LESSON FOURTEEN
GOD-ORDAINED WAY

John 15:16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and I set you that you should go forth and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give you.

GOD-ORDAINED WAY BEING THE WAY TO PRACTICE
THE NEW TESTAMENT ECONOMY

The Lord’s new way is a dream that we all need to be brought into. I have been dreaming this dream, and my burden is to bring you into this dream. We all have to bear the responsibility and the burden to bring this dream to the whole earth. If we are faithful by the Lord’s mercy to practice the New Testament economy according to the God-ordained way, we will see the fulfillment of this dream. (The God-ordained Way to Practice the New Testament Economy, ch. 1)

THE FOUR STEPS OF THE GOD-ORDAINED WAY

Begetting—Gaining People by Contacting People

The service that God ordains for us in His New Testament economy is first to “Go therefore and disciple all the nations” (Matt. 28:19). The meaning of the word “go” is very extensive. When you go, surely you have to visit people. After our prolonged study, we have discovered that to visit people by knocking on their doors is the most effective way to carry out the going.

How do we bear fruit by bringing people to salvation? Strictly speaking, it is not a matter of knocking on doors. Rather, it is a matter of contacting people. To save people, we have to contact them. The Lord says in Acts 1:8 that “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the remotest part of the earth.” In preaching the gospel, we work from the center to the circumference, and then to the remotest part of the earth. Hence, you must first preach the gospel to your close relatives. Next you should go to your cousins and in-laws. In addition, your neighbors, classmates, and colleagues are all good potential targets. There are also lots of people in the public parks on the weekends. You can stop by one of the parks and preach the gospel to someone there. The opportunity abounds everywhere. The question is whether or not we are willing to do it.

Nourishing—Nourishing People in the Home Meetings

As soon as a person rises up from baptism, you need to have a long time of fellowship with him. This is his first home meeting. After this, you should set up an appointment for the next meeting. Preferably, it should be within the next one or two days. The reason for this is that newborn babies need special care.

Teaching—Instructing and Perfecting in the Small Group Meetings

The small group meeting should begin from your own home. Although the time of the meeting may be scheduled at 7:30, you should begin praying at home before seven o’clock. While you are on the way to the meeting, you should continue to pray and praise. When you arrive at the brother’s house, you may find that some brothers are there already. You should then begin the meeting by praising, praying, or fellowshipping. The content of the meeting should be of the following items only: the first is fellowship; the second is prayer; the third is mutual care; the fourth is the teaching of the truth; the fifth is the pursuit of life; and the sixth is the mutual encouragement and teaching, and the preaching of the gospel by going out to visit people. Every time the small group comes together, whatever it does, the content should be one of these six things.

Building—Prophesying in the Church Meetings

To prophesy is to speak for the Lord and to speak forth the Lord. It is to supply Christ to others. This is the main work in the church meetings. What God wants is a corporate vessel, which is the church, the Body of Christ. There is one chapter in the Bible that talks about the building up of the church. It is 1 Corinthians chapter fourteen. It mentions the word “building” at least five times. This chapter deals with nothing other than prophesying. Only prophesying builds up the church. (The Organic Practice of the New Way, chs. 1-3)

References: The God-ordained Way to Practice the New Testament Economy, ch. 1; The Organic Practice of the New Way, chs. 1-3; The Practical and Organic Building Up of the Church, ch. 3