Search
Date: February 14, 1950Place: Jordan Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong
From now on, we have to carry on the work in the church in Hong Kong in a steady way. Therefore, tonight we will officially ask a few brothers to serve as overseers. The condition of some brothers is not up to the point of such an appointment yet. I hope that all of us will humble ourselves. I hope that no one will be so proud as to think that he is qualified to be an elder. None of us should feel that we are trustworthy in ourselves, because none of us satisfy the conditions spoken of in the Epistle to Timothy. Perhaps the Lord has to oversee all of us directly.
In Hong Kong we had some responsible brothers in the past, but there was not a clear distinction between the co-workers, the responsible brothers, and the elders. Some co-workers reside here, while others do not. I will take the opportunity while everyone is here tonight to make a clear arrangement. The elders are responsible for local affairs, while the co-workers are responsible for the work in the region. Tonight, no co-worker is from outside this region. If you are a co-worker working as an elder, you have to remember that while you are living in Hong Kong, you have to coordinate with the brothers and sisters in the church in Hong Kong to serve the Lord together.
For the eldership we have four brothers: Brothers James Chen, K. H. Weigh, Chu Ze-yuen, and Hsu Jin-chin. Brother Cheng Him-yuen is very responsible in many things. He is burdened for many practical affairs, but I hope that he will have not only a feeling for practical affairs but a feeling for the brothers and sisters also. I hope that the young brothers and sisters will learn to submit to these few elderly ones.
What is an elder? The word in Greek is presbuteros. Elder is an accurate translation, but many people do not have an accurate understanding of this word; at least they do not have an accurate understanding of the matter of eldership. An elder is not only a person who is older in age, but someone who is stronger. A young brother calls his older brother "big brother." This means that the two have the same life, but that one is older and stronger than the other. Many brothers and sisters have a wrong concept that the young saints are burning while the older ones are conservative. To them the church consists of two families, not one. Some people think that the young ones are zealous while the older ones are cautious. However, the elders are presbyters; they are the "big brothers," which means that they possess something more than the younger ones and are even stronger than the young ones. The young ones may say that they love the Lord, but the elders must love the Lord more. The young ones may say that they are zealous, but the elders must be more zealous. They must be more consecrated than the others. Their zeal is the same as the others' in nature, but it must be stronger in degree. Their consecration is the same as the others' in nature, but it must be stronger in degree. In the church the elders must live a testimony of sacrificing more and forsaking more than the young brothers and sisters.
The elders are responsible for overseership. They should take the lead among the brothers and sisters, not put pressure on them from behind. Unless they can do this, they are not qualified to be elders. In the next five or ten years, there will be mass migrations to Hong Kong. If the elders do not have the proper leadership, Hong Kong will become useless. The church should have elders who are not only cautious but strong as well. Perhaps the elders are not as physically strong as the younger ones, but in consecration, love, and zeal, they cannot fall behind the younger ones. The Bible does not say anything about old Christians. If there is an old Christian, he must be old in the sense of ancient, like an old tree that flourishes by the stream. Such a one has to be more zealous than others. If anyone should be extreme, he should be the first one. The elders and the young people are two ends of the same sugarcane stick. The young people are the top end, while the elders are the bottom end. They are more juicy than the younger ones. Do not think that one is a sugarcane stick while the other is a barley stalk. No, both are the same in nature.
The work of the elders is to oversee. This means to inspect and supervise things from a height. All the brothers and sisters are working, and these ones are observing. No one can escape their eyesight. They know as soon as someone moves. They know who is loving the world, who is naughty, and who is in sin. They know who is not honest and greedy for material things, but their job is not just to look, but to help those who err. As soon as a brother gets into trouble, the elders have to adjust him and render him help immediately.
Moreover, in the church, every brother and sister should be serving. Every member should exercise his function. The elders should not replace others' work while they are exercising the overseership; they should only oversee them in their work. They must not be the only ones who are occupied but must make many other brothers and sisters busy. Good overseers must know how to initiate and must know how to bring all the brothers and sisters into the work. They have to remember that they are overseers; they are not replacement workers. They have to work with the brothers and sisters, not work for them.
An elder must devote his time to his work. If a hundred brothers and sisters are working and one among them is an elder, he has to devote his time to oversee the rest. He has to ensure that they are indeed working and that no one is standing idle. He has to be like the master of the vineyard who stands at the gate to observe everything. He has to make sure that no one is lazy. He has to equip everyone to serve, whether in physical chores or in spiritual matters. Everyone needs to see that he cannot be idle. If everyone does this, the gospel will spread in a prevailing way.
If we label one brother as useless and another sister as unsuitable, sooner or later all the brothers and sisters will become useless and only we will be useful. We have to perfect others to serve. We have to make the useless ones useful. The church is the Body of Christ, and all the brothers and sisters are members of this Body. We cannot call anyone useless. The Lord does give some five-talented ones to the church, but we must remember that the church is not built upon five-talented gifts or two-talented gifts. The chief factor in the building up of the church is the one-talented ones. There are not too many five-talented ones in the church; perhaps, we can only find one in a few centuries. There are also very few two-talented ones. It would be hard for the church to be built up with five-talented ones. In the past we paid too much attention to the five- and two-talented ones. As a result, all the one- talented ones were buried. The way of the church today is to have all the one-talented ones dig up their one talent.
Today we are not afraid that the Lord would only give one-talented members to the church. We can ask Him to give us more of these members. As long as we all dig up our one talent, the church will have a way to go on. Today it is hard to find a five-talented one, but five of the least gifted ones will add up to five talents. The church is not short of men. The service of the church is manifested when all the one- talented ones are mobilized, when the whole Body rises up to preach and serve. Thank the Lord that His Word tells us clearly that no saved person has less than a talent. We all have at least one talent. Luke 19 says that we all have at least a mina. Matthew 25 says that we all have at least one talent. Everyone who serves the Lord has at least one talent of gift. No one has less than a mina; no one has less than one talent. We can only excuse ourselves by saying that we have not offered up our one talent. We cannot tell the Lord that we do not have one talent. Even the slave who was judged evil and slothful handed one talent back to the Lord, not half a talent.
An elder does not replace the brothers and sisters with his greater gifts. His function lies in bringing out the one talent that lies within all the members. No matter how capable and gifted an elder is, his contribution can never match the functioning of the one-talented ones. It is wrong for two or three highly gifted elders to do the work of the whole church. The result would be much better if these two or three elders stepped aside and the whole church stepped in to do the work. The Lord has given every saved person at least one talent. If we say that we have received less than a talent, then we must not be saved. Since we have a talent, we should serve in the capacity of a one-talented member. This is the reason the elders must exercise overseership. They must not allow anyone to bury his one talent in the ground. When I come to Hong Kong again and see people burying their talent, I will not rebuke them; I will rebuke the elders.
Whether or not a church can go on depends on whether all the one-talented ones are mobilized. I am shouting here: All the one-talented ones have to be mobilized! No power on earth can withstand the force of all the one-talented ones rising up together. No matter how "useless" a person seems to be, every person has to be used. We have to use everyone, unless we have the thought that some members in Christ's Body are lame.
One characteristic of Brother Witness is that he can use a person, no matter how "useless" they think they are. If they do not know how to do certain things, he will take them by the hand and teach them. Every smart and gifted person likes to do things by himself, but this requires him to pay a high price. If one is truly wise, he should stir up the one- talented ones to dig up their talent from the earth. He has to make everyone busy. The elders should be very sensitive in their spirit; they should be able to detect buried talents and should encourage them to be dug out. If the responsible brothers do not know whether a brother or sister has hidden his or her talent, they must bear the blame.
May the Lord bless the church so that it would see what it really is. The church is built upon one-talented ones. We do not have to stir up five- and two-talented ones; they rise up by themselves; they do not want to hide their talents. Only the one-talented ones have a danger of hiding their talents. In order for the church to be built up, the one-talented ones have to rise up. No matter how much we have and what kind of persons we are, we have to dig out our talent. When all the one-talented ones rise up, the church will be manifested. Once the church is manifested, the gates of Hades will not overcome it. The gospel will spread throughout the world. If we all pour out our lives, Satan will tremble.
God builds His church upon His authority. He has appointed deputy authority in all human government and institutions. All the brothers and sisters in the church have to learn to submit to the authority of the elders. We obey the elders because they are the Lord's deputy authority in the church. The basic principle governing Christian conduct on this earth is submission. It is interesting that believers are exhorted to obey in all the Epistles, but these Epistles do not say anything about authority itself. Where there is a demand, there must be the object of demand. For example, without the Word of God, we cannot have faith. If we talk about faith all the time, but do not give others God's Word, no one can have faith. Similarly, if there is no authority, there can be no submission. God wants all the believers to practice submission in the church. This means that there must be an object of submission. The object of submission is the authority in the church. In the church the elders act as God's deputy authority. God wants us to learn submission. If a man truly knows authority, he will learn to submit. The young brothers and sisters should learn to have a proper response. I am not talking about a kind of deliberate performance. Rather, it is a spontaneous reaction that comes when a person is confronted by something. If we have a proper response, the first thing that will come to our mind when we are confronted by a situation is, "Who should I check with in this situation?"
Every time Brother Witness faces a situation, he asks, "Who should I check with concerning this matter? To whom should I submit?" Once we hand over ourselves, we enter into the coordination of the Body, and no member can be independent any longer. Every member is under the authority of the Head. Any member who does not submit to the authority of the Head is a lame member.
I would say a word to the elders concerning their authority: We have to have the basic understanding that there is no authority within ourselves. The authority in the Body of Christ is Christ, the Head. It is the Holy Spirit who is operating in the Body. Therefore, only the Holy Spirit is the authority. The Holy Spirit is the authority of Christ in His Body. From where do the responsible brothers derive their authority? Do not think that as long as a person is an elder he has authority. We have to know and understand authority. Only those who understand authority have authority. If the elders do not understand authority, they are not qualified to be elders, and they are not fit to be an authority. We do not have any authority in ourselves. The only difference between us and the brothers and sisters is that we know the authority of the Holy Spirit a little more clearly, and we are able to communicate the thought of the Spirit to them. The elders do not have any authority in themselves. They are able to help the younger ones in the church because they recognize the authority of the Holy Spirit in Christ's Body, the church. The elders should never say, "I am the authority. I have the authority to make decisions for you." Rather, they should say that they recognize the Holy Spirit more. This is the reason they can open their mouth and speak, and this is the reason they can represent God's authority before the brothers and sisters. An elder becomes God's authority by knowing God.
Let me relate a story to you. In Shanghai, Brother Du, Brother Chu-chen, and Brother Yu Cheng-hwa are elders. Brother Du is the most senior among them. As far as his human stature is concerned, he is as mature as Brother Witness. The social and political condition in Shanghai is such that the church has little to offer to out-of-town visitors in terms of hospitality. Once a brother from the church in Shanghai was led by the Spirit to open his house to a midnight visitor. Brother Du came and told me that the brother was wrong. It was right for him to provide hospitality, but it was wrong for him to do so without fellowshipping first with the elders. I told him that there was nothing wrong with it as long as it was done under the leading of the Holy Spirit. Besides, how can a person seek fellowship from the elders in the middle of the night? We are helping the brothers and sisters know the authority of the Holy Spirit, not to submit to us as elders. It was right for this brother to obey the Holy Spirit.
The elders are here not to build up their own authority, but to lead the brothers and sisters to know the authority of the Holy Spirit. All the brothers and sisters have to learn to submit to authority, but all the responsible brothers have to see that they do not have any authority in themselves. If the brothers and sisters make a mistake, we have to rebuke them, not because they have offended our authority, but because we know the authority of the Holy Spirit. We should rebuke them because they have offended the authority of the Holy Spirit. The young brothers and sisters should remember that in disobeying the responsible brothers, they are disobeying God. The responsible brothers should not try to build up their own authority; they should not consider that they have authority in themselves. The whole church must help the brothers and sisters submit to authority. They should know that they are rebelling against the authority of the Holy Spirit when they do not listen to the elders. This is the meaning of submitting to authority.
We have spent a great deal of time to select the elders. We have had much consideration in this matter. In appointing the elders, we are not saying that these ones have any authority in themselves. We are merely saying that they know more of the authority of the Holy Spirit. This is the reason the church has to accept their decision. It does not mean that their decision is the authority. The elders should not set their heart on the matter of authority. Rather, they should set their heart on whether or not the one-talented gifts are being utilized. If the one-talented ones are not utilized, the church is dead. Of course, once the one-talented ones are called into use, their flesh will easily follow. These one-talented ones may serve happily in the church, but their service will bring in confusion if they do not submit to authority. Therefore, the church must not only recover the function of the one- talented ones, but it must recover the practice of submission. In this way, the church will have a way to go on, and the service will be proper. It is unprofitable to drag someone into the service without the proper discernment.
The elders' spirit must be open to the Lord all the time. Their spirit must be meek. In order for a person to be an elder, he must receive uninterrupted impressions from the Holy Spirit. It is useless for an elder to force others to obey his own judgments. This kind of judgment is no better than that of a young sister who has just been saved. Both are nothing more than sinners saved by grace. In making any judgment, an elder must be able to say that it is the Lord making such a judgment through him. This is the reason he has the capacity to touch a matter while others do not have the capacity. This is the reason he can claim that the authority of the Holy Spirit is upon him, not upon others. However, he must realize that this does not come from his private, individual authority. He does not assume authority in himself. He only carries out God's authority upon him. The validity of his authority lies in his fellowship and enlightenment. All the brothers and sisters have to learn to accept the result of the elders' fellowship with God and the enlightenment they have received from God. If they do not accept it, they are being rebellious.
The elders must have an open spirit as well as an open heart. They must be pliable before the Lord. They have to be quick in listening to the brothers and sisters, and they have to discern God's speaking in their speaking. Suppose a brother or a sister is speaking. The elders have to learn to listen carefully. Their ears have to be quick, and they have to understand the very meaning of what the Spirit is trying to say. Someone may speak fifty sentences, but only one is a word from the Holy Spirit. They should identify this word. For example, when I was in Shanghai, I once spoke with Brother Luk. Another brother, a foreigner, was also present in the meeting. In the course of our conversation, we forgot about our foreign brother. After we finished our conversation, the brother said that he had understood a few of the words we spoke. From these few words, he was aware of the nature of our conversation. Actually, he only understood a few English phrases that were interspersed in our conversation. An elder should be like this foreign brother in his ability to pick up the "English." He should be able to catch the few words that God is saying in the brothers' and sisters' speaking.
The elders must be the richest persons in the whole church. They must be able to freely dispense themselves to others. They must also be able to receive a supply from every member. Only a rich person can give to others, and only they can receive the supply from the Body and learn from the brothers and sisters. The elders must be this kind of persons. They must be able to make others rich, and they must be able to receive a supply from others. They must be able to draw out the good points of the brothers and sisters. This means not only that their spirit must be open but that they must humble themselves to learn from others.
When there is no authority in the church, there is no coordination. Among the elders there must also be mutual submission; they must learn to coordinate among themselves. This is the only way for the church to be in order. This kind of coordination will result in the whole church serving together. At the same time, the elders have to learn to not build up their own authority. I hope our arrangement and fellowship this time will direct the service of the church on to a good track.
The church is the Body of Christ. Every brother and sister is a member of this Body, and everyone is useful. If the elders can call the whole church into function and bring out all the one-talented ones and if everyone submits to authority, we will gospelize all of Hong Kong in a short time. The church will be able to build up itself as well as spread outward to gain more people. May we pray much for this.
