Loving the Lord with the First Love by Eating Christ as the Tree of Life
“But I have one thing against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore where you have fallen from and repent and do the first works; but if not, I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place, unless you repent.” (Rev. 2:4-5)
“…To him who overcomes, to him I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.” (Rev. 2:7)
Christ as life is the reality of the tree of life, which is the center of the universe; life is the goal of God’s creation (Gen. 1:26-28, 31; 2:7-9) and the goal of God’s complete salvation (John 19:34; Rom. 5:10; Rev. 22:1-2, 14, 19). In the Bible the tree of life always signifies Christ as the embodiment of all the riches of God for our food; God’s placing man in front of the tree of life indicates that God wanted man to receive Him as man’s life by eating Him organically and by assimilating Him metabolically, that God might become the very constituent of man’s being.
In order for us to eat Christ as the tree of life, we must give Him the first place in all things, which is to love Him with the first love, being constrained by His love to regard and take Him as everything in our life. To love the Lord with the first love, to give Him the first place in all things, is to eat Him as the tree of life; eating Christ as the tree of life, that is, enjoying Christ as our life supply, should be the primary matter in the church life. (Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (4), msg. 5, I.A, III.A)
Serving in Coordination with One Another in One Accord
“And day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they partook of their food with exultation and simplicity of heart.” (Acts 2:46)
“Each one as he has purposed in his heart, not out of sorrow or out of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Cor. 9:7)
We must coordinate with one another in one accord. Coordination means that we cannot do anything without one another. God’s blessing is based on our one accord, being in harmony in spirit with one another, having real coordination, and having genuine oneness.
To serve in coordination with one another in the church is to overcome the degradation of the church by the sevenfold intensified Spirit of God through eating Christ as the tree of life, the hidden manna, and the feast for the finalization of God’s eternal economy.
To serve in coordination with one another in the church is to be a cheerful giver. (The Ministry of the Word and God’s Dispensing for God’s Economy, msg. 5, IV, A, C; V, C)
Let us pray for our steadfast coordination with one another in one accord to unlock God’s blessing in our city. May we serve in coordination with one another in the church not out of duty, but out of love and delight, cheerfully giving ourselves to enjoy Christ, shepherd people according to God, and live a prophesying life to overflow with the flowing Triune God for the constituting of the church as the fullness of God.
LA Bible Distribution Webinars
With the ongoing burden of The Truth Sets US Free, the Lord is calling all the saints to enter into a living, personal gospel life—not just outward activity, but an inward burden to contact people and share Christ daily. Our hope is that through this, all the saints would be enlivened and participate together, so the gospel may spread richly throughout Los Angeles.
The third webinar will be this Saturday, May 9 from 10:00–11:00 am. The topic is about how to follow up with a gospel contact. Translation will be available into Chinese, Korean, and Spanish.
Please pray:
- That all the saints develop a personal, daily gospel living before the Lord.
- That they be burdened to pray for those on their hearts—in twos and threes as well as in small groups.
- That the Lord cover and bless the follow-up and shepherding of our gospel contacts.
Our Sixth Graders
This past weekend, sixth graders from Southern California went to Oak Glen for the Sixth Grade Conference. The topic was “Where Are You?” with an emphasis on knowing one’s sinful condition before God, not hiding from God, the salvation of God, and entrance into the church.
Please pray that the Lord’s speaking continue to resonate and operate in all the young people who attended, that they have the assurance of their salvation, and that their hearts be the good earth for Christ as the kingdom seed to grow in them.
Italy – Blending Conference in Rome
There is a blending conference in Rome this weekend, May 9 to 10. Nearly 250 people will attend, including children and young people. The subject is “The All-Inclusive Christ as Revealed in Matthew.”
Please pray:
- For the gospel trips before and after the conference, which include all the FTTA-XB trainees. Target cities include: Rome, Turin, Milan, and Vicenza/Padua before the conference; Sicily, Naples, and Rome/Prato after the conference.
- For the speaking and blending during the conference, particularly for the new ones and local saints.
- For the start this month of the translation project of the NT Recovery Version in Italian.
- For the first Lord’s table meeting of the church in Prato on May 17 with a mini-conference on the afternoon of May 16.
South Africa
The Cape Town Blending Conference takes place this weekend, May 8 to 10. The subject will be on “Noah, Daniel, and Job—Patterns of Living an Overcoming Life on the Line of Life to Fulfill the Economy of God.”
Please pray for the Lord’s speaking under a clear sky to all the saints, that they be delivered from all oldness and lukewarmness to pursue the Lord in a fresh and living way. Also pray that the enemy have no way to frustrate the conference through any hindrances—whether sickness, disturbance, opinions, offenses, distractions, family emergencies, etc.—that would prevent the saints from actively enjoying the Lord’s speaking, even in the days leading up to the conference.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 41 of Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (4), vol. 7.
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The ministry meeting on 1 & 2 Thessalonians continues this Wednesday at 7:25 pm at the Ministry Conference Center and online at www.lsmwebcast.com.
- The Truth Sets US Free: Recordings of past webinars are posted at tsuf.us/participate. The next webinar is Lord’s Day, May 17 at 2:00 pm.
- Semiannual Training: Registration is due by June 14 to participate in the Semiannual Training by video/webcast ($130), June 29 to July 4. For LA saints, register at tinyurl.com/summertrainingla.
- Memorial Day Conference: May 22 to 25 in Dallas, TX. For LA saints attending in person, please RSVP at tinyurl.com/memdayla. More information is linked at that site.
- Bibles for America’s recent blogpost “How Can We Practice Praying Without Ceasing?” is available to read and share at bfa.org/blog.
- Ways to Give: Information may be found at www.churchinlosangeles.org/
members/offerings.