Bible Verses
Rom. 12:4 For just as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, (5) So we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
1 Cor. 12:17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were the hearing, where would the smelling be? (18) But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, even as He willed.
Words of Ministry
Brothers and sisters, none of us can be a passive member in the Body. As long as we are a member of the Body, we cannot be passive, and we cannot be a bystander in the meetings. When we come to the meeting, we should realize that we are a member in the Body of Christ and that we have to pray. They may be audible prayers or silent prayers. But we must at least pray and minister life to the Body. Some Christians are suppliers of life; once they come to a meeting, the meeting receives their supply even when they do not open their mouth to speak. Their very presence is a life supply to others. Wherever they go, death is swallowed up. Brothers and sisters, once we see the Body of Christ, we will inevitably see ourselves as members.
We are members of the Body of Christ. As members severally of this Body, we should seek to profit the Body. We should seek for ways to supply life and power to the Body. Even if we do not open our mouth in the meeting, we should pray silently, and even if we do not speak, we should always be looking to God. This is being Body-conscious. Once we see the Body, we will no longer say that we are dispensable or unimportant. Once we see the Body, we will say that we are a member of the Body and that we have a responsibility to fulfill. We should speak, and we should pray. When we come to the meeting, we will do whatever God tells us to do. We cannot be a bystander. Brothers and sisters, if we see the Body, we will not act in any other way. When we function this way, the life of the meeting will swallow up all death. Many meetings do not have enough power because the presence of death is too strong; there are too many bystanders in these meetings.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Watchman Nee, General Messages, Vol. 37, The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, pp.247-248. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Being a Member in the Body (1)
Bible Verses
Rom. 12:3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to every one who is among you, not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think, but to think so as to be sober-minded, as God has apportioned to each a measure of faith. (4) For just as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, (5) So we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually members one of
another.
Words of Ministry
The Lord has assigned a portion to each one of us. We should not consider ourselves greater than what we are. We should be faithful to the portion that the Lord has assigned to us, and we should honor the portion that the Lord has assigned to others. Many young people are always comparing themselves with others; they say that they have this and that, and that others do not have this and that. Or they say that they do not have this and that, and that others have this and that. Actually, it is impossible to make such comparisons. If you ask whether the hands are better or the eyes are better, I can only say that both are good. Those who see the Body will see that all the members have their functions; they will see that they are only one of the many members. They will not place themselves in a conspicuous position and make comparisons with others or usurp their places.
Once a Christian sees the Body, it will be impossible for him to be proud or jealous anymore. Since the Body is one, it will be the same if the work is done by others or by ourselves; there will be no difference at all. Whether the work is done by you or by others, the glory ultimately goes to the Lord alone, and the blessings go to the church. If you see the Body of Christ, spontaneously you will have this feeling within you. You will sense that the Body is one and that the work is also one.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Watchman Nee, General Messages, Vol. 37, The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, pp.245-246. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA.
Rom. 12:3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to every one who is among you, not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think, but to think so as to be sober-minded, as God has apportioned to each a measure of faith. (4) For just as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, (5) So we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually members one of
another.
Words of Ministry
The Lord has assigned a portion to each one of us. We should not consider ourselves greater than what we are. We should be faithful to the portion that the Lord has assigned to us, and we should honor the portion that the Lord has assigned to others. Many young people are always comparing themselves with others; they say that they have this and that, and that others do not have this and that. Or they say that they do not have this and that, and that others have this and that. Actually, it is impossible to make such comparisons. If you ask whether the hands are better or the eyes are better, I can only say that both are good. Those who see the Body will see that all the members have their functions; they will see that they are only one of the many members. They will not place themselves in a conspicuous position and make comparisons with others or usurp their places.
Once a Christian sees the Body, it will be impossible for him to be proud or jealous anymore. Since the Body is one, it will be the same if the work is done by others or by ourselves; there will be no difference at all. Whether the work is done by you or by others, the glory ultimately goes to the Lord alone, and the blessings go to the church. If you see the Body of Christ, spontaneously you will have this feeling within you. You will sense that the Body is one and that the work is also one.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Watchman Nee, General Messages, Vol. 37, The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, pp.245-246. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Needing the Fellowship in the Body
Bible Verses
Eph. 4:15 But holding to truth in love, we may grow up into Him in all things, who is the Head, Christ, (16) Out from whom all the Body, being joined together and being knit together through every joint of the rich supply and through the operation in the measure of each one part, causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love.
Words of Ministry
Those who see the Body will spontaneously see the need of fellowship. They will spontaneously see that they cannot act independently. Fellowship is not a formal acquaintance but a spontaneous issue of the life of the Body. The common notion of fellowship among God's children is to visit a brother or a sister when we are free and chat with them a little. For most people this is fellowship. But fellowship really means a realization that we cannot go on alone, that we need to do everything together, with other members and with the Body as a whole. Although we cannot have all the brothers and sisters in the whole church come together, we can have two or three brothers come together and work according to the principle of the Body. We have to learn the principle of fellowship when we pray. We have to learn to fellowship when we encounter difficulties, and we have to learn to fellowship when we are seeking God's will, when we are not clear about our future, and when we do not understand God's Word.
Fellowship means I cannot pray by myself, that I have to find two or three brothers to deal with a matter together. It means that I do not understand God's will by myself and that I seek to understand it together with two or three brothers. It means that I am confused about my own future and that I seek fellowship and I consider my future together with two or three other brothers and sisters. It means that I do not understand God's Word by myself and that I find two or three brothers to study God's Word together with me. Fellowship is to acknowledge that we are short, that we are inadequate, and that we need the Body. Fellowship is the acknowledgment of our own limitations and of the possibility of making mistakes by ourselves; it is receiving help from those who have spiritual discernment before the Lord. (This does not mean to ask for help only from those who are affectionate towards us.) I cannot go on by myself; I need the help of other brothers and sisters. The Body of Christ is a matter of life, and this life has feelings. This feeling will tell you that without fellowship, you cannot go on.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Watchman Nee, General Messages, Vol. 37, The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, pp.246-247. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA.
Eph. 4:15 But holding to truth in love, we may grow up into Him in all things, who is the Head, Christ, (16) Out from whom all the Body, being joined together and being knit together through every joint of the rich supply and through the operation in the measure of each one part, causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love.
Words of Ministry
Those who see the Body will spontaneously see the need of fellowship. They will spontaneously see that they cannot act independently. Fellowship is not a formal acquaintance but a spontaneous issue of the life of the Body. The common notion of fellowship among God's children is to visit a brother or a sister when we are free and chat with them a little. For most people this is fellowship. But fellowship really means a realization that we cannot go on alone, that we need to do everything together, with other members and with the Body as a whole. Although we cannot have all the brothers and sisters in the whole church come together, we can have two or three brothers come together and work according to the principle of the Body. We have to learn the principle of fellowship when we pray. We have to learn to fellowship when we encounter difficulties, and we have to learn to fellowship when we are seeking God's will, when we are not clear about our future, and when we do not understand God's Word.
Fellowship means I cannot pray by myself, that I have to find two or three brothers to deal with a matter together. It means that I do not understand God's will by myself and that I seek to understand it together with two or three brothers. It means that I am confused about my own future and that I seek fellowship and I consider my future together with two or three other brothers and sisters. It means that I do not understand God's Word by myself and that I find two or three brothers to study God's Word together with me. Fellowship is to acknowledge that we are short, that we are inadequate, and that we need the Body. Fellowship is the acknowledgment of our own limitations and of the possibility of making mistakes by ourselves; it is receiving help from those who have spiritual discernment before the Lord. (This does not mean to ask for help only from those who are affectionate towards us.) I cannot go on by myself; I need the help of other brothers and sisters. The Body of Christ is a matter of life, and this life has feelings. This feeling will tell you that without fellowship, you cannot go on.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Watchman Nee, General Messages, Vol. 37, The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, pp.246-247. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA.
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