Search
Scripture Reading: Rom. 11:36
Romans 11:36 says, “Because out from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.” Some versions translate out from Him as “of Him,” and others translate it “from Him.” The meaning in the original language is “out from Him.” Through Him may be translated as “passing through Him.” This is similar to someone needing to pass through a bridge in order to cross from one side of a river to the other side. All things may be translated as “all,” including persons, things, and affairs. All persons, events, and things are out from Him, pass through Him, and eventually are unto Him.
We need to know the Lord’s way in order to know how to serve Him. This requires that we know life and the church and have a proper exercise in order to learn how to work and how to do things. These are two crucial exercises. In order to do anything, we must first prepare material. For example, if a farmer wants to grow a plant, he must first have seeds. If he does not have any seeds, he cannot do anything. Even if he has seeds, however, he still may not know how to plant them. Therefore, once we have the material, we need to study the way. Our knowledge of life and the church is the material, and our learning how to work and do things is the way. Our knowledge concerning life and the church is the capital and material for us to serve the Lord. If a businessman wants to do business, he must first obtain capital and then study the way to do business. If he has both the capital and a way, he will probably succeed in business.
By the Lord’s mercy, we have a desire to serve the Lord; therefore, we must pay attention to our material and our way. We cannot work for the Lord merely because of our zeal and love for Him. We need to consider the kind of work to do, the kind of material to use, and the kind of capital we possess. These are critical issues. If we do not have any material and capital, we might as well forget about serving the Lord. However, if we have capital and material, we still may not have the way and, thus, may not know how to serve. Therefore, when we speak of knowing life and the church, our purpose is to help the brothers and sisters obtain the necessary capital and material. This can be compared to the need for the builders of the temple to go up the mountain to gather wood (Hag. 1:8). Our perfecting of the saints can be compared to gathering wood from the mountain. If we want to do the Lord’s work, we must know life and the church in order to obtain the material for the service of the Lord.
Following this, we need to know the way. After we have material, we still need to consider how to do the work in different places and how to make arrangements for various matters in the work. The brothers who administrate the church in the different localities and who serve the Lord full time know from their experience that there is a great difference between one who knows how to work and one who does not. One brother may go to work in a certain place, but there is no result. When another brother goes to work in the same place, however, there is an immediate result. Even though God is the same, the Lord is the same, and the environment for the work is the same, the work of one person produces no fruit, but the work of another person can be very fruitful. The difference lies in both the person and the way. Furthermore, all our work is affected by persons, events, and things. Therefore, if we want to know how to work, we must know how to do things. In our exercise for the service, we must pay constant attention to these two matters.
The knowledge of life and the church is a matter of truth and light. In regard to the Lord’s work, many churches are weak and poor because the brothers and sisters do not know how to do things. This is a serious matter. The condition of some brothers and sisters is very good before the Lord — they love the Lord, they are godly, and they pray frequently. However, once a work is placed in their hand, it is finished; once a local church is entrusted to their care, its condition becomes poor. Considering the degree of their love for the Lord and the condition of their spirituality and prayer, they should be useful to the Lord in many things. Nevertheless, the outcomes are exactly the opposite. Although they love the Lord and often pray with tears, their service is ineffective. They pray; however, the environment remains the same, and the condition of the church remains the same. This is because they do not know how to work and do things, even though they are spiritual and pray regularly. If a believer is neither spiritual nor able to work, he will be worthless. However, if a believer is merely spiritual but does not know how to work and do things, there will be no result.
A microphone needs electricity in order to produce sound. However, a microphone cannot produce sound with electricity only. In order to produce sound, there is a need for support from many other things, such as an electrical plug and wires. Perhaps there is no problem with our spirituality and prayer, but if there are problems with the way and method of our work and doing things, our work will not be profitable. We should never think that we can work as long as we are spiritual and know how to pray. More than twenty years ago I thought that as long as we read the Bible diligently, prayed frequently, and were spiritual, the Lord would work and do things through us. However, this is not the case. In the past twenty years the experiences of many churches and saints have proven that merely being spiritual and praying regularly are not enough. We also need to know how to work and do things.
This can be compared to a chemistry formula that requires four ingredients. If we have only two ingredients, we will not produce the expected chemical reaction. Similarly, if we are not spiritual and do not pray, and we rely simply on a method of doing things, we will also not have the results. Without electricity a microphone will not work, regardless of its quality; furthermore, even when there is electricity, other electrical parts are needed. We need to be spiritual and pray, but we must also consider the matter of how we work and do things.
We need to pay attention to our spirituality and our way of working, just as we need to pay attention to electricity and the electrical components of a microphone. Both aspects are needed. I hope that we will all spend some time to put these points into practice. If we make the effort to exercise in these matters, we will gain some understanding. Anyone who feels that he does not know life and does not know how to serve, work, and do things should not feel embarrassed to ask. We should not focus on trivial matters; rather, we should focus our study specifically on how to serve, work, and do things, the totality of which is our service to the Lord.
Those who serve the Lord should have a basic understanding that God requires man to cooperate with Him in His plan. Everyone who has a heart to serve the Lord should know this in a fundamental way. In creation, God created everything by Himself, and in the final act of creation, God created man. After He created man, everything was complete; man did not need to do anything or ask for anything. The work of creation was done by God alone, and man did not have any part in it.
However, in addition to His work of creation, God has the work of redemption. In creation man did not need to do anything, and he had no part in God’s work. In redemption, however, God wants man to work together with Him. Redemption is accomplished by a joint effort of God and man. Just as tea-water is produced by the mingling of tea and water, redemption is accomplished by the mingling of God with man. God did the work of creation through His own position, qualification, power, and authority; however, redemption is accomplished through the mingling and joining of God with man. Without God, redemption could not be accomplished, but without man, redemption could not be accomplished either.
When our Savior accomplished redemption on the cross, did He redeem us in His status as God or in His status as man? Is the Lord Jesus God or man? This is a very important question. We must remember that every item in redemption is accomplished through the mingling of God with man. Where did redemption begin? It began from Bethlehem. The story of Bethlehem is the story of God entering into man. Incarnation shows that God’s redemption requires the mingling of God with man. Redemption cannot be accomplished only by God Himself, and redemption cannot be accomplished only by man. Redemption can be accomplished only by God entering into man and by the mingling and joining of man with God.
It is certainly true to say that Jesus is God, and it is equally true to say that Jesus is a man. Jesus the Nazarene is the result of the mingling and joining of God and man. When He was on the earth, His thoughts, His work, and even the direction of His footsteps were all for redemption. His every footstep was the footstep of God with man, and His every action was the action of God with man. We need to be clear that the One who was born in the manger in Bethlehem and was worshipped by man is God yet man. The One who dined in the house of the Pharisee is God yet man. The One who was crucified on the cross at Golgotha is God yet man. The story of the Gospels is the story of God’s redemption through the mingling of God and man.
When the brothers lead the churches or give messages, are they only in themselves? If they are, this should be disapproved. If a brother is giving a message in himself, this is no different than the practice in Islam, Taoism, or any other religion. When we give a message in the church, God should be speaking through us. In whatever we do, God should be doing it through us, and God should be mingled with us. If I speak without being mingled with God, I should be cursed.
When the Lord Jesus was on the earth, He was the son of Mary and the brother of James, but within He was the Word of God; He was God. God Himself was in Him. This is the great mystery of godliness (1 Tim. 3:16). The redemption of Christ began from Bethlehem, and the significance of Bethlehem is incarnation, which is the mingling of God and man. From the day that the Lord Jesus became flesh until now, this principle remains: God desires to enter into man and mingle Himself with man as one. If we want to serve the Lord and work for Him, we must see this great and basic principle.
When we serve the Lord, it is not enough to be zealous, to give some material offerings, and to pray some prayers; the basic principle of serving the Lord is to see that God does everything in redemption through the mingling of God with man. He wants man’s cooperation. Once we see this principle, we will be able to solve the following three matters.
Since God needs man’s cooperation in His work of redemption, all work is of God, not of man. In our exercise we must seek to act according to the principle established by God. God’s desire that man work together with Him has been initiated by God, not by man. God initiates His work, but it is carried out by man’s cooperation with Him. We could never even dream that redemption requires man’s cooperation and needs to pass through man. This thought is not of man. If we do not see this principle, we will definitely have many deficiencies in our work. All works require man’s cooperation with God, but no work is initiated by man. All works originate from God as the source and are carried out with the cooperation of man. We need to see this principle: all work begins with God, not with man.
This is the source of the confusion in today’s Christianity. The main reason Christians are divided into many denominations and sects is that many things among them have been initiated by man, not by God. The point of initiation is not God but man. Every person who serves God should submit to Him and say, “O God, although You cannot do anything without me and although You need me to work together with You, everything must originate from You, not from me. I will not move unless You move; I want to move only in Your move.”
What is the difference between the church and religion? No religion has been initiated or advanced by God. In contrast, the church is initiated and advanced by God. Religion is something conceived by man, who worships and serves God according to his thoughts about God. However, the church does not come from man’s thinking; rather, the church comes from God. The church is the issue of God’s moving and calling in man and of man’s answering God’s call. From the Old Testament to the New Testament, those who served God were called by God; no one served out of his own desire. Saul, who took the way of religion, persecuted Jesus the Nazarene and was zealous in all kinds of religious activities. Then one day he saw a great light on his way to Damascus, and he heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” He immediately said, “Who are You, Lord?” (Acts 9:3-5). At this point Saul began to know the church. The church originates from Christ and comes out of God Himself.
Religion comes from man’s imagination, but the church comes from God’s revelation. In religion man volunteers to serve God, but in the church man’s service comes from a calling that originates from God Himself. The Lord said to Saul, “I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you persecute.” Saul immediately asked, “What shall I do, Lord?” (Acts 22:8, 10). Saul did not say, “I will do something for You.” If he had said this, it would have been religion. The evil one in Isaiah 14:13-14 says, “I will,” but when man submits and stops his efforts, he asks, “What shall I do, God?” Then, like Paul, he will receive a revelation: “It will be told to you what you must do” (Acts 9:6).
Nothing in the church comes from man’s imagination. Rather, everything in the church should be the result of God’s revelation to man, God’s shining on man, God’s calling of man, and God’s gaining of man. God wants to gain man because He needs man to cooperate with Him. In the church God gains man to move with Him and to cooperate with His move. In religion man initiates, man decides, and man works. Although there is “service,” it is of man. Today many preachers are doing man’s work. In principle, only that which is of God, is called by God, and answers God’s demand is the service of the church. Anyone who does not serve God according to this way serves God according to his own imagination, decision, and desire. Although these people say that they are serving God in the church, they are involved only in religious activities.
Hence, as we learn to serve God, we need to see that God’s work requires our cooperation with Him. No work should originate from ourselves. The Father, Son, and the Spirit are in us. All work is started and must be started by the Triune God.
Once we see that God’s work requires man’s cooperation, we will realize that man has an important place in God’s work. This is quite different from our prayers, which often include the thought that we are nothing and that the Lord can work without us. This is not God’s thought. Instead, we should pray, “Lord, without us, You cannot work.” This is a prayer that is according to the truth and according to God’s heart. Although God the Almighty created the heavens and the earth, those who know God will say, “God, You can work only when You have us. Without us, You cannot work at all.” If there were no people on the island of Taiwan, how could God preach the gospel? Throughout the years we have realized from our experience that even though God is almighty, there are things that He cannot do. His inability to do certain things relates to us in our experience. Although God can do everything, He cannot force us to move. He may move in us for many years, but we still may not rise up to take action. God can do everything in the universe, but He cannot force us to rise up early or read the Bible. God needs our cooperation; He cannot do many things in us because, even though He is almighty, there are many limitations in us.
With God there is eternity past; with man there is eternity future. As God journeys from eternity past to eternity future, there is a bridge of time. This bridge of time is really man himself. God wants to cross from one side to the other through man, but many people have a sign that says Not a Through Street. When God makes a demand on us, we often shake our head to indicate that the road is blocked. When God makes a demand, we often respond, “But I have a wife, children, and...” Our “but” means that God cannot pass through us. In eternity God is not under any restriction, but in time God is restricted. If we will not allow God to pass through, God cannot do anything in the church life. We restrict God the most.
Nevertheless, God is patient. When He cannot get through in us, He will wait patiently and call us again. If we do not listen to Him, He will wait some more. He is very patient. He will wait until we are touched by Him and say to Him, “O God, I will say yes to You. I will no longer say but or Not a Through Street. I will only say Amen.” When we hear the Lord’s word and forsake everything to follow Him, we will not be like the disciple who said to the Lord, “Permit me first to go and bury my father” (Matt. 8:21). God’s principle in redemption is that man would cooperate with Him and that man would be a bridge for Him to pass through.
We should never consider this as a doctrine only. On the whole earth, regardless of when or where, God will be expressed as long as we are willing to say, “God, I am here. I want to be a smooth way to let You pass through.” God always works in the principle of incarnation, that is, in the principle of God mingling with man.
Some brothers like to ask, “How do we give a message and speak for God?” We can study this matter and discover thousands of requirements, but we cannot ignore this one basic question: do we allow God to pass through us and mingle with us? If we do not have a clear understanding about this point, regardless of how well we speak, our speaking will be useless. We must see that God requires man to cooperate with Him in His work; man’s cooperation is indispensable. Without man’s cooperation God’s way is blocked. If we prostrate ourselves before God and allow Him to pass through us, God’s glory will be expressed.
In our fellowship with God and in our reading of the Bible and prayer before the Lord, will we answer His call unconditionally when we hear His voice? Or will we say however and but? How many of us can say yes to the Lord, or “Lord, I will take this way”? Our usefulness in the Lord’s hand depends upon how much we cooperate with Him; how far He can go in us depends entirely upon how absolute our Amen is to Him. We are sinful and corrupt, we tend to lose our temper, and we always blame others. From our experience in following the Lord, we know that these are hindrances to the Lord. However, our unwillingness to submit to the Lord absolutely is the greatest hindrance.
Some brothers and sisters never offend others, but they are not useful to the Lord because when they respond to Him, they say yes and then say but. This is like a bridge that is well-constructed and clean but with a sign that blocks it, saying Not a Through Street. Do we want to be this kind of bridge? Another bridge may be old and broken, but the Lord can still cross over because it is open for passage. Some believers may be like a broken bridge, but the Lord can still pass through them.
There was a sister in Shanghai who was born of a high-class family. Both she and her husband were highly educated. Before she became a Christian, all her relatives and neighbors praised her meekness and elegance. Later, she believed in the Lord and continued to conduct herself in a well-tempered way. Another sister was bad-tempered before she was saved. After she was saved, she still quarreled with others frequently, and she was far inferior to the meek sister in the way she treated her husband. Thus, this sister truly admired the meek sister for her elegance and gracefulness. The rough sister loved the Lord very much, and she would come to every meeting, often praying with tears because of her realization that she was short in many things. One day the meek sister complained to the brothers about the rough sister. She pointed out that the sister would put on a head covering and pray very spiritual and inspiring prayers in the meeting but then fiercely quarrel with others at home. While we should not quarrel or argue, is anything gained by only being meek and by refraining from quarreling? Although the meek sister behaved very well, she always said but when the Lord made a demand on her. What is the difference between this and being quarrelsome? We may be perfect, but what good is it if we cannot be a bridge to let God pass through?
I am not saying that we should be rough, but I want to illustrate that God wants a person who will let Him pass through and will cooperate with Him. We absolutely must see that God is not looking for meek and perfect people in His work; rather, He needs people who will cooperate with Him. Without man’s cooperation God cannot do anything. May we not be proud but pray: “O God, You can work without me, but if You have me, it will be easier for You to work. I do not want to delay Your time.” God truly needs our cooperation.
If we have seen that God needs our cooperation, we will realize that we cannot be independent from God in anything. On the one hand, we know that if God does not have us, He cannot get through; on the other hand, if we do not have Him, we cannot move. We need to tell Him, “O God, I thank You that I have been shown mercy. Because of Your creation and redemption, I have You, and I am even becoming You, but I am still a man. God, You cannot work without me. You need me, and You need man.” We should all lift up our head and be encouraged to pray in this way by God’s grace. Furthermore, we need to tell Him, “Without You, I cannot do anything; I need You.”
When we put these three matters together, we will arrive at one great principle: God’s work of redemption is carried out by God and man working together. All work originates from God, not from man. Man is needed in all His work, and God cannot do anything without man. God is needed for all His work as well, and man cannot do anything without God. The most important matter for one who serves the Lord is his relationship with God. The degree of our cooperation with God determines the degree to which we can touch and contact Him. The second matter is morality. We need morality to maintain our position before man. If we do not have morality before man, regardless of how much knowledge we have before God, we will not have any position to speak before men. As we serve and work for the Lord, we should spend much time to fellowship with the Lord. When we do anything, we should continually contact the Lord within and continually consecrate ourselves to the Lord and cooperate with Him.
