CHAPTER ONE

KNOWING THE ECONOMY OF GOD

A follower of the Lord must be a pursuer, and there are at least a few things that he must pursue throughout his entire life: life, truth, the filling of the Holy Spirit, character training, and the knowledge of God’s eternal economy.

PURSUING LIFE

First of all, a follower of the Lord must pursue the growth in the divine life by passing through the processes of sanctification, renewing, transformation, and conformation until he reaches the stages of maturity and glorification.

PURSUING TRUTH

Second, a follower of the Lord must pursue the full knowledge of the truth. Throughout the six thousand years of human history there have been countless writings of significant value in various fields, such as philosophy, science, and religion. Up to this day, however, in the whole world every person of integrity and fair-mindedness—whether he is a God-fearing person or an atheist, a Christian or a non-Christian—recognizes that the Bible is the most outstanding and profound book in human culture. The Bible, composed of sixty-six books, was written in various places (both Jewish and Gentile) by more than forty authors over a period of one thousand six hundred years. In spite of this, the Bible is a complete book with a beginning and an end. It begins with God’s creation and concludes with the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and new earth. Moreover, it has a final warning, which says that no one should either add anything to or take away anything from the Word of God (Rev. 22:18-19). Anyone who takes away any words from the Bible will lose the blessings of the eternal life of God—that person will have no share of the tree of life, the river of water of life, and the holy city. This punishment will be meted out to those who take away anything from the words of the [324] Bible. Those who add something to the words of the Bible will also suffer the punishment of God’s eternal judgment, which is mainly to perish in the lake of fire. Hence, the Bible has an eternal beginning and an eternal ending.

Throughout the centuries innumerable biblical scholars have studied the Bible according to the Hebrew language of the Old Testament and the Greek language of the New Testament by expending their energy over their entire lifetime and by using all the methods of their wisdom. However, up to the present no one has ever been able to claim that he has thoroughly studied the Bible. This shows that the Bible is truly mysterious. Hence, in addition to the ones who serve God full time for their whole life, even those who merely have a desire to follow the Lord faithfully must do their best to study and know the Bible.

When we studied in school, we spent a great deal of our effort to get into every subject thoroughly. However, I cannot find the proper words to express what kind of effort, energy, wisdom, knowledge, and understanding is needed for the study of the Bible. From what I have personally experienced in this matter, I can only affirm that I cannot express with human language what kind of effort and how much time we have to devote to the study of the Bible.

The division of the sections of the Bible is of profound significance, and even the arrangement of the books of the Bible inspires admiration. For example, according to the natural concept of the Chinese, who are particularly fond of maxims and mottoes, it would be best to have the book of Proverbs at the beginning of the Bible. However, the first book of the Bible is not Leviticus, still less Proverbs, the favorite book of the Chinese, but Genesis; moreover, the last book of the Bible is neither Matthew nor Isaiah but Revelation. If the sequence of the Bible were arranged according to man’s natural concept, then the proper significance would be lost. Therefore, the order of the books of the Bible has profound significance.

The chapters of each book of the Scriptures are also divinely arranged. The things that are stated explicitly, of course, have profound significance; however, certain things that are not mentioned are even more profound in their significance. For instance, Genesis 14 tells us that when Abraham returned after winning a battle, Melchizedek, the king of Salem, the priest of God the Most High, went to meet him, ministered bread and wine to him, and blessed [325] him (vv. 17-19). Strangely, however, Genesis does not tell us anything about the origin of Melchizedek. According to the style of Genesis, whenever someone is mentioned, there is usually an account of his background. For example, there are clear records of the backgrounds of people such as Adam and Noah to let us know of whom they were born, what their accomplishments were, and how long they lived. However, the record in Genesis concerning Melchizedek does not disclose to us his beginning or his end. Therefore, we do not know where he came from or where he went.

In Hebrews 7, however, Paul tells us that Melchizedek, who was a type of Christ as the eternal Son of God, had no father, no mother, no genealogy, no beginning of days, and no end of life (v. 3). This shows us the reason the record of his background was omitted in Genesis. Of course, Melchizedek could not actually be without parents, as if he simply dropped from heaven, but these facts were omitted intentionally in Genesis. Even Moses, when he wrote Genesis, probably did not know why the Holy Spirit did not reveal to him the background of Melchizedek, including his birth and his death. I do not believe that Moses knew that one day Paul would use Melchizedek to typify the Son of God, who has no beginning, no ending, no birth, and no death. This proves that Moses wrote Genesis under the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Let us take the four Gospels as another example. The four Gospels give us a portrait of the Lord Jesus in four different aspects. However, a case may be mentioned in one book but not recorded in the other three books, whereas another case may be recorded in two or three books, and yet the emphasis in each of these books may be different. For example, in the case of the Lord Jesus’ feeding five thousand with five loaves and two fish, the writing style of John 6 is totally different from that of the other three Gospels. Therefore, in order to understand the full significance of any case recorded in the four Gospels, we need to study the four Gospels together and take care of every aspect of that case. Only then will we be able to have a thorough understanding and comprehension. It is surely meaningful that a certain case is recorded in some places, but it is equally meaningful, from another viewpoint, that it is omitted in other places.

In Matthew 5:18 the Lord Jesus said, “Truly I say to you, Until heaven and earth pass away, one iota or one serif shall by no means pass away from the law until all come to pass.” Therefore, we who love [326] and pursue the Lord should devote a major part of our lifetime to the study of the Bible. It is absolutely impossible to study the Bible thoroughly. We all know that our diet is of utmost importance to our health. We should pay attention not only to how much we eat but also to how properly we eat. The Cantonese, who are very particular about their eating, eat seven times a day. As followers of the Lord, we need to read the Bible every day and if possible seven times a day. You should never think that you do not need to read the Bible anymore because you have already read through it several times and have read it thoroughly. The Bible is exceedingly rich. Therefore, no matter how thoroughly you have studied it, there are still some items that you have not yet uncovered. I hope that you will not only remember this point but also practice accordingly. If you spend time to study the Bible diligently, you may wear out a Bible in seven or eight years. Your Bible will become worn out because you have studied it so diligently and so frequently. You may consider yourself to have exerted sufficient effort only after you have worn out several copies of the Bible.