The Nature of the Kingdom People

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1
Neither water nor clay—salt are we!
Not of sea nor of earth—heavenly!
Our corrupt nature vile, put off wholly;
Nat’ral created life, stripped off fully;
Nature pure—bright, clean appearance—
Left here for corruption’s clearance.
Earth’s affairs try to snare—keep us e’er free!
We would ne’er lose that pure flavor heav’nly;
We’d manifest our function, not trampled be,
Not punished, but rewarded when Christ we see.
2
We transcend demons, men—shine as light!
Far beyond sea or land—mountain’s height!
Freed from sin’s every invasion threat’ning,
Freed from all human life’s veils and troubling;
Not ‘neath bushels, but on lampstands
To shine light in all directions.
By Thy grace, we’d prepare, watchful, praying,
Darkness dispelling, our ministry fulfill,
Ent’ring into the Kingdom—bright, shining still!
1. Water in stanza 1 denotes man corrupted by Satan;
clay in stanza 1 denotes man created by God.
2. Sea in stanza 1 refers to the demons’ dwelling place,
denoting the world corrupted by Satan;
earth in stanza 1 refers to man’s dwelling place,
denoting the world created by God.
3. Mountain in stanza 2 signifies a position
that is heavenly and that allows the heavens to rule;
bushels in stanza 2 signifies the management of
human matters related to making a living.
4. City in Matt. 5:14 refers to one’s living;
a city situated upon a mountain denotes a heavenly,
transcendent living that allows the heavens to rule.

Copyright Living Stream Ministry. Used by permission.

This hymn was composed for a conference given by Brother Lee in 1955. The messages given during this conference are included in The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1955, vol. 3. This hymn was subsequently printed in The Ministry of the Word in 1959, along with the four notes listed following this hymn.