EXCERPTS FROM THE MINISTRY

Being called by God, living by faith in God, and living in fellowship with God are all for the enjoyment of God. We have been called to the enjoyment of God, we must learn to live by faith in God that we may have the enjoyment of God, and we need to live in fellowship with God that we may participate in all His riches. All this is for one thing—the enjoyment of God. But we do not see this enjoyment with Abraham; we see it with Isaac. We all have had at least some experience of being called by God, living by faith in God, living in fellowship with God, and suffering loss. We are real Abrahams today. But we can also testify that, much to our surprise, in the midst of our loss there has been some enjoyment. While we were suffering a loss, unconsciously we were enjoying something. Whenever we suffered a dealing from God, we simultaneously had some enjoyment. While we were the suffering Abraham, we were also the enjoying Isaac. For this reason, the record of Isaac does not immediately follow the record of Abraham. Rather, it is mingled with the record of Abraham's life. While Abraham was still there, Isaac came in, for they were not two separate individuals in the experience of life, but two aspects of the experience of a complete person. We need the experiences of both Abraham and Isaac. Perhaps even today you had a certain experience and said, "I don't know why this has happened to me." But deep within you do know. In the midst of your loss, you gain and enjoy Christ. This is the experience of Isaac.

If we only had Abraham without Isaac, we would be very disappointed with Abraham's record. We would say, "What is the good of being the father of faith if it is only a matter of suffering loss?" But once we see the experience of Isaac, we shall say, "Now I understand why Abraham suffered the loss of so much. All the negative experiences of Abraham were for the positive enjoyment with Isaac." Abraham was for Isaac. Abraham acquired a great deal, having been blessed and having become enlarged, but he gave all that he had to Isaac (24:36; 25:5). Abraham suffered for Isaac's gain. The more Abraham suffered, the more Isaac gained. I would say, "Poor Abraham, you are just a suffering person. All that you have gained through your suffering is not for you but for Isaac." We all must realize that today we are not only Abrahams but also Isaacs. If you say to me, "Brother, you are a poor Abraham always suffering," I would reply, "Don't you know that I'm also an Isaac? I have suffered loss that I might gain. I lose as Abraham and I gain as Isaac. I'm not just Abraham. My name is Abraham-Isaac. On the loss side, I am Abraham; on the gain side, I am Isaac."

We are both Abraham and Isaac. As Abraham, we have been called by God, have learned to live by faith in God, and have learned to live in fellowship with God. At the same time, as Isaac, we do nothing except enjoy all we have gained from Abraham's experience. Which kind of experience do you appreciate more—Abraham's or Isaac's? Without Abraham's experience we cannot have Isaac's. God is dealing with us as He dealt with Abraham that we might have the experience of Isaac.

The matter of grace has been hidden, concealed, and veiled throughout the years. What is grace? Grace is something of God which is wrought into our being and which works in us and does things for us. It is nothing outward. Grace is God in Christ wrought into our being to live, work, and do things for us. In 1 Corinthians 15:10 Paul says, "By the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace unto me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me." This word is quite deep. Paul did not say, "By the grace of God I have what I have. I have a good car, a good job, and a good wife by the grace of God." He did not even say, "By the grace of God I do what I do." It is not a matter of doing, having, or working; it is absolutely a matter of being. Hence, Paul says, "By the grace of God I am what I am." This means that the very grace of God had been wrought into his being, making him that kind of person. In Galatians 2:20 Paul says, "No longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." If we put this verse together with 1 Corinthians 15:10, we see that grace is simply Christ living in us. It is "not I, but the grace of God," "no longer I, but Christ." Grace is not outside of us or beside us. It is a divine Person, God Himself in Christ, wrought into our being to be the constituent of our being. Because of the lack of revelation, Christians have misunderstood and misinterpreted grace, thinking of it as something outside of them. But grace is just the Triune God wrought into our being to be what we should be and to live, work, and do things for us so that we may say, "I am what I am by the grace of God. It is not I, but the grace of God."