LESSONS ON THE GOD-ORDAINED WAY

Lesson Twenty-four

The Increase and Spread of the Church through
the Multiplication of Groups and Districts

Scripture Reading:

John 15:2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes it away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it that it may bear more fruit.

Rom. 12:2 And do not be fashioned according to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and well pleasing and perfect.

Acts 20:20 How I did not withhold any of those things that are profitable by not declaring them to you and by not teaching you publicly and from house to house.

2 Cor. 4:13 And having the same spirit of faith according to that which is written, “I believed, therefore I spoke,” we also believe, therefore we also speak,

1 Thes. 1:3 Remembering unceasingly your work of faith and labor of love and endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, before our God and Father;

1 Cor. 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace unto me did not turn out to be in vain, but, on the contrary, I labored more abundantly than all of them, yet not I but the grace of God which is with me.

I. The urgent need of the increase and spread of the church—John 15:2:

A. According to the truth and the life which the Lord has given to us, our increase and spread are too poor.

B. Having to practice the God-ordained way at any cost—John 15:2, 6; Eph. 5:16.

C. How the church will advance all depends on how we cooperate and coordinate with the Lord— John 21:15-17.

D. Needing to be desperate for the Lord’s increase—Matt. 28:18-19.

II. Overturning our concepts being necessary for evangelization—Rom. 12:2:

A. Dropping our old concepts and picking up the new view of the Lord’s present recovery:

1. Living uniquely for the gospel:

a. Forsaking everything in order to preach the gospel—Matt. 13:44-46; 2 Cor. 8:9.

b. Having impact in the gospel if we are in one accord—Amos 3:3; Phil. 4:2; Eph. 4:3-6; Lev. 26:8.

2. Changing the system by overturning our concepts:

a. The Lord having shown us a concept of “homes.”

b. If the home meetings are successful, then the God-ordained way will be successful.

B. Building up a habit of the normal way for the spreading of the gospel—Acts 8:4-5.

III. Increase and spread of the church through the multiplication of groups and districts—Acts 20:20, 2 Cor. 4:13:

A. Needing an accounting for the increase and spread.

B. Setting a firm goal in fruit-bearing in one accord.

C. The increase of the church through the multiplying of groups—Heb. 10:25.

D. The functioning and care of every member through the multiplying of districts.

IV. Pressing on according to the apostle Paul’s prayers in 1 Thes. 1:3—2 Cor. 4:13:

A. The work of faith:

1. Faith in God and in His power.

2. Faith in God’s Spirit and in His word.

3. Not in our ability, method, nor in anything else.

4. The work of faith is the foundation of our Christian service.

B. The labor of love—1 Cor. 15:10, Col. 1:29:

1. The intrinsic motivation of our work of faith.

2. The inner life of our work of faith.

3. The real strength of our work of faith.

4. The key of our fruitfulness of our work of faith.

C. The endurance of hope—James 5:7-8:

1. Hope in the coming Christ with His glory.

2. Hope in the reward of the coming kingdom.

3. The endurance of hope is the long life of our work of faith.

 

Excerpts from the ministry:

THE URGENT NEED OF THE INCREASE AND SPREAD OF THE CHURCH

According to the Truth and the Life Which the Lord Has Given to Us,
Our Increase and Spread Are Too Poor

In the last sixty years, the truth in the Lord’s recovery has not been lacking, and even though our life has not been quite so rich, it is still adequate. There is only one matter which has really become a problem—the matter of increase and spread. According to the truth which the Lord has shown us and according to the life which He has given to us, our increase and spread are too poor. This is especially true of the ten years from 1974 to 1984 when our average worldwide rate of increase was less than two percent. It is for this reason that I have been pressed and burdened to the extent that I can no longer bear it.

Therefore, in 1984, apparently through my own decision but actually under the Lord’s leading, I returned to Taiwan. I felt that the situation could not continue in this way. I saw clearly that the truth among us cannot be changed and the life we have cannot be shaken, but the way we work must be changed in order to keep up with the need. It is true that no one can change the globe, because it was created by God. Man’s standard of living on the globe, however, has been improving throughout the ages. One hundred years ago it took at least six months to sail from the West Coast of America to the East Coast of China, but today the methods of transportation have improved so much that one round-trip flight in an airplane takes only one day. This does not mean that the globe has changed or shrunk; rather, it means that methods of transportation have greatly improved, making travel more convenient. (The Furtherance of the New Way for the Lord’s Recovery, pp. 10-11)

Having to Practice the God-ordained Way at Any Cost

Some have said that we should forget about the work and come back to the enjoyment of Christ, but we need to realize that the enjoyment of Christ always has an issue. If a branch of the vine tree is really and richly enjoying the life juice from the tree, surely the branch will bear fruit (John 15:5). If the branch has not borne fruit for years, it has probably already been cut off (15:2a, 6). A person may think that he is enjoying Christ, but actually he may be cut off from the enjoyment of Christ. He may be self-deceived. Have we been enjoying Christ year after year? Where is our fruit? When I returned to Taipei in 1984, they only had three thousand in attendance at the Lord’s table. Today they have five thousand at the table. They also have thousands of new ones that they are caring for in home meetings and small group meetings. The saints and churches who have practiced visiting people in their homes with the gospel have testified of the fruitfulness of this way. Can we give a testimony in a definite way of the fruit that we have borne?

If the way that I have presented to you is ordained by God and is according to the Scriptures, we have to practice it at any cost. Then the Lord will have a way with us to finish His recovery. Otherwise, we may force Him to drop us and go to others. The Lord dropped others in His move and came to us sixty years ago, but where are we today? The gifted ones—the leading ones and the co-workers—need to perfect the needy saints, not by speaking to them as a congregation but by visiting them in their homes. Some of the older co-workers may feel that they have become useless now that we are changing to the new way. Actually, if the older ones pick up the new way, they will become more useful. Their years of experience are needed for the perfecting of the saints. If we do not go along with the tide of the Spirit in this age, however, we will become dropouts. Time does not wait for us. This is why the New Testament tells us to redeem the time (Eph. 5:16). (The Way to Practice the Lord’s Present Recovery, pp. 32-33)

How the Church Will Advance All Depends On
How We Cooperate and Coordinate With the Lord

We have all seen a three-legged race. With this race, it is not a matter of how fast or how slow the contestants walk. Rather, it is a matter of whether or not they can cooperate and coordinate with each other. If one of the contestants runs very fast and the other runs very slow, then they will easily fall and be unable to rise up again. Consequently, they will remain in the same place and have no way to go forward. Today we are tied together to the Lord in a three-legged race. However, often when He walks, we do not walk, or when He does not walk, we walk. As a result, this three-legged race is not in step or in unison. Hence, how our future will be and how the church will advance both depend on how we cooperate and coordinate with the Lord. If we have much prayer, much pursuing of the truth, and much entering into the truth, we will have more knowledge and experience of the Lord. Thus, we will have more supply, the number of saved ones will naturally increase, and the power to retain them will be strong. (Speaking for God, p. 121)

Needing to Be Desperate for the Lord’s Increase

We need to be desperate to gain new ones for the Lord’s increase. We also have to exercise our faith to apply the Lord’s authority, standing on Matthew 28:18-19, where the Lord said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and disciple all the nations.” When we go out to preach the gospel we should pray, “Lord, I stand on this word. Your authority is mine. I go with Your authority.” When we are sharing the gospel with people, we should not ask them if they would like to receive the Lord and be baptized. If we do this, they will say “no” most of the time. Instead, we need to exercise the Lord’s authority and direct them to believe and be baptized. (Elders’ Training Book 9, the Eldership and the God-Ordained Way (1), p. 25)

OVERTURNING OUR CONCEPTS BEING NECESSARY
FOR EVANGELIZATION

However, we do not only emphasize ways and techniques; rather, through these ways and techniques we are overturning everyone’s concepts to rid ourselves of all that is old, even old feelings, flavors, and thoughts, until we are inwardly filled with the home meetings. We use home meetings to preach the gospel, speak the truth, and feed others. We pray and break bread in the homes in order to make the home meetings the practical church life.

I believe that the day will come when the gospel will not be preached just by those of us who are here; instead, it will be preached by all the brothers and sisters because everyone will be able to preach effectively and the rate of increase will be high. In the meetings it will not be just a few people who are functioning, but everyone will be full of the Lord’s word and the Spirit and will function in a living and fresh way. This is true evangelization. (The Furtherance of the New Way for the Lord’s Recovery, pp. 71-72)

Dropping Our Old Concepts and Picking Up the New View
of the Lord’s Present Recovery

In order to go on, we all need to drop our old concepts and pick up the new view of the Lord’s present recovery. For the building up of the Body of Christ, we need the material. In Haggai the Lord charged the Israelites, “Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified” (1:8). Today we need to go to knock on doors because we need the material for God’s house. I am sharing this with the hope that we could be rescued from the wrong understanding and wrong position. We all have to admit that there are many ways to preach the gospel, but to visit people in their homes is the best way. (The Way to Practice the Lord’s Present Recovery, p. 43)

Living Uniquely for the Gospel

My intention is to impress you that in the universe and today on this earth there is something called the gospel which we are reminded and commanded to live for. The Lord commanded us to live for this gospel uniquely. What are we living on this earth for? Do we live for our profession or for our job to make a lot of money? What is man living for? Poor human society has so much activity but no goal. Do we have a goal? Our goal is the gospel, and our gospel is the Triune God processed to be the very Spirit within us as our salvation, as our life, as our life supply, and as our all-inclusive enjoyment. What a wonder and what a glory to live uniquely for such a gospel.

Each one of us needs to wake up to be serious, to live uniquely for the gospel. When you say that you live uniquely for the gospel, you have to consider the standard of your living. Regardless of how much money you make, it should not uplift the standard. The uplifted standard will not only waste your money but also waste your time. You will spend a lot of money and waste your time and energy. Then surely you will have no time to go out. If you have a bigger lawn, either you have to mow it or you have to hire others to do it. Thus, your money, energy, and time will all be wasted. Forget about having a higher standard of living. Every week save two hours to go out. I do not mean that you should not mow your lawn or take care of your house and belongings. But knocking on doors two or three hours a week is first. Let us all do this first. Then if there is any time left, go out a second time for two or three hours. We must live uniquely for the gospel. If you are faithful to the Lord by living uniquely for His gospel, the Lord will bless. He will bless your job or your business. He will take care of you. He will fulfill His promise in Matthew 6:33. If you seek His kingdom and His righteousness, He will give you His kingdom and His righteousness with an addition of all your daily necessities. (Being Desperate and Living Uniquely for the Gospel, pp. 32, 38)

Forsaking Everything in Order to Preach the Gospel

In the parable of the treasure and the pearl in Matthew 13, the Lord Jesus told the disciples that He was the One who sold everything to buy the treasure (the kingdom) and the pearl (the church) (vv. 44-46). The apostle Paul also said that the Lord Jesus was rich but was made poor for our sake so that we could become rich through His poverty (2 Cor. 8:9). This is the Lord’s life. This is the gospel which He has given us. Today, when we preach the gospel, we have to be like the Lord who forsook everything in order that others would share the blessing of the gospel.

Today the gospel has lost the impact it had at the beginning. This is because no one is forsaking everything. Many people say that their time, money, and all are for the Lord, but it is hard to find one or two in a hundred who really mean what they say. The rest only say this with their mouth. In reality, everything is still theirs. The gospel has lost its initial impact because of this. Being a Christian is a secondary profession to many people; their primary profession is not being a Christian. The order of things has been reversed. Paul clearly said, “For the love of Christ constrains us because we have judged this, that One died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all that those who live may no longer live to themselves but to Him who died for them and has been raised” (2 Cor. 5:14-15). Christ died and resurrected for us so that we may no longer live to ourselves but to Him. But how many people are living to the Lord today? Many people are Christians in name, but they really live in the same way as the world. The world seeks fame, fortune, position, and education. These Christians seek the same. They glorify their pursuit by saying that they are pursuing these things for the Lord’s sake. Actually, their Christian confession is a secondary profession. The gospel has lost its power because Christians today are short of a full consecration and do not practice their Christian confession as their primary profession.

The cork in a bottle must be unplugged before its precious content can be released. The more we hold on to material goods, the more the gospel will be bound. The more we love ourselves, the less His life will flow out. In order for the gospel to have the impact, we must remove the “cork.” (The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, Vol. 61, pp. 56-59)

Having Impact in the Gospel if We Are in One Accord

There is also the need of one accord. If everyone is fully for the Lord and the gospel, can anything break the one accord? If two persons are not in one accord, they cannot walk together (Amos 3:3). However, it is not a simple thing to be in one accord. We know that the church in Philippi comforted and encouraged Paul because it strove together with one soul in the faith of the gospel (Phil. 1:27). Yet even among those believers, there were problems. Paul had to exhort two leading sisters to be of one mind (4:2)…The apostles also charged us to be diligent to keep the oneness (Eph. 4:3-6). The principle of the gospel is for five to chase a hundred and for a hundred to chase ten thousand (Lev. 26:8). The one accord will bring in the impact of the gospel. (The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, Vol. 61, pp. 59-60)

Changing the System by Overturning Our Concept

We have to change our concept entirely. We should not seek a regimented, grand, or spectacular façade. In fact we should not pay attention to the façade at all. Rather, we should pay attention to something practical. We have to pay attention to every home meeting. We should put our hope in every saint having meetings in his home. If we do this, everyone among us, whether he is burning or cold, strong or weak, young or old, will have the opportunity to be stirred up and to develop and fulfill his organic function in the Body. The Lord’s recovery will then be a nation of a fighting army, and there will be continual growth and increase. However, if we hold on to our old concepts, many saints will be squelched from functioning in an organic way through our demand for uniformity. I hope that we can thoroughly change our concept and practice everything properly and absolutely according to the pattern of the new way. (The Ministry Magazine, Volume 2, No. 11, December 1998, p. 25)

The Lord Showing Me the Concept of the “Home”

It is very hard to change one’s concept. I myself have been making the turn for five years. From 1980 to 1984 I was constantly studying why in the Lord’s recovery we would preach the gospel and labor hard every year, but our numbers would not increase. It was not only like this in Taiwan; it was also the same in the United States. This question pressed me until I had no other way but to return to the Bible and spend time studying it diligently. In the end the Lord showed me the concept of the “home.” According to the revelation of the Bible, God Himself came down from heaven to be incarnated and at His own discretion went from one home to another to seek sinners. The Lord Himself went to the home of Zaccheus. He also made a special trip to seek the sinful woman by the well in Samaria. The New Testament clearly shows us that the home is the center and that the gospel is a matter of being delivered to the home and not a matter of inviting people to come and listen. If today God were to invite us to where He sits in the heavens, we would never find a way to get there. Instead, He came down and brought the gospel to us, making it so available for us. Because we have acted against this principle, we have not had the Lord’s blessing for a long time.

When I saw this clearly, I made a thorough repentance to the Lord. Thirty years ago when I was still living in Taiwan, I saw people riding bicycles with a sign that said, “Delivering Shots to Your Home.” This meant that a person did not have to go to the doctor’s clinic, but the doctor would come to the person’s home and give him a shot. Now America has home delivery services for food which make it very helpful for business. If you make it convenient for people, they will welcome you. In the same way, if our hope is that the Lord’s recovery will increase and spread, then we must change our concept. Instead of inviting people to come and hear the gospel, we should deliver the gospel to their homes. This will help us to increase. (The Furtherance of the New Way for the Lord’s Recovery, p. 53)

If the Home Meetings Are Successful,
the God-ordained Way Will Be Successful

If the home meeting is successful, the God-ordained way will also be successful. If the home meeting is not successful, then all the previous efforts made toward the new way will be nullified. This is a very serious matter. Therefore, we need to pray that the Lord will make us clear of the way before us. Outwardly, there may be much to be praised and encouraged, but the content is not praiseworthy or encouraging. We cannot say that at least we are much better than Christianity. Do not compare with something that is black. Do not compare with loess; instead, compare with gold. How much gold do we have within? We need to be enriched continuously in life, truth, light, and experience and to exercise in our way of doing things until one day we arrive at the stage of proficiency. (Bearing Fruit that Remains (Chinese), Vol. 2, p. 254)

Building Up a Habit of the Normal Way for the Spreading of the Gospel

In order to fulfill the New Testament priesthood of the gospel, we must build up a habit of the normal way for the spreading of the gospel (Acts 8:4-5). To build up such a habit requires that we have a psychological change in our logic. Concerning the gospel, our logic and our psychology is wrong. Many of us are thoroughly wrong in the preaching of the gospel. We must have a change in our logic carried out in our psychology.

Often, the natural way of gospel preaching is to invite a good evangelist, a top speaker, who has much knowledge concerning the gospel. We may bring our relatives to a meeting of such an evangelist to answer the altar call. However, many people saved in this way do not remain. We should rather take the biblical way to go to our relatives personally. After a few months one will be saved and will become our co-worker to contact the others. After a few years, many of them will be gained by the Lord. This is the living and effective way to preach the gospel. Most of our relatives who are brought to the Lord by our personal contact over the years will be good preachers to bring others to the Lord. We must have a change from the natural way to the biblical way. If we have a change, the Lord will have a way. (Elders’ Training Book 11, the Eldership and the God-Ordained Way (3), pp. 73-74)

INCREASE AND SPREAD OF THE CHURCH THROUGH
THE MULTIPLICATION OF GROUPS AND DISTRICTS

Needing an Accounting for the Increase and Spread

Statistics are very helpful wherever they are applied. No matter what a person does, he cannot have accounting without also having statistics. Accounting is for statistics, and statistics are for the setting up of policies. The operation of our business is all based on statistics. Only when we have statistics will we know how to establish a direction in which we may proceed. If we have been in a certain business for twenty years and have not even gotten a ten percent profit, then we must close our business, change to another business, or make some personnel changes. The establishment of a business’s operational direction must be decided according to accounting and statistics. Therefore, last year in Taipei we did this very thing. When we laid out the accounting and statistics, we saw that the work in Taiwan needed a change in its system. We determined that we could no longer do our work in the way we had been doing it. Not only had we failed to make a profit, but we had even lost some of our principal. Because of this, the work in every locality had no way to advance.

We can no longer go on doing something in vain, nor can we stay in self-delusion—always feeling that we are so good and so wonderful because we have the truth and life. If we would look at the statistics carefully, we would see the real situation of everything. The real situation is that the Lord has not gained much among us. If this situation persists, then even after two hundred years, the Lord’s recovery still will not have a way to progress and spread. I hope that the younger generation would especially take this word and go on properly and faithfully before the Lord. There is no problem on the Lord’s side for the churches in the recovery to increase and spread; the problem is on our side. (Speaking for God, p. 120)

Setting a Firm Goal in Fruit-Bearing in One Accord

On the matter of fruit-bearing, we must set a firm goal. Then, according to the goal, we endeavor with our full strength and pray before the Lord. I believe that the Lord will listen to our prayer. A sister testified that originally she decided to gain ten people through door-knocking, but eventually she gained only eight on that day. People in general may feel that it is already quite good, but this sister felt that she must have some problems. After she went home, she prayed and confessed her sins before the Lord. After her confession, she even asked the Lord, “Lord, You have to give me four more tomorrow to make up these two.” Such a prayer pleases God. Whether or not our expectation, our goal, can be attained to, other than our prayer, depends altogether on our endeavor. If we endeavor, we will surely attain to our goal; but if we do not endeavor, we certainly will not attain our goal. If we are loose, we will never attain our goal. In the matter of door-knocking, we should exhaust all of our strength.

That is the principle which God asked Gideon to test the three hundred men (Judg. 7:2-8). Among the children of Israel, there were many who wanted to fight against the enemy. God said to Gideon, The people with you are too many; three hundred would be enough. But how did God select these people? He used an excellent way which was to ask them to drink. Some bowed down to drink once they saw the water. God said that He could not use these ones because their heart was on drinking. He could only use those who lapped the water with their tongue because their heart was not on drinking; rather, their heart was desperate to fight against the Midianites and cast them out. Therefore, once we set our goal, we cannot be loose. Our prayer has to be intensified, our one accord has to be intensified, and everything has to be intensified. By this way, we surely will be weighty. Once we are weighty and intensified, we will reach the goal. (Bearing Fruit that Remains (Chinese), Vol. 1, pp. 42-43)

The Increase of the Church through the Multiplying of Groups

In the past month, the number of people of the small group meetings, the home meetings, increased by one thousand. I have said that once a small group has over twelve people, it should be split up into two groups. But now there are some groups which have over twenty-four people, but they are still reluctant to split up. I understand your feeling because I am also a man. There is a very good small group in a certain district; it has brought over one hundred people to the Lord. I have been to this group meeting. It was swarmed with people. They told me that they are not willing to split up because they all like that group. I dared not touch it because I am afraid that once I touch it, there may be some who will not meet. They are like the flowers in the greenhouse. Once you touch them, they will die. Moreover, man lives a communal life. When people always come together, they have feeling toward one another and want to be affectionate and intimate with one another. But we have to see that if we do not split up our small groups and home meetings, propagation will stop, and the edification of the brothers and sisters will be greatly hindered. Hence, now the small group in that district has no way to spread and go on. The situation is similar everywhere. (The Vision and the Practical Steps of the Practice of the New Way (Chinese), p. 152)

The group meeting is really a means for the increase. Therefore, no group meeting should remain for a long time with the same number. Every group meeting should be subdivided into two groups within one year. This is the way to increase. For example, at the beginning of the year we may have baptized two or three. We can work on them in the home meetings and gradually bring them together to form a group meeting. In this way the group meeting will grow. All of the new ones will learn to do the same things that we do. By the end of the year, this group will be ready to be divided into two groups. However, in many places those who are grouped together are not willing to be divided. In a sense they fell in love with one another and wish to remain in the old group. This is absolutely wrong. In the new way one group at the end of the year will become two groups. Then at the end of the next year, there will be four groups. This is equivalent to a one hundred per cent increase yearly. Just by practicing the new way for one year, everybody will learn. Hence, everyone can be a leader. The groups themselves will produce the leaders. We all have to learn this new way and not delay any further. If within one year there is no fruit, no learning, and no new groups, we have wasted one year. Then it will be difficult to be rescued out of this situation.

The longer the groups remain together, the less they can do and the less useful they will be. Not only should we see new ones coming in regularly among us, but we should also see new group meetings year after year. (Talks Concerning the Church Services, pp. 63-64)

The Functioning and Care of Every Member through the Multiplying of Districts

Furthermore, we have to arrange, according to the actual situation, environment, and time, for a more important meeting on the Lord’s Day; this is the district meeting. We should take fifty people as the standard. If there are more people, then we should divide into two districts. In this way everyone can function, and at the same time, the caring will also be more thorough. (Being Up-to-date for the Rebuilding of the Temple (Chinese), p. 140)

For this reason it is better not to have one or two hundred meeting together. This is too many. According to our experience, it is better to have about fifty, at most seventy, in a meeting. When we reach eighty, we should divide into two meetings. If there are fifty, about one-third of the attendants can speak. Twenty speakers can each occupy three minutes, using exactly one hour. (The Practical and Organic Building Up of the Church, p. 87)

If the church meetings are too big, not many of the saints will have an opportunity to speak for the Lord. For this reason, it is good to have meetings of about fifty saints on the Lord’s Day. If there are three hundred saints meeting on the Lord’s Day in a certain locality, they can be divided into six meetings of fifty each. (The Excelling Gift for the Building Up of the Church, p. 64)

The principle of physical life is that when a plant is old, it is hard to bear fruit. The spiritual principle is also the same. A family migrates to a new place, for example, for the spreading of the Lord’s gospel and the preaching of the truth of God. Within one year, fifteen people may be brought in, then they increase to thirty or fifty. However, once the number has reached fifty, the rate of increase will slow down, just as an aging person cannot bear a child, and an old tree cannot bear fruit. In order to bear fruit, there must be new branches. In order for these fifty people to bear fruit, there is the need for the propagation of homes and groups. It is unavoidable, however, that there will be human relationships. Not only so, men love to have the impressive front. It is really enjoyable to have so many people meeting, singing, praying together, and the content and speaking are really good. If the home meeting is split up, then everything will be finished. But if there is no splitting, it will be hard for the propagation. For example, to plant a tree or to root a grass, if the seeds are not spread apart, they will all be crowded together. If the seeds are spread apart as they are being sown, it may look unpleasant at the beginning, but after half a year to a year, the field would be flourishing beautifully. I hope that the elders would change their concepts and see clearly that this is serious and that they have to labor on it. (The Vision and Specific Steps for the Practice of the New Way (Chinese), pp. 152-53)

In our seeking before the Lord, we feel that the church in Taipei, the church in Singapore, the church in Manila, the church in Hong Kong, and even the church in Jakarta must all aim at having one thousand home meetings. Any locality with a population of more than three million must aim at dividing into one thousand small homes. Every small home should have eight to ten people, so one thousand homes will have eight to ten thousand people. We know that the more we divide into the homes, the more we multiply. Let us use a couple with ten children as an illustration. Suppose the parents keep all the children at home with them, so that the sons never marry and the daughters are never given in marriage. Eventually, the parents will get old, and the children will also become old. This situation is not normal.

If we release our sons and daughters, letting them marry, then there will be increase and propagation. Each additional marriage will afford one additional unit for reproduction. When three get married, there will be three units for reproduction; when seven get married, there will be seven units for reproduction. After a few years they will multiply to over twenty persons. Those who understand gardening know that in planting flowers, shrubs, or trees, it is hard for them to multiply if the farmer plants them close together, but if he separates them into groups, planting them in small groves, then they will multiply rapidly. Therefore, we must separate into homes; this will bring in the increase. (Speaking for God, pp. 100-101)

PRESSING ON ACCORDING TO THE APOSTLE PAUL’S PRAYERS
IN FIRST THESSALONIANS CHAPTER ONE VERSE THREE

In 1 Thessalonians 1:3 the apostle Paul wrote, “Remembering unceasingly your work of faith and labor of love and endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, before our God and Father.” Here the apostle remembered the Thessalonians first in their work of faith, then in their labor of love, and finally in their endurance of hope. (The Training and Practice of the Vital Groups, p. 119)

The Work of Faith

We have to learn to take action, to work, to labor, in faith, not by our feelings. When we make a resolution to visit people, we may begin to feel down. This is a common thing. We should still labor regardless of our feelings. First Thessalonians says that our work must be of faith. Faith means not doing anything in yourself, not doing anything by yourself, and not doing anything according to your feeling. We should not be people who take action just when we are feeling very good and very high. We need to take action in faith regardless of how we feel. (The Training and Practice of the Vital Groups, pp. 105-106)

I was burdened by the Lord to come to the United States. On the one hand, it was good. But on the other hand, some feelings were there which were not so encouraging. I wondered, “If I go to America, whom shall I contact and what shall I do?” There was also the question of how I would be supported financially. Today thirty-two years have passed since I came to the United States, and there has been a positive result. Forty years ago there was no arrangement among us to take care of the workers’ material supply. So a worker went out empty-handed. Actually, though, when I came to the United States I was not empty-handed, because in my two hands I had the Lord. If you have everything, you do not need to exercise your faith. But if you have only the Lord, you surely need to exercise your faith. When we touch the Lord’s work, we should not do anything by our feeling. We should simply take action by faith. (p. 108)

Based upon this background, the first God-man taught His disciples to pray for executing God’s will according to His economy by faith (Matt. 21: 21-22).

Thus, the praying one could have faith in God without doubting, but believing that he had received what he asked for, he would have it (Mark 11: 24). The praying one is now one with God, in union with God. He is mingled with God, so God becomes his faith. This is what it means to have faith in God, according to the Lord’s word in Mark 11:22. The praying one is absolutely one with God, and God becomes his faith.

In Mark 11:24 the Lord said, “All things that you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and you will have them.” I would like to present one testimony concerning the experience of this verse. It is concerning the Lord’s move to Russia. Soon after the United States defeated Iraq in 1991, one day a thought came to me: “Why don’t you go to Russia? Now is the time.” When I fellowshipped with the leading co-workers about this, they all agreed with me, so we announced to the saints that we would follow the Lord’s leading to go to Russia. Right away there was a response from the Body for this move of the Lord. This is a testimony that I had the full faith that we received a success. (The God-man Living, p. 146)

The Labor of Love

In serving the Lord we may be very enthusiastic for one week, but after that we may become exhausted. Among us there is the need of laboring and there is the need of endurance. From the beginning, when I began to speak concerning the matter of the vital groups, I stressed the need for endurance. A long as we can get one person saved in 365 days, that is wonderful. I doubt that many of us can boast that although we have been laboring for two and a half years and have not gained anyone, we are still laboring. If this is your case, you will be blessed. You will see that in the end, you will be the most fruitful one.

To practice the vital groups, we must be vital to the extent that we are willing to labor in any way and at any cost. This requires us to endure. If you go to visit someone consistently for half a year and nothing happens, you should keep going. If you labor much and nothing happens, will something happen if you cease your labor? Seemingly, your labor has been in vain, because for six months you have not seen any result. But for the long run, there will be a result.

Our labor should be a labor of love. This love indicates that we love not only the Lord but also the saints. We love the stronger ones, and we love the weaker ones. We love sinners; we love our friends; and we love our relatives, our classmates, and our colleagues. We simply love people. Love is the motivating power of our labor. Because of this love we prefer to put aside many other things and to labor. We do not know who the fruit will be and from where and when it will come. We only know to labor. (The Training and Practice of the Vital Groups, pp. 126-128)

The Endurance of Hope

In addition to our labor of love, we also need the endurance of hope. We need to be willing to suffer opposition. We need to be a person who endures in hope of the Lord’s coming. According to Luke 16:9, in the kingdom age many will welcome us into the eternal tabernacles because of our labor.

Our hope is in the coming Christ with His glory, and it is also in the reward of the coming kingdom. The endurance of hope is the long life of our work of faith. Through such an endurance we can subdue all kinds of disappointments, discouragements, and impossibilities, and we can also overcome all kinds of opposition, obstacles, and frustrations. Such an endurance consummates in gaining sinners, feeding the believers, perfecting the saints, and building up the church, the Body of Christ, for the kingdom of God and of Christ.

We need to take the apostle’s word in 1 Thessalonians 1:3 concerning the labor of love, and his word in Colossians 1:28—2:1 concerning his laboring by struggling to gain every man, to admonish every man, to teach every man, and to present every man full-grown in Christ. If Paul can do this, we also can do it. We should not say that we cannot do it. We can do it. (The Training and Practice of the Vital Groups, p. 135)

References: The Furtherance of the New Way for the Lord’s Recovery, chs. 1, 4, 5; The Way to Practice the Lord’s Present Recovery, chs. 2-3; Being Desperate and Living Uniquely for the Gospel, ch. 3; Speaking for God, chs. 2, 6-7; Elders’ Training Book 9, the Eldership and the God-Ordained Way (1), ch. 2; Elders’ Training Book 11, the Eldership and the God-Ordained Way (3), ch.8; The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, Vol. 61, chs. 6, 12, 16; The Ministry Magazine, Volume 2, No. 11; December 1998, p. 25; The Vision and the Specific Steps for the Practice of the New Way (Chinese), chs. 6-7; Bearing Fruit that Remains, Vol. 1 (Chinese), ch. 3; Vol. 2 (Chinese), ch. 18; Talks Concerning the Church Services, ch. 9; Being Up-to-date for the Rebuilding of the Temple (Chinese), ch. 12; The Training and Practice of the Vital Groups, chs. 10, 12; The Practical and Organic Building Up of the Church, ch. 8; The Excelling Gift for the Building Up of the Church, ch. 5; The God-man Living, ch. 16.