Continuing the thought of Ezek. 1:4-5 (about the Lord as the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, out of which come the four living creatures), today I enjoyed this beautiful picture of the coordination that we need in the church life.
The Four Living Creatures – A Picture of the Coordination
The four living creatures had four wings: with two they covered themselves, and with the other two they were joined to the neighbouring ones. Each one of them was facing a different direction/side: one was facing north, another was facing south, another west, and another the east.
And as they moved, the purpose of this wonderful coordination was to carry out the divine administration, to express God, to accomplish God’s Government, and it is also for God’s move. God basically didn’t do anything by Himself – everything He did was through and by the four coordinated moving living creatures.
It seems like they were all back-to-back, not facing one another and not having almost anything in common (in the direction they were facing). The coordination of the four living creatures was not in themselves – it was in the joining wings, the eagle wings.
The eagle wings in the Old Testament represent the divine power, the divine strength, and the divine supply. Our coordination in the church life, for God’s move / administration / government / expression is not of or by ourselves – but in our joining God as our power.
Whatever we have / do / can do / are in ourselves leads not to oneness but to division and separation; in the church life, we need to deny ourselves and take God as our strength, power, supply, and as the joining One!
The most interesting thing about the move of the four living creatures was that they did not turn – they all went straightforward as they moved! So if the one facing north took the lead to go forward, the others followed by not turning but going either backwards or sideways.
This is what we should do in the church life: when one takes the lead to preach the gospel, for example, we all follow by being joined to him in spirit. We just have to follow the leading of the Spirit in the other adjacent members of the Body the Lord put us with. Even if this means that we deny ourselves and take someone else’s way and burden as ours, this leads to the sweet coordination that is actually God moving on the earth.
This is again not in ourselves (all we want in ourselves is our own way / burden) – but in the spirit(mingled with the divine Spirit) – in the touching of the wings, in the praying together in the Spirit, in the much and thorough prayer to be built up and blended…. and here, in this touch of the wings, in the vital prayer together, seemingly-different people become one with one another and the Lord for His move, administration, government and expression!
Lord, gain the reality of the four living creatures today with us in the church life! Not for ourselves and not in ourselves – only for You and in You this can be possible, Lord! Have Your way in us – gain the coordination among us!
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