31/1/2021 [Year of Knowing God’s Holiness 5] www.lifechurchmissions.com
The Lord's Church is Holy <Rev 12:13-18; 13:1,5,11-14; Ep 4:4-16>
Prelude: <Ep 1:4, 7> said: God chose the church in Christ before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. The church also has redemption through the blood of the Son of God, the forgiveness of sins. When we talk about the church, some people's basic understanding is that the church is very weak, unclean and even unchaste. Possibly, they themselves love the world and hence do not value the church and consider the church as being just a place of worship. Or because they have been hurt in church, and hence feel that the church is unpleasant, a place filled with hypocrites. If not, they will see that there are many who sinned in church and have also not changed for the better, and hence feel that the church is filled with the worldliness of typical people, like a group of sinners coming together who are no better than themselves. Such people made a serious mistake, that is, they have looked with contempt the bride whom the Lord had bought at a great price. The church is a group of people (Ekklesia) called out from the world, it is the body of the Lord which has been cleansed. It is the general meeting of all the saints, and also where God raised up various apostles to serve. <Ep 1:1> Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, wrote to God's holy people in Ephesus (church). Think about it, who dares to say that the Lord's body is unclean? Who dares to say that the Lord's bride is unchaste? Yes, when we look at the whole history, the church did not always follow the will of the Lord. In the macro environment of the entire world, she continues to be attacked by internal and external troubles, and has also allowed much unholy culture to infiltrate within. We possibly also see despicable and shameful deeds done by born again believers, for example, the blessed David committed adultery and murdered his loyal servant Uriah, or Peter denying the Lord three times. But because they are people who are set apart as holy, they are being disciplined for their sins, so that they will not be ultimately condemned with the world <1 Co 21:32>. But to people of the world who are not set apart, they do as they please, and receive the punishment of general judgment set by God for the world. If not, they will receive eternal punishment in their next life. There is no special punishment from God on them, only to be like a vessel that is created in preparation for destruction. Only a holy church will continue to be disciplined again and again, because her head (Christ) is holy, and she is considered holy because of Christ's salvation. Then, in the matter of the whole church being disciplined, in addition to purifying the saints loved by the Lord, there is also a very critical cleansing work, which is to separate those who do not repent and preach false teachings yet have penetrated into the church. We have to understand a very true fact, that is, because the church is holy, the entire human history is to eliminate the unholy people (or goats) within her. But how does the church do this cleansing work? It is to preach the holy word of God. Think about it, if the word preached in church today does not feed the saints, but instead suit the appetite of unholy people, then more and more goats will enter the church, and the Lord's sheep will become thinner and weaker. Let's ask, is this the work of the Lord to cleanse the church? Of course, we do not deny that it is possible for a person who does not believe in the Lord for the time being, to be born again after hearing the gospel, but that is because he heard the pure and holy gospel which makes him repent and turn to the Lord. But if we start to be considerate toward people and mix teachings that please the appetite of the world into the message of the gospel, we are actually greatly offending God and defiling his bride. Instead of calling in the people of God, they are gradually driving them away. Instead of "driving away" the unholy ones who do not belong to God, they tempt them in and cause the operation of the church to be more and more unclean and typical. Of course even so, the Bible once again emphasizes to us that no matter how unclean the operation of the church is, the church in essence is holy. No church of the Lord will be abandoned by the Lord. <Rev 2-3> talks about the seven churches, and they represent the entire universal church. No matter how bad the church is, the Lord will surely have a reason to keep that church. Perhaps the worst are the two churches, the first being Thyatira church where it was said that the whole church allowed the false prophet Jezebel to teach the whole church. The whole church seemed to have entered into mysterious and skewed teachings and customs, and even seemed to practise witchcraft in the eyes of God. But God preserved such a church because there were still some people who did not hold onto such teachings and had not learned Satan's so-called deep secrets <Rev 2:20-28>. Another very terrible church is Sardis. This church looked like a church on the outside, but in fact it was dead, and even those who were living were deteriorating (very weak). God preserved such a church not because of its beautiful architecture or its scale that was valued in the eyes of the world, but because God still cared for these deteriorating ones, and because of them, He preserved the whole church <Rev 3:1-6>. Finally, we should understand that even though the church is weak, God says that the church is filled by the one who fills everything in every way. Only the prayers of the church are heard by God, because only the church is holy. If a church is in such a weak state that even the main leader and all other leaders are goats, and unholy people and operations also fill the entire church, and only two or three weak saints still hold on to the Lord’s teachings, then the Lord will listen to the prayers of these two or three to lead the entire church, just as how God listened to Moses, Joshua and Caleb to lead the whole of Israel. Therefore, we must first value the institution of the church, and second, value the saints in the church. They are holy, and are also the bride whom the Lord loves.
1. The church’s enemy – The unholy trio
1）The church’s spiritual enemy – Great red dragon
The great red dragon was the one who violated the One in Heaven in the beginning. He made a third of the angels fall. The Book of Revelation records that his chief work is to devour the child (Christ) born by the woman. “Devour” has two meanings: one is to take his life (this was revealed in the incident when the moment the child was born, king Herod wanted to kill Him); second is to make Him sin and lose holiness (this was revealed when he tempted the Son of Man, in the wilderness). Thus, evil and temptations are his work. However, his schemes on our Lord Jesus all failed, so he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child, and she is the church of all generations. She appeared in the dream of Joseph, representing the whole Israel (Jacob, Rahab, Joseph and eleven brothers) <Gen 37:9>. This great red dragon spewed water from his mouth to sweep the woman away with the torrent. What came from the mouth will certainly comprise (1) his authority (he is the ruler, the one holding authority, and he controls seven heads and ten horns); (2) his lies (he used lies to kill our ancestors and blind the world). His authority and power cannot be belittled. Because if he could bring about the fall of a third of the angels, surely he can also control the world and all the political powers which have already fallen into sin. Thus, the powers of all ideologies and machineries of this world are in his hands, they are his tools. Only the church protected by the hands of God is not in his hands. Therefore, he is being called the prince of the world. But if this prince of the world controls the world, why can saints still survive? <Rev 12:16> very clearly says, “But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.” Thus, we know that although this world is fallen, when God created this world, He has already put in place the structure to protect saints, so that believers will not be destroyed. This is like in the hearts of fallen men, there is also conscience, the whole world also operates under the principles designed by God, the various institutions of the society also operate by logic and norms, so they cannot destroy saints just like that. Hence, it is extremely important for believers to act by God’s truth principles. The great red dragon saw that he could not sweep away the church, so he next raised up two most evil and worldly tools (the beasts of the sea and earth) to attack the church, to make her lose holiness.
2）The political powers under which the church is living – Beast of the sea
The beast of the sea clearly refers to political powers. “Beast” means an object that terrifies people. His existence may be in the form of an authority which oppresses people or demands them to submit, or it takes a form of social power to make people conform. In particular, political powers in every era will shape the culture, ethos, trends, ideologies, etc., of that era, and use them to control people’s hearts, minds, emotions, and will. Although God also uses good governments to protect the whole society and believers, we must know that behind the political powers, there are certainly forces of the anti-Christ or forces to replace Christ. The beliefs brought by modern governments indirectly make people view church as being regressive, ignorant and weak. They claim that religion is like seeking spiritual sustenance, science is viewed seemingly as the answer to mankind, materials gradually become man’s main pursuit, and co-existence becomes the direction of the entire society. Indeed, although Christians are not rebels and also not people who especially believe in “conspiracy theories”, we must be able to detect the secular beliefs which weaken the gospel, and we cannot succumb to the pressure given by the government and society. No matter how the modern society emphasizes peace and co-existence, the church must keep preaching that Christ is the only way, truth and life, and tell believers to break free from this crooked generation.
3）False prophets who infiltrate the church – Beast of the earth
It had two horns like a lamb (like our Lord Jesus Christ, and it appeared to be the saviour of mankind), but it spoke like a dragon (words and contents from its mouth were like topics which were full of pride and exalt humanism). The Bible says it had authority to perform great signs, and thus deceived the inhabitants of the earth. However, whatever he did was to make people submit to the first beast. From the start of the end times (the age of the Holy Spirit) till now, we know that the work of false prophets (cults and heresies) has been seeking to infiltrate the church ceaselessly. Indeed, there is no harm worse than the destructive force brought by false prophets to the church. The world’s political powers can mock us or prohibit us, but God’s truth will continue to be proclaimed. But the greatest threat the church faces is the corruption that comes from within. When the church compromises with the world, its messages lean more and more toward imitating and appeasing the world, so as to attract people to the church, then we will see that the entire church is like rejecting their conscience and thus make shipwreck of their faith <1 Ti 1:19>. If the church allows secular beliefs to infiltrate the church pulpit, if its leaders start to be directed by political powers, or the church starts to seek human approval, such that those who are carnal, sinning, and unholy can still comfortably claim that they are Christians without the need for repentance, then the entire holiness of the church will be affected. Indeed, unholy word will attract unholy people.
2. God’s holiness is all the more revealed in the gathering of all saints
1）Great is the latent power of the unholy trio
The dangers of the trio are latent, and there are a few areas. (1) These false works are too similar with the real ones, such that it is very hard for the church to recognize them. Thus, God will surely raise up His servants in every era to preach the uncompromised truth, so that the church can continue to be reformed. Some people questioned why there are so many denominations in Christianity but there is only one in Roman Catholicism? The answer is Christianity is a faith which is continuously being reformed. When a longstanding denomination gradually assimilates to its surrounding culture, such that the word it preaches and its working style gradually align with humanistic and secular ideologies, then God will allow a new denomination to rise up to reform the former, so that they can renew together and go back to the foundation of the apostles and prophets <Ep 2:20>. But we must be careful, because not every new denomination which is raised up goes back to the foundation, some may move toward innovation and bring the church away from the foundation. (2) The powers and lies of this trio surround us. Therefore, even if we initially know those are unholy, when the era slowly accepts such culture, we will unknowingly compromise. For example, the feminist movement (view the traditional roles of women as regressive and oppressive), family planning (abortion), legalisation of same-sex attraction, view trading in stock market and virtual currencies as a form of professional investment, etc. All these things initially received objection from many people, but gradually they are accepted by the society. When the society gradually accepts them, the church also faces the pressure of compromising. (3) When the sins of the people of the world are full, they will gradually view sins very lightly, and even treat sins as part of the progression of human civilization and cultural evolution, but in fact, this is regression. In order to survive, the church also compromises. (4) When the church gradually accepts these unholy ideologies, believers’ lives also get embroiled into these secular workings; at the same time, the church will lose the mission and power to evangelise, and the entire evangelistic work of the church is only built upon church activities and programs.
2）Only Christ the King sent by the Lord can overcome the forces of the unholy trio
<Ep 4:8-9> clearly tells us that He first descended to earth, which is the place filled with sinners and sins, and under the control of the ruler of the kingdom of the air. In this fallen space, He triumphed over Satan, world and sin, then He ascended on high to reign on the throne. This entire move is like a king going over to the territory of his enemy to defeat the enemy, then set free and save the captives (who are also his own people) bound by the enemy. After that, he returns to his own country and sits on the throne. This whole spiritual move demonstrates that He is the King who is completely victorious. No power can overcome Him. Thus, the Bible says that He took many captives and gave gifts to saints, and asked all saints to obey His will to meet (church), and obey His instructions to use their gifts to oppose the residual forces of the unholy trio. This is the picture of the holy Head (Christ) and holy body (church) having victory together.
3）Thus, the church is the greatest protection the Lord gives the saints
The church is the only holy institution in this unholy world. Without the church, believers have no way of preserving holiness. When the apostle Paul spoke about the holy living of the individual, he first touched on the body of Christ – church. The church is ruled by this one and only God. He is over all and through all and in all <Ep 4:6>. The church is holy, because she is saved and sanctified by this holy God. (1) He is over all. Thus, no one person or group has the authority to oppose what God wants to do in the church, and what God wants to do is made known in His revelation. Hence, He gave prophets and apostles to the church, and made known His revelation through them, and He uses evangelists, pastors and teachers to preach the revealed word. Indeed, God’s revelation of truth is over all. Neither any person’s experiences, feelings, opinions, nor the changes of an era can deny His revelation. (2) He is through all. Our God not only guides all saints with His holy word, but He also works among the relationship of saints. When saints live out God’s word to one another, then they can see the holy Lord working in the church. Examples: When we speak the truth in love, when we are joined and held together, supporting one another, etc <Ep 4:16>, or we put off falsehood, we do not let the sun go down while we are still angry, we no longer steal, we do not speak unwholesome talk, etc. <Ep 4:25-29>, all these are what we do unto others when we live with them. Therefore, where is the Lord’s holiness? It is not in our individual solo faith living, but in the midst of living with saints. Some believers always want to seek holiness outside of church. They do not enter into a relationship of mutual love and support with brethren, but they want to be a good person in the world. They will realise very soon that they will slowly compromise with the world, they act to please the people of the world, but they totally have no power to influence the world. (3) He is in all. Our faith has a very personal level. After we believe in the holy word of the Lord and love all saints, our knowledge, thirst and longing for this God must grow daily in our inner being. Because we see the Lord in our inner heart, we understand His will, and are always filled with the Holy Spirit, unlike people who are “made drunk” by the world <Ep 5:17-18>. Then, when each of us brings our encounters with God to church to encourage one another, that becomes a holy culture which is centred on God. When this threefold work of God comes together on the saints, the saints of this church will become the outlet for God’s holy word, and they can be witnesses of the Lord in all kinds of fields.
3. The church’s holiness and glory is revealed in its “one but many, many yet one”
1) The unity of the triune God
Someone once asked, “What is the significance of God revealing His mystery of the Trinity to the church?” The significance is found in how the triune God loves each other, and in their love, they created all things and mankind. After man has fallen, the triune God in their unity carried out the salvation plan to save mankind, where the Holy Father predestined the salvation, the Holy Son accomplished the salvation, and the Holy Spirit carried out the salvation. The triune God is equal in glory, honour, power and status but the Holy Son is in complete submission to the Holy Father, and the Holy Spirit does the will of the Father and Son. It is never in the reverse order, like Father obeying the Son or the Holy Spirit sending the Son. Although the 3 persons in the Godhead have different roles and functions, they are in complete harmony in their co-working, without any divergence. Indeed, the holy triune God reveals the great mystery of “one but many, many yet one”, and it is what His body (church) must constantly learn from.
2) The unity of saints is the beginning of holy living
Why did Paul mention the concept of “one” when he talked about the Lord’s body in the Book of Ephesians? <Ep 4:4-6> There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. At that time, the early church was dealing with the tricky problem of uniting the Jewish and gentile believers. They came from different backgrounds and cultures, and had different habits and lifestyles. However, now in Christ, they were to be one body, and all were to submit to the head (Christ), seek His glory, and be united in Him. We all know this, but when we start to interact or work with others, conflicts will easily arise. Therefore here, the holiness of the church is not about me believing in the Lord and living my holy life and another person believing in the Lord and living his holy life. The holiness of the church is manifested in “one but many, many yet one”. For example, even though the church has many saints with different gifts, they all submit to the teachings of the apostles and prophets, and will not go beyond the authority of God’s word because of their gifts. Even if everyone has different culture, background, personality and methods, they are able to respect one another. If there are grievances or injustice, they can speak the truth in love. Actually, in a church where everyone loves and respects one another, and seeks the benefit of one another, that itself is holiness. Because this is what we cannot find in a world that is profit-centric. This world is like the Tower of Babel, united by profit, but anytime it can be turned into disarray and split up. However, in church, for us who serve one Lord and one Kingdom, the holiness we should most preserve is the unity in the Lord, showing to the world this virtue of “one but many, many yet one”.