 4
6:4. Therefore we were buried with Himthrough baptisminto death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
1 John 3: 7, 9
3:7. Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.
3:9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
The resultof the true water baptism is the new lifeas follows.- Not sinning anymoreor we live in righteousness.
- 'Little children, let no one deceive you' means that we hold fast the true teaching Word.
- We cannot sin anymore.
There is no sin anymore and we are AS RIGHTEOUS AS JESUS IS.
- For building the sixty pillars of the Court. They refer to the heroes or pillars of faith as follows.
- 56 pillars of the Court, namely Abraham to Joseph or Jesus' father.
- 4 pillars of the Gate, namely the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John).
The white hangings with the pillars of the Tabernacle refer to the righteousness. Such hangisngs separate us with the world. If the pillars are porous, the hangings will fall and one will be mixed with the world.
- For making the Altar of Burnt Offerings.
- Silver.
It is used for making the base of the pillars of Tabernacle to make them stand upright.
There are two spiritual meanings of the silver as follows.- The redemption or sanctification done by the blood of Jesus.
1 Peter 1: 18-19
1:18. knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
1:19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
We are redeemed or sanctified from our past sins, namely our own sins and the heritage ones, including the tradition that is not in line with the Word.
If the past sins are not finished, they will be the burden.
The way to finish themis by confessing honestly to God (vertical) and other people (horizontal). We must not repeat them after being forgiven.
It means that we are delivered from sin. The blood of Jesus has pulled out the roots of sin and we cannot sin anymore.
Thus, the silver or redemption is the heavenly treasurethat cannot be bought by anything. - The pure and true teaching Word.
Psalm 12: 6
12:6. The words of the LORD are pure words, Like silver triedin a furnace of earth, Purified seven times.
It is the Word that is revealed or spoken by God through a verse that explains other verses in the Bible.
It is useful to sanctify us from the sins in front of us that hinder or snare usas follows.- The root of evilor the love of money that causes stinginess and greediness.
- The root of uncleanness, namely the sins of Babylon or uncleanness sins up to the peak or the ones concerning eating-drinking and marrying-being given in marriage.
14:1. Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His Father's name written on their foreheads.
14:5 And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without faultbefore the throne of God.
The sword of the Word cuts the cord or the snare of sin. It means that we are sanctified from evil and uncleanness sins until we are without blemish, namely there is no lie.
Be carefull! There will be rust in the silver if there is a lie.
3:2. Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
3:3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
'we are children of God' means that the people have repented, been baptized of water, lived in the righteousness, and been blessed. We must step forward. We must have the redemption done by the blood, silver, and the sword
The silver that has no rust refers to the people who get the intensive sanctification done by the sword of God's Word, so we can be as perfect as Jesus is and have the hope to welcome Jesus' second coming on the glorious clouds. We are AS HOLY AS JESUS IS.
Thus, the silver is the HOPE OR HOLINESS. - The redemption or sanctification done by the blood of Jesus.
- Goldor godly characteristic or love.
Matthew 5: 43-45, 48
5:43. "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighborand hate your enemy.'
5:44 "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
5:45 "that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
5:48 "Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
The facts found in having the love of God are as follows.- Loving God more than anything.
It means that we are obedient until our flesh does not speak anymore. For example, Abraham was obedient to offer Isaac because he loved God more than his son - Loving other people as we love ourselves.
Romans 13 : 8
13:8. Owe no one anythingexcept to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.
Owe no one anything through the saying, deeds, and so on, including sins.
Let us finish the sins through making reconciliation, namely confessing and forgiving one another. Do not give any disadvantage to other people physically or spiritually through gossip.
If we can love other people, we will be able to love our enemy.
This is the sequence. We must love God first thorugh our obedience, and then we can love others and enemies through praying for them that they can be forgiven and blessed by God.
3:14. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.
The love of God is able to bind, unite, and perfect us until we can be AS PERFECT AS JESUS IS.
Thus, the gold means the LOVE OR PERFECTION.
Be careful! There is rust in the gold, namely disobedience and hatred up to the one without a cause. The consequence of the disobedience is so great as follows.- Adam and Eve had been so joyful. There was no joy anymore soon after they were disobedient.
- Saul was disobedient after he became a king. Consequently, he lost all things.
- Lot's wife had been saved in Sodom-Gomorrah (Lot and his family were saved from among the people in the town), but she was disobedient by looking back and became the pillar of salt.
Saul hated because of his disobedience. The brothers of Joseph were disobedient, so they hated Joseph without a cause.
The beginning of the hatred is dislike feelings, not speaking peaceably, up to the hatred without any cause. - Loving God more than anything.
As the conclusion, the heavenly treasure means as follows.
- Bronze = faith = righteousness.
- Silver = hope = holiness.
- Gold = love = perfection.
We must fight for keeping the bronze, silver, and gold now so that there will be no rust in them.
The source of the heavenly treasure or the faith, hope, and love is the sacrifice of Christ or the Holy Communion.
- Romans 3: 23-24
3:23. for all have sinnedand fall short of the glory of God,
3:24 being justifiedfreely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
'all have sinned' = the bronze with the rust.
'being justified' = being able to live in righteousness.
The sacrifice of Christ is the source of the heavenly treasure, namely the bronzeor the faith or righteousness. - Hebrews 10: 10
10:10. By that will we have been sanctifiedthrough the offering of the body of Jesus Christonce for all.
The sacrifice of Christ is the source of silveror the hope or holiness. - Hebrews 10: 14
10:14. For by one offeringHe has perfectedforever those who are being sanctified.
'one offering' = the sacrifice of Christ.
The sacrifice of Christ is the source of the pure goldor the love or perfection.
The gold, silver, and bronze were the framework of the Tabernacleor the power of our spiritual life so that we are firm and do not fall.
The functions of the heavenly treasure or the faith, hope, and love are as follows.
- Facing the dead child.
Mark 5: 37-43
5:37.And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and Johnthe brother of James.
5:38 Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly.
5:39 When He came in, He said to them, "Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping."
5:40 And they ridiculed Him. But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying.
5:41 Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, "Talitha, cumi," which is translated, "Little girl, I say to you, arise."
5:42 Immediately the girl aroseand walked, for she was twelve years of age. And they were overcome with great amazement.
5:43 But He commanded them strictly that no one should know it, and said that something should be given her to eat.
James = faith.
Peter = hope.
John = love.
They refer to the heavenly treasures.
'And they ridiculed Him' = they were the hypocrites because they could smile soon after they cried.
Verse 42 => Be careful; there are many twelve years old children die because of not eating the Word. The proof of being alive is eating the Shepherding Word ('something should be given her to eat').
The dead child means as follows.- Spiritual death because of not being able to eat the shepherding Word. One enjoys living in sins up to the peak.
- Destruction in marriage and children or sufferings, tears, bitterness, and sorrows.
- Impossibilities.
- Bringing us to see Jesusclearly until we can see Him face to face on the glorious clouds.
1 Corinthians 13: 12-13
13:12. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.
13:13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
We can see Jesus' face clearly in the Bible Study Service, General Service, and Prayer Service through understanding the Word and worshiping God until we become His perfect bride to enter the marriage supper of the Lamb, the one thousand years kingdom of peace, and New Jerusalem or the heavenly kingdom forever.
God blesses us.