There is the same purity and authority speaking out here as there. But here is _love_ speaking out as never was spoken out before. Here is love _lived_ out; aye, here love is _died_ out, and never living so much as when dying. Here is love putting death to death for us. Purity and authority fastened on a cross! This is love such as man had never known, and God never shown before. Calvary lets us see the love that burned in the purity and controlled in the authority. John's Man is Ezekiel's and Daniel's, but with the love shining out through purity and authority, and outshining both. Yet that love is the purity and authority combined in action. We don't know love only as we know God. And we don't know God only as we know Jesus not living merely but pouring out His life for men. This is love--that Man, that God-man, but with the God-glory hidden within, using all His authority over His life to fasten His purity on a cross with the thorns of our sin, and then throttling death and bringing up a new sort of deathless life for us. This--He--is love. The Outstanding Characteristic. But we haven't gotten to the heart of this yet. There is immensely more here than even this. The distinctive thing, the characteristic thing in this sight of Christ, is yet to be noticed. All of this can be gotten from other sights of Christ. But notice now keenly _where this Man of Fire is_. For this is the distinctive thing. He is not up in the heavens, as in Ezekiel. He has not come on a special errand, as in Daniel's experience.[62] He is walking _down on the earth_. His whole concern is about affairs on the earth. But note where He is on earth: not in Jerusalem, the Jew centre; not in Rome, the world's ruling centre, nor in Athens or Corinth, the world's culture centres. He is seen walking among a small group of candlesticks. This is the centre of earth action for Him. This is _the significant thing_ of this new sight of Christ. Let us look at it a moment to get at the simple significance of the scene. The candlesticks, we are told, are the Churches, the little groups of followers banded together here and there. These small groups of Christ's followers are called _candlesticks_ or lampstands. There is no suggestion yet of their giving any light. No lighted candles nor oily wicks are burning and shining. They are only candle_sticks_. They are of gold, the most precious metal, but they can give no light, they can only hold the light some one else supplies. The Man standing amongst them is the light. The whole effect of the sight of Christ here is that He is the light. The presence within the man shines out through head and eyes and limbs, as light, intense dazzling light, even as the sun in his strength.