by Wade E Taylor
“And they sung a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation. And have made us to our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.” Revelation 5:9-10
These (overcomers) are “singing” because they have successfully submitted themselves to a “time of processing” (and have made us), in order to become “kings and priests.” They have made Jesus “Lord” (in total control), and have a deep inner peace and determination (we shall reign).
Being a “king,” we have come into a right relationship to the circumstances of our life experience, which is now in divine order, and we are exercising the authority that Jesus has given us.
Being a “priest,” we have come into a right relationship with the Lord, lifting our hands in worship and appreciation, as we acknowledge our complete dependence on Him.
Jesus is coming to be “glorified in the saints” (II Thessalonians 1:10). As we make the totality of our being available to Him, He will begin to manifestly live His life through our lives, as an end-time witness.
“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory….” John 1:14
The greatest revelation that God could ever give to man is the eternal “Word” – the Lord Jesus Christ, who was born of a virgin and dwelt among us in condescension as “Jesus of Nazareth.”
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life… That which we have seen and heard declare we to you, that you also may have fellowship with us….” I John 1:1, 3
Each aspect of our spiritual life experience should be of such quality that the impartation of the substance of the “Word” (Jesus being glorified within us), which we receive into our spirit, will find both fulfillment and expression through us, as the Word becomes a personal reality within us that can be “seen and handled” by all those who surround us.
This will encompass our “consecration” to the Lord, our “walk” with Him, our “fellowship” with the body of believers, and our “relationship” to the world in which we live. In each of these areas, that which the Lord has accomplished within us should be evident to others as a “witness” to them. We are the only “Bible” that many will ever read.
In Acts 1:8, Jesus said, “You shall be witnesses.” That is, we ourselves are this witness, as the expression and outworking of that which we are becoming. Our growth toward spiritual maturity is nurtured and established through the application of spiritual laws and truths to our daily life experience.
The “objective truth” that is set before us, either within the written Word of God or in that which is written about the Word of God, must become a practical part of us through personal experience, before it is really ours. Only then will be able to join our voices to others who are singing this “new song,” and sing with them.
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
The “quickened” Word that we hear in our spirit is to become “personalized” within us, through a process of testing and proving. As we rightly respond to the circumstances that we face in the outworking of our daily life experience, we will grow toward spiritual maturity, and the Kingdom of God will form and begin to function through us.
Our having a part in the Millennial Kingdom of God will be the result of the Word being personalized within us. Only as the life of Jesus is manifested through us will we be able to affect the lives and actions of others. We are to become an extension of the life of Jesus, as being a part of His corporate Body. Then, as happened during His life, people will again marvel and say, “Never man spoke like this man” (John 7:46).
Moses received direct revelation from the Lord, who revealed Himself and His intentions to him. Moses lived and walked in the “ways of God,” but Israel only saw the “deeds of God.” They only knew what they had heard about the Lord, through Moses.
Once our lives are fully committed to the Lord, each decision or choice that we make will have a higher purpose that transcends its present purpose and effect. It will not only produce spiritual maturity and authority within us, but as we experience these things, we will be able to understand others, and help them.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” II Corinthians 1:3-4 NKJV
It is very important for us to understand this process so we do not become discouraged, or turn away from these experiences or dealings because they do not make sense to us, or seem reasonable.
We remember most of our spiritual “consecrations” because they are made at special times and have a recognizable purpose. We value these and hold them as being important spiritual landmarks. Along with these are the multitudes of seemingly unrelated “choices” that we make each day of our lives, which do not appear to us as having any lasting purpose or value. We tolerate these, but think concerning them, “If only I could get past all these mundane things, then I would be able to seek that which has spiritual value and purpose.”
However, the Lord views these seemingly mundane decisions quite differently than we do, as they are not merely arbitrary choices that are made along the pathway of life. From His eternal perspective, these varied circumstances are purposely placed in our path so as to provoke us to make decisions that will affect His higher purpose for us.
“…Behold, a sower (the Lord) went forth to sow (seed)Matthew 13:3
The result of each of these seemingly mundane decisions will then become one of the ingredients in the composition of the “seed” (that which we are becoming), which is being formed by the Lord within our physical frame – our “new creation” life.
The Scripture tells us that we are predestined “to be conformed to the image of His Son” (Romans 8:29). The present development of this “image” can be pictured as being a seed that is formulated within us and gradually develops during our span of life. This seed contains all of the ingredients that are necessary to enable us to function as overcomers in the Kingdom Age to come.
All that is needed for “that which we have become” to be fully revealed, is the atmosphere of the Kingdom. Here, we will be “measured” as to how much we have grown into the fullness of His image. This will determine our place and function in the Kingdom of God, and throughout eternity in the new heavens and earth.
“Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:13
In that day, our lives, fully released from the husks of the present time of preparation, will function in a “Kingdom relationship” to the Lord, according to the potential that has developed within us.
“And have made us to our God kings and priests: And we shall reign on the earth.” Revelation 5:10
This can be compared to an apple seed. Every necessary ingredient – all that is needed to produce a tree having bushels of fully developed apples that are ready to be harvested, is contained within this seed. There is nothing that needs to be added. All that is required for it to develop into a fully matured tree is the right environment and time.
We often become confused when our spiritual consecrations or decisions, which to us seemed so outstanding at the time, fade away with no (seeming to us) lasting consequence. This is because we only see the present effect that these produced. We do not realize that these consecrations or decisions became an ingredient in the preparation of this seed (the opportunity for us to overcome). Nor are we able to see the fully matured tree (us) that will be released from this seed when it is lifted into the Kingdom of God, to function in the Kingdom Age to come.
When the Kingdom Age dawns, the necessary ingredients will be present to release the pent-up life that we have become, which is contained within this seed. Only then will it be able to spring forth into its full expression of life and purpose. The life that will be manifested from this seed will be the cumulative result of all the decisions we made, both good and bad, that went into its make-up.
Concerning this seed, Jesus said that “some fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundred-fold, some sixty-fold, some thirty-fold” (Matthew 13:8). The extent to which our consecrations and decisions have become a personal reality in our life experience, will determine which of these gradations will apply to our eternal estate.
The most important thing that we can do today is to live in such a way that only the very best ingredients will go into the make-up of this seed that we are becoming.
“I love them that love Me; and those that seek Me early shall find Me…. That I may cause those that love Me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.” Proverbs 8:17, 21
Much has to be accomplished within each one of us in order to prepare us for compatibility with eternity, so we might be made ready to enter into the cooperative relationship with our Lord that He intends. In eternity, the “substance” that developed within us through the accumulated choices that we made during our lifetime, will come into its full fruition in the outworking of this relationship. There is not enough time in the here and now for this to happen.
The vision that was given to Ezekiel revealed a man with a four-sided face (Ezekiel 1:6-10). From one side, he appeared to be as a lion; from the second side, as a man; from the third side, as an ox; and from the fourth side, as an eagle. Each of these views revealed the same man, yet each demonstrated a different quality within his makeup. This vision was repeated to John in Revelation 4:6-7 as “four living creatures,” who picture the New Testament “overcomer.” These have a function and purpose and are seen as being in the “midst” of the throne.
These four-sided heavenly views can be compared to this fully developed and matured seed that we are becoming. This understanding of the purpose of the Lord in forming a seed from the cumulative decisions, choices, and experiences of our present life experience is very important. It will enable us to make the right decisions in our every day experiences, and it will help us to rightly interpret life.
From the Lord’s perspective, He will place within our daily pattern of life, all of the circumstances that are necessary to enable us to make the decisions that will produce this fully developed overcomer that He desires us to become.
I can better express this by sharing an experience from my life. In the immediate view, the things I went through made no sense at all, nor could they be interpreted at that time.
We were living in a very comfortable home. Then, we were told that we had to move. I found a home that was both affordable and desirable that seemed right for my family. However, when I submitted it to the Lord, He clearly said “No.” Later, I looked at another home that was adjacent to a swamp. It was so enclosed in trees that it was dark within during the daytime. As a result of this, it was very damp and musty throughout the house. Also, it was too small for us to rightly fit within. Everything about it seemed wrong. Even the rent was higher than a more desirable home.
Nevertheless, the Lord said that this was the place for us to be. We moved in, and all of our things began to get damp and musty. At the time, it did not seem to make any sense at all for us to be there, nor did it seem reasonable that the Lord would tell us to live in such a place. But, He did.
The guidance of the Lord almost always transcends our present understanding and requires faith and implicit trust on our part to be obedient. Our obedience is far more important than our present understanding of things, or even our own comfort. We may make a judgment and choose what we “feel” to be best, but in His Kingdom, all is quite different and relates to a far higher purpose. Had I used my own judgment, the following could never have happened.
The principle of the Kingdom is “life out of death” – that the way up may first be down. In obedience, we moved into this house completely against everything that was reasonable. No one of themselves would have done this. However there was a purpose that was completely unknown at the time.
The second day that we were there, a lady came to the door and told my wife that because we were living just outside of the city limits, the children had to be registered for school that very day. There was no way for her to get to the school, as I had gone to work in our car. A family that we knew lived a short distance from us. She walked over to see if they would take her to the school.
Just then, two men were leaving this home and told my wife about a special weekend meeting at a Bible school. She shared this with me and I said that I would rather not go. Later, I remembered this and said, “If we were going, this would be the day, but we are not.”
Later, the same day, the Lord clearly told me that we were to go to this meeting. While there, the academic dean spoke a prophetic word that I had been sent there by the Lord to be a teacher, and I was hired.
When we moved to the Bible School from our undesirable “home,” we were only charged one weeks’ rent, the rest was refunded. Had I chosen the more desirable house, a one-year lease was required, and I would not have been able to enter this very important door of ministry.
This step of obedience in falling into the ground to die, became a part of the “seed” that I am becoming, and also, I was released into a higher realm of life and ministry. This is an outworking of the Kingdom of God in practical reality. Had we taken the more desirable home, the ingredients (meeting the two men) that were necessary to bring this seed into the necessary “soil” for its full development would not have been present.
In our Lord’s time and way, we will understand the “why” of these present difficult and trying experiences that we must daily endure, and in that day, we will be fully satisfied.
“His lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things: enter you into the joy of your lord.” Mathew 25:23