We all love the Lord and are willing to let the Lord make His home in us. However, He cannot feel at ease within us. The Lord cannot make His home in us comfortably. He walks in one direction, and He hits the door; He walks in another direction, and He bumps His head. Sometimes it is unintentional, and at other times it is because we have no wisdom. In Colossians 3:16 Paul says “in all wisdom.” You must give careful consideration to the design of a house. You must use a ruler and measure to see if it will be comfortable and fitting to live in. You need to exercise wisdom to measure a house and to test it to see if it is suitable for use. For example, in one place where I was a guest, the brothers received me with a loving heart, and they let me stay in the best house. But the closet was too large, with two big sliding doors that were like two city gates. When I opened the door to hang my clothes, I bumped my head, and once the clothes were hanging in the closet, the door would not close easily. I was also a guest in a home where there was a step at the front entrance and another step in front of the bathroom. As an elderly man, I was afraid of falling, so I lived there in fear and trembling.
When I stay in my own house, I do not have these problems. The whole house is on the same level, with no steps. I can walk around my house with my eyes closed because I designed it myself with much consideration. I measured everywhere with a ruler, and I also used other houses as references. I measured the house many times, and then I tested it and adjusted it. In preparing a suitable dwelling place, elderly people have their own problems, weaknesses, and complications. Our Lord Jesus also has His own complications. The Lord Jesus is not that simple. We may say to Him, “Lord, I love You. Come in. Make Your home in my heart.” After He comes in, we only give Him a large room; all the other small rooms may be locked. In such a situation, how can He be at home? If you desire to prepare a good dwelling place for the Lord, you must use wisdom to make Him feel at home everywhere. Then He can dwell there richly.
On our side, we need to use wisdom. If wisdom is properly exercised, the word of the Lord will dwell in us richly. In these days we are talking about speaking for the Lord. We all know that in order to learn a language well, we must pay attention to three things: first, a broad vocabulary; second, correct grammar; and third, the use of idiomatic expressions. If we have these three points, it will be very easy to practice. Whether we are speaking or writing, it will not be difficult. Today if we want to speak God’s word, we must ask ourselves whether we have a broad vocabulary in us. Is our vocabulary sufficient? If you know many words and have an extensive vocabulary, you can speak in any way you desire. You will have a great deal to express, and you will be able to speak fluently. However, often when we speak to others concerning the Lord, we do not have sufficient words to express ourselves. We stammer, not knowing what to say. We are not familiar with the Scripture verses, and after a few sentences we run out of words. This means that the word of the Lord is not dwelling in us richly. Therefore, we find it very difficult to speak, and we have no way to speak. When we speak, we are very restricted.
In 1960, when I first arrived in the United States, I found that my grammar was adequate but that my vocabulary and familiarity with idiomatic expressions were not sufficient. Therefore, my speaking was quite restricted. Then I practiced speaking. During the past twenty years I have been learning English every day. Whenever I see a new word in a verse, I look it up in the dictionary. In this way I have learned many new words.
Today, for the Lord to go on, we all must speak for Him. If we do not speak for Him, the word cannot go out, and He will not have a way to go on. The book of Acts tells us that the word of the Lord grew and multiplied, and that it was strong to the extent that it finally gained the victory. The word of the Lord being victorious is the Lord being victorious; this is the way for the Lord to go on.
Thank the Lord for His mercy that in the past fifteen years the word of the Lord has been rich among us. However, does the word dwell in us richly? We have been listening to messages for twenty to thirty years, and we have taken in quite a number of spiritual matters. However, when the time comes for us to speak, there seems to be a faint outline within, yet we cannot speak it out. We may say, “It is true that I have heard that message, and it is something like...”; but we do not know how to speak it because we have not allowed the word of the Lord to dwell in us richly.
The word of the Lord is like a living person. The word is the Lord Himself. We must welcome Him, and we must open the door to let Him in. Not only do we need to let Him in, but we also need to give Him the ground, the room, and the suitable environment for Him to settle down. Then He will be able to open everything to us, and He will be able to exhibit everything in us. This is to let Him dwell in us richly. At this time we need to use all wisdom to love the Lord, to desire the word of the Lord, and to let the word of the Lord dwell in us to become our expression, our utterance. Then we will be able to use the word freely.