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The first thing we want to see is how the workers are raised up. There are mainly two aspects in the raising up of the workers. The first involves localities where there are already meetings. If some brothers in a locality where meetings have started are burdened to go to another locality to work, they must be responsible before the Lord and also have the approval of all the brothers and sisters in the locality where they meet. This situation is like a finger wanting to move; the finger cannot move independently but must be carried along by the move of the whole body. It can only move after it has the approval of the whole body. Christ is the Head of the church. Therefore, the church is the Body of Christ. In a locality where there is no meeting, the Body is not manifested. In that case, an individual is responsible to God alone. But whenever a meeting is raised up in a locality, there is a need for the approval of the brothers and sisters. This can be seen from the record of Acts 13. A meeting was started in Antioch, and the Holy Spirit through the Body sent Paul and Barnabas out to work.
Second, in a locality where there is not yet a meeting, the situation is different. If someone wants to work in a locality where there is no meeting, he has to be responsible to the Lord directly. In Acts 11, the church in Antioch had not yet appeared, so Paul and Barnabas were responsible to God directly. But later when the church was produced, the Holy Spirit sent out the prophets and teachers through the Body. By then the work of Paul and Barnabas was no longer just before God but was in the Body as well. The disciples laid hands on Paul and Barnabas and sent them out. The laying on of hands signifies sympathy and union. Through the laying on of hands, all the brothers were joined to Paul and Barnabas in their going out. The going of the two became the going of the whole Body. The laying on of hands is different from the ordination of pastors. The ordination practices we see today are traditions and are not found in the Bible.
After Paul and Barnabas were sent out from Antioch, they engaged themselves in the work commissioned by the Holy Spirit. This is the first case in history of missionary work. In this sending, the Holy Spirit maintained His absolute authority. A church cannot send out anyone on its own. Before the church can send, there must first be the speaking of the Holy Spirit. The sending of the church is merely the execution of the order of the Holy Spirit and the confirmation of the move of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 15:36-40 mentions another case of going out. In these verses we see the paths of Paul and Barnabas separating. Paul suggested that only two should go, but Barnabas insisted that they bring Mark along. Paul considered it unsuitable for Mark to join them. Between the two there was a sharp contention. Therefore, Barnabas decided to take Mark with him, but Paul chose Silas and took another way. Verse 40 says, “But Paul...went out, having been commended to the grace of the Lord by the brothers.” This is the difference between the two men. Paul was sent out by the Body, while Barnabas did not have the sending of the Body. Paul was commended to the grace of the Lord by the brothers. Barnabas was not. In this matter, the Body stood on Paul’s side. After Acts 15, Barnabas was not mentioned anymore. In this matter, the Holy Spirit confirmed the sending of the Body.
Mark played a passive role here. He was a young co-worker and learner. Therefore, he did not bear as great a responsibility as Barnabas. Later Mark was recovered by God and brought back into the work. But what about Barnabas? There was no return for him and no further mention of him. Some may ask, “Since that brother can do something, can I not do the same? Since that brother can go to a certain locality, can I not go to the same locality?” You have to be careful. That brother may go under the sending of the Body, while you might be going by yourself. This is where the difference lies. Do not say, “If God can use him, He can also use me.” God can use him and not you, because he is sent out in the Body. Do not say that God cannot drop you; He can drop you in the same way that He dropped Barnabas. The record in Acts is very clear. After that incident, the Holy Spirit did not mention Barnabas again.
All the work may be done by individuals, but it is all done in the move of the Body. This was the case on the day of Pentecost. Acts 2:14 says, “But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and spoke forth to them.” The word “standing” here is plural, while “lifted” is singular. Although one man was speaking, eleven others were standing behind this one. Therefore, we have to see that in our working, we must have the brothers behind us to be our support.
We need to learn the lesson of submission. Not only do the sent ones need to learn submission, the sending ones also need to learn submission. Only in the spirit of submission will a person hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. We cannot consider that a consensus is the standard for any work; rather, submission must be the standard. We should not send out a brother because we agree with him. Many times, even though we do not agree with the proposal of a certain brother, we still have to give him the liberty to do it. The matter is not about agreeing or not agreeing but about submitting or not submitting. The Holy Spirit can have a way only among the submissive ones.
Once a worker is sent out, he becomes an apostle. An apostle is a sent worker. Paul was an apostle. What is the difference between an apostle and an elder? According to the Bible, elders are stationary, while the apostles move. The elders are appointed for one locality only, while the apostles are for the whole Body. Paul was never an elder; he was only an apostle. But Peter and John were elders as well as apostles. When they were in Jerusalem, they were the elders in Jerusalem. In addition to being the elders in Jerusalem, they were also apostles. Because they were the elders, they had the authority to oversee. As to apostles, their responsibility is limited to only the work they are commissioned to do; they have no overseeing responsibility. I hope that we all will be clear. When speaking of the elders, it is with reference to one locality. When speaking of the apostles, it is with reference to the whole earth. The same person can have two statuses at the same time; on the one hand, he bears the overseeing responsibility in a locality, and on the other hand, he bears the responsibility of the work in all the localities. For example, among the brothers my work is for all the workers in all the localities, as well as for those in Shanghai. I share the responsibility in Shanghai with the brothers here.
Now we will consider the workers. How do we recognize whether or not a person is a worker?
(1) A worker must have gifts. There are many kinds of gifts. Evangelism is a gift. Prophesying is a gift. Shepherding and teaching is also a gift. Different gifts are for different functions. The gift of the evangelists is for unbelievers. The gift of the teachers is for ascertaining doctrines. The gift of the shepherds is for shepherding men, nurturing believers for their spiritual growth, and rendering help for the solution of personal problems and different matters.
A worker should have as many of these gifts as possible. However, he must have at least one of these gifts.
How can we tell if a person has a certain gift? If he has a gift, the brothers who are meeting with him should be able to testify and confirm this. Therefore, the recognition of a gift is in the Body. The Body knows. If a person has the gift of an evangelist, the Body can sense it. If he has the gift of teaching, the Body can also sense it. Even if he does not take preaching as a profession, he can still have these gifts and do the work that the workers are doing. These gifts are what the workers should have, but they are not limited just to the workers.
Many people think that if they cannot work in one locality, they can change to another locality and perhaps work there. Actually, inability to work in a locality is not a matter of the locality. If someone cannot work in one locality, neither can he work in another locality. The question is whether or not he has a gift. A person who does not have a gift will not have a gift wherever he goes.
(2) Although a worker may have the gifts, if his life is not proper, he still cannot work. His work depends not only on the gift but also on the grace. He must not only have sufficient gifts but also an abundance of grace. The result of a work is not only related to the gift of the worker but also is directly related to the life of the worker. Workers with different amounts of grace will have different results in the same work. The amount of grace a worker has determines the kind of work that he produces. This does not mean that one who has no grace cannot bring others to salvation. Perhaps he can bring others to salvation because he has the gift of evangelism. But if he does not have life, the more work he does, the more tearing down there will be. Today many workers are building their work with one hand and tearing it down with the other hand because there is a lack of life.
In Acts 16:2 all the brothers commended Timothy. As a result, verse 3 tells us that Paul took Timothy with him. This is the confirmation of the brothers. Timothy was confirmed not only in one place by the brothers but in at least two places. If one’s condition before the Lord is proper and the grace is adequate, the brothers who are meeting in the same locality will surely testify for him. Not only will spiritual brothers testify for him, even brothers who are not spiritual will also testify for him.
According to the Bible, every meeting should have three kinds of people. First, there are believers in the church. This is the basic group in a meeting. There is, at least, this first kind in every church. Second, there are those who serve in the material things. All of their responsibilities relate to business affairs, such as helping the brothers and sisters to do things, managing the arrangement and affairs concerning the meeting, etc. The Bible calls these people deacons, of whom some are brothers and some are sisters. Third, in addition to the above two kinds, there are a few brothers whose responsibilities are to take care of the main activities in the meetings, such as taking the lead in the meetings, making decisions, corresponding with those outside the church, and caring for the saints. The Bible calls these people elders.
A meeting should involve all of the above three types of people. There are no workers. Workers do not occupy a superior position in the church. Since a worker does not belong to another group of people, he must be in one of the above three groups. The workers do not become a fourth group in a meeting; they are within one of the other three.
The relationship among these three groups of people can be illustrated by an example. Suppose the brothers in a certain locality need to build a meeting hall. In the beginning, the elders make a proposal and decisions. After the matter has been decided, they will inform the brothers and assign various responsibilities to the deacons. The deacons, in turn, will ask all the brothers and sisters to provide the necessary labor. The workers can only do their share of the work. They can only fulfill their part of the work; they cannot control the whole work. The only difference between them and the other believers is that they bear a little more burden. This is the relationship between the workers and the local churches.
The position of the workers is similar to the position of the early apostles. They do the work of the apostles, but they do not have the authority of the apostles. On the other hand, if a worker has a certain commission, burden, or assignment from the Lord, the church should show its sympathy in the matter and support his endeavors. We cannot find one example in the Bible where the apostles had a burden and the church did not agree with it or where the work was under the control of a church. If this is the case, God’s work will be greatly hindered.
What is the relationship between the younger workers and the older workers in the work? According to the Bible, the workers who come afterward should submit to the workers who were there before them. The younger should submit to the older. For example, Paul was clearly leading Silas, Timothy, Titus, and Onesimus. The younger ones were clearly taking Paul’s leading and were submissive to Paul.
Today in the denominations, there are two situations. On the one hand, some workers are completely controlled and bound by those above them, and all of the decisions arise from human ideas. At the other extreme, there are the so-called free-lance preachers. They come and go independently; they provide for themselves and do their preaching. They are not bound or controlled by anyone. However, neither kinds of people know the Lord. The first group places authority in the hands of others; they do not have the Lord. The second group keeps the authority in their own hand; they also do not have the Lord. When the authority is placed in the Lord’s hand, these two extremes are crossed out. A worker must not be controlled by others in the matter of money and must not hand this authority over to others.
Acts 8 tells us that Peter and John were sent by the church to preach in Samaria. Their footsteps were restricted by the church. Every worker is a restricted person. Many people think that they are under the control of no one. They are misled to think that a spiritual person is without restriction.
Concerning the perfecting of the young ones, the Bible does not speak of any seminary. Although some tried to start a school for the prophets in the Old Testament, it did not produce any prophets. Studying in a seminary will not make a person a worker. The training of a worker comes from following a pattern and from submission.
Timothy and Silas both followed Paul. In the Bible, we only see the way of apprenticeship; we do not see the way of scholarship. If a young worker does not learn the lesson of submission properly, he will not be able to learn any other lesson. This is something very important. Every young worker must go through great pressure in the hand of God before he can become useful. Everyone used by God has had to pass through strict dealings. One can see from the letter Paul wrote to Timothy that he was very strict in his instructions to the younger workers. He was not at all careless or loose with Timothy.
Many of the problems in the church today arise when men want to have the gifts but do not get them. They think that they are a certain kind of gift, but actually they are not. When matters are put into their hands, they spoil them. This does not mean that they do not want to handle the matters properly. It merely means that they do not have the capacity to handle them properly. A person with the gift of teaching can only do the work of discerning biblical truths, maintaining these truths, and discovering new truths; he cannot do anything else. Similarly, those who only have the gift of evangelism can only do the work of evangelism; they cannot replace the teachers to teach and ascertain the truth. They can only do the work within their limit. The problem is that no one in the world today is keeping to his own position or is satisfied with his own position. The evangelists want to be the teachers, while the teachers want to be evangelists. Everyone admires what they are not. This tendency of the natural man is the flesh. In the Body of Christ, every member has its distinct use. The ear cannot replace the eye, and the eye cannot replace the ear. Even if you put the ear in the position of the eye, the ear is still the ear; it still cannot see. This shows us the importance of standing firm in our position. Everyone of us has to learn to stand in our own position.
The younger workers must not only submit to the older workers personally but must also know where God has put them. After one understands his proper position, he will not fall into the flesh. In this way, he will experience deliverance in his work. If a young worker indeed has the gift of teaching and the older workers around him do not have this gift, in this circumstance, the older ones should submit to the younger one and receive his gift. However, every younger worker can always find someone who is more mature and more advanced from whom he can learn submission. There will always be some older workers to whom he can submit. Timothy was charged to consider what Paul said (2 Tim. 2:7) and know “from which ones you have learned them” (2 Tim. 3:14). Timothy had to go and find the ones from whom he had learned all the things. He had to find the workers who were ahead of him.
A young worker must also learn to accept unreasonable treatment. He must learn what it means to submit without reason. All true submission is without reason. Once there is a reason, it is not submission. In God’s work, no one can be independent and claim that he does not need to submit to anyone else. The younger ones should be this way and even the older ones are without an exception because no one can be independent. Even if God uses a worker to discover a certain truth, he cannot move independently; he must go on in mutual submission.
All of the workers must have the common faith concerning the Lord’s work and His person. These basic truths must be kept in common by us. If any worker has erred in these general principles, the elders should stop him from working. Concerning the major doctrines, there must be the proper scriptural interpretations. Everyone must be the same in these interpretations. The proper interpretation of many verses have already been laid down by others. All we have to do is receive them from their hand; there is no need for us to add anything. One basic principle in reading the Bible is to simply accept what God’s Word says and not add our own thoughts to it. In reading the Bible, we should ask, “What has God said?” instead of “Why did God say this?” A citizen of a country does not need to ask why there is a certain law. He only needs to ask what the law of the country is. Our question should be “what,” not “why.” Our attitude toward God’s commands should not be one of understanding but of submission.
Today, due to differences in men’s conduct before God, there are differences in biblical interpretations. For example, in the matter of baptism, many people have been sprinkled. When they read the Bible, they somehow find the doctrine of sprinkling. Their doctrine is a result of their conduct. A man’s interpretation of the Bible has a great deal to do with his attitude before God. Many people come to God’s Word with only one purpose: to find an ordinance that would justify their conduct. Their goal is to turn God’s Word into some law that suits them. Therefore, their interpretation of the Bible is all for themselves. A person who has never passed through the dealing of the cross cannot read the Bible. Only those who have passed through the cross can read the Bible properly.
Now we come to the need of the workers. The first thing we have to mention is the offering of money by the believers. The offerings of the believers are not merely for the support of the workers; they are to supply those who work for the Lord. In other words, one does not offer to a certain person simply because he is a worker; he offers to that person because he works for the Lord. What he is personally is one matter, and whether or not he works is another matter altogether. As long as he works for the Lord, he deserves to be supplied. The question is not whether or not he has money, but whether or not he works for the Lord. If he works for the Lord, he deserves to be supported. A man paying a rickshaw operator does not ask if he is rich or poor. Whether he is rich or poor has nothing to do with it. As long as he has worked, he deserves his wages. A person cannot say that because a worker has money, he does not need to be supported. Someone once intended to make an offering to Mr. Bright, a co-worker of Dr. Scofield. But the person next to him said that the Lord would take care of Mr. Bright’s needs. Therefore, the man took back his offering, and Mr. Bright was left without the support. Believers should not offer their money just because the workers are poor. If they give because of the worker’s poverty, they are not making an offering but are giving alms.
Making an offering is the least that a saved person can do. If a saved man does not offer up himself, he is a useless person before God. If a man has received grace, there should be a result of offering up all that he has to the Lord. It is not normal for a person to receive grace and not be willing to offer up all that he has. All those whose hearts have been touched by God will give up their money purse. It is impossible for a person’s heart to be touched by God without his possessions also being touched by God. Consecration allows God to touch everything. Only after God has touched him will love flow out from him. If a man has never offered up himself, there will surely not be the outflow of love from him.
Today, there are only two gods in this world. The first is mammon, and the other is the true God. If we do not love God, we will love mammon. Only when a man loves God will his heart be broadened. The thing that broadens man’s heart the most is the giving of money. A believer among us attended meetings in a certain denomination for twenty years but never even nodded his head toward another person. Later he offered himself up, and his whole being changed. Previously I was afraid of reporting to others about our financial condition. But today I have turned. This is a way for others to receive grace. The more a person offers, the more he will be filled with grace. These words are for the whole Body.
Now let us consider the way to dispense the offerings. Part of the money received in the meetings should be set aside for the local workers and the workers in other localities. This is a sign of fellowship. Paul praised the Philippians for their grace in this matter (Phil. 4). They continued to fellowship with the apostle in the matter of money. The condition of the Corinthians was just the opposite; they developed a problem in their fellowship with Paul. As a result, Paul was willing to allow other churches to suffer, rather than ask for any money from the Corinthians. He did not use the Corinthians’ money because there was a problem with the fellowship. Only when there is fellowship can there be a material offering.
Thank the Lord that the brothers in Shanghai have received grace in this matter. The workers from out of town should not misunderstand and think that the church in Shanghai is so rich that it can keep sending money out. The reason the church in Shanghai is able to send money out is because the local workers in Shanghai have received only a little local support. Thus, the church is able to send out so much. This is the grace of the church in Shanghai.
The offerings to individuals should be personally wrapped in an envelope by the offerer, marked with the name of the worker, and dropped into the offering box. The brothers who open the box should then personally hand this offering directly to the receiver.
First, workers should not make others feel that they are poor. A worker lives by faith, not by alms giving. It is a shame to let others know that you are poor with the hope of receiving support. When a worker receives a supply from the brothers, he should have the proper attitude. When a worker receives money from the brothers, he is receiving this money on God’s behalf. He stands on God’s side and represents God. Therefore, he should not have a beggarly attitude. When Paul mentioned the matter of money, he gave others an honorable and respectable impression. This is the proper attitude for every worker.
Second, whenever any worker receives more than other workers, he should distribute the excess to the other workers. Do not be afraid that by doing this, others will misunderstand and think that you are rich or have struck a fortune. Moreover, for personal family needs, there is sometimes the necessity of short-term savings. This is scriptural. Proverbs teaches this.
Third, there must be some planning in the way one uses his money. Many people buy useless things when they have money. This kind of behavior will stop God’s supply. One has to plan the way he uses his money. One must have a budget and carefully consider before God what he should and should not buy. He should not buy carelessly and waste money.
Fourth, workers must never borrow. A worker of God should prefer to die than borrow from others. If he does not have the faith that his living will be cared for, he should look for some work to sustain his living. If he has the faith that God will sustain him, he should not stretch out his hand to others.
Today, God desires that we walk according to the principle of manna. The principle of manna is: “He who gathered much had no excess, and he who gathered little had no lack” (2 Cor. 8:15). This is not just the record in the Old Testament. The New Testament tells us the same thing. Being in excess and being in want are both wrong. If a brother in a locality cannot get by and has no means to support his living, either the church or individual believers should help him. The church cannot sit there and do nothing for the brothers who are unemployed; it must do its best to help them. Of course, this does not include those who will not work. We cannot help those who are not willing to work. We can only help those who are willing to work. Moreover, if the earning of a brother is not enough to support his living, the church must again come in to help. The same is true with those whose income is too low. It was this kind of work that the apostles did in the early church.
The order for helping is to care for the brothers and sisters in your locality first, and then to help the poor people outside. If believers have close family members who have needs, they should care for the needs of their own relatives first, before caring for the needs of other people.
No one should give offerings without first having some careful consideration. A naturally loose person will not receive the Lord’s blessing through excessive giving, because a person who is loose with his finances will surely be loose in the things of the Lord. We have to learn to be a consecrated person before the Lord, not a loose person.
For a believer, giving is not a matter of simply offering money. One must have a proper living before God before his giving can receive God’s blessing. The third Epistle of John mentions that the saints who support the workers need to have a living worthy of God and one that is in a godly manner. A person who gives must live a life that is worthy of God. Thank the Lord that everyone is not a Lazarus, and everyone is not a rich man. God does not need Lazarus, nor does He need the rich man. He only needs the offerings of those whose living is worthy of Him. Although Lazarus did not have money, he could be saved; he could receive grace and live a life worthy of God. The flesh has two sins before God. One is the severe treatment of the body mentioned in Colossians 2. The other is to indulge oneself in comfort. God has no intention for us to treat our body severely, but neither does He want us to live too comfortably. He wants us to live a life that is worthy of Him. All excess money should be given away as quickly as possible.
The last thing to mention is the letter of recommendation. Paul mentioned this to the Corinthians. This is something found in the New Testament. When an ordinary believer goes to a new locality, he should have a letter of recommendation. Paul mentioned in his Epistle that he himself did not need a letter of recommendation. This is because Paul had already built up a relationship with the Corinthians. This is why he was an exception. As to the other brothers and sisters, a letter of recommendation was still necessary. The function of the letter is twofold. First, it allows others to know you. Second, it prevents false brothers from coming in. Every letter of recommendation should be witnessed by two or three persons before it can be validated. Usually a letter of recommendation is written by the local elders or the responsible persons. There are three kinds of letters:
(1) Those that recommend a brother to the Lord’s table, attesting that he is a brother in the Lord. This is mainly for the brothers who are still in the denominations.
(2) Those that recommend that a brother has left the denominations and is taking the way we take.
(3) In addition to those taking this way, there are those who have special gifts and can be invited to speak.
After receiving a letter of recommendation, the local responsible ones should send a letter of reply to the sending locality, verifying that the letter of recommendation was received. Such letters of recommendation and replies should be prepared ahead of time and printed according to a standard form, so that they can be used easily. Every time a brother comes from another locality, he needs to give us a letter of recommendation before we can receive him at the Lord’s table. We will likewise furnish those who go out from us with a letter of recommendation. I hope that we all will pay attention to this matter in the future.
