DISREGARDING OUR MIND
We may realize that the spirit is the switch, but throughout our daily life we use our mind, not our spirit. Even while we are sitting in the meeting, our mind may be on other things. Or we may be listening to the message with our mind, checking out the Scripture references and trying to determine if what is being said is right. The outcome of exercising our mind is that invariably questions arise.
Without the exercise of our spirit our experience of Christ will be meager. We are off, even though we are not back in the world nor into sin. We may be near but off, even as a lamp may be quite near the plug but not receive any electric current because it is not plugged in.
God would have us turn away from the considerations in our mind and exercise to touch Him, to taste Him, and to find out His will. For us to have such exercise is well pleasing to Him. It is by this very means that we pray without ceasing.
WISDOM AND REVELATION IN OUR SPIRIT
There are riches in our spirit for us to tap. Paul prayed that we might have “a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him” (Eph. 1:17). We should ask the Lord to make our regenerated spirit a spirit of wisdom. If we do, before too long we shall find that in our relationship with our parents and others, we are speaking and behaving wisely rather than in our former foolish way. Even others will notice our wisdom. There will not be trickery or cunning wiles but a spirit of wisdom.
We need a spirit of both wisdom and revelation. With revelation the whole universe, both physical and spiritual, is clear to us. When we were unsaved, we were in a dark cell, enclosed by thick walls. But now that we are saved, we should be in a transparent, glass room. Our vision should be as clear as when we are in a car; no matter which direction we look, the see-through glass gives us an unobscured view.
The living creatures in Revelation 4:6 are “full of eyes in front and behind.” Our eyes let the light into us. We need to be full of eyes, so that we have a clear view. This clear view is the spirit of revelation.
To understand the view, we need, besides the spirit of revelation, the spirit of wisdom. With our eyes we may be able to see the words on the printed page, but without understanding we shall not grasp their meaning.
This may be the case when we read the Bible. We read the words, but the meaning is hidden from us. If we keep praying for a spirit of wisdom and revelation, we shall find that the words of the Bible open up to us, and that whenever we read its pages, we have some measure of understanding.
PRAYING
God’s good pleasure is that we walk in this mingled spirit. But this is not our habit. To accustom ourselves to doing this, we need to keep turning to the Lord in prayer during the day. “Lord, make my regenerated spirit one of wisdom and transparency. When I look at the church or at the saints, make everything transparent. When I read the Bible, make every page clear.”
Do not trust in your cleverness. However sharp your mind is, it is too low and small for you to put your confidence in it. If you are involved in a car accident, your cleverness may tell you to drive away quickly, but this is not the voice of wisdom in your spirit.
Pray for this wisdom. Pray that God may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation.
(Life Messages, Vol. 1 (#1-41), Chapter 36, by Witness Lee)
