The apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3 that we are God's farm, God's cultivated land (v. 9), to grow Christ. This concept fits in with the Lord's word in Matthew 13. He said that He sowed Himself as the seed and that we are the earth. When the essence of the seed and the essence of the earth come together and are mingled together, some constituting work is going on. Then we grow up to become "Christ-trees."

In 1 Corinthians 3 Paul told us not only that we are God's farm to grow Christ but also that we are God's building (v. 9). God's building is not of the plant life but is solely of minerals. Look at the New Jerusalem. What will be there? The New Jerusalem is built with gold, pearls, and precious stones (Rev. 21:18-21). The city has twelve foundations and these foundations are twelve layers of precious stones (vv. 14, 19-20). Furthermore, the first foundation is jasper (v. 19), the wall of the city is jasper (v. 18), and the light of the entire city is like a jasper stone (v. 11). God's appearance is like jasper (4:3), so the entire New Jerusalem bears the appearance of God and expresses God by her shining. God sitting on the throne looks like jasper, and we, the entire city, bear His appearance, so we are His enlargement. The New Jerusalem also has twelve pearls as its twelve gates (21:21), and the city itself is pure gold (v. 18). Nothing in the New Jerusalem can be burned because it is not of the plant life but it is built with gold, pearls, and precious stones.

The Bible first uses plants to illustrate the believers in Christ. The seed sown into the earth grows, but by itself it cannot grow. It needs some essence from the earth to match its essence. These two essences then grow together to enlarge the seed into a tree. This is a picture of our growth in life. While we are growing in life, we are also being transformed in life. Petrified wood is a good illustration of plant life which has been transformed into stone. Precious stones are actually transformed materials produced through tremendous heat and pressure.

When we were saved, we were like green, tender sprouts, but gradually we will become precious stones through being transformed. The garden of Eden, at the beginning of the Bible, eventually becomes a city, at the end of the Bible. We are on the way from being a garden to being a city through the process of transformation. This way is a long way, and this long way is actually Christ Himself. Christ told us that He is the way (John 14:6a). When we received Christ, we became one with Him. Then we began to follow Him and He became our way. Today we are still on the way, and our destination or our destiny is the New Jerusalem. This is the divine revelation in the Bible. Today we are still mostly plants, but we are being transformed into precious stones for God's building. How much the church has been built up all depends upon how much we grow. While we are growing, we are being transformed from plants into minerals, that is, into precious stones for God's building. This is the clear vision in the Bible.