Then he brought me back to the door of the house; and behold, water was flowing from under the threshold of the house toward the east, for the house faced east. And the water was flowing down from under, from the right side of the house, from south of the altar….
— Ezekiel 47:1
When the river flows out from the building, it flows eastward from the right side of the temple along the south side of the altar (Ezek. 47:1). This indicates that this river takes God’s glory as its aim. Every local church must take the glory of God as its unique aim. Its flow from the right, or the highest, side of the temple indicates that the Lord must have the preeminence if we desire to be in the flow of the divine life. We cannot say that we are in the flow if Christ does not have the first place among us.
Furthermore, the river flows alongside the altar of burnt offering, which signifies the cross. In the church life the cross accompanies this flow. The church life is a good place to experience the cross. In the church life we are built up with the saints, and in the church life our opinions and eventually our everything is put to the cross. It is here that we can be crucified with Christ. In the local churches this is our fate, our experience, and our boast.
Adapted from The Reality of the Divine Stream, page 43.
Tomorrow: “Allowing the Lord to Judge Us”