1
Lord, when the Father ne'er was known,
The Father came through Thee below,
That we who lived in ignorance
Might through Thyself the Father know.
The Father came through Thee below,
That we who lived in ignorance
Might through Thyself the Father know.
2
But, Lord, when Thou wast here on earth,
How scarce were those Thyself who knew;
A veil there was 'twixt Thee and them;
They crowded 'round, but saw not through.
How scarce were those Thyself who knew;
A veil there was 'twixt Thee and them;
They crowded 'round, but saw not through.
3
Now as the Spirit Thou hast come
E'en as the Father came in Thee;
As we through Thee the Father know,
Now through the Spirit we know Thee.
E'en as the Father came in Thee;
As we through Thee the Father know,
Now through the Spirit we know Thee.
4
Not with the flesh Thou now art clothed—
Then must Thou walk with toil around;
But as the Spirit in our heart
Thou dost supply Thyself unbound.
Then must Thou walk with toil around;
But as the Spirit in our heart
Thou dost supply Thyself unbound.
5
Thou, Lord, the Father once wast called,
But now the Holy Spirit art;
The Spirit is Thine other form,
Thyself to dwell within our heart.
But now the Holy Spirit art;
The Spirit is Thine other form,
Thyself to dwell within our heart.
6
By knowing Thee as Spirit, Lord,
We realize Thy life's outflow,
Thy glory and Thy character,
And all Thy being's wonders know.
We realize Thy life's outflow,
Thy glory and Thy character,
And all Thy being's wonders know.
7
Praise to Thy Name now floods our heart;
There is no one as dear as Thee;
For since we know how real Thou art,
No other one could lovelier be.
There is no one as dear as Thee;
For since we know how real Thou art,
No other one could lovelier be.
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THE SON
God is mysterious. He is altogether a mystery. But this mystery has been revealed by God’s speaking. Without the divine speaking, God would remain forever unknowable. But our God no longer is mysterious. He is not a mystery, but a story. The story of God is absolutely a matter of speaking. God has a history, and His history is a speaking story. We can tell the story of God. The story of God is a matter of continual speaking; it is a speaking history.
Firstly, God spoke through some people who were chosen and moved by Him. He spoke in various ways through Adam, Abel, Enosh, Enoch, Noah, and Abraham. After Abraham, God spoke through Moses and many other chosen ones—priests, kings, and prophets. Everyone who spoke for God, whether he was a king or a prophet, was motivated by God’s Spirit. Therefore, the history of God is a history of speaking.
After God spoke through so many different kinds of people, through high and low, educated and uneducated, kings and shepherds, His speaking was still insufficient. Regardless of how much these people were used to speak for God, their speaking was not adequate. God had to speak by Himself directly. So He came in the person of the Son. Hebrews 1:2 says that God has spoken to us in the Son. According to the Recovery Version of Hebrews, in 1:1 there is a definite article before the word prophets. However, in 1:2 the definite article before Son is in italics, indicating that this word is not in the Greek text, but that it is necessary for the sake of English idiom. In the English language it is difficult to say, “God spoke to us in Son. ” Some of the better versions say, “God has spoken to us in the person of the Son. ” Even the Amplified Version uses the phrase in the person of a Son. This means God Himself speaks in the person of the Son. Formerly He spoke through the prophets; now He speaks in the Son. We must see that the Son is different from all the prophets. All of the prophets were men used by God to speak for Him, but the Son is God Himself speaking. Verse 2 says that God has spoken to us in the Son, and verse 8 tells us that the Son is God. This indicates that God speaks in Himself. In verse 2 it seems that God and the Son are two, for it says that God spoke in the Son. But in verse 8 it is evident that the Son and God are one, for the Son is addressed, “O God. ” To say that God has spoken in the Son means that God speaks in Himself.
In the four gospels the Son came. He came to speak God, not only with clear words, but also with what He was and what He did. He is altogether the Word of God and the speaking of God. Sometimes He spoke with words and other times He spoke with actions. All that He was and all that He did spoke God. “No one has ever seen God; the only begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him” (John 1:18).
The Son is the Word, the speaking, the expression, and the definition of God. When the Son speaks, His word is the Spirit (John 6:63). Eventually, to the churches, He is the speaking Spirit. At the beginning of each of the seven epistles in Revelation 2 and 3 , the Son speaks, but at the end of each epistle, it is the Spirit speaking to the churches. God speaks in the Son, and when the Son speaks to the churches, He is the speaking Spirit. By His speaking the churches will become one with Him. At the end of Revelation the Spirit and the church speak as one (Rev. 22:17). God speaks in the Son, the Son becomes the speaking Spirit, and the speaking Spirit is one with the church speaking for God. This is the speaking history of our God, a history that is a speaking story.
This speaking story is recorded in the Bible. The entire Bible is a history of God. As we have seen, this history is a speaking story. When God created all things, He did so by speaking. When He contacted humanity in the Old Testament times, He did it by speaking in the prophets. When He came to mankind in the New Testament age, He spoke in the Son, in the Person of the Son as His Word. How does He come into the churches today? By speaking as the speaking Spirit. By speaking as the Spirit, He makes Himself one with the churches. Eventually, this speaking story not only consists of Himself, but also of all the churches. Meeting after meeting, the church life is a speaking story. We are a speaking people. By this speaking God is transfused into people. By this speaking so many human beings are being infused and saturated with the divine element. This is the church life. This is God speaking.
The book of Hebrews is a book of God’s speaking. The essence of the letter to the Hebrews is God speaking in the Son. God speaks in the Son, the Son speaks as the Spirit to the churches, and ultimately the Spirit speaks with the church. It is altogether by this speaking story that God is brought into man and man is brought into God. God and man, man and God, become one. This is the wonderful church life.
Life-study of Hebrews
Message 3 (LSM)
3. Declaring God
Another aspect of Christ’s work in His human living was to declare God. “No one has ever seen God; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him” (John 1:18). In His human living Christ declared God. According to John 1:1-18 , Christ declared God by the Word (vv. 1 , 14), life (v. 4), light (vv. 4-5), grace (vv. 14 , 16 , 17), and reality (vv. 14 , 17). The Word is God expressed, life is God imparted, light is God shining, grace is God enjoyed, and reality is God realized. God is declared in the Son through these five things. Although no one has ever seen God, Christ in His human living has declared God in the way of being the Word, life, light, grace, and reality. The more we receive the Word, have the divine life, and let the light of life shine within us, and the more we enjoy God as grace and apprehend Him as reality, the more He is declared to us. In His human living Christ carried out the work of declaring God in this way. During the thirty years of His living and working as a carpenter, Christ declared God. While He was living to build up the fashion of a man, He declared God to His mother, brothers, and sisters. They must have realized that there was something excellent and extraordinary with Him, something higher than the expression only of humanity. What they saw in the human living of the Lord Jesus was the declaration of God in Him. His human living declared God.
The Conclusion of the New Testament:
God, Christ, and the Spirit,
Message 64 (LSM)
TX, United States
Praise to Thy Name now floods our heart;
There is no one as dear as Thee;
For since we know how real Thou art,
No other one could lovelier be.
Hamilton, Waikato, New Zealand
Enjoyed singing this hymn this morning. Thank You, Lord.
Fullerton, California, United States
This is one of our dear Bro. Nee's hymns to the Father and His sending His Son to the earth, but many didn't realize Who He truly was. Now that you, Father have infused us with Your Spirit in our spirit, You can mold us unto Your image from glory to glory, AMEN! Father thank You for the love You have for us.