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Date: Evening, February 23, 1950 Place: Jordan Road, Hong Kong Speakers: Watchman Nee, Witness Lee
Watchman Nee: When John Wesley married in his twenties, he made a secret covenant with the Lord. This was the only time he adjusted the standard of his living. (Before he was married, he was called to the Lord's work. Later, he went full-time to serve the Lord.) From that time until his death, he never changed the standard of his living. After his death, others listed his income. His earning in later years did increase. Every year he earned ten to twenty thousand pounds. (Both he and his brother Charles were songwriters, and they had income from royalties.) The year before he died he earned the most — over twenty thousand pounds. But he maintained the same standard of living throughout. All of his excess was spent on the gospel, on literature, and on tracts. He also offered what he had for the Lord's work by training more people and sending them out for the Lord.
All the brothers and sisters who are in business, who hold jobs, or who are housewives at home should have a list. They have to make a vow before the Lord as to the standard of living they want to maintain. Once they have set the standard, they have to maintain it with an unfeigned conscience. They should not regret later and say, "I cannot make it. I do not have the faith or the resources, etc." Not only must the husband and the wife discuss among themselves, but the two must go to the Lord together to seek His will and to make a covenant with Him. One brother in Fukien has set a limit of four dollars per month for himself. Many brothers have praised him for this, but I say that this was wrong. There is no need to mortify ourselves or purposely starve or freeze ourselves to death. If this brother continues this way, he will get sick one day and have to spend even more money on himself. Many brothers and sisters are very smart when it comes to their money. They are very clever, but they do not understand a thing about spiritual matters. Some people have no spiritual understanding before they consecrate themselves. But once they hand themselves over, their spiritual understanding is enlightened. Therefore, we should not underestimate the practice of a secret covenant before the Lord.
To the world, forsaking everything to follow the Lord is a reckless act. But this is only one small part of a Christian's overall service to God. Our career, body, time, and future must also be consecrated. We will not make public the lists that the brothers and sisters have handed over to us. They are a means for the responsible brothers to get to know you and render proper help to you. Some people may be offering too little. Others may be offering too much. The responsible brothers can render help according to your list.
Witness Lee: I have often thought that God's love is very much misunderstood by man, but Christianity is also very much misunderstood by man. In the Bible there is no such term as Christianity. The Bible only says that individual believers are Christians, and the whole Body of believers is the church. There is no such term as Christianity. A Christian is one who believes in the Lord and who possesses His life. Many brothers and sisters have become Christians, but they do not know what it means to be a Christian. If we ask a Christian what a Christian is, many will give strange answers. Someone may answer, "As long as a man has Christ and His life, he is a Christian." Even this answer is not easy to comprehend. We may say this with our mouth, but we are not this kind of person. One day when God opens our eyes, we will know what a Christian is. Today it is as rare to find a person who knows what a Christian is as it is to find the morning star.
What is a Christian in man's concept and view? Some think that a Christian is one who follows the teachings and creeds of Christianity, attends Sunday morning service, and tithes. Strictly speaking, being a Christian has nothing to do with these outward things. Christianity is not a religion or a teaching based on the Bible; it is not to zealously practice teachings that are based on the Bible. Christians are those who pay attention to the inward things. They pay attention to the things that are in Christ. A Christian is one who is in Christ. This may sound objective, abstract, or general. Let me put it another way. A Christian is one in whom Christ dwells. Today you are a Christian. On what standard do you practice your Christian life? Does Christian conduct consist solely of keeping ordinances? Is his standard merely the Bible? We have to say, "No." Let me ask Miss Nee, "Do you take the teachings, slogans, and beliefs of No. 7, Jordan Road as your standard of Christian life?" (She shakes her head.) Brother Ma, what would you say? (Brother Weigh answers, "According to the demand of the Christ within us.") There are two answers. One is to act according to the teachings of the Bible. The other is to act according to the sense of the inward leading of the Holy Spirit. Some say that a Christian is one who imitates Christ, but it is not easy to imitate Christ. It is not a matter of seeing Christ jump in front of us and copying Him. The genuine experience of a Christian is not outward; it comes from within. Although we may have outward activities occasionally, the source of these activities must come from within.
Let me ask Brother Chia why he consecrated himself. (He answers, "Because I love to do it inwardly. This is like a child loving chocolate.") Let me ask you why you love to do it. (He answers, "Because the life within me loves to do it.") That is right. We consecrate ourselves because the life within us loves to do it. When we do it, inwardly we feel happy and joyful. In 1943 we witnessed the tide of handing oneself over in Chefoo. At the end of the previous year, I saw clearly that the matter of money must be settled within God's children. Unless this matter was settled, it would have been impossible for God's gospel to spread, and there would have been no way for the brothers and sisters to have a genuine revival. On December 12, 1942, the Lord did a marvelous work in Chefoo. That afternoon I gave a message on consecration. From that time onward, the Lord began to inwardly touch the brothers and sisters to consecrate their all. This lasted for three and a half months. Six to seven hundred people consecrated their all to the Lord. Some handed themselves over to be sent out for migration. All the brothers and sisters were swept away by this revival. Many people dared not touch their garments when they went home for fear that the Lord would ask them to offer them up as soon as they touched them. The brothers and sisters handed themselves over because they wanted the inward peace. If they had not handed themselves over, they would not have had the peace. The same thing happened in Foochow in 1948. All the brothers and sisters handed themselves over as a result of answering the call of the life within them.
I can give a little testimony of my own. Twenty-three years ago in 1928, I was still a young man in my twenties. I often went to the mountains and the wilderness and shouted to the Lord that I would consecrate everything to Him. In 1933 the Lord came to me and actually touched me to consecrate myself for His work. I struggled and reasoned with the Lord, but He only answered me with His presence. On the day I agreed to give up my job, many tears poured out from my being. I knelt before the Lord and told Him that I was willing to drop everything and to give it all up to Him. The Lord's name became very sweet and rich to my mouth. Inwardly I was filled with joy. I felt that nothing could stop me from giving my all to the Lord. The sense of joy, release, and relief at that time was heavenly. I cannot describe that feeling even today. In short, I felt happy and right when I did it. I had never heard a message about handing over everything and forsaking all to follow the Lord, but when I obeyed the inward demand, I forsook everything spontaneously. In the same way, if we are living the life of Christ, the very mention of "handing over" will "bankrupt" us. Yet we will feel inwardly relieved, because we have answered such an inward call.
Let me ask you another question: "Why do you want to be a Christian?" (Brother Ma answers, "If I were not a Christian, I would not be happy.") But my answer is that I am a Christian because I want to be inwardly happy. If I become a Christian merely because I want to go to heaven or to be forgiven of my sins, I cannot be a thoroughly happy Christian. In order to be a happy Christian, we have to be resolute and absolute. Unless we forsake everything to follow the Lord, we will not feel inwardly happy and elated. What an inward relief we have when we drop everything!
Madame Guyon was willing to forgo all her possessions and forsake everything to please the Lord who lived within her. Even her beauty was stripped away by the Lord. To man she was a pitiable sight, but within her was indescribable joy. Count Zinzendorf, George Müller, and Saint Francis of Assisi all lived their lives this way. They were willing to drop everything to follow the Lord. As a result, they all satisfied the inward demand and achieved inward peace. The word forsake means to let go. This shows us how severe Christ's demand within us is.
May we all yield to the demand of the life within us. It is not enough for a Christian to merely keep biblical truths and ordinances, practice Christian virtues, or be zealous for the Lord. If we are zealous for the Lord yet not inwardly happy, or if we are ardent yet do not feel the sweetness, there is something wrong with us as Christians. It is wrong for a Christian to not feel sweet, happy, or relieved. If a Christian acts properly, morally, sinlessly, and humbly, yet does not taste any freshness, sweetness, and joy, his problem is not with sin but with the fact that he has not answered Christ's inward call. The power of preaching the gospel comes naturally from the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. But a greater power comes from answering Christ's call. A man who forsakes everything is powerful in the gospel. The amount we forsake determines the amount of power of the Spirit we possess. If a Christian is dull towards spiritual things, it is because he cannot get through in this matter. He is probably reluctant to let go of certain things or too fond of certain items. If a man is slow or dull in his spiritual feelings, he must have a problem with his forsaking. The more we mean business with the Lord in following Him, the more we will answer His demand within us.
A Christian may not appear to have any problems outwardly. However, if he does not shine inwardly, is slow to react, or is not happy, he must have some problems. A piano may look good from the outside, but if its strings are not properly calibrated, the sounds it produces will be out of tune. The only reason that a Christian is dull in his feelings is because he has not answered Christ's demand within. If we feel that we are bound, that our fellowship with the brothers and sisters is blocked, and that the supply of the brothers and sisters produces little effect in us, we do not have to think of things we have to do for the Lord. All we need to do is ask what things we have to drop. Once we drop them, we will meet the Lord's demand. The things that we cannot drop are the very things that bear down on us. If a Christian feels dark, stifled, sour, or dull, it is because he has not answered Christ's call within.
We should not think that all of Christ's sayings in the Gospels were outward demands. They are actually His speaking and demands within us. All the requirements of Matthew 5—7 are Christ's demands within us. I do not believe a man can come to the Lord without touching His demands. All of the words spoken by Christ in the Gospels are His demands within us. If we answer His first demand, that is not enough. He will give us more demands. Like the young man who told the Lord that he had kept all the commandments, the Lord will always answer by saying, "Still you lack one thing" (Luke 18:22).
Some may say that a person as demanding as Christ is too hard to approach. But once we answer His demand, we will feel refreshed and happy within. Whenever we feel that Christ has a demand within us and we answer this demand, we will feel happy. When He demands, He also supplies. Only such ones can testify of and share Christ's riches, transcendence, and excellence. The Christian life should be like a piano; the important thing is not how it looks outwardly but whether or not it plays the right tune. (I am not saying this to encourage you to be loose in the outward things.)
I hope that more brothers and sisters can be raised up to touch Christ's inward demands. Some brothers and sisters have heard messages concerning consecration and the handing over of one's all. They may have witnessed the burning consecration and handing over of the other brothers and sisters, and they may have decided to follow suit and do the same. However, it is not enough for them to be zealous, to consecrate themselves, and to hand themselves over. Their consecration and handing over must issue from a genuine demand within. Handing over enables us to become sensitive to the Lord's demands; it also enables us to enjoy the precious Lord in a richer way.
Once we meet the Lord's demand in an absolute way, we will find His demands easy and light. If we only partially answer it, we will find it hard to fulfill. It is very difficult to answer sixty or seventy percent of the Lord's call. But it is easy to answer one hundred percent of His calling. If a man does not answer His call, he will not be happy. If he answers His call only halfway, he will be even less happy. If he answers His call reluctantly, he will find himself struggling. Only those who lay everything on the altar receive the most abundant joy and supply. Today we should only worry about not answering His call enough. It is hard for a Christian to go on if he drags his feet. May the Lord be merciful to us. May we be clear that the Christian pathway today has everything to do with Christ within us. We should follow Christ; we should answer His demand within. This is our way to serve. This is the way of life. Let me repeat: We judge our Christian life by the sense of strength, sweetness, comfort, clarity, and light.
Watchman Nee: Today we can find two kinds of brothers and sisters in the church. Many brothers and sisters are happy, but a few are sad. Perhaps you can find both kinds of Christians sitting right beside you. If I were to ask you to nominate the happiest people here, the ones who have no problems would surely say that they are the ones. If anyone is not happy and if anyone has doubts about himself, surely he must have some kind of problem, some kind of spiritual sickness. The main reason for this sickness is that the Lord has a demand that has not been answered. This is a matter of experience; it is not a matter of doctrine. If you say, "Before you two brothers spoke, I was quite happy. Now your speaking has taken away my happiness," this is because our message conveys the demand of Christ. If a Christian does not answer this demand, he will be sad. Our doctrine, speaking, and exhortation do not serve the basic need. Our voice is like the sound from the loudspeakers; we only amplify the demand of Christ within and make it clearer.
If the brothers and sisters hear this voice but are reluctant to answer the Lord's call, then I can only say that it is too late. If you do not want to be a Christian, it is better that you never started. Today the life of Christ is in you; it is impossible for you to no longer be a Christian. Since you are a Christian, you should resolve within to follow the brothers. Why can you not answer the call of the Lord's great love? For many years, you have quenched, suppressed, and limited the inner voice with money, the world, and worries. None of our teachings are new doctrines in these days. We are merely telling you what you should be hearing every day. We are not speaking fresh words here, and we have no interest to speak anything special. We are telling you the facts. The more things a Christian holds in his hand, the more he suffers. In the end he will be like the young ruler, going away in sorrow. If you forsake everything, however, you will rejoice like Zaccheus and experience salvation (Luke 18:1-9).
If an unbeliever is brought here and hears such a word, he will surely go away, saying, "These speakers must have something wrong in their mind. How can they ask anyone to give up everything?" When unbelievers hear such a word, they will not be pricked; some may even consider our words to be a kind of joke. Only those who truly have Christ in them as life will know the meaning of our word. To be a Christian, we have to be one in such a reckless way; we have to take such a reckless pathway. May the Lord have mercy on us so that we would see the Christian pathway now.
