OVERCOMING FOR THE BUILDING
Overcoming to Be Transformed Materials for the Building
The overcomers, who are the eaters of Jesus, are the right materials for God’s building. Revelation 2:17 speaks of a white stone with a new name. Years ago I could not understand what this means. Now I realize that this refers to the material for the building. Throughout the Bible stones are material for building. When Simon came to the Lord Jesus, the Lord said, “I also say to you that you are Peter” (Matt. 16:18). Peter means “stone.” The Lord said that he was no longer Simon but Peter, a stone, for the building up of His church. All the overcomers are white stones with a new name. Their name is new because they have been transformed. At first they were the old clay, but now they are transformed to be a new stone.
Overcoming to Be Pillars in the Temple of God
In Revelation 3:12 the Lord Jesus says, “He who overcomes, him I will make a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall by no means go out anymore.” The overcomers never go out of the temple because they have been built in. They can never pull themselves out again. In principle today, they can pull themselves out from any denomination or any group, but they cannot pull themselves out of the church. The stone is for building, and the pillar is a part of the building. If someone tells me that I am a pillar in the church, I will be happy. Many of the brothers today are the pillars. They can never pull themselves out. Hallelujah, we are the pillars!
Overcoming to Be One with the Lord and to Be the New Jerusalem
The overcomers are also one with the Lord. Verse 12 continues, “I will write upon him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which descends out of heaven from My God, and My new name.” The Lord’s name will be on us, God’s name will be on us, and the New Jerusalem’s name will be on us. If I put a label on a brother with his name on it, everyone will know who he is, because he bears a certain name. That the overcomers bear the name of God means that they are one with God. They are men, but they bear the name of God. Are they men, or are they God? They are men who are one with God.
If a man’s wife is not one with him, how can she bear his name? If a woman is not Mrs. Jones, she cannot bear the name Mrs. Jones. Because she bears such a name, she is Mrs. Jones. The overcomers bear the name of God and bear the name of the new city because they are the new city. If you come to Chicago, you will see a sign that says “Chicago.” This city bears the name Chicago because it is Chicago. These overcomers will bear the name New Jerusalem because they are the New Jerusalem.
The overcomers also bear “My new name,” the new name of the Lord. In a sense they are experiencing a new Lord, a new Jesus, a new Christ. Recently I have been condemned for saying that the overcomers in the book of Revelation experience a Christ who is different from the Christ experienced in Christianity. In the Far East someone even rose up to publish a paper condemning me as heretical for saying that the overcomers enjoy a different Christ. Whether or not this is heretical depends on how you interpret it. Yes, we have the same Jesus, but your taste of Him may not be as good as my taste of Him. Even forty years ago Jesus was not as sweet to me as He is today. Today my Jesus is truly a new Jesus. Every day He is new.
To have the new name of the Lord means that we experience something new of the Lord. A brother may have been saved for a few years; is his Jesus exactly the same as He was three years ago? No, He should be much better. This does not mean that he has two “Jesuses.” He has the same Jesus, but the taste of Him is new and better.
Overcoming to Be Co-kings with Christ
The overcomers also will be on the throne with Christ as His co-kings (2:26-27; 3:21). Christ is on the throne, and they also will be on the throne. He has the power and authority, and they also will have the same power and authority to rule over the nations.
Overcoming to Be the Bride of Christ
As we have seen, the overcomers are the man-child to fulfill God’s eternal purpose. Eventually, this man-child will be the bride to satisfy Christ (19:7-9). To the enemy and to fulfill God’s purpose we are the man-child, while to satisfy Christ we are His bride. In Revelation 17 Babylon the Great is the great harlot and the mother of harlots (vv. 1, 5). No overcomer should stay in today’s Christianity. Apostate Christianity is not the bride; it is the harlot, either the mother harlot or the daughter harlots. The Lord says to those in Babylon, “Come out of her, My people” (18:4).
The way to be the overcomers is to eat Jesus. By eating we have growth and transformation, and we are good for God’s building. We are something new, and we have new experiences of God and of the Lord. Then we will be the overcomers, the man-child, and eventually the bride to satisfy Christ.
(Enjoying the Riches of Christ for the Building Up of the Church as the Body of Christ, Chapter 17, by Witness Lee)
