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Scripture Reading: Eph. 1:22; 1 Cor. 11:3a; 12:28; Matt. 23:8, 10; 1 Pet. 5:3, 5; Acts 2:14; 15:13, 19; Gal. 2:9-14; Heb. 13:17
This chapter concerns the headship of Christ and the constitution of the church. We need to see what the constitution of the church is, that is, the way in which the church is formed. The constitution of the church is closely related to the headship of Christ.
First, I would point out that in Christianity today the headship of Christ is altogether denied. This has occurred because Christianity has become an organization. The formation of any organization brings about a hierarchy, and every hierarchy has a head. Thus, the hierarchy in Christianity insults the headship of Christ.
Most are familiar with the organization of the Catholic Church. First, there are the priests. Above the priests are the bishops, then the archbishops, the cardinals, and finally the pope. This hierarchy forms a pyramid with the pope on the top. The Catholic organization, with the pope as the head, is a great insult to the headship of Christ. This organization claims that the pope represents Christ, but this is actually a subtle way of putting Christ aside and denying the headship of Christ.
Besides the Catholic Church, there are the state churches. The Church of England is the state church of England, with the Queen of England as its head. Because the Anglican and Episcopalian churches derived from the Church of England, the Queen of England could be considered the head of these churches also. Historically, the state churches of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway have had the head of state as their head. Every state church is an organization with a head that replaces Christ and is thus an insult to the headship of Christ.
Besides the state churches there are private churches, such as the Baptist Church, the Methodist Church, and the Presbyterian Church. Every private church also has an organization with a person, such as a chairman or a president, as its head. The titles are different, and the complexity of the organizations differ, but the principle is always the same — there is always an organization with a head, which insults the headship of Christ. Besides the Catholic Church, the state churches, and the private churches, there are the free groups. Even every free group has an organization. Regardless of how loose their organization is, they still have an organization with a leader as the head. Thus, it is clear that Christianity is entirely a matter of organization, which leads to a hierarchy with a head, and this insults the headship of Christ.
Now we must come to the Bible to see the headship of Christ. Most Christians do not realize that the headship of Christ was not completed in the Old Testament. Christ’s headship was not completed in the Old Testament because at that time Christ had not yet become a man. As the Son of God, He was only God, not a man. According to God’s eternal purpose in His economy, God needs a man in order to accomplish two things. First, a man is needed because God’s eternal purpose is to work Himself into man and be mingled with man. Thus, there is the definite need of humanity for the fulfilling of God’s eternal purpose. Today the church, which is the fulfillment of God’s eternal purpose, is altogether human. The church is simply humanity mingled with divinity. Second, a man was needed by God to destroy His enemy, Satan. Because God would not lower Himself in His status as the Creator to deal with His creature Satan, He needed another creature, man, to defeat Satan.
God needs a man to fulfill His eternal purpose to mingle with man and to defeat and destroy His enemy. To meet this need, God created the first man, Adam. However, because Adam fell, God needed a second man. The Bible reveals that the second man is Christ (1 Cor. 15:47). Christ came to be the second man. Christ’s headship could not be completed until He became a man in His incarnation. Christ became a man and lived on the earth for thirty-three and a half years. Then when He went to the cross, He went in humanity to accomplish redemption. Without humanity, that is, without blood and flesh, Christ could never have accomplished redemption (Heb. 9:22). He accomplished redemption on the cross in the flesh through the shedding of His blood (1 Pet. 1:18-19; Eph. 1:7). Not only so, the Bible also tells us that on the cross in the flesh Christ destroyed Satan, the one who has the might of death (Heb. 2:14). Through Christ’s incarnation He became a man, and by His death on the cross He defeated Satan and destroyed God’s enemy.
Christ not only destroyed God’s enemy, but He also brought God into man by His incarnation (John 1:1, 14). Christ brought divinity into humanity. Before Christ became a man, God was God and man was man, and God and man were never one. However, by Christ’s incarnation God was brought into man. When Christ became a man, there was a man on the earth who was the very mingling of God and man. He was a man without, but He was God within. Jesus was a God-man. On one hand, He was God; on the other hand, He was a man. Thus, by His incarnation He brought God and man together. Now we have seen the importance of Christ being a man in order to fulfill God’s eternal purpose.
After Christ’s incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection, He ascended to the third heaven. In Christ’s ascension God inaugurated Him into the headship of the universe. Acts 2:36 says, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you have crucified.” This verse indicates that in Christ’s ascension God completed the headship of Christ. In the heavens today there is a man, a man of Nazareth, a man by the name of Jesus. This man is not an ordinary man; He is an extraordinary man. He is God who became a man and died on the cross to accomplish God’s eternal purpose and destroy His enemy. He has two natures — the divine nature and the human nature. He is now in the heavens not only as God but also as man. In His ascension this man Jesus was made Head over all things to the church (Eph. 1:22). The Head of the whole universe today is Jesus. Jesus is not only the Head of the universe, but He is also the Head of each one of us. First Corinthians 11:3 says, “Christ is the head of every man.” In the universe today the headship belongs uniquely to Christ.
Thus far we have seen that the headship of Christ was not completed in the Old Testament because at that time He was not a man and had not accomplished redemption or defeated God’s enemy to fulfill God’s eternal purpose. Hence, there was no possibility to have a completed headship set up in the universe. However, after Christ’s incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection, in His ascension He was inaugurated into a complete headship and was made Head over all things in the universe, including every man. Christ is not only the universal Head but also the unique Head.
God does not desire that there be any head other than Christ. In the Old Testament God allowed His people to have kings, but only one at a time. When David was king, there was not another king. When Solomon became king, there was not another king. In the Old Testament the king was the head of God’s people because the headship of Christ was not yet completed. However, in the New Testament age and in the church today the Head is Christ. In the churches there are elders and apostles, but these are not the head of the church. This is the reason that in the New Testament age God does not have single leaders among His people as He did in the Old Testament. In the Old Testament there was always only one king at a time, but in the New Testament there were twelve apostles at the same time. God did not have twelve kings at the same time in the Old Testament because the king was head during the time when the headship of Christ was not fully established. However, because in the New Testament the headship of Christ was fully established, there could not be only one unique apostle, for this apostle would surely be the head, and this head would be an insult to the headship of Christ. In the New Testament age God has ordained that His people not have any head besides Christ. Christ is the unique Head.
In Matthew 23:8 the Lord said, “Do not be called Rabbi, for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.” Acts 5:31 says, “This One God has exalted to His right hand as Leader and Savior.” Christ is our one Teacher and Leader. In the New Testament age God would not allow His people to have a single, unique leader among men. There was not one apostle but twelve apostles. Besides the twelve there were other apostles, such as Paul, Barnabas, and Timothy. Moreover, in each local church there should not be only one unique elder. In every local church the eldership should be plural. The plurality of the eldership is crucial.
The Lord Jesus originally appointed the twelve apostles (Mark 3:14; Luke 6:13). In every record of the names of the twelve apostles in the four Gospels, Peter’s name always stands as the first (Matt. 10:2; Mark 3:16; Luke 6:14). Even in Acts 1:13 Peter’s name was first. For this reason the Catholic Church says that Peter is the successor, the representative, of Christ, and they claim that Peter was the first pope. However, the full record in the New Testament reveals that although Peter was first, he was not an official first or a permanent first.
The Catholic Church claims that Peter’s name always stands first in the New Testament, but Galatians 2:9 mentions “James and Cephas [Peter] and John.” Therefore, at least one verse in the New Testament ranks Peter second. In Galatians Peter was no longer first. Peter became second, and James became first. Furthermore, Acts 21:17-18 says, “When we had come to Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us gladly. And on the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present.” When Paul went to Jerusalem, he did not go to Peter but to James. Although Peter was one of the elders in Jerusalem (1 Pet. 5:1), James was the only elder named in Acts 21:18, and Peter was included in “all the elders.” This indicates that at that time the leading one was not Peter but James.
In Acts 15 there was a conference among the elders and the apostles. Verses 6 and 7 say, “The apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter. And when much discussion had taken place, Peter rose up and said to them...” Then verse 12 says, “All the multitude became silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul relating all the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.” Thus, Peter gave a word, and then Barnabas and Paul gave a word. Verse 13 continues, “When they finished speaking, James answered, saying, Men, brothers, listen to me.” In verse 19 James said, “Therefore I judge that we do not harass those from the Gentiles who are turning to God.” From these verses we can see that the final word at the end of the conference was given not by Peter but by James. In human terms James presided over that conference and gave the concluding word because at that time he was taking the lead.
We may wonder why Peter was no longer in the lead in Acts 15. On the day of Pentecost, Peter was like a lion (2:14), but in Galatians 2 he was like a chicken. For the Jews to eat with the Gentiles was a violation of their Mosaic Law, yet Peter was bold to eat with the Gentile believers. However, when some came down from Jerusalem, Peter shrank back and separated himself from the Gentile believers (v. 12). Peter’s actions were contrary to the truth of the gospel. The truth of the gospel in the New Testament is that the middle wall of partition has been broken down by the cross of Christ; consequently, there is no separation between the Jews and the Gentiles (Eph. 2:14). Paul said in Galatians 2:11 and 14, “When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned...When I saw that they were not walking in a straightforward way in relation to the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like the Jews?” From this we can see that although Peter was bold and strong on the day of Pentecost, he later became weak.
When Peter lost his spiritual capacity, James rose up. This reveals that the leadership among God’s people in the New Testament age is not official, permanent, or organizational; rather, it depends on the present spiritual capacity. When Peter’s spiritual capacity was high, he took the lead. When his spiritual capacity became low, he lost the lead. In the Catholic Church, however, the leadership is official, permanent, and organizational. When a pope dies, another pope is elected. The office of the pope is official, permanent, and organizational. In contrast, on the day of Pentecost Peter’s leadership was not official, permanent, or organizational but was dependent on his spiritual capacity. God does not desire to have permanent leaders in the New Testament age, for such leaders are an insult to the headship of Christ.
In some local churches there has been a practice of making an arrangement as to who is first among the elders. No verse in the Bible gives any indication that there should be such an arrangement. Rather, the scriptural principle with regard to the eldership is always plurality. God does not want one brother to be the unique elder; He wants a few brothers to be a group of elders. The eldership should always be in plurality. This plurality keeps any elder from being an official leader or a permanent leader. The issue of who will take the lead among the elders is determined by each one’s capacity. Because one brother has the highest capacity in certain areas, he may be the leading one in a certain matter. In another matter a different brother may have the highest capacity; therefore, in that matter he will be the leader. Six months later these two brothers may both lose their capacity, and another brother may grow and increase in his spiritual capacity by the Lord’s grace and mercy. Thus, this third brother will spontaneously become the leading one among the elders. In the New Testament among God’s people there is no unique, definite, official, or permanent leadership. Such a leadership would be an insult to the headship of Christ. Therefore, in each local church today there should be no head other than Christ.
There should be no head other than Christ, not only in each local church but also among all the churches. An apostle is not the head of many churches. Our physical body has only one head, but our concept may not match this reality. We may think that the shoulder is the head of the arm, the arm is the head of the hand, the hand is the head of the fingers, and the fingers are the heads of the nails. According to this concept, a body has many heads or subheads. Any member that is larger and higher than another is a head. This may be our concept concerning the church. The church is the Body of Christ. We may think that everyone in the Body of Christ is a head.
In 1976 I realized that there were many heads and subheads in the church in Anaheim. Some brothers even produced a chart of the organization of the church in the form of a pyramid, showing who was above whom and who was under whom. When I saw this chart, I said to the brothers there, “Brothers, may we please forget about this pyramid. Tear it down.” We have only one Head — Christ. Regardless of how large our two shoulders are, they are not heads. We do not have any subheads. This principle is fully proved in Matthew 23:8-11, where the Lord said, “Do not be called Rabbi, for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth your father, for One is your Father, He who is in the heavens. Neither be called instructors, because One is your Instructor, the Christ. And the greatest among you shall be your servant.” There should be no leader among us. We should not consider that the apostles or the elders are leaders or subheads. There is not such a thing in the Scriptures. To have leaders or subheads is according to a natural human concept.
Peter, who was an elder himself, wrote to the elders, “Nor as lording it over your allotments but by becoming patterns of the flock” (1 Pet. 5:3). An elder is not a lord; rather, every elder is a slave. In the church the elders should be examples, not kings issuing orders. If the church needs someone to clean the restroom in the meeting hall, an elder should not issue an order for another brother to clean the restroom. That would be the lording way. The proper way is for the elder to take the lead to clean the restroom himself. Then all the brothers and sisters will follow his pattern. A flock of sheep always follows the first sheep. Whichever way the first one goes, all the others follow. An elder is not a lord but simply the first sheep to take the lead. When an elder takes the lead in some service, all the other saints should follow. This is according to the Bible; it is absolutely different from the human concept of leadership. Among God’s people today there should be no head other than Christ. Any head or subhead is an insult to the headship of Christ. God honors the headship of His Son to the uttermost, and He desires that we also honor the headship of Christ.
First Corinthians 12:28 says, “God has placed some in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then works of power, then gifts of healing, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues.” In this verse helps refers to the services of the deacons, and administrations refers to the functions of the elders. According to our concept, the functions of the elders should come first, but in this verse the apostle Paul purposely lists the helps of the deacons before the elders’ administrations. This shows that among God’s people today there is no human leadership.
A young brother who has been saved only a short time may approach some older brothers with a spiritual question he has been unable to resolve on his own. He may want to know whether or not he should go swimming at the beach, participate in sports, go to movies, or drink beer. If the older brothers have learned the lesson to honor the headship of Christ, when a brother opens to them in this way, they will immediately say, “Brother, we cannot tell you what to do because we are not the Head. We are not the Lord, and even you are not your lord. Jesus Christ is our Lord; He is the Head. Even if we know the answer to your question, we still cannot answer you because we do not have the position to tell you what to do. We must look to the Lord.” To answer in this way is to honor the headship of Christ. However, our practice in the church life is usually not like this. We often tell people what to do and what not to do; we even stir up arguments. This is altogether wrong. Our telling others what to do is an insult to the headship of Christ. We need to practice to honor and respect the headship of Christ.
Ephesians 5:22 says, “Wives, be subject to your own husbands.” A sister who keeps this word by submitting herself to her husband may ask him whether or not they should take their children to a certain place, allowing him to make the decision. Concerning spiritual matters, her husband may turn to the Lord, but concerning such practical matters, he may unconsciously insult the Lord by making decisions on his own. If a brother has learned the lesson, he will tell his wife, “Although I am the husband, I am not the Lord. We need to refer this matter to the Lord. We honor Him and respect Him as the Head.”
Failing to honor Christ as the Head could be the reason that a husband and wife who pray together still may not know the Lord’s will. On one hand, they pray to the Lord; on the other hand, they may not give the headship to the Lord, respecting the Lord as their Head. They may still consider themselves as the head. This may be the reason that the Lord has not answered many of our prayers. If this is our case, we need to change our attitude. When a sister asks her husband something, he should not give his feeling or make any decision. Instead, he should say, “I am not the Lord. Let us look to Him. We give our honor and our respect to the Head, the Lord Jesus.” If this is our attitude, our prayer will probably be answered. This is a great matter. The headship of Christ should not be merely a doctrine; it needs to be a daily practice. We need to honor Christ’s headship in our daily practice.
We need to honor Christ as our Head in the church life also. The elders in a local church should not consider themselves as the head. Neither should the saints in the local church consider the elders as the head. Among all the churches the saints should not consider an apostle as the head. An apostle is not a head. We have only one Head, Christ. This is according to the truth.
Suppose one day a brother comes from another locality and tells us that he is the representative of the church in that locality and has come to make an arrangement with us. We should not accept such a one because, according to the truth, the way he speaks is wrong. We do not have representatives in the churches. Likewise, if a brother travels to another locality claiming to represent another brother, we need to tell him that according to the truth there is not such a thing. According to the New Testament, there is no organization in the churches.
In the New Testament all the local churches are on the same level — not one is higher than any other. However, our human mentality always thinks that certain churches are ranked higher than others. This concept is wrong. In early times many churches considered the church in Jerusalem to be the head church. It was difficult for the Lord to remove this wrong concept. Regrettably, this concept damaged Jerusalem, for it was one reason that God sent Titus and the Roman army to destroy Jerusalem in A.D. 70. God does not allow there to be any head other than Christ; even a head church is not allowed. We should not consider any church today to be the head church. All the churches are on the same level. There are not first generation churches, second generation churches, and third generation churches. All the churches are of one generation. There is no lineage among the churches.
Moreover, the local churches should not all be organized into one unit. If the local churches are organized into one unit, this organization will lead to hierarchy, and hierarchy is an insult to the headship of Christ. No local church is higher than any other local church, and no two local churches should be united. As soon as any two churches are united, there is an organization, which will have a head. I am quite concerned regarding this crucial matter. A clever brother among us may exercise his influence and say, “It is foolish for all the churches to be scattered, loose, and unorganized. Let us all come together to organize and form the churches into a strong unit.” If we do not know the truth concerning this matter, we will probably say, “This is not bad. It is a good idea. The United States of America is strong because the fifty states are organized into a federal government with a president.” Some saints may accept this concept. However, if such a thing happens, the headship of Christ will be fully insulted because an organization always leads to a hierarchy, which insults the headship of Christ. God desires that the churches be loosely related to one another in order to keep the headship of Christ. We do not have a federal government among the churches.
The principle of there being no rank or organization among the churches applies also to the work. In the New Testament Peter’s work was among the Jewish believers, and Paul’s work was in the Gentile world (Gal. 2:7-9). However, the Bible never tells us which of these two regions was higher, nor does the Bible show that the two regions merged into one. If two regions of the work merge into one, the result will be an organization of the work.
Thus, in the New Testament we can see that the eldership is plural, all the churches are independent, and the regions of the work are on the same level and never merged together. All this shows that there should be no organization among God’s people in order that there would be no head other than Christ. The unique headship belongs to Christ. In all things we need to honor His headship. Honoring Christ as the unique Head is crucial.
In the last few years there has been a trend among us to organize the local churches in a way that will lead to hierarchy. Some have even said, “So-and-so is going to be the leader in the Lord’s recovery.” This has happened because we are not clear about the truth and because we do not practice the truth. If we are clear about the truth and practice the truth, when we hear such things, we will immediately say, “No, we cannot accept this kind of speaking because in the Lord’s recovery there is no leader. The only Head is Christ.” All the elders are on the same level, all the apostles are on the same level, all the churches are on the same level, and the regions of the work are on the same level. The issue of who is to take the lead at any time is always determined by the spiritual situation at any given time. The elder or church that has the highest spirituality is the one that should take the lead, but this must not be official, permanent, or organizational. It should always depend on the spiritual condition. Practicing in this way keeps God’s people away from the kind of leadership that insults the headship of Christ. This is the truth concerning the constitution of the church. The church is formed according to the truth that Christ is the unique Head. In the Lord’s recovery there is no organization because Christ is the unique Head. The church is built according to this truth.
Suppose a certain local church writes a letter to another church telling them what to do. The brothers in the church that receives the letter need to be strong for the truth and immediately return the letter, saying, “We cannot accept this letter because this is not according to the truth.” We need to make the truth bright. Our practice of the truth needs to be strong. We should not be overly concerned about being polite. The word polite is very similar to the word politics. To be polite is actually to play politics; it is not to speak the truth. If the church in a certain locality tells the brothers in another locality to send them five brothers, the brothers in the second locality should say, “We will not do it; this is not according to the truth.” However, in order to be polite, they may instead say, “Brothers, sorry. We have considered much, but we simply could not find one brother who is willing to go.” If they answer in this way, they are not practicing the truth but are instead playing politics. Playing politics befits a politician, but it disqualifies an elder. An elder must always be frank and strict, speaking the truth. All the politics among us should be dropped. We must all learn the truth and practice the truth.
There may be three elders in the church in a certain locality. Perhaps one day a brother in this locality will say, “Among the three elders, Brother So-and-so is number one.” Right away we should correct such a brother, saying, “Brother, do not say this. There is not such a thing. This is not according to the truth. Having a plurality of elders is according to the truth, but deciding which one is first is not according to the truth.” It is crucial that we know and practice the truth. The United States of America has become a strong nation because it has a strong Constitution and because all the people respect the Constitution. When President Nixon was forced to resign because of the Watergate scandal, I did not feel good about the president being brought down. However, I admired the spirit of the Constitution, which can put aside even the president if he is wrong. The practice of always applying the Constitution makes the United States a strong country. The church should practice the truth in like manner. Furthermore, just as the citizens of the United States know the basic items of the Constitution, so we who are in the churches should know the truth. If we know and practice the truth, the church will be strong.
Concerning any matter of the truth, we should not say, “This is what Brother Lee says.” To say this is wrong. We should not rely on what any brother says; rather, we should rely on the truth. The truth is not what a certain brother says; it is what the Bible says. We need to learn the specific verses that are related to certain truths. Then we can open the Bible to those verses and show others, saying, “Here the Bible says this.” In this way we will not be following any brother; rather, we will be following the truth of the Bible.
Regardless of who comes to us, if he says something different from the truth in the Bible, we need to say, “Brother, we cannot take this.” Some brothers may be like Peter in Matthew 16. In verses 16 through 19 Peter received a heavenly vision, but in verse 22 he was one with Satan. We should rebuke such ones, just as the Lord Jesus did (v. 23). The Bible, the “Constitution” of the church, is fully complete. Paul says in Galatians 1:8, “If even we or an angel out of heaven should announce to you a gospel beyond that which we have announced to you, let him be accursed.” If even the angels or the apostles preach to us another gospel, we should not receive it, because the truth in the Bible has been completed. The truth in the Bible is the “Constitution” of the church. If we know and practice the truth in the Bible, the church will be strong. We need to learn not to say, “Brother So-and-so says...” We need to drop this concept and learn to say, “The Bible says...” We must learn the truth. Then the church will be strong because the church life will not be practiced according to man’s opinion or concept but according to the truth.
Question: Could you comment further on what a husband should do to honor the headship of Christ if his wife asks him to make a decision?
Answer: When a wife comes to her husband regarding anything, the best way and the proper way for the husband to respond is by referring the matter to the Lord by prayer. The same principle applies in the church. Hebrews 13:17 says, “Obey the ones leading you and submit to them.” The ones leading us are the elders. Nevertheless, when something is referred to the elders, the elders should immediately refer the matter to the Lord by praying to Him in order to respect Him as the Head. This is the proper way. When something is referred to the elders, if they immediately make a decision and give an order, this is an insult to the Head. We all need to honor Christ as the Head by referring all things to Him.
Question: What does Paul mean when he says, “A husband is head of the wife” (Eph. 5:23)? How do we put this into practice?
Answer: The husband being the head of the wife is the reason that the wife needs to refer things to the husband, but the husband in turn needs to respect the headship of Christ. The best husband is one who respects the headship of Christ. The more a brother respects the headship of Christ, the more his wife will respect him.
Question: Should we go to the Lord first regarding any matter and wait for the Lord to direct us to fellowship with another brother if need be?
Answer: It is very good to first refer any matter to the Lord. If we become clear concerning the matter simply by going to the Lord, it is wonderful. However, the Lord will often say, “Go to your brother; then I will make you clear.” In most cases the Lord will direct us to fellowship with another brother, but when we go to the brother, the brother should not replace the Lord by telling us what to do. The brother should say, “Let us fellowship and pray to bring this matter to the Lord.” The Lord may still not make us clear after we fellowship and pray with another brother. This may be the Lord’s way of directing us to go to the elders. If the elders say, “We will tell you what to do,” they are wrong. The elders also should refer the matter to the Lord in fellowship and prayer. Usually, by this point the Lord will tell the brothers what we need to do. In this way we are safeguarded, and we respect the headship of Christ. I hope that we may all learn to practice in this way.
Question: Churches sometimes come together for a meeting or a conference. Is this wrong?
Answer: The churches should come together as often as possible. This is fellowship, and any kind of fellowship is always beneficial. The fellowship between the saints works well, and the fellowship between the churches also is a benefit. This is a good thing.
Question: In 2 Corinthians 10:14 Paul speaks of “not extending ourselves beyond our bounds.” What does this word mean?
Answer: What Paul says in 2 Corinthians 10:13-15 indicates that the Lord gave a certain boundary to Paul for his work and that Paul never overstepped that boundary. Paul always kept himself within God’s limitation.
Question: It seems to me that the word in these chapters is like a biology lesson. If a body is weak and collapsing because of a lack of food, we should not rely on something organizational to prop it up. Is this right?
Answer: This is absolutely right. The church is an organism, and at a time when it is suffering from lack of nourishment, if we do anything in the way of organizing, it will not help the situation. The best way to help an organism is to feed it with nourishing food. This will keep the organism working in an organic way, in the way of life. We need to see that no problem in the church can be solved by organization. Organization will only damage the church. Because a table is an organization, it is easy for a carpenter to repair or improve a table. However, this cannot be done with an organism. All surgeries depend on the organic function of the body. Surgeons must always decide whether someone’s body can sustain a certain surgery. If the organic function of the body is not working well, a good surgeon will not operate. Every surgery depends upon the organic function of the body. Because the church is the Body of Christ, an organism and not an organization, we must not try to arrange or rearrange things in an organizational way. We must deal with the church just as a surgeon deals with the human body — in an organic way.
For a carpenter to replace the top of a desk takes only a short time, but for a body to fully recover from surgery requires a long time. Therefore, we cannot solve any problem of the church in a quick, organizational way. Any problem in the church must be dealt with in an organic way, which takes time. In the church we must not handle matters in the way that a carpenter works on a desk. We need to be like a surgeon dealing with an organic matter, depending upon the organic ability. In most surgeries there is the need of a blood transfusion to support the organic function of the body. There is much for us to learn regarding the church as an organism. Whatever we do with the church must be organic, depending not on our doing but on the organic function of the Body.
Question: We need to realize that we have no head other than Christ, but the tendency among some Christians is to say, “The Bible is my only authority. I do not need to fellowship with anyone.” Where is the middle ground between hierarchy and anarchy?
Answer: On one hand, among the Lord’s people today there should be no head; the headship belongs uniquely to Christ. On the other hand, the Bible says, “Obey the ones leading you” (Heb. 13:17). Although we need to obey our leading ones, the leading ones should not be lords (1 Pet. 5:3). The leading ones should refer all things to the Lord. What the Bible reveals is neither hierarchy nor anarchy but the Body with the Head. Our physical body is a full picture of the Body of Christ. Every part of the body is in a good order, but there is only one head. All the parts respect the head, and the head gives orders directly to each part, not through another member. However, all the members keep a good order. This is very beautiful. We do not follow the way of Christianity or the way of worldly society; we follow only God’s economy. We have only one Head, yet we are submissive to the Body. We keep a good order in the church, but the leading ones are not the lords — they refer all the things to the Lord. This way is absolutely different from human society and from Christianity.
Question: If there is not a clear answer from the Lord when we refer something to Him, should we simply choose as best we can?
Answer: Usually, the Lord will not immediately make us clear concerning what His will is. Rather, He will force us to contact Him more. We should not expect to be clear concerning the Lord’s will right away. We must be prepared to wait on the Lord. It is quite strange that when we want to know the Lord’s will right away, the Lord often will not let us know, but when we say, “Lord, I want to wait to be clear concerning Your will,” the Lord will make us clear right away. In any case, we need to learn to wait until we are clear. However, circumstances sometimes do not allow us to wait. At such times we need to pray, “Lord, I still do not know what Your will is. I simply go forward by faith. If what I do is not Your will, Lord, frustrate it. If You do not frustrate it, I believe that what I am doing is Your will.” This is the proper attitude. If, however, there is nothing forcing us to do something right away, it is better to wait until we are clear concerning the Lord’s will.
Question: In 1 Corinthians 7:25 and 40 Paul’s opinion became the word of God, but many times our opinions are natural. How do we know if our opinions are from the Lord or from a natural source?
Answer: When Paul gave his opinion, he said, “I think that I also have the Spirit of God” (v. 40). If we are a person like Paul, filled with the Spirit, whatever we say will surely be of the Spirit. If we are not filled with the Spirit, we are filled with our natural concepts, and whatever we say will not be of the Lord. Thus, the source of our opinions depends on our state, our condition.
Question: We are all in some ways part of organizations in the world, such as the companies we work for, and we must function as parts of these organizations. In my experience I have trouble because I try to function in the way of life, as I would in the church. What should I do?
Answer: In an organization, trying to do things in an organic way will create trouble. Everything must be after its own kind (Gen. 1:24-25). In the church, which is an organism, we should do things in an organic way. In worldly society, in the companies we work for, we should work in an organizational way. We should not try to apply the way of the church to worldly society. Doing so will damage both. The church and worldly society are two absolutely different things and should not be mixed.
