OUTLINE FOUR

PROPHESYING IN THE CHURCH MEETINGS FOR THE ORGANIC BUILDING UP OF THE CHURCH AS THE BODY OF CHRIST

  Scripture Reading: Eph 3:11; 1:10; 1 Tim. 1:4; 1 Cor. 14:3-5, 12, 23a, 24-25, 31;Eph. 4:11-12, 16

7. God has a plan, an eternal purpose, which He made in eternity past for eternity future—Eph. 3:11:
   1. The New Testament speaks of the dispensation of God, the economy of God—Eph. 1:10; 1 Tim. 1:4:
      1. The Greek word for economy is oikonomia, which is composed of two words—oikos meaning house or household and nomos meaning law.
      2. An economy is the law of a household and denotes a household administration according to a certain arrangement.
      3. God’s dispensation, God’s economy, is His arrangement, His plan, to dispense the riches of Christ into His people.
   2. God’s dispensation, His household administration, is a family matter; our God has the biggest family in the universe.
   3. God has a family plan to distribute all of His rich provision to His children:
      1. All the riches of the Godhead and the fullness of the Godhead are embodied in Christ.
      2. God’s family plan, God’s family administration, is to distribute, to dispense, all the divine riches in Christ into His saved ones for their nourishment and feeding, resulting in the building up of the Body of Christ.
   4. We are now under God’s dispensing, and this dispensing is carried out by our prophesying:
      1. To prophesy is to distribute, to dispense, the Triune God as the rich food, the nourishing element into others.
      2. Prophesying is the unique way, the best way, the excelling way, to dispense all the riches of Christ into God’s people for the building up of the organic Body of Christ.
8. The excelling gift for the practical and organic building up of the church as the Body of Christ is prophesying—1 Cor. 14:3-5, 12:
   1. In the meetings of the church the highest function is to prophesy—1 Cor. 14:1, 3-5, 12, 24-25, 31, 39:
      1. Prophesying is speaking the Lord with the Lord’s word under His inspiration.
      2. Prophesying is to speak to men building up for the church (this concerns the Body of Christ), encouragement for the believers (this concerns our goal, which is the building up of the Body of Christ), and consolation for the saints’ welfare (this concerns our personal welfare related to our goal)—1 Cor. 14:3.
      3. Prophesying is to convict people, to judge people, exposing the secrets of peoples’ hearts— 1 Cor. 14:24-25.
      4. Prophesying is that all the attendants may learn—l Cor. 14:31:
         1. For others to learn through our prophesying we have to learn something ourselves.
         2. Without learning we may speak many things, yet what we speak may only be common and ordinary talk.
      5. Prophesying is the dispensing of the riches of Christ into God’s people for the building up of the church, which is the organism of the processed Triune God, in the way of life—1 Cor. 14:4-5.
      6. A meeting in which all are prophesying is one that is full of nourishing, cherishing, adjusting, and correcting; furthermore, the saints are built up, supplied, furnished, and equipped.
   2. The significance of prophesying in 1 Corinthians 14 is to speak for the Lord, to speak forth the Lord, and even to speak the Lord, to minister, to dispense the Lord, into others; in the sense of the divine dispensing, the entire Bible consummates in all prophesying—vv. 3, 24-25, 31.
   3. The characteristic of prophesying in 1 Corinthians 14 is to minister Christ for the organic building up of the church as the Body of Christ in the larger meetings of the church; prophesying is the particular gift for the building up of the church—vv. 3-5, 12, 24, 26.
   4. Prophesying is excelling in revealing God’s heart, God’s will, God’s way, and God’s economy to His people.
   5. Prophesying is excelling in convicting people, exposing people’s real condition, and showing people their spiritual need.
   6. Prophesying is excelling in speaking forth Christ to minister and dispense Christ to people for their nourishment.
   7. Prophesying is excelling in building up the church in the organic way by the dispensing, the distributing, of the riches of Christ into the saints that the church may be built up as the organism of the processed Triune God for His fullness, His expression.
9. “For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn...”—l Cor. 14:31a.:
   1. All prophesying one by one reveals the universality of prophesying—cf. Num. 11:29:
      1. In the Old Testament there were both male and female prophets—Exo. 15:20; Judg. 4:4; 2 Kings 22:14.
      2. According to the New Testament, sisters as well as brothers can prophesy—1 Cor. 11:5; Acts 2:17-18; 21:9.
   2. Through their natural birth all receive certain abilities:
      1. All can play the piano, possessing the innate ability by birth, but each one needs to be under the proper instruction of a tutor and he must practice according to that instruction.
      2. All can also write an essay, but each one needs perfecting through growth, proper instruction, and practice.
   3. As long as we can speak a natural language, we can also prophesy, which is to speak the divine language:
      1. Even if we desire to prophesy, we will not be able to without learning through proper instruction.
      2. We have to be faithful to learn to prophesy.
   4. We have to be instructed, and we have to practice according to what we have been instructed.
   5. Every saint can develop his speaking ability, that is, to prophesy, for building the church through the dispensing of the riches of Christ into others:
      1. By the perfecting work of the prophets—Eph. 4:11-12:
         1. Functioning as a joint with the rich supply, not as a mere Bible teacher speaking right and wrong.
         2. But as one ministering the life supply as the nourishment for the growth in life—the care for the organic Body in the organic way.
         3. With the living teaching to instruct, perfect, equip, and furnish all the saints that they may do the work of the New Testament ministry to speak the Lord into people for the building up of the Body of Christ in an organic way.
         4. The prophets should also visit all the members of the church to perfect them:
            1. 1) Sometimes they may instruct the saints in a small group, and sometimes they may “tutor” certain saints, that is, help one saint at a time in the practice of prophesying.
            2. 2) They also speak with the saints concerning contacting the Lord in the word daily, being revived every morning, and living a victorious, overcoming life every day to lay a foundation for their prophesying.
         5. A prophet who is burdened to perfect the saints must also speak in the meeting to spontaneously set up a model.
      2. By the saints being willing and ready to be perfected unto the work of ministry, unto the building up of the Body of Christ—Eph. 4:12:
         1. The Lord desires all the saints to be perfected, but the Lord is calling for overcomers (Rev. 2 and 3); His call for the overcomers indicates that not all the saints will be perfected.
         2. The ones who are willing and ready to be perfected will be the overcomers.
         3. We should all pray, “Lord, make me willing and ready to be perfected. I will receive the perfection from the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the shepherds and teachers. I am not content with my present situation.”
      3. By the perfected saints learning and exercise— Eph. 4:16; 1 Cor. 14:26, 31:
         1. Operating as a part according to its measure in coordination with the joints of the rich supply.
         2. To cause the growth of the Body.
         3. Unto the building up of itself (the Body) in love.
   6. All the believers have the capacity to prophesy and have the obligation to prophesy—1 Cor. 14:31a, 3-5, 24-25, 31b:
      1. The capacity being in the divine life, which the believers possess and enjoy and which needs to increase within them that the capacity may be developed unto their ability.
      2. The obligation being the fulfillment of their spiritual service, in which they are indebted to God’s salvation.
10. We can develop our prophesying capacity unto our ability through:
    1. The experience of the Triune God.
    2. Being equipped in the Word.
    3. The growth in life.
    4. Praying unceasingly.
    5. Living and walking in the spirit.
    6. Preparing a living prophecy for the meetings.
    7. Practicing to speak the prophecy prepared.
    8. Speaking the particular word of prophecy in the meetings of the church.
11. Within two months by being perfected through revelation, learning, training, and exercise, we can all prophesy one by one when the church comes together.