WEEK 1 - WEDNESDAY
Bible Reading: Gn 8:1-5; 22:1-2; Ex 19:20; 1 Kings 18:42; Is 6:8; Mt 5:1; 8:19-29; 16:24-97; Lk 9:59-62; Rom 9:15-18; Eph 2:4-5, 8; Phil 3:7-8; 2 Tim 4:6-8; Rev 1:9-10; 21:10
PAYING A PRICE
The visitation of the Lord marks the beginning of the use of man by God. Without the Lord’s visitation, we cannot be called. Therefore, it is the Lord's responsibility to visit us. However, the Bible reveals that although the Lord is responsible for visiting us, we also have a responsibility: to pay a price (Mt 8:19-29; 16:24-97; Lk 9:59-62).
Moses and David in the Old Testament, and Paul and Peter in the New Testament, paid a price through the Lord’s visitation. When the Lord met Paul on the road to Damascus, He did not immediately grant him power, revelation, or gifts. On the contrary, the Lord told him to enter the city and let a small disciple named Ananias tell him in a few words what he should do (Acts 9:5b-6, 10-17).
Once he was willing to pay the price, Paul was greatly used by the Lord (Phil 3:7-8). On one hand, the Lord always visits man, but on the other hand, man must always pay a price. Therefore, our usefulness to the Lord begins with His visitation but also depends on our willingness to pay a price.
The price to be paid after answering the Lord’s call has no limits. No one can say they have paid the full price and there is nothing more to pay. Not even the apostle Paul could say this. On the contrary, he always forgot what lay behind and pressed on toward what was ahead, reaching for the goal, until one day he even gave up his own life (vs. 12-14; 2 Tim 4:6-8).
When Paul wrote the fourth chapter of 2 Timothy, he had already paid nearly all the price he could; yet, he continued to press on. We have all been visited by the Lord, and the visitations we received were the same. However, because of the differences in the price each of us has paid, our usefulness in the hands of the Lord may be different from others. Since Paul paid a higher price than others, his usefulness was also greater than theirs.
Some may say that the Lord has mercy on whom He wills (Rom 9:18). However, this word was spoken about the Gentiles, like Pharaoh, who had not yet been visited by God (vs. 15-17). We, who have been saved by grace, have already received the Lord’s visitation (Eph 2:4-5, 8).
Therefore, now the question is not whether we have received the Lord’s visitation but whether we are willing to pay a price. Our usefulness in the hands of the Lord entirely depends on the price we pay. If we pay a high price, our usefulness will be great; if we pay a low price, our usefulness will be limited.
Through the years, the Lord’s visitation has not been rare, yet He is always groaning because the price we are willing to pay is too low. This is why the Lord’s work today can only advance slowly, and the Lord still cannot return. The Bible clearly reveals that the Lord expects man to pay a price and be used by Him by answering His call.
In Isaiah 6:8, the Lord said, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?”. Perhaps we do not have a sufficiently deep understanding of this word. This word implies that in the universe, the Lord has a great desire in His heart and waits for man to respond to His call. He intends to operate in any age, but there are not enough people willing to pay the price and answer His call.
Whenever there is someone on earth willing to pay the price and answer the Lord’s call, the Lord will certainly use him. The extent of the human response determines the extent of the use the Lord will make of the man.
THE BIBLICAL MEANING OF
“GOING UP THE MOUNTAIN”
The first person in the Bible to “go up the mountain” was Noah. He reached Mount Ararat while he was in the ark, passing through the flood (Gen 8:1-5). The emphasis of the judgment through the flood was not on judging sin, but on the world that offended God. The fact that Noah went up the mountain symbolizes that he was being freed from judgment and escaping all situations of rebellion against God.
When he reached the mountain, all situations of rebellion against God ceased. Therefore, going up the mountain in the Bible to be in the presence of God means, first, being free from rebellion. Although the whole world had plunged into a state of rebellion against God, those who went to the mountain with Noah escaped rebellion.
Second, it indicates ascension to heaven through death and resurrection. Once freed from rebellion and passing through the flood, a type of death and resurrection experience, Noah entered a new era to represent the authority of God on earth. The meaning of Noah going up the mountain is the same as for all those who have gone up the mountain after him.
Every time God leads someone to go up a mountain, He intends for them to be freed from rebellion and pass through death and resurrection, in order to reach a condition of representing God’s authority on earth. This is the essence of the human experience of going up the mountain.
OBTAINING REVELATION
In the Bible, there is another aspect of the meaning of going up the mountain: obtaining revelation. In many examples, from Abraham’s ascent to Mount Moriah (Gen 22:1-2) to John’s stay on the island of Patmos (Rev 1:9; 21:10), the emphasis in these experiences is on receiving revelation. Abraham’s ascent to Mount Moriah was initially for consecration, but ultimately, it was for revelation. By going up the mountain, Abraham came to know God as “Jehovah-Jireh” (The Lord Will Provide) and to understand God’s work on earth, for God’s promise to Abraham had to do with the work He would accomplish on earth.
After Abraham, Moses and Elijah also received revelation when they went up a mountain (Ex 19:20; 1 Kings 18:42). In the New Testament, when the Lord took His disciples up a mountain, it was also for revelation (Mt 5:1). Finally, the purpose of John being taken to a mountain while on the island of Patmos was, above all, to receive revelation. In John’s experience of going up the mountain, we see the extreme significance of this matter: being freed from rebellion, passing through death and resurrection, representing God’s authority on earth, and receiving a deeply mysterious revelation.
The fact that one must go up the mountain to receive revelation indicates that, in order to receive it, one must pay a price. In other words, going up the mountain is paying a price. The Lord’s teaching on the mountain in Matthew 5-7 came after He taught in the synagogues (4:23) and was independent of His teaching there. The teaching in the synagogues was common, general, and heard by a large number of people.
However, after teaching in the synagogues, the Lord took His disciples to the mountain. The teaching on the mountain was related to the kingdom of heaven; this teaching was important, specific, and was heard only by those who went to the Lord, following Him to the mountain. Going up the mountain is paying a price and drawing near to the Lord. Throughout all generations, few have been able to comprehend the teaching in Matthew 5-7 because few were willing to pay the price.
If we want to receive revelation, we must sincerely make the decision to pay a price and draw near to the Lord. There are basic requirements for us to have the experience of going up the mountain and receiving revelation. It was by fulfilling these requirements, paying the price, and drawing near to the Lord that Abraham, Moses, and the Lord’s disciples were able to receive revelation. This was especially true for John on the island of Patmos; he received revelation while paying the price and drawing near to the Lord on the Lord’s day (Rev 1:10). We all must learn this lesson.
Enjoy More: Hymn 65
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