Crystallization-Study of Ezekiel (1)
Message Three
The Four Living Creatures
Opening Word of the Prophesying Meeting
Reading the verses in each day.
Reading the main points in the outlines.
Pray-reading the verses:
And from the midst of it there came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: They had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one of them had four wings—Ezek. 1:5-6.
As for the likeness of their faces, they had the face of a man; and the four of them had the face of a lion on the right side, and the four of them had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four of them had the face of an eagle—Ezek. 1:10.
Word of Appetizer
How can we, who are creatures, become the living creatures?
We become the four living creatures by experience God as the tree of life. Only this life, the divine eternal and uncreated life, is the genuine life. Only by receiving this genuine life can we become the living creatures.
Through the experience of the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, we, who were dead, have been enlivened to become living creatures. If we continue to experience the cycle of the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, we will become living and vibrant in our inner being.
Spiritual Burden
When we experience God as the blowing wind, the overshadowing cloud, the burning fire, and the glowing electrum, we become the four living creatures, a corporate entity expressing Christ. The fact that the four living creatures bear the likeness of a man and that God on the throne also bears the appearance of a man indicates that God’s central thought and His arrangement are related to man. It is man who fulfills God’s plan, it is man who expresses God, it is man who defeats the enemy, and it is man who brings the kingdom of God into the human race; God needs a man.
Concluding Word of the Prophesying Meeting
The Revelation of the Truth
When we experience God as the blowing wind, the overshadowing cloud, the burning fire, and the glowing electrum, we become the four living creatures, a corporate entity expressing Christ. The more we experience the cycle of the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, the more living we become.
The four living creatures bear the appearance of a man and are the corporate expression of the man on the throne. The four living creatures have four faces: the face of a man; the face of a lion, the face of an ox, the face of an eagle.
The four living creatures are a corporate, fourfold expression of Christ, living out the life of Christ in a corporate way.
The Experience of Life
The more we experience the cycle of the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, the more living we become. Every time we meet the Lord as the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, our inner being will be made alive, and we will become vital believers—those who are living and active.
Practice and Application
We need to be human not by our natural humanity but by the humanity of Jesus; this is to be “Jesusly human.” We need to be proper human beings, in particular how to be proper husbands, wives, and parents.
An ox signifies one who is willing to labor, to bear the burden, and to sacrifice Himself. We all need to express the reality of serving others, of bearing responsibility, and of sacrificing our life.
Using Key Verses to Have a Bird’s-Eye View over the Whole Outline
Key Verses (1)
And from the midst of it there came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: They had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one of them had four wings—Ezek. 1:5-6.
Truly, truly, I say to you, An hour is coming, and it is now, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live—John 5:25.
Experience God as the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum—become the four living creatures
The more we experience this cycle, the more living we become
I. When we experience God as the blowing wind, the overshadowing cloud, the burning fire, and the glowing electrum, we become the four living creatures, a corporate entity expressing Christ:
•The number four is related to God’s creation and signifies man as God’s creature.
•The number four indicates that we arethe people redeemed from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. The four living creatures are regarded as a group; they are counted as a single entity.
II. The more we experience the cycle of the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, the more living we become:
•Through the experience of the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, we, who were dead, have been enlivened to become living creatures.
•There is a twofold proof by which we can know that we are living creatures: The inward proof is the sense of life in our regenerated spirit. The outward proof is that we engage in a number of spiritual activities.
Key Verses (2)
And from the midst of it there came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: They had the likeness of a man—Ezek. 1:5.
And above the expanse that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, like the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was One in appearance like a man, above it—v. 26
III. The four living creatures bear the appearance of a man and are the corporate expression of the man on the throne
•The fact that the four living creatures bear the likeness of a man and that God on the throne also bears the appearance of a man indicates that God’s central thought and His arrangement are related to man.
•We need to have a proper appreciation of the Lord’s humanity, and we need to see how marvelous it is that we are men.
•The Christ whom the church must express is the man on the throne.
•It is man who fulfills God’s plan, it is man who expresses God, it is man who defeats the enemy, and it is man who brings the kingdom of God into the human race; God needs a man.
•In Ezekiel 1 there are three crucial matters concerning the four living creatures’ bearing the appearance of a man: The living creatures are the means for God to manifest His glory. The living creatures are the means for God to move on the earth. The living creatures are the means for God to administrate on the throne.
Key Verses (3)
And every one had four faces, and every one of them had four wings—Ezek. 1:6.
As for the likeness of their faces, they had the face of a man; and the four of them had the face of a lion on the right side, and the four of them had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four of them had the face of an eagle—1:10.
The four living creatures have four faces;
The four living creatures—a corporate, fourfold expression of Christ—living out the life of Christ
IV. The four living creatures have four faces:
• The face of a man indicates that the living creatures live ina proper humanity, the humanity of Jesus.
• The face of a lion, in the Bible a lion signifies boldness, vigor, strength, victory, and reigning.
• The face of an ox, an ox signifies one who is willing to labor, to bear the burden, and to sacrifice himself.
• The face of an eagle, in the Bible an eagle signifies the powerful, buoyant, transcendent God. As believers in Christ, we have God’s life within us.
V. The four living creatures are a corporate, fourfold expression of Christ, living out the life of Christ in a corporate way. The four living creatures with their four faces signify a coordinated, corporate entity. The four faces of the living creatures correspond to the four Gospels.
Prophesying Topics—Twelve Topics per Week
D1
T1 In the eyes of God we are the four living creatures (Ezek. 1:4-5)
(Please explain that the four living creatures are regarded as a group; they are counted as a single entity.)
T2 The more we experience the cycle of the wind, the cloud, the fire, and the electrum, the more living we become (John 5:25)
(What is the twofold proof by which we can know that we are living creatures?) (Refer to Outline II)
D2
T1 The four living creatures bear the likeness of a man (Ezek. 1:5)
(Please explain that God’s central thought and His arrangement are related to man.)
T2 God needs a man (Rev. 12:5)
(Please explain that it is man who fulfills God’s plan, it is man who expresses God, it is man who defeats the enemy, and it is man who brings the kingdom of God into the human race.)
D3
T1 God’s desire is to gain man (Gen. 1:26) (Refer to Outline III. F)
(Please explain that In Ezekiel 1 what the three crucial matters concerning the four living creatures’ bearing the appearance of a man are.)
T2 Each of the four living creatures has four faces (Ezek. 1:6a, 10)
(Please explain that the first face of the four living creatures is the face of a man, indicating that we are men, we should look like men.)
D4
T1 The Lord’s salvation is to make us proper men (Col. 3:4) (Refer to Outline IV. A)
(Please explain that we should be human not by our natural humanity but by the humanity of Jesus.)
T2 The more spiritual we become, the more normal and human we will be (Col. 10:10-11)
(Please explain the mistake that some believers have the thought that once they begin to pursue the Lord, they should be special or different from others.)
D5
T1 The face of a lion—a lion signifies boldness, vigor, strength, and victory (Rev. 5:5)
(Please use Bible verses to explain in what situations the Lord Jesus surely was as bold as a lion.)
T2 The face of an ox—an ox is one who is willing to bear the burden, to do the work, and even to sacrifice himself (1 Cor. 15:10, 58)
(How can we exercise to have the reality of the face of an ox in the church life?)
D6
T1 The face of an eagle—an eagle signifies the powerful, transcendent God (Ezek. 1:10) (Refer to Outline IV. D)
(Please use experience to explain that we need to be like an eagle, not allowing anything to hold us, to suppress us, or to depress us.)
T2 The four living creatures are a corporate expression of Christ (Ezek. 1:10) (Refer to Outline V)
(Please explain that the four living creatures are a corporate, fourfold expression of Christ, living out the life of Christ in a corporate way.)
