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Scripture Reading: Eph. 4:4a; 1 Cor. 12:13; Acts 4:8, 31; 6:10; 7:55; 13:4, 9; 15:28; Rom. 12:5; 1 Cor. 12:27; Rev. 1:4; 4:5; 5:6; 22:17
This book covers some important matters concerning the young people going to the college campuses to preach the gospel. This work, however, should not exclude the other saints. When the young people go to the campuses, they need the backing of the older and middle-aged saints. When saints of all ages stand together in an excellent coordination, we will have an effective and fruitful work of preaching the gospel on the campuses.
In this chapter we will cover two points—the Spirit and the Body. In the next chapter we will cover three more points—prayer, the word, and the homes. We need prayer, the word, and the homes to be effective in preaching the gospel on the campuses. In the last chapter we will cover two more points—a proper daily living and a universal love. We also need a proper daily living and a universal love for the campus work.
In the Lord’s recovery we have been opposed because of our stress on the Spirit. This opposition is related to religious traditions, especially traditions based upon the creeds. In the past some of us may have read and even recited the creeds. Fifty years ago, however, we dropped the creeds because they are incomplete. They cannot contain the entire divine revelation.
In the Nicene Creed there is no mention of the seven Spirits revealed in the book of Revelation. The book of Revelation was written to seven churches with grace and peace from the seven Spirits (1:4). The seven Spirits are the seven lamps of fire burning before God’s administrative throne (4:5). This indicates that the seven Spirits are for God’s administration. The seven Spirits are also the seven eyes of the Lamb sent forth into all the earth (5:6). The seven Spirits are revealed in this book, first for the seven churches, second for God’s administration, and third for Christ to be brought to all the earth. These are important matters, but there is not a word in the Nicene Creed about them.
We have been opposed because we have dropped the creeds and the traditions of men to take the entire word of the Bible. Martin Luther was also greatly opposed by the Roman Catholic Church because he refused to go along with their traditions and councils. He stood for what the Bible says about justification by faith. We also must come back to the Word because the creeds are incomplete in their presentation of the divine revelation.
When the young people go to the campuses, they must know how to fight the battle because there is still strong opposition to the truth concerning the Spirit. If the opposers challenge you with the creeds, bring them to the Bible. You may say to them, “Do you know that Revelation 1:4 mentions not just one Spirit but seven Spirits?” Check with them, “Do the creeds say anything about the life-giving Spirit in 1 Corinthians 15:45?” This is not just our teaching or interpretation. The Bible plainly says that the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit. If the opposers believe in the Bible, the truth will vindicate you, and the pure Word will convince many of them.
The Nicene Creed is also short in its revelation of the Body. It uses the term church, but it does not use the word Body. I was born, educated, and raised up in Christianity, but I did not realize the full significance of the Body of Christ until I came into the Lord’s recovery. Many people in today’s Christianity refer to the physical building that they meet in as the “church” because they do not see that the church is the organic Body of Christ. According to the Bible, the church is not a building or an organization; the church is a living organism, the Body of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23; 1 Cor. 12:27).
Twenty years ago there was not much talk in the United States about the Body. People have only recently started to talk about the Body ministry, the Body service, or the Body of Christ. Despite their talk, they may not realize the full significance of the Body. The Nicene Creed does not mention the seven Spirits, the life-giving Spirit, or the Body. We have to take the entire word of God in the Bible. The Bible is not short of anything. I hope that we will see more and more from the divine revelation in the holy Word as we go on with the Lord. Praise Him! He has shown us the seven Spirits, the life-giving Spirit, and the Body.
Now we need to cover the experience of the Spirit and the Body. The revelation of the Spirit and the Body should be for our experience of the Spirit and the Body. When I was young, I heard many doctrines about the Spirit, but I did not hear that the Spirit is for the Body (Eph. 4:4). The Brethren teachers were good on the doctrine of the Spirit. They even saw the two aspects of the Spirit—the aspect “within” and the aspect “upon.” They pointed out that the New Testament reveals the Spirit indwelling us and the Spirit upon us, but they did not see that both aspects of the Spirit are for the Body.
God regenerates us for the Body, God sanctifies us for the Body, and God transforms us for the Body. The Spirit is the Spirit of regeneration, the Spirit of sanctification, and the Spirit of transformation. Regeneration, sanctification, and transformation are all for the Body. The Bible also says that we all have been baptized in one Spirit into one Body (1 Cor. 12:13). Those in the Pentecostal movement talk about the Spirit and the baptism of the Spirit, but they do not stress that the baptism in the Spirit is for the Body. We all have been baptized into one Body in one Spirit. The Bible also says, “One Body and one Spirit” (Eph. 4:4).
When we go to the campuses, we have to go by the Spirit. In the book of Acts the early believers did everything by the Spirit. We have to exercise our faith to believe that, according to the New Testament revelation, we are in the Spirit. First Corinthians 12:13 says that “in one Spirit we were all baptized.” The verb in this verse is in the past tense. The resurrected and ascended Christ as the Head of the church has already baptized all His believing members in the Spirit. He did this in two steps. The first step was on the day of Pentecost, when the Jewish believers were baptized in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5; 2:4). The second step was in the house of Cornelius, when the Gentile believers were baptized in the Holy Spirit (10:44-47; 11:15-17). In these two steps all genuine believers in Christ have been baptized in the Holy Spirit into one Body once for all universally. The power to preach the gospel is in the Spirit, and we all have been baptized in the Spirit. We should not be concerned about failing. Because we have the Spirit, we have the power to boldly preach the gospel.
In contrast, I have to point out the shortcomings of the present situation in the charismatic movement. In charismatic meetings, sometimes rock music, dramas, and all kinds of performances are used to attract people. These are all gimmicks. The use of these gimmicks shows that the power of the Spirit is lacking. If we have the real power of the Spirit, we do not need any gimmicks. The early disciples did not use any gimmicks, but they had power (1:8; 4:33; 6:8, 10). On the island of Taiwan, no Christian work can compare or compete with the work of the Lord’s recovery in the preaching of the gospel. There is no use of gimmicks, but the power of the Spirit is there.
The power of the Spirit is based upon Christ’s accomplished work. The crucifixion of Christ, the resurrection of Christ, the ascension of Christ, and the baptism in the Holy Spirit have been accomplished. These are all accomplished facts in the universe. If we are going to receive Christ’s redemption accomplished through His death on the cross, we do not need to fast and pray. We just need to exercise our faith to believe in His accomplished redemption according to the Word of God. We can say, “Lord, thank You for Your accomplished work of redemption and for Your resurrection and ascension.” When we say this by faith according to the written word of God, we get redemption, resurrection, and ascension. In the same way, we should exercise our faith to say, “Lord, thank You for the baptism in the Spirit.”
The gospel is constituted with the person and work of Christ. We have to believe that Christ in His person is both God and man to be our Savior. Christ’s work includes His crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, and baptism of His Body in the Spirit. These are the basic and crucial items of the gospel that we must believe in. The power of the Spirit is based upon Christ’s person and His accomplished work. We should exercise our spirit to say, “Praise the Lord for the baptism in the Spirit. This baptism is mine, and I am right now in this baptism.” We should go to the campus with this faith. Regardless of how we feel, we should only care for the accomplished fact. The baptism in the Spirit has been accomplished.
The Spirit today is omnipresent. He is like the air. We do not need to fast and pray to experience the air. Just as the air is in us and we are in the air, so the Spirit is in us and we are in the Spirit. The Spirit is here for us to experience. The Spirit is here because the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension have all been accomplished, and the Spirit has been poured out. The Lord is the Spirit (2 Cor. 3:17), and according to Revelation 5:6 the Spirit has been intensified sevenfold and sent into all the earth. He is everywhere. We do not need to fast and pray to experience the baptism in the Spirit. Instead, we should believe in and claim this accomplished fact.
Some may argue and say that Peter and the disciples fasted and prayed for ten days. This is true. However, they fasted and prayed before Pentecost. After the Spirit was poured out on the day of Pentecost, the disciples simply exercised their faith to get into the baptism of the Spirit whenever there was a need (Acts 4:8, 31). When you go to the campus, exercise your faith to speak and work in the Spirit.
Any proposal to use gimmicks to preach the gospel is a strong proof that we have not exercised our faith. If I only exercised my mentality in the speaking of my messages, my speaking would be poor. I must exercise my spirit to believe that I am in the baptism of the Spirit and that the Lord will speak through me.
You do not need any gimmicks to preach the gospel, but you do need to deal with your sins. You do not need to fast and pray, but you do need to open yourself to the Lord and have a renewed consecration. Every day when you go to the campus, you have to say, “Lord, I consecrate myself to You and open up myself anew to You. Cleanse me from all my sins with Your prevailing blood. Thank You that You are the Spirit. I am in You, and You are within me.” Make a thorough confession and apply the blood to all your situations. Then exercise your faith to believe that the Spirit is in you and that you are in the Spirit, under the outpouring of the Spirit. If you do this, you will have such a bold faith, and when you go to the campuses, you will see the difference.
Some of you may have been saved for less than a year. You may think that you are too young, that you do not know very much, and that you do not have much experience in life. Do not listen to these thoughts. You have to reject them. I have seen many newly saved ones who were bold, strong, and powerful in the preaching of the gospel. I have also seen ones who became old in their experience of the Lord. When they preached the gospel, they did not have any power. Then they turned to gimmicks and exercised their cleverness to convince people. You do not need to use crafty words. As long as you are in the Spirit, you should be frank and strict with your words.
Once, in my hometown, someone came to me and said, “Brother Lee, your gospel preaching is very good, but you should not be so frank and strict in your speaking.” I told him that although he was nice in his gospel preaching, he had not brought many people to the Lord. Should I have learned from him? I may not have seemed nice in my gospel preaching, but I brought many people to the Lord. The effectiveness of the gospel is not a matter of being nice and crafty or even frank and bold. It is a matter of power. Those who exercise their faith to preach the gospel in the baptism of the Spirit have power. Today the power is in your faith, and your faith has a base, a ground, and a standing. The base is the Bible. First Corinthians 12:13 says, “In one Spirit we were all baptized into one Body.” We do not need to use any gimmicks when we preach the gospel. We should just exercise our faith to apply the word of the truth, which says that we have been baptized in the Spirit.
You do not even need to claim the baptism in the Spirit in a religious way. Simply apply the accomplished fact of the baptism in the Spirit. Whenever I get home, I take out my key and apply it. The key has been made, and it is ready to be applied. I do not need to say, “Oh, I claim the key. The key is mine. The key was made for me. The key has been given to me. The key is waiting for me.” I could claim the key in this way from morning to evening and still be outside my door. I just need to take the key out of my pocket and apply it. When you go to the campus, just apply the Spirit by exercising your faith. Make a strong decision that you will not do anything without the Spirit. In the morning, when you are going to the campus, exercise your faith. You can say, “Lord, thank You, the Spirit is mine. I am in the Spirit, and the Spirit is in me because the Bible tells me so.”
We all have to be rescued from the concept that we need gimmicks. This thought has to go. We do not need any gimmicks like rock music, movies, or dramas. The demons are not afraid of gimmicks. The demons are afraid of our faith. If we exercise our faith, we will have the power to preach the gospel. Today the seven Spirits are for the seven churches and for God’s administration. The seven Spirits have also been sent forth into all the earth. We should exercise our faith to tell the Lord, “Lord, I am in the churches, I am for Your administration, and I am for the preaching of the gospel, the sending forth of Christ.” This will give us the standing to apply the divine truths. The New Testament tells us that Christ has been crucified and resurrected. He has ascended to the heavens, and He has baptized all His chosen people in the Spirit. Let us believe in the Word, exercise our faith, and go to the campuses to preach the gospel.
Let me say a balancing word. We must love the Lord and His Word, forsake sinful matters, open ourselves to be fully cleansed, and consecrate ourselves to the Lord, or our faith will not work. We will not have a living faith if we do not have a good conscience (1 Tim. 1:19). Whenever there is an offense in our conscience, there will be a leakage, and our faith will leak away. If we have a bad conscience, we will not be able to exercise our faith. But if we love the Lord and His Word, deal with all our sins with a thorough confession, apply the blood to our situation, and consecrate ourselves to the Lord, our faith will work. A strong and prevailing faith always comes from a good conscience without offense. We do not need to fast and pray. Rather, we need to confess and consecrate. Then we can apply what the Bible says by exercising our faith.
The Spirit is for the Body. If we behave and work in the Spirit, the Spirit will direct us to the Body. The first thing we have to understand about the Body is the oneness. The Body is one (Eph. 4:4; Rom. 12:5). The people who are in denominations and divisions cannot realize and practice the real Body life because they are not on the genuine ground of oneness. The oneness of the Body can only be maintained on the unique ground of oneness. All the people who went back to Jerusalem under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah in the Old Testament were able to rebuild the temple. Those who remained in Babylon could not help with this rebuilding work because they were not on the proper ground. In the divisions, Christians may enjoy the Spirit a little, but there is no possibility of having the real Body life in any division. We must act, behave, and work in the Body and with the Body on the genuine ground of oneness.
When I began to talk about the young people going to the campuses to preach the gospel, a number of the older saints began to think that they were being excluded. This is a wrong understanding of my burden. We need all the saints of every age. Preaching the gospel is a work for the entire Body. We should not do the gospel work in an individualistic way. We must do it in the Body.
We need the young people to go to the campuses, especially those who are eighteen and nineteen years old. All the young people in the church life are useful. This is why we have to work with our high schoolers. After graduating from high school, they all will be on the campuses to effectively contact the freshmen. People over twenty-five have a more difficult time in contacting freshmen. They are not as useful and prevailing as the younger saints on the campus. There is an open door for the eighteen-year-old freshmen to contact other freshmen. A person is most effective when he contacts a person who is his same age. Someone who is eighteen may not easily talk with me because I am much older than he is, but it is so easy for an older man to talk with me. We can talk because we are birds of the same feather. Birds of the same feather can talk together.
The young people’s preaching of the gospel on the campuses, however, should be in coordination with all the saints. Since we may not have that many young ones, we need many homes of the saints for coordination in the gospel work. Every young person who goes to the campus needs a home for his contacts. A young person who catches eighteen new ones should be able to bring all eighteen into the living rooms of the saints. We need living rooms to receive all these new contacts. All the ages can be used. No one is too old. The older saints can open up their homes to these new contacts. Even though the older saints have opened their homes, they can keep themselves in the background and invite some middle-aged saints to serve the new ones in the living room. This is coordination.
The younger you are, the more you should be in the front to take care of the new young ones. The older you are, the more you should be at the back. It would be good for the older ones to buy the groceries, cook the food, and wash the dishes to serve the young people and their contacts. The young ones should go to the campus, and the middle-aged saints should serve the young people in the living room. Our living rooms should be filled with the enjoyment of Christ, especially through singing and psalming. Such an atmosphere of enjoyment and mutuality requires a great deal of coordination.
If all the churches practice preaching the gospel in the campus work in this way, we will have a prevailing church life. One of the best ways for the churches to get new contacts is to send our young people to the campus. The best fishing ponds for the Lord’s recovery are the college campuses. We should send our fishermen to the fishing ponds. Then the older saints can stay home to prepare snacks, refreshments, and the best dinners to gather the new contacts at least once every four weeks. The living rooms will catch them.
We need a young army that can be sent to the campuses to bring in more young people, but all the older and middle-aged saints are also needed. We should not be discouraged that we may be too old to go to the campus. The church’s gospel preaching needs all the saints. Because the local churches in the Lord’s recovery are standing on the genuine ground of oneness, we can have a very good coordination. We all need to learn so that we can have the best coordination.
We should not preach the gospel in an individualistic way. We also should not invite people to our homes or serve them dinner in an individualistic way. We should do everything corporately in the Body. This needs much fellowship and coordination. If we have the faith to apply the truth in the Bible, we will have the power, and if we have the coordination in the Body, nothing will frustrate our preaching. Our preaching will be powerful and prevailing. Then we will gain many young people for the Lord’s recovery in this generation. What we need is the revelation and experience of the Spirit and the Body.
