The Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread, and having given thanks, He broke it and said, This is My body, which is given for you; this do unto the remembrance of Me. Similarly also the cup after they had dined, saying, This cup is the new covenant established […]
All articles tagged "practical fellowship"
Concerning Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation
There is much talk in modern society concerning gender identity and sexual orientation. If we are going to represent the Lord as luminaries shining in a dark world (Phil. 2:15), it is important that we have a biblical understanding of God’s heart and His ways concerning these subjects. It is easy to impose our own […]
Quenching the Flaming Darts of the Enemy
If we want to be those who are practically part of God’s corporate warrior in Ephesians 6, we must learn how to quench the flaming darts of the enemy. Verse 16 speaks of “having taken up the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming darts of the evil […]
Obsession and Subjectivity
Obsession In the 1930s Brother Watchman Nee gave a word concerning “Obsession and God’s Light” (The Collected Works of Watchman Nee [CWWN], Vol. 36: Central Messages, 257-271). His speaking should help us discern dissenting speakings directed at the Lord’s recovery in general and at the leadership in His recovery in particular. Brother Nee began by […]
Forgiveness and the Building Up of the Body of Christ
The Bible says that we are to forgive one another as God in Christ forgave us (Eph. 4:32; Col. 3:13). This is a crucial factor in practicing the church life for the building up of the Body of Christ and thus merits our attention in these days. Practicing Forgiveness in the Church Life The word […]
Preserving Human Life
Man is the pinnacle of God’s work in the old creation and as such is the most precious to God of all His creatures (Zech. 12:1). This is because God created man in a unique way. Of all the creatures, only man was created as a vessel with a spirit to contact, contain, and be […]
Reading Only the “Pure Word” – A Dangerous and Unbiblical Notion
From time to time a brother will trumpet the misguided notion that saints should read only the Bible, the “pure Word”, “untainted” by anyone’s interpretation. Some have used this notion as a ploy to entice the saints to reject the ministry of Watchman Nee and Witness Lee as “man’s interpretation.” On the surface, the teaching […]
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, […]
Words That Spread Death and How to Stop Them
In the Bible the words of three parties—God, Satan, and man—are very significant. As the Word of God, the Bible speaks forth God’s person, intent, and work. By His word He framed the universe (Heb. 11:3). When God came in the person of the Lord Jesus, His words were spirit and life (John 6:63). The […]
Questions versus Questionings
Some have claimed that questions are not allowed in the local churches. On the one hand, this should not be true in any local church. On the other hand, all the saints must discern between proper and improper questions and between questions and questionings. A proper question takes as its goal receiving an answer that […]
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 […]
The Proper Way to Deal with Problems in the Church
Because the church is composed of redeemed sinners who are in the process of transformation, it is inevitable that there will be problems among the saints. No one can say that they no longer have sin or that they have been transformed to the extent that their flesh, self, or natural life is no longer […]
Our Attitude toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help
The ministry of Watchman Nee and Witness Lee focuses on God’s New Testament economy. This matches the focus of the apostles’ teaching in the New Testament (Acts 2:42; 1 Tim. 1:3-4). God’s purpose in His economy is to produce the Body of Christ through His full salvation, which includes the judicial redemption accomplished by the […]
Letter from the Co-workers, 7/5/19
A letter circulated in 2019 has become the subject of social media postings and emails that purport to expose wrongdoings, including abuses and cover-ups, among the churches in the Lord’s recovery. Despite the seriousness of such accusations, careful examination of the letter has shown it contains numerous factual errors and unproven allegations, as well as […]