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In order for a training to be successful, the trainers and the trainees need to be blended together so that they can work together. It is difficult to carry out the training if the trainees are scattered. The church is under the administration and leadership of the elders, but because most of the elders have jobs, it is difficult for them to participate in the training. On the one hand, they bear the responsibility of being an elder in the church, and on the other hand, they work to support their families. In today’s industrial and commercial society, earning a living can be compared to fighting a battle; everyone must endeavor, compete, and struggle for his existence.
We should not criticize the elders by asking why they do not attend the training or why they do not go door-knocking when the saints go door-knocking. The elders desire to participate in the training and to go door-knocking, but their situations do not allow them to do so. We are a family, and we should understand one another’s situation and be considerate of one another. The trainers should be able to take care of the needs of the training, and the elders should bear their responsibilities. We should all function to meet the need through fellowship. When the elders lack the time to take care of the various needs, they should allow others to help them in the administration of the church.
It is difficult for us as human beings to change our concepts; hence, it is not easy to change the system. The 1911 revolution in China is an example. Nearly eighty years ago Sun Yat-sen led the revolution that overthrew the Manchu dynasty and established the Republic of China. However, the fact that there are still problems in China today indicates that the revolution was not entirely successful. This shows that it is not easy to change a system.
When I was a young student in Chefoo, Western influence was prevalent. There were many foreign consulates, and there were post offices for countries such as France, Japan, and Germany. I attended an American school that was founded by an American missionary board. The school was an international school with students from Korea, Russia, and other countries. Some of the students wore Western suits, but when they wore their suits outside the school premises, people insulted them. A person was also reviled if he spoke English. Thus, at that time I did not wear Western suits, and I dared not speak English. In 1949 when I came to Taiwan, I still wore Chinese-style clothes and shoes. I did not begin wearing Western suits until I traveled abroad, because it was difficult for me to change my conservative concept. Now it is natural for me to wear a Western suit. Related to English, even though I studied English as a youth, I still speak poorly because the environment did not allow me to practice. I was scolded whenever I spoke English. Now speaking English is a trend, and sooner or later everyone must learn to speak it.
The Lord’s church has come to a standstill both in Christianity and in the Lord’s recovery; there is no spread and no increase. Christianity has been in Taiwan for more than a century, but today only one person out of every forty is a Christian. Even in America Christianity is not spreading. This proves that the old system is wrong, because it kills the function of the believers.
Christianity emphasizes pastors and preachers. Therefore, there are many seminaries around the world. The seminaries all teach Old Testament Hebrew and New Testament Greek. This is good because both of these languages are useful. However, the seminaries do not teach classes that are according to the divine truth. In their history classes they consider matters such as whether the Pentateuch was written by Moses and whether the biblical record concerning Abraham is reliable. In their geography classes they research which lands belonged to Pharaoh and to other kings. In addition to these courses, they also teach psychology and philosophy. However, the more that people study psychology and philosophy, the further they are from God, and the more they feel that the Bible is not reliable.
What is taught in the seminaries is different from what we teach in the Lord’s recovery. The Recovery Version of the New Testament and the Life-studies are full of light, life, and truth. Pastors and preachers graduate from the seminaries and teach the Bible, but people are often not satisfied with what they teach.
Seminaries emphasize the preaching of the gospel, and as a result, many people are saved. It is regrettable, however, that after their salvation these people cannot obtain an adequate supply of life. Seminaries also pay a great deal of attention to the methods of preaching the gospel, to sermons, and to managing the church. They also study how to be social, how to contact people, and how to understand human psychology. Even though the seminary students have the Bible in their hands, they may not understand the things in the Bible. They know what the Bible says concerning Abraham and Moses, but they do not fully believe or receive what is recorded in the Bible. Some believers think that the identity of the author of the book of Hebrews is still undetermined, but we are clear that Paul wrote Hebrews. These points show that Christianity is poor because it does not teach people to enter into the truth and revelation of the Bible. For this reason we must change the system to ensure that the condition of the church meetings does not fall into the condition of Christianity.
Before we began to change the system, our condition was only slightly different from that of Christianity. We had a weekly big meeting in which a brother released a message and the saints listened. We did not refer to the brother as a preacher; rather, we referred to him as a speaking brother, as one who speaks from the platform, or as one who ministers the word. He was not referred to as a preacher, but he functioned as a preacher. Even though our messages had some light, life, and truth in them and were somewhat higher than what was preached in Christianity, we maintained the abnormal condition of one person speaking and everyone else listening. When people only listen, they do not need to do anything. The saints were unable to lead home meetings, because they only listened to messages for many years. This can be compared to a housewife who does not know how to cook because for many years she has been eating food prepared by others. This proves that our old system did not build up the believers.
If the few speaking brothers are absent, the saints cannot prepare their own meals. Sister Lee takes care of everything concerning what I eat and drink; consequently, I do not know how to do anything in the kitchen. In the same way, the pastors in Christianity and the speaking brothers among us have created a situation in which no one else can speak the truth. For this reason we must change the system. We cannot allow this situation to continue. Whether or not we know how to cook, we must all rise up and cook. It does not matter whether we make mistakes; eventually, we will prepare a delicious meal.
We should not be set in our concepts and think that it is normal for only one person to speak while everyone else merely listens. We also should not receive this speaking as if it were merely another message to listen to. We need a change in our concept. We are changing the system so that everyone will give themselves to “prepare meals.” Those who know how to cook should cook, and those who do not know how to cook should also cook. If the food is burned, we can eat it, and if the food is not done, we can still eat it. If we will practice for at least six months, the meals we prepare will be delicious.
The record in the Bible is wonderful. Two thousand years ago the Lord taught His disciples the things that we need to pay attention to today. We need to knock on doors, and we need to have home meetings. The purpose of door-knocking is to make a profit. If we gain many sons of peace, we make a profit. The Lord condemns the evil and slothful slave in Matthew 25 because he did not make any profit. The evil and slothful slave said, “Master, I knew about you, that you are a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not winnow” (v. 24). When we are in the Lord’s work, the Lord requires us to do what we are unable to do. In this sense, the Lord is a hard man.
The evil and slothful slave said that the master was hard, and the master did not deny this word. Instead, he seemed to respond, “You are right. Since you know that I am like this, you should have made a profit with the money you received.” This word is not a small admonishment; rather, this is a serious command and a strict warning. One day the Lord will return, and He will settle accounts with us. He will ask what profit we earned with the talent He gave us. Through door-knocking we can make a profit. Before we changed the system, most of us had not made any profit, but now everyone who goes door-knocking can make a profit. From this we can see the need to change the system.
Furthermore, we must care for the sons of peace who are gained through door-knocking. Therefore, the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and prudent slave, whom the master has set over his household to give them food at the proper time?” (24:45). We can faithfully give food at the proper time in the home meetings. Hence, we must all learn how to prepare food and give it to the new ones.
In order to use Life Lessons in the home meetings, we must have an understanding of the lessons. The title of the first lesson is “Knowing That You Are Saved.” After reading the title, we should read the outline. The first point in the outline is on the significance of salvation. The second point is concerning the proofs of salvation. This includes the outward proof, the inward proof, and the proof of love. The outward proof is by the word of the Bible, the inward proof is by the Holy Spirit in our spirit, and the proof of love is that we love God’s children because we have experienced the eternal life of God. We love the brothers and sisters in the Lord. This threefold proof gives us the assurance that we are saved. We need to know this general outline so that we can speak with others according to the outline.
When we teach the first lesson, we should let people know that salvation refers to a person’s being saved before God, which includes being forgiven of sins, being spared from perdition, being regenerated, having the eternal life of God, and becoming a child of God. We should not fear repeating this, because the new believers need to know it. We should even use pray-reading to apply these words to the new believers. We should speak concerning the outward proof and say that this proof is the Bible. Then we should lead the new ones to pray-read the verses quoted in Life Lessons so that the new ones may know the verses. We should also speak of the inward proof and say that God has given us the Holy Spirit who witnesses within our spirit that we are the children of God. If we simply speak the points, it will be a great help to the new believers.
There are some deep topics in Life Lessons. In this section we will consider the deepest lesson in the first volume, “Knowing Christ.” I hope that you will spend some time on your own to study this lesson.
This lesson begins with the sacred titles of Christ. This refers to the sacred names of Christ. Even Christians who have believed in the Lord for many years do not understand the precious names of the Lord Jesus Christ. The first title is Jesus, which means “Jehovah the Savior.” The Lord is the salvation of Jehovah for our enjoyment. The second title is Christ, which means “the anointed One of God.” The Lord was anointed by God to carry out God’s commission. The third title is Emmanuel. The ending el in the Hebrew names in the Old Testament refers to God. The el in Emmanuel also refers to God. The name Emmanuel means “God with us.” Thus, the three names—Jesus, Christ, and Emmanuel—considered together mean that Jehovah came to be our Savior so that we may receive His salvation. They also mean that Christ is God’s anointed One to carry out God’s commission and to be with us. On the one hand, He saves us, and on the other hand, He carries out God’s commission and is with us, never leaving us.
The first two points concerning the person of Christ are that He is God and that He is the Son of God. The Son of God is God. There is no difference, because the Son of God is just God. Christ is a man, He is the Creator, and He is the Firstborn of all creation. As God, He is the Creator, and as man, He is a creature. This point still poses a problem in Christianity. Some believers say that Christ is a man, not a creature. However, the Bible clearly says that Christ is also a creature (Col. 1:15). If He is a man, how can He not be a creature? The fact that Christ has a body of blood and flesh proves that He is a creature. In His divinity Christ is God, the Son of God, and the Creator, and in His humanity He is man and the Firstborn of all creation.
The first great step in the work of Christ is creation. The universe did not come into existence through a process of gradual changes; rather, it was created by Christ. After Christ created the universe, a considerable amount of time elapsed before He was incarnated to be a man. This is the second step in Christ’s work—becoming flesh. After becoming flesh, Christ lived on the earth for thirty-three and a half years, and then He went to the cross and died to accomplish redemption for us. This is the third step in the work of Christ. After His crucifixion Christ resurrected from among the dead. This is the fourth step in His work. His resurrection is the proof of our justification (Rom. 4:25). When Christ resurrected, we were made alive together with Him and raised up together with Him (Eph. 2:5-6). We were also regenerated through the resurrection of Christ (1 Pet. 1:3).
The fifth step in the work of Christ is His ascending into the heavens. In this fifth step, as God’s Anointed, Christ accomplished two matters for us. In ascending to the heavens, He led captive those taken captive and gave gifts to men (Eph. 4:8). The phrase those taken captive refers to the believers. We were previously captives of Satan. However, in His resurrection Christ made us His captives and thereby released us from our captivity to Satan. Christ has made us His captives, thereby taking us out of the hands of Satan.
In His victorious resurrection Christ led us as His captives, released us from the captivity of Satan, and gave us as gifts to the church. Ephesians 4:8 is not a simple verse.
As a captive of Satan, man is in death. Man’s spirit is deadened, and his body dies daily. An unbeliever will go to Hades when he dies. On the last day he will come out of Hades and enter into the second death, the lake of fire (Rev. 20:13-15). As Satan’s captive, man experiences death in this way. However, in His crucifixion Christ bore man’s sins. Then Christ was buried, and He resurrected on the third day. Christ’s resurrection proves that regenerated believers are justified by God. In His resurrection Christ led these believers captive, taking them out of the hand of Satan and out of death. Christ then led these captives out of death to the heavens and offered them to God the Father. The Father received the captives and gave them back to Christ. Christ then gave the believers as gifts to the church. This is how the believers become gifts. These gifts include the apostles Paul and Peter, Philip the evangelist, and the rest of the believers. These gifts are the riches of the church.
In Christ’s ascending to the heavens we were “seated...together with Him in the heavenlies” (Eph. 2:6). This is very deep. In God’s eyes the believers in Christ are not on the earth but in the heavenlies. Who did this? Christ did it when He led us captive and took us out of Satan’s hand and brought us into the heavenlies. Every believer is a gift to the church. Apparently, we are on the earth, but in reality we are in heaven, in the heavenlies. Even though we live and work on the earth, we are a people in the heavenlies. We are in the heavenlies, not on the earth. This matter was accomplished for us by Christ in His resurrection.
The sixth step in the work of Christ is the fulfilling of His heavenly ministry. Many Christians and even pastors and theologians do not understand this step. When Christ was on earth, He accomplished His earthly ministry. In His earthly ministry Christ went to the cross, died for man, and offered Himself to God for the accomplishing of redemption. After His resurrection Christ began to fulfill His heavenly ministry in the heavens. This is one of the great matters for which God anointed Christ. In His heavenly ministry Christ is working in four ways on our behalf.
Christ is the Mediator of a better covenant. Hebrews 8:6 says, “He has obtained a more excellent ministry inasmuch as He is also the Mediator of a better covenant.” Life Lessons explains that Christ enacted the new covenant by His death (Matt. 26:28) and then ascended to the heavens to be the Mediator of the new covenant. He is now executing the new covenant upon those who believe in Him. On the cross Christ poured out His blood to cleanse us of our sins and to redeem us because as sinners we had lost God and His blessing. We were worthy of being condemned by God. Christ’s blood also enacted the new covenant. The first item we receive in the new covenant is the forgiveness of sins, and the second item is the divine life.
How can these two items be applied to man? After the Lord Jesus enacted the new covenant in His death, He resurrected from the dead and then ascended to heaven. In resurrection the Lord became the life-giving Spirit. Now whenever a person repents, believes into the Lord, and calls upon His name, the Lord enters into that person as the life-giving Spirit and begins to execute the new covenant within him. In executing the new covenant, He first causes us to sense that our sins have been forgiven by God. Then He causes us to realize that we have God’s life within us. Today we enjoy Christ in His executing of the new covenant.
When we repent, confess our sins, and call upon the Lord’s name, He enters into us as the life-giving Spirit. The Spirit causes us to taste the sweetness of having our sins forgiven by God and to sense the life of God within us. From this point on, the Lord Jesus is not merely in heaven; He is also within us. We are now connected to heaven. In other words, Christ is in our spirit, and He is also in heaven; He is in heaven, and He is also in our spirit. This is the same as electricity that is in the power plant and also in every light bulb. Hence, the electricity in the light bulbs and the electricity in the power plant are one. When the electricity enters the light bulb, the electric current connects the light bulb to the power plant.
Today we are in heaven, and heaven is in our spirit. When we meet together, heaven is among us. Christ as the heavenly “electricity” connects us to heaven, and He is constantly operating. When He operates, He transmits all the blessings of the new covenant into us. As a result, we have joy, peace, rejoicing, understanding, wisdom, light, and power. These items are blessings of the new covenant. When we first called upon the Lord Jesus, we were joined to Him. If we are willing to constantly fellowship with Him and call on His name, instead of neglecting Him, He will operate within us as the different items of the new covenant. This is how He executes the new covenant.
Hebrews 8:1-2 says that Christ “sat down on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the holy places, even of the true tabernacle.” Christ is a Minister of the true tabernacle. As a minister, Christ is in the heavens, in the true tabernacle, serving the believers. Christ is not only in the heavens as the Mediator to execute God’s new covenant; He is also the heavenly Minister who meets our every need by constantly supplying us. Few Christians understand this item concerning Christ as the heavenly Minister, but in the Lord’s recovery we are able to experience Christ as the heavenly Minister.
Anger is something we are frequently unable to control. It seems as if there is no way to contain our anger. We are saved and love the Lord, but we still become angry and lose our temper. After losing our temper, however, we can always repent and ask the Lord to wash us with His blood and to forgive us. Even though our temper is a real problem, we can experience Christ as the heavenly Minister whenever we are about to lose our temper. As soon as we call “O Lord Jesus,” He supplies us with the heavenly things, and our temper begins to diminish. If we continue to call and receive the heavenly supply, our temper will disappear. This is how Christ serves us as the heavenly Minister.
I often experience Christ as the heavenly Minister. When I give a message, I have a general outline within me, and I know the main points of the message. However, because I do not know the details of how to express these points, I usually pray quietly, and the Lord Jesus always comes when I pray. When He comes, He dispenses Himself into me and gives me the details of the message. The more I contact Him, the more He gives me. We need to learn to contact Christ in this way. Christ can be experienced. He is the heavenly Minister who ministers the divine, heavenly, and spiritual things into us as our supply.
Christ is our High Priest. Hebrews 4:14 says, “Having therefore a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God.” Have you ever experienced Christ as the High Priest? When God’s people in the Old Testament had a problem with God, they needed a high priest to bear the responsibility of their sins and to offer the sin offering, the burnt offering, or the meal offering to God on their behalf. The duty of the high priest was to take care of God’s people. The high priest bore the people before God. Hebrews 7:25 says, “He is able to save to the uttermost those who come forward to God through Him, since He lives always to intercede for them.” Christ is our High Priest to care for us, and we can experience Him at any time. He is able to take care of all our needs, problems, and difficulties before God. The ascended Christ is our High Priest, and He is inside of us. As our High Priest, He takes care of our affairs before God.
Christ is our Advocate. First John 2:1-2 says, “If anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins.” Jesus Christ the Righteous is our Advocate, our defense attorney. He is also the propitiation for our sins. A person in a law court needs a lawyer to defend him against the accusations of his opponent. Jesus Christ is in us, and He is in heaven as our Advocate.
This truth is hardly present in Christianity. This is the reason that the Lord must have a recovery. We have been commissioned with this heavy burden. We cannot remain in the Christian denominations. We must rise up to be Christians in the Lord’s recovery.
When we speak to the new ones concerning Christ in His heavenly ministry, we do not need to say too much. We should give simple and clear explanations concerning Christ as the Mediator of the new covenant, the Minister of the true tabernacle, our High Priest, and our Advocate. The new ones have never heard these points; therefore, we should not give complex explanations. We merely need to show them that the Lord Jesus was not only our Redeemer on the cross, but in heaven today He is the Mediator of the new covenant, the Minister of the true tabernacle, our great High Priest, and our Advocate before God.
It is difficult for the new believers to fully understand these matters, but if they have some knowledge, they will be able to experience Christ as the Mediator, the Minister, the High Priest, and the Advocate. When the situations arise, the Holy Spirit will operate to remind them of what they know. Then they will experience the Lord Jesus in His heavenly ministry. Sometimes they may sense that the Lord Jesus is praying for them as their great High Priest. At other times they may feel that they can approach God, even though they have offended Him, because the Lord Jesus is their Advocate before God. Thus, the knowledge we bring them will gradually become their experience in their daily life.
Life Lessons seems simple and easy, but it is not that simple. Every topic has more than ten verses that are the most important verses in the Bible related to that topic. As long as we are faithful to fellowship these truths with the new ones, the Holy Spirit will spontaneously use different situations to remind them of these truths and turn these truths into experience.
In Matthew 24 and 25 the Lord commissioned us with two matters. He gave us spiritual gifts to use as our capital to do business so that we can earn a profit. In other words, He gave us salvation, and He wants us to use this salvation to gain sons of peace through knocking on doors. After we make a profit by gaining sons of peace, we need to have home meetings with them to give them food.
Children are cared for in homes. It would be difficult for society to exist if all the children were cared for in orphanages. According to God’s ordination, a household, or family, is a unit, and children are cared for in a unit. Previously, a household in Chinese society had five generations living together. Presently, however, Chinese society is composed of small families because of the influence of Western society. A small family unit is according to the Bible (Gen. 2:24).
We have seen this principle; hence, we should all have home meetings, and we should go to people’s homes. If we meet only in the meeting halls, the number of attendants will decrease. We must open our homes to the brothers and sisters in order to perfect them. We must make a profit by gaining the sons of peace through knocking on people’s doors. Then we must feed the new ones by giving them food in the home meetings.
We must fellowship with the elders in every locality so that the saints can go door-knocking to make a profit. The saints should also have home meetings to give the new ones food at the proper time. We need to answer the Lord’s call. We should consecrate not only the Lord’s Day to the Lord; we should also consecrate three evenings a week to Him. Even though we are busy with our families and other matters, we should do our best to separate some time to knock on doors or to have home meetings. The saints who cannot give three evenings a week should not be discouraged. We should all do our best to serve when we have the opportunity, and we should do our best to serve when we do not have the opportunity; we should look for the opportunity. In the new way everyone bears the burden and the responsibility to serve. The elders are not the only ones who bear responsibility in the new way.
If everyone participates, we will not need to go out every night; rather, every saint will be able to go out a few evenings a week. However, we should not be burning one day and cold the next ten days. We should serve with persistence by going every week with much prayer. We knock on doors to make a profit by gaining people, and we have meetings in the homes of the new ones to give them food. As a result, our work will please the Lord and be acceptable to Him. If we continue in this way, we will receive a reward when He returns. From now on we must serve in this way in the churches. We should not serve in the way of organization, nor should we hire a select group of people to serve on behalf of the others. Instead, all the brothers and sisters should rise up to be trained. Everyone can knock on doors to preach the gospel, and everyone can have a home meeting to lead others to read the Lord’s Word and Life Lessons. This is our way, and this is our hope.
