THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE CHURCH
AND THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD
CHAPTER FIVE:
UNITY IN JOHN 17
WEEK 4 – THURSDAY
Bible reading: Matt. 7:22–23
Read and pray: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of the heavens, but he who does the will of My Father who is in the heavens.” (Matt. 7:21)
EDIFICATION AS THE SOLUTION TO ALL
PROBLEMS IN THE CHURCH AND AS
THE INTRODUCTION OF GOD’S BLESSING
Paul was the greatest apostle of the Lord. Yet when writing to the Corinthians, he said: “Paul, a called apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Sosthenes the brother” (1 Cor. 1:1). Paul’s mention of Sosthenes shows he had the consciousness of the Body and a spirit of coordination. I doubt many have paid attention to the name Sosthenes.
The spirit of the apostle is different from ours. Among us, isolation is increasing. Everyone thinks he is capable—young and old alike—and it seems there is no need to depend on one another. The older ones think they are more experienced and know all about church administration. They think they know how to be elders.
Even if they don’t say so, this is the attitude they harbor inwardly. One could call it a demolishing spirit, but in reality, it is a spirit of rebellion. When a brother speaks, some may be critical and say in their hearts, “I already know that.” This kind of spirit is destructive to the work of God.
We should not expect our work to be blessed if we are isolated and act individually. We should not hope for such a work to result in edification. Since we preach the word and are involved in God's work in some way, there will be some results.
Even the work of the Catholic Church produces results. But we must ask if this work produces what God wants. Can the Catholic Church train two or three million people to live in oneness, to love one another, and to stand for God?
Those who are trained by it will be full of personal opinions. God cannot build them. He cannot gain a dwelling place in them. May God, in His mercy, open our eyes to see the need for edification, and may we give ourselves to a work that builds up others.
When we lead people to salvation, there must be an element of edification. It is not enough to make them spiritual—they must also be built up. After coming to the Lord through us, they should not only love the Lord but also be built up with others.
In the same principle, the elders should not only administrate the church but also build it up. In this way, the brothers under their oversight will be united and willing to submit to one another, considering submission their glory. This is the glorious work we must carry out here.
Ability alone is not sufficient. Some younger brothers may have greater ability or intellectual capacity than the elders. However, this does not mean they can serve as elders.
The qualifications for being an elder do not depend on ability or intellectual capacity, but on brokenness and submission. It is possible that our work as elders is producing saints inclined to dissension and rebellion.
Our service may bring people to salvation and make them spiritual, zealous in their love for the Lord, but they are not being built up.
Let me say something solemn: since the beginning of this year, I have had the sense that Satan wants us to do a work that is spiritual and zealous, yet destructive and without mutual submission.
Many young people have been poisoned in this regard. We must issue a warning: those who desire to serve the Lord must take the way of edification. If there is knowledge but no edification, the way to rebellion is wide open.
If there is “spirituality” but no edification, that is Satan’s way. In two thousand years of church history, God has never used anyone who was not willing to be under His hand and to be submissive.
Today, God not only wants to save sinners and perfect the saints. His main work is to build a dwelling place. We must never think that edification is not essential or that it can be “produced” easily.
God must work greatly in order to build even one person. He wants us to enter into glory. He wants us to be built up together with others as His glorious dwelling place. Without coordination and edification with others, we cannot enter into glory.
If we can live and work in coordination, God will add others who can live and work in the same way. If God cannot accomplish His building in us today, He will do it later. Those who enter into God's glory must be built up by Him.
To be built up, it is crucial to be able to coordinate with others. In order to coordinate, we must be broken. Perhaps we see ourselves as excellent stones, but we cannot be built together.
Likewise, someone who can coordinate with others may seem like just an ordinary stone. This simply shows that what truly matters is not our degree of “spirituality” but our capacity to be built up with others.
It is not easy for God to find a group of people who are willing to submit to one another and be built together by Him. God wants to pour out His blessing, but it is very hard to find such vessels.
The Lord said that if two or three are gathered in harmony, He is among them and their prayers are answered (Matt. 18:19–20). In other words, the blessings of God are where building is present.
If ten percent of the ones serving in Taipei are one, God’s blessing will follow their service. On the other hand, if there are no disputes in a city but also no building, then God’s blessing is not there.
God’s blessing rests on oneness, on spiritual harmony among us, on true coordination and genuine unity. For example, if five brothers and four sisters come together, the brothers must submit to one another, as must the sisters.
If one brother selects a hymn, everyone should sing it joyfully together. This kind of condition and spirit will bring God’s blessing upon you.
PRIDE INVITES DESTRUCTION AND
HUMILITY BRINGS BLESSING
There is also much pride among us. It is painful to hear questions like: “Why is he an elder and not me? Why does he lead the whole church and I only a home group?” That is pride.
Pride leads to suspicion and makes us think the elders favor others instead of us. This is shameful.
If this is our condition, we may preach wonderful messages, but our work will bear no fruit. The main issue is our person, not our way of speaking. The ability to preach better than Paul will not make our work more effective. Everything depends on the state of our person.
A proud person will produce other proud people. We bear fruit according to our kind. We reap what we sow. One who preaches with pride should not expect to reap fruits of humility.
One who administrates the church with pride should not hope for a humble church. If we administrate the church with pride, it may rise up to condemn us or even reject us. The presence of this kind of condition among us is a heavy burden.
We must discern what God is doing today in the universe. Someone may proudly say, “Look! All these people were saved through me.” We may have led many to salvation, but they may all be sick, because we are sick.
Thus, we damage the church, and we cannot stop our sickness from spreading. Those who love the Lord will not praise our work. If we hope to also be loved and praised by those who love and praise the Lord, we will one day reap the fruit of our labor.
In Matthew 7:22–23, the Lord says: “Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, was it not in Your name that we prophesied, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name did many works of power? And then I will declare to them: I never knew you. Depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.”
In these verses, “I never knew you” means “I never approved of you.” The Lord did not approve of what they did. We must always ask ourselves whether our gospel preaching and our church administration are aimed at building up.
We may think we are capable of administrating the church, but after three years, it may end up in rebellion. May the Lord have mercy on us, and may we realize that the spirit of Babel is rebellion, and that is intolerable.
If we can humbly receive His mercy, we will be blessed. May the Lord have mercy on us and deliver us from the spirit of Babel so that we may become humble and submissive.
The seed of pride in each of us is the greatest hindrance to the Lord in His building work. It is the source of our lack of building.
If we want to be built up, we must submit to others and receive them. Submission requires humility, and receiving others requires meekness. One who is neither submissive nor receptive is proud, thinking he can do everything by himself.
Enjoy more: Hymn 152
"Since it must be thus, I pray, Lord,
Help me go the narrow way;
Deal with pride and make me willing
Thus to suffer, Thee t’obey.
I for greater power pray not,
Deeper death is what I need;
All the meaning of the Cross, Lord,
Work in me-for this I plead."
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