Chain Reaction in Realms of the Spirit
Beauty For Ashes Part 4 - George H. Warnock

CHAPTER 9 - GOD'S DESIRE FOR THE LATTER DAY CHURCH

God's people have committed the two evils mentioned by the prophet Jeremiah:

"They have forsaken Me the fountain of living waters... and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can... hold no water" (Jer. 2:13).

I wonder which is worse of the two evils: to forsake God's way is bad enough; but rather than returning to God they replace the flowing river for leaking cisterns, and this seems to be even worse.

God's provision for His people in this wonderful era of the Holy Spirit is clearly stated by the Lord:

"HE THAT BELIEVETH ON ME, AS THE SCRIPTURE HATH SAID, OUT OF HIS BELLY SHALL FLOW RIVERS OF LIVING WATER (BUT THIS SPAKE HE OF THE SPIRIT, WHICH THEY THAT BELIEVE ON HIM SHOULD RECEIVE: FOR THE HOLY GHOST WAS NOT YET GIVEN; BECAUSE THAT JESUS WAS NOT YET GLORIFIED)" (Jn. 7:38-39).

God wants to flood His Church once again with rivers of living water. It is our heritage in Christ: "For the LORD thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills" (Deut. 8:7).

Do you feel you are one of those who dwell in low places? Thank God for it. This is where the living waters desire to flow. An old hymn of the Church goes something like this:

"Just as the stream finds a bed that is lowly,
So Jesus walks with the humble and holy..."

The streams of God always seek out the low places, as they flow from the heart of God. We must humble ourselves that the water of life might flow once again. To forsake these living streams is a great evil; but the second evil shows a total disregard for the God we profess to serve. Man's way cannot retain the refreshing streams of the water of life. Man's cisterns can hold no water. We need to repent of both evils, and especially of the second one, that the streams of life that once flowed from His Church might once again be released from the throne. That the clutter and the debris of the Philistines might once again be removed from the wells that Abraham had dug, and begin to flow forth again in the midst of His people as a fountain of Life. We have built many denominational reservoirs and cisterns, or independent ones--hoping to maintain a supply of pure refreshing water, but soon they become stagnant. Everybody knows that if the pool of water does not FLOW it becomes stagnant.

God asks His people to forsake the building of cisterns, and then come back to the Fountain. Man's efforts to get things "moving" in the Church are exhaustless, and what we are getting from it all are "broken cisterns that can hold no water."

But God is on the scene to do something about it. It is for His glory that He is going to arise in the earth in power and in might. He is exceedingly jealous for His own Name's sake, His glorious Name that has been polluted among the nations:

"So will I make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let them pollute My holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel" (Ezek. 39:7).

God has promised that "the glory of this latter house shall be greater of the former..." (Hag. 2:9). God says He is "waiting for the precious fruit of the earth," so we can be confident the fruit for which He is waiting is going to be of the highest quality, and exceedingly precious in His sight (Jas. 5:7).

Jesus promised us that the gates of Hell would not "prevail" against His Church--so I know for sure that the final battle of the Church age is going to be a glorious, and triumphant one (Matt. 16:18).

God "hath set" ministries in the Body of Christ for the express purpose of bringing the Church "UNTO A PERFECT MAN, UNTO THE MEASURE OF THE STATURE OF THE FULNESS OF CHRIST," so I know for sure it is going to happen (Eph. 4:13).

And So What Is God Doing Today?

He is doing everything He needs to do to bring to fullness the very desire of His heart. He will do it in spite of the unbelieving multitudes in the Church. But we teach these things and we write these things that those who believe might have renewed confidence and assurance to rise up in the strength of their Lord and follow the Lamb whithersoever He may lead us.

For all of man's plausible endeavors to set up the Kingdom of Heaven are going to crumble when the simple, the weak, the base, and the despised of men--those whom the apostle Paul calls "the nothing ones"--shall arise in the strength of their Lord and go forth clothed upon with the armor of God, and with beautiful feet prepared with the shoes of peace. (See 1 Cor. 1:28).

The world and the Church are in for a rude shock when they see these "nothing ones" in our midst, clothed upon with the glory of God. functioning in priestly ministry before God; and bringing healing and mercy and grace and love and truth to those who sit in darkness.

For it is true that God set special ministries of "apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers" in the Church--but it was not that these ministries should be glorified. Their purpose and calling is to so minister truth that the Body of Christ might be knit together, SO THAT EVERY MEMBER MAY BECOME A VITAL LIVING MEMBER OF THAT BODY, MINISTERING THE LIFE OF CHRIST TO OTHERS. This is scarcely happening anywhere, BUT THIS MUST COME ABOUT IF THIS BODY IS TO BECOME THE ONE BREAD AND LOAF THE APOSTLE SPEAKS ABOUT.

I fear, for the most part, that the present-day ministry is quite happy to leave matters the way they are, as long as they can depend upon the people to stand behind them. But this is not what God wants. He wants a ministration of the Spirit among the people that will fuse one member to another in the Body of Christ, in order to bring about a chain reaction of the Law of Life throughout the whole body. The "ministry" itself cannot do that, nor were they intended to. They are set there in the body, to bring about fruitful ministry in the rest of the body (Eph. 4:12). Saul kept everybody busy in his kingdom, but this is not what we are talking about. This is not what God means when He says He has "tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: that there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another" (1 Cor. 12:24-25). True ministry will share the burden of God's heart and will earnestly seek God for that ministration of the Spirit that will bring about this glorious life in the Body of Christ; for it is in and through this body, and not merely through special ministers, that the mighty workings of God are going to be performed in this last hour. Just throwing a meeting open for everyone to speak their mind is not what we are advocating: but a sensitivity to the Spirit, that each one might minister the life of Christ to the others.

"From whom the whole body fitly joined [framed] together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love" (Eph. 4:16).

Let us go over this verse slowly:

The body is "fitly joined." It is not a case of trying to make the members to be compatible with one another, trying to make them "fit" where it is obvious they do not "fit." Only God can remove those rough edges, those areas of self-will and self-pity and all that rebellion to the ways of God in order to make us "fit together." But as the ministry of the Spirit of truth ministers grace to the hearts of the hearers, and God's people desire to walk in obedience and in the will of God, then how beautifully will He place member to member in the corporate whole. I am not saying there can be no meaningful fellowship with one another until all this happens; but the Body of Christ will not be effective and powerful in God until it is "fitly joined" by His Spirit.

"And compacted." In another place these words are translated "knit together" (Col. 2:2, 19). It is God who does the knitting together, for it is His garment that He is weaving for His own glory. Only He knows how to interlace the threads of His purposes into the lives of His people, and how to join one life to another--and still another--because of His spiritual dealings in their hearts and lives, and because of His own purposes. We are all "one" in Christ. But there are special joinings between certain members according to God's plan. You do not choose that particular member that you feel you would like to be effectually joined to in the Spirit. This is God's prerogative, for God is weaving a pattern of His own wisdom and purpose. He does not specially join an ankle bone with a bone in the arm, though they are "one in Christ." The finger bones are joined each to its own fellow-member, and so forth throughout the whole body. Our God is the Potter. He is the Weaver. He is the Master Builder and Architect. He is the Gardener. He simply asks us to be yielded in His hands, to be faithful in obeying Him and doing His will; for He chooses our distinct place and calling in the Body of Christ. He knows what He is doing and He will continue to shape and fashion us according to His will. He will continue to chisel away at the rough, hewn rocks of the quarry until we are fitted and compacted together by His wisdom and grace and power. He will continue to weave the pattern of His beauty and wisdom in the lives of His people, as He knits them together by His Spirit.

"By that which every joint supplieth." The joint is the place of attachment. Perhaps we could liken it to the ligament, for this is the thing that joins the one member to another. Each bone must have its spiritual "ligament" to be joined to its fellow member in the body. Each board in the Tabernacle that Moses built had its golden ring to receive the connecting boards, and to join one board to its fellow, that the structure might be steadfast and firm.

In vain do we go about trying to create this kind of spiritual relationship that we know God desires. Let us be content to simply and only do the will of God as it relates to us personally, and leave it up to God to determine how and in what manner and to whom in particular he would join us together in His glorious body. If we are faithfully doing the will of God in our place of appointment, somewhere in the pathway of God we will discover this divine coincidence, this converging with others, this joining together with kindred spirits in the beautiful framework of what God is doing. It is not something I have anything to do with by way of arranging, promoting, or manipulating.

"According to the effectual working in the measure of every part." Every part has its particular "measure" of ministry to impart to the others. Paul says it "worketh effectually." This is what the anointing is for. If the anointing is not there the burden will fall on one or two individuals whom we have been taught to consider as God's "anointed ministry." But their place as anointed ministers is to minister truth by the anointing that the same anointing will flow throughout the rest of the body. We cannot make this happen. And oftentimes there is disappointment when the fellowship is left "open" for ministry, as some of the more aggressive ones seek to emphasize some issue that has no real bearing upon the ministration of life and truth. Nevertheless, those who see the importance of every member becoming a vital organ in the living Body of Christ will continue to minister the anointing to the hearers until they rise up in the strength and in the beauty of Christ.

But we must be prepared, brethren in ministry, as this chain reaction of life begins to permeate the Body of Christ--we must be prepared to see the DECREASE of the greater ministries, for the INCREASE of the whole body. Moses and Elijah had a special part to play in the introduction of Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration. But suddenly the Cloud of God's presence overshadows them, and Moses and Elijah fade away THAT CHRIST ALONE MIGHT BE GLORIFIED--THAT MEN MIGHT SEE JESUS ONLY.

THE WHOLE PURPOSE OF THE BODY OF CHRIST IS NOT TO EXALT MINISTRY, NOR TO EXALT ANY SPECIAL MEMBER, BUT TO EXALT THE LIVING CHRIST.

And God wants every member to be "special"--everyone to be a "member in particular"--in order that in the full manifestation and display of the Body of Christ, all men might see Jesus only.

We are not at this time seeing anything remotely like this, BUT THIS MUST COME--AND IT WILL BE THIS THAT WILL ELIMINATE THE SCHISMS IN THE BODY OF CHRIST:

"But God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to that part which lacked: THAT THERE SHOULD BE NO SCHISM IN THE BODY; BUT THAT THE MEMBERS SHOULD HAVE THE SAME CARE ONE FOR ANOTHER" (1 Cor. 12:24-25).

"Maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love." It is Christ who builds His Church, but the Christ is in His body, and considers Himself to be one with the body. And so because of the Anointing (who is Christ) it is said that the body "edifieth itself." In the same sense it is said that "the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself..." (Mk. 4:28). We know it is not just the earth--it needs the rain, the sunshine, the watchcare of the gardener, and all that. But the ingredients of the life of the garden are there in the earth, and the divine capability is there in the seed to receive the moisture and to absorb the minerals and the virtues of the sun. And the life that is in the seed is nurtured with every ingredient it needs for germination and growth. So it is in the Body of Christ.

OUR LORD JESUS, BY HIS ASCENSION INTO THE HEAVENS, BY HIS ENTHRONEMENT ON THE THRONE OF GLORY, AND BY THE ADMINISTRATION OF HIS SPIRIT IN THE CHURCH, HAS PROVIDED US WITH EVERYTHING THAT IS NECESSARY TO BRING ABOUT IN THE EARTH A CHURCH THAT IS FILLED WITH THE FULLNESS OF GOD, AND ENDOWED WITH ALL IT NEEDS TO COME TO THE FULL STATURE OF CHRIST.

The secret of it all still remains a hidden formula as far as our ability to make it happen is concerned; but "the secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him," and God's way is right, and it will work. It has already worked in great measure in the time of the sowing of the good seed in the earth in the time of the Church's early beginnings; and it has worked in small measure many times throughout her history. BUT THE CLIMAX IS YET TO COME. THE FULL HARVEST IS YET TO COME. THE HUSBAND-MAN CONTINUES TO WAIT FOR THE FULLNESS OF IT ALL--FOR THE PRECIOUS FRUIT OF THE EARTH. HE IS WAITING FOR IT BECAUSE HE KNOWS HE IS GOING TO HAVE IT. HE WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED; AND HE HAS SET IN MOTION A CHAIN REACTION OF ANOINTING THAT WILL QUICKLY BRING HIS PURPOSES TO GLORIOUS FULFILLMENT.

HE IS WAITING FOR A PEOPLE, BUT HE IS NOT WAITING FOR MORE ACTION ON OUR PART. HE IS WAITING FOR A PEOPLE WHO WILL LEARN TO BE STILL AND WAIT FOR HIM. HE IS WAITING FOR A PEOPLE WHO WILL SIMPLY COMMIT THEMSELVES TO THE DOING OF HIS WILL. HE IS WAITING FOR THOSE WHO ARE PREPARED TO FORSAKE THEIR VISION AND BE WHOLLY OCCUPIED WITH HIS.

In emphasizing this corporate relationship in the Body of Christ very often there has been a failure to minister the living Christ in such a way that one's individual freedom in the Spirit is magnified and enlarged. Aggressive and ambitious leaders have often wrought havoc in the Body of Christ by bringing the people under subjection to their ministry, rather than into a more meaningful union with the Lord Jesus Himself. And they accomplish all this by misrepresenting what God has in mind regarding divine order, and divine government. As we become "members in particular" in the Body of Christ there will be an increase of the flow of Christ through us, not a diminishing of it. The more we are joined in vital union with one another in the Body of Christ, the greater will be our individual appreciation and love for the Lord Jesus Himself, and the more meaningful will be our personal walk with Him. And our peace and rest and liberty in the Spirit will be greater. If this is not the way it is we had better search our hearts--ask God to search our hearts--and then ask Him for the grace to leave this little Babylon we have become entangled with, thinking all the while we were getting farther away from Babylon, and getting more and more involved with His divine order. Our God is exceedingly Jealous for His Bride, and He will not tolerate any ministry, no matter how great his office, or how powerful he might seem to be--God will not allow ANY MINISTRY TO COME IN BETWEEN YOU AND YOUR PERSONAL WALK WITH THE LORD JESUS. A TRUE MINISTRY, LIKE THAT OF THE APOSTLE PAUL, WILL HAVE A PASSION AND HOLY DESIRE TO PRESENT GOD'S HOLY BRIDE UNTO CHRIST, AND UNTO HIM ONLY--AS A CHASTE VIRGIN.

Our love for Christ must never be replaced with a love for the body, or a love for the ministry, or a love for the "covering" that some would seek to bring us under. Our banner over us continues to be the LOVE OF CHRIST. Our covering is nothing less than His overshadowing wings of glory.

OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH ONE ANOTHER IN THE BODY OF CHRIST WILL BE OVERSHADOWED WITH A GREATER MEASURE OF THE GLORY AND PRESENCE OF GOD IN OUR LIVES--NOT A LESSER GLORY. THE CHAIN REACTION OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE IN OUR MIDST WILL MAKE THE LIFE OF JESUS TO BE MORE PRECIOUS, AND MORE MEANINGFUL TO EACH INDIVIDUAL MEMBER.

If in our emphasis on the corporate character of the Body of Christ we do not individually experience a greater flowing of His love in our hearts and lives, and an increasingly greater appreciation of the Lord Jesus Himself, but are caught up with the enthusiasm and the excitement of the glorious body of believers that we are associated with, I fear there is something very wrong with it. I fear all we have is a self-glorifying Babel, with multitudes coming together to do great things, to build cities and towers and temples, and to make for themselves a name of renown--BUT EFFECTUALLY CROWDING CHRIST COMPLETELY OUT OF HIS TEMPLE. So much of this is happening today--all under the guise of "building up the Body of Christ."

I want to exhort those members in the Body of Christ who are weary of the cries that are emanating from prominent ministries to "Come join us... come get involved with the real Body of Christ" and who have been tossed to and fro in their efforts to find this meaningful fellowship that you know God wants to bring forth. It is God's prerogative to join you in a meaningful way to fellow-members in the Body of Christ. Your responsibility and mine is simply to seek His face and walk in obedience before Him. Quit being tossed about--wandering to and fro looking for rest. Be still and know that He is God. Somewhere in your great desire to do God's will there will come about a meaningful fellowship with others, as God arranges it. And when this takes place there will be an increase in your life, and in theirs, because of this divine coincidence. You do not have to go to all the unity conferences, or read all the books, or listen to all the tapes, to somehow discover what the Body of Christ is all about. Just do the will of God where you are... on the job... at your place of business, and look to God to join you effectually to the body that He is forming by His Spirit. He knows exactly where you are. Don't be afraid that you might get lost in the streams of daily responsibility as you seek to make an honest living, and care for your family. And at the same time take care that you are not carried away with the burden of increasing earthly possessions; for, as Jesus said, "a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth" (Lk. 12:15). God knows where you are. And He is especially looking for you, if your heart is right toward Him: