The Ministry, Vol. 11, No. 05

Book excerpt: This issue of The Ministry presents the last eight messages given during the 2005 fall term of the full-time training in Anaheim, California. The general subject of this series of messages is entitled "The Overcoming Life as Portrayed in Song of Songs." Four stages of the overcoming life are portrayed in the Song of Songs. In Messages 1 through 8 of this series, the first two stages of overcoming were presented: In the first stage the Lord draws us to pursue Him so that we can be fully satisfied and fully delivered from this world, and in the second stage the Lord calls us to be delivered from the self through our oneness with the cross by the power of His resurrection. In Messages 9 through 16, the last two stages are unfolded. In the third stage we are called to live in ascension as the new creation in resurrection and to overcome everything of the old creation. Finally, in the fourth stage we are called to live within the veil, entering into God as our sanctuary to become the same as God in life and nature and to become the sanctuary of God, the building of God, and the bride of Christ as the Shulammite, the duplication, enlargement, and full expression of Christ for Christ's satisfaction. In this stage we are qualified to work together with Christ, and we have a hope and a longing to be raptured. Last of all, we include both a report concerning the Lord's move in West Africa and an announcement concerning the upcoming international blending conference in July 2007 in Accra, Ghana, West Africa.