We all know the Lord’s word in John 12:24 where He says that unless the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone – but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
When the Lord Jesus came with the kingdom of God, He established a different principle of serving God and of living for God – not by man’s natural strength or power but by dying to ourselves so that we may enter into resurrection and glorify God.
This is how the Lord Jesus served God and served us – by laying His life down for us so that we may receive Him in resurrection as the Spirit. This is how Paul lived – no longer Paul but Christ, and the life he lived was in resurrection, by faith in Christ (Gal. 2:20).
This is how Moses lead the people of Israel to the good land – when he came to the end of himself, God came in and used him in resurrection for His purpose. This is how Hiram built God’s temple in the time of Solomon – his Tyrian father died and he was transferred into the tribe of Naphtali (resurrection).
This is how Nehemiah ruled over the returned people of Israel during the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem – he continually contacted God and talked to God, being in resurrection in regards to serving God’s people.
We need to allow our natural capacity, ability, and virtues to be brought to the cross and die, and they will be resurrected and used by God to a greater extent in resurrection (Rom. 8:13).
Mysteriously Transferred “Into the Tribe of Naphtali”
King Solomon built the temple, but the builder and the one who was skilled in everything related to the building of the temple was Hiram.
In 2 Chron 2:14 we see that Hiram was the son of a woman from Dan and his father was from Tyre. Dan was a people people of the serpent that bit the horse in the race of God (see Gen. 49:17), and Tyre (a center of commerce) was related to Satan (see Ezek. 28:12, 16).
But somehow mysteriously 1 Kings 7:14 says that Hiram was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali (and his father was from Tyre). Naphtali is a hind let loose (Gen. 49:21), useful to God, signifying someone who trusts in God when he’s in a desperate situation (Hab. 3:17-19), and it also signifies Christ who entered into resurrection (after passing through the suffering of crucifixion) for the sake of the church (Heb. 2:11-12).
This transfer from the tribe of Dan to the tribe of Naphtali is very mysterious – and I am grateful to the Lord for the ministry of brother Lee on this matter.
Hiram was born of a woman of the people of the serpent and of a man of the people related to Satan – but he was transferred (when his father died – see “a widow mother”) into the tribe of Naphtali to be a person who trusts in God, walks upon the mountaintops, and lives by the resurrected Christ for God’s building!
This is our story also: we were born of fleshly parents – parents of the people of the serpent, but we were reborn of God to be in resurrection for God’s building. We were reborn; we were transferred; we were regenerated!
Now when it comes to our abilities and capabilities which God put in us, the “Tyrian father” (where we learned all our skills) has to die so that we may be transferred into resurrection for God’s building.
This takes place mysteriously, not seen by human eyes or understood by human mind, and we become mysterious people with skills and capabilities in resurrection useful for God’s building work.
Nehemiah: Aggressive for God in Resurrection
Another pattern of one who served God not in or by his natural ability is Nehemiah – he was an aggressive man, but he went through death and resurrection and his aggressiveness was in resurrection. He talked to God all the time; he opened to the Lord, he poured out his heart before God, and his book is filled with prayers to the Lord.
Nehemiah was an aggressive person who loved God, the holy land, the holy temple, and the holy city of God, and he always contacted God and had fellowship with Him. This made him one who trusted in God (and was not afraid of enemies) and was one with God (in building the walls of the city of Jerusalem). What a pattern he was to us!
Before we do anything for the Lord, we need to pray ourselves into God and have thorough fellowship with Him. As we do things for Him, our trust is not in ourselves but in God, being one with Him, and having no glory for ourselves.
Sowing the “Seed” of our Natural Ability to Reap it in Resurrection
It is never a loss to “sow the seed” of our natural ability and capability into the ground, allowing the Lord to bring it through death and thus causing us to lose it temporarily. Eventually, this ability will be brought into resurrection (see John 12:24-26) and will be increased and strengthened to be useful to God to a greater extent.
God in His sovereignty brings about many situations and people and things to help us put our natural ability to death, especially in the church life. If we allow our natural capacity, ability, and even our natural virtues to be brought to the cross and die, we will be resurrected and our capacity, ability, and virtues will become useful to God in resurrection.
It is good to study hard, get all the knowledge that we can get, achieve the best we can, and acquire the best skills and knowledge we can according to our natural capacity and ability. But for us to be useful to the Lord we need to have our natural capacity, ability, and virtue transferred from our natural life into the consummated Triune God through death and burial.
We need to be transferred into another realm – through the application of the cross of Christ to our natural ability we will enter into the realm of resurrection, and in this realm we will be useful to Him.
The future of the Lord’s recovery in the church life all over the earth depends on many who actively allow the Lord to apply His death to their natural abilities and capabilities so that they may be fully brought into resurrection!
Lord, make us those who are not lazy but eager to be trained and educated to obtain the best skills and knowledge we can according to our ability and capability. And then, Lord, we want to be transferred from the tribe of Dan into the tribe of Naphtali! We want to actively allow You to bring our natural ability, capability, and virtue be put to death so that You may bring us into resurrection. Lord Jesus, in Your recovery and in Your Body, may there be a harvest in resurrection!
References and Further Reading
- This sharing is inspired from brother Ron Kangas’ sharing and portions in, Life-study of Genesis (msgs. 85-86), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, ITERO spring 2013 “The Experience, Growth, and Ministry of Life for the Body“, week 2 entitled, Dealing with the Natural Constitution in Order to Be in Resurrection.
- Further reading: Life-study of Nehemiah pp. 14-15.
- Hymns on this topic:
# Minding just the spirit, we the cross will know, / And His resurrection pow’r thru us will flow; / Minding just the spirit, Christ will live thru me, / And His life within will reach maturity.
# Buried with Christ, and raised with Him too; / What is there left for me to do? / Simply to cease from struggling and strife, / Simply to walk in newness of life. / Glory be to God!
# Here, Lord, we give ourselves to Thee; / Receive us into Thy wise hands; / Bend, break, and build together in Thee / To be the house to meet Thy demands. - Pictures credit: instagr.ams by me here and here.
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