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God Became Man That Man Might Become God

“And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of heaven and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” (Gen. 1:26)

“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the authority to become children of God, to those who believe into His name, who were begotten not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us…” (John 1:12-14)

The “diamond” in the “box” of the Bible is the revelation that in Christ God has become man in order that man might become God in life and in nature but not in the Godhead for the building up of the Body of Christ to consummate the New Jerusalem.

God created man in a special way—in His image and according to His likeness and with a spirit to contact Him and receive Him. God did not create mankind. Rather, He created man according to His kind. God became a man in order to have a mass reproduction of Himself and thereby to produce a new kind. This new kind is neither God’s kind nor mankind—it is God-man kind. (An Overview of the Central Burden and Present Truth of the Lord’s Recovery Before His Appearing, msg. 1, I, C, D, 1)

In the end He and we, we and He, all become God-men. Hence, it is not enough for us to be good men, spiritual men, or holy men. He wants us to be God-men. He is our life and everything to us for the purpose that we would express Him and live Him out. (CWWL, 1990, vol. 3, “A Deeper Study of the Divine Dispensing,” p. 391)

UCLA

Thank you, saints, for your prayers for the Lord’s move at UCLA! Over 50 brand new students attended our first welcome event this past Lord’s Day. Thank the Lord for His wonderful blessing! There is still much labor in prayer and shepherding needed. Please continue to pray for:

  • The Lord to bring soft and open freshmen to our introductory Bible study, first large group fellowship, and the Lord’s Day morning welcome meeting, including many who would come to multiple events!
  • The personal visitation and shepherding of all the new students throughout the week.
  • Both the new students and those who grew up in the church life to form companionships to pursue the Lord with one another.
  • The bountiful supply to all the saints laboring in coordination to shepherd the students, pray, and carry out the practical services for our welcome events.

Germany Gospel Trips

Continue to beseech the Lord of the harvest to thrust out at least 100 workers for the gospels trips taking place October 8 to 22 in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. Pray that an adequate number of saints from overseas would respond and be released for these trips. Registration deadline is this Friday, September 29 at bit.ly/GermanyGospelTrips.

Rome, Italy

Rome is the capital of Italy and is one of the largest cities in Europe with a population exceeding 2.8 million people. This city has occupied a significant role throughout history and will be very significant at the end of this age. Through fellowship, Rome has been designated as one of the six key cities for migration in Europe. We hope that many saints would become burdened to strengthen the testimony of Jesus in Rome and to supply the small number of saints that are already there.

There is also a great need for the translation of the NT Recovery Version into the Italian language from the original Greek. With more than 60 million people, Italian is the last remaining major European language group without the Recovery Version. Recently, a brother has been approved to begin working on this, and others are needed to join him in this endeavor. The Recovery Version in Italian would greatly help the gospel and the interpreted truths to reach the native Italians. Please pray for these key matters related to this crucial city in Europe.

Ukraine and Russia

A reminder from the footnote on 1 Kings 8:48: “No matter for whom we are praying, our prayers should be aimed at the interests of God, i.e., at Christ and the church as God’s interests on earth, for the fulfilling of God’s economy.”

Please continue to pray for the Lord to:

  • Keep all the saints in the countries involved open to Him for His divine dispensing.
  • Meet all their practical needs and preserve their tripartite beings for His interests.
  • Protect His people and His interests in Ukraine, Russia, and throughout Europe.

Announcements

  1. Morning Revival: Week 1 of An Overview of the Central Burden and Present Truth of the Lord’s Recovery before His Appearing, vol. 1.
  2. Bibles for America‘s recent post entitled “What Should I Do When I Sin after I’m Saved?” is available to read and share at blog.biblesforamerica.org.
  3. LSM Digital Resources: Living Stream Ministry’s many digital resources, including newsletters and free booklets, may be found at lsm.org/daily. The September 2023 newsletter features a helpful introduction to the 1968 classic, The Economy of God, the first ministry book published by Brother Lee in English in the United States.
  4. Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: Saints are invited to attend this week’s ministry meeting in person at 7:25 pm at the Ministry Conference Center in Anaheim or online at www.lsmwebcast.com. The general subject is “The Crucial Points of the Truth in Paul’s Epistles—First Corinthians.”
  5. Thanksgiving Conference: November 23 to 26 in Dallas. Saints from LA interested in possibly attending in Dallas should RSVP by October 31 at tinyurl.com/thanksgivingconfla. This site also has an information packet with hotel information and children’s registration.
  6. Semiannual Training: December 25 to 30 in Anaheim. For LA saints, registration is now open until October 30 (live) and December 11 (video) at tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla. Past issues of LSM’s digital newsletter contain helpful fellowship on the burden for semiannual trainings, the need for training and regulations, and the purpose of training donations.
  7. 2024 ICSC: The next International Chinese-speaking Blending Conference will be in Taipei from February 10 to 11, 2024. Registration to attend the conference and blending trips must be done by locality. For LA saints, go to tinyurl.com/ICSC2024LA for more information; the registration deadline is November 28, 2023. Both the live and archived messages will also be available to view at www.lsmwebcast.com.
  8. Ways to Give: Information about the church’s online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.