By His Universal Travelling, Christ led us Captive and Gave us as Gifts to the Body!

It is amazing to realize that, through His universal travelling in His ascension, Christ let as captives those who had been taken captive by Satan and made them gifts to His Body; He descended from heaven, descended to Hades, was raised to the earth, and ascended to the third heavens, and by His universal travelling, we were captured by Him and made gifts to the Body of Christ. Wow!

This week we come to the topic of, The Organic Body of Christ Building Itself up in Love.

We have seen that we need to love the Lord in incorruptibility; this is a continuation of loving the Lord in incorruptibility, for the Body builds itself up in love.

The focus of the book of Ephesians is Eph. 4:8-16; it is the key to us building up the church as the Body of Christ.

We need to see these verses in a new light and apply them with the exercise of our spirit so that we may be those who live a life for the building up of the church as the Body of Christ.

Loving the Lord in incorruptibility gives us a new way, a new position, a new potential, and a new possibility to see the building up of the Body of Christ being fulfilled.

As believers in Christ, we are members of Christ; we are members of the Body of Christ, for we have been firmly attached to Christ as the Head and we have been joined to our fellow members in the Body.

As we love the Lord in incorruptibility, we need to seek to be built up in the Body of Christ, realizing that the organic Body of Christ is building itself up in love.

In love. The Body builds itself up in love. First, we need to see that the ascended Christ has given gifts to the Body for the building up of the Body.

Second, these gifts given by the Head perfect all the members of the Body so that the perfected members would participate directly in the building up of the Body of Christ.

Finally, the Body builds itself up in love by all the members having been perfected and serving together in this building work.

This is what Eph. 4:8-16 presents.

The Lord wants to gain the reality of the Body of Christ, the building up of the Body of Christ being carried out practically.

May the Lord unveil us to see and realize that this is what He is after today, for when He will gain the built-up Body, the bride will be prepared, and the Lord can return to end this age and bring in the age of the kingdom.

Today we are at the end of the church age; we can do the greatest work for God, for He’s about to do the greatest dispensational change together with His overcomers.

May we give ourselves to the Lord for the building up of the church so that the organic Body of Christ may be built up for the preparation of the bride of Christ to bring the Lord back.

Christ Won the Victory and Ascended Triumphantly to the Heavens, having Overcome the Enemy!

Eph. 4:8 speaks of Christ who, having ascended to the height, led captive those taken captive and gave gifts to men.

First, He descended into the lower parts of the earth, then He ascended far above all the heavens to fill all things, and He led captive those taken captive.

This is very significant. This “height” to which He ascended symbolizes the third heaven, where God dwells (1 Kings 8:30); it is a reference and quotation from Psa. 68:18.

This verse in the psalms says, You have ascended on high; You have led captive those taken captive; You have received gifts among men, even the rebellious ones also, that Jehovah God may dwell among them.

Furthermore, this verse from the Psalms is taken from Num. 10:35, which says, And when the Ark set out, Moses said, Rise up, O Jehovah, and let Your enemies be scattered; and let those who hate You flee before You.

Christ is the One who won the victory and ascended triumphantly to the heavens, having overcome the enemy.

Through His death, He destroyed the one who has the might of death.

Through His burial and staying for three days in Hades, He preached the gospel to those who are bound there.

In His resurrection, He overcame Satan and took the keys of death and Hades.

In His resurrection, Christ ascended above all things and was given the highest name on earth and in heaven.

And this Christ is typified by the Ark, which is the centre of the tabernacle; wherever the Ark went, the victory was won.

Christ is the reality of the type of the Ark, and this Ark eventually ascended triumphantly to the top of Mout Zion.

This portrays how Christ won the victory and ascended triumphantly to the heavens.

Hallelujah for our wonderful, glorious, victorious Christ!

He did not merely remain in heavens while we are down here fighting Satan and being defeated by sin, death, the world, the flesh, and the self.

He Himself became a man, humbling Himself to be made in the likeness of a creature.

He humbled Himself even further to become like a slave, putting aside the outer glory that He had in His Godhead.

He became the embodiment of God, the Ark travelling and journeying on earth to express God (John 1:14).

This One, after passing through death and resurrection, entered into ascension, and in ascension, He won the victory over every negative thing!

He overcame the enemy and ascended to the heavens, far above all things and rulers and authorities.

Now He is in ascension, fully glorified and in complete victory, and He is the Head over all things to the church.

We share in His victory over the enemy, and we can apply this victory as the church, His Body, today.

Hallelujah, we are joined to the Lord as one spirit (1 Cor. 6:17).

We love Him in incorruptibility and we seek incorruptible things, setting our mind not on the things on the earth but on the things which are above.

And we are here for the building up of the Body of Christ, one with the Head, standing in His victory, and enjoying all His riches.

May we be those who cleave to Him, engage with Him, learn to live with Him, and participate in His ascension to rule over all things with Him. Praise the Lord!

Lord Jesus, we praise You for dying to destroy the devil, resurrecting to proclaim Your victory, and ascending on high to be enthroned far above all things! Hallelujah, Christ ascended on high, led captive those taken captive, received gifts among men, and gave gifts to the Body of Christ! Praise the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior and our Lord, who humbled Himself to the uttermost and was raised and exalted to the highest point to be Lord over all! Praise the Lord, Christ won the victory and ascended triumphantly to the heavens, having overcome the enemy! We praise You, Lord, and we want to live in the organic union with You, standing in Your victory, and proclaiming Your victory over all negative things!

By His Universal Travelling, Christ led us Captive and Gave us as Gifts to the Body!

God created all things: the universe and everything that is in it. Even more, through His incarnation, human living, death, resurrection, and ascension, Christ filled all things.

In His incarnation, Christ travelled from the heavens to the earth; in His death, He travelled from earth to Hades; and in His resurrection, He travelled from Hades back to earth.

Then, in His ascension, Christ travelled from the earth to the third heavens.

By His universal travelling, Christ fills all things: He fills the heavens, the earth, and under the earth.

By this universal traffic, He gained some people and gave gifts to the Body for the building up of the Body.

For example, Paul was a sinful, even devilish, persecutor of the church when he was Saul of Tarsus, but Christ reached him through His universal travelling, and He made him a gift to the Body.

By the travelling of Christ throughout the universe, He reached all His believers and He can reach His seeking ones.

Christ travelled from the heavens to the earth; He was born in a manger in Bethlehem, He lived for thirty years in the little town of Nazareth, He was crucified on the cross, and He went down into Hades for three days.

In His death, Christ went down to Hades and took a tour of that region for three days.

Then, He came out of Hades on the day of His resurrection.

Before He ascended (after He resurrected), Christ appeared to His disciples for a period of forty days.

Then, He ascended into the heavens. Eph. 4:8 says that, when Christ ascended, He led a train of vanquished foes to the heaven, taking captive those taken captive, and He gave gifts to men.

Psa. 68 says that these captives were the rebellious ones.

It is amazing to realize that Christ entered into heavens as a conqueror with a train of captives. He took us, the rebellious ones who were

Satan’s captives, and made us His captives; He led a triumphal procession and led a train of vanquished foes to the Father.

Christ in His ascension presented the captives He took from Satan to the Father, who in turn gave them back to Him as gifts; then, Christ gave all these captives as gifts to men.

We are these rebellious ones who were once captives of Satan, taken captive by him and living in captivity and in rebellion.

Then, Christ came and took us as His captives and led us in a train of vanquished foes, to the Father!

By His universal travelling – from heaven to the earth, from the earth to Hades, from Hades to the earth, and from the earth to the third heavens – Christ filled all things, and He led captive those taken captives and gave them as gifts to His Body! Wow!

He not only gathered up many sinners but also defeated Satan, the one who captured them. Hallelujah, Satan has been defeated, and Christ took us as His captives.

Even more, Christ not only captured us but also gave us to the Father who, being pleased with us, gave us back to the Son, and the Son gave us as gifts to the Body! Praise the Lord!

By His universal travelling, Christ gained all of us and conquered Satan. He led a train of captives in a victorious and triumphant celebration!

We have been captured by the Lord and we have no way to escape Him; this seems to be negative but it is actually the most positive thing!

When the Lord appeared to us in time through the preaching of the gospel, we had no choice but to believe in Him, because we have been captured by Him.

Now we’re in His train of captives, and we were given to the Body of Christ as gifts to the Body.

All believers in Christ are gifts to the Body of Christ; they were given by Christ, who fought the battle, won the victory, released them from Satan’s captivity, and made them His captives to make them gifts to the Body of Christ. Wow, Hallelujah!

The Father appreciates us, the captives of Christ, and gives us back to the Son as gifts, and the Son makes us gifts to the Body of Christ for its building up.

It is by Christ’s universal travelling that He led a train of captives and made them gifts to the Body. Hallelujah!

Lord Jesus, we praise You for Your universal travelling by which You took us as captives and You defeated Satan, the one who took us captives. Hallelujah for Christ’s incarnation, death, resurrection, and ascension through which He defeated Satan and took us captives, leading us in a train of captives to the Father! Praise You, Lord Jesus, for giving us as gifts to the Body of Christ in Your ascension. We love You, Lord, and we open to You. Make us gifts to the Body for the building up of the Body of Christ. Fill all things in our being and in our personal universe. We take You as our Head, our life, and our everything. Praise You, Lord Jesus, for Your universal travelling to fill all things, to defeat Satan, and to give us as gifts to the Body!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by the brothers in the message, and portions from, Life-study of Ephesians, msgs. 38, 41, by Witness Lee, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Loving the Lord and loving one another for the organic building up of the church as the Body of Christ (2022 fall ITERO), week 4, entitled, The Organic Body of Christ Building itself up in Love.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – Lo, on high Christ hath ascended, / Leading captives in His train; / These as gifts He has perfected / That the Lord may dwell with them. / Brothers, sisters, we are those, / We’re those transformed, vanquished foes! / Hallelujah, hallelujah, / Hallelujah, Amen! (Hymns #1100 stanza 5)
  – All the gifted persons given / To the Body by the Head / Are to aid the Church’s building, / That to fulness she be led. (Hymns #914 stanza 3)
  – On Thyself the Church is builded, / And though many storms assail, / Still it stands erect, for ‘gainst it / Gates of hell cannot prevail. / Thine authority possessing, / It doth bind and loose in Thee, / Bringing men into Thy kingdom, / Satan’s captives setting free. (Hymns #834 stanza 3)