“Restore our ancient glory.”(Lam. 5:21, GNB)
After our exciting excursion around Rom. 8:11in the last few teachings, we need to delve deeper into our overarching theme, namely the seven Spirits of God. We want to introduce this discussion by turning to the question that Phil. 3:21 poses in the Amplified Bible: “Who will transform and fashion anew the body of our humiliation to conform and be like the body of His glory and majesty, by exerting that power which enables Him even to subject everything to Himself.” The answer is clearly situated in the mystery of the seven Spirits of God. It is the only way in which the transcendent life that is in Christ Jesus can be transferred to us, and via us to the earth. Selah.
In his fascinating book World Without End, Roger Pilkington makes this important remark: “one can suppose that the incarnation and ministry of Christ was in itself such a transcendent miracle of divine intervention in nature that his mere presence induced a totally different order of events” (p. 92). If “the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh” (2 Cor. 4:11), it becomes possible to expect a totally different order of events. It is possible if the fullness of the seven-fold Spirit of God recreates us! Therefore our prayer in this time of Spirit-hovering should be: “Restore our ancient glory.” (Lam. 5:21, Good News Bible). To thus return to our current theme, where we are studying the first of the seven Spirits of God, as outlined in Isa. 11:2. We are currently looking at the first Spirit, which is called, to our great surprise, merely the Spirit of the Lord!
Much nonsense has been espoused about the seven Spirits of God in theological circles, as John Gill points out in his Exposition of the Entire Bible: “some interpreters, who think such a number of them is mentioned with reference to the seven angels of the churches; or to the seven last ‘Sephirot’, or numbers in the Cabalistic tree of the Jews”. This imaginative yet non-Scriptural exegesis aside, the broad consensus throughout the ages has been that the seven Spirits of God were merely seven facts or manifestations of the “one Spirit” (Eph. 4:4):
- Jon Courson’s Application Commentary NT clearly states: “The seven Spirits refer to the seven-fold ministry of the Holy Spirit …”
- The Bible Knowledge Commentary also notes: “The seven spirits probably refer to the Holy Spirit … though it is an unusual way to refer to the third Person of the Trinity.”
- The theologically-respected Albert Barnes, in his Notes on the Bible, after a few ridiculous arguments and speculation about what the seven Spirits in the book of Revelation might mean, notes the following: “The number seven, therefore, may have been given to the Holy Spirit with reference to the diversity or the fulness of his operations on the souls of people, and to his manifold agency on the affairs of the world, as further developed in this book.”
The argument made by these leading theologians, namely that the seven Spirits are actually just different facets, expressions or manifestations of the Holy Spirit, is alas not true at all. Read the following three Scriptures:
- Now He who has prepared us for this very thing isGod, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” (2 Cor. 5:5).
- “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us isGod, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” (2 Cor. 1:21-22). Note that the Holy Spirit is given in relief with the Anointed, Christ, who “anointed us”.
- “In Him you also trusted,after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.” (Eph. 1:13-14). How beautifully the progression of our unfolding anointing is spelled out:
- “the gospel of your salvation” – first dimension
- “having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit” – second dimension
- “our inheritance … to the praise of His glory,” in other words the gospel of glory (2 Cor. 4:4) – third dimension
Isa. 11:2 makes it clear that the “Spirit of the Lord” is merely a part of the seven Spirits of God, and not the overarching Spirit! The Holy Spirit is merely the guarantee that the believer received when he became born again, or more specifically, when he was baptised with the Holy Spirit. Various translations translate the Greek word arrhabōn as “the deposit” (ABP), “the pledge” (ACV), “the down payment [or, guarantee]” (ALTNT), “the security deposit” (AMP), “the first payment that guarantees all” (ERV), or perhaps the most beautiful: “the first installment” (NLT). Most older translations refer to it as “the earnest of the Spirit”, which Strong then defines as “money which in purchases is given as a pledge or down payment that the full amount will subsequently be paid”. What an awe-inspiring revelation! Up until now we have only received a part of the complete seven-fold Spirit of God!
If believers are baptised with the Holy Spirit after they are saved, they are typologically brought over to the second dimension, according to the tabernacle typology. This is the Holy part of the tabernacle. Here you firstly receive, in typological terms, the menorah, the seven-fold Spirit of God. But according to what was shared earlier regarding the Holy Spirit that is merely the guarantee, it is important to realise that the entire lampstand with the seven branches does NOT represent the Holy Spirit, as is commonly understood! In the teaching of Day 69-70 we started discussing the menorah, and then made a few remarks that are of great importance now, and that need to be developed within our current, broader understanding.
In Revelation 1 John sees a vision of seven golden lampstands. In verse 20 it is explained as “the seven churches”! Thereafter, in Rev. 2 and 3, Jesus writes a personal letter to each of the seven churches – these are letters of reproach and encouragement, and can be interpreted in various ways, but are especially seen as guidelines for aligning with God’s agenda. Here the menorah thus clearly becomes a symbol, not of the Holy Spirit, but of Christ, the Anointed, in whom and through whom the anointing is expressed in the ekklesia!
- The almond symbolism of the golden lampstand has a deeper meaning here – it is an indication of, amongst other things, “resurrection life” (Kelly Varner). This life is clearly corporate/collective in nature: “But you [plural] have had the Holy Spirit poured out on you by Christ.” (GNB).
- We pointed out that the Lampstand signifies the abundant Light and Life that is found in the arisen Christ, which manifests within us (Col. 1:27). It is as 1 Cor. 15:20 spells out: “But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” Jesus the Christ who lives within us as Firstborn of the Life, makes it possible for us to, as He has done, become alive in the spirit.
- 3:29 brings an important element to this argument: “And if you areChrist’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” This is only possible on the grounds of Gal. 3:16: “Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as of many, but as of one, ‘And to your Seed,’ who is Christ.” The incorruptible seed through which you are born again (1 Pet. 1:23) is the seed of Christ. We thus receive the spirit of God when we become born again, but it is merely the presence of the risen Jesus, the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45), the Lord (Jesus) who is also the Spirit (2 Cor. 3:18). The other six spirits have a distinctively different quality and function than the Holy Spirit. Along with the “Spirit of the Lord” these seven spirits form the Spirit of Christ. Note the distinction between the Spirit of God/ the Spirit of the Lord/ the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit of Christ, which for instance becomes clear in Rom. 8:9 – “But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.”
- Revelatory knowledge is symbolised in Scripture by gold (Rev. 3:18), and therefore this golden lampstand must be a revelation but also a Presence, within you, of the risen Christ (John 11:25), the Anointed. In this way God transforms you into “the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29). This Light and Life manifests through the opening of your spiritual eyes, and arising in your calling (Eph. 1:18). The anointing of the Anointed, which allows the golden Lampstand to burn through the seven Spirits of God, is also the seven eyes (Rev. 5:6), the fullness of God’s (prophetic) calling in your life; this is what Christ, as the Builder of your spiritual temple, uses as plumb line to rebuild your temple according to the original blueprint (Zech. 3:9 and 4:10)!
In the teaching of Day 1029 we shared this insight, and want to emphasize it again – the term “anointing” did not originate from the Holy Spirit as such, but from Jesus Christ, the Anointed. For this reason Deut. 32:13 also notes, in the song of Moses – “He made him ride in the heights of the earth, that he might eat the produce of the fields; He made him draw honey from the rock, and oil from the flinty rock …” That Rock, 1 Cor. 10:4 explains, is Christ, from whom water (= the Holy Spirit) once came (Ex. 17:6; Num. 20:8; Deut. 8:15; John 4:14; 7:38), but later also oil (= the anointing)!
Verses ten and eleven of 1 Peter speaks about “the salvation of your souls” (verse 9): “Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.” The prophets of the Old Covenant, long before Jesus or the Holy Spirit was poured out, were led by the spirit of Christ in the mysteries of God’s plan! [In fact, I suspect each of the heroes of faith in Heb. 11 also had the spirit of Christ, which granted them enlightened eyes of understanding in that epoch. Of Moses it is for instance said in Heb. 11:26: “esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt … he looked to the reward.”
- Selah: Explain the difference between the spirit of the Lord and the spirit of Christ to
someone.
- Read: 34-42
- Memorise: 37:5
