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Scripture Reading: Eph. 4:12-14
In the previous chapter we spoke of the principle of the mingling of God and man and man and God. In this chapter we will speak of some additional principles related to the building up of the church.
The second principle for the building up of the church is that the building up work in the church must cause the element of Christ to increase in the saints. Ephesians 4:12 speaks of “the building up of the Body of Christ,” and then verse 13 says, “Until we all arrive...at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” Hence, to build up the church is to cause the element of Christ to increase in the saints. We must pay special attention to the two references to Christ in these verses: “the building up of the Body of Christ” and “the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” The fullness of Christ is Christ Himself. The fullness of Christ has a stature, and with this stature, there is a certain measure. If a brother is tall and robust, his tall and robust stature is his measure.
The building up of the church involves the fullness of Christ increasing in the church. Increasing the fullness of Christ does not mean that Christ needs to increase; it means that the fullness of Christ needs to increase in the church. In some churches there is only a small measure of the fullness of Christ, and in other churches there is more of a measure of the fullness of Christ. In still other churches we can sense a much larger measure of the fullness of Christ. In every church, however, the measure of the fullness of Christ is still far short of the full measure of Christ in Himself. Hence, there is a need for Christ’s fullness to increase continually in the church. The increase of Christ is the building up of the church. The degree to which a local church has the fullness of Christ is the degree to which the church has been built up. This is a strong and accurate gauge of the amount of building up that is present in a church.
Sometimes when we visit a local church, we see brothers and sisters who are good-natured, patient, and humble and who love the Lord. However, we cannot see much Christ in them. While we are with them, we touch the saints, but we do not touch much of Christ. Furthermore, we do not touch much of the element of Christ in the workers serving in the church, including the elders and deacons. When one who lives in the Lord comes into contact with such a church, he will be sorrowful for the lack of the building element. In short, the more a church is built up, the more it will have the element of Christ.
We must ask ourselves: How much ground does Christ have in us? How much of the element of Christ Himself, the fullness of Christ, do we have? These are important but basic questions. In order for the element of Christ to increase in us, we need to accept the breaking of the cross. The more we accept the breaking of the cross, the more the element of Christ will increase in us. The work of the cross deals not only with evil things; it deals also with good things. The evil things in our natural being need to be broken by the cross, but even our natural goodness needs to be broken by the cross. God has no desire that we would be constituted with evil things, but He also has no desire that we would be constituted with good things. His only desire is that Christ would be constituted into us. However, in order for Christ to be constituted into our being, God needs to break us.
Being broken is not a doctrine but a reality. All matters related to our living must pass through the breaking of the cross. Husbands are broken through their wife, and wives are broken through their husband. A husband who is naturally good may not have much of the element of Christ in him. Likewise, a wife who is naturally good may not have much of the element of Christ in her. Both the husband and the wife must pass through the cross and be broken in order for the element of Christ to increase in them. This principle also applies to parents as well as to children. In both big things and small things, we must learn the lesson of being broken. We must accept the dealing and breaking of the cross in every circumstance. This is the only way for Christ to gain ground in our being so that His element can increase in us.
If we are willing to accept the breaking of the cross and allow Christ to have ground in us, we will spontaneously lead others to accept the breaking of the cross. This will impart the element of Christ into them, and our work will have real spiritual value. This is the only way for the church to be built up. If our work does not cause the element of Christ to increase in the saints, our work will not build up the church. The church is constituted only with the mingled nature of Christ. Hence, we must work to increase the element of Christ in the brothers and sisters in order to build up the church.
For example, when we visit the saints, we may meet a sister who has a problem of not submitting to her husband. When we meet her, it is very easy to turn to Ephesians 5:22 and exhort her, saying, “Sister, the Bible clearly says that a wife should be subject to her husband because he is the head; we must stand in a covered position.” Although such an exhortation is based on a biblical truth, it may not cause the element of Christ to increase in her. Instead, our speaking may only cause her own element to increase, especially if she agrees with us. She may say to herself, “Yes, I am the wife, but I do not submit to my husband. As a child of God, I should follow the Bible.” Thus, she will receive our exhortation, pray with us, and resolve to submit to her husband. Since she is also afraid that she will not be able to submit, she will pray to the Lord, asking Him to give her the strength to submit to her husband. Although this prayer seems quite good, there is a hidden thought in this prayer that her element must be strengthened.
There are two possible outcomes to her resolution to submit to her husband. The first outcome is relatively rare: She will grit her teeth and submit in her natural strength until she thinks that she has succeeded. Then she will say, “Praise the Lord! He has really heard our prayer. I can submit now. I acknowledge my husband as the head, and I am willing to stand in a covered position.” When she meets another sister who cannot submit to her husband, she will even testify of how she accepted the Lord’s lesson and followed His word to receive her husband as her head and submit to him. Even if this is the outcome, it will have no spiritual value, because her submission is entirely based on her own effort; it is altogether man-made. Although she submits to her husband, there will be no element of Christ in her submission.
The second possible outcome is more common: She resolves to submit but is unable to do it. In fact, the more she tries to submit, the less she is able and the more she will fail. Eventually, in complete despair she will say, “I know that I should submit, but I cannot. I also know that the Bible tells me to submit, but I simply cannot. Therefore, I have no choice but to quit trying to submit.”
It is hard to know which outcome is worse. As far as good behavior is concerned, I would choose the first outcome, because there is more harmony in a family when a wife submits to her husband. Nevertheless, I would rather choose the second outcome so that the wife would gain Christ. Both outcomes are initially void of Christ. A sister who can submit based on her own strength is void of Christ, and if she cannot submit, she is still void of Christ. Neither her success nor her failure has an element of Christ. However, her inability to submit will be better for her in terms of her being broken.
If we visit such a sister, the help that we can render depends on the lessons we have learned. If we have learned the lesson of being broken by the cross, we will know that God has no intention to build up the natural element, and we will know that God desires to build up Christ in us. If we have allowed God to do a building work in us, we will be able to help the sister, leading her to see that God has a good intention despite her inability to submit. We can help her to accept the cross and to learn to condemn herself and put herself aside by the cross so that the element of Christ can increase in her. Then she will begin to turn to the Lord and say, “Lord, it is impossible for me to submit, but it is possible with You. I have no way to submit to my husband; I am not able. Only You are able. I cannot submit in myself. I want to be in You.” In this way she will become more than just a sister who submits; she will become a sister who is full of Christ. She will be constituted not merely with submission but with Christ’s element. Her constitution will be Christ.
If we do not lead the saints in this way, I am concerned that the more we lead, the greater the saints’ problems will become. If we can only advise a sister to submit to her husband, the result will not be good if she listens to us. If she submits in herself, Christ will not have much ground in her being, and in the future we will be able to help her even less because we have only strengthened her self, which cannot be built up. Although she has the natural strength to submit, Christ will not increase in her. After being “edified” by us, it will be more difficult for her to be broken. She will become like a block of concrete. She will pray, “O Lord, thank You. You are helping me to submit to my husband,” and she will stand up and testify, “This is the Lord’s work. Formerly, I could not submit to my husband. However, I was taught how to submit.” At this point she will become almost unbreakable, and she will have no understanding of her need to be broken and subdued by God. Instead, she will only boast of her strong resolve and success.
As far as human conduct is concerned, the family atmosphere of this sister will become more harmonious if she submits, but as far as the building up of the church is concerned, there will be big problems and great difficulties in the future because the element of Christ has not increased in her. She will become a person who is strong in her will but completely void of Christ. It will be very difficult for her to be built up in the church. She will be self-confident, self-assured, and full of hidden pride. She will not be able to get along with others or be considerate and sympathetic toward others, because she has not been broken.
Such a self-righteous and self-confident sister cannot easily be joined, coordinated, or built up with others. Instead, she will cause problems in the church. Outwardly, she may behave very well and seem like a brand-new tire that has no wear and tear. However, when a small incident touches or offends her, she will explode like a tire that is filled with too much air. When she becomes angry, she will not only defy her husband but also cause problems in the church.
Brothers and sisters who have wrestled with God and who have been broken by God cannot be “pumped up” very easily. When they encounter people and circumstances that previously “pumped them up,” the air “deflates” from their being. No matter how much difficulty they encounter, it is not easy for them to become agitated. These saints are humble, but their humility is spontaneous; it is not forced. Although they live in Christ, they can sympathize with others and do not belittle those who do not live in Christ. Although they live an overcoming life, they can be considerate of the weaknesses of those who fail and sympathize with them. Hence, they can easily be built up in the church.
If we want to build up the saints, we must grasp this principle: we must follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and help others to learn to live in Christ according to the work that the Holy Spirit is doing in them. This will enable Christ to have more ground in them so that the element of Christ will increase in them. This is to build Christ into the saints; it is also to arrive at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
I hope that we can grasp this principle. The goal of our help and leading must be to build Christ into the saints. Without this focus, we will not be able to build up the church. The saints can be delivered from being individualistic, secluded, and scattered only when Christ is built into them, and then they will become one in Christ. This is the second principle related to the building up of the church.
The third principle for the building up of the church is that we cannot be individualistic in the Body of Christ. The church is the Body of Christ, and in the Body a member can never be individualistic. If we work individualistically, our work will tear down the church, not build it up. Furthermore, if our work causes others to be individualistic, our work will tear down the church, not build it up.
A believer should become more distinct when he lives in the Lord, is delivered from the self, and allows Christ to increase in him. However, being distinct from others is one thing, but being separate from others is another thing. As the element of Christ increases in us, we will become more distinct but not more separate from others. Instead, we will become more considerate of others, more accommodating of others, and more attached to others. I hope that we can discern the difference between these two conditions. It is normal to become more distinct because of the increase in the element of Christ in us. However, it is not normal to become more isolated and separate from others.
For example, when the Lord deals with a brother who is very talkative, the element of Christ will increase in him. Often such a brother will become restricted in his speech and not speak as carelessly as he spoke in the past. In all things he will accept the discipline of the Spirit, speaking only when the indwelling Spirit leads him to speak. Based on the lessons that he has learned, Christ will rule in him in regard to his speaking. Thus, in his speaking he will grow into Christ, and this growth will make him distinct from others.
This brother, however, may serve with a number of other saints who have not been broken in the matter of their speaking. When they come together, they will speak to one another carelessly, because they do not have much of the element of Christ in their speaking. When this brother is with these saints, there will be an obvious distinction between them. In spite of this distinction, however, the broken brother will not despise or condemn the saints, much less separate himself from them. The fact that his companions are talking nonsense will not affect him, and although he is distinct, he will not separate himself from them. In fact, he will attach himself even more to them because of the increased element of Christ in him. We must see that the church is the Body and that the Body cannot be divided. We cannot be divided from brothers who are weak. The weaker the brothers are, the more we should bear them up. We should not be isolated from others, and we should not do a work that is isolated from others.
If a brother has really learned the lesson of being dealt with in his speaking, he can serve and work with brothers who are quite talkative. However, as he helps the brothers, he should not work in a way that isolates them as a group from the saints. If he helps the other brothers to learn the lesson of receiving the Lord’s dealing, he should be careful not to let a separate group be formed in a local church; this would be a work of separation. We should not be secluded from others, and our work should not foster seclusion. We should help others to learn to live in the Lord so that the element of Christ can increase in them. An increase in the element of Christ will result in a person manifesting distinctions in his expression of Christ, but it will also make him more accommodating, more considerate, and more attached to others.
Let me repeat, we should not do a work that causes the saints to be separate from others. We should never say, “A small number of us have received the Lord’s dealing in our speaking, and we love to be together in the prayer meeting and the bread-breaking meeting. Those who speak carelessly can meet somewhere else; we do not want to meet with them.” If we say this, we will tear down the church. You must learn to be patient, considerate of others, and accommodating, because the principle of the church, the principle of the Body, is oneness. This is the reason Paul asks, “Is Christ divided?” (1 Cor. 1:13). The Word never charges those who are stronger in the church to separate themselves from those who are weaker. In fact, Romans 14:1 says, “Him who is weak in faith receive.” No matter how much we have been dealt with and no matter how much our fellow serving ones lack the Lord’s dealing, we must still sit together with them and pray with them.
What should we do if the brothers sitting around us are talking to each other when the bread-breaking meeting begins? Would we be able to participate in the bread-breaking meeting? Some brothers would not be able to, and instead, they would frown at the saints and move to a different chair. Although they do not leave the meeting, they would change their seat. If this is our reaction, it will not be possible for us to build up the church. If we have been dealt with by the Lord, we will be able to pray, “Lord, praise You for giving me so many brothers.” Rather than despising them, we will be considerate of them, knowing that we were once just as talkative. We will also have a deep realization that their lack of restraint is related only to their shortage of the element of Christ, and we will be full of compassion and mercy toward them. Furthermore, we will not feel that we are rich and others are poor, or that we are full of Christ and others are short of Christ. This kind of attitude is also not right.
No matter how many lessons we have learned and no matter how much Christ we have, we cannot disregard our brothers and sisters. No matter how much they care for themselves, how carelessly they speak, or how lacking they are of Christ, they are still our brothers and sisters. Since the Lord has received them, we must receive them and receive them from our heart. We must feel from our heart that we cannot be separated from our brothers and sisters, because we are in the church, the Body of Christ. No matter how much of Christ we have and how little of Christ they have, we have no reason to be separated from them.
We must learn this lesson. In the church we cannot be individualistic or isolated; neither can we do an individualistic work nor a work in isolation. A sister once said to me, “Brother Lee, I cannot visit people with a certain sister, because whenever we go, she always speaks first. As soon as she opens her mouth, she cannot stop speaking. I never have an opportunity to speak. I cannot visit people with her.” Then I asked, “What do you think should be done?” She responded, “It is best that she visits whomever she wants to visit and that I visit others. Since she likes to talk, she can go wherever she wants by herself.” We should consider whether this sister’s words are right and whether these sisters should continue to visit saints with each other; however, I think it would be better if they would visit the saints together.
A sister who has learned the lesson of being broken can coordinate with a sister who always rushes in and speaks first. When two sisters visit someone, for example, and one sister seems to cover everything in her speaking, the other sister will have no reason to be concerned if she has learned lessons before the Lord. A person’s weightiness before the Lord cannot be hidden or suppressed. If she has something of the Lord, she has it, and if she does not have something of the Lord, she does not have it. Others will always sense what we have of the Lord; we do not have to say anything. A weighty sister can sit quietly without any anxiety and let the other sister speak freely. At the end she can spontaneously offer a little prayer. In effect, the endless talking of one sister only provides a blackboard for the other sister to write upon with her prayer. Thus, it is the quiet sister who is edifying the others. Even though she says hardly anything, her silence is more powerful than the other sister’s speaking. Furthermore, the sister who is being visited will witness a weighty person who is able to sit without saying anything, who is without any anxiety, and who does not even change her countenance. Her calm and steady demeanor will edify the one who is being visited. We should never think that a talkative sister will ruin a visitation, and we should not think that only speaking could edify others.
If a sister thinks that she has learned the lesson of being broken and decides to visit by herself because the one with whom she is serving has not learned the same lessons, she will have problems. As soon as she arrives, she will be asked, “Where is sister So-and-so? Did you not come together last time?” Answering these questions will be difficult. The visiting sister cannot lie and say that the other sister is sick, and she also cannot say that she did not want the other sister to come because she talks too much. The expression on the visiting sister’s face will expose the fact that the two sisters cannot coordinate with each other. The sister who is being visited may not know the details related to their inability to coordinate, but unconsciously she will be damaged. She will think, “How can you come to visit me when you cannot coordinate with the other sister?” This will leave a very poor impression in her.
Genuine work does not depend on how much we have said or how much we have done. All genuine work depends on what we are in our being, how much we have been broken in the Lord’s hand, and how much we know concerning the church and the Body. Whether or not we are talkative does not matter. The only things that matter are the lessons we have learned, the attitude we have, the spirit we have, and the kind of person we are. If our situation is proper, we will be able to serve together and visit others with brothers and sisters who are talkative. Their talkativeness can even be a blackboard upon which we can convey the spiritual lessons we have learned. Hence, there is no need to be individualistic or to do an individualistic work.
An individualistic work is based on a demand that others be the same as we are; however, everyone is different. Whether in disposition, temperament, viewpoint, or opinion, no one can be exactly the same as we are. We become individualistic whenever we are unwilling to coordinate with others or be attached to others. We also produce individualistic members when we work to make others the same as we are. If our work is individualistic, our work will produce individualistic members who are separate from others. On the surface, it may seem as if we have edified others, but actually, we have torn down the church.
We should never have a goal to make others the same as we are. Our work is not to build up ourselves, nor to build up a group of people who are the same as we are. Our work is to build up the church, the Body of Christ. This is a crucial principle.
The best proof of whether or not a person or a work is individualistic is time. An individualistic worker or an individualistic work cannot stand the test of time. If we are individualistic and demand that others be the same as we are, those who are the same as we are will become different from the other saints over time. Requiring others to be the same as we are does not produce lasting results. We need to have the same mind, but such a mind is not maintained by requiring others to be the same as we are. Being of the same mind comes from being in the church, not from having the same personal characteristics. I may have learned some lessons and by the Lord’s grace can render some supply to others, but I should never ask others to adopt my personal characteristics. I should never use my personal characteristics as the center of our one accord. Our one accord rests in the church itself. Since all the brothers and sisters around me are in the church, I should be in one accord with them, blend with them, and serve with them, no matter how fleshly, weak, and short of Christ they seemingly are. Even though there may be a difference in the amount of our spiritual growth, this cannot be a reason for separating ourselves from them. If we see and keep this principle related to the building up of the church, our one accord and our work will bear the test of time.
The fourth principle for the building up of the church is that we must see that there is only one church, not two. Just as there is only one Christ, so also there is only one church. In the previous chapter we spoke of one hybrid produced through the mingling of God and man; there are not two hybrids. The nature of the church is one, and the principle of the church is oneness. Whenever the church is no longer one, she loses her nature and her principle. If we want to build up the church, we should not allow any division in the church. I hope that God’s children can understand the Lord’s heart and realize that anything that causes the church to be divided, no matter how justified, is wrong.
The outward situation of today’s church is entirely divided. It grieves us to realize that people regard the division of the church as something ordinary and even acceptable. It is so easy for believers to establish a congregation according to their own ideas. Whenever there is a difference of opinion, believers separate themselves and form another congregation. Throughout the world we can see various small meetings under different names in the same locality. None of these build up the church; rather, they divide and tear down the church.
We all must know the unique nature, the unique principle, and the unique ground of the church, and we must keep it diligently. The church has the ground of oneness, the principle of oneness, and the nature of oneness. We should keep this oneness carefully and not give any ground for divisions. We must see that God is building one unique church in the universe and that there is only one church in a locality. We cannot divide the church of God, and there is no basis for dividing the church of God.
Ephesians 4:13 says, “Until we all arrive at the oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” This indicates that building up the church is related to building Christ into the saints. In other words, to build up the Body of Christ is to cause the measure of the stature of Christ to grow into its fullness. Hence, we should never have anything other than Christ as the center, the goal, of the building up of the church. Verse 14 continues, saying, “That we may be no longer little children...carried about by every wind of teaching.” Christians often are carried away by every wind of teaching, even the teachings in Christianity. For the building up of the church, we cannot afford to pay attention to teachings that carry us away from Christ Himself.
In 1952 a wind of teaching related to divine healing was blowing in Hong Kong, and brothers and sisters in Hong Kong were carried about by this wind. At that time we were speaking concerning the cross, the breaking of the natural man, and Christ, but the saints could not hear or receive it. However, as soon as some incidents of divine healing were reported, it became sensational news among the saints. For example, after someone received the laying on of hands, his fever receded, and his sickness was healed. Even if the healing was genuine and even if the doctrine related to divine healing was correct, this teaching became a wind that carried the saints away from Christ.
It is easy to test whether a teaching such as divine healing is a wind of teaching. Whether or not the teaching corresponds to the truth in the Bible is not enough; we also need to see whether the incidents of healing cause the element of Christ to increase or to decrease within the saints. We must take Christ as the base of testing in every situation in the church. Without this, even messages on healing can carry the saints away from Christ. The “wind of teaching” in Ephesians 4:14 refers to teachings that are like the wind. Such a teaching may not be wrong as far as the truth is concerned; however, such a teaching can separate the saints from Christ and cause them to deviate from the central goal, Christ.
I know of some saints who have been carried away by the teaching of foot-washing; they even do not come to break bread. When we ask them why they do not come to the meetings, they reply, “You do not have love, because you do not practice foot-washing. If you washed one another’s feet, I would come back to the meeting.” Even though the teaching of foot-washing corresponds to the Bible, this kind of teaching can draw us away from the center, Christ, and thereby become a wind, which carries the saints away from Christ. In addition, there are also brothers who emphasize holy kissing, and there are indeed verses in the Bible that speak of greeting one another with a holy kiss (Rom. 16:16; 1 Cor. 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:12). Thus, we cannot say that such a teaching does not correspond to the Bible. Nevertheless, this teaching can become a wind that carries us away from Christ.
When people are carried about by the wind of teaching, the result is division and sectarianism. The teaching of foot-washing can carry people into a practice of washing one another’s feet, and the teaching of holy kissing can carry people into a practice of kissing one another. Both practices can cause the saints to be separated from Christ and to be divided because of differences in practice. There are so many divisions in Christianity today due to the wind of teaching. People are carried about by the wind of teaching because they do not hold fast to Christ and take Christ as their center. Ephesians 4:13-14 says, “Until we all arrive at the oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, that we may be no longer little children...carried about by every wind of teaching.” The saints can be kept from being carried about by the wind of teaching only by growing in life according to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Even though foot-washing corresponds to the Bible, we do not have to practice it if the environment is not appropriate and if there is no need. In this way we will never be carried about by the wind of foot-washing. Even though there is nothing wrong with greeting each other with a holy kiss, we do not have to practice it if the environment is not appropriate. The same principle can be applied to practices related to baptism. In any case, we should not be carried about by the wind of teaching.
In short, everything should be centered on Christ. We are not here to build with anything other than Christ. This building is not individualistic, much less divisive. We cannot allow the wind of teaching to carry the saints about to the point of becoming sectarian and producing divisions. What we do and what we are must be for the building up of the church.
May the Lord open our eyes, and may we see that the church is the enlargement of the hybrid of God mingled with man, that the Body comes out of the fullness of Christ, and that we should not be individualistic or divisive. If we see these principles related to the building up of the church and learn to serve according to these principles, we can build up the church. These principles are related not just to doctrines, but to our practical service. May the Lord have mercy on us.
