Knowing the Truth, Being Absolute for the Truth, and Proclaiming the Truth in the Present Evil Age
Message Four
The Recovery of the Subjective Truths in the Gospel of John
OPENING WORD OF THE PROPHESYING MEETING
Reading the verses in each day.
Reading the main points in the outlines.
Pray-reading the verses:
John 6:48, 57 I am the bread of life…. As the living Father has sent Me and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also shall live because of Me.
John 3:28-30 …He who has the bride is the bridegroom;…
John 15:5 I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing.
Word of Appetizer
The truths in the Holy Scriptures are always of two aspects—the objective aspect and the subjective aspect; What difference does it make?
All the objective doctrines are for the subjective experience; the objective Christ is “the best robe” of the God-satisfying righteousness to cover the penitent sinner, whereas the subjective Christ is “the fattened calf” as the rich Christ, killed on the cross for the believer’s life supply and enjoyment in resurrection.
The subjective truths are linked to the Spirit and life and are constituted with the Spirit and life; when we live by the Spirit and life, we have the experience of the subjective truths, and this issues in the church life.
Spiritual Burden
The Lord desires to recover the subjective truths in the Holy Scriptures; The Gospel of John—a book on the subjective truths; Christ became the Spirit as the breath that we may breathe Him, the living water that we may drink Him, and the bread of life that we may eat Him. The issue of our receiving the Lord into us is that we become constituents of the church.
The Lord’s recovery is to recover the subjective experience of Christ for the practice of the church life; the practical church life is an issue of our experience of the subjective truths; when we experience the subjective truths, the church is spontaneously produced; the issue of our subjective experience of Christ as life is the church life as a house of feasting.
Concluding Word of the Prophesying Meeting
The Revelation of the Truth
The Lord desires to recover the subjective truths in the Holy Scriptures; the subjective truths are linked to the Spirit and life and are constituted with the Spirit and life.
The Gospel of John—a book on the subjective truths— reveals that we should have subjective experiences of Christ.
The Gospel of John reveals the subjective truths concerning the church; the Lord’s recovery is to recover the subjective experience of Christ for the practice of the church life.
The Experience of Life
When we live by the Spirit and life, we have the experience of the subjective truths, and this issues in the church life. Christ became the Spirit as the breath that we may breathe Him, the living water that we may drink Him, and the bread of life that we may eat Him. The subjective experience of Christ is actually Christ Himself entering into us to be our life and the constituent of our being. The issue of our receiving the Lord into us is that we become constituents of the church.
Practice and Application
When we experience the subjective truths, the church is spontaneously produced; the issue of our subjective experience of Christ as life is the church life as a house of feasting; In the church life we all must be a triangular member of the church— a “Martha-Lazarus-Mary”; in the real church life the diligent service to the Lord is rendered, the living testimony of the Lord is seen, and the absolute love toward the Lord is poured out.
PROPHESYING TOPICS—TWELVE TOPICS PER WEEK
Day 1
T1: The truths in the Holy Scriptures are always of two aspects (Luke 15:22-23)
(Please illustrate that God’s salvation has two aspects: the objective aspect and the subjective aspect according to Luke 15:22-23.)
T2: Positional sanctification and dispositional sanctification (1 Cor. 1:30; John 1:12-13)
(Please illustrate that our being sanctified through the blood of Christ was a positional matter, then God regenerates us, and this is the beginning of our dispositional sanctification by the Spirit.)
Day 2
T1: objective righteousness and subjective righteousnesses (Psa. 45:13-14; Phil. 3:9; Rev. 19:8)
(Please illustrate that the righteousness we received for our salvation is objective, whereas…the righteousnesses of the overcoming saints are subjective.)
T2: The passover shows us that God’s salvation has the redeeming aspect and the saving aspect (Exo. 12:7-8)
(Please illustrate that only by the drinking of the blood, which is judicial, and by the eating of the flesh, which is organic, can the goal of God’s salvation be accomplished.)
Day 3
T1: The Gospel of John is a book on the subjective truths (John 4:14; 6:57; 20:22)
(Please illustrate with examples that the Gospel of John is a book on the subjective truths, reveals that we should have subjective experiences of Christ.)
T2: The Gospel of John is a book on the subjective experience of Christ as life (John 1:1; 3:30; 4:14)
(Please illustrate that the key to open up the Gospel of John is the divine speaking, divine spreading, divine dispensing, of the Divine Trinity.)
Day 4
T1: We should have subjective experiences of Christ (John 1:14)
(Please illustrate that Christ bringing God to man and making God contactable, touchable, receivable, experienceable, enterable, and enjoyable.)
T2: All the subjective experiences that are linked to the Spirit and are hinged on life (John 4:14; 6:48; 20:22)
(Please illustrate that nothing can be more subjective than the subjective experiences produced when water, bread, and breath get into us.)
Day 5
T1: Christ is the true vine, and we are His branches (John 15:1, 5)
(Please illustrate that the subjective experience of Christ is actually Christ Himself entering into us to be our life.)
T2: The Gospel of John reveals the subjective truths concerning the church (Gal. 1:15-16; 2:20)
(Please illustrate that the Lord’s recovery is to recover the subjective experience of Christ for the practice of the church life.)
Day 6
T1: The church is referred to in seven ways in the Gospel of John (John 12:23-24; 10:17; 15:5)
(Please illustrate that although the word church is not specifically used in the Gospel of John, the fact of the existence of the church and the constituents of the church are clearly defined.)
T2: We have three kinds of functions in the proper church life: serving, testifying, and loving (John 12:1-11)
(Please illustrate that the issue of our subjective experience of Christ as life is the church life as a house of feasting.)
