by Wade E Taylor
I counsel you to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich; and white raiment, that you may be clothed, and that the shame of your nakedness do not appear; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.” Revelation 3:18
This advice is the final word of correction that is spoken by Jesus to the Church. The “gold” that is to be purchased is not monetary provision, but our partaking of the “divine nature.”
“By which He has granted to us His precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” II Peter 1:4 ESV
“For we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones.” Ephesians 5:30
We are called to live and function in the realm of the Spirit. To those who are coming short of this, there is a corrective word – “I counsel you to buy of Me gold… that you may be rich….”
“And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on My name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is My people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.” Zechariah 13:9
“And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness.” Malachi 3:3
“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found to praise and honor and glory, at the appearing of Jesus Christ.” I Peter 1:7
To buy this “gold” (the divine nature), our adamic nature must first be dealt with through a testing and purging process. Our being “tried in the fire” is that process by which we are purged and made pure – all “dross” is removed. We must give the Lord permission to do this, so our partaking of His nature becomes an experiential reality.
We must unconditionally submit to the Lord the totality of our being (our independence), along with all that we possess, both natural and spiritual, and ask the Lord to cause us to become dependent. We are to put the Lord first, seeking Him for Himself, placing Him in control of all that we are and do.
“But seek you first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33
When the possession of things becomes our priority, the result will be a lack of spiritual desire and growth.
As we wait on the Lord and spend time in His presence, His life is imparted into the inner depth of our being. We are purchasing “gold” (the divine nature).
“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3
The word “poor” has the deeper meaning of abject poverty – our coming to the total end of self and all possessions. Of foundational importance in the Kingdom is becoming “dependent” upon the Lord, acknowledging Him to be our head.
Because we have chosen to become “poor” concerning our desire for and dependence upon temporal things, we will become rich in spiritual things.
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new Spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you shall keep My judgments, and do them.” Ezekiel 36:26-27
“I will… cause (enable) you to walk in My statutes.” This “cause” is the enabling grace that is received through the “Baptism in the Holy Spirit” (you shall receive power, after the Holy Spirit is come upon you. Acts 1:8). Because we are called to be overcomers, our submissive dependence on the Lord must be “tried in the fire.” Thus, the “power” is received only after we have become dependent.
“Let us rejoice and be exceeding glad, and let us give the glory to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife has made herself ready. And it was given to her that she should array herself in fine linen, bright and pure: for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.” Revelation 19:7-8 ASV
Notice that she is to “dress herself in fine linen” (the garment of the Bride). Most go no further than receiving the “garment of salvation,” which has been washed in the blood of the Lamb of God.
The Lord is calling us into this higher dimension of spiritual life. Paul saw this, and prayed for an “out-resurrection” from among the living dead (Philippians 3:11). These “living dead” are those who are satisfied with being “rich and increased in goods.” They have the blessings of God, but are devoid of spiritual substance and life.
“For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” II Corinthians 4:16-18
May each of us carefully search our hearts as to our priorities, and then make this commitment to the Lord:
“Lord, I desire to purchase of you gold that will mold my life into your image and likeness, that I might become the expression of your life in the earth, in my day and time.”
Now, the “lifting power of divine love” will bring us into an active, ongoing personal relationship with our Lord.