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Scripture Reading: Psa. 133
Psalm 133 is a clear description of a local church that is under God’s blessing. In such a local church the fine oil is flowing, and the dew of Hermon is descending (vv. 2-3). God’s blessing to the church is simply life, which is also God Himself. This psalm is symmetrical in content; it has two items, two conditions, and two issues. The two items are the fine oil and the dew of Hermon, the two conditions are goodness and pleasantness, and the two issues are a flowing and a descending. In this psalm we can see the condition of a local church that is under God’s blessing.
The blessing upon a local church depends on the believers’ dwelling in unity (v. 1). Unity in this verse is a picture of the genuine oneness in the church. Oneness is higher than unity. When there is oneness, there is no need for uniting. The blessing on the church depends on our dwelling in oneness. We should compare the church in our locality with the description in this psalm to see whether the church is in oneness or divided. When the church has oneness, the fine oil will flow, and the dew will descend.
The elders are the key to a local church being under the blessing. When there is oneness among the elders, the saints will sing hymns and praise. When the elders lack the oneness, the whole church will suffer; there will be no growth in life, and the church will not be able to go on positively. Hence, the most important thing in our serving the church is the oneness.
It is the Lord’s mercy that has kept us in the proper oneness of the church all these years. On the one hand, we worship Him, because although many people have fallen away, we are still on this way. On the other hand, we admit that in many aspects we are still not one. We should ask ourselves whether there is the genuine oneness in our local church. We should not ask whether our church is good or bad but whether it has the genuine oneness. There is oneness in every local church, but that oneness can be damaged, because there are many “worms” that eat away at our oneness. The oneness in the local churches can be eaten by these worms to such an extent that there is only a thin layer of oneness left. In this chapter we will examine ten worms that destroy the oneness so that we can kill the worms one by one.
A brother who is controlling thinks of himself as being the top elder, the first among the elders; he considers the other elders merely as helpers. This is a big worm. The oneness in many churches has been eaten by this worm. Although several people appear to bear responsibility together in coordination, when something happens, a brother already has an opinion concerning what to do and only goes through the motion of asking others for input. This worm destroys the oneness and must not be allowed.
Whoever wants to be first in the church will be the first to destroy the oneness. From the human viewpoint, there is a need for control so that there will not be chaos in a church with many people. Of course, there must be administration for the sake of orderliness in the church, but administrating is not controlling. Controlling is not allowed. We should not be the one who always voices our opinions and makes decisions. Anything to be decided upon must be presented to the elders so that they may have thorough prayer together and then fellowship. After they fellowship thoroughly, the elders can make decisions. This is the way to kill the first worm.
Almost everyone has the worm of insisting on his own views. This worm is hard to deal with because it is subtle. Suppose Brother A makes a suggestion that is not accepted by the other elders. Although Brother A may not fight for his suggestion, he privately does things according to his own way. This is to insist on one’s own view. Brother A may seemingly drop his suggestion, and he will not say anything further; he will not express any opinions, nor will he fellowship. But by not fellowshipping, he has closed the door to the other brothers. If the suggestion that was accepted by the brothers does not work, he may say that he already knew that it would not work. This should not be practiced among the responsible brothers. The responsible brothers should learn to bring up matters for fellowship without insisting on their views.
We can make suggestions when we fellowship with the elders, but we should not have opinions. For example, it does not matter how the chairs in the meeting hall are arranged. Suppose someone insists that the chairs should be upside down. Can we accept such a suggestion? In order to keep the oneness in the church, we must learn to have no opinions. We should not think that having opinions is a small matter. If we have a problem with opinions, the worms of controlling and insisting on one’s views will crawl out. As long as a matter does not involve fornication, sins, or idol worship, we should do our best to keep the oneness by not expressing our opinions.
I once rode with four brothers. When we came to a fork in the road, we stopped, and the four brothers began to discuss which road to take. They discussed for forty minutes but still could not reach a conclusion. I eventually told the brothers that it did not matter which road we took, because if we had not stopped to discuss which road to take, we would have already arrived at our destination.
The elders’ meeting is an indication of whether a local church dwells in oneness. There is hardly a locality in which the elders do not argue. The elders are like a married couple; it is rare to find elders who do not argue with one another. Some elders may not argue, but as long as they have different opinions or views, it is hard for them to be calm and peaceful. Our opinion is a small worm, but it will eat up the oneness. Hence, we must be careful. We must learn the lesson of not expressing our opinions with the brothers.
A brother with the temperament of a donkey does not submit to others. A person with such a temperament thinks that he is superior to others. Almost every Christian desires to stand out and does not want to be a little lamb. Some brothers think that they are more qualified than the elders in the church. This is to have the temperament of a donkey. Often brothers who are unwilling to be elders also have the temperament of a donkey. Such brothers may say that they do not need to be elders, because Brother So-and-so is an elder. We are all born of Adam and therefore have the temperament of a donkey, so we are hard to deal with. If a donkey is in the midst of a flock of sheep and kicks and jumps wildly, thinking that he is higher than others, the flock will definitely suffer.
Some people are like “dragonflies” in the air, flying aimlessly and always bumping into things. If such a brother is an elder, many saints will be crushed to death. Such impetuous people tear down the oneness among the saints.
In the church quite a few brothers play clever tricks like a monkey. We have suffered much from this in the church over the years. This worm has devastated the oneness in many local churches. We should have prospered more under the Lord’s blessing, but our oneness was eaten by the worm of people’s trickery. As a result, we lost some of the blessing. What a tragic situation!
In the church it is better to be honest and simple. Of course, we need to exercise wisdom so that we know when we should speak and when we should not speak. However, we must not play politics. Playing politics can be likened to burying a corpse in the snow. When the snow melts, the corpse will be exposed. Playing politics gives place to the devil. Some people are not even aware that they are playing politics, because it is their habit. In our dealings with the saints we must be loyal, faithful, and sincere in the spirit. The more we are in the spirit, the simpler we will be. A simple person will gain the spiritual trust of the saints, and trust will bring in the blessing. If the saints lose spiritual trust in the responsible brothers, the church will lose its blessing.
We should not create problems in the church, nor should we evade problems. Some people always evade problems; they leave the problems for others to bear. The more we evade problems, the bigger the problems will become. It is impossible to have no problems in the church. When problems arise, we should bring them to the Lord in prayer. We should pray with the saints in order to deal with and swallow up the problems, thus taking the problems as our bread (cf. Num. 14:9). We should not play politics or use trickery to deal with the problems. Politics and trickery generate problems and do further damage to the church.
We need wisdom, not cleverness, in order to administrate the church. Cleverness is the most harmful worm because it subtly brings many problems into the church. We cannot afford to be careless in this matter.
Assuming positions means that some assume the position of an apostle or an elder in the church. When the testimony of the church begins in a locality, some saints serve zealously and assume the position of an elder. These saints think that they are the only ones qualified to be elders. When the co-workers go to such places to serve, these brothers are accommodating, but the service is not smooth. Some brothers who should be elders are unwilling to be elders, but others who should not be elders assume the position of an elder. This is the primary reason that some local churches are not strong.
These ten worms are ten intrinsic factors that damage the oneness in the church. If instead of being watchful we allow these ten worms to continue to eat, the oneness of the church will be destroyed. The most terrible thing about worms is that they cannot be seen from the surface. By the time we see them, it is already too late. Whether in a family or in the church, the oneness is crucial and must not be damaged. When the oneness is damaged, the ointment will not flow, and the dew will not descend. Some churches do not receive the blessing, because the oneness has been damaged. If we would deal with these worms, within a short period of time the churches would be blessed. If the oneness between a husband and wife is not damaged, the family will be blessed. If the oneness in the church is not damaged, the church will also be blessed, even if there are no gifted persons in the church. May the Lord have mercy on us so that we would be on guard against these ten worms. Then the church will dwell together in oneness and receive the God-commanded blessing.
