We have pointed out repeatedly that the ark typifies Christ as the embodiment of God’s testimony. Far from being stationary, this testimony should be able to move. The book of Acts is a record of the acts, or the move, of Christ. There was a move of Christ from Jerusalem to Judea, to Samaria, and then on to the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 1:8). In Acts the Christ we see is not the incarnated Christ, the Christ who walked on earth in a human body. Rather, we see the Christ who was crucified and resurrected, and who has ascended to the heavens and descended on His Body as the life-giving Spirit. Acts records the move of such a Christ in and through His Body. If we would have an adequate understanding of the four rings of gold and the two poles, we need to make a thorough study of the entire book of Acts. In Acts we have a description of the rings and the poles; that is, we have an account of the move on earth of Christ as God’s testimony.
The ark was made at Mount Sinai, but it did not remain there. The ark was built in such a way that it could be moved. According to the book of Numbers, the children of Israel carried the ark and marched like an army. In order for the ark to be moved, it had to have the four rings and two poles.
Exodus 25:12 says, “And you shall cast for it four rings of gold and put them upon its four feet, two rings upon its one side, and two rings upon its second side.” In typology a golden ring signifies the eternal Spirit. Four rings of gold signify that the divine nature of Christ is the linking factor and power. Elsewhere we have pointed out that a gold ring signifies the Spirit with whom we have been sealed. Because a ring has no beginning or ending, it signifies the eternal Spirit. These rings made of gold, the divine nature of Christ, signify the linking factor and power. Without the rings, there would have been no way to hold the ark. There would have been no link, no connection. The life-giving eternal Spirit signified by the rings is the linking factor and power.
Verse 12 says that the rings were cast. They were not made of beaten work. The casting of the rings signifies that the eternal life-giving Spirit becomes the linking power through the experience of the cross. Being cast signifies tests which come through suffering. The more we experience the cross, the more the life-giving eternal Spirit will be cast to become the golden rings. Then we shall have strong rings for the move of God’s testimony.
This understanding of the spiritual significance of the four rings of gold is according to the New Testament and our Christian experience. The cross is always a test to us. Daily we need to experience the cross with its testing. This is the experience of the rings being cast. The gold used in making the rings must be gold that has been cast. Only after the gold has been cast can it become a ring. Yes, the golden ring signifies the life-giving Spirit. But in our experience this Spirit must pass through the testing of the cross, the casting, before the eternal Spirit can become in us a golden ring with its linking power.
It is possible to be a very good Christian and yet not bear the ark of the testimony. This is to be a Christian and yet live in a natural way. Those Christians who live in a natural way do not bear the testimony of Jesus. Recently we have pointed out that in the Lord’s recovery we must preach the gospel, teach the Bible, and meet together according to the Bible. However, these things in themselves are not the testimony of Jesus. We may preach the gospel prevailingly, teach the Bible accurately, and meet together properly and still not bear the Lord’s testimony. This means that we do not have the ark; that is, we do not have Christ lived out of us. Oh, we must see the central vision that to bear the ark of testimony is to live Christ! We must preach the gospel, teach the Bible, and meet according to the Bible. But along with all this we need to bear the ark, the testimony of Jesus.
In Matthew we are told to disciple the nations; in Mark, to preach the gospel to every creature; in Luke, to preach the gospel of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; and in John, to bear fruit. But Acts 1:8 says, “You shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the remotest part of the earth.” Here the Lord does not speak of preaching the gospel, but of being witnesses unto Him. A witness bears a testimony. The witness refers primarily to the person, and the testimony refers to what is borne by this person. To bear the Lord’s testimony is to be His witnesses.
Revelation 1 speaks of the testimony of Jesus. This testimony in Revelation is the golden lampstand. We may preach the gospel, teach the Bible, and have excellent meetings according to the Bible, but still not have the golden lampstand as the testimony of Jesus.
In Old Testament times it was possible to have the tabernacle with the laver and the altar, and yet not have the ark. There were occasions in the Old Testament when, due to the degradation of the children of Israel, the ark was separated from the tabernacle. When Solomon came into his reign, according to religious custom, he visited the place where the tabernacle was. However, the ark was not there. At night in a dream he came to realize that God was not in the tabernacle; He was with the ark. Therefore, Solomon went to worship the Lord where the ark was (1 Kings 3:4-15).
Our experience today may be the same in principle. We also may have the tabernacle without the ark. We may have good gospel preaching, Bible teaching, and meetings, but we may lack the testimony of Jesus. Furthermore, in our living we may be good Christians, but we may not bear the ark, the testimony of Jesus, for we may have little or no experience of the cross casting the divine nature into a ring of gold. Daily we need the experience of the cross, the experience of the rings being cast.
The cross of Christ actually is in the Spirit, and we experience the cross through the Spirit. This crossing out is the casting. When we experience the cross, we have not only gold, but gold which has passed through the process of being cast into a ring. Then we have the life-giving Spirit as the ring which holds the ark as the linking factor and power needed for bearing the ark, the testimony of Jesus. This is an important detail related to experiencing Christ and living Him.