THE LORD BEING RICH TO ALL
WHO CALL UPON HIM
Romans 10 also says that the Lord is "rich to all who call upon Him" (v. 12). It does not say that the Lord is rich to all who believe on Him, but to all who call on Him. We need the calling. In your home you need the calling. In your kitchen you need the calling. In your office you need the calling. On the street you need the calling. When you are weak, you need the calling. You can say, "O Lord Jesus, I am weak. O Lord Jesus." If you call in this way, you will become stronger. If you are going to lose your temper, do not try to restrain it. Just call on the name of the Lord: "O Lord Jesus." This calling on the name of the Lord Jesus will be a kind of power, a kind of authority, and this will chase away all the darkness. In any kind of situation, whether it is one of darkness or weakness, just call on the name of the Lord. By calling, "O Lord Jesus," you will enjoy the riches of Christ. The Lord is rich to all who call on Him. Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (v. 13). Now is the age for us to recover the practice of calling on the name of the Lord.
CALLED BY GOD TO CALL
UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD JESUS
First Corinthians 1:2 says that we are the called saints who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place. We have been called to be the calling people. On the one hand, we have been called. On the other hand, we have to be calling. We are the called people to be the calling people. We should not merely believe on Him or pray to Him; we must call on Him. God called us into the fellowship of Christ (v. 9). To us, the called ones, Christ is power and wisdom (v. 24), but how can we enjoy Christ as power and wisdom? It is by calling on His name. We have been called to enjoy Christ (v. 9). If we want to enjoy Christ, we have to call on Him. We have to be the calling people who call on the Lord all day long.
In some situations you may have the feeling that you are in darkness. The best way to chase away the darkness is to call on the name of the Lord. You have to say, "O Lord Jesus! Lord Jesus!" Sometimes you may feel depressed in every way. If you call on the name of the Lord, you will be released. This is not a doctrine but something for our experience. If you do not take this and put it into practice, this fellowship will not mean anything to you. But if you put this into practice, you will see that this is the way to breathe in the Lord. To call on the name of the Lord is to breathe Him, and this includes drinking and eating Him. The drinking and eating are included in the breathing, and breathing is by calling on the name of the Lord.
Christ is everything to us, and He has accomplished everything. He was incarnated, crucified, resurrected, and He has ascended to the third heaven. He has been glorified and enthroned to reach the highest attainment. Now He is the Spirit within us and the Word outside of us. The Spirit within is the pneuma, the breath, and the Word without is also the breath of God. In order to take Him in, we need to breathe. The best way, even the unique way, the only way, to breathe Him is to call on His name. Just open up yourself all the time and call on His name. This is the breathing. Then learn how to mingle prayer and the reading of the Word with your breathing, your calling. You will have the deep sense that whenever you call on the name of the Lord by praying and reading the Word, you are breathing the Lord. In this breathing, you have the drinking and eating. All day long you will participate in Him and enjoy Him. Christ will be taken into you to become a part of you. You will then be in the rich enjoyment of Christ as life.
(The Fulfillment of God's Purpose by the Growth of Christ in Us, Chapter 4, by Witness Lee)
