In Genesis 35 Jacob had a radical turn from the individual experience of God to the corporate experience of God. As a result of being dealt with, broken, and transformed, Jacob experienced God as the God of Bethel, El-Bethel, the God of the house of God (Gen. 35:7; Eph. 3:17-21; 4:4-6). Outwardly you may think […]
Coming to Bethel (the Church) a Second Time and Having our Name Changed into Israel
Jacob’s dream in Genesis 28 was a dream of God’s goal, the dream of Bethel, the house of God, which is the church today and which will consummate in the New Jerusalem as the eternal dwelling place of God and His redeemed elect. After he saw this wonderful dream, Jacob went through a lot of […]
The Church Life today is the Reality of Bethel, the Fulfillment of Jacob’s Dream
The stone that Jacob put under his head as a pillow and then early in the morning set up as a pillar and poured oil on it – this stone became Bethel, the house of God (see Gen. 28:17, 19, 22). I am still amazed that God met this restless and homeless young man, Jacob, […]
Today’s Nazarites Overcome Death and Natural Affection; They Bless Others with God!
Today the Lord needs Nazarites, those who are consecrated to Him for His purpose. All the believers in Christ are His priests, but they have failed Him in accomplishing His purpose. Therefore, God is looking for those who willingly consecrate themselves to Him, separating themselves unto Him and sanctifying themselves for His purpose. These have […]
We Need to Deny the Self and Take Christ as our Person for the Church Life Today
Why do we need to “deny the self”, lose our soul-life, and take up our cross to follow the Lord? Many believers and unbelievers alike may not like to hear these words of the Lord, but they are part of the secret of the Christian life. It is crucial for a believer to deny the […]
The Self is the Enemy of the Body and the Greatest Hindrance to Building up the Body
We need the Lord’s mercy in order to see the vision of the self so that we may deny it, abhor it, and repudiate it, identifying ourselves with Christ and with the Body of Christ and rejecting our self. Toward God, the self is independent. Toward ourselves, the self is our soul life being expressed, […]
The Self is the Embodiment of Satan in our Soul, being Expressed through Opinions
God wants us to see the heavenly vision and be governed by it, and as believers in Christ we are meant to see the heavenly vision and be heavenly people living a heavenly life on earth. However, there are many hindrances to seeing this vision and entering into it, the first of which is the […]