XXIX. BALAAM, THE NICOLAITANS, AND JEZEBEL
Revelation 2 mentions the doctrine of Balaam, the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, the teachings of Jezebel, and the depths of Satan (Rev. 2:14, 15, 20, 24). The early churches were deceived by such teachings and turned away from the eating of the Lord and the feasting with the Lord. Therefore, to turn the churches back to the enjoyment of Himself, the Lord made a promise to the churches that if they stay away from this kind of doctrine He will give them to eat of Himself. In Revelation 2:7 the Lord promises to give them to eat of the tree of life. In Revelation 2:17 He promises to give them the hidden manna. In these two verses we see the tree that was in the garden of Eden and the manna that was in the wilderness, both of which are Christ Himself. The Lord did not say that He would give them teachings or that He would offer them a superior doctrine. While Balaam and the Nicolaitans have their doctrines, Jezebel her teaching, and Satan his depths, the Lord Jesus has the tree of life and the hidden manna. According to Revelation 3:20, the Lord promises a feast to everyone who will open to Him as He knocks on the door. What does it mean to eat of the tree of life, to partake of the hidden manna, and to feast with the Lord Jesus? It means that we stay continually on the line of life to enjoy the Lord. If, in the midst of the confusions and divisions of the day, we go along with the teachings, we will be killed. However, if we take care of the enjoyment of the Lord, that is, to be on the line of life, we will receive life and live.
XXX. THE ANTICHRIST
The Antichrist will be a man completely in the mind with a strong, independent will. Thus, he will be totally possessed by Satan and will even become the incarnation of Satan (Rev. 13:5-8). He is called "the man of lawlessness," "the son of destruction," because he will exalt himself as God (2 Thes. 2:3-4). He will be the giant on the line of knowledge in the Bible, knowing and caring for nothing on the line of life. His destiny will be to suffer eternal death with Satan, the source of death (Rev. 19:20; 20:10).
XXXI. IN GENERAL
As a conclusion I want to refer to 2 Corinthians 3:6, which says, "the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." The "letter" here refers to the Old Testament, and the same Greek word is rendered "writings" in 2 Timothy 3:15, where Paul mentions that Timothy knew the sacred writings since childhood. But the Bible in dead letters, which belongs to the tree of knowledge, kills, while the Spirit, who belongs to the tree of life, gives life. Therefore, we do have a choice. Praise the Lord for this choice! The choice of life! Besides the line of knowledge there is the line of life. We must make a choice between life and knowledge. We must choose between death and life.
(Life-Study of Genesis, Chapter 16, by Witness Lee)
