LEESSON EIGHT
THE LIFE PULSE IN THE PRACTICE OF THE NEW WAY—THE HOME

Acts 5:42 And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and announcing the gospel of Jesus as the Christ.

DURING THE TIME OF THE APOSTLES, THE CHURCH WAS BUILT UP IN THE BELIEVERS’ HOMES

According to God’s Word, the church of God is first the house, household, or home of God (1 Tim. 3:15). After that it is the kingdom of God (Rom. 14:17). It is difficult for God’s kingdom to exist without the existence of the homes. Without the home as a basis, it is difficult for individuals to exist, and it is difficult for a nation or kingdom to be established.

Christianity has fallen prey to the wiles of Satan; it has completely overlooked the homes. In Christianity only the big meetings are cared for without any thought of the home meetings. A person in Christianity finds no vessel to hold his experience together. There is no vessel to uphold the testimony and no vessel to keep and maintain the truth. Consider Romans 16. Without a doubt, during the time of the apostles, the church was built up in the believers’ homes. We know that the book of Romans is a book dealing specifically with the spiritual life in Christ and the spiritual living in the church. At the end of this book, one entire chapter is devoted to Paul’s greeting of the saints. From his greetings, we can see that quite a number of homes were opened to the church. This shows that the church life at the time of the apostles had a very strong home atmosphere.

This is the reason that we must endeavor with all the energy, strength, and time that the Lord has given us to recover the proper atmosphere of the homes. The first thing we must do is to make every saint’s home a place for meeting. (Crucial Words of Leading in the Lord’s Recovery, Book 1: The Vision and Definite Steps for the Practice of the New Way, ch. 12)

THE MOUTHPIECE FOR THE GOSPEL BEING MAN
AND THE OUTLET FOR THE GOSPEL BEING THE HOMES

The mouthpiece for the gospel is man. Moreover, the outlet for the gospel is the homes. We are the mouthpieces for the gospel, and our homes are the outlets for the gospel. If your home is not given for the Lord’s use, and you preach the gospel only individually, then there will be a mouthpiece but no outlet. Acts shows us that at the time of Peter, the disciples not only broke bread “from house to house” (2:46) but also announced Jesus Christ as the gospel “from house to house” (5:42). In Greek, the word announce is the verb form of the word gospel, meaning that they announced the gospel of Jesus as the Christ.

THE NEED FOR OPENING THE HOMES FOR THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL

Luke 5 gives us an excellent example. Upon hearing the Lord’s calling, Levi left all, rose up, and followed the Lord. In this way he was saved. Once he was saved, he gave a great reception for the Lord Jesus in his house. He invited many tax collectors and sinners (vv. 27-29). Because he himself was a vile sinner, he did not have good men as his friends but rather a crowd of wicked men, all of whom he invited to recline at table with the Lord. The Lord was the guest of honor, and all the other guests invited to keep Him company were sinners. This is a good example of opening the homes for the preaching of the gospel. Once we open our homes, the gospel will have an outlet.

THE BLESSING WILL COME NOT ONLY TO US BUT ALSO TO OUR SONS AND DAUGHTERS FOR GENERATION AFTER GENERATION

Therefore, I hope that all of you will open your homes to give a great reception for Jesus, simply inviting “sinners” as your guests that you may preach the gospel to them. If you open your homes, it will not be a loss but a blessing to you. The Lord Himself said that He will show lovingkindness to thousands of generations of those who love Him (Exo. 20:6). Hence, for the sake of eternity, we all should open our homes and provide an outlet for the gospel of the Lord. In this way, the blessing will come not only to us but also to our sons and daughters for generation after generation. (Rising Up to Preach the Gospel, ch. 4)

References: Crucial Words of Leading in the Lord’s Recovery, Book 1: The Vision and Definite Steps for the Practice of the New Way, ch. 12; Rising Up to Preach the Gospel, ch. 4