THE FOURTH PART: THE PATHWAY OF LORD’S RECOVERY
The Course of the Church
Message Four—The Beginning of the Lord’s Recovery in China
Scripture Reading: Rev. 1—3; Eph. 1:23; John 4:24; Col. 3:4
I. The Lord was forced to go to the virgin soil of China because the long history of traditional Christianity in Europe and America had spoiled those places for the proper practice of the church life; because China was pagan and heathen, it was unspoiled, virgin soil for the practice of the church life:
A. Brother Nee was saved in 1920, and two years later he saw the light concerning the problem of denominations and the proper practice of the church life; he started a meeting at a sister’s home in his hometown of Foochow, and that was the beginning of the church life in China.
B. At nineteen years of age, Watchman Nee was the first native Chinese to start a meeting in a believer’s home without a pastor or anything of denominational Christianity; this group simply met in the name of the Lord Jesus and according to the Bible.
C. Among this group there were seven or eight young people who were co-workers, including Brother Nee; one was especially gifted in preaching the gospel; he was becoming popular as a traveling evangelist, when a brother from the Christian and Missionary Alliance proposed to him that he should be formally ordained so that various denominations would open their doors to him.
D. The others meeting with Brother Nee agreed with the ordination of this brother; they had cut off the old current, but religion came in through a gifted one who was seeking popularity; when Brother Nee refused to agree with this brother’s ordination, the other members signed a paper to excommunicate Brother Nee.
E. Thus, religion crept in to spoil the first attempt to practice the church life in China.
F. In those times Brother Nee was learning the lesson of the cross—not to fight for himself and not even to vindicate himself; he moved away to a suburb of Foochow, and from 1925 to 1927 he used his time to publish twenty-four issues of a magazine called The Christian in which he expounded the first three chapters of Revelation.
G. That magazine grew to a monthly distribution of ten thousand, and I [Witness Lee] became familiar with Brother Nee by subscribing to it; I began to write to Brother Nee in 1925, and he answered me; through this correspondence we came to know each other.
H. In those twenty-four issues, he thoroughly exposed denominational Christianity, explaining the meaning of the works and teaching of the Nicolaitans (2:6, 15). Throughout China hundreds of young people were enlightened and raised up to follow the Lord through reading The Christian.
I. In 1926 Brother Nee received a burden to move to Shanghai, and the church life there began by 1927; about five years later, in 1932, the Lord touched me, and a church was raised up in my hometown of Chefoo; that was the first church in north China; from 1932 to 1934 small groups were raised up in many places through Brother Nee’s publications.
J. A large number of believers left the denominations, but few were clear about the proper practice of the church life; many of the groups that were raised up met in a way that was still influenced by the denominational background; religious concepts were brought into the new start.
K. In 1933 I dropped my job and went to Shanghai to meet with Brother Nee, and he asked me to stay there; at that time the sisters were not allowed to pray or testify in the meetings; that was something of religion that had crept in from the Brethren background.
L. Brother Nee and some of the other leading ones felt that this restriction was not good or profitable and caused the church to be like a half-paralyzed body; therefore, Brother Nee fellowshipped with the brothers concerning the need to release the sisters to function.
M. However, he could not get through, because most of the other leading ones would not agree; when I came to Shanghai, Brother Nee said to me, “Brother Lee, we have to pray for a problem that we have here. In our meetings the sisters are silent. This is a loss.” We prayed steadfastly, and eventually the dissenting ones reluctantly agreed to release the sisters.
N. In 1934 the sisters began to pray in the meetings, but they were not allowed to give testimonies; There was still some religion there; gradually, many began to feel that there was a loss, because many sisters have good testimonies; after much consideration, we made a decision that based upon 1 Timothy 2:12, the sisters should not teach, but they could give personal testimonies; we took this stand to give the sisters the liberty to testify.
O. This history shows that religion is in our blood; it is not easy to be completely rid of religion; apparently, we had cut off the old current, but religion still crept in.
II. Year after year Brother Nee saw more light and helped us to see the light as well:
A. In the early years under the leadership of Brother Nee, we studied the Bible, church history, all the major spiritual writings, and many biographies of spiritual giants from the early church fathers down to the present century.
B. Therefore, although we did not come to the Western world, we contacted Western Christianity by reading the histories, biographies, and all the main writings.
C. We decided that if any practice or teaching was not according to the Bible, we would not take it; at that time we were not clear that the main thing is not to be scriptural but to be in the spirit; gradually, the Lord adjusted us from stressing doctrines to stressing the spirit; before Brother Nee’s arrest and imprisonment he had begun to emphasize that we must be in the spirit.
D. Throughout the years of Brother Nee’s ministry, there were at least three or four times when he saw a further revelation concerning the church.
E. Looking back, we can see that the revelation was completed just before he was imprisoned; because I was with him for many years, I not only read his writings, but I also had many talks with him; I knew what was within him.
F. The central, crucial point of Brother Nee’s ministry was twofold—Christ as life and everything to us to produce the church, and the church as the Body, the fullness, of Christ to be expressed in many localities—Col. 3:4; Eph. 1:23.
G. Because he knew life, the Lord, and the Bible, Brother Nee was clear about the Lord’s move, and he realized that some day the recovery would spread to the Western world.
H. Then, under the Lord’s sovereignty, there was a political change in China; in 1949 all of mainland China was suddenly taken over by the Communists, who would not allow any teachings or groups to exist but communism and the Communist Party; therefore, the Lord’s move was forced from mainland China to Taiwan, and from Taiwan it eventually spread to the United States.
Ministry excerpts:
BROTHER WATCHMAN NEE AND
THE BEGINNING OF THE CHURCH LIFE IN CHINA
The first practice of the church life began with Zinzendorf and the Moravian Brethren in 1727. Then the British Brethren were raised up in 1827 with a more complete vision but were damaged by emphasizing doctrinal knowledge. One hundred years later, the third practice of the church life began in China. Brother Watchman Nee explained to me that the Lord was forced to go to the virgin soil of China because the long history of traditional Christianity in Europe and America had spoiled those places for the proper practice of the church life. Because China was pagan and heathen, it was unspoiled, virgin soil for the practice of the church life. Brother Nee was saved in 1920, and two years later he saw the light concerning the problem of denominations and the proper practice of the church life. He started a meeting at a sister’s home in his hometown of Foochow, and that was the beginning of the church life in China. Before that time all Christian meetings in China were led by Western missionaries and were held in church buildings that were built by missionaries. At nineteen years of age, Watchman Nee was the first native Chinese to start a meeting in a believer’s home without a pastor or anything of denominational Christianity. This group simply met in the name of the Lord Jesus and according to the Bible.
Among this group there were seven or eight young people who were co-workers, including Brother Nee. One was especially gifted in preaching the gospel. He was becoming popular as a traveling evangelist, when a brother from the Christian and Missionary Alliance proposed to him that he should be formally ordained so that various denominations would open their doors to him. The others meeting with Brother Nee agreed with the ordination of this brother. They had cut off the old current, but religion came in through a gifted one who was seeking popularity. When Brother Nee refused to agree with this brother’s ordination, the other members signed a paper to excommunicate Brother Nee. Thus, religion crept in to spoil the first attempt to practice the church life in China.
In those times Brother Nee was learning the lesson of the cross—not to fight for himself and not even to vindicate himself. He moved away to a suburb of Foochow, and from 1925 to 1927 he used his time to publish twenty-four issues of a magazine called The Christian in which he expounded the first three chapters of Revelation. He was only a little over twenty years of age. That magazine grew to a monthly distribution of ten thousand, and I became familiar with Brother Nee by subscribing to it. I began to write to Brother Nee in 1925, and he answered me. Through this correspondence we came to know each other. In those twenty-four issues, he thoroughly exposed denominational Christianity, explaining the meaning of the works and teaching of the Nicolaitans (2:6, 15). Throughout China hundreds of young people were enlightened and raised up to follow the Lord through reading The Christian.
I began to become clear about the denominations in 1925, when I was nineteen. I remained in my denomination and testified to the other members for about two years. Because they respected me as a seeking young believer, they asked me to give messages on Lord’s Day mornings. In 1927 they elected me as a member of the board, but I told them that I could not accept the position and asked them to remove my name from their “book of life.”
THE SPREAD AND DEVELOPMENT OF
THE CHURCH LIFE IN CHINA
In 1926 Brother Nee received a burden to move to Shanghai, and the church life there began by 1927. About five years later, in 1932, the Lord touched me, and a church was raised up in my hometown of Chefoo. That was the first church in north China. From 1932 to 1934 small groups were raised up in many places through Brother Nee’s publications.
A large number of believers left the denominations, but few were clear about the proper practice of the church life. Many of the groups that were raised up met in a way that was still influenced by the denominational background. Religious concepts were brought into the new start. In 1933 I dropped my job and went to Shanghai to meet with Brother Nee, and he asked me to stay there. At that time the sisters were not allowed to pray or testify in the meetings. That was something of religion that had crept in from the Brethren background. Brother Nee and some of the other leading ones felt that this restriction was not good or profitable and caused the church to be like a half-paralyzed body. Therefore, Brother Nee fellowshipped with the brothers concerning the need to release the sisters to function. However, he could not get through, because most of the other leading ones would not agree. When I came to Shanghai, Brother Nee said to me, “Brother Lee, we have to pray for a problem that we have here. In our meetings the sisters are silent. This is a loss.” We prayed steadfastly, and eventually the dissenting ones reluctantly agreed to release the sisters. In 1934 the sisters began to pray in the meetings, but they were not allowed to give testimonies. There was still some religion there. Gradually, many began to feel that there was a loss, because many sisters have good testimonies. After much consideration, we made a decision that based upon 1 Timothy 2:12, the sisters should not teach, but they could give personal testimonies. We took this stand to give the sisters the liberty to testify. This history shows that religion is in our blood. It is not easy to be completely rid of religion. Apparently, we had cut off the old current, but religion still crept in.
It is not easy to be free from all religious concepts. Many traditions and concepts have been brought into the church over the past nineteen hundred years. Today even unbelievers have concepts concerning Christianity. When a man is saved and comes into the church, he already has certain concepts about how things should be done. However, the young people do not have many opinions. It is for this reason that the Lord began His ministry with a group of young Galileans. Nearly two thousand years later in China, the Lord again came to a fresh group of young people. Because the young people are fresh, they are good for the Lord’s new move.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF BROTHER NEE’S MINISTRY
Year after year Brother Nee saw more light and helped us to see the light as well. In the early years under the leadership of Brother Nee, we studied the Bible, church history, all the major spiritual writings, and many biographies of spiritual giants from the early church fathers down to the present century. By around 1928 Brother Nee had collected over three thousand classical Christian writings. In 1924 and 1925 his bedroom was full of books. His bed had two rows of books on it, leaving only a narrow strip for him to lie down—he was buried in books. By his help, we built up a habit to collect and read valuable spiritual books. Therefore, although we did not come to the Western world, we contacted Western Christianity by reading the histories, biographies, and all the main writings. We decided that if any practice or teaching was not according to the Bible, we would not take it. At that time we were not clear that the main thing is not to be scriptural but to be in the spirit. Gradually, the Lord adjusted us from stressing doctrines to stressing the spirit. Before Brother Nee’s arrest and imprisonment he had begun to emphasize that we must be in the spirit.
Throughout the years of Brother Nee’s ministry, there were at least three or four times when he saw a further revelation concerning the church. Looking back, we can see that the revelation was completed just before he was imprisoned. Because I was with him for many years, I not only read his writings, but I also had many talks with him. I knew what was within him. The central, crucial point of Brother Nee’s ministry was twofold—Christ as life and everything to us to produce the church, and the church as the Body, the fullness, of Christ to be expressed in many localities. Once Brother Nee said that he had a dream in which he saw a local church in every city in China. This vision was his burden and his ministry. In my life I have met all kinds of Christians, but I never met a person who knew life, the Lord, and the Bible as deeply as Brother Nee.
THE SPREAD OF THE LORD’S RECOVERY TO THE WEST
Because he knew life, the Lord, and the Bible, Brother Nee was clear about the Lord’s move, and he realized that some day the recovery would spread to the Western world. However, because he did not expect it to go to the West soon, he never encouraged the co-workers to go out of China. Also, the situation in China did not encourage us to go abroad because the work in China was full of God’s blessing, and there was much work to do. With one language we were able to serve six hundred million people. From Shanghai, where the largest church was, we supplied five or six hundred local churches throughout China. Therefore, we were fully occupied. We did not have time to consider going abroad. Then, under the Lord’s sovereignty, there was a political change in China. In 1949 all of mainland China was suddenly taken over by the Communists, who would not allow any teachings or groups to exist but communism and the Communist Party. Therefore, the Lord’s move was forced from mainland China to Taiwan, and from Taiwan it eventually spread to the United States. (The Recovery of Christ in the Present Evil Age, ch. 4)
THE RECOVERY IN THE EAST—
BEGINNING FROM 1922
Accepting the Lord’s Word—the Bible—
as the Highest Authority
Most Chinese who are over fifty years old are aware of the fact that approximately thirty or forty years ago Chinese society experienced a great reform. In particular, the young people were infused with many new thoughts. They received a new kind of education, and they were stirred up to exert their effort to bring blessings to the country and to improve society. The Lord also worked on many of these young people, causing them to be saved and seriously gained by the Lord. This was really something of the Lord. Throughout the country, from the south to the north, many like this were saved in many places.
After their salvation these young brothers began to analyze the situation of Christianity. They classified the things in Christianity into three categories: the Lord Himself, the Lord’s Word—the Bible and the gospel, and the system, organization, regulations, and practices in Christianity. Concerning the first two categories, which are the Lord and the Lord’s Word, they had no problems at all. They thanked the Lord that He brought these two things to the East through the brothers from the West. However, concerning practical Christianity, that is, the Christianity before their eyes, they had a big question. They questioned everything in Christianity, including the system, the organization, the various names, the articles of faith, and the practices. They questioned every item by asking, “Is this right? What is the basis for this? What is the principle, the standard?” They said, “We must study the Bible, we must acknowledge that the Bible has the highest authority, and we must decide everything according to the Bible.” At that time, their slogan was that “the Bible is the highest court.” They decided every matter by bringing it to the Bible. Therefore, they spent a great deal of effort to study the Bible in a serious way. Not only did they study the Bible in a general way, they also studied specific topics.
For instance, because they saw that Christianity was divided into many denominations and sects, they put a question mark on this and asked, “Are denominations and sects according to the Bible? Do they have a place in the Bible?” Then they read through the twenty-seven books of the New Testament, specifically to study the matter of denominations and sects. As a result, they saw that denominations were not found in the Bible and that sects were condemned by the Bible. Later they noticed that every denomination had a special name, such as Presbyterian, Methodist, and Baptist. Hence, they also asked, “Are these names according to the Bible? Do they have a foundation in the Bible?” Then they carefully studied all the portions in the New Testament which spoke of names. Eventually, they concluded that we should belong to and exalt only one name—the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Being designated by any name or exalting any name other than the name of the Lord is not according to the Bible.
When they looked at the pastoral system, they again went to the Bible to study this matter. As a result, they obtained an answer which negated it. When they saw the layers of organization in Christianity with general headquarters, regional centers, and local congregations, they again asked, “Are these organizations in Christianity according to the Bible?” They went to the Bible to specifically study this matter and again obtained an answer that negated this point.
I do not need to go into all of these matters in detail. They put a question mark on every matter, great or small, including baptism by immersion or by sprinkling and the distribution of the bread by a pastor at holy communions; they ascertained an answer from the Bible one by one. Most of their conclusions were negative.
Thus, they could no longer accept or remain in the status quo of Christianity. They cared for the Lord and the Bible but not for deformed, organized Christianity. Therefore, they began to leave the denominations. From approximately 1922 to 1934, for over ten years, from the south to the north, Christians throughout China enthusiastically responded to the matter of leaving the denominations. These Christians were mainly the young people spoken of earlier, who were both capable and quite clear concerning the Lord’s salvation and who intensely loved the Lord, feared the Lord, and diligently read the Bible. Gradually, they communicated with one another and had fellowship through correspondence. Spontaneously, they converged and became one flow. By 1935 small meetings had been raised up in many important cities from Kwangtung Province, the most southern region of China, to Heilungkiang Province, the most northern part. They were started by people who loved the Lord with a pure heart in various localities and who left the sectarian groups and erroneous denominations of organized Christianity. They gathered together for the worship of the Lord in a pure and simple way.
Let me give an example to show how absolute and simple they were at that time. In the city of Tsinan, capital of Shangtung Province, there is the famous Chilu University, established jointly by the Presbyterians and some other denominations. Thus, it was a Christian university with regular Christian worship services, a university chaplain, and a number of professors who were also Presbyterian missionaries. Around 1931, a group of students were saved. They truly loved the Lord and loved to study the Bible. In their reading of the Word, like all other seeking Christians, they realized that Christianity at that time was deformed and that the denomination before their eyes was not scriptural. So they left the denomination and would no longer go to the university chapel. But where could these believers go to meet? Surprisingly, they held their first Lord’s table at a cemetery in a desolate place outside of the city of Tsinan. In that cemetery there were graves with a stone table in front for placing offerings. The young brothers used the stone table as the table for the breaking of bread. They placed the bread and the cup on the stone table; then they all sat on the ground around the table and sang hymns and gave praises to the Lord. In this way they broke the bread. Someone told me that in their meeting they truly touched the presence of the Lord; they truly touched heaven. This was the beginning of the church in Tsinan.
The church in Foochow also started when a group of young students saw that denominations were wrong and would not go back to them. They wanted to have a new beginning, to have a pure meeting not according to Western traditions but simply according to the Bible. So they came together to meet. At first they met in a brother’s home. Later when the number of people increased, they needed to rent another place for their meeting. Because they were poor students, where could they get money to rent a house? They also read from the Bible that it was not acceptable to ask for donations and that the proper way was to rely on God, to believe in God. Therefore, they prayed before the Lord in simplicity. They kept praying until a young brother took off his jacket and secretly offered it to a responsible brother to be sold to pay for the rent. The responsible brother then asked in the meeting if someone would buy the jacket for eight dollars. Please listen to this lovely story. There were only a few saints, but upon hearing the announcement, some were touched. One sister said to another sister beside her, “Look at that brother over there. His clothing is so lightweight. I am thinking of buying the jacket to give it to him, but I have only four dollars.” The other sister said, “I also have four dollars. Let us buy the jacket together.” Thus, they combined their money and bought the jacket for eight dollars. Then they gave it to that brother, not knowing that he had offered the jacket originally. In this way they had a few dollars and were able to rent a place to meet.
From these examples we can see that the recovery at that time was pure, without any background, any motive, or any connection or involvement with organized Christianity. Furthermore, and most importantly, they accepted the Word of God absolutely, taking the Bible as their highest authority. They took the Bible as the yardstick to carefully measure every matter, including matters such as how to serve God and how to live their life. It did not matter to them what anyone said concerning a particular matter; they wanted to know what the Bible said. Consequently, at that time, there were many arguments in regard to the Bible.
For example, once a church in northern China needed lights in the meeting hall. In order to be scriptural, the brothers began to ask concerning the kind of lights that should be installed in the meeting hall. Some were against using electric lights because electric lights could not be found in the Bible. Others suggested, “We should use oil lamps because they are scriptural. In the Bible the lamp contains oil, and it has symbolic meaning. The church is a lampstand, and the oil within it is the Holy Spirit.” This kind of talk sounds somewhat childish today, but it shows how earnest they were in their hearts to let the Lord speak.
They also had a thorough discussion concerning baptism by immersion and baptism by sprinkling. Eventually, they concluded that baptism by immersion was the biblical way. Then they discussed whether a believer should be baptized in natural water or in man-made water and whether one should be baptized in the river, the sea, or a pool. They also discussed whether baptism should be in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit or in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Another example concerned head covering for sisters. This matter was vigorously debated among them. Should the sisters wear head coverings? What should be the color and style of the covering? Should it be white or black or another color? Should it be a large piece of cloth or a hat? These questions were thoroughly debated. Even matters such as whether the sisters could open their mouths and pray in the meetings and whether they could stand up and give testimonies were vigorously argued and thoroughly debated. I cannot speak too much on these.
Brothers and sisters, we must know that many of our practices today were found approximately twenty or thirty years ago through a thorough study of the Bible and a great deal of discussion. Therefore, when we began to meet, it was something completely new, something that came out of the Bible. We did not care for the Christianity that was behind us. From that day onward we cast away all of organized Christianity. We cared for the Lord and for the Bible; we did not care for deformed Christianity. Our desire was to find the pattern in the Bible and to see what the church was and what it meant to be Christians.
From that time, there was a new beginning for the church in the East. Among other things, the primary item of the recovery was the return to the Lord’s Word—the Bible. Oh, at that time the Lord’s Word was truly precious! We were young people who loved the Lord’s Word; we felt that the Lord’s Word was truly as sweet as honey and as precious as gold (Psa. 19:9-10). We also studied the Bible well. When everyone sat down to debate a question, one person would quote the Bible, and I would quote the Bible as well; everyone was according to the Bible, but we were all very humble also. When we discovered that what I saw was not right and was a little off, I would accept the proper view immediately without any further word. When we realized that what another saw was not right and that I had seen something more accurate, he would accept my view without a further word. Most of the issues were not decided according to our views. Instead, we would simply say, “This is according to the Lord’s will. Because this is what the Word says, this is what we have decided.” At the beginning of the recovery among us, our respect and obedience to the Lord’s Word was our strongest point.
Being Freed from All Sects and Denominations
and Recovering the Oneness of the Church
When we rose up to take the way of the Lord’s recovery by absolutely obeying the word of God, we read from the Word that the situation of division into sects and denominations is not right; it is not according to the Bible. Therefore, we all left our respective sects and denominations. In 1932, when we began to meet as the church in Chefoo, Shantung Province, there were eleven brothers present for the first three Lord’s table meetings. These eleven brothers came from at least six or eight denominations. This shows how prevailing was the matter of leaving the denominations. At that time we truly had a spirit of oneness. We did not care that one brother was baptized by immersion and another was baptized by sprinkling. We also did not care that one brother was from the China Inland Mission, another from the Presbyterian Church, and still another from the Chinese Christian Church. When we sat around the Lord’s table, it was seldom that we did not shed tears. We all felt grateful to the Lord that even though we were previously divided by the denominations, we were now breaking the Lord’s bread together to testify of the oneness of the church. This may be considered the second point of the recovery among us.
Abandoning All Rank and Systems and Recovering the Position of All the Saints Being Brothers to One Another
At that time we also abandoned rank and systems and recovered the position of all the saints being brothers to one another. At that time, calling each other brother was very sweet. Previously in the Christian denominations in China, the believers called each other chiaoyu, meaning “religious friend.” Thus, they would say “Chiaoyu Chang,” “Chiaoyu Lee,” or “Chiaoyu Liu”; they never used the intimate term brother. However, at that time we changed and called each other brother. When we met, we called each other brother; it was sweet and intimate. Furthermore, we rejected all rank; we had no pastors, no priests, and even more, no bishops. We abandoned the priestly system in the Roman Catholic Church, the clergy system in the state churches, and the pastoral system in the private churches. We lived together before the Lord as brothers under the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Being Separated from the World
and Staying Away from Idols
We practiced two more points, that is, being separated from the world and staying away from idols. We were completely separated from the world, and we stayed far away from idols. We absolutely did not want to have any part in anything contaminated by the world and idols.
Completely Taking Christ as the Head
and Allowing the Holy Spirit to Rule
As a result, we completely took Christ as the Head and allowed the Holy Spirit to rule among us. All intermediary classes and all forms of organization were eliminated. Every believer, and every church as well, lived directly before Christ, the Head, and allowed the Holy Spirit to govern and direct in all matters.
Taking the Locality
as the Boundary of the Church—
Each Locality Having Only One Church
In 1933 and 1934 we clearly saw a crucial matter—the principle of the church taking a locality as its boundary. At that time, in many places there were brothers who rose up to meet together, but there was a question concerning the boundary of each of these meetings. How should the boundary be delimited? Concerning this matter, a certain brother, after spending much effort in studying the Bible, found that the church takes a locality as its ground and boundary; that is, he saw the light of one locality, one church. In Jerusalem there was one church, in Antioch there was one church, and in Ephesus there was one church. In a large city the church was one; also in a small city the church was one. The church in a large city did not divide into several churches; also the churches in several smaller cities did not unite to form one church. There was only one church in a large city such as Jerusalem, and there was also only one church in a small city such as Thessalonica. In every case, there was one locality, one church.
Based on this principle, from 1934 onward, no matter how large or how small a city is, we have taken the way of having only one church. On one hand, this prevents division and confusion; on the other hand, it also prevents “extra-local” unions. If one locality were united with another locality, it would cause Christ to lose His position and the Holy Spirit to lose His authority. This is not pleasing to the Lord, and it is most offensive to the Lord. According to the teaching of the Bible, the church in each locality should live directly before the Lord and be responsible to the Head, Christ. There should be no superior church, no head church, and no federation. All local churches, whether large or small, are equal. The lowest church is the local church; the highest church is also the local church. There is only one class of churches; there is not a second class. When there is a ranking system among the churches, the church on a higher level becomes the head and the authority of a church on a lower level, thereby usurping the position of Christ and encroaching on the authority of the Holy Spirit. Because we saw this clear light from the Bible, the churches in various localities absolutely would not form a union. No locality can control another locality; rather, every locality allows Christ to be the Head and the Holy Spirit to exercise His authority. On the other hand, all the churches love one another, fellowship with one another, minister to one another, and help one another in the Lord. This is something spiritual and of love; it is not organizational or formal.
The Church’s Administration Being Local
and Its Fellowship Being Universal
Because we saw the preceding item, we all kept one principle: the administration of the church is local, and the fellowship of the church is universal. From the Word of God we clearly saw that the church in each locality has its own administration and is independent of the other churches. Each local church has its own eldership and its own administration. The administration of the church cannot go beyond the locality; once it goes beyond the local boundary, it causes the church to lose its local nature. Thus, the churches in all the localities will not be able to live directly before Christ, the Head. The fellowship of the church should not only be local; rather, it should also be universal because it is the fellowship of the Body of Christ. A local church should have fellowship with all the other churches; otherwise, it will be a sect. Because we have spoken sufficiently regarding this matter in previous chapters, we do not need to speak more regarding it now.
Not Having Any Organization for Unification
but Having Only the Spiritual Fellowship
We also clearly saw that churches in different localities should not have an organization for unification, because the administration of the church is local. All churches should be directly under the ruling of Christ, the Head, and should directly obey the authority of the Holy Spirit. There should be no regional centers or general headquarters acting as higher churches to rule over other churches. Although the churches should have mutual fellowship, this fellowship should be spiritual, not organizational. Therefore, from the beginning we kept this matter—the church should not have any organization for unification but should have only spiritual fellowship.
Emphasizing the Universal Priesthood
In addition, we also emphasized the universal priesthood; that is, we stressed the fact that every believer is a priest. In Judaism, the majority of the people are laymen, and only a few are priests. The Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant churches adopted the Judaic system; thus, they also have a small number of people who are clergy, including priests and pastors, and the majority of the people are laity, the common believers. With a distinction between clergy and laity, most of the members of the Body of Christ have lost their function, and many believers are not able to worship and serve God directly. This is absolutely against the Bible. Therefore, from the beginning we recovered the universal priesthood of the believers. All brothers and sisters are children of God, members of the Body of Christ, and priests to God; not only so, all can approach God and serve God directly. When we are in the bread-breaking meeting, any of the brothers, even newly baptized brothers and young ones, can give the blessing and distribute the bread and the cup if they have the leading. This is not like the denominations, where these things can be done only by pastors, and it is not like the Roman Catholic Church, where they can be performed only by so-called priests. In our midst, there is no intermediary class that monopolizes the spiritual services; instead, we can all serve God directly.
Emphasizing the Body’s Coordination in Service
We also emphasized the Body’s coordination in service, exhorting all the saints to keep the principle of the Body by serving together in coordination instead of serving independently. In preaching the gospel, for example, there is not only one person doing the work; rather, all the brothers and sisters coordinate together to do the work. Some may give the message, some may lead the singing, some may invite people to come, some may serve as ushers, some may sit with the guests, some may converse with the new ones, some may lead the new ones to pray, and some may follow up by visiting the new ones. All these tasks are done in coordination. We kept this principle in all our services; no one monopolized the service. Even though there are a few responsible brothers, they are only taking the lead and overseeing. The entire service is in the hands of the brothers and sisters.
Emphasizing the Practical Church Service
We also emphasized the practical church service. In all aspects of our service we did not want merely a theory; we also wanted the practice. In matters such as how to meet, how to serve in coordination, how to preach the gospel, how to give a testimony, how to speak for God, how to visit the brothers and sisters, and how to fellowship with them, we paid much attention to practically carrying these out and rendered practical guidance to the saints.
All the items mentioned above are the crucial points of the Lord’s recovery in the East. The situation among us is completely different from that of traditional Protestant churches and that of the Roman Catholic Church. (The Testimony and the Ground of the Church, Section Three: The Degradation and the Recovery of the Church, msg. 3)