The Local Churches Typified in the Book of Psalms

Additional Quotes about the Local Church by Witness Lee and Watchman Nee

Verse 3 says, “Yea, the sparrow hath found a house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.” No doubt, we are the sparrows and the swallows, little creatures who are small and frail. Yet the sparrows have found a house, and the swallows have found a nest where they may lay their young. How sweet is the feeling of the psalmist concerning the house of God! It is a place for little sparrows to abide, a place for the swallow to build a nest for herself, where she may lay her young. In the house of God, we, the sparrows and the swallows, find a home at the Lord’s altars. At the Lord’s altars we find a nest, a place of nourishing and cherishing and a place of rest.

In ancient times, both in the tabernacle and in the temple, there were two altars: one in the outer court and the other in the holy place. The altar in the outer court, the altar of brass, was the place for the offerings which dealt with the negative things, cleansed the Lord’s people, and delivered them from all problems. The altar in the holy place, the golden altar, was the altar of incense, which signifies the resurrected Christ as our acceptance to God. Hence, these altars signify Christ in crucifixion and in resurrection. It is here that we find our home and our rest in the house of God.

All the little ones, the sparrows and swallows, in the local churches must realize and apprehend the significance of the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, with all that He has accomplished and attained for us. They need to apprehend how Christ is the crucified One at the offering altar and the resurrected One at the incense altar. Through such an apprehension, they will enjoy the goodness of the crucified and resurrected Christ. At these altars we find a true resting place, a nest where we are nourished and cherished and where we may be at rest. How marvelous is this enjoyment in God’s dwelling place, the local churches!

(Witness Lee, Genuine Ground, 68-69)

Through these two altars God’s redeemed can find their home with God in rest. Psalm 84:3 speaks both of a home and of a nest. What is the difference between a home and a nest? Whereas a home is a place of rest, a nest is a place of refuge. For us today, the brass altar is a refuge. We hide ourselves under the cross, escaping our troubles, and thus we are covered and have refuge. Then at the golden altar we contact our Christ in the heavens. This contact is not for refuge—it is for rest.

A swallow is small and weak and is troubled by storms and by many other things. But a swallow has a nest, a refuge. Like a swallow coming to the nest where she may lay her young, we may come to the cross of Christ as our refuge. Here we may bring our “young,” those whom we contact in our preaching of the gospel. Spiritually speaking, at the “nest” of the cross we should “lay” our young, our spiritual children. To lay the young is to produce them through the preaching of the gospel. To do this we need to bring sinners to the cross of Christ. It is here, at the cross, that we have our nest, our refuge, and it is here that we “lay our young,” that is, produce our spiritual children. Before contacting the cross they were sinners, but by contacting the cross they become believers, young children in the Lord. As we teach our young to call on the Lord, they will learn to offer prayer to God at the altar of incense. Then in their experience these two altars will be closely related.

We have pointed out that this psalm on the psalmist’s love for the house of God with Christ speaks of God’s tabernacles and God’s house. In type, the tabernacles, the habitations, are the local churches, and the house is the church as a totality. When we come to the church, the house of God, we are attracted by the two altars, both of which are very striking. At the first altar, the brass altar, we confess our sins, failures, and defects. Here at the cross our problems are solved, and we are qualified to enter into God. Then we may come to the golden altar to contact God.

(Witness Lee, LS of Psalms, 371-372)

2. Enjoying Christ in God’s House

In Psalm 92 we see even more aspects of the enjoyment in the house of God. Verse 10 says, “But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of a wild ox: I shall be anointed with fresh oil” (Heb.). In the church life we can be as strong as a wild ox. Furthermore, we have two horns that are exalted. This is possible only in the house of God. Moreover, in God’s house we are anointed, even mingled (Heb.), with fresh oil. Outwardly we have two exalted horns, and inwardly we are mingled with fresh oil. Everyone in the church life can have horns like a wild ox and be mingled with fresh oil.

Many who have come into the church life have experienced their horn being exalted. Before we came to dwell in the church, we were low and frequently defeated. But when we came into God’s dwelling place, we sensed that our horn was exalted over our enemy. Furthermore, we sensed that we were mingled with fresh oil. In God’s house we daily have the sense of being mingled with fresh oil. Day by day we sense something very fresh—this is the oil that is being mingled with us. The reason we are fresh is that we are mingled with fresh oil.

(Witness Lee, Genuine Ground, 70-71)

Main

God’s House

Zion

City of God

Bride

Practical Salvation

Built Up

Victory

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