The Local Churches Typified in the Book of Psalms
The Local Churches Typified in the Book of Psalms |
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Zion as a Symbol of the Universal Church and the Local Church3. Being Blessed in ZionThe Psalms speak of many blessings related to Zion as a symbol of the universal church and the local church. In the following section, Witness Lee discusses some of these blessings and their application to the local church today. Furthermore, in Psalm 51:18 the Psalmist says, “Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion.” Can you explain what it means for God to “do good” unto Zion? Sometimes we just read over these verses without at all realizing their intent. I believe that according to the context of all these Psalms the “good” mentioned here includes many things. It includes the building up of the wall of the city, as mentioned in the last part of the verse. The building up of the walls of Jerusalem is indeed one item of the “good.” Following that, the city must have the glory of God. God must fill it with His glory. Then the presence of God must be continually with the city, and God’s very presence supplies the peace, the joy, the light, the life, the security, and all the blessings of the city. The “good” here includes all these things. We also need to pray in this way: “Do good unto the church in thy good pleasure.” And when we pray we must have faith to believe that the Lord is going to do good. The Lord will build up the church, He will fill it with His glory, His very presence will be with the church, and His presence will bring joy, peace, life, light, security, and all kinds of blessings. In all the years that I have been in this country for the Lord’s testimony, I have had the assurance that the Lord is going to do good in His good pleasure to the church. He is going to build up the church, fill it with His glory, and grant the church His presence with abundant spiritual blessing. Praise the Lord! Many of us can testify how wonderfully the Lord has already done good in His good pleasure unto His church in this land. (Witness Lee, Christ and the Church, 93-94) Here, Witness Lee encourages the believers with another blessing of Zion—the strengthening of God—which can also be applied to our local church life today. The more you go on in the local church, the more strength you will gain. “They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God” (v. 7). It is not your own strength, but the strength of God. Just go on. There is no need for you to consider, to hesitate, to turn away. Even if it is the Red Sea, go through it. Even if it is the Jordan, go through it. It is absolutely a matter of faith. Do not look at the situation. If you do, you will be disappointed. You may see the sea ahead of you, or the river—in either case it is deep water. But go on. Praise the Lord, when you go on, you have the strength. The Lord is ahead of you. If you continue in the church way, you will go from strength to strength, and you will appear before God in Zion. (Witness Lee, Christ and the Church, 153) 4. The Joy of the Whole EarthFinally, Psalm 48:2 praises Zion, a type of the local church, as “the joy of the whole earth.” Witness Lee notes: Verse 2: “Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.” When the church is strengthened, enlarged, and built up as a city, there is an elevation in the earth. The church is elevated, and that elevation is the beauty of the church. Beautiful in elevation is mount Zion. Such a church, such a city, is the joy of the whole earth. It is in this city that God is the great King, and this great King is God in Christ—Christ Himself. In the house He is the great Father, but in the city He is the great King. (Witness Lee, Christ and the Church, 86-87) The Old Testament psalmists sang of Zion with much affection, for Zion, as the highest peak of Jerusalem, fulfills in type God's dearest desire concerning His dwelling place. While the rest of the world may be in rebellion against God, Zion stands with God and is fully possessed by God. God therefore regards Zion as the perfection of beauty and blesses it. As the above quotes from Witness Lee indicate, Zion typifies the New Testament church and today's local churches. As today's mountains of Zion, the local churches are the expression of the universal church as God's dwelling place. God's affections are set upon the local churches and His manifold blessings are poured upon the local churches. Ultimately, the local churches are today's stepping stones to the coming New Jerusalem. | ||||