Lord Jesus, we thank You for this time. What a wonderful time we have at Your table, Lord, that You are present with us. Lord, we have that communion; we have that fellowship with our Lord Jesus and, through Him, with our heavenly Father.
Lord, as we come to this time of word ministry, may it be that it is really You who are speaking to us. Lord, though we are unworthy vessels, we pray that You would open Your heart to us, and that the burden You have put in my heart can be spoken clearly and understood.
So we bring this time before You, Lord, and ask You to bless us with Your presence. Lord, open our eyes. Help us to see You. Give us that open heaven. We want to see Jesus. Thank You, Lord. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
I do not remember when I spoke last, but it may have been a while. I was really encouraged by what Jerry said: we do need eternity to come to know the Lord. It is just amazing.
But the Lord Jesus gave the apostle John, at the end of the book of Revelation, a glimpse of eternity. I do not know how you all feel, but as I get older, somehow my heart wants to know about eternity. It is not a matter of curiosity, but truly: what is in God’s heart for us for all eternity?
God is an eternal God. He is the same; He never changes. Yet we are created for eternity. On the other hand, the Lord leaves us on earth, and so we are in time. God created time to perfect us and prepare us so that, when eternity arrives, we are fitted to live in eternity.
When we think about eternity, we know that the Lord has to come first, right? At the end of Revelation, the Lord says, “I am coming quickly.” The Lord is coming quickly. After that, there is the thousand-year kingdom, when God’s people will rule over this world. Only after that comes eternity.
I want to share a small portion—really one verse, perhaps half a verse—given to John the apostle in Revelation 21. Let me read the words first. Revelation 21:3, from the New American Standard translation:
“Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men,
and He will dwell among them,
and they shall be His people,
and God Himself will be among them.”
Now, that is the New American Standard Version.
We know the word tabernacle. In modern times, it may have a different meaning from how it was used in older English. When we think of a tabernacle, we think of a tent—a temporary structure that can be put up and taken down easily and quickly. But that may be today’s definition.
In the older sense, tabernacle really means a dwelling place, a habitation, a place in which to live—a house and a home. Think about it in terms of home when we reach Revelation 21:3.
The verse says, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men,” and then, “He will dwell among them.” These words, tabernacle and dwell, come from the same root in Greek. To dwell means to abide, to be at home.
When we bring out the meanings contained in those words, I am impressed, and I hope we all are impressed, with what the Word of God says. There are translations that render tabernacle as home. Let me read one version from J. B. Phillips’ New Testament:
“See, the home of God is with men.
He will live among them,
and they shall be His people,
and God Himself shall be with them.”
We all know something of what a home is in our everyday life. What does it mean that He will live among them? It is really this matter of the home of God: the home of God is with man. That is Revelation 21:3. He will live among them.
We should read this carefully, because sometimes we think of making a home for God, building a home for God, or offering God a home. But that is not the case here. We know that God does not live in things built by human hands.
So what is the home of God? I will come to that a little later, but I do want to say that the home of God is a Person: the Lord Jesus. When you come to the New Testament, that is what it points to—the home of God.
The home of God is with man. If we are at home with His Son, then we are also at home with God. The second half says, “He will dwell among them.” God will live among them. That is a living relationship, a matter of union in life with the Lord Himself, with His Son. God will live among us.
What God is after, while we are here on earth, is that we would have a living, loving, intimate relationship with His Son.
You may say, “Well, I already know that. What is the burden?” We may know all these things. This may not be anything new to us. Much of the word ministry today may be something we have heard before. I just pray that the Lord will speak afresh to us.
Why do I sense that the Lord Jesus wants me to share on this matter of the home of God with man? I want to ask two related questions.
We all know about the first coming of the Lord Jesus. Do you think God was at home with His people at the time of Jesus’ coming? God had His people, the Israelites, and God had His temple in Jerusalem. Yet we have these words from John 1:11:
“He came to His own,
and those who were His own did not receive Him.”
On the one hand, God had His people and His house, His temple. Yet His people were not at home with Him. That is what John 1:11 tells us. Because they were not at home with Jesus, they were not at home with God.
Now let us fast-forward. The second question is like the first. You may say, “That was two thousand years ago. It had something to do with the Israelites. What about us?” I hope the Lord asks us these questions, so that we may be honest.
We have heard ministry on the seven letters in Revelation 2 and Revelation 3. Do you remember what the Lord Jesus said in the last letter, to the church in Laodicea? Revelation 3:20:
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock;
if anyone hears My voice and opens the door…”
Where was the Lord Jesus? He had His people. He had believers. He had the churches. But where was He? The Lord Jesus was outside, knocking at the door.
Two thousand years have passed. Are we not in the same condition today? Where is the Lord Jesus? Do we put Him outside the door? That could be our condition today.
If we, as believers, are not at home with Jesus—or if Jesus is not at home with us—then God is not at home with us either. That is really the burden for today: to consider this matter of the home of God. The question comes down to this: where are we?
God is satisfied only when the home of God is with His people. When that becomes a reality, then the heart of God is satisfied.
We are not living in the time when Jesus came the first time. Today, we have no excuse. The Lord has given us the Holy Spirit, and He shows us our condition. So I would say: let us repent if there is a big gap—a giant gap—between our condition and what God is after.
We need to be clear about what it means that the home of God is with man.
I would like to spend some time looking at the heart of God from Genesis all the way to the end of Revelation. We see that His heart never changes. God wants His home to be with man.
We must also recognize the distinction between the Old Testament, or old covenant, and the New Testament. The book of Hebrews tells us that what was in the Old Testament was shadow. We must take the things recorded in the Old Testament as shadows, reflections of the reality that comes in the New Testament.
When we look at the stories of the Old Testament, we should realize how much better our portion is today. In the time of the Israelites, God took them out of Egypt and they became His people. But how much better is our portion today, with the Holy Spirit dwelling in our hearts?
Brother Lenny shared a couple of weeks ago from John 15. The Lord said, “I am the true vine.” There is the vine and the branches, and the relationship of “Abide in Me, and I in you.” That is the relationship with the Lord Himself.
The word abide means to dwell, and it also means to make a home. You can see the connection. In this matter of abiding, the vine and the branches are one—one in life. This brings us into being at home with the Lord Himself.
Third, we want to look at an example. There is an illustration in the Bible, in the time of Jesus, that shows us that Jesus was at home. When Jesus came, His own people did not receive Him. But there was one family that received Him: the family in Bethany—Martha, Mary, and Lazarus.
We will see, through their interactions with Him, how Jesus was at home with them. Of course, the other side is that they also were at home with Jesus.
First, let us consider God’s desire to be at home with man. Think about creation. When we go back to Genesis 2, when man was created, God put man in the garden of Eden. In that garden were all kinds of trees, so Adam’s physical needs were met.
Then God came. We know from Genesis 3:8 that God came in the cool of the day. He spoke with Adam. He brought the animals to Adam, and Adam named them one by one.
God sensed that something was not settled in Adam’s heart. Adam saw the animals coming in pairs, but Adam himself did not have a helper corresponding to him. So God took from Adam and made a helpmate for him, and that was Eve.
In the garden they had the trees, and in the middle of the garden there was the tree of life. God was indicating to Adam and Eve, “Eat of that tree of life.” It was right there in the midst of the garden.
It was as though God was saying, “Not only do I want fellowship with you in a natural way; eat of that tree and have that life, so that we may have a union of life together.” This is the higher-life relationship between God and man.
Even at the beginning—creating Adam, making Eve—we see hints of this matter of God’s home with man.
We know the story of Israel. The descendants of Abraham went to Egypt because of famine in the land, and they multiplied there. God wanted to bring them out. He did not merely say that He would take them out; He said, “They are My people.” Can you imagine that? God’s people. They were not just any people in the world. He took the descendants of Abraham, the Israelites, out of Egypt as His people.
Then we come to Exodus 25. Moses went up the mountain, and God gave Moses detailed instructions to build a tabernacle for Him. Every curtain and every piece of furniture in the tabernacle was specified by God. Why? Because the tabernacle itself was a shadow.
Exodus 25:8 says:
“Let them construct a sanctuary for Me,
that I may dwell among them.”
God expressed His heart. He wanted a people. He chose a people. He took them out from Egypt, and He told them, “Build Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them”—that I may live among them.
Again, right there is the heart of God. He wanted to dwell among His people. But we must remember: these are shadows. They are not the final story.
After the tabernacle was constructed, Exodus 40 tells us that the glory of God filled the tabernacle. Even though it was a material structure, the glory of God filled it.
We have been helped to understand that the glory of God is present when God’s heart is satisfied—when things are according to what God wants and according to God’s mind. Even the tabernacle, limited as it was, was a shadow; yet God showed forth His glory there. God’s heart was satisfied.
Then we come to the New Testament. As I mentioned, there is a transition from shadow to reality. We have these words from John 2:19:
“Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple,
and in three days I will raise it up.’”
What is the temple of God? It is not a building in the natural sense. The temple of God is Christ Himself. That is the transition.
Where is the home of God? The home of God is Christ. It is a Person, not a physical building. I hope we come to realize that it is not something physical or natural; it is something spiritual. It is the Lord Himself.
I want to return for a moment to this matter of “My people.” It is very significant. If you search the Old Testament for the phrase My people, you find many occurrences, and they refer to the Israelites. Then we understand how important Israel was to the heart of God.
But in the New Testament, the meaning of “My people” is expanded. I think that is wonderful. Most of us are Gentiles. Yet, as believers, God calls us His people.
First Peter 2:10 says:
“For you once were not a people,
but now you are the people of God;
you had not received mercy,
but now you have received mercy.”
What wonderful grace there is. Believers are included. We are God’s people.
We are in the New Testament now. We are God’s people. Let us settle that in our hearts. God loves us. God loves us as much as He loves the Israelites.
But there is more than that. In the Old Testament, “My people” spoke of a natural relationship. In the New Testament, we find the phrase “in Christ Jesus,” “in Christ,” “in Him,” and “in the Lord.” We are not only His people; God has put us in Christ Jesus. That is a much closer relationship than the external relationship between Israel and God.
The Israelites had a physical, external relationship. But today, we are God’s people, and we are actually in Christ Jesus. He has put us in Christ. That is a close relationship. If we search for the phrases “in Christ” and “in Him,” we find them more than a hundred times in the New Testament. That is where we are. That is our position: in Christ.
How about this matter of temple or sanctuary? In the Old Testament, the sanctuary, the temple, and the tabernacle were physical things. They were buildings on earth.
Yet in the New Testament there is a change. Second Corinthians 6:16 says:
“For we are the temple of the living God;
just as God said,
‘I will dwell in them and walk among them;
and I will be their God,
and they shall be My people.’”
Now that is speaking to us.
We are the temple of the living God. That is present tense. It is not merely that we will be; it is that now we are. God in Christ dwells in us.
As long as we are at home with Christ, we shall be at home with God Himself. Consider the words again: “I will dwell in them.” I will live in them. I will abide in them.
Just think about this: who are we? We are sinners saved by His grace. Yet God in Christ desires to be at home with us. What love there is! What love there is toward His people, toward the believers.
“I will walk among them.” That should bring us back to Genesis, where God walked in the cool of the day. God was in the midst of the garden of Eden. Today we are in a better position than Adam and Eve were at that time, because they had not yet eaten of the tree of life, whereas we have Christ’s life in us.
God walks among us. In a real sense, that means we have union in life with the Lord Himself. He is able to live in us, and He walks among us.
Then He says, “I will be their God.” In the Old Testament, God was the God of the Israelites, His people. But now that has been extended to us. God is our God. God has become the God of all those who believe, who are in Christ.
And He concludes, “They shall be My people.” What amazing grace there is. In the Old Testament, that privilege was limited to Israel; now it has been extended to us. We are God’s people.
How blessed we are to have the Lord Himself. We can abide in Him, and He abides in us. We can have that union of life with Him. We are His people, and God is our God.
What God commanded Moses to construct—a sanctuary so that He might dwell among His people—is being realized today among believers. We dwell in Christ, and God in Christ dwells in us and lives among us. On one hand, that is our position; but God wants it to become our experience.
What would characterize a people who are at home with God? The first matter is from John 15:4-5. The Lord Jesus said:
“Abide in Me, and I in you.
As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself
unless it abides in the vine,
so neither can you unless you abide in Me.
I am the vine, you are the branches.”
To abide in the Lord Jesus is to make our home in Him, and for the Lord Jesus to make His home in us.
The vine and the branches are together. You cannot separate them. They are one; they share one life. This speaks of the union of life between the Lord Jesus and ourselves.
We can be at home with God only when we are at home with the Lord Himself. So when we say that we want to be at home with God, we are referring to a people, to believers, who are in union with God’s Son—no more and no less.
This becomes even clearer when we look at Revelation 21:22. Speaking of eternity, John says:
“I saw no temple in it,
for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb
are its temple.”
In eternity, what do we see? John, as a Jew, knew about the temple. Perhaps it would have been natural for him to ask, “Where is the temple?” But there is no physical temple there.
John saw no temple in it, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. At the beginning of eternity, there is no physical temple. Yet we see God Almighty, we see the Lamb, and we see God’s people—the bride, the wife of the Lamb—together and at home in eternity.
God’s people are in perfect union with His Son, and God’s people are perfectly at home with God. That is the picture John saw.
This should be revealed to our hearts, because we are speaking about eternity. Sometimes eternity seems so far away, but eternity is right around the corner. It is very important to know this. When God shows us eternity, He gives us a goal and a purpose, something toward which we may press in order to satisfy God’s heart.
Even though this is the picture of eternity, it should also be our reality now. God wants us to be at home with Him, with the Lamb, and together as God’s people in perfect union with His Son.
What do a people who are in union with God’s Son have? If we go back to the Old Testament, we know the structure of the tabernacle. There was the holy place and the holy of holies, divided by a veil. In the holy of holies was the ark of the covenant, the mercy seat, and the two cherubim.
There was no natural light there. All there was, was the glory of God and His presence. But access into the holy of holies in Old Testament times was limited. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest could enter. It was not available to all God’s people.
But that changed in our time. When we have this living union with the Lord Himself, we know what happened when the Lord gave up His spirit to God at the cross: the veil of the temple was torn from top to bottom.
The book of Hebrews takes that and tells us that an open way has been made. The Lord Jesus has given us an open way into the holy of holies, into the presence of God, unto the mercy seat, through the blood of Jesus.
In the Old Testament it was once a year for the high priest. Now, when we live in union of life with the Lord Himself, we have access to the Father—unlimited access, at any time, in the Spirit. We have access to His presence, to the Person of God. That is truly wonderful.
Another matter that makes us different is the glory of God. In the Old Testament, the glory of God filled the temple and filled the tabernacle. We have spoken about that on different occasions.
Yet in the New Testament there is a difference. It is no longer something physical, but something spiritual. The glory of God means that God’s heart is satisfied. When everything is according to the mind of God, there is the glory of God.
In the New Testament, we know the Lord Himself. He is the One who satisfies God’s heart. He is the One who has the glory of God. Because we are in union of life with the Lord Himself, we also come into the glory of God. We also have a way to satisfy God’s heart in Christ.
So let me sum it up. A people who are in union of life with the Lord Himself have glory—not their own glory, but the glory of the Lord Himself.
A people who are at home with Christ, or at home with God, have three things:
What mercy God has shown us. We are believers, sinners saved by His grace, and He has allowed us to enter into union of life with the Lord Himself. That is the heart of God.
Let us come to the example of the family of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. At the time of Jesus’ first coming, He came into the world and came to His own people, but His people did not welcome Him.
Though He was Immanuel, God with us, He was born in a manger, a lowly place. The Bible says there was no room in the inn. When you hear those words—“no room in the inn”—for Immanuel, God with us, it is very touching. There was no room for Him.
We also read in the Gospels what the temple had become. The Lord Jesus cleansed the temple twice because people had turned the temple into a place of business. He overturned the tables of the money changers. Even though these things may have been for people’s convenience, they were not for the house of God.
The Son of God had come, but the temple was no longer truly the house of God. The Lord Himself had no place to stay.
During the final week, the week of His suffering, the Gospels tell us that the Lord Jesus did not stay in Jerusalem. He was there in the daytime, but He left at night. He had to go somewhere else because that city did not welcome Him. He had no place there.
With that background, consider this family in Bethany.
Luke 10:38-42 tells us about Martha and Mary. John 11:1-44 tells us about the raising of Lazarus from the dead. John 12 tells us of Mary and the Lord Jesus.
Against the background that God’s people did not welcome the Lord at His first coming, He found a family in Bethany who welcomed Him. More than that, they received Him as a member of the family.
Luke 10:38 says:
“Now as they were traveling along,
He entered a village;
and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.”
Martha welcomed Him into her home. Remember the background: God’s people rejected Him, but the Lord found a place that welcomed Him. This was the family in Bethany.
They welcomed Him not merely as a guest, but as a member of the family. The Lord Himself was at home there, and they were at home with the Lord Himself.
Further along in that chapter, we read that Mary sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to Him. Martha was very busy, but Mary was sitting there. That was the response of her heart to the Lord Himself. The Lord had heart-to-heart fellowship with Mary.
The Lord said of Mary that she had chosen the one thing that could not be taken away from her. What was that one thing? It was heart-to-heart fellowship.
Not only were there happy things in that household; there was also correction. In a family there are corrections. Martha complained, “Lord, tell Mary to help me. I am so busy and troubled.” Martha was rebuked.
But there are corrections in a home. Later, when the Bible speaks of that family again, it simply says, “Martha served.” There is no more complaint. Martha had been corrected.
John 11:5 says:
“Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.”
Out of all the families among the Jewish people at that time, the Lord Jesus singled out this family: Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. The Scripture says, “Now Jesus loved them.”
Jesus loves us all. His love is wonderful. But when the Bible specifically says that Jesus loved them, there was something in Martha, Mary, and Lazarus that satisfied the Lord’s heart. The Lord was so free, so at home in that place, that He loved that household.
Then we have the story of Lazarus dying. The Lord Jesus came after Lazarus had died. In John 11:25, the Lord said:
“I am the resurrection and the life.”
Can you imagine that? Lazarus had died and was buried, yet the Lord said, “I am the resurrection and the life.” What does that mean to us? In the presence of the Lord Himself, there is resurrection and there is life.
In John 12, Lazarus was there as a testimony of that life, a testimony that our Lord Himself is the resurrection.
During the week of His passion, the Lord did not remain in Jerusalem at night. He went to Jerusalem during the day, but He did not stay there at night. John 12 tells us that six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany.
Mary did something special. In the earlier chapter, Mary sat at the Lord’s feet and heard His words. Mary was so devoted to the Lord Himself. She heard every word from Him.
The disciples were with the Lord all the time. The Lord spoke to them about His crucifixion and about laying down His life. They heard Him, yet they did not hear. But there was a sister in this family who was so devoted to the Lord Himself that she heard.
Mary wanted to do something for the Lord. From her heart, she took the perfume—the most expensive perfume she had saved. According to Jewish tradition, it may have been kept for her wedding day. She took that most expensive perfume and poured it on the feet of Jesus.
Now we see that in that family there was devotion—wholehearted, complete devotion to the Lord Himself. That was Mary.
That is why Jesus found His home there, and that is why they were at home with Jesus. At the end of that story, the Lord said that wherever the gospel was preached in the whole world, what this woman had done would also be spoken of in memory of her.
She poured out all that she had upon the Lord Himself in preparation for His burial, and the Lord Himself was satisfied. He said, in effect, “Wherever the gospel is preached, tell the story of Mary and how she was devoted to Me.”
So we have this example of a household. At that time it was not a perfect illustration, because the Spirit had not yet come. Yet there was a household, a home, in which the Lord Himself was at home. The Lord was at home there, and they were at home with the Lord Jesus. What an example for us.
I am running out of time, so I should conclude. We have shared that the heart of God is to be at home with His people. We see that from the beginning to the end—from Genesis to Revelation. That is God’s desire.
The home of God is with His people, and He will live among them. That is His eternal desire.
We must forget the idea that home is a structure. The home is not a building; it is the Lord Himself, Jesus Christ. In the heart of God, He wants us to abide in the Lord so that He may abide in us. He wants us to be like the vine and the branches, together in union of life.
That is God’s eternal desire, and that should be our desire—not merely for the days to come, but our desire now.
We always speak of being in the last hours of this age. The Lord’s coming is soon. The home of God is Christ; it is the Lord Himself. But He longs for us to be in the same place, to have that union with Him.
We know that we are not there. We have heard Revelation 3:20: the Lord Himself is outside, knocking at the door. But let us finish the verse:
“If anyone hears My voice and opens the door,
I will come in to him
and will dine with him,
and he with Me.”
This is more than having a meal together. It is more than the lunch we may have later. To dine together is a union of life with the Lord.
It is wonderful to see that perhaps the Lord needs to withdraw His manifest presence for a time, but He loves us with eternal love. His love is everlasting. His love never changes. He may withdraw for a while, but He is still knocking. Thank God for that.
If He were not knocking, we would be lost. In all seven letters of Revelation, He says:
“He who has an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Do we hear His knocking? Are we going to open the door and let Him in so that He may dine with us?
I want to touch on one final point. In the first letter, to Ephesus, the Lord spoke of many good things concerning the church at Ephesus. Yet in Revelation 2:4 He said:
“But I have this against you,
that you have left your first love.”
We speak about the decline of the church. Sometimes we look at the book of Acts and then ask what happened so quickly. In the church at Ephesus, believers turned to doctrines in place of spiritual reality. The Lord said that they had left their first love. That was the beginning of the decline.
Then, when we come to the last letter, the Lord is outside. So what is the key? What was the word to Ephesus? He said:
“Remember therefore from where you have fallen,
and repent.”
We thank the Lord that He gives us the opportunity to repent. By hearing the Holy Spirit, He will bring us back. Let us hear that knocking. He will bring us back.
I want to finish with John 15:9-10 and John 15:17:
“Just as the Father has loved Me,
I have also loved you;
abide in My love.
If you keep My commandments,
you will abide in My love;
just as I have kept My Father’s commandments
and abide in His love.”
“This I command you,
that you love one another.”
At the end of the day, it comes back to this matter of love: loving the Lord, loving one another, and repentance.
May we truly have this love, loving one another and being at home in the Lord Himself, in His love. May the Lord Jesus have a people in union with Him in life and in love: a people loving one another, a people always in His presence, and a people filled with the glory of God.
Lastly, may He have a people at home with the Lord Jesus and with God.
Lord Jesus, we do want to give thanks to You for this hour. Lord, I have to confess that my words are so limited. Lord, we pray that the Holy Spirit may use them to speak to our hearts in a fresh way.
Lord, may we treasure what You have in Your heart concerning this matter of the home of God with His people—that God will live among His people. Lord, help us treasure that. It is not only something for the time to come, but we pray that it may become a reality in our time on earth.
Lord, open up Your Word to us. Loving one another is Your commandment. Lord, it is abiding in You and You abiding in us—making our home in You, and allowing You to make Your home in us. You are the true vine, and we are the branches. The vine and branches are together.
Lord, we pray that this would not merely become doctrine, but would become life—life in our hearts. Enable us to return to You, and allow You to work in each one of us and work in us together.
Lord, may You have what You are after: a people who are at home with You, a people who have union of life with the Lord Himself. Then God would have a people with whom He is at home.
Lord, what a marvelous scene in eternity. We pray that eternity may be now: that You may dwell among us, that we may dwell in You, and that this may become real.
Lord, thank You for this hour. We thank You that You have not given up on Your people. You are still knocking, and You want us to open the door and let You in, so that You may dine with us and we may have that fellowship.
Lord, may we have that oneness, that union of life restored. Thank You, Lord. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.