Lord, we thank You that this afternoon we can come before You. Throughout this time, Your people have been asking that You would come into this place and be present among us.
We need You to teach us and to show us Your way, so that we may know how to live on earth and how to pursue You. May Your work be accomplished in us, that You may receive the glory which is due to You.
Please anoint us with Your anointing. We wait quietly before You. Please listen to our prayers. We ask in the precious name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Just as yesterday, I will have some fellowship with you, and at the end we will leave some time for brothers and sisters to give their testimonies.
We hope that this afternoon we may take the truths and teachings we have received from the Lord and put them into practical experience. The experiences of brothers and sisters before the Lord are very precious. We encourage you to prepare something in your heart, perhaps three to five minutes, to fellowship with us concerning your experience, so that we may all encourage one another.
This afternoon, our topic is using the character of Christ to build up His own church.
Before we begin, let us read several passages together.
And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
Speak unto the children of Israel, that they take for Me an offering: of every man whose heart maketh him willing ye shall take My offering.
And this is the offering which ye shall take of them: gold, and silver, and brass,
And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair,
And rams’ skins dyed red, and sealskins, and acacia wood,
Oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil, and for the sweet incense,
Onyx stones, and stones to be set, for the ephod, and for the breastplate.
And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.
According to all that I show thee, the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the furniture thereof, even so shall ye make it.
I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beseech you to walk worthily of the calling wherewith ye were called,
With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;
Giving diligence to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
Having the glory of God: her light was like unto a stone most precious, as it were a jasper stone, clear as crystal.And the building of the wall thereof was jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto pure glass.
The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all manner of precious stones.
The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald;
The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.
And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
Yesterday afternoon, we mentioned that there are two basic pursuits to which every Christian should pay attention.
These two pursuits go together. Not only do we need to know the eternal will of God; we also need to have the character that can contain His will. What kind of character is able to contain the will of God?
When I was young and had just been saved, I remember hearing brothers speak about the great people in church history. They spoke of how zealous these saints were in pursuing the Lord, how much they offered themselves, and how simple and frugal their lives were.
Of course, when we heard these things, we were greatly encouraged. We wanted to pursue the character exhibited by those great people. But according to my natural disposition, I could not compare with them. Sometimes I could only admire them and say, “This is very good, but I cannot do it.”
Some brothers also gave us practical training. Since we were told that the character of a Christian is very important, we thought that we must practice and train our character. We would make schedules and pledges.
For example, someone might say, “I will get up at a certain hour every morning.” Some were very zealous and said, “I will get up at four o’clock in the morning.” Others would decide how much time they would spend in devotion, how often they would obey the anointing of the Spirit, or how many people they would preach the gospel to.
When I was young, I also put myself under such requirements. Perhaps during the first one or two days I could accomplish them, but before the week was finished, I failed.
It is true that our character needs to be transformed, and it is true that church history contains many great saints. Yet I gradually came to understand something: no matter how great these people were, their natural character was still not sufficient for God to build upon.
Only the character of Christ is the character upon which God can build His church.
In church history, many brothers and sisters loved the Lord and were used by God. It was not because their natural temperament or natural character was so good. God used them because the character of Christ was being formed in them.
From Genesis 1, God clearly reveals that He created man in His own image. God desired that every person whom He created would bear the character of Christ. Yet in the history of mankind, only Jesus Christ has fully expressed that image.
Therefore, only the character of Christ can contain the purposes of God.
We thank the Lord that He has saved us. God has a continuing work upon us: He is forming the character of Christ in each one of us, little by little.
How much of the character of Christ is manifested in us is the measure of how much God can build His church upon us. This is a very important matter.
Later, when I understood this a little more, I stopped merely admiring those people. If you ask me to get up at four o’clock in the morning, I must tell you honestly that I cannot do it. But we thank the Lord that He saves us according to the work that the Holy Spirit is doing in us.
We need to allow the character of Christ to be formed in us. In serving the Lord, the only thing we can do is believe, lean upon Him, listen to Him, and obey Him. Apart from that, we cannot do anything else, and we should not attempt to do anything else.
God is so great. His purpose, His plan, His work, and even the provision needed for His work are all complete in Him. Very often we do not know how great our God is, nor how abundant He is. Man is so small, but God has already accomplished everything.
What He requires of us today is that we allow Him to put the character of Christ upon us and to change us, so that we may become material suitable for His building.
Without the character of Christ, it is impossible to build up the church. Natural character, no matter how good it may appear, cannot be used by God. Whenever natural character comes out in the church, it can only damage God’s work.
Therefore, natural character is never beautiful before God. If you feel that you have a good character, please do not admire yourself. Neither do we need to admire the natural character of others.
Sometimes we may even become jealous of someone whose character seems better than ours. But now we understand that all natural character is not beautiful before God. In the eyes of God, only the character of His Son is beautiful.
Therefore, we must pursue the manifestation of the character of Christ in our lives.
When we were saved, the Lord gave us His life. This life already contains His image. But why is this image often not seen by others? There is a process through which our character needs to be changed.
Our elder brother has told us that in the matter of image, there is character and temperament. When our character is changed, the character of Christ is manifested through us, and others can see His likeness.
Life is hidden, but character is manifested. The growth of a Christian is manifested in character.
The more the character of Christ is manifested, the more mature His life becomes in us. God preserves our personality, but He changes our character. He wants the old character to be replaced by the character of Christ.
This is something we can understand from the Scriptures: only the character of Christ can be built up as the church.
In the Old Testament, when God built the tabernacle, He gave not only the pattern of the tabernacle but also the pattern of every piece of furniture within it. God gave careful attention to the pattern shown on the mountain.
When Moses came down from the mountain to begin building the tabernacle, every material used had been specified by God. Under the light of the Holy Spirit, we can understand that the character of these materials speaks to us of the character of Christ.
God asked Moses to tell the people to bring offerings. In that day, the materials they brought were outward things. But today, when we consider them spiritually, we see that God does not simply accept whatever we decide to bring to Him.
Sometimes we may think that we have something good to offer God, but God may not necessarily want it. God has already appointed what He desires.
This is different from giving a gift to a friend. It would not be fitting to tell your friend, “I want this particular gift.” But with God, we must understand that there is spiritual meaning in what He requires.
Every offering must contain the character of Christ. If we offer something that is not of Christ, God does not desire it.
The materials in Exodus 25 each have their own spiritual significance:
Some have also related the colors to the four Gospels:
The four living creatures have four faces, and these also speak of the character of Christ.
Goats’ hair speaks of endurance, simplicity, and perhaps the prophetic aspect of Christ’s ministry. Rams’ skins dyed red speak of the high priestly character of Christ, of protection and salvation.
The sealskins, or badger skins, covered the outside of the tabernacle. They were not beautiful outwardly, but they could withstand the heat, sand, wind, and harshness of the wilderness. This also speaks of Christ’s character in suffering.
Acacia wood was common in the Holy Land, but it was very hard because it grew in the wilderness. It had little moisture, and so it became dense and heavy. It could withstand great pressure.
The boards of the tabernacle were made of acacia wood because they had to bear the weight of the coverings above them and withstand the conditions of the wilderness. Some have said that acacia wood represents the incorruptible life of our Lord Jesus.
We also have oil, spices, and precious stones. We see that when God builds His habitation, not only is the outward pattern important, but the materials used to build it are important as well. Each material represents some aspect of the character of Christ.
The tabernacle was built according to God’s pattern and with God’s materials. Therefore, today, when the church is being built up, it must have the character of Christ.
At the end of the Book of Revelation, we see the New Jerusalem coming down from heaven. John mentions many materials used to build the city: pure gold and precious stones. These things point to the character of Christ.
Pure gold is described as being like clear glass. We have never seen gold like transparent glass, but this describes a particular character of our Lord.
Precious stones are beautiful and honorable. When God builds His church, the materials He uses are precious and honorable.
We know where precious stones come from. When I was studying at university, we learned about the formation of materials. Precious stones are formed through great pressure and great heat.
For example, a diamond is formed from carbon under immense pressure and temperature. Man has tried to imitate diamonds by artificial methods, but artificial diamonds are not like natural diamonds. What man can produce is limited.
This shows us why we experience so many difficulties in church service and in daily life. God wants to form the character of Christ in us. He is making us like precious stones.
Some people’s work is described as gold, silver, and precious stones. Precious stones are precious because they are rare. In the church today, we may not find many precious stones, but we thank the Lord that His heart is to transform us into such materials.
At the end, when we see the beautiful city of Jerusalem coming down from heaven, that city is the result of all the work God has done in all the saints, joined together. This is the fruit of God’s work.
What God wants to obtain in the church is much higher than our own thoughts. Brothers and sisters, do not think that by your own power or your own will you can accomplish what God wants. Only the character of Christ can build up the church.
In Ephesians 4, when Paul speaks about the church, he does not first speak about gifts and functions. He first speaks about the virtues of Christ.
Each virtue is the character of Christ. One of the most important matters in the church today is to keep the oneness.
How can the church be one? If we all have the character of Christ, we will be one.
Ephesians 4 speaks of lowliness, meekness, longsuffering, forbearing one another in love, and keeping the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
We need to be humble. We need to lower ourselves. We need meekness. We need patience. We need to bear pressure. We need love. We need to forgive. We need peace.
We are not speaking about the natural virtues of man. All the virtues of which the Bible speaks are the character of Christ.
When we speak about oneness in the church and how to achieve it, we cannot separate this matter from character. Many separations are caused not only by differences in concepts but also by natural character.
The difficulty of being one is often because of our character. If we have the character of Christ, there will naturally be oneness.
Church history also shows that many divisions came because of the natural character of man. The character of Christ does not produce separation.
The transformation of character may seem to be an individual pursuit, but its function is corporate.
When God chose Jacob, and when Jacob was about to die, he blessed his sons. Each of the twelve sons had a different character. Later, these became the twelve tribes. The variety of their characters shows us something of God’s design.
God desires oneness with variety.
No one person is so great that he can contain every aspect of the character of Christ. One person may have a little of Christ’s character in one way, and another may have a different aspect. These characters can be brought together in the Body.
When we read the Old Testament, especially Numbers, we see that the tribes camped in four different directions around the tabernacle. Three tribes were placed together on each side, not simply according to their age.
Perhaps, according to their particular nature, God put them together. This may help us understand that the character of Christ has a corporate function in the church.
When we serve together in the church, God may put two people together. One may have one aspect of the character of Christ, while the other has a seemingly opposite aspect. Yet when they are placed together in the Lord, they can function perfectly.
This is only for your consideration; perhaps it is not the exact interpretation. But it helps us see that God desires a church in oneness.
When the Lord Jesus spoke concerning the kingdom of heaven in Matthew, many Bible students understand the Beatitudes as a description of the character of Christ.
Therefore, we may say that the kingdom of heaven uses the character of Christ as its standard. The Bible also tells us that we must enter the kingdom through tribulation.
How do we enter? We must pursue the character of Christ.
God wants to build His church, and He wants to use the character of Christ as the material for that building. If we do not have the character of Christ, the building cannot be accomplished.
Brothers and sisters, may the Lord give us a longing in our hearts. Let us not merely admire other people, nor set before ourselves the goal of becoming a particular person.
The experiences of others can encourage us, but we need to pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is doing within us. We must have a heart of obedience and allow the Holy Spirit to change us from within through the cross.
Each one of us is different, but according to the grace given to us, each one will become part of the New Jerusalem that is being built. According to the character that God is forming in you, you will be built into that city.
This is the fellowship I wanted to have with you this afternoon.
Concerning the matter of character, I will give you a simple testimony. By nature, I am conservative and very inward. That is to say, I am afraid of meeting strangers, and especially afraid of standing before people.
When I was first saved, I delighted in listening to messages. But if you asked me to stand before people and speak, there was great fear within me. This was a real character problem for me.
Very often I needed to stand before people and speak. Even today, if I meet brothers and sisters whom I do not know, I can still feel uncomfortable. Because I had this character, I found it difficult to serve.
But after many years, the Lord did a changing work in me. Today, when I stand before you, you may think that I feel quite natural. You do not know how much fear I may still have within.
When I was a teenager, the elder brothers told me that I needed to stand up and speak. When I stood up and all the eyes were on me, my mind went blank. I did not know what I was supposed to say. I did not even know where to put my hands.
Afterward, someone asked me, “Why were you playing with your buttons?” I did not realize that I had been doing it. Standing before people was truly painful for me.
But the character of man can be transformed. Slowly, the Lord gave me courage. Today I can stand before brothers and sisters and have a little fellowship. This is not my natural disposition; it is the grace of the Lord.
We truly thank the Lord that He gives us grace so that we may serve.
The Lord fed five thousand with two fish and five loaves, and the leftovers were gathered. When a woman broke an alabaster vessel of precious ointment over the Lord, the disciples asked, “Why this waste?”
In my natural character, I treasure things very much. I am very frugal. Other people might say that I am cheap, but I think of myself as being careful.
For example, when anniversaries came around, I would think, “If I buy a dozen roses, they will soon wither.” I would try to find something that would bloom every year instead. Perhaps my frugality has made our home rather plain, because we do not have many decorations.
But when I began serving in the church, I learned that this frugal nature could hinder the building of the outward meeting place. When something cost money, I would sometimes say things that hurt other brothers and sisters, and this could damage the oneness.
Through the building of the meeting place, the Lord taught me much.
Only a few weeks ago, brothers suggested that two trees be removed in order to build something. It would cost five hundred dollars. I thought, “To remove two small trees is very simple. I will do it myself.”
But I went and cut down the trees, and I became very tired. Then I realized that it was better to let others do what they were able to do. Because of my natural character, I had hindered the church from moving forward.
We cannot bring our own natural methods of operation into the church. May the character of Christ be formed in us so that we may become more generous.
Because of my background, I wanted to bring many practical things into my service. About eight years ago, I had a burden to serve young people. I prepared for almost a year and felt ready to begin.
In my mind, I had already decided what I would share during the first year. I had prepared all twelve months, week by week. I thought that if I prepared in this way, the Lord would bless it.
At that time, there were four sisters and four brothers in the young people’s group. They had all grown up together, like a large family. The boys were very active and could not sit still.
During the first message I wanted to share, I realized that what I had prepared was not useful at all. The young people interrupted, corrected my English, and could not remain quiet. I spoke for five minutes and then was interrupted for another five minutes.
I learned a great lesson: when we desire to serve others, we may feel that we must prepare many things, but God is not merely looking for our preparation. We must be willing for Him to work among the young people.
After eight years, I slowly learned how to work with God. I remember one morning when I prayed for a long time before the Lord. I did not even eat breakfast because I felt that I needed to prepare myself to meet these young people.
But when I entered the classroom, the Holy Spirit gave me a different burden. That day, I did not share according to what I had planned.
The result was that the boys listened to the entire message, and the girls watched attentively while I spoke. At that time, I truly learned something about working with God.
I would like to have some fellowship with you. I am not involved in much outward service in the church, but the Bible tells us that to believe in the Son of God, whom the Father has sent, is to do His work. God is still preparing me, and I believe that one day He will make me a useful vessel before Him.
I was saved in 1997. At that time, a brother preached the gospel and spoke a phrase concerning those who were heavy laden. When I heard that phrase, I immediately decided that I would believe in the Lord.
I had many burdens and felt that I could no longer bear them. So I raised my hand and decided to receive the Lord as my Savior.
After that, I prayed and read the Bible, but I did not really feel that I was a sinner. It was not until two years ago, after I moved to Los Angeles and had more time before God, that He began to show me myself.
My husband had certain habits that I did not like, and I continually tried to get him to change. One day, I used our son to make my husband feel ashamed of something.
At that moment, I did not feel much. But when I was in bed that night, the Lord showed me what kind of person I was. The Bible says that the heart of man is corrupt to the utmost, and I saw that I was such a person.
I wanted to change my husband’s habit, but I was willing to use my son to hurt him. I felt very bad, and I prayed to the Lord, asking Him to forgive me.
The next morning, when my husband came into the room, we prayed together as we normally did. When I saw him, I could not stop weeping. I asked him to forgive me.
The Lord continued to use circumstances, people, and things to show me that there is no goodness in me.
I came before the Lord and confessed that I was a sinner. I told God, “When I first received You as my Savior, it was not because I wanted to follow You. It was because I wanted You to bear my burdens. I only wanted to use You.”
I told God the truth about myself. I like food and drink. I do not want inconvenience or burdens. But I allowed God to do the work that He wanted to do.
One time, my husband and I were walking with a couple who did not believe in the Lord. The wife spoke in a way that made me very uncomfortable. She said that her daughter would not eat Chinese food and would not be friends with Chinese people.
I felt offended and spoke critically to my husband. He told me that the daughter was right behind us.
Even though she might not have known I was speaking about her, I knew in my heart that I was talking about her. When I went home, I came before the Lord.
I said, “Lord, You know who I am. I thought I was a righteous person who wanted to preach the gospel, but before I even gave them the gospel, I had already stumbled them.”
I did not know how to face such a matter. I could only give it to the Lord.
It is shameful for me to give this testimony, but through these things the Lord showed me that I am a sinner. Whenever I encounter such things, the Word of God comes into my heart and becomes light to me. His life causes me to see what kind of person I am.
From that time on, I truly knew that I was a sinner and that I needed a Savior. As the Bible says, those who are sick need a physician; those who are well do not need one. The Lord Jesus came to save sinners, not the righteous.
Therefore, I often come to the Lord and ask Him to enlighten me. God continues to do His transforming work through the Holy Spirit.
In the past, I often showed myself because of my sin, and I became full of unhappiness. But today I am full of joy every day—not because I have done well, but because I know God’s will concerning me and that He will finish His work.
Only when I have a willing heart can He accomplish His will in me. My joy comes from my hope.
Because I know that when the Lord appears, I shall be like Him. I know that I belong to Him, that He belongs to me, and that I will forever be His child. I am a person with hope.
We still have another opportunity tomorrow afternoon for brothers and sisters to share. Please prepare yourselves.
Let us have a simple prayer.
Lord, we thank You. Your work is beyond what we can think. You have borne with us through so many difficulties. You chose us and redeemed us.
Not only in redemption did You pay a great price; today You continue to exercise Your ceaseless longsuffering toward us. Although some of us have been saved for many years and have not changed very much, You do not give up on us.
You are almighty. Therefore, we have hope. We know that You are working in us, and we want to learn to allow You to work in us, through every circumstance and every situation, so that You may change us and Your image may be manifested.
We thank You for being with us, Father. Once again, we give You thanks. Hear our prayer. In the precious name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.