Living in the Reality of the Kingdom of God
Message Five
The Kingdom of God—the Realm of the Divine Life and of the Divine Species
OPENING WORD OF THE PROPHESYING MEETING
Reading the verses in each day.
Reading the main points in the outlines.
Pray-reading the verses:
Rom. 9:19-21 You will say to me then, Why does He still find fault? For who withstands His will? But rather, O man, who are you who answer back to God? Shall the thing molded say to him who molded it, Why did you make me thus? Or does not the potter have authority over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel unto honor and another unto dishonor?
Rom. 9:15-16 For to Moses He says, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.
Word of Appetizer
Why do we need to know that it is wholly a matter of God’s sovereign mercy if we would serve God in His New Testament economy?
If we know God’s sovereignty, we will thank Him for His mercy, realizing that we are under His sovereign mercy. The expression sovereign mercy means that God’s mercy is absolutely a matter of God’s sovereignty. In God’s sovereign mercy, our hearts are inclined toward Him; because of His mercy to us, we seek Him day by day. The more we see that everything related to us is a matter of God’s mercy, the more we will bear our responsibility before the Lord; however, even our willingness to bear responsibility is of God’s mercy.
Spiritual Burden
It is crucial that we see a vision of God’s sovereignty; sovereignty refers to God’s unlimited authority, power, and position. It is of God’s sovereignty that He, the Potter, makes the riches of His glory known by creating vessels of mercy to contain Himself.
There must be at least one time when we see God’s mercy and definitely touch His mercy; whether we see this all at once, or we realize it through a process, the minute we touch this matter, we touch not a feeling but a fact; this fact is that everything depends on God’s mercy.
Concluding Word of the Prophesying Meeting
The Revelation of the Truth
It is crucial that we see a vision of God’s sovereignty.
“‘I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy’…So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy”.
The Experience of Life
If we know God’s mercy, we will neither trust in our effort nor be disappointed by our failures; the hope for our wretched condition is in God’s mercy.
Because of God’s mercy, we responded to the gospel when others did not respond, we received a word about Christ as life when others refused to receive it, and we took the way of the Lord’s recovery when others drew back from taking this way.
Practice and Application
As His creatures, we should not resist His purpose or answer back to Him, the Creator.
We need to worship God for His sovereignty. We should say, “Lord, I worship You for Your sovereignty because Your sovereignty reflects Your mercy. Lord, I am weak and sinful. Sometimes I am even rebellious. But I thank You, Lord, that my heart has been softened and is always willing to repent. Lord, I thank You for giving me such a soft heart.”
PROPHESYING TOPICS—TWELVE TOPICS PER WEEK
Day 1
T1 Sovereignty is …one of God’s attributes (Dan. 4:34-35; Isa. 64:8)
(Please illustrate that sovereignty indicates God’s unlimited authority and power.)
T2 God’s selection is absolutely according to His sovereignty (Rom. 9:18, 20-23)
(Please illustrate that God’s mercy is according to His will and according to His sovereignty.)
Day 2
T1 We are God’s containers and that God is our content (Rom. 9:19-21; 2 Cor. 7:4)
(Please illustrate that God’s purpose in creating man was to make him His vessel to contain Him.)
T2 The eternal goal of God’s selection is also our eternal destiny (Rom. 9:19-21)
(Please illustrate that God’s selection has a goal—to have many vessels to contain God and to express Him eternally.)
Day 3
T1 Mercy is the most far reaching of God’s attributes (Matt. 9:13; Heb. 4:16)
(Please illustrate that mercy goes further than grace.)
T2 God’s mercy has brought us into His grace (Matt. 9:13; Rom. 11:32)
(Please illustrate that it is always God’s mercy that qualifies us to participate in His grace.)
Day 4
T1 It is of the Lord’s mercy that we can attend the church meetings (Rom. 9:15-16)
(Please illustrate that the more we recognize God’s sovereignty, the more grateful we shall be for His mercy.)
T2 Everything that happens to us is a matter of divine mercy (Rom. 9:15-16)
(Why is it that some believers are willing to bear their responsibility and that others are not?)
Day 5
T1 Knowing God’s mercy in the selection of grace (Rom. 9:18, 23)
(Please illustrate that everything regarding us has been initiated by the Lord. All is of Him.)
T2 Learning to trust in the Lord’s mercy and thank Him for His mercy (Rom. 9:18, 23)
(Please illustrate that our going on with the Lord is a matter not of our willing or running but of God’s mercy.)
Day 6
T1 There must be at least one time when we see God’s mercy (Eph. 2:4; Rom. 11:32)
(Please illustrate with experiences that everything depends on God’s mercy.)
T2 After a man has been dealt with by God, he will be tempered in his spiritual life (Eph. 2:4; Rom. 11:32)
(Please illustrate that unless a man is dealt with in these three areas, he cannot know God’s mercy.)
