GOD OVERLAYING HIS RECOVERED PEOPLE 
WITH HIMSELF

Recently, some among us became dissenting, although they claimed to have seen the ground and to be for the Lord’s recovery. Because they had not been solidly overlaid with gold, they caused the oneness to be damaged. The same thing may happen in the future to anyone who is not fully overlaid with gold. Not having an adequate amount of God can create a serious problem with the oneness. The Lord’s recovery is not a movement. We do not desire to gain a large number of people. In the recovery we are concerned for the genuine weight of gold. The important question is this: How much of God do you have? The Lord’s recovery consists of God overlaying His recovered people with Himself.

Whenever I see that any are dissenting, I feel sorry for them. At the same time I realize that such a situation of dissension is a test, an exposure, and a purification. It is a test of what is real, of how much gold we actually have. We all need to gain more gold. It is not sufficient only to have a good heart, to know the truth, and to care for the Lord’s recovery. Everything depends upon how much gold we have. We all can become dissenting if we are short of gold. This should be a warning to us all. Again I say that genuine oneness is possible only in the Triune God.

THE TOP PORTION OF GOD

We need to say a word now about the golden rings. Even after the boards had been overlaid with a heavy layer of gold, they could not be held together without the rings, which were receptacles. The overlaying gold was the ordinary gold, but the golden rings were the top portion of gold. This indicates our need for the top portion of God. For the practical oneness we need this special portion of Him. In order for there to be the oneness among the standing boards of the tabernacle, every board had to have this portion. It was the rings made from this portion of gold that held the uniting bars.

If we seriously consider the picture of the standing boards in Exodus 26, we will be deeply impressed with how much we are short of God. From 1925 I began to read articles in Christian magazines about the overcoming life. Although these articles provided help on how to be victorious, they did not say that we needed more of God. We do not need to learn so many methods. Our need is simply to sink into the Triune God and to gain more of Him. God is our truth, our way, our life, our everything. If we do not have God, we have nothing. Our problem is that we are short of God, and our need is to gain more of Him.

Perhaps you are one who is standing firmly in the church life. This is very good, but what about the oneness in the Triune God? We all need an adequate portion of God for the overlaying of the boards and the top portion of God for the rings that hold the uniting bars. When we have both the ordinary gold and the top portion of gold, we will have no problems with the oneness. However, if we do not gain the necessary gold, sooner or later we will have a problem. We need the solid oneness. This oneness is the adequate amount of God we have obtained. Do not rely on teachings or doctrines. Moreover, do not depend on your own love or your natural affection. Not even your steady will is trustworthy in keeping the oneness. Only one thing is dependable for oneness, and that is the adequate amount of God. Just as the standing boards could be one only in the gold, we can be one only by sinking into God.

Today the Lord needs the genuine oneness. If we do not have this oneness, we cannot go on in the recovery. Hence, the most vital and crucial matter is the genuine oneness. The only way to be kept in this solid, real oneness is to have an adequate amount of the experienced God. This is our need today.