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In order for the service and the leading in the church in Taipei to have a new beginning, we want to have some fellowship and leading for the newly appointed elders and deacons.
We will first fellowship concerning the Lord’s move in the church in Taipei as well as on the island of Taiwan. We were led by the Lord to come here in 1949. That was thirty-six years ago. By the Lord’s mercy, we had a very good beginning. Even though we were hindered in some aspects of the work and have not completely followed the Lord’s leading, the Lord has kept us so that His testimony has been maintained. When we began, our scope in the work was not large, but by the Lord’s blessing we now have a rich heritage.
Under Brother Nee’s ministry we learned a lesson concerning the importance of the literature work. Therefore, I received a burden from the Lord for the past eleven years to preserve in printed form all the truth and light and knowledge of the Bible that we have received from the Lord so that these precious messages would not be lost.
Before 1950 I co-worked with Brother Nee for nearly twenty years. We had a very close relationship. Whatever he saw and what grace he received, he would fellowship with me in depth. I have not seen another brother who surpassed Brother Nee in knowing the Lord, spiritual matters, life, and the Bible. None can surpass Brother Nee, and there are none who are within reach of him. I received the Lord’s mercy to recognize the treasure within our brother, and I received Brother Nee’s leading from the depth of my being.
By his contact with me, he got to know me and was open to me and appreciative of me in the work. He also trained me and perfected me in every aspect.
Later, I was sent to Taiwan to begin the work and continue the ministry of Brother Nee. Eleven years ago, when I was in America, I received a burden to put all the truths that the Lord has shown us into books. Brother Nee’s knowledge of the truth was very deep and very broad. He once expressed the desire to write notes to the New Testament, but God never gave him the opportunity to do so. Brother Nee knew so much, but very little of what he knew was put in writing. He spoke many messages, but not many of his messages were put in print. What remains with us from our brother are the books that we have today, but they cannot compare to what he saw.
Based on this experience, beginning in 1974 I had a burden to hold biannual life-study trainings in America. During the past eleven years I buried myself in the life-studies, ignoring other matters. Since beginning the life-study training, I returned to Taiwan in 1975, in 1977 for a conference, in 1979 on my way to the Philippines, in 1981 after visiting Hong Kong to speak on church history, and again last year. During these visits I was mostly just passing through.
In 1979 I began to feel that the development of the church in Taipei had stopped. In 1984 I felt that there was a need for me to return, especially to Taipei, to mobilize the work for a new beginning. Last fall when I finished writing the Life-study for the last book in the New Testament — the book of Acts — I was clear inwardly that I should return to Taiwan. I received a fresh burden for the work in Taipei. This does not mean that I will completely drop the work in America.
From 1949, when I began the work in Taiwan, until I went to America was about thirteen years. During those years I spent four months every year in Southeast Asia and eight months in Taiwan. If the Lord allows it, I believe that for the next several years I will spend four to five months every year in Taiwan: two months in the first half of the year and another two months in the second half of the year. I would like to work together with the brothers to promote the Lord’s testimony on this island. Please pray for my traveling between Taiwan and America, because my returning is not merely for a conference or for a visit but that I have received a fresh burden for Taiwan.
This burden differs from the burden of the work in 1949. At that time we did not have even one meeting hall on the island, and there were only a few hundred saints here. In addition, the island of Taiwan was backward. The streets were unpaved, and most of the residents wore wooden clogs. Today’s situation is different. With respect to the church, there are already more than forty localities with close to ten thousand saints attending the meetings every week. In addition, the society, economy, and education in Taiwan have been blessed by the Lord such that Taiwan is suitable to propagate the gospel work of the Lord. In 1949 I was pushing a tricycle, but today we are pushing a train. The responsibility is heavy and great.
We hope that everyone will participate in this new beginning. Our leading in the past was to hold trainings, make arrangements, and fellowship. However, we now have many saints, especially with the church in Taipei. If I return merely to hold trainings, make arrangements, and fellowship, without being blended with you and moving forward together with you, there will be no result. Therefore, this time not only will I be involved in trainings, making arrangements, and having fellowship, but I will also participate in this endeavor.
Our current status requires a new arrangement. It may seem as though we are familiar with what we have fellowshipped, but the feeling within me is that every point is a new way. I will try my best to fellowship with you, and I hope that you will try your best to carry it out. If there are any problems or questions, even if I am in America, we can still communicate on the telephone. This will bring in better fellowship, leading, and arrangement.
I have placed myself in this endeavor and will “drive this car” with you and learn with you. The small groups concerning which we have fellowshipped involve a new way. The way to do the children’s work is also new. We have many ways related to time, location, manpower, teaching material, and goal. We are not tied down to what we used to do. The campus work has been here for years, but we should be willing to change our way and make progress. Preaching the gospel in the community may be an old term, but we did not give it much emphasis. This time we are asking the working saints in every profession to open their homes and invite their colleagues to come and hear the gospel. This is also something new. Furthermore, the terms visiting, shepherding, and teaching may not be new, but we must admit that we have not carried them out thoroughly in the past. This is the reason that we are short in our ability to care for people.
We will spend much time fellowshipping concerning the way for the church to move forward so that we may find a new way. The church in Taipei just added almost fifty new elders. That was unprecedented. When a local church is large, meeting in twenty-one halls, it is not easy for the elders in the halls to take care of administrating and promoting the work. Therefore, I must place myself in this endeavor and help bear the burden together with the brothers. I am sitting behind the wheel with you, and we are “driving this car,” learning, and studying together. These items of our fellowship are new. Some of these items I myself have not even practiced before. Therefore, I am earnestly asking the Lord to keep me and give me a few years to be with you so that together we may bring all the churches in Taiwan to a new standard. This requires that we all participate. It also requires that all the brothers and sisters receive a burden to pray and coordinate.
The main burden of this message is to lead the elders and the deacons. It is also a fellowship about training. We need to see that the Lord’s recovery is His testimony. We also need to see that the testimony of the Lord’s recovery has two pillars: truth and life. The testimony of the Lord’s recovery does not depend on so-called power; neither does it depend on so-called miracles or theological teachings. The testimony of the Lord’s recovery depends on truth and life. Whether or not the Lord’s testimony on the earth is strong and will be propagated largely depends on the extent to which the co-workers, the elders, and the deacons know the truth and grow in life. If the saints are strong in the truth and in life, the Lord’s recovery will progress, but if the saints are weak in truth and life, the Lord’s recovery has no future.
Concerning the truth, we need to have light. Truth is not doctrine. It is revelation and vision. We need to know the truth. In order to know the truth, we must read and study the Bible. If our reading of the Bible is not thorough and our learning of the truth is shallow, we can be certain that we will not receive light. The light of the truth is according to our knowledge of the Bible and our spiritual learning. The elders and the deacons must make progress and endeavor to enter into knowing the truth.
First Timothy 3:9 says that a deacon must hold “the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.” The faith in this verse refers to the entire content of the New Testament. The truth in the New Testament is our faith. In other words, the faith is the things we believe in. We believe in every truth in the New Testament, and we need to understand every truth in the New Testament. Believers in today’s Christianity who are qualified to speak of the faith are rare, because their knowledge of the truth is superficial. The extent of their faith is that Jesus died for us so that we can believe in Him and go to heaven to be spared from perdition. Such a content of the faith is far below the standard of the mystery of the faith.
In the recovery there are many important items of the truth. There is the truth concerning the economy of God, Christ as life, living out Christ, living in the spirit, and being one spirit with the Lord in our mingled spirit. These items of the truth are nearly buried in Christianity, but they are what we have emphasized over the years. These basic items of the truth in the New Testament are the content of our faith. Paul says that deacons should hold the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience, not in the mind. Often our mind is very clear, but our conscience condemns us. We need to hold the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.
Some elders and deacons among us are not able to speak about the mystery of the faith. If we do not know the mystery of the faith, how can we hold it? The mystery of the faith refers mainly to Christ as the mystery of God (Col. 2:2) and the church as the mystery of Christ (Eph. 3:4). Therefore, to hold the mystery of God in a pure conscience is to hold Christ, that is, to live Christ out every day. Before we were saved, we lived and acted recklessly; we lied and cheated. After we were saved, our conscience was enlightened, and we became sensitive toward these things. We could no longer cheat or lie; instead, we conducted ourselves properly.
Gradually, we saw that the mystery of God was Christ, not morality, ethics, honesty, faithfulness, righteousness, or holiness. We did not steal or lie, but neither did we live Christ from morning to evening every day. I am afraid that we only lived the life of a proper, moral, and ethical Chinese person; we did not live Christ. Thus, our conscience still condemned us. We were saved, we loved the Lord, and we stood in the Lord’s recovery for the Lord’s testimony, but our testimony was a testimony of morality instead of a testimony of Christ. Therefore, rather than confessing for losing our temper or lying, we need to say, “Lord, forgive me for not living You today. People saw my morality, but they did not see You in me.” Such an experience proves that we have seen not only the truth but also the mystery of the faith.
Holding the church as the mystery of Christ in a pure conscience includes not only living Christ every day but also living in the Body every day. We do not live Christ by ourselves; we live Christ in the church. Living Christ and also living in the Body of Christ causes the devil to fear. We are people who live in the Body of Christ.
While instructing the elders and the deacons, Paul tells the deacons to hold the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience (1 Tim. 3:9). This means that the deacons should live Christ in His Body. If we do not live Christ in His Body, our conscience will be bothered by the shining of the truth. Our conscience will condemn us. Although we might not have any wrongdoings, our life is not a life in the Body of Christ nor a life that lives out Christ. Our conscience, which has been enlightened, must be so pure that it wants nothing other than Christ and the church. Then our conscience will not condemn us, and we will have a pure conscience to hold the mystery of the faith. People in the world may know that we believe in Jesus, but they do not know the mystery of our faith in Jesus. The mystery of our faith in Jesus is to live Christ and to live Christ in the Body of Christ. This is a great matter.
The testimony of the church depends upon whether the serving ones — the elders and deacons — know the truth. They not only need to know the truth, but they need to keep the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. If all the elders and deacons do this, the church will be strong and rich, and it will be able to spread.
In addition to the truth, there is also life. Truth and life cannot be separated. Life is to live the life of Christ in the Body. If you ask me why I have my hair styled in this way, I would say that it is based on my living of Christ. Because I live Christ, my conscience determines how long or how short my hair should be. Similarly, if the elders and the deacons know the truth and live Christ in the Body, that church will be strong and rich.
The first matter that we need is to hold the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience, that is, to live Christ in the Body of Christ. This is the highest standard of morality, and it is much higher than the standard of morality in society. If we would be in the Lord’s recovery, we must live Christ in the Body. This is more than the four ethical standards in Chinese culture of being faithful, filial, kind, and righteous. It is to live the life of Christ in the Body of Christ. Galatians 2:20 says, “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” Philippians 1:21 says, “To me, to live is Christ.” This is not a matter of being kind or loving. This transcends human kindness and love because Christ transcends human kindness and love. Christianity has lost this, and the Lord is recovering this today.
The elders, deacons, and co-workers need a clear understanding of this. Many young full-timers grow and make progress because of their growth in the truth and in life. I encourage you to read the Bible diligently so that you can see the truth, be enlightened, and have a living that expresses Christ in the Body of Christ. This is life, and the foundation of life is the truth. Thus, truth and life cannot be separated, and they issue in one testimony — the church life.
Now we would like to fellowship concerning our practice. In order to lead the church and give accurate direction, we must have sufficient knowledge of the Bible. We must know the Bible not merely in theory but more so in practice. To this end I have returned to the Bible many times, and especially the New Testament, to consider the matter of levels in the church.
I have been overseas for more than twenty years. Approximately one hundred churches in America and Canada have been raised up since I went there. There are also approximately one hundred churches in South and Central America that have been raised up by this ministry. These churches and the more than one hundred churches in Europe, New Zealand, Australia, and Africa have all been raised up recently. All these churches are in my heart, and I have been observing and considering their situation. In addition, there are three hundred churches in the Far East. Altogether there are six hundred churches. In all the churches everyone wants to gain a high position. This is true in the West and in the East.
Everyone regards the elders very highly. In 1976, during the training on the Life-study of Matthew, we read where the Lord Jesus said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you; but whoever wants to become great among you shall be your servant” (Matt. 20:25-26). During that training I told the sisters whose husbands are elders that they should say, “When my husband became an elder, he became a slave” (Life-study of Matthew, p. 656). The sisters whose husbands become elders in the church should not consider themselves to be first ladies. They must realize that elders are slaves and that elders’ wives are slaves’ wives. In America there are some in the Lord’s recovery who travel from place to place looking for an opportunity to be an elder. Such an ambition limits the Lord’s spread. Many brothers and sisters who could have been useful have stopped growing in life.
When the elders in the church have too much authority, it becomes a limitation. Ten years ago there were four thousand in the children’s meeting. Based on this, I suggested that it would be good to work on the children until there were ten thousand children. Now there are only five hundred fifty in the children’s meeting. The functioning saints stopped laboring in the children’s work because no one promoted the work and no one sounded the call. At the end of 1980 the total attendance in all our meetings was not very high.
We need statistics in everything. As soon as we look at the statistics, we know where the lack is. The elders’ administration of the church has unconsciously become a limitation to us, because they do not have a long-term view and do not bring the saints into function. The elders are not aggressive to make arrangements, so the saints cannot do much. If the elders were aggressive to make arrangements, all the saints would be able to function. This limitation comes from the elders having too much authority. Whatever the elders do not decide upon does not get done. It does not seem as though this is the situation, but it is the fact. The root of our sickness is that the elders have too much authority, so there are levels in the church.
Suppose a young person wants to live in a brothers’ house. The elders do not have to be involved in this matter. They should hand it over to the responsible ones in the brothers’ house. Whatever decision the responsible ones make should be good enough. There is no need to obtain the approval of the elders. This is the main reason that our work does not spread and advance. This does not mean that our condition is declining or corrupted on the negative side but that we are trying to maintain an orderly condition on the positive side. Therefore, whatever happens, even at the “lowest level,” has to be approved at the “highest level.” Such a situation is a hindrance, causes much trouble, and consumes much manpower and time.
I stand before the Lord and beg that we would change our way of doing things, especially with the newly appointed elders and deacons. In the past the co-workers and elders among us were treated as a special class of people. Such a flavor, to an extent, still exists among us. For the sake of the Lord’s testimony on the island of Taiwan there should not be any special class of people among us, whether in the church or in the work.
By the Lord’s mercy, the work here was entrusted to me and has been built up by me with the brothers. The Lord knows that I am often in fear and trembling in His presence, that I would not have a haughty manner when I contact the saints. However, according to my observation, the co-workers have a haughty and lofty manner, and the elders have a bureaucratic flavor. The elders have their responsibilities, but they should not be haughty. The elders are not higher than the deacons, and the deacons are not higher than the saints. There are no such levels in the church.
Leading a church can be compared to leading a country. A country has a constitution, and a church has the Bible, which is our constitution. Everything we do should be according to the Bible. For instance, some of the elders have been serving since they were in their thirties, and they are now in their seventies. Because their physical energy is decreasing, they cannot bear too many responsibilities, but they are still elders. How should we deal with such a situation? How long should an elder’s tenure be? I cannot answer this question. Although I am rather familiar with our constitution, the Bible, I cannot find a word that specifies how long the tenure of an elder should be. In practice this is a problem.
There are many portions in the New Testament which show that the Lord does not want anyone to be a leader. In modern society every group has a leader. For example, among five members of a board of directors for a school, a president must be elected, or at least a convener must be chosen. In the New Testament, however, the Lord Jesus appointed twelve apostles, but He did not appoint a chief apostle among them, nor did they elect a leader among themselves.
In the book of Acts the disciples were greatly multiplied in number. There were Jews who spoke Greek and Jews who spoke Hebrew, and the two groups could not communicate with each other. As a result, the daily dispensing was not done equally, and there were complaints. Then the twelve said, “It is not fitting for us to forsake the word of God and serve tables. But brothers, look for seven well-attested men from among you, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint over this need. But we will continue steadfastly in prayer and in the ministry of the word” (6:2-4). Seven disciples were chosen to serve food, but no leader was chosen among them.
In the New Testament Paul speaks of appointing elders and of their qualifications, but he does not speak of electing a leader among the elders (Titus 1:5; 1 Tim. 3:1-7). Based on these examples, we do not have leaders in the small groups. If a brother says that he has been in the church life for more than twenty years, loves the Lord, and never misses a meeting but complains when another brother, who has been saved for only five years, is appointed as a leading one, his concept of position will become a source of stumbling. The desire to be a leader is a poison that only damages the church.
Among the co-workers and elders there are always some who are more spiritual and more experienced and who make decisions (cf. Acts 15:13-21). However, this does not mean that such brothers are the head. During the early period of the church, Peter took the lead and James followed. However, in Galatians 2 James was placed before Peter and John (v. 9). Later, James brought Judaism into the church, and this caused God to destroy the church in Jerusalem; even the entire city of Jerusalem was wiped out and totally destroyed.
These examples show that taking the lead is not the permanent responsibility of one person. In the New Testament no elder has a head position over other elders. All the elders are on the same level and have the same rank. There is no distinction of levels. The saints should not have to report every matter that needs a decision to the elders, nor do the elders in a meeting hall report to the elders in the central meeting hall for approval. Rather, the elders should fellowship among themselves.
However, the brothers in a meeting hall cannot say that baptism by immersion is too troublesome, and they will therefore baptize by sprinkling, because they do not have the authority to do so. There is no such constitution among us. Any person who would do such a thing would be writing his own constitution and is not under this ministry. Any change that is related to the truth must be based on the Bible. Whether to baptize people in the morning or evening, whether to use a big tub or a small tub, or whether to use cold water or warm water do not need to be reported to the elders. Such decisions should be made according to the practical situation in a hall.
If a matter cannot be worked out in a meeting hall, whether it is related to the work, the gospel in schools, the children’s gospel, or the community gospel, I am open to fellowship with you. There are no levels in the church. For a matter that will affect all twenty-one meeting halls, any meeting hall can call an elders’ meeting. There is no convener among us. As long as a matter concerns the whole church, any elder can call an elders’ meeting, and the elders in the twenty-one meeting halls should come and fellowship together.
We hope that we can be exercised not to have a leader. Leaders do not exist in the New Testament. If we remove the leaders, there will be no levels among us. The deacons should not regard the elders as their boss. According to the teaching of the Bible, the elders are appointed by God and so are the deacons. In the past our view concerning this point was not correct.
Perhaps the brothers and sisters would ask how to practically carry out this fellowship. The elders have their responsibilities and so do the deacons. The responsibilities of the elders are not under those of the deacons, nor are the responsibilities of the deacons under those of the elders. According to the Bible, the elders should take care of shepherding and overseeing, and the deacons take care of various affairs. For example, the matters related to cleaning are carried out by the deacons and do not need to be reported to the elders. Once a matter related to cleaning requires an elder’s approval, levels are produced. In our study of the Bible for the past years, we have found neither leaders nor levels in the New Testament. In the New Testament there is only fellowship and coordination. When the elders decide on what needs to be done for a conference, including set-up, cleaning, and ushering, they often assign subordinates to carry out each task. This way of doing things is according to the way of the world, not according to the teaching of the Bible.
The Bible speaks of fellowshipping, not of ordering. The elders should communicate in the way of fellowship, instead of taking a superior position to speak to a saint who is serving as a deacon. An elder should be willing to be lower than the deacon. First Corinthians 12:28 speaks of helps and administrations. No one can deny that those who help are the deacons and those who administrate are the elders. In this verse Paul places the deacons before the elders. If the elders are higher than the deacons, why did Paul put the deacons before the elders? Paul purposely arranged the order in this verse. He says, “God has placed some in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers,” and then he mentions helps and administrations. Therefore, based on the divine revelation in the Bible, we cannot have levels. Without levels everything can still be accomplished. This is coordination.
It is the elders’ responsibility to determine how the meetings should be conducted, but this decision should not be made only by the elders. They should fellowship with the saints and seek the Lord’s leading. In principle, it is the elders who make decisions concerning matters, and their decisions should be carried out through fellowship. For example, the elders should inform the brothers responsible for cleaning which facility will be used for a certain meeting and ask the brothers to take care of the cleaning. The elders should also inform the saints responsible for set-up and for ushering. This should all be done in fellowship and not by giving orders. Then everyone can carry out his portion side by side.
If we do not function in this way, we cannot explain Matthew 20. There it says that those who want to be great should be servants, and whoever wants to be first shall be a slave (vv. 26-27). Therefore, we should not be according to the order in 1 Timothy 3, where the elders are mentioned first, before the deacons. We should not think that the elders are higher and that the deacons are lower. Otherwise, we will not be able to explain Matthew 20. This is the answer we have found after many years of studying the Bible, consulting other books, and passing through painful experiences. We cannot have levels or ranks, but with regard to responsibilities, there should be distinction. Everyone functions according to his portion.
The Epistles speak of each member of the Body functioning according to his portion. Each member of the Body has a place and a function (1 Cor. 12:18). Hence, we should remove the concept of rank, which we received from society. An elder should not feel that he is higher than others, nor should a deacon feel that he is lower than others. An elder makes decisions concerning certain matters and asks the deacons to cooperate, but an elder does not ask in the way of a boss giving orders to his subordinate. Those who clean the hall are not subordinates listening to the command of their boss. They are serving the Lord in coordination with the church.
In this way we can keep the word in Matthew 20:26-27, which says, “Whoever wants to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you shall be your slave.” We are brothers one of another; no one can be a master over others. This also corresponds to Peter’s word. He says, “Elders...shepherd the flock of God among you, overseeing not under compulsion but willingly, according to God;...nor as lording it over your allotments but by becoming patterns of the flock” (1 Pet. 5:1-3). This also corresponds to what Paul says in Acts 20:28, “Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among whom the Holy Spirit has placed you as overseers to shepherd the church of God.”
If we do not keep this in mind, whenever we think of administration, we will be haughty, as if we were a general manager ruling over a company. In other words, the thought in the Bible is absolutely not according to the way of society. The Bible says that the church is Christ’s Body (Eph. 1:22-23). In the Body no member can come forth to rule over other members. Instead, the many members in the Body are coordinated, and each member operates according to its measure and function. According to 1 Corinthians, even the head is a member (12:21). This does not refer to Christ as the Head of the Body, because Christ is the unique Head. No member in the Body rules over other members; rather, every member keeps his position and exercises his function.
Therefore, this abnormal way of doing things among us must change. Instead of forming a special class of people, we are to serve the saints by giving messages and teaching them. If we are a special class, we are in degradation and have become a degraded religion. There is no special class in the church. Paul says, “In nothing am I inferior to the super-apostles, even though I am nothing” (2 Cor. 12:11). However, he also says, “To me, less than the least of all saints” (Eph. 3:8). This is the kind of heart and attitude that we should have. The elders should never have the concept that is in society and think that they are the first, the elders, the “president.” Such a concept must be completely removed. Likewise, other saints should not think that they are nobody in the church since they are neither elders nor deacons. In the church each of us must function according to our portion.
Since we are not able to make arrangements for every saint, we have listed the various categories in the work, such as the small groups, the gospel in the homes, in the schools, and in the community, and the children’s work. Our hope is that every saint would participate in one category. Nevertheless, every saint should participate in promoting and strengthening the small groups, and every family should participate in the gospel in the homes. Although we are not elders or deacons, we should still participate. The concept of levels or rank must be removed. Every saint should function according to his portion and do what he can to the best of his ability in his place. No one can limit others, rule over others, or restrict others.
In this way, no manpower and no resources will be wasted, and we will not hinder the Lord’s business or waste His time. May the Lord have mercy on us. We hope that all the brothers and sisters will have the heart to enter into such a burden.
