THE FACE OF A MAN
The first face is the face of a man, because we ourselves are men. Since we are men, we should look like men. We were created as men, but we were corrupted, poisoned, and damaged by the fall. Therefore, we needed the Lord’s redemption. By the Lord’s redemption, we were brought back to the proper humanity. Strictly speaking, the humanity we have now is not ours but His. We have the humanity of Jesus within us. Among the Chinese people there is a kind of saying that it is difficult to be a man. They feel that it is preferable to end the human life by death and to become something else. But this concept is absolutely different from the Lord’s salvation. The Lord’s salvation is to make us proper men. Some of the husbands might say, "I am tired of being a husband." But you must realize that the Lord’s salvation is to make you a proper husband on the earth. If you are a wife, the Lord’s salvation is to make you a proper wife. If you are a parent, the Lord’s salvation is to make you a proper parent. If you are a child, the Lord’s salvation is to make you a proper child. Hallelujah, the Lord’s salvation is to make us proper human beings! Thus, we all must bear the face of a man. Occasionally, I have seen some seeking ones, particularly sisters, who do not seem to be human beings. They are so "spiritual" that it seems they are strange creatures—half human and half angel. They even practice this kind of behavior. Sometimes I upset this kind of situation by causing them either to laugh at me or to become angry. Then they became real. Once a dear sister whom I knew quite well came to me in a peculiar way—as half human and half angel. Because I was really unhappy with that, I said to her, "Sister, I know that you are always not right with your husband." Immediately she blew up. "What!" she said, "Brother Lee, you are a brother and you always take the side of the brothers!" Then I said to her, "Now I am happy." The half angel was blown away by my speaking.
We all prefer to be something else. The sisters especially like to be something else, but we all need simply to be human. Never pretend to be something else. You must be what you are—a man. But this is not to be human by your own humanity, but by the Lord’s humanity. We need to have the face of a man. Please read the four Gospels again and notice that Jesus was a person with the proper humanity. Many who read the four Gospels only pay attention to the miracles worked out by His divinity; they never pay attention to the things worked out by the Lord’s humanity. I like to see the beauty shown in the Lord’s humanity. For example, John 4 relates how the Lord Jesus was traveling with His disciples to the city of Samaria. Because He was tired and thirsty, He asked His disciples to go into the city to buy something to eat, while He rested. After they were gone, the Samaritan woman came. What a marvelous picture! He was the Almighty God, yet He was behaving Himself like a normal man, without any hint that He was God. When He asked the woman for water, He gave no indication that He was anything more than a man. That woman even rebuked Him, and He was willing to suffer her rebuke. The four Gospels record many stories like this. The Lord Jesus behaved Himself like a normal human being, bearing the face of a man. Today, we too must bear the face of a man.
THE FACE OF A LION
We also must bear the face of a lion. A lion in the Bible signifies boldness, vigor, strength, and victory. What does this mean? In our Christian life we need first to be a man. At our school, in our office, among our neighbors, we must be a man. But we must also be a lion. If in the office you are a proper man, it will draw people to you. When they are drawn to you, they will be the germs corrupting you. They will like you and invite you to participate in evil things, such as movies. At that time you must not behave as a man, but as a lion. Toward anything sinful or worldly, we must be as bold as a lion. All the people working in your office should know that if they talk to you about going to a movie, you will behave like a lion. People always consider that the Lord Jesus was gentle and mild. But at least once He was not gentle. When He went into the temple and saw all the moneychangers, He whipped them. He was mad. Furthermore, one day He called those Pharisees a generation of vipers (Matt. 23:33). He was bold and vigorous, even mad. He was really like a lion. In Revelation, He is called "The Lion of the tribe of Judah" (Rev. 5:5). We all must have the face of a lion.
(The Visions of Ezekiel, Chapter 3, by Witness Lee)
