The Lord says:
"Blessed are those who are washed from the inside out. Blessed are those who have the beauty from the inside out. What's in the inside will in turn be reflected on the outside, and the world shall see. This time and season is a time of cleansing for My church. I am preparing My church pure, holy, and unblemished; just as being written in My Word. I have begun My restoration works for My church."
It looks like we are still in this series of God speaking to His church in this time and season. I believe when the Lord mentioned about His church here, He meant His church as a whole, i.e. His body, the Body of Christ. In other words, He is talking to His people as a whole, wherever they are on earth.
Indeed, wherever we are on earth, we are members of His body, and He is the Head of the body, the Body of Christ.
Now, don't get me wrong here. From the very beginning of the church age some 2,000 years ago, the Lord has always been working. It means cleansing has always been ongoing all these years and centuries. Not only now. However, the Lord has spoken this is an extremely crucial time of cleansing for His people, both as individuals and for His church as a whole. He's talking about inner cleansing here. He's talking about deep cleansing from the inside out.
Why is this so crucial at this time? Here's the answer: In order to prepare His people, His church, for what is to come! He's doing a cleansing from the inside out, because without this, we will not be able to withstand the onslaught of the powers of this world and the powers of devil in this end-time!
But of course, fear not! This is not a doom and gloom message. But we are saying in spite of whatever doom and gloom that's happening in this world, and in spite of the challenging time that's coming to the world (ecologically, politically, geopolitically), yet at the same time, His glory (the glory of the Lord) is also going to shine the brightest like you've never seen before!
And remember, even in the most challenging of times, the Lord is still the same - yesterday, today, and forever to you! He is your very present help, and He is your refuge. Amen!
In Isaiah 60:1-2, the Scripture says, 'Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you.'
Yes, upon you! Upon His people! Upon His church! Now, 'church' is 'a people'. For your info, the word 'church' was mentioned about 115 times in King James Version. And interestingly, all these 115 times point towards 'church' being 'a people'; not a building, not an area, not a land, not an institution, not an organization. For the record, in Greek, the word 'church' is 'ekklesia'. The word 'ek' means 'of, from'; and the word 'klesia' comes from the word 'kaleo', which means 'a call'. So, 'ekklesia', or 'church', simply means 'a gathering of the called ones', or 'a gathering of God's people'.
Indeed, 1 Peter 2:9-10 says as believers (i.e. as 'a people of God'), we have been called out from the darkness into God's marvelous light. That's you and I! We are the church! A people of God! And Jesus Christ is the Head of all of us, the people of God, His body, the Body of Christ!
Interestingly, in cross-reference, the word 'called' here in 1 Peter chapter 2 is also the same word 'kaleo'.
In Isaiah 60:5, the Scripture says, 'Then you shall see and become radiant, and your heart shall swell with joy; Because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you.'
Now, it's for all these reasons mentioned in Isaiah chapter 60 that the Lord is currently doing His deep cleansing for His people, His church! What is He preparing for? He is preparing for the coming of His glory! When His glory and His light shines, no work of the enemy and no work of the evil one in this world can withstand it!
But you know what? Before the glory of the Lord comes such as we've never seen before, He is preparing us first, His people, His church! This is not a message to judge anyone. Rather, this is a message for self-reflection, whether we are leaders, or in whatever way the Lord is using us right now, both in the ministry or in the marketplace. When I share this message, I'm speaking to myself too. So, let us all humble ourselves under His mighty hand, and let us be changed by Him from the inside out.
Let's look at what the Scripture say about 'cleansing'. In Ephesians 5:26-27, in the words of Apostle Paul, '...that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.'
'He' here speaks of 'Jesus Christ'; and 'Her' here speaks of 'the church as a whole; and we are the members of His body, the Body of Christ'. The context here is like the relationship between a husband and a wife; how the husband loves the wife, and how the husband gives himself for her. By the same token, how Jesus loves the church and gives Himself for the church.
So, with this understanding, let's read again: '...that Jesus might sanctify and cleanse the church with the washing of water by the word; that Jesus might present the church to Himself a glorious church (not a defeated church, not a weakened church; but a glorious church, full of His glory and light), not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.'
This is exactly what the Lord is doing right now! He is in the midst of cleansing His people, His church!
The word 'cleanse' here is 'katharizo' in Greek, from the word 'katharos' meaning 'to cleanse (whether to cleanse spiritually, or literally - inward and outward)'. It means 'to cleanse (inside of us, and outside of us)'. It can also mean 'to make clean, to purify, to purge, to be unstained'.
Let's look now at Ephesians 5:25, just one verse before that, 'Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her...'
If you look at the context of the relationship between a husband and wife here, just like Christ and the church, 1 Peter 3:3-4 also says this regarding the wife (therefore, this can also apply for the church too), 'Do not let your adornment be merely outward - arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel - rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.'
In other words, not just outward, but the inward is so crucially important. True beauty is beauty from the inside out; whether it is literally about wives, or about His church. The Lord doesn't want us to put up an outward show only. But He wants to see in the inside of us. He wants us to be changed from the inside out.
Let's look at what Jesus said now. Even though He was speaking about the Pharisees and the scribes those days, this can also apply to us as believers and leaders. Let's look at Matthew 23:25-26, '...For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence... first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.'
This may cut to the hearts. But this is necessary. This is part of His cleansing work for His church, and the leaders He has raised up for this end-time. Notice the word 'cleanse' here. It is the same word 'katharizo' in Greek, from the word 'katharos' that I've explained earlier. I'm showing you this as a cross-reference about the cleansing of the church; beginning from the leaders and how we do things, and flowing down to every believer in the Body of Christ.
Well, of course, some may say this applies only to the Pharisees and the scribes, and this has nothing to do with the current church leaders and current believers in the Body of Christ. But the background of Matthew 23 on why Jesus said what He said, and the gist of His message here is that He wants to address the inside of us. In other words, He's saying that true beauty (true righteousness) starts from the inside. He's saying the religious leaders those days, namely the Pharisees and the scribes, were greatly concerned and focused on their outward show, and how they carry themselves outward; but they were full of sins, corruption, greed, self-seeking, self-glorifying, and even self-indulgences in the inside of them.
This message may be uncomfortable for some people to hear, but this is what the Lord has spoken for this time and season.
God can never be fooled by what we show on the outside, i.e. on how holy and righteous we show on the outside. Rather, God sees what we actually are in the inside, and not what we appear to be to other people on the outside. This is the gist of Matthew 23. This is what Jesus meant to say.
The Lord is looking at our hearts, i.e. our real self in the inside of us. And He's saying, "Blessed are those who are clean in the inside, who are washed from the inside, who have the beauty in the inside." This is true beauty. This is how the Lord sees beauty, i.e. the beauty that begins from the inside of us.
This is what the Lord is looking for in His people (for His end-time move). And no power of darkness, no power of this world, and no power of the devil can withstand the holiness, purity, and innocence in the inside of each of us. This is the key to victory! This is the key to triumph! This is the key to the glory of the Lord coming and shining in this world through us!
So you see, this is a time for self-reflection. This is a time to come before the Lord just as we are, and let Him cleanse us with the water of His Word and His Spirit. This is a time to ask Him to show us what are the areas in our lives that we need to change. Of course, this involves humility on our part. Yes, I'm also saying this to myself. This message is for me too. So, let us humble ourselves before Him; and let us be changed and be transformed from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Prayer:
"O Lord God, in a time like this, we come before You just as we are. Cleanse us with the water of Your Word and Your Spirit. Show us the areas that we need to be changed (whatever and wherever You have positioned us in this world). We humble ourselves before You. We want to be changed from the inside out. We look to You. We want to be found innocent, pure, holy, and unblemished before You - both in the inside and on the outside. We thank You for the forgiveness of sins through the blood that You've shed for us on the cross. We thank You for Your restoration and renewal works in our lives, and yes, in our church. Amen."
