As the One who is the meaning of the life of God’s people, Christ the testimony of God, and He is the center of God’s people, the Leader, the way, and the goal.
In order for us to be formed as an army to fight for God’s interest on earth we need to take Christ as the meaning of our life, the testimony of God, our center, our Leader, our way, and our goal in our journey and fighting.
If Christ were not all this to us, there would not be a way for God to gain the ground on the earth to return and build up His kingdom with His house (Matt. 26:16-19).
Before we come to how we can be formed into an army to fight one with God for His interest on earth, we need to take Christ in a specific way as the meaning of our life, the testimony of God, our center, our Leader, our way, and our goal.
When we take Christ as such a One, we are being prepared as an army to fight for God’s interest on earth, because it is through this wonderful Christ that we become the army.
In the book of Numbers we see that, for the journeying and fighting of the people of Israel, the Ark of the Testimony with the Tent of Meeting was the meaning of their life, the testimony of God, their center, and their leader, their way, and their goal.
In the New Testament we see this in principle, but in the Old Testament we see this in a picture. In the New Testament we see a revelation of Christ in all these aspects, but in the Old Testament in the book of Numbers we see a detailed and fine portrait.
For a complete view of Christ as the meaning of life, the testimony of God, the center, the Leader, the way, and the goal, we need to see the portrait in the book of Numbers.
For our journey as God’s redeemed people and for our fighting for God’s interest as His army on earth, we need to take Christ as the meaning of our life, the testimony of God, the center, and the Leader, the way, and the goal.
If Christ is not all this to us, there cannot be a way for God to gain the ground on earth to build up His kingdom with His house, which consummates in the New Jerusalem.
May we be before the Lord concerning these matters and pray that He would become everything to us for the formation of the army, in particular that He would be the meaning of life, the testimony, the center, and the Leader, the way, and the goal.
Today we want to see more of Christ as such a One to God’s people, and we want to cooperate with Him that He would become such a One to us both personally and corporately.
Christ, who is the Meaning of our Life as God’s people, is the Testimony of God
The center of the people of Israel as they journeyed through the wilderness was the Ark of the Testimony with the Tent of Meeting.
The two tablets of the law were called the testimony of God, and they were put into the Ark making it the Ark of the Testimony, and the ark was in the tabernacle.
A law is a testimony and expression of the one who made it, so the law of God is a testimony of what God is, telling is what kind of God our God is.
According to the testimony of God in the law, our God is love, light, holiness, and righteousness. These four divine attributes of God can be seen in Christ, who is the embodiment of God and the testimony of God.
In Christ we see that God is light, love, holiness, and righteousness, for Christ is the embodiment of God (Col. 2:9).
Christ is the portrait of God, the embodiment of God, the testimony of God, testifying to us what God is and who God is. This is why He is called the faithful and true Witness (Rev. 3:14; 1:5).
Christ is the testimony of God, bearing God’s testimony to show us what kind of God He is. We need to take Christ not only as the meaning of our life but also as the testimony of God, and as we do this, our living will become a testimony of Christ.
When we enjoy and experience Christ as the testimony of God, our living will testify Christ, for Christ will be our testimony.
This is what we see in the book of Numbers – the people of Israel took the Ark of the Testimony as their center and everything, and they became the testimony of God. We need to tell the Lord,
Lord Jesus, we take You as the testimony of God, the One who embodies God to express and testify God to man. You are the embodiment and the expression of God as love, light, righteousness, and holiness. We want to enjoy You and experience You as such a One, and we want to enjoy God as seen and testified in You until we become Your testimony, the testimony of Jesus. Amen, Lord, we take You as the meaning of our life and as the testimony of God so that we also may become the testimony of Christ, the church!
Christ is the Center of God’s People – we need to Take Christ as our Unique Center
The center of God’s people was the tabernacle with the Ark, which shows us in type that Christ is the center of God’s people.
The way the children of Israel were encamped around the tabernacle with the Ark was by taking it as the center and facing it. Four tribes were on each side of the Ark, and the tribe of Levi was right there around it, very close to the tabernacle to serve the Lord.
All the twelve tribes and the tribe of Levi took the tabernacle with the ark as their center.
This shows us that Christ is the center of God’s people, and we in the church life need to take Christ as our unique center.
What is our center? We may love the Lord and care for the interest of the Lord today, but our center may be our career, our family, our job, our health, our children, or a relationship.
We need to ask the Lord, Lord, what is my center? What is actually the center of my being, my focus, and my central thing?
We all have a personal universe which consists of ourselves and all things and persons related to us, including our family members and those we care for and are related to us. Does Christ have the first place, the preeminence, and is He the center?
We need to come to the Lord so that His light would shine on us; we should not be afraid of the Lord’s light but desire to know what is our center, and ask the Lord to become our center.
May we know today, while on earth, what is our center, so that we may learn to take Christ as our center in everything. Christ needs to be our center in every situation, in every relationship, no matter what is happening, whether joy or sorrow, life or death.
May such things as career, family, marriage, health, money, or possessions not be our center, but may Christ be the center and the meaning of our life.
Lord Jesus, cause us to see what is our center, and may You be our unique center in the church life. Amen, Lord, we want You to become the center of our being so that You may occupy our whole life, and no matter what happens, You would be our unique center. Amen, Lord, may it be settled in our being – Christ is our center! In joy or sorrow, health or pain, life or death, in good things and in sufferings, in all things may Christ be our center!
Christ is the Leader, the Way, and the Goal of God’s People
In Numbers we see that God led His people by the pillar of cloud during the day and the pillar of fire at night (both of which are a type of Christ), and the first to follow God’s leading was the tabernacle with the ark.
The entire people of Israel was following the tabernacle with the ark, and God led the way by means of the pillar of cloud and of fire.
This is a type of our Christian life. As the One who is the meaning of our life, the testimony of God, and our center, Christ is the Leader, the way, and the goal (see Matt. 23:10; John 14:6; Phil. 3:12-14).
Christ is always moving, acting, and always proceeding onward.
As He proceeds onward, Christ is our unique Leader (He is the only Teacher, Instructor, Pioneer, and Leader on the way), our way (He is the unique way we have to God, into God, and the way to go forward), and our goal (He is the One whom we aim to gain and attain to, that we may experience and enjoy Him).
Christ took the lead to proceed on the way, and now He is leading us on His way and toward His goal, both of which are actually Christ Himself.
Our Christ is very active – He is not passive, but always moving and proceeding onward. He is moving right now, He is moving tonight, He will move tomorrow, and He moves every day; He is active and always proceeding forward, and He wants to have some people who are in pace with Him.
Our way is Christ, our Leader is Christ, and our goal is Christ. We have no other way but Christ, we have no methods but the person of Christ, and He is also our goal.
Specifically, it is our goal for the Lord to return as the Bridegroom with His bridal army to defeat the enemy, for Him to return as a corporate smiting stone to smash human government and bring in the kingdom of God to fill the whole earth.
This is Christ as our goal; He’s not something vague, but a Christ who wants to get married soon, who wants to deal with His enemy absolutely with an overcoming army, and who wants to eliminate human government!
Christ is our goal, our aim (Phil. 3:12-14); He is the goal toward which we press. We need to take Christ as our goal and ask for His mercy that He would be our unique goal.
Lord Jesus, we take You as our Leader, our way, and our goal. We have no other Leader but Christ, and He is our only Teacher, Instructor, Pioneer, and Leading One who cut the way forward. Lord, we take You as our unique way on which we can walk and do things. Amen, Lord, You are our goal, our aim, and we press toward gaining You and knowing You and experiencing You to the uttermost! Lord, have mercy on us and show us what our goal is, and grant us that You may be our unique Leader, way, and goal in our Christian life!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, the message by Ron Kangas for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Numbers, msgs. 1-2 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallisation-Study of Numbers (1), week 1, Being Formed into an Army to Fight with God for His Interest on Earth.
- Hymns on this topic:
# God wants His holy people to become His army; / Rise up, all ages! March on for His testimony; / Christ is our meaning of life, testimony and center, / In everything He’s the way, the goal and the Leader. (Song on, Christ in Numbers)
# The law is but a type of Christ, / Who God’s full testimony is, / Who fully has expressed His love, / His holiness and righteousness. (Hymns #735)
# A generation… / With a goal to bring You back. / Their treasure is You, / You’re their future too. / They care for only You. / This goal is deep within, / A fire that’s burning in them. / They’re consumed by this zeal, / This only is real, / Lord, to bring You back. (Song on, Lord, Your return, by Howard Higashi)
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