 |
|
Additional Quotes about the Local Church by Witness Lee and Watchman Nee
Thirdly, the Lord counsels the church in Laodicea to
buy from Him eyesalve to anoint their eyes that they may see. The “eyesalve”
needed to “anoint” their eyes must refer to the anointing Spirit (1 John
2:27), who is also the Lord Himself as the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45).
Because she has been distracted by the dead knowledge of letters, the degraded
recovered church also needs this kind of eyesalve for her blindness. For all
three items the Lord counsels her to buy, she must pay the price. We have
pointed out that 206 the eyesalve is the anointing Spirit. Spiritual insight
is always related to the Spirit. We need more Spirit, not more knowledge. We
do not need many doctrines—we need more Spirit to anoint our eyes and the
depths of our inner being that we may have insight to see things from within.
With this eyesalve, this anointing, we may have both foresight and deep
insight to see things thoroughly. Then we shall say, “Lord Jesus, because I
now see what a treasure You are, I am ready to pay any price.” Suppose the
cost of an item in a department store is one thousand dollars. If this item is
a valuable diamond worth five thousand dollars, you would not think that the
price is too high. Rather, you would think that it is cheap. Why are so many
Christians unwilling to pay the price for Christ? It is because they do not
see what a treasure Christ is. They do not see the preciousness, the worth,
and the value of Christ. But once our eyes have been anointed by the divine,
spiritual eyesalve, we shall say, “It is worthwhile for me to pay any price
for Christ. The price is too low. My self, my future, and my life are all
worth nothing I actually pay nothing to gain Christ who is everything.” If we
would see this, we need eyesalve.
Now we realize that the gold, the garment, and the
eyesalve are all Christ. Christ is everything. Our need today is Christ. Yes,
in His recovery the Lord has given us a great deal of light. Our intention,
however, is not to give knowledge to people. Our intention in these messages
is to help the Lord’s people to be enlightened that they might see the value,
worth, and preciousness of Christ and, by having this insight, they might be
willing to pay any price to gain Him. It is worthwhile for me to pay the cost
of my family, my future, my destiny, and my whole life for Christ. If I would
pay all this, the price is still too cheap. Paul said that all the things he
counted loss for Christ were just dung, dog food (Phil. 3:8). In the church
life in the Lord’s recovery we are not for doctrine or merely for the
so-called truths. We are here for the rich Christ. In all these messages we
are not dispensing vain doctrines. The goal of these messages is to minister
some ointment that people’s eyes may be anointed to see the preciousness of
Christ and be attracted to Him. The degraded church does not need doctrine;
she needs eyesalve. She needs revelation, vision, and great grace….
In verses 20 and 21 we see the Lord’s promise to the
overcomer: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice
and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him and he with Me. He
who overcomes, to him I will give to sit with Me on My throne, as I also
overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” To overcome in these
seven epistles does not mean to overcome our weaknesses and besetting sins; it
means to overcome the fallen condition of the deviant churches. To overcome in
the epistle to Laodicea means to overcome the lukewarmness and pride of the
degraded recovered church, to buy the needed items, and to open the door for
the Lord to come in.
NEXT PAGE
|
|
|
|
|
