THE ELDERSHIP IN GOD’S NEW TESTAMENT ECONOMY

SERIES THREE
THE ELDERSHIP IN GOD’S NEW TESTAMENT ECONOMY

The Living of the Elders

Message Two
Living Under the Principle of the Nazarite

Scripture Reading: Num. 6:1-12, 1 John 2:15-17; James 4:4; Gal. 1:4, John 7:18; 1 Tim. 2:6a; 1 Cor. 11:14; Heb. 13:13; Rom. 13:1-2; Matt. 12:46-50; Acts 15:39; Rev. 3:1, 4; 1 Pet. 1:18

I. As those living in the principle of the Nazarite, elders and co-workers must be rescued from all aspects of the world—Num. 6:1-4; 1 John 2:15-17; James 4:4; Gal. 1:4:

A. One aspect of the world from which we must be saved is degraded Christianity—one of the “schools” within the “university” of the world—Gal. 1:3-4, 1 Peter 1:18:

1. Today’s Christendom is huge and devilishly abnormal; the nature of the constituent of the church has been changed, and its size has become abnormal—Matt. 13:31-32.

2. The difference between apostate Christendom and the genuine church is that one is a mixture while the other is pure—v. 33:

a. The entire Christendom has become a corrupted mixture—1 Cor. 5:6.

b. The local churches have to be crystally transparent, with no mixture—Rev. 21:18, 21.

B. “In most Christian work, supposedly carried out for Christ, there is very little life ministered to people”—John 5:7 (footnote 2):

1. “To him [Watchman Nee] work did not mean much; life meant everything”—1 Cor. 3:7.

2. “In my whole life, he [Watchman Nee] is the only person I [Witness Lee] have known who paid more attention to life than to work” (Watchman Nee—A Seer of the Divine Revelation in the Present Age, pp. 85, 87)—Duet. 30:19; Acts 17:25.

C. As elders and co-workers, we must lead the churches out from all practices containing any traces of the world and anything in the principle of Babylon, thus, keeping the Lord’s recovery away from anything worldly or Babylonian—Gal. 1:4, Heb. 13:13.

II. As those living in the principle of the Nazarite, elders and co-workers must be separated from self-glory and consecrated to the Lord to live under His headship—Num. 6:5; John 7:18; 1 Thes. 2:6a; 1 Cor. 11:14; Heb. 13:13; Rom. 13:1-2:

A. A Nazarite separated to the Lord should not cut his hair, but rather bear the shame, long hair being a shame to a man—Num. 6:5, 1 Cor. 11:14:

1. To have long hair means to be separated from self-glory, thus, having no self-consciousness, self-righteousness, or self-glory—vv. 14-15; Num. 6:5 with footnote 1.

2. We must “go forth unto Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach,” being despised by others, without any glory-seeking—Heb. 13:13.

B. A Nazarite fully consecrated to the Lord must be absolutely under authority, absolutely under headship—Num. 6:2, 5, Rom. 13:1-2:

1. The shaving of ones’ head signifies the rejecting of the headship of the Lord, the casting off of the Lord’s authority over us—Num. 6:5 with footnote 1.

2. As elders and co-workers we must respect authority and remain in subjection to the Lord’s headship, thus, casting off the rebellious nature that is still within us—Rom. 13:1-2; Titus 3:3.

III. As those living in the principle of the Nazarite, elders and co-workers must be delivered from natural affections—Num. 6:6-8; Matt. 12:46-50; Acts 15:39:

A. A Nazarite consecrated to the Lord must not be defiled by anything dead, especially by the death of a nearest relative—Num. 6:6-8, Matt. 12:46-50:

1. Our nearest relatives, representing our natural affections, can be a means to deaden us—Num. 6:6-8; Luke 21:16.

2. We must be separated from our natural affections, which so easily deaden us—Matt. 12:46-50.

3. We must overcome our natural affections and not be affected by our mother, our father, our sister, our brother, or even our wife or husband; if not, we will become deadened—Luke 14:26.

B. Elders and co-workers must do their best to be kept away from family involvement and entanglement in the church leadership and their work—2 Tim. 2:4, Matt. 12:47-48:

1. The relationship among the co-workers, the elders, and the churches must be altogether in the spirit, not in anything natural—vv. 47-48.

2. There must be a line of separation between the leadership and the family—vv. 47-48.

3. To bring one’s family into the work, eventually, will not be a healthy situation—vv. 47-48.

IV. As those living in the principle of the Nazarite, elders and co-workers must be saved from touching spiritual deadness—Num. 6:9-12; Rev. 3:1, 4:

A. Numbers 6:9 shows you that if any man dies suddenly beside you, you are defiled by his deadness:

1. Anyone’s spiritual death can affect you—v. 9.

2. Whenever you see or smell the stench of spiritual death, you must run away—v. 9.

3. Do not enjoy looking into the trashcans; all homes (churches) have a trashcan—Prov. 4:24.

4. Learn to taste the good things, not the defiled things such as gossip, criticizing, and murmuring; if not, you will be deadened—Matt 12:36; 1 Cor. 10:10; Phil. 2:14.

5. Negative talk kills; learn to keep yourself away from the dead members—1 Cor. 10:10; Prov. 4:24.

B. A Nazarite must remain fully sanctified, separated to God from all things, and should continually cleave to God—Psa. 110:3, Luke 9:62, Phil. 3:13-14:

1. It is not easy to avoid the unexpected death of someone near us because that kind of death is often hidden—Num. 6:9 with footnote 1.

2. If we are defiled by unexpected deadness, we need to have a new start—vv. 9-12.

3. If we are defiled, we need to be cleansed by separating ourselves to the Lord—vv. 9-12.

 

Ministry Excerpts:

BEING SEPARATED FROM THE WORLD

The word Nazarite means “one who is separated.” The root of the noun Nazarite is the Hebrew verb nazar, which means to be separated (6:2). The Nazarites were separated from the world unto God. In the Old Testament God ordained that the descendants of Aaron would be the priests. Thus, some were born into the priesthood according to God’s selection. However, the door was not closed for others who desired to serve God, for God also established the principle of the Nazarite. If those who were not born into the priesthood had a heart to serve God, they could volunteer as Nazarites. Samuel was a Nazarite. He was not born a priest, but by becoming a Nazarite, he eventually acted and served as a priest (1 Sam. 1—3). The Aaronic priests were chosen by God, but the Nazarites volunteered themselves. These two principles still exist in the church life today. On the one hand, we are chosen by God (Eph. 1:4); on the other hand, we need to volunteer as Nazarites in order to serve as priests. Although we know that we are chosen by God, in our actual service we do not have much consciousness of being chosen. Instead, when we serve in the church life, we are mainly conscious of the need to volunteer. The Lord Jesus was the real Nazarite. As His followers, we need to volunteer to serve God. Romans 12:1-2 speaks about voluntarily offering ourselves and being separated from the world unto God. (CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word”, ch. 8)

The Abnormal Development of the Outward Appearance of the Kingdom

[Matthew chapter 13] verse 32 says that after the mustard seed has grown, “It is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree.” The church, which is the embodiment of the kingdom, should be like an herb to produce food, but it became a tree, a lodging place for birds, having its nature and function changed. (This is against the law of God’s creation, that every plant must be after its kind — Gen. 1:11-12.) This happened when Constantine the Great mixed the church with the world in the first part of the fourth century. He brought thousands of false believers into Christianity, making it Christendom, no longer the church. Hence, this third parable corresponds to the third of the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3, the church in Pergamos (2:12-17). The mustard is an annual herb, whereas the tree is a perennial plant. The church, according to its heavenly and spiritual nature, should be like the mustard, sojourning on the earth. But with its nature changed, the church became deeply rooted and settled in the earth as a tree, flourishing with its enterprises as the branches to lodge many evil persons and things. This has formed the outward organization of the outward appearance of the kingdom of the heavens.

For a mustard seed to become a tree is a violation of the principle ordained by God in His creation for living matter — that every plant must be according to its kind. This is what is referred to in Genesis 1, where we are told that every life grows according to its kind. A peach grows after the peach kind and an apple after the apple kind. This principle applies not only to plant life, but also to animal life and even to human life. Every type of life must develop according to its kind. A cow must be a cow, a donkey must be a donkey, and a horse must be a horse. A mule is an example of an animal not according to its kind. A mule is neither a horse nor a donkey; it is a hybrid between a horse and donkey. If a certain form of vegetable or plant life is not according to its kind, it will be abnormal and against the principle ordained by God in His creation. In keeping with this principle, a mustard must be according to a mustard, and a tree must be according to a tree. It is abnormal for a mustard to break God’s principle and become a tree. But by growing into a tree, the mustard herb breaks this principle. This kind of growth is abnormal, a violation of God’s regulation.

Today’s Christendom is huge and devilishly abnormal. It is not only a tree, but a great tree. By this we see that not only the nature of the constituent of the kingdom has been changed, but that the size of the kingdom has become abnormal. If an herb is to be good for food, it should not grow too large. When an herb grows abnormally large, it is no longer tender, delicious, or good for food. In His economy God intends that His children be like wheat or mustard, the smaller and the more tender, the better. Furthermore, we should be annuals like wheat and mustard, neither of which remains more than a year. The church people must be annuals, not perennials. We should not be rooted deeply into the earth for a long period of time, for the Lord’s intention is that we be sojourners on earth. As long as we are annuals like wheat and herbs, we shall produce the best foodstuff, grain to make loaves of bread and mustard to match the bread. This will afford others excellent food for their nourishment and satisfaction. However, the enemy has made the mustard a perennial tree that does not produce any foodstuff. ( Life-Study of Matthew, msg. 38)

The Local Churches Being Clear as Crystal with No Mixture

The Bible tells us that God chose Jerusalem as the place to put His name and build up His habitation. God told His people that when they got into the good land, they had no right to choose the place in which they would worship Him. They had to go to the place of His choice. He would choose a place out of all their tribes to put His name and to build up His habitation (Deut. 12:5). They all had to come to that unique place to worship the Lord. This was for the keeping of the oneness. It was by this unique place of worship to God that the oneness of His people was kept for generations. This unique place was Jerusalem. In Jerusalem the house of God was built, and the glory of God filled that house (1 Kings 8:10-11). That was the golden age of the history of the people of Israel.

Later, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to destroy Jerusalem. He burned the house of God in Jerusalem, carried away all the vessels in God’s house for God’s worship, and put them in the temple of his idols in Babylon (2 Chron. 36:6-7). What a contradiction this was. This shows that even in Babylon, there are some of the things related to God. In the temple of idols in Babylon, there are some vessels belonging to God’s house. This brings us to the fourth point concerning Babylon: it is a mixture of the things of God with the things of the idols. The vessels used in God’s house were in the temple of the idols.

In the New Testament this mixture is enlarged. In spirit John saw a vision of the great Babylon (Rev. 17:3-5). Babylon is decorated, gilded, with all the things of the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem is built with three precious materials: gold, precious stones, and pearls (21:18-21). The great Babylon is gilded with gold, precious stones, and pearls. She gives people the appearance that she is the same as the New Jerusalem, but she is not built in a solid way with these precious things; she is only gilded with these treasures as ornaments for outward display. This is a deception intending to entice people. It is the harlot’s false appearance.

The difference between apostate Christendom and the genuine church is that one is a mixture, but the other is pure. In the New Jerusalem there is no mixture. Everything is pure. Revelation 21:18 says the city is pure gold. Also, the river of water of life is bright as crystal (22:1). It is absolutely pure, without mixture.

The description in Revelation 17 says that this evil woman, the evil Babylon, holds a golden cup in her hand. But this golden cup is “full of abominations and the unclean things of her fornication” (v. 4). Outwardly it is golden, but inwardly there are evil things. It is a mixture. It has spiritual persons, some precious stones, like Madame Guyon, Father Fenelon, and Brother Lawrence, who give some outward appearance. But inwardly it is full of all kinds of evil.

The local churches have to be clear as crystal, with no mixture. Those of us who were in Christianity can testify concerning its hypocrisy and falsehood. Many good things are there to give a good appearance, but when you get into it, you see the evil mixture. We should not be deceived by the outward appearance of Babylon. It has an outward gilding, an outward decoration, but inwardly the situation is different. (CWWL, 1972, vol. 1, “The Living and Practical Way to Enjoy Christ”, ch. 7)

God Caring Much More for What We Are Than for What We Do

In 2:12—3:11 Paul covers the ministry of the new covenant, and in 3:12—7:16, the ministers of the new covenant. The section in this Epistle on the ministers of the new covenant is much longer than the section on the ministry of the new covenant. The reason for this is that God cares much more for the ministers than He does for the ministry. In other words, God cares more for what we are than for what we do. This means that what we are is much more important to Him than what we do.

Today both in the Christian world and the secular world more attention is given to what people do than to what they are. Christians mainly pay their attention to work or ministry, yet neglect the being of the person who does the work. They pay attention to the work and the ministry much more than to the worker and the minister. But according to the Bible, God pays more attention to what we are than to what we do or to what we can do. He cares for the kind of person we are and for the kind of life we live. Therefore, in 2 Corinthians Paul first presents the New Testament ministry. Then he goes on to show that this excellent, marvelous ministry needs excellent ministers with an excellent life.

We need to be deeply impressed by the fact that God cares much more for what we are than for what we do. What we do must be measured by what we are. Furthermore, our being must match our work; that is, what we are must match what we do. Our being must match our doing. Thus, our being and our doing go together. If we care only for what we do and not for being the right kind of person, then what we do will not be very weighty. Our doing will be weighty only when it is matched by what we are in our being. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, msg. 39)

DENYING ALL SELF-GLORY

The second item of the Nazarite’s consecration is that his hair should not be cut. Those in the priesthood must be a peculiar people. We must be somewhat strange and uncommon. If I were to say that you are peculiar, you might not be so happy. But if you were to say that to me, I would be very happy.

What does it mean to forbid the Nazarite to cut his hair? First Corinthians 11:14 says that long hair is a dishonor to a man. It is not a glory, but a dishonor. It is a glory for a woman, but a dishonor for a man. A Nazarite is one who is willing to bear shame for the Lord. To have long hair means to be separated from self-glory. The self has been put to death; hence, there is no self-consciousness, self-righteousness, or self-glory. As long as we have something of self-glory, we can never be in the priesthood. We must bear shame for the Lord’s testimony and for His purpose. Do not be a glory-seeker, but be a shame-bearer.

Many times some of the brothers have told me not to say or do certain things because they feared that I might get a bad name. But I desire to have a bad name! Some brothers even call me a troublemaker. I praise the Lord for such evil reports! We should not try to be so good or nice. When the Lord Jesus was on the earth, He was not always so nice. If we are going to be priests, we must learn to bear the shame.

Hebrews 13:13 tells us to go outside the camp and bear His reproach. This means to bear His shame. Do not be afraid of bad names or evil reports. If we are not bold enough to bear the shame, we cannot be in the priesthood. A priest is a person with long hair; that is, he has no self-glory. To be a genuine priest will, more or less, cause others to look down on you. This is especially true in this country, which is a nation of amusements and glory-seeking. In this country you can speak to Christians about anything except separation from the world and the denial of self-glory. Whenever you speak about these things, they are offended. There is a real price to pay for the priesthood. We must bear the reproach, denying all self-glory for His sake. (CWWL, 1966, vol. 1, “The Priesthood”, msg. 7)

The Shaving of One’s Head Signifying the Rejecting of the Headship of the Lord

The shaving of one’s head signifies the rejecting of the headship of the Lord. Spiritually speaking, for us to shave our head means that we cast off the Lord’s authority over us. The Nazarite was to let his hair grow long (freely); that is, he was to remain in subjection to the Lord’s headship, wherein is the power (Judg. 16:17).

Today is a day of lawlessness. If we were to do away with the police and close the courts, society would be full of robbers and murderers. We could not bear to live in such an intolerable situation. The United States of America has an excellent constitution, and based upon this constitution there are strong laws and many courts to see that these laws are carried out. Everyone who appears in a court of law must submit to the laws of the United States government. Otherwise, the entire society would be destroyed.

Letting Every Person be Subject to the Authorities over Them

The fallen race is a rebellious race. The rebellious nature is still within us. Thus, it would be dangerous to be in a situation in which there is no deputy authority. This was the reason God established human government (Gen. 9:5-6). The entire government is a deputy authority representing God’s authority. Speaking of this, Paul says, “Let every person be subject to the authorities over them. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are appointed by God. Therefore he who resists the authority opposes what God has appointed” (Rom. 13:1-2a). Teachers, employers, and police officers are deputy authorities. Everywhere on earth there is deputy authority.

Let us apply this matter of deputy authority to the church. Is there deputy authority in the church? If there is no deputy authority in the church, why are there elders? Recently, some have said that there is no deputy authority in the New Testament. If such a claim is true, why does the New Testament tell us that there are elders in the churches? Surely, Christ is the Head, and the authority is the Spirit, but we still need elders in the church. Without elders, the church would be in anarchy.

There is also deputy authority in our family life. The parents are the deputy authority to the children (Eph. 6:1), and the husbands are the deputy authority to the wives (Eph. 5:23). Paul even says that a wife should fear her husband (Eph. 5:33). For a wife to fear her husband means that she takes him as the deputy authority. Even in a small family there is deputy authority. Then how much more should there be deputy authority in the church!

Two particular characteristics, or two signs, of a Nazarite are, first, that he does not touch any worldly pleasure and, second, that he always keeps himself under some authority. These are solemn matters. As those who would be absolute for God, we must abstain from earthly pleasure. Furthermore, we must not shave our head; that is, we must respect authority and remain under the headship of our Lord in every way. (Life-Study of Numbers, msg. 8)

BEING SEPARATED FROM OUR NATURAL AFFECTION

Our Nearest Relatives Being a Means to Deaden Us

The third item in the Nazarite’s consecration is to not be defiled by anything dead, especially by the death of our nearest relatives. Our nearest relatives, representing our natural affections, can be a means to deaden us. We must be separated from our natural affection which so easily deadens. Our business with the Lord is our business with the Lord; it must not be involved with anything of our natural affection. If it is, then immediately we are deadened.

Why are so many Christians who have been born priests and kings out of function today? It is simply because of these three things: earthly pleasure or entertainment, self-glory, and natural affection. If we are going to realize the position of the genuine priesthood, we must voluntarily consecrate ourselves unto the Lord to be separated from all these things. (CWWL, 1966, vol. 1, “The Priesthood”, msg. 7)

Family Involvement Being an Entanglement in Spiritual Things

According to human affections, it is really hard for anyone not to have his family involved in his career. If you have a business or some kind of enterprise, it is easy for your family to get involved in it. Nonetheless, in spiritual things family involvement is always an entanglement. The relationship among the apostles and among the elders and even among the churches should be absolutely and purely in the spirit. I do believe this is the basic reason that in the early days of the church and the work, the elders and particularly the apostles did not bring in their families. When the family is brought into the church leadership or into the work, there is a peril that the thing would not be so pure.

I have seen a few places—praise the Lord, not many—where the co-workers brought their family into the relationship with other saints. In some places also I have seen where the elders brought their families into relationships with others. Eventually, with not one exception, wherever there was such an involvement, there was suffering and loss.

Let me give you a real illustration. There was a church in which an elder had contacts with the brothers and sisters. These contacts led to a relationship between his family and theirs. A number of these brothers with their wives were willing to help this elder in church affairs but not in a pure way. Eventually, this elder’s home became a center for this kind of relationship. They termed it fellowship, but actually they went far beyond the limits of fellowship.

Some wives do not like to have others come into their home frequently. They like to keep their home free of so many contacts. This does not mean that they do not love the brothers and sisters. They love them, yet they like to keep a distance. However, there are also some sisters—not too many—who like to have people coming into their home. They like their family to be like a market, with the more people the better.

I have seen this happen. In every place where relationships among families have been too close, the church in that place has suffered a great loss. Why? Eventually that family actually rules, controls, the leadership. Actually, it was not the family; it was the wife. That wife controlled the leadership. This has happened in some places. The scale was quite large in some places. The larger the scale of such a practice, the more the church eventually suffers.

The point is this. In the eldership we must bear the responsibility in a very pure way. There must be purity in the motive, in the intention, in the procedures, and in all the doings related to the leadership.

It is always good to draw a clear line between the leadership and your family. It is not easy. Because you are one of those taking the lead, things will come to your attention at home. Then your wife or children can easily get involved. For the long run, it is always profitable to draw a clear line. (CWWL, 1983, vol. 1, “Practical Talks to the Elders”, ch. 6)

SEPARATING OURSELVES FROM SPIRITUAL DEADNESS

A Nazarite must always try his best to avoid death. Do not allow anyone to stand by you who is about to die suddenly. If someone beside you dies suddenly, you may feel that your situation is excusable. But there is no excuse for being defiled by death, and the sudden death of someone will cause your Nazarite vow to be made void. Especially when rumors and gossip are spreading, it is better not to stand by anyone. A person may suddenly die in front of you by uttering all kinds of death. Once you have been contaminated by death, you need to deal with that contamination and have a new start. Otherwise, you will be killed, and eventually the entire church, seemingly without explanation, will be brought into a deadened situation. (Life-study of Numbers, msg. 10)

A Sudden Death of One Beside Him Defiling the Nazarite

Humanly speaking, it would not be the fault of a Nazarite if one beside him died suddenly. Nevertheless, such a sudden death would defile the Nazarite, and the Nazarite was held responsible for this defilement. Today we are living among others, and we cannot predict when, spiritually speaking, someone will die beside us. If we are defiled by unexpected deadness, we need to have a new start. We need to be cleansed by reseparating ourselves to the Lord.

God Hating Death Much More Than Sin

We do not realize how dirty and defiling death is. We consider sin to be very defiling, yet God hates death much more than sin. In the church life, sin may come in to defile the church and damage the saints, but more often we are defiled by death. Death is something hidden. Often death is right beside us, yet we have no consciousness of it or feeling concerning it and become defiled by it. (Life-study of Numbers, msg. 9)

Running Away Whenever Smelling the Stench of Spiritual Death

The Word of the Lord is even clearer about the matter of spiritual deadness. Numbers 6:9 says that if anyone dies very suddenly beside you, you are defiled. Anyone can affect us. If we are deadened by them, all the days of our separation will be lost. We may have overcome our natural affections, but one day in the church, a brother standing beside us dies very suddenly. I do not mean that he dies physically, but spiritually. If this happens, we must be careful not to be affected by him. Do not let him pass his deadness on to you. Satan is the very source of death, and he always likes to spread death to others. Many brothers and sisters in the church life have been deadened by one or two dead members. Whenever we sense or smell the stench of spiritual death, we must run away. This is the fourth item in the Nazarite’s consecration.

Do you like to look into a garbage can? No matter how fine anyone’s home is, there is always a trash can. Even a king’s palace has a trash can. There is also a trash can in the universe. Hell is the universal trash can to contain all the garbage in the universe. Do not say that such-and-such local church is so wonderful, for every local church has a trash can. If you come to my home, will you come to smell and enjoy the trash can? No. But sometimes when we go to a local church, we do not go to the “living room” but to the “trash can.” We do not exercise ourselves to taste the good things but to enjoy the trash can—the gossip, the criticism, and the murmuring. Eventually, we are deadened. The more we contact these negative things, the more we cannot pray. We are simply deadened. We may have one hundred reasons for this or that, but we are deadened. If any man dies very suddenly near us, we must run away. Run away from the dead members, or your spirit will be deadened.

Offering Ourselves unto the Lord So That He Can Borrow Us for His Purpose

We must realize that the situation today is not normal. If it were, it would be unnecessary to apply the principle of the Nazarite. We must volunteer to be a Nazarite, such as Samuel, who turned the age of degradation into the age of the kingdom. It was a Nazarite like John the Baptist who turned the Old Testament dispensation into the New and ushered in the Lord Jesus Christ. I believe that in these last days there will also be those who turn this age into another age. Only the Nazarites can bring back the Lord Jesus. It cannot be done by today’s Christianity, but only by those who voluntarily separate themselves from earthly enjoyments, self-glory, natural affection, and sudden spiritual deadness in others. Then they will be the Nazarites of today who will turn this age of degradation into the age of the kingdom, and they will bring back the Lord.

We all must lend ourselves to the Lord. Due to a lack of spiritual personnel for His administration, the Lord is very poor today. We must offer ourselves unto Him so that He can borrow us for His purpose. Only the regulation of the Nazarite can meet today’s emergency. The Lord is calling a people to separate themselves entirely from all earthly enjoyments, self-glory, natural affection, and sudden spiritual deadness. Who will be the volunteers? (CWWL, 1966, vol. 1, “The Priesthood”, msg. 7)