THE CONSIDERATION OF SPIRITUAL PRINCIPLES

Finally, I have some feelings to share with the brothers and sisters. First, it is not enough to
merely divide big district meetings into smaller ones; there must also be the Spirit. To have
merely the principle but not the Spirit is to have dead regulation. The principle of the district
meetings is according to the truth; nevertheless, we must have the Spirit while carrying out the
truth. Otherwise, our practice will be merely according to dead letter and doctrine. The truth is
like the rails of a train track, and the Spirit is the power that moves the train. Thus, the deep sense
within me is that the brothers and sisters need to look to the Lord and be willing to rise up to
receive a strong burden from the Lord to open their homes to become spiritual homes.

Today a brother may go to a small locality where there is no church, and he may pray, O Lord, I
am here, and I need to meet and serve. Then he will have the burden to find some saints or lead
some sinners to the Lord. After he has found a group of people, they will begin to pray together.
In this way they will have the Spirit and be burning within. As a result they will rise up to follow
the way of the truth by meeting together and raising up a local church in that place. In the same
principle, there may be a brother whose home is far away from a district meeting; moreover,
although he loves the Lord, he is limited in the meeting and does not have much opportunity to
function. Because the district meeting is going to be divided into smaller meetings, he may pray,
Lord, I would like my home to become a base, or place, to provide the brothers and sisters with
more opportunity to serve You. This is the one thing we are asking the brothers and sisters to
do. For this, we need to go before the Lord to pray and ask the Lord to put such a fervent burden
in every brother and sister. We need many homes as bases to meet God's need. In these many
homes, or bases, the brothers and sisters must inwardly have a fervent burden for the truth to be
worked out in an unhindered way.

Second, not every home needs to be opened to become the base of a smaller meeting, nor is
every saint able to be a responsible one in a small meeting. We hope that every brother and sister
and not only the responsible ones in the current district meetings will have the desire to tell the
Lord, Lord, our meeting should be subdivided into smaller meetings so that I may have the
opportunity to serve You. I may not become a responsible one, and my house may not become
the base for a small meeting; nevertheless, I would like to put my shoulders to the task.

Third, a small district meeting should include no more than two hundred people. Perhaps only
fifty will meet regularly; these fifty should then bear the burden to take care of the rest by
repeatedly visiting them, seeking them out, recovering them, and stirring them up. If this is the
case, I believe that it will bring in a great blessing. Gradually, although the ratio of those who
attend the meetings may not be high and the spiritual content may not be deep, the atmosphere of
the meetings will be strong. In this way we can arrive at the point where at least seventy to eighty
percent of the saints attend the meetings. If the Lord has mercy on us, from now on we will
practice in this way: There will be six or seven strong message meetings every Lord's Day at the
main stations for the ministry of the word. All the saints will gather at these six or seven
locations to receive the ministry of the word; then on the weekdays they will be in the smaller
district meetings fellowshipping and sharing concerning the help that they received from the
ministry of the word, as well as what they have experienced of Christ in their daily life.
Fourth, I hope that the elders and responsible ones in the various districts will try their best to
render the brothers and sisters spiritual supply so that such a supply would replace regulation. If
there are strict regulations but not an adequate supply, the districts will be like a person who has
only skin and bones but no flesh; such a person is ugly and unseemly. We need to have much
spiritual supply. Often spiritual supply needs to substitute outward administration. I have no
intention to rebuke the elders concerning their administration, but I feel that the ratio of spiritual
supply to administration is not so proper. From now on, the elders of the whole church and the
responsible ones for the various districts need to pursue spiritual growth and provide the brothers
and sisters with more spiritual supply, trying their best to replace administration, according to
principle, with spiritual supply. In this way the Lord's blessing will surely increase. The more
blessing there is, the more the church will grow; the more the church grows, the more district
meetings there will be and the more the brothers and sisters will be brought into function.

(The Ground of the Church and the Service of the Body, Chapter 4, Section 5)

LEARNING SPIRITUAL LESSONS

The burden in this message is not to fellowship regarding the practice of these two matters;
rather, it is to point out God's intention in requiring us to practice both of these matters
simultaneously. For example, in a small city there may be only twenty to thirty brothers and
sisters. Each one is able to function, and they are kept from being divided. Even if a person
wanted to divide this small church into smaller churches composed of just eight to ten people, I
believe that the saints would not want to do this. In a big church, however, it is difficult to
maintain the oneness and at the same time have everyone function.

Why did God ordain this? What is His intention? His primary intention is that in this difficult
situation we would learn spiritual lessons. No matter how big a church may become, it cannot be
divided. At the same time, every saint in the church needs to fulfill his function. Because the
brothers and sisters are in such a tight spot, they must genuinely learn spiritual lessons. Strictly
speaking, it does not require that much to learn to be an elder, a deacon, or a full-time serving
one in a small locality; however, to be an elder, a deacon, or a full-time serving one in a large
locality requires a person to learn many lessons in regard to many matters.

In a large church life we need to be subdivided into districts. If we do not have district meetings,
many brothers and sisters will not be able to function. Although it is right for us to divide
ourselves into districts, it is not right to divide the church. God allows us to have separate district
meetings within the church, but He does not allow us to be divided into many churches within
the same locality. Although the saints within one locality compose one church, they may meet in
different districts. This is a solemn matter. Recently the brothers have experienced a sense of
heaviness. They do not know how to divide the saints into districts without seemingly dividing
the church. The brothers are not sure what to do in order to help the saints in different district
meetings and yet continue to maintain the oneness of the church. The more district meetings
there are, the more difficult it is for the elders and those responsible for the districts.
Let us suppose that a certain brother who is responsible for a district meeting used to be an elder
in a small local church. Because there were only twenty to thirty saints, it was easy for him to
serve there. Later, due to his job situation or other reasons, he moved to Taipei. Because he loves
the Lord and has some spiritual weight and function, he was asked by the church in Taipei to be a
responsible one in a district meeting. However, there is a great difference between being a
responsible one in a district meeting in a large church and being an elder in a small church.
Things may be simple in a small locality, but they are not so simple in a large locality. One surely
needs to be spiritual to be an elder in a small locality. However, in order to be responsible for a
district meeting in a big locality, one needs to be even more spiritual. This is because in a small
local church, it is possible to make decisions or act in an independent way, but as a responsible
one in a district meeting within a large local church, one cannot make decisions or act in an
independent way. Whatever the responsible one does, he needs to care for the oneness of the
church.

(The Ground of the Church and the Service of the Body, Chapter 5, Section 1)

Every District Meeting Needing to Have

Rich Content in Order to Supply the Saints
The district meetings are generally fresh and living and are different from the past; more saints
are speaking in the meetings, and the atmosphere is more open. However, as a whole, the
speaking is not rich enough, so the content of the meetings is rather poor; this is a shortcoming
that requires our further study. From now on we will spend more time focusing on the ninety-six
districts in Taipei; we will study these districts one by one and present the condition of each
district to the saints. This may be likened to our appearing before the Lord's judgment seat in the
future. At that time the Lord will ask us what we have done since the day of our salvation.
Romans 14:10 says, We will all stand before the judgment seat of God, and verse 12 says,
Each one of us will give an account concerning himself to God. Moreover, in Matthew 12:36,
the Lord spoke even more severely, saying, Every idle word which men shall speak, they will
render an account concerning it in the day of judgment. God records all the words that we speak
in our entire life. Today man invents equipment such as audio machines and computers to record
sound and information, but God does not need to invent anything; He has already recorded what
we have spoken. This is what the Bible reveals to us.

I hope that the saints will make progress in the matter of prophesying. Although we all speak in
the meetings, we still need to improve. What we lack is rich content in our speaking. This can be
compared to a ball game. Sometimes though every player is capable, because of the weather
conditions, everyone feels spiritless on the field, and in the end they lose the game. We have at
most fifty people in each district meeting. If all fifty would speak, the meetings would be
marvelous. However, one of the responsible brothers may not be happy when he gets up in the
morning, another brother may be upset, and many others may have their own situations. In the
end, although everyone speaks, every person's speaking was poor, and the entire meeting was
flavorless.

At such times, if one of the brothers is watchful, he will be able to turn the condition of the
meeting. In a basketball game, when there are only fifteen seconds left and the result has not yet
been determined, the coach will ask for a time out to instruct the players, presenting them with a
strategy so that they can score in the last fifteen seconds. Sometimes, because of the speaking
during the time out, the team gains the final victory. It is the same with the condition of the
meetings. Someone must be on the alert and speak something in spirit so that we all can learn
and be encouraged.

When we older ones first began to serve in the church, we led in this way; that is, we exercised to
be alert. Fifty years ago we learned to direct the rudder in the meeting; though the directing
may have not been visible outwardly, we were absolutely in control of the rudder in a hidden
way. For example, when a prayer in the meeting was off the mark, we would inwardly ask the
Lord to bring the prayer back to the burden. When some saints were not functioning properly, we
would ask the Lord to find someone to uplift the meeting. The Lord always answers this kind of
prayer. Today in the process of changing the system, we must be on the alert while directing the
rudder of the meeting. When we see that the condition of the meeting is not proper and that there
are only three or five minutes remaining, we should stand up and speak a word to supply the
saints. This depends on our labor in our daily life. If we speak well, we will be able to supply
others. Our meetings must be like a feast to which we all gather. On the table there is food, not
empty bowls and plates; however, the food may be tasteless. Nevertheless, if in the last few
minutes someone would open his mouth to speak the Lord's word, everyone will be supplied.
The Lord has revealed this way to us, and if we take it, every group meeting and district meeting
will be enriched. This requires that we all labor.

We must labor over the Lord's word, grasping every opportunity to redeem the time and get into
the riches in the Lord's word. After we have prepared a ten-minute prophecy, we can practice by
speaking it to people. If we do not have a person to speak to, we can speak to the wall. We need
to practice unceasingly so that we can quickly learn to speak the Lord's word in the meetings
with a rich content. The sisters should not think that because they are sisters, they do not have a
responsibility. Although the sisters cannot be elders, they should be prophets who prophesy for
the Lord. There were many prophetesses in the Old Testament. For instance, the first one who
took the lead to praise God after the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea was Miriam, a
prophetess (Exo. 15:20-21). There are also prophetesses in the New Testament. According to
Acts, Philip the evangelist had four daughters who prophesied (21:9); this, I believe, was due to
Philip's family being a learned family. Hence, we see that the habit of prophesying must be
promoted.

Whether we are a brother or a sister, we should prepare ourselves to prophesy in the district
meetings on the Lord's Day. We should not wait until the Lord's Day; instead, we should prepare
our prophecy by Thursday. Then when we come to the meeting, we should speak it before the
brothers and sisters to supply them. Preparing to prophesy in this way is worthwhile. Some may
wonder if this kind of preparation involves too much human effort. However, if we consider
Mary as an example, we will realize her familiarity with the Old Testament required human
effort. Not every Jewish woman could have prophesied as she did; she truly was a blessed
woman. We should also see that Mary did not prophesy as people had prophesied in the Old
Testament. In the Old Testament when the Spirit of Jehovah fell upon someone, he was able to
give a word of prophecy (Num. 24:2-9; 1 Sam. 10:6; 19:20; 2 Chron. 15:1-2). From the outset,
however, Mary's prophesying was in the principle of the New Testament, which involves the
cooperation of God and man, man working in coordination with God. God needed a woman like
Mary who spent much effort to study the Scriptures, was well versed in God's word, loved the
Lord inwardly, and had fellowship with the Lord. Only such ones are suitable candidates, and
only such human effort coordinates with God's work. This is what we are shown in the beginning
of the New Testament.

In 1 Corinthians 14 Paul exhorts the brothers and sisters to desire earnestly to prophesy; he
exhorts them to desire not only the Lord but to speak for the Lord and to speak forth the Lord.
All the trainees should practice much in this matter; like the pious Mary, they need to consecrate
themselves to love the Lord, study the Lord's word, and not waste time. If we waste time doing
other things, we will not be right with ourself, and even more we will not be right with our
parents. Our parents have the expectation that we will not waste our time, and we should not let
them down; therefore, we must also firmly grasp the time and diligently exercise in every matter.
We not only need to be familiar with the Bible, but we also need to thoroughly know the outlines
and footnotes of every book. If the majority of us have this kind of spirit, what is within us will
be manifested outwardly when we come to the meetings. We will be able to put forth what we
have when the opportunity comes. This is to have our human work cooperate with God's work to
speak forth God's word and speak it into people so that they may be supplied. How rich such a
meeting will be!

In the past, under the influence of the tradition of Christianity, our meetings became somewhat
deformed and were the same as the so-called Sunday worship services. Although we used the
term meeting and everyone came with their Bibles, no one was concerned about what they
should do because the responsible brothers made all the arrangements. It was not the saints'
responsibility to call hymns and pray, much less to speak; their responsibility was simply to sit
and listen. After over thirty years of listening, we became numb, and a tradition of not speaking
became established among us. This is the reason that it is so difficult to promote prophesying
today. Hence, we should all enter into and promote prophesying, speaking for the Lord. In the
past, we did not have the opportunity to do this, but now we have been given the opportunity in
the district meetings. Whether we are brothers or sisters, we can join a district meeting, and when
the opportunity comes, we can open our mouth to speak for the Lord and speak Him into others.

After serving the Lord for more than sixty years, I have seen that the saints, whether in the East
or in the West, have been greatly influenced by Christianity. We know that the Lord's salvation
enlivens man, but the practice in Christianity deadens man. Even if people are saved and
enlivened through the gospel preaching of some great evangelists, they seem to become frozen
once they are sent to the denominations. Although many have seen this outcome, no one has
called out loudly to overturn the degraded tradition and let the saints rise up to function. Do not
think that my speaking is too much. The burden within me is too heavy.
What causes my heart to ache the most is that some people have doubts concerning the new way.
I must tell them to wait and see; the new way will succeed. We can be sure of this because we
know that the new way is according to the Lord's word. Matthew 5:18 says that until heaven and
earth pass away, not one iota or one serif will pass away from the Lord's word. First Corinthians
14:26 says, Whenever you come together, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a
revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Though this word is very familiar to us, it has not
yet been fulfilled. Can this word be in the Bible but not be fulfilled by the time the Lord returns?
Moreover, Hebrews 10:25 says, Not abandoning our own assembling together...but exhorting
one another. Do we have any meeting in which we exhort one another? We can say that in all of
Christianity there is nothing like this; nevertheless, I have a deep conviction that these two verses
in the Bible will be fulfilled. Even if I do not see the fulfillment and accomplishment of this
word of the Lord in my lifetime, those who continue the recovery will surely see the success of
the new way. The Lord will definitely fulfill this matter.

If we are wise, we should not adopt a wait-and-see attitude; rather, we should all endeavor and
strive together. Even if we cannot see the success in our generation, the next generation will see
it and be grateful that we who preceded them endeavored in this matter. History tells us that the
reforms carried out by Martin Luther did not originate with him but were begun by a few
pioneers who had brought in some reforms before him. The battle we are fighting is supported by
the truth; no one can deny that. Even those with a wait-and-see attitude acknowledge that we are
speaking according to the Bible; nevertheless, there is a big butthey are unable to keep pace
with us. I hope that all the elders and co-workers among us will say Amen instead of but. Let
us all push this old car together. Even if the mountain road is difficult, we will be able to
push the car uphill if several hundred are in one accord. This is our spirit; we all should have
such a spirit.

I am not being proud when I say that in the early days, I was the first one to take this way in
northern China. When we first took this way, we had such a spirit, and no one was able to shake
us. Some in Chefoo said that they did not need to pay attention to us because we were merely a
group of youngsters leading other youngsters and that we would come to an end. However, this
was not the case; the situation of the whole church changed completely within as little as one or
two years.

After I came to Taiwan, some people told me that the church ground of which I spoke would
never work. Later, when I came to America, some people also tried to persuade me that if I spoke
about the church ground, no one would accept it. Nevertheless, I was clear inwardly that they
needed to wait and see. Although some may not accept it, they do not represent the whole world.
It is true that some may not want to take this way, but there are many more who desire to take it.
What matters is whether or not we are speaking the truth according to the Scriptures. If some
could prove that my speaking was not according to the truth or the revelation in the Bible, I
would immediately kneel down to pray, confess my sins, and ask the Lord for His forgiveness
and the saints' for their forgiveness. However, if my speaking is according to the Bible, none
should put a question mark on it. In particular, those brothers who are my fellow workers should
not have this kind of attitude. To do so is to be wrong and unfaithful. If some are my co-workers,
they should be in one accord with me; otherwise, they are not my co-workers.
From now on, all the responsible ones in the district meetings need to direct the rudder and
supply the meetings; otherwise, they cannot be considered responsible ones. To be a responsible
one in the district meetings means to be one who prepares a dish in case everyone else fails to
bring their dishes to the meeting. It also means being one who can put out some dessert even
if everyone else has brought something. The responsible ones need not be in a hurry to prophesy;
they can save their prophecy for the end and give priority to others. In this way, the district
meetings will not be poor. A long message cannot supply people; everyone functioning is what
supplies people.

A lengthy message may not supply people, but if in the last ten minutes of the district meeting a
responsible one rises up to speak a finishing prophecy, it will be most edifying. The food we
offer to people when they are hungry is the most delicious. They may be listening for forty-five
minutes without receiving anything, but when a responsible one stands up to speak eight
minutes, he can give them a sense of freshness and of being full of supply. I truly believe and
have the assurance that this can be attained to.

Through this kind of fellowship, I hope that we are all clear and understand the direction we
should take from now on. We are serving the churches; if we receive this burden, the meetings in
all the churches will not be a problem. Furthermore, I hope that we can study and come together
for fellowship concerning the increase or decrease in number within the ninety-six districts in the
church in Taipei. In this way, we can receive the light for the future progress of our meetings. We
are still in the process of investigation and improvement, and we want to receive help and
revelation from these words of fellowship so that the churches may reap a great benefit.

(Crucial Words of Leading in the Lord's Recovery, Book 2: Leading the Saints to Practice the
New Way Ordained by the Lord, Chapter 6, Section 3)

THE CHRISTIAN MEETING BEING FULLY A MATTER OF SPEAKING

The Christian meeting is fully a matter of speaking. This kind of speaking goes both ways, back
and forth. As soon as you come to the meeting, you should open your mouth to speak, sing,
praise, give thanks, and pray. This is towards God. On the other hand, you have to speak for God.
In this way, God's grace and riches will enter into others through your speaking. When we speak
to God, we are giving ourselves to God. When we speak for God, we are allowing God to give
Himself to us. The Christian meeting is nothing but a speaking to God and a speaking for God.
Everyone can speak to God, and everyone can speak for God.

GROUP MEETINGS OF MUTUALITY

There are many kinds of Christian meetings. The most important among them are two, the group
meeting and the district meeting. When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He met with the disciples
for three and a half years. Sometimes these meetings were in one person's home; sometimes they
were in another person's home. Sometimes they were held at the seaside, and sometimes they
were held on the mountain. All these meetings were group meetings. The real church life and the
service take place in the group meetings. This is the clear revelation of the Bible. In Matthew
18:20 the Lord Jesus says, For where there are two or three gathered into My name, there am I
in their midst.'' The gathering together of two or three is surely a group meeting, for the number
is obviously not large. Here we see that the meeting is in the Lord's name only.

By Hebrews 10, we see something more: And let us consider one another as to how we might
incite one another to love and good works, not abandoning our own assembling together, as the
custom with some is, but exhorting one another'' (vv. 24-25). Here it speaks of considering one
another, inciting to love, and exhorting one another. The meeting with one speaking and all the
others listening cannot be mutual. According to our experience, to have a meeting with mutuality
is not easy if the number is over twenty. Hebrews 10:24-25 is a very good window. It shows us
that the main kind of meeting for the early Christians was the group meeting. Verse 25 says: Not
abandoning our own assembling together.'' The Christian meeting at the apostolic time was a
mutual meeting; it was something for the believers themselves. Hence, this kind of meeting
could not have been large. Instead, there must have been group meetings.

Formerly, we did not see the group meeting as clearly as we do now. Whether or not a church is a
strong one depends on its group meetings; if the group meetings are strong, the church will
surely be strong. This is like an army; whether or not an army can fight depends on its training at
the basic unit level. If the units are trained properly, the army will fight well.

In Quezon City, Philippines, we have three hundred brothers and sisters attending the Lord's Day
morning meeting. However, the big meeting can only release some general truths; it cannot meet
the special needs of the saints, and it cannot solve the problems of the saints. It is also difficult to
know the condition of the individual saints or to care for one another mutually in this meeting.
Suppose we divide the three hundred brothers and sisters in the church in Quezon City into
twenty groups, and have the fifteen or sixteen saints within each group meet at least once a week.
There will be no restriction in time, and there can be free talk among themselves. This will bring
in the fellowship, and the fellowship will bring in the intercession. Spontaneously, there will be
the mutuality.

Perhaps a newly saved one would bring up a question concerning the truth. Everyone should then
speak a few simple words according to what he has learned. At the end, a more mature one can
say a little more. In this way, within a few minutes the dozen or more brothers and sisters
attending the meeting will be able to participate in the teaching of the truth. Everyone will be
able to speak for God. Through this speaking, grace and supply will come. Not only will the one
that asks the question receive the help, but all the attendants will receive the help also.

When we wrote the Truth Lessons, it was not our intention for all the churches to have another
meeting and to teach them in the way of another worship service. Rather, our hope was that the
brothers and sisters would read them at home first. As long as anyone reads, he will get
something. It is possible that he may come across something that he does not understand. In that
case, he should simply read it one more time. If he reads a few more times, he will understand.
For those places that he really cannot understand, he can make a note. When he comes to the
group meeting, he can bring out that point and have some mutual answering and learning. Those
who understand may teach those who do not understand, and at the end the experienced ones can
teach more. If we teach the truth in this way, after a year, by the end of fifty-two weeks, we will
have heard all kinds of truths, and the church life will be filled with a spirit of learning.

If the new ones ask questions concerning life, the principle is the same. Everyone learns, and
everyone teaches. Everyone asks, and everyone answers. This kind of group meeting will be
living and rich. There will not be any printed program, form, or regulations. Everyone will
follow the spirit, and everyone will exercise their spirit to speak to God, to speak for God, to
receive God's grace, or to transmit God's grace to others. In this way, there will be fellowship,
mutual intercession, exhortations, and mutual care. This is the group meeting.

In these twenty groups, all the three hundred saints in the whole church will be cared for in every
way. This is the result of my study of sixty years. I look to the Lord that all the churches in the
Philippines would pick up this practice, and that the churches in all the localities would bring the
saints on in this new way.

After we have gained some people through door-knocking, immediately we need to go to their
homes to nourish them. This nourishing in their homes is the home meeting. At the same time,
we have to bring them to the group meetings. In the group meeting, there is the mutual care and
perfecting. This will then be the fulfillment of the word concerning the perfecting of the saints in
Ephesians 4:12. They will be like the gifted ones, fulfilling the work of the New Testament
ministry unto the building up of the Body of Christ. After half a year, these ones will be
perfected, and some new ones will be added through the gospel preaching. By that time, another
group meeting can be formed. During the second half of the year, the two groups will do exactly
the same things: on the one hand, they will preach the gospel to gain new ones; on the other
hand, they will nourish the new ones by meeting in their homes. The new ones will also be
introduced to the group meetings, where they will be cared for and perfected.

There is one thing that we should take note of: we should not knock on doors too much;
otherwise, we will not be able to raise the new ones up. In your hand, you should always have
three or four new ones under your care. If some move away, you have to make up the number by
preaching the gospel.

EVERYONE PROPHESYING IN THE DISTRICT MEETING

The preaching of the gospel, the home meetings, and the group meetings are all conducted
during the week. On the Lord's Day, we should bring the new ones to the district meetings. A
church can be divided into a few districts. The best number for the district meeting is around
fifty. When we gain some new ones through the gospel, we should nourish and establish them in
the home meetings. We should also care for them and perfect them in the group meetings. In this
way, when they come to the church meetings, every one of them will be able to prophesy.

In order for the saints to prophesy, they need to enjoy the Lord's word every day and be filled
with the Lord's word. Every district can select its own portion of Scripture. Every week the saints
can go through one chapter, and they can divide the chapter into six sections. Every morning the
saints can read one section and pick out two verses for pray-reading. If we want to have an
overcoming church life, we need to live this life of morning revival. For this reason, we must
help the brothers and sisters to live this life of revival and overcoming every day. Every morning
we need to have some enjoyment, and every morning we need to soak ourselves in the Lord's
word and be filled and saturated by the Lord's word. After six days, we will surely have a rich
reaping. By the weekend, we can compile our inspirations into a composition for prophesying.
On the Lord's Day, we can bring this composition to the meeting. We should not read or recite it,
but should speak out with our spirit what we have prepared. This is to prophesy.

In a meeting with fifty saints, at least half of them should be prepared beforehand. Everyone
should be limited to three minutes of speaking, and everyone should take turns speaking. There
should not be any prearranged order, but the speaking should be done in a spontaneous way. This
kind of speaking in the district meeting will be very rich. We can prophesy this way week after
week for fifty-two weeks in a year. The supply of the Lord's word will then be rich among us.
When everyone is supplied and edified, the problems and difficulties of the saints will be solved
spontaneously through the supply of the rich word, and the church will be built up. This is the
way that the Lord has shown us today.

The Lord's recovery today is the recovery of the saints in the building up of the Body of Christ.
For this reason, there is the need for every saint to be able to prophesy, so that the church can be
built up in a genuine way. First Corinthians 14:31 says that we can all prophesy one by one.
Verses 24 and 25 say that if we all prophesy, and if an unbeliever or one unlearned comes, he
will be convicted by all and will be judged by all. The secrets of his heart will become manifest,
and he will admit that God is really among us. Hence, for everyone to prophesy unto the building
up of the Body of Christ is the proper way revealed in the Scriptures. Thank and praise the Lord!
I hope that the Lord would bless all the churches in the Philippines according to this new way.

(A message given by Brother Witness Lee in Quezon City, Philippines, on March 26, 1989)

(The Riches and Fullness of Christ and the Advanced Recovery of the Lord Today, Chapter 7,
Section 2)

THE OBJECT AND GOAL OF OUR LABOR

In short, there are over five thousand saints who meet in the meeting halls, over five thousand
new ones who are under our care in the communities, and two thousand two hundred saints who
have been recently recovered. Thus, there are around twelve thousand saints total. Besides these,
we gained one thousand seven hundred to one thousand eight hundred people through our door-
knocking during the feast. This makes the total number roughly fourteen thousand. These
fourteen thousand are now the object and goal of our labor. However, according to the statistics
from last Lord's Day, the number of those who now come to the district meetings is close to four
thousand. This means that we need to take care of fourteen thousand people, of which ten
thousand need to be worked on, brought to the district meetings, and fostered to live a complete
and proper church life with all the saints. This will require our corporate labor. Therefore, the
majority of our energy at the present stage must be focused on shepherding and taking care of
these ones. This burden is extremely heavy.

THE WAY TO MEET AFTER THE CHANGE IN SYSTEM

Having had the tabernacle meeting of the feast, we feel that now is the best time to carry out the
change in system. From now on in Taipei our meetings should comprise three levels, the most
basic level being the home meeting, the level above being the small group meeting, and the level
at the top being the district meeting. The unit of a home meeting should be a household. A small
group meeting should have from seven or eight people to a little over ten but not more than that.
A district meeting should have fifty people in principle, although a meeting of forty people
would also be acceptable. However, if a district meeting has about seventy to eighty people, it
should be divided into two district meetings. In this way, our function will be manifested, and at
the same time our caring and shepherding will be more thorough. For example, in a district of
fifty people there should be at least ten who take the lead, who are responsible, and who take
care of others. Ten people should be able to take care of the remaining forty in a thorough and
complete way. This is our principle. There should be four groups of people in the meeting
elders, co-workers, full-timers, and trainees. Currently, the number of people in these four groups
of people is about one thousand. After adding the college-age young people, this number comes
to one thousand three hundred to one thousand four hundred. These categories of people make up
one-fourth of the existing four to five thousand people who are meeting, and they may be
considered as the pillars. We are responsible to perfect the other saints to function in the district
meetings.

THE MEETINGS AFTER THE CHANGE IN SYSTEM

If we want to function in the meetings, we must be living persons. The prerequisite to
functioning is that we must be living. For this reason, we have many different items and levels of
preparatory work. In a mere two to three months we have raised up family propagation groups.
These groups have been very useful, and many families have been revived through them. This
preparation began a month and a half ago when we were helping the elderly saints, telling them
that they should call O Lord Jesus every morning when they get up and then pray-read two
verses to enjoy the Lord. This practice was greatly welcomed, and gradually, many saints
adopted it and formed the propagation groups.
What is it to be a living and functioning person? A living and functioning person is one who,
upon rising in the morning, calls on the Lord's name, lives before the Lord, and enters into the
spirit to fellowship with the Lord. He is also one who lives and walks according to the spirit
throughout the day and is led by the Lord to speak for the Lord at any time and in any place. This
kind of person lives an overcoming life. If a person lives in this way throughout the day, he will
surely have a desire to meet, and in the meetings he will be living, he will experience the Lord
and have the Lord's presence, and he will spontaneously be full of words to speak without
needing any specific preparation. Most likely, our meetings will not have a specific topic but will
be comprehensive, caring for every aspect. They will be similar to a love feast, which is very rich
if everyone brings a little food. Our meetings should be the same. When the saints come together,
each one should have an exhortation, an encouragement, a question, or a word of consolation.
Everyone can bring out what they have in the meeting. This is the kind of meeting that the Bible
requires.

First Corinthians 14:26 says, Whenever you come together, each one has a psalm, has a
teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Also Hebrews 10:25 says, Not
abandoning our own assembling together...but exhorting one another. The meetings mentioned
in these two verses are meetings in mutuality in which everyone speaks. If no one speaks, how
can we exhort one another? From now on, we should recover these two verses by speaking in the
meetings. We must confess that the pattern and form of our meetings today are not scriptural. We
have not followed the Bible, so we must have a change.

(Being Up-to-date for the Rebuilding of the Temple, Chapter 12, Section 3)

THE PRINCIPLE OF OUR FUTURE EFFORT

Our meetings should include home meetings, small group meetings, and district meetings. Every
morning in the homes the husband and wife should practice to have a family propagation group
by pray-reading two verses. Then the whole family will be blessed. If we have this kind of living,
when we bring a person to salvation, we will immediately lead him to have a home meeting and
help him to establish a family propagation group. Then we may combine three to four
neighboring families to have a small group meeting. Furthermore, we will have to arrange,
according to the actual situation, environment, and time, to have a more important meeting on
the Lord's Day as our district meeting. We should take fifty people as the standard number of
people for this meeting. If there are too many people, then we should divide into two districts. In
this way everyone will be able to function, and at the same time, the care will also be more
thorough.

We have to do our best, starting with the foundation. We should start with the family propagation
groups in the home meetings, enjoying the Lord every day, fellowshipping with the Lord, and
living an overcoming life. After the home meetings are raised up, then we should labor on the
small group meetings. We do not have to plan to speak or listen, but we should simply go to the
meeting. If we are those who live in the Lord, we surely will be able to speak when we have to
speak, sing when we have to sing, and read when we have to read. The next meeting is the
district meeting. If there are fifty people, there must be ten who are more able to serve, and these
ones should speak. But those who do not usually speak should not think that since there are
speaking ones already, they can continue to not speak. Never think this way. You should try your
best to speak for the Lord. If you speak, I speak, and everyone speaks, we will give thanks to the
Lord.

All the trainees should particularly be aware that when they speak, they should not put on airs or
have a superior attitude because they are someone from the training center. Rather, they should
speak in a spontaneous way and in a way that is comfortable to those who are listening. I believe
that the saints are willing to take this word and are clear that what we are doing today is a great
thing for the Lord's sake. If this matter can be carried out among us, then the overseas churches
will be able to follow.

THE CHANGE IN SYSTEM

STARTING FROM OUR PERSONAL REVIVAL
We are doing this not because our work did not have the way to proceed or because we needed to
change the outward look of our work and begin anew to change the system. Actually, our work
has been very much blessed by the Lord throughout the years. However, our way of meeting was
not scriptural. This has been a big loss for us, and this is something that we owe the Lord. This is
why we are changing our meetings. If we are not willing to take this way, the Lord will suffer a
great loss, and we ourselves will suffer a great loss. Our family, the gospel, and the church will
all suffer loss. For this reason, we all have to rise up and endeavor to take this new way. Whether
we are participating in the home meetings, the small group meetings, or the district meetings, we
have to start from ourselveswe must be those who are revived. It is not difficult to be revived.
As long as we kneel down before the Lord every day, call on Him, come near to Him, enjoy His
word, and live and walk in the spirit, this will be sufficient.

(Being Up-to-date for the Rebuilding of the Temple, Chapter 12, Section 5)

A REPORT OF A FELLOWSHIP MEETING

Scripture Reading: Heb. 10:25; 13:17; 1 Pet. 5:5-6; 1 Cor.

15:58
Our fellowship meeting tonight is a special gathering because there have recently been some new
arrangements and decisions made regarding the work and business affairs of the church. We want
to explain these matters to the brothers and sisters.

The New Arrangement of the District Meetings

The first thing we want to talk about is the new arrangement of the district meetings. We began
the district meetings in May of last year, but now we have made some new arrangements. We
have given each brother and sister a letter telling which district meeting to attend. You cannot
freely choose. If you are truly inconvenienced geographically, you can ask the business office to
change your assignment, but please do not make any change yourself.

The reasons for this restriction are as follows: 1) The size of each district meeting place is
different, so we must arrange the number of people according to the number of seats that are
available. Nevertheless, some places have been over-assigned. Of course, there will always be
some who cannot attend some meetings for personal reasons. We believe that these places
generally will be able to handle everyone. 2) There are 1,500 to 1,600 people in Shanghai
divided into fifteen district meetings. If we do not designate who meets where, we will not know
who has attended the meetings and who has not. 3) We want to render the brothers and sisters
practical help. We want them to receive practical fellowship and visitation. If we do not
designate their meeting place, it will be difficult to achieve these goals. We have considered this
matter very much.

Combined Meetings and District Meetings

The second point is the combined meetings. We can say there are two kinds of meetings now:
combined meetings and district meetings. There will be two combined meetings a week. One
will be at ten o'clock on the Lord's Day morning. The first Lord's Day of every month will be a
gospel meeting. The rest of the times will be for edification. Another meeting will be the
fellowship meeting every Saturday night. These two meetings will be in the first district at Wen-
teh Lane. There will be three district meetings a week: the table meeting on the Lord's Day
evening, the Tuesday night prayer meeting, and the Friday night meeting for new believers.
These will be held in the fifteen different districts. There will also be a Wednesday night gospel
meeting which will be held in four districts.

The gospel meeting is the meeting in which all the brothers and sisters must work. It is a meeting
to work on others. The edification meeting is one in which a person is edified himself. In the
fellowship meeting, one is either helped or is helping others. The table meeting is directed
towards the Lord. The prayer meeting is where we come before God to work. It is the
responsibility of every brother and sister to bring others to hear the gospel. We hope that every
brother and sister can bring at least two people to the Lord in a year. It would be best if each one
can lead five to the Lord. We hope that the brothers and sisters will bring their friends to hear the
gospel at the Wednesday night gospel meeting in the district that is closest to them. The gospel
meeting in the first district is especially important; it is a combined meeting of eight districts
together. All the brothers and sisters have to bring their friends to fill up this place.
The meeting for the new believers will be a message meeting for those who have just believed in
the Lord. The word to the new believers is very basic in nature. There are about fifty topics. We
hope we can cover them all within a year. We invite all the brothers and sisters to come because,
even if you have heard these messages before, you have not completely apprehended them. We
hope that every brother and sister would receive this basic edification. Our requirements for this
meeting are stricter. Please attend it in the district to which you have been assigned. If you fail to
attend these meetings, you will bring trouble on yourself because somebody will come to visit
you and make the lesson up for you. No meeting will be more closely monitored than this one.
Therefore, if you want to avoid trouble, it would be best if you attended every one of these
meetings.

(Collected Works of Watchman Nee, The (Set 3) Vol. 55: The Ministries & The Open Door,
Chapter 2, Section 2)

ARRIVING AT THE PRACTICE OF THE DISTRICT MEETINGS

The fourth step is arriving at the practice of the district meetings. We still need to gradually bring
the new believers from the group meetings to the district meetings to help them come further into
the church life. The meeting content is richer in the district meetings. There is the breaking of the
bread to remember the Lord, the learning of the truths, as well as the mutual fellowship and
sharing. Everyone has more opportunity to function, to speak for the Lord, and to edify one
another. We all can also have a higher enjoyment, hear more complete messages, and obtain a
more perfect edification and comprehensive building up. Therefore, we ought to inspire the ones
we are helping, to speak for the Lord and to speak forth the Lord in the district meetings. Then
all the saints in the meeting can function organically, speak to supply one another, and edify
mutually, and thus build up the Body of Christ.

I have given you a sketch hoping we all may see that the practical steps in building up the Body
of Christ are completely different from the organized ways of religion. The way of organized
religion is to get together, collect some capital, and hire a preacher or pastor to bear a particular
responsibility and do a particular work. Most there merely offer some financial support and have
no direct relation with this work. Among us, however, it is not so. As soon as we bring people to
salvation, we should meet in their homes, lead them to call on the name of the Lord, lead them to
pray-read the Word, and bring them closer to the Lord. As they grow in life, spontaneously they
will speak and testify for the Lord. They do this not for money or gain, but spontaneously they
have an organic function because they have the Lord's life and the Lord's Spirit within them. If,
in a local church, quite a few brothers and sisters all function organically by the ability of the
inward life, the effect will surely be living and organic.
Through participating in the home meetings, the group meetings, and the district meetings, it will
take about a year for a new believer to go from being saved and baptized to functioning a little in
the district meeting. At this time we can hand him over to the care of the church to be built up in
the Body of Christ. He then will become a useful member and will lead others in the same way.
He will also be able to care for, lead, perfect, and meet others' needs. This way of teachers
bringing up students will raise up many useful persons. The new way that the Lord is leading us
into is indeed an organic way. Those raised up in this way are naturally organic. Contained in our
preaching of the gospel by visiting people to give freely the grace which we have obtained freely
is the life power with the organic ability. Further on in this way, an organic entity, which is the
church in a locality, will develop. This church is the local expression of the universal Body of
Christ, and her functioning in the locality is not organizational but organic.

EVERYONE PRACTICING THE NEW WAY

We all love the Lord and are concerned for the Lord's move. We know that the Lord's building up
of His Body is not accomplished just by a few gifted persons. It takes all those who belong to the
Lord, who are motivated by the Lord's love, to bear their share in preaching the gospel by
visiting, perfecting the new believers, establishing the group meetings, and arriving at the
practice of the district meetings. Only thus can the Body of Christ be built up.

Today, the practical steps of the new way have already been put before us. This is now our
responsibility. As long as there are one thousand saints in Taipei who would receive this word,
pay the price, exert themselves, put themselves willingly in the Lord's move, and practice the
new way according to the Lord's leading, the situation in the church will be greatly improved.
The church will have a dynamic spreading, and the Body of Christ will also be properly built up.

As an illustration, in a place with one hundred meeting together, we hope there would be thirty
who are motivated by the Lord's love to be willing to take the Lord's leading to practice the new
way step by step. Grouped in threes, with different ages and sexes, they would coordinate to
preach the gospel by visiting people. Doing so every other week, for two hours each time, they
can bring one to salvation in a month. They can bring twelve people to be saved in a year, since
there are twelve months in a year. Thus, thirty saints, divided into ten teams, can in one year
bring a hundred and twenty people to be saved, which is more than the original number. Then
they can lead the new believers to have home, group, and district meetings. Even if we figure
that two out of four will be lost, eventually there will be sixty remaining out of the one hundred
and twenty. Thus the rate of increase is still sixty percent. In addition, this place of one hundred
saints can support at least two or three full-timers. They, laboring this way, can also bring in fifty.
Adding the two together, there will be one hundred and ten added in a year. This is quite a
considerable number.
Concerning the weekly meeting schedule, we can arrange it in the following way. The district
meeting will be on the Lord's Day morning to break the bread for remembering the Lord, to learn
the truths, and to fellowship and share. The prayer and service meeting will be on Tuesday to cry
out to the Lord for the new way with one accord. Then, either preach the gospel by visiting
people or go to a home or a group meeting on two other evenings to bear the responsibility for
caring for and perfecting the saints. If we all do this willingly, faithfully, and with much labor,
the church in Taipei will be on the track of the organic way. The whole church life will be
organic and not organizational, and it will belong to all the saints, not to just a few. In this way, it
will be a prosperous and blessed situation, and the effect will be glorious and bountiful.

(A message given by Brother Witness Lee on April 21, 1988 in Taipei)

(Messages Given to the Working Saints, Chapter 2, Section 4)

THE SPIRIT FLOWING IN AND WITH THE WORD

The Spirit flows in and with the word (John 7:38-39). The Gospel of John has a very good
sequence. The sequence in John's Gospel is not according to history or according to doctrine, nor
is it according to the standard of morality like the Gospel of Luke. John's sequence is according
to spirituality. Chapter one tells us clearly that the Word was God. Then in chapter six, the word
is something that comes out of the mouth of the Lord Jesus Christ. Whatever comes out of the
mouth of the Lord Jesus is spirit and life. In chapter seven the Spirit becomes a flow (vv. 38-39).
First there is the Word, then the Word is the Spirit, and finally the Spirit is a flow.

John 7 says that rivers of living water will flow out of our innermost being. The Lord tells us
clearly that this flow out from our innermost being is the Spirit. With what does the Spirit flow
from deep within us? This Spirit, who is the flow and who flows from within us, flows with the
word. When we speak the living word, bubbling with the word, the Spirit flows with the word we
speak. If we do not have the proper word with which to speak, the Spirit cannot flow out of us.
This is why Paul tells us that we need to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly (Col. 3:16). We
must have a living storage of the word. Then when we speak, the words that are stored within us
will become water. When the word comes out of us, water comes out. The Spirit can flow in and
with the word. The more we speak the word, the more the Spirit flows.

The Word, God, and the Spirit are altogether one. In John 1 God was the Word, who was in the
beginning. In John 20, the Lord Jesus Himself became a Spirit that was breathed into the
disciples. In between John 1 and John 20, there was a process. The Word became flesh, and
whatever this One spoke was the Spirit. The Spirit flows with the word. Eventually, this One
went to the cross, was crucified, and through resurrection He became the life-giving Spirit (1
Cor. 15:45b) as the very breath that could be breathed into our inner being. Thus, John shows us
the Word as God becoming flesh, and eventually this very Word becomes the Spirit. Today the
very Word whom we speak is God Himself, Jesus Christ Himself, and the Spirit Himself. The
Word is the Triune God.
This Word has gone through a process. The Triune God is the very essence of this Word, and this
essence is altogether contained in the Spirit. God is the Word, the Word became flesh, and this
Word today is the Spirit, so we all have to exercise our spirit. Then we have to learn how to
exercise to speak this wonderful Word, which is the Triune God. In Ephesians 6:17 Paul refers to
the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. The antecedent of which is the Spirit,
indicating that the Spirit is the word of God. The Lord Jesus indicated that the word is the Spirit,
and Paul said that the Spirit is the word. This is like saying Paul is the apostle and the apostle is
Paul. The Word is the Spirit, and the Spirit is the Word. These two are really one.

We must learn to speak this kind of word. To learn to speak any language, we must exercise to
speak. Do not care about making mistakes. Your speaking will correct and improve you. We
should not expect the new ones in a home meeting to speak so correctly. Children learn to speak
by making mistakes. The more they speak, the more they learn to speak. Not much adjustment of
their speaking is needed. Children also learn to walk and run by their exercise. First, they crawl
until eventually they learn to stand up. Then through much trial and error, they learn to walk and
then to run. All of us can learn to speak by exercising to speak.

We must endeavor to have a meeting without a definite speaker. We must put aside the practice
of a single speaker in our church meetings. When I hear the saints speaking in a meeting, I may
hear incorrect things. But eventually the saints correct themselves when they continue to speak.
Sometimes I had the feeling to correct someone, but I decided not to. If we correct too much, no
one will speak. Our correcting may make others afraid to speak. It is better to give others the
freedom to make mistakes. When you go to a home meeting, do not correct the new ones. Let
them speak. As long as they speak, that is marvelous.

In the full-time training in Taipei, I charged the trainees not to go to the home meetings of the
new ones and become their pastor. It is possible to make yourself the new ones' pastor without
having the title of a pastor. Recently in Taipei, we began to have district meetings with at least
fifty attendants in one district meeting. Among these fifty there might have been ten to twelve
good speakers. I charged these saints not to become a corporate pastor of twelve persons in the
district meeting. If these twelve do all the speaking, they become a corporate pastor. This
practice can also annul the functions of the saints. We must try to speak in a way that leads and
guides all the rest to speak. When the other saints open up their mouths to speak, let them
continue the speaking. Give others the ground to speak, and do not try to correct them. If you
correct them, they may stop speaking and the flow will be cut off. Treasure their speaking and
even their making of mistakes. Let them speak with the view of their being perfected in their
function.

On the other hand, the saints need to be balanced in their functioning. Some may like to talk all
the time, and they may speak too much. These saints may need some correction and adjustment.
Most of the saints do not need this kind of balancing word. They need to be balanced by learning
to speak. In Hosea 7:8 the Lord likened Israel to an unturned cake. Cakes that are baked need to
be baked on both sides. Many saints may be baked on one side, but not on the other. We all
have to be turned cakes. If you shout too much in the meetings, you have to be balanced not to
shout that much. If you would not shout at all, you have to be balanced to shout. If you shout too
low, you have to be balanced to shout louder. If you shout too loud, you need to be balanced to
lower your voice. The burning young ones, however, should not be balanced too quickly. If you
balance them too fast, the burning fire will be quenched, and this fire may not come back.

Because I speak so much, I make mistakes. The more one speaks, the more mistakes he will
make. The best way not to make mistakes is not to speak. The less one speaks, the less mistakes
he makes. This is the philosophy of the Chinese culture. The Japanese are also very quiet
according to their natural constitution in their culture. No matter what culture we come from, we
all have to deny our self and our natural constitution by exercising to speak the word of the Lord
with the Spirit.

(The Scriptural Way to Meet and to Serve for the Building Up of the Body of Christ, Chapter 16,
Section 2)

THE RESPONSIBLE ONES IN THE DISTRICTS

Caring for and Cherishing the Saints like Elders
The districts have responsible ones. This is an important function. On the one hand, these
responsible ones have to care for the saints like elders. On the other hand, they have to be
diligent like the deacons. The responsible ones in a district must make proper arrangements
before the meetings, take the lead during the meetings, and clean up after the meetings. In short
they have to act as the elders in the districts. This is a manner of speaking only; it does not mean
that they actually carry the title of elder. If you are a responsible one in a district, you bear a
much heavier responsibility for the souls of the people than the elders bear. It is not possible for
the elders to know all the brothers and sisters. But as a responsible brother in a district, you have
to know every brother and sister in your district. You have to take up the spiritual burden of all
the saints in your district. If we cannot do this, we are merely splitting our meetings into districts;
we have not fulfilled the real purpose of subdivision, which is to spread the care to the districts.

The responsible brothers have to make proper arrangements in the districts for the follow-up
work of all the ones received into our bread-breaking meeting. You cannot let one name slip
away. If a brother or sister has been assigned to your district, you have to exercise care over him
or her in a proper way. First, you have to know the names of all the brothers and sisters. Second,
you have to know their faces. You must recognize them and must not let them go away easily.
Third, you have to know their background, including their school, family, and environment.
Fourth, you have to know their spiritual condition. For example, you have to know how long
they have been saved, whether or not they are meeting regularly, whether they have the
experience of loving the Lord, and whether they are zealous for the gospel. Perhaps you have to
ask them, "You have been saved for a long time already. Have you led anyone to the Lord?"

The responsible ones in a district have to be like the elders; they have to care for the brothers and
sisters, to cherish them and nourish them with the heart of a father. They have to open up their
hearts to the brothers and sisters. They have to exercise a fatherly concern for them. Whether or
not God's work will prosper among us depends not so much on the procedures and methods but
on the amount of care we pour out on the saints. It depends on the fatherly and motherly
compassion we exercise over God's children.

Working under the Elders like Deacons

A local church can be subdivided into districts based on number or on need, but its
administration cannot be divided. A few people in a district cannot decide what that district
should do or how they should do it; they cannot take things into their own hand and work
independently. The administration of the church is based on its locality. The business affairs, the
shepherding, the care, and the perfecting of the saints in a church can be conducted in the
districts, but first they must be discussed in fellowship with the church as a whole. The
responsible ones in a district have to pay attention to one thing more than the elders: They have
to learn to ask before they do anything. This is similar to what the deacons have to do. This
applies not only to the care of the meetings, to the management of business affairs, but to the
heading up of the work as well.

The responsible ones in a district are almost like elders, and yet they are not exactly the same as
the elders of a local church. For this reason the responsible brothers in a district have to learn to
refer matters to the elders. This is beneficial to them in more than one sense. The main emphasis
of the church should not be business affairs, but spiritual affairs. The responsible ones in a
district have to learn not to make any decisions in the districts. In everything they first must
fellowship with the elders. They must receive orders from the elders. If the business decisions
and methods of the elders do not work, they should first go back to the elders. Never make any
changes independently. We are humans, and even the elders can make mistakes. Of course, they
have learned more lessons from God, and it is less likely for them to make mistakes. Here you
have to learn the lessons. If something is wrong, you have to refer back to the elders. This will
force the elders to go to God and come up with the right way. If you deliberate and act
independently, you will only bring damage to the church, not profit. A district is not a stand-
alone local church.

Arrangements to Be Made in a Local Church

Visitation of the saints should be carried out in the districts. There is the need of careful
arrangement in this matter. The districts should also make decisions concerning their business
affairs. For example, we may have to borrow a saint's home for the district meeting. In so doing
we should use such a home for our meeting only; we should not overburden that saint's
household. We should set up the place ourselves and make the proper arrangements before and
after the meetings. We should even prepare the drinking water by boiling it ahead of time. Every
mattergreat or small, general or specificthat goes on in the districts should be listed. Either
the responsible brothers have to take care of it themselves, or they have to assign the brothers
and sisters to take care of it. Gospel visitation should also be conducted in the districts under the
direction and supervision of the districts.
 (Collected Works of Watchman Nee, The (Set 3) Vol. 62: Matured Leadings in the Lord's
Recovery (2), Chapter 4, Section 2)

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

FELLOWSHIP CONCERNING SERVICE

(5)

Date:Morning, February 25 (?), 1950

Place:Jordan Road, Hong Kong
Speakers:Watchman Nee, Witness Lee
THE NEED OF HOME MEETINGS
AND THE ARRANGEMENTS OF THESE MEETINGS

Watchman Nee: I would like to say something about the meetings of the church in the homes.
Suitable homes should be located within each district for conducting these meetings. Meeting in
the homes is a practice recorded in the Bible. When Peter was in prison, the church prayed
earnestly for him (Acts 12:5). At that time the number in the entire church in Jerusalem was very
big. They did not gather in one place to pray but prayed in the homes. When Peter came out of
prison, he had to "consider" (12:12, KJV) which home he should go to before proceeding to the
house of Mary the mother of Mark. Many were gathered together to pray there. This shows that
there were many homes that he could go to at that time. This is the reason Peter had to consider
before deciding which house to go to.

At Pentecost over three thousand people were saved. Day by day, they continued steadfastly with
one accord in the temple and broke bread from house to house (Acts 2:46). Due to their great
number, the believers met regularly from house to house. They met in the temple only when they
all needed to gather together. Other than these times, the brothers and sisters assembled in
different homes.

Of course, we have to be on the alert that our next generation does not make the district
subdivision a tradition. When this happens, it will be difficult to change things around again. All
the brothers have to act according to the leading of the Holy Spirit. There should not be any set
form. A district meeting can have fifty people or a hundred people. Such a division is convenient,
but this is not a legal number. We are merely saying that fifty or a hundred is a convenient
number. The Lord did not feed the multitude by dividing them all into groups of fifty or all into
groups of a hundred. Rather, there were groups of fifty and there were groups of a hundred. This
shows us that the Lord was merely supplying a convenient number. Based on this principle we
should have some arrangements. When the number becomes big, we should subdivide into
districts. There can be fifty to a district or a hundred to a district. Such meetings are very
convenient because the number is small, and it is easy to care for and visit everyone. It affords
more opportunities for everyone to function in the meetings. The advantage of the home
meetings is that they give more opportunities for the brothers and sisters to open their mouths to
speak (cf. 1 Cor. 14:31).

A few days ago we announced that the bread-breaking meeting would be conducted in five
districts or "homes" [Translator's Note: home is another term for "district" in the usage at that
time.] Now we want to increase that to six districts.

The main responsibility of the elders is to oversee. They should all be headed up by Brother
Witness. Together they should oversee the entire church in Hong Kong. The leadership in the
various districts is: Chu Zhi-yuen for the Jordan Road meeting hall, Hsu Jin-ching for Hsu's
home, Cheng Him-yuen for Bao's home, Chan Shi-re for Chan's home, and K. H. Weigh for
Shen's home.

A FELLOWSHIP
FOR ALL THE "HOME" RESPONSIBLE ONES

Witness Lee: I have a word of fellowship for all the "home" responsible ones. Concerning the
practical affairs in the districts, such as the preparation for the meeting facilities, the
arrangements before and after the meetings, the supply of drinks, etc., we should not overburden
the hosts of the homes where the meetings are held. Instead, we should share the work by
assigning different brothers and sisters to do the various jobs. We have to identify the various
responsibilities and come up with proper ways to discharge them. Do not wait for the hosts to ask
about them and do not overburden them. From today forward, the works in the "homes" are
officially passed on to the various districts. We have to write down everything we need to do and
should not allow anything to slip through our fingers.

Do not try to be too spiritual in conducting the meetings. Do not try to be non-spiritual either. On
the one hand, we have to function aggressively and positively. On the other hand, we have to
touch the flow of the Holy Spirit. Conduct everything in an orderly way in spirit, following the
Spirit's leading in such a way as if being borne on the wings of the Spirit.

(Collected Works of Watchman Nee, The (Set 3) Vol. 62: Matured Leadings in the Lord's
Recovery (2), Chapter 10, Section 1)
THE NEED FOR THE HIGHEST MEETINGS
OF THE CHURCH
In order to practice 1 Corinthians 14, there is the need for the highest meetings of the church. To
nourish and cherish the new believers, there is the need of mainly the home meetings. After a
person believes in the Lord and is baptized, we need to go back to his home to have home
meetings with him so that he can be fed and nourished. We need to be the nursing mothers,
nourishing the new ones as our babes. To fellowship with, teach, and perfect the saints, there is
the need of mainly the group meetings. The group meetings are a little bigger than the home
meetings. A group meeting is a gathering of about twenty saints. In this meeting the saints can
fellowship with one another, intercede for one another, and care for and shepherd one another.
The teaching and perfecting of the saints also takes place in the group meetings. In these group
meetings, everyone teaches, and everyone learns.

To build up the church by prophesying, we need the bigger and higher meetings of the church.
The church meeting must be a prophesying meeting. We need to labor together in the Lord and
with the Lord so that we can have church meetings in which we all come together to prophesy. If
the number in the larger church meeting is too big, we can divide this meeting into sections. In
Taipei these sections are called district meetings. Each district meeting has about fifty saints. We
should not set up a rule in this matter. This is not a law, but is for the convenience of our practice.

For our present church life we need three kinds of meetings. We need the home meetings in the
new believers' homes to nourish and to cherish the new ones. We need the group meetings so that
the saints can fellowship with one another, pray for one another, and take care of one another. In
these group meetings, the saints can ask questions concerning the truth and concerning life, and
everyone can answer these questions. Thus, in the group meetings everyone asks, everyone
answers, everyone teaches, and everyone learns. After meeting in the group meetings in a regular
way throughout the year, all the attendants will be taught with the truth and will be built up in
life. Eventually, we will all reach the high peak of prophesying for the building up of the church.
Prophesying is the highest attainment in our church life.

We may feel that it is too hard for us to enter into the fellowship in this book, but one day after
our resurrection from the dead, we will go to Christ's judgment seat, and we will have to answer
to Him (2 Cor. 5:10). Brother Nee wrote a hymn (not translated into English) that says for his life
and for his work he is always under the light of the judgment seat of Christ. For today's life and
today's work, we have to consider that day when we will stand before the judgment seat of
Christ. We will be held accountable for what we have done and for what we have said. In
Matthew 12:36 the Lord said, And I say to you that every idle word which men shall speak,
they shall render account concerning it in the day of judgment. Our idle words, including our
gossip, will be checked at the judgment seat of Christ.

During the past four and a half years, I have reconsidered the entire Bible in relation to our
practice. After so much reconsideration, I am burdened to present these four major items of the
advance of the Lord's recovery today to the churches. I hope that we can spend a period of time
to study the fellowship in this book with all the quotations and references of the Scripture. If we
prayerfully consider the fellowship in this book, the Lord will speak to us, and this will
revolutionize our concept concerning being a Christian, concerning the meetings, concerning the
preaching of the gospel, and concerning Christian service. When the Lord recovers these four
major items of the advance of His recovery today, that will be a big revolution to all of the
Christians.

(The Advance of the Lord's Recovery Today, Chapter 7, Section 2)