The Local Churches in the Book of Revelation

Additional Quotes about the Local Church by Witness Lee and Watchman Nee

Throughout the centuries, few Christians have touched the depths of the significance of the lampstands as symbols of the local churches. According to our natural concept, a lampstand is simply an object holding a lamp that shines in the darkness. The lampstand in Exodus 25 is pure gold, and the lampstands in Zechariah 4 and Revelation also are golden. Substantially, the lampstand is golden. With the lampstand we see three important things: the gold, the stand, and the lamps. The lampstand implies the significance of the Triune God. Gold is the substance with which the lampstand is made, the stand is the embodiment of the gold, and the lamps are the expression of the stand. The gold signifies the Father as the substance, the stand signifies the Son as the embodiment of the Father, and the lamps signify the Spirit as the expression of the Father in the Son. Thus, the significance of the Triune God is implied in the lampstand….We have seen that the lampstand implies the significance of the Triune God; it symbolizes the Triune God embodied and expressed. God the Father as the divine gold is embodied in Christ the Son and then is fully expressed through the Spirit. The expression differs from the embodiment. The embodiment must be uniquely one because our God is uniquely one. Thus, the embodiment must be one stand. The expression, however, must be complete, and complete in God’s move. Recall that seven is the number for completion in God’s move. Throughout the centuries, God has been expressed in His move. This is the reason that the seven lamps signify the intensified Spirit as the expression of Christ in God’s complete move. This is the practical understanding of the Trinity.

The Trinity is for the dispensing of God into humanity. God, the divine Being, is firstly embodied in Christ and then expressed through the sevenfold, intensified Spirit. Now we have not only the Triune God; in the lampstand we have the Triune God substantially and solidly embodied and expressed. The gold has been formed into the solid stand. It once was just gold, but now it is the stand. The gold has been formed into a stand for the fulfillment of God’s purpose. Without the stand, there is no way for God’s purpose to be fulfilled. As we have seen, this stand, which is a type of Christ, is expressed through the seven lamps signifying the seven Spirits of God. The seven Spirits of God are not separate from God; they are the seven eyes of God and of the Lamb, the Redeemer. They are also the seven eyes of the building stone (Zech. 3:9). Hence, they are the seven eyes with the redemption of Christ for God’s building. Whenever these eyes look at people, people are redeemed and built into God’s house.

(Witness Lee, Genuine Ground, 133-135)

The lampstands are for God’s building in three stages: for the tabernacle, or temple (Exo. 25:31-39); for the recovered temple (Zech. 4:2-6); and for the church (Rev. 1:12-13, 20). In other words, for God to build the tabernacle, there was the need of the lampstand, for God to rebuild the temple there was the need of the lampstand, and for God to build the church today there is the need of the lampstand.

(Witness Lee, The Reprint, 13)

There are three categories of the lampstand in Exodus, Zechariah and Revelation, respectively. These lampstands are related to God’s building….The first lampstand in Exodus signifies Christ, the second lampstand in Zechariah symbolizes the Spirit, and eventually in the last book of the Bible, Revelation, the seven lampstands are the seven local churches.

(Witness Lee, The Reprint, 16)

The lampstand is for God’s building. The lampstand in Exodus 25 was for the building of the tabernacle, the lampstand in Zechariah 4 was for the recovery of God’s building, and the lampstands [signifying the local churches] in Revelation 1 are for the building of the church.

(Witness Lee, LS of Revelation, 94)

The Bible reveals that for the building of the tabernacle there was the need of the lampstand. The lampstand was also necessary for the function of the tabernacle. The tabernacle had no windows, and its entrance was completely covered by a curtain. Since there were no openings, there was no way light could come in from the outside. Without the lampstand shining in the tabernacle, no one inside would have been able to function. Thus, the lampstand was not only for the building of the tabernacle but also for its function.

Likewise, without the lampstand, there is no building of the church and no function in the church.

(Witness Lee, LS of Revelation, 94)

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