The boundary of a local church is one of the basic principles upon which the practice of the Lord’s recovery is based. From the beginnings of the Lord’s recovery in China, it has been our practice to have one church with one eldership in a city. In 1934, after observing firsthand the confusion among Christian […]
All articles tagged "elders"
The Elders Avoiding Entanglement in Right and Wrong
The elders in a local church must deal with all kinds of issues, including complicated situations involving the saints. A great temptation the elders face is getting entangled in determinations of right and wrong in disputes between saints. The proper function of the elders is to shepherd all the saints and minister Christ as life […]
Properly Representing the Lord in the Exercise of Discipline
From time to time those who bear responsibility in the administration of a church must exercise a measure of discipline toward unruly members. The exercise of discipline takes as its goals restoring the erring members and protecting both the Lord’s testimony and the members of His Body. As with anything done in the Lord’s service, […]
Authority and Fellowship
God desires to establish His kingdom on the earth through a group of people who stand against all forms of rebellion and come absolutely under His authority. Establishing God’s authority over the earth is a great matter in the Bible, but fallen men have miscast divine authority according to natural human concepts and have even […]
A Balanced View of the Elders’ Authority
Every truth in the Bible has two sides that must be held in balance. This fact reflects the natural law in God’s creation, as Brother Witness Lee explained: According to the natural law in God’s creation, there is the law of balance. Nothing can exist without having two sides. For example, the earth exists because […]
The Ongoing Relationship Between the Apostles and the Local Churches
To say that once a church is established the apostles, that is, the leading co-workers, should never “interfere” in that church’s affairs is inconsistent with the Bible and with the whole body of the ministry of Watchman Nee and Witness Lee. This crucial matter relates to God’s administration and therefore to the headship of Christ, […]
Selected Ministry on the Apostles’ Ongoing Role in Established Churches
The Collected Works of Watchman Nee [CWWN], vol. 22: The Assembly Life & The Prayer Ministry of the Church p. 30: The books of Timothy tell us, “Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses” (1 Tim. 5:19, KJV). In this matter, we should pay attention to two points. First, […]
Letter from the Co-workers, 3/26/20
In light of the current pandemic the co-workers in the Lord’s recovery released a letter on March 26, 2020, to the saints in all the churches in the Lord’s recovery throughout the earth. This letter provides a timely word of encouragement concerning the sufficiency of Christ and the need to exercise mutual fellowship and care, […]
Questions and Answers about Apostles and Co-workers
Who has the authority to appoint and remove elders? According to the New Testament, apostles, in cooperation with the Holy Spirit, have the authority to appoint elders in the churches (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; Acts 20:28) and to remove elders when the need arises. If an elder becomes a problem, an accusation against him can […]
Handling Allegations of Abuse
Developing, updating, and implementing policies to handle a variety of issues, including deterrence strategies and response practices related to physical, psychological, and sexual abuse or harassment, has been an ongoing process among the local churches. Similar efforts are ongoing among those who take the lead in extra-local work among the children, young people, and college […]