Crossing the River to Enter into a New Land and be Useful to God for His Expression

photo credit: Masud A. Khan – cc – Crossing the River to Enter into a New Land and be Useful to God for His Expression

God called Abraham out of the land in which he was in to go into a new land, the land of Canaan, where he would be useful to God for His expression. Even though Abraham didn’t react right away to cooperate with the Lord, God had a way to bring him all the way into Canaan, where He wanted him to be.

Abraham was in the land of Chaldea, a land filled with idolatry and corruption. Then, he crossed over the river Euphrates, and he was called “Abraham the Hebrew”, Abraham the river-crosser. He crossed the river and entered into a new land – this signifies his entering into an uplifted mankind, a new mankind, which would be used by God to be His expression.

When we believed into Christ and were baptized, we also crossed the river and became real Hebrews, spiritual sons of Abraham. However, today we need to continue to cross any rivers that are separating us from the full enjoyment of Christ.

We need to leave the law, the old covenant, the religion, the Judaism, the earthly things, the outer court, the soul, and the beginning of truth and life, and cross over to grace, the new covenant, the spiritual reality of the New Testament, the church, the heavenly things, the Holy of Holies, the spirit, and the maturity of life in the truth (see the Epistle to the Hebrews). We need to cross river after river to enter into the good land so that we may fulfill God’s purpose.

God saved us not merely to deliver us from the negative and corrupt situation but to call us to fulfill God’s purpose. God’s goal is not merely to save man from eternal perdition but to bring man into the full enjoyment of Christ as the good land, into the church, in God’s New Testament economy, in the kingdom, and in the Sabbath rest. Hallelujah, in spirit we are real Hebrews, river-crossers, those who enter into the good land to enjoy Christ!

Crossing the River to Enter into a New Land: an Uplifted Mankind Useful to God for His Expression

It is God’s mercy that He brought us to know Him and repent, believe into Him, be saved, and come into the church life. He appeared to Abraham, our father, and He also appeared to us. God called Abraham out of Chaldea, out of the corrupted and ruined mankind filled with idolatry, into a good land “flowing with milk and honey” (a type of the all-inclusive Christ).

Abraham’s crossing the river to enter into the good land signifies his entering into an uplifted, new mankind, which would be used by God to be His expression. Just like our father Abraham, we need to cross the river that we may enter into the good land.

In Heb. 1:1 there’s a footnote in the Recovery Version concerning what the Epistle to the Hebrews encourages us to cross over – out of anything old, negative, religious, and stale, and into something new, living, positive, full of Christ.

…The first Hebrew was Abraham (Gen. 14:13), the father of all those who contact God by faith (Rom. 4:11-12). Therefore, God is called “the God of the Hebrews” (Exo. 9:1, 13, ASV). The root of the word Hebrew means to pass over. It can mean specifically to pass over a river, that is, to pass over from this side of the river to the other side, to pass over from one side to another. Therefore, a Hebrew is a river crosser. Abraham was such a one. From Chaldea, the land of idolatry, which was on the other side of the great river Euphrates, he crossed over to Canaan, the land of the worship of God, which was on this side of the Euphrates (Josh. 24:2-3). The intention of God’s speaking in this book was that the Jews who believed in the Lord but still lingered in Judaism would leave the law and cross over to grace (4:16; 7:18-19; 12:28; 13:9), that they would leave the old covenant and cross over to the new covenant (8:6-7, 13), and that they would leave the ritualistic service of the Old Testament and cross over to the spiritual reality of the New Testament (8:5; 9:9-14); that is, that they would leave Judaism and cross over to the church (13:13; 10:25), that they would leave the earthly things and cross over to the heavenly things (12:18-24), that they would leave the outer court, where the altar is, and cross over to the Holiest of all, where God is (13:9-10; 10:19-20), that they would leave the soul and cross over to the spirit (4:12), and that they would leave the beginning of truth and life and cross over to the maturity of life in the truth (5:11–6:1). Not only the Jews who believed in the Lord but all who contact God by faith should be such river crossers.  (Heb. 1:1, footnote 2)

photo credit: Visualogist – cc – Heb. 6:1 …Let us be brought on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith in God.

We need to leave the law and cross over to grace – we need to leave any religious law or self-made law that we may cross over to the enjoyment of God in Christ as the Spirit! The law makes demands on man according to what God is, and grace supplies man with what God is to meet what God demands!

We need to leave the old covenant and cross over to the new covenant, in which we have the forgiving and forgetting of our sins by God, the imparting of God’s law into our hearts, the privilege of having God as our God and we being His people, and knowing the Triune God inwardly in the way of life (see Heb. 8:10-12).

We need to leave anything religious and ritualistic and do one thing: contact God the Spirit in our mingled spirit and in truthfulness (John 4:24). We need to realize that we are God’s temple and we worship Him not in an outward big building but in our spirit! We are not here for material blessings: God in Christ is our health, our wealth, and our prosperity. All of us are priests functioning as members of the Body of Christ.

Inwardly, we have the law of life which regulates us, shapes us, and forms us into the image of Christ, and constitutes us as members of the Body of Christ with all kinds of functions. Therefore, we need to leave the beginning of truth and life and mean business with the Lord in reading His word, being constituted with the truth, and being experienced in the word of righteousness.

We need to not only be metabolically changed with the divine life (transformation) but also be filled to overflowing with the divine life that changes us (maturity). Leaving the word of the beginning of Christ, we need to be brought on to maturity. May we not be dull of hearing but grow in life, eat solid food, and be experienced in the word of righteousness!

Lord Jesus, bring us on with You! We want to cross the river by leaving the law and crossing over to grace! We want to leave the old covenant and cross over to the new covenant to enjoy You inwardly and be conformed to Your image. Lord, may we leave any ritualistic services and cross over to be the priests of God and the functioning members in the Body of Christ. We want to leave anything of religion and cross over to the church! Lord, may we leave the earthly things and cross over to the heavenly things. May we leave the outer court and come forward to the Holiest of all, where God is! We want to leave the soul and cross over to the spirit by allowing the piercing word to divide the soul from the spirit. Lord, bring us on to maturity! May we never become dull of hearing. Cause us to grow in life unto maturity and eat solid food!

The God who Called us will Eventually Gain us and “Remove us” into the Good Land

The goal of God’s calling of our father Abraham was to bring him into the good land, the land of Canaan, where he and his descendants would enjoy the rich produce of the land and express God corporately.

The goal of our salvation and calling is to enter into the all-inclusive Christ as the good land and enjoy Him to the uttermost so that we corporately may express Him. Many Christians have been saved but they don’t see God’s goal. God’s goal is the all-inclusive Christ and the church, the good land of Canaan.

In the church life today we enjoy Christ as the good land according to God’s New Testament economy, and we are looking forward to the coming kingdom and the Sabbath rest.

The question is, Do we cooperate with the Lord to fulfill His purpose in saving us? Our father Abraham delayed God in answering His calling, but he couldn’t delay God too long. To God one thousand years is like one day, so if we delay God for ten years, that’s not too much for Him. At most we can delay God by not cooperating with Him now; but God cannot be frustrated in the fulfillment of His purpose.

God is sovereign and patient, and sooner or later He will get through in us. In Abraham’s case, he went into the land of Canaan by faith (Heb. 11:8), but it was actually God who “removed him” from Haran into Canaan (Acts 7:4).

Many times we delay the Lord, we are not open to cooperate with His word, and we don’t let Him get through in us; the Lord, however, shall eventually gain us, and He will remove us out of where we are and into Christ, the good land! May we not waste our time and God’s time anymore!

May we cooperate with Him and let Him get through in us. We know what the problem is; we know where we don’t want to give in to Him. May we not be stiff-necked, stubborn, or harden our heart, but rather enjoy the Lord, open to Him, let Him gain us, and He will remove us from where we are and bring us into the full enjoyment of the all-inclusive Christ and the church to be part His corporate expression.

Lord Jesus, break through in us! Thank You for calling us and saving us. Lord, we are here for Your purpose, and we want You to reach Your goal. Save us from delaying the fulfillment of Your purpose in us. Lord, get us through. We open to You and we want to cooperate with You as much as we can that You may bring us and bring the church into the full enjoyment of the good land, the all-inclusive Christ, so that we may become Your corporate expression! Break through in us, Lord, for the fulfillment of Your purpose!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, bro. Ed Marks’ speaking in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Genesis (msgs. 39-40), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of Genesis (2), week 2 / msg 2, Living by Faith—Being Today’s River Crossers to Live the Life of the Altar and the Tent (you can buy this morning revival book here).
• Hymns on this topic:
  # Now in the church life, we have left / The world, religion too; / Now we’re the river-crossing ones, / Enjoying Christ so new! / Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! / We have passed / From the oldness, Hallelujah, / Into Christ—one new man. / And now we’re one with Him! (Hymns #1270)
  # Brothers, to the Holiest forward come; / Leave your sins behind, the race now run. / Hallelujah! All the work is done— / The veil is gone! / Now within the veil, enjoying God, / Manna, law of life, and budding rod; / Christ Himself, the ark, is our abode— / Hallelujah! (Hymns #1208)
  # See the vision of Christ and the church; / Count the cost; reckon all things as loss; / Pay the price. The prize to gain Christ, / Burn the bridges; leave the world behind; / On God’s economy your heart be set / To live a life of no regrets. (new song on, A Life of No Regrets)
  # Oh Lord, break through. / Lord, gain in me. / Lord, I want You my all to be. / Oh Lord, break through. / Lord, gain in me. / Oh Lord, replace me totally. / Lord, I surrender / My all to You. / Right now I open / To let You flow through. (new song on, O Lord break through!)