The items in Ezekiel 1 are presented in a good sequence. First we have the wind and this is followed by the cloud, the fire, and the electrum. Then the living creatures appear with four faces to express Christ in a corporate way. Next we have the eagle’s wings, the man’s hands, and the calf’s hoofs. All this is for the coordination. The living creatures move in a coordinated way. This chapter goes on to speak of the fire going up and down and of the burning coals and the burning torches. After all this, verses 15 through 21 describe the high and dreadful wheels. By the side of every living creature there is a wheel. This wheel is so high that it is dreadful; it is dreadfully high. In this message we will consider the significance of the high and dreadful wheels.
A wheel is for moving, not in an ordinary way but in a special way. At home, when we walk from the kitchen to our bedroom or living room, we do not need a wheel. But when we travel a distance, we need a wheel. When we do something to fulfill a purpose, we may also need a wheel. Thus, the move by a wheel is not an ordinary move but a special move with a purpose. The wheel in Ezekiel 1 implies a move with a purpose. Furthermore, the wheel implies that this move is not by our own strength.
The four living creatures are for the manifestation, the expression, of the Lord. They are for the corporate expression of Christ, and thus they express Christ in a corporate way. The Lord on the throne looks like a man, and the four living creatures expressing the Lord also look like a man. The Lord on the throne looks like burning fire, and the four living creatures also look like burning fire. From this we see that the living creatures are the expression of the Lord. Whatever the Lord is, they express. The Lord is living, and they also are living. The Lord is the living God, and they are the living creatures. Whatever the Lord is, they are. Whatever the Lord expresses, they also express. Therefore, the four living creatures are the expression of the Lord.
In verses 15 through 21 the four living creatures are not only for the expression of the Lord but also for the move of the Lord. The Lord moves on the earth by them.
Whenever a church is proper, expresses the Lord, and has the proper coordination with the fire going up and down, the move of the Lord will be with that church. However, if a church claims to be proper and yet has no move of the Lord, something is wrong. If there is no increase in number year after year and no growth in life among the members, there is no move with that church. With those in that church there is neither increase nor spread. This indicates there is something wrong with that church. If a church is proper, it will have a great wheel at its side.
If a local church has such a wheel at its side, there will be no need for it to claim that it has a wheel. Everyone will see the move of this wheel. If a church claims to have the move of the Lord, this may indicate that it does not actually have the Lord’s move. When a church has the move of the Lord, no one needs to declare, “Look at the move of the Lord among us.” If there is a move, it will be manifest to all. Everyone can see the great wheel, high and dreadful, for it is at the side of the living creatures for all to see. The wheel is simply there.
Every local church needs to have such a high and dreadful wheel beside it. Furthermore, every individual believer, if he is proper and normal, should also have a wheel.
This was the situation in Acts 13. “Now there were in Antioch, in the local church, prophets and teachers....And as they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, Set apart for Me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (vv. 1-2). These prophets and teachers were living creatures coordinating together and having the burning coals and the burning torches. They fulfilled all the requirements in Ezekiel 1 related to being in the Lord’s move. Thus, the move of the great wheel was with them.