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Prayer: Lord, we truly need Your mercy and Your grace. We do not know what to do or how to go on, so we look to You to lead us. As we are fellowshipping, cause us to touch Your leading and Your heart’s desire. We are not clear concerning how to go on in the bread-breaking meeting, the prayer meeting, and the gatherings in the small groups. Show us Your way so that we may go on faithfully to learn and practice. Lord, cleanse us again, and anoint us bountifully with Your rich anointing. Bless our fellowship, and bless us in our practice. Lord, fight for us against the attacks and troubles from the enemy, especially His attacks on our bodies. Bind the evil one, and rebuke the demons. We reject all the demons in Your victorious name. Amen.
We will study how to have a small group gathering. In a small group gathering we can break bread, pray, and fellowship. In function the small group meeting covers all the aspects of the church life. In the small groups there can be teaching, which is related to the aspect of the truth; there can be shepherding, which is related to the aspect of life; and there can also be care and support, which are related to the aspect of practical living. In addition, in the small groups we can also preach the gospel. If a church can be thorough in its teaching of the truth, in its shepherding in life, and in its care and support in practical living, then it can be considered as being established. If a church as large as the church in Taipei relies only on the leading by the elders in large corporate meetings, the church will not be able to function in these aspects. The church must be divided into small groups for the teaching of the saints. It is inappropriate to teach in the Lord’s table meeting, the prayer meeting, or the gospel meeting; teaching involves fellowship. Teaching, shepherding, care, and support involve fellowship. Hence, fellowship is all-inclusive and multipurpose in nature; it is complete in nature. For this reason, meetings involving fellowship are the most difficult.
Teaching cannot be separated from the truth in the Bible. Moreover, shepherding and teaching are a twofold cord that is actually one. In Ephesians 4:11 shepherds and teachers are the same group of people. In order to shepherd people, one must know how to teach, and in order to teach effectively, one must be a shepherd. Therefore, when shepherding and teaching, as two cords of a rope, are combined, there is strength. For this reason, it is necessary to use the Bible when we fellowship in the small groups; otherwise, we can neither teach nor shepherd. When teaching and shepherding are carried out properly, there will be care and support. Hence, the key is how to use the Bible when we fellowship in a small group.
In the fellowship meeting of the small groups we can use the Recovery Version and the Life-study messages as materials. Life is the line, the focus, and the content of the Life-study messages. The Bible is a book of life, the history of the Bible supports the line of life, and the characters in the Bible are illustrations of life. Everything in the Bible centers on life. Bible scholars throughout the centuries have expounded the Bible from the aspect of knowledge, from the aspect of people, from the aspect of history, and from the aspect of proverbs or teachings. The focus of every exposition is different. I have read many books of exposition, but I have not found one that takes life as its center. Because of the Lord’s unveiling, I understood that the expounding of the Bible should take life as its focus and its line. Hence, this was my focus in my writing the Life-studies.
I began to use the term life-study in 1950. After we finished the first formal training in 1953 in Taiwan, I felt that we should have a life-study of the Bible. Therefore, beginning from 1954 I conducted the life-study of the Bible for about one year, and it was blessed by the Lord. We did a rough study of the Old Testament, but we were more detailed when we came to the New Testament. Thus, life-study became an official term among us; I also wrote the outlines of the life-studies.
From 1974 I began to lead a formal life-study training in America. So far, we have spent eleven years writing the Life-study of the New Testament, taking life as the focus and the line. Since this is an exposition of the Bible, we paid attention to the readers’ understanding of the Bible. If we do not understand the words when we read the Bible, we can stay only on the surface, and it will be difficult for us to get into the depths. It is not so easy to understand the words in the Bible, because the Bible contains a vast number of special terms. Furthermore, the Bible uses unique and profound words; hence, they are not so easy to explain.
For decades I have spent my time and energy studying the Bible, consulting the writings of many well-known authors of the past centuries. Hence, I feel assured that I am able to provide a proper explanation of important phrases and words, especially in the New Testament. Hence, many footnotes of the New Testament are expository in nature. For instance, in Romans 1:2 there is a footnote for the word holy. Because the word holy is an important term in the Bible, I provided a thorough explanation. There are quite a number of footnotes like this. This kind of exposition is not for those who read the Bible casually but for those who desire to devote themselves to studying the Bible.
When we fellowship in a small group, we must use the Bible. However, when we use the Bible, it is best to use the text and the Life-study messages, rather than focusing on the footnotes or the cross references. Suppose we are reading the book of Romans. Initially, the saints may be interested in reading it, but if we try to explain the word holy in great detail, they may not understand it. Hence, we must understand that the text of the Recovery Version is the starting point for everyone, because some of the footnotes are not easy to understand. If we desire to serve the Lord full time, we must labor in the Bible. This is a requirement that cannot be evaded. However, when we go to a small group meeting, we should not use it to show off our knowledge.
According to our present situation there is an urgent need for the light of the truth and the supply of life in the small groups; there is not much need for in-depth explanation. In our practice of the small groups, we need to have the light of the truth and the supply of life.
When we come to a small group meeting, there should not be any formality. The meeting can begin in any way. If the chair that you sit on is not comfortable, you can switch to a little stool. In a small group there is no need for polite talk or religious rituals and methods. When we come together, we should greet one another spontaneously and have a spirit of mutual concern, mutual teaching, and mutual care. We may say, “Thank the Lord, we have two more saints today than the last time.” Another saint may say, “Yes, I really thank the Lord. Last time I came and tasted the sweetness of fellowship among the saints, so I am here again today.” Then a more experienced saint may say, “Thank the Lord, our fellowship last time was really sweet,” and he may continue with a prayer: “Lord, we thank You that this brother came last week and was touched and graced by You.” In this way, spontaneously everyone will enter into prayer. Perhaps the brother who was graced by the Lord would follow in prayer and say that he received much help last time from reading a portion from Romans. This is a good opportunity to enter into the truth of the Bible according to his need.
To pursue the truth in fellowship during a small group meeting, we can use the Recovery Version as much as it is needed. The purpose of reading the Recovery Version is to help the saints understand the Bible, see light in the truth, and receive the supply of life. This depends on our labor in the Word. Hence, before the meeting we must read through the portion of the Scriptures that will be covered that day with the related footnotes and Life-study messages.
We can practice with Romans 1:1-4. In the meeting we can read the outline for this portion and then read the text. In the small group there may be time to read only four verses, but in our preparation we should prepare more verses. We do not need to read the footnotes, nor do we need to recite the verses. We only need to remember the thought in the verses. After reading the verses, some saints can speak the content of the verses. The more experienced saints can add a little explanation of the verses. Then there can be prayer related to the content of the verses: “Lord, we truly thank You. You are the subject of the gospel. The gospel is not concerning heaven or hell but concerning You. According to the flesh, You are the Son of Man, and indeed You are a man. According to the Spirit of holiness, You resurrected from the dead and were designated the Son of God. Hence, You are the Son of God. You are God.”
The footnotes are for us to be equipped. Hence, we need to study the footnotes thoroughly. If someone in the small group meeting asks about the meaning of the Spirit of holiness, we can explain, but not in the way of a study. We can also say that if the saints want to know more, they can get a copy of the Recovery Version and study it.
In order to use the Life-study messages, we must prepare before the meeting so that we know which points need to be stressed and which points do not. For example, Message 2 of the Life-study of Romans is on the gospel of God. Suppose the first paragraph is read in the meeting. When you get to the portion that says, “The Christ in the four Gospels was among the disciples; the Christ in Romans is within us,” we should take the opportunity to speak three or five sentences to stress this point. We may say, “After Christ died and resurrected, He became the life-giving Spirit who dwells in our spirit.” Or we can select a different portion from the message that concerns Christ and read it together to emphasize life and not truth. In this case we may say to the others, “The book of Romans shows that the Lord Jesus today is not the same as He was with Peter, James, and John. Today He has passed through death and resurrection and has become the life-giving Spirit to dwell in us and to be our life practically. We have the same life and the same living with Him.” Then all the saints can fellowship based on the portion of the message that was read.
After the fellowship we can give a three to five sentence summary, such as, “Paul’s word in this portion is a crystallized speaking. It shows that our precious Lord Jesus is a man in the flesh. He is also God with divinity. He went through human living, died, resurrected, and became the life-giving Spirit to dwell in us. We hope that after this fellowship we all will live in Him every day, taking Him as our life, having fellowship with Him daily, and living Him out.” All those in attendance will never forget this kind of summary.
All the co-workers and elders should participate in the small groups and help the group meetings. Especially since we are at the initial stage of the work, we must have a strong beginning. Furthermore, when the co-workers go to help the saints, it is important to have a strong spirit, be “thick-skinned,” and not have any opinions. We must learn to practice these three things. We want every brother and sister to eventually be a prophet and a teacher. We must go against the way of Christianity, which is to annul the gifts and function of the saints by focusing on one pastor who does everything. This is not according to the Bible. However, we must admit that even though there is much light among us, our practice is not strong. I believe it is the Lord’s good pleasure that every brother and sister have a turn and function. We hope that after meeting in this way for half a year to one year, every brother and sister will be able to speak, that is, to function as a prophet and a teacher. Everything depends on our endeavoring.
If during 1985 there is a onefold increase in Taipei or, better yet, a twofold increase, there will be more than one thousand small groups, and this will require the help of more than a thousand full-timers. Therefore, it is likely that in the future we will need all the part-time serving ones to help. In addition, some of the brothers and sisters currently meeting in the small groups can help. In a strong local church every brother and sister is useful and capable of going out to battle and of functioning as a prophet and a teacher. When he opens his mouth, his spirit is released, and he is thick-skinned, that is, not self-conscious. Moreover, he does not have any opinions and will not cause disputes or engage in arguments with others.
I believe that this demonstration has given us an impression. When we participate in the small group gatherings, we should not forget the impression that we have received. This should be a model. We should forsake idle talk, concentrate on reading the Bible, and be familiar with the footnotes. However, in the meetings we should not read the footnotes in a rigid way; it is sufficient to read only the main points. Nor is it necessary to read every paragraph in a Life-study message. If we prepare before the meeting, we can select portions. This will save time in the meeting and help everyone focus. If too many points are touched in one meeting, everyone’s attention will dissipate. In every meeting we must learn to bring the saints into the light in the truth and the life supply so that the brothers and sisters are fed when they leave.
This kind of fellowship in the small groups must take place at least every other week, and the other meetings in the small groups can be used to preach the gospel. It would be quite substantial if in twenty-six gatherings a year the light from the truth is released and life is supplied. In the meetings we must be filled in spirit. Those of us who have more growth in life must bear the responsibility to pray and be filled with a praying spirit. As soon as the meeting begins, our spirit should come forth. Basketball is a good example. You cannot be courteous when the ball comes. Rather, you should forget your self-consciousness, your face, and everything else, and concentrate on the ball and getting it into the hoop. The focus is on scoring points. It is the same in a small group meeting. As soon as we arrive at the meeting, we should forget about everything else and only remember our spirit. Our spirit is the ball. We should also remember to release the light in the truth and to supply the riches of life. Our goal is for every attendant, including ourselves, to be enlightened and supplied.
