Remaining in the Unique New Testament Ministry in God's Economy Under the Proper Leadership in His Move

VII. ENTERING INTO THE LORD’S MINISTRY
IN THE PRESENT AGE

Concerning Following the Ministry of the Age

Seeing the Ministry of the Age

In the Old Testament both Solomon and David represented the Lord. The two persons represented the one ministry in two separate ways. In the Old Testament there were many ministries. After Moses, the judges were raised up. After that, there was Solomon, the kings, and the prophets. After the Israelites were taken into captivity, the vessels for the recovery were raised up. The Old Testament is filled with different kinds of ministries. In every age there is the ministry of that age. These ministries of the ages are different from the local ministers. Luther was a minister of his age. Darby was also a minister of his age. In every age the Lord has special things that He wants to accomplish. He has His own recoveries and His own works to do. The particular recovery and work that He does in one age is the ministry of that age.

Forsaking the Past Ministries

Jonathan stood between Saul and David. He was one man standing between two ministries. He should have followed the second ministry. However, because Jonathan’s relationship with the first ministry was too deep, he could not disentangle himself. In order to catch up with the ministry of the age, there is the need for us to see the vision. Michal was married to David, yet she did not see anything. She only saw David’s condition before God, and she could not tolerate it. As a result, she was left behind (2 Sam. 6:16, 20-23).

All Being a Matter of God’s Mercy

It is God’s mercy that a person can see and come into contact with the ministry of that age. Yet it is altogether a different thing for a man to take up the courage to forsake the past ministry. It is a precious thing to see and it is a blessed thing to come into contact with something. Yet whether or not one can set aside his past ministry is entirely up to God’s mercy. (The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, vol. 57: The Resumption of Watchman Nee’s Ministry, pp. 260-261, Watchman Nee)

The Ministry in the Old Testament

Throughout the generations there has been the work of the Lord’s move. In the Old Testament, during Noah’s age, the Lord’s move was the building of the ark. This work of building the ark was the ministry in Noah’s age. Noah was the chief minister in that ministry. However, just by Noah alone, there was no way to build the ark. At that time, there must have been some who built the ark together with Noah. The work of building the ark was the ministry in that age. Do you think that in that ministry there were two or more different works, or two or more groups of different people, or two or more different leaderships? Certainly not; otherwise, the ark could never have been built.

The problems of Christianity in the past two thousand years have been due to too many “ministries.” Every denomination and every sect say that they are building the church of Christ. Many chapels have a piece of foundation stone inscribed with the words, “Christ Jesus, our foundation.” One Jesus Christ is divided up into many foundations. This is the crucial point of all the problems.

The Bible shows us very clearly that in Noah’s age there was only one ministry; yet many ministers were there together building the ark. This does not mean that every minister was a master builder. Only Noah was the leader in the ministry of building the ark.

During the age of Moses, God desired to build the tabernacle with its furniture, the most important of which was the ark. Moses himself alone could not have built all those things, but he had the ministry of building the tabernacle, which was the work to fulfill God’s unique purpose. In this ministry, there was not only Moses himself; Moses was one of many ministers, and, undeniably, he was the leading one in that ministry. If there had been other leaders besides Moses, there would have been confusion in that situation.

During the age of David and Solomon, God desired to build the temple. The building of the temple was not merely a work, but a ministry. At that time, there were not two different ministries building the temple; hence, there were not two different leaderships. In David’s age, it was David who was taking the lead. After David passed away, Solomon was the one taking the lead. However, anyone who had a part in the ministry of building the temple, including the stone-cutters and stone-movers, was a minister in that ministry.

The Ministry in the New Testament

In the New Testament, the Lord Jesus came and He said, “On this rock I will build My church” (Matt. 16:18). The first one who participated in the ministry of building the church was the Lord Jesus. The Lord’s ministry was to build up the Body of Christ. For this, He chose twelve apostles and brought them into the ministry of building the church. Afterward, He also brought in other apostles, among whom the most prominent was Paul.

Since in every age there has been the work of ministry, it stands to reason that in this age also there should be the continuation of the Lord’s ministry. We cannot deny that on the earth today there is the Lord’s building. The Lord has been building throughout the generations, and He will continue to build until His building work is fully completed, when the New Jerusalem descends from heaven.

A Christian Needing to Be
in the Lord’s Ministry in This Age

Now we have already seen clearly that the ministry spoken of in the Bible does not refer to a person, but to God’s building work. Moreover, in God’s building ministry, there are those who take the lead in that ministry in every age. May the Lord open our eyes to see that as long as we are human beings, we should be Christians; as long as we are Christians, we should enter into the Lord’s ministry in this age.

Today there are thousands of people who believe in the Lord Jesus and are saved, but not many have entered into the Lord’s ministry of building the church. It is just like the situation in Noah’s age. There were thousands of people on the earth, but only a small number were building the ark with Noah. This is why Philippians 2:12 says, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” What Noah and those who built the ark with him were doing was to work out their own salvation. Yes, it was God who had saved them, but the ark that delivered them was built with their own hands by God’s grace. Today, we also need to be in God’s building ministry to work out our own salvation, that is, to bring our salvation to its ultimate conclusion so that we can be exalted by God in glory as the Lord Jesus was.

A Personal Testimony

When I was saved over sixty years ago, there were Christians all around me; yet I had no knowledge of God’s move on the earth. I thank God that He gave me a heart that loves the Bible. I read it continually and even collected many reference books. Afterward, I became very clear that as a human being, I must be a Christian, and as a Christian, I must be in God’s move. Therefore, I dropped everything and dove into the Lord’s recovery. At that time, although I could not speak the message that I am giving this morning, the vision within me was very clear. I saw that there was the Lord’s commission upon Brother Nee, which is the ministry. I also knew that Brother Nee was the one chosen, commissioned by the Lord in this age to bring in His recovery. I therefore recognized him as the leader in this work. (Words of Training for the New Way, Volume One, pp. 21-24, Witness Lee)

The Leading Ones in God’s Move—
Those Who Know God’s New Testament Economy
and His Present Speaking

We should believe that our God is living (1 Tim. 3:15). Since our God is living, He should be always moving. He is still moving today. Where is He moving? God’s moving is always by speaking. Without speaking, He does not move. We must ask ourselves where God’s speaking is. Is it in the Orthodox church, the Catholic church, the Protestant denominations, the state churches, the private churches, or the free groups? Our God who is living and moving always moves by speaking. We have to admit that His present speaking is among us. His present speaking is not concerning presbytery, baptism by immersion, tongue-speaking, gifts, healings, or evangelical movements. His speaking today is concerning God’s New Testament economy. I hope we can all be enlightened. I am forced to be bold to recommend myself so much to you all. I am forced to be a fool. The one who can be the leading one in the Lord’s move today is the one who knows God’s New Testament economy, the one who knows what God’s speaking is today.

Peter was surely the apostle as the leader of the Lord’s move at the day of Pentecost because he was a person who knew God’s speaking. He was even the mouth for God’s speaking. Whoever is the mouth for God’s speaking in his time is the leading one. Those to whom God is speaking are the leading apostles. Whatever they minister will be the proper leading for all the saints to follow. This definition is fair.

To be a person who can render the proper and adequate leadership to the believers according to the full knowledge of God’s New Testament economy is not a matter of competition. No one can compete with anyone else. It all depends upon His mercy and His compassion. Paul admitted this in Romans 9:16. God gave Paul his portion in the Body of Christ and no one could compete with him.

If we believe in the Lord’s sovereignty and that He is living, moving, and speaking, we have to honestly, humbly, and faithfully find out where God is speaking today. Whoever has God’s speaking concerning the entire teaching of God’s New Testament economy are the leading ones in His move.

All the churches should be identical, and those who can render the leading to all the churches are the ones who have the adequate knowledge of the teaching of God’s New Testament economy and who would pass on these teachings to the whole earth. We follow the one who is teaching and following this all-inclusive, incarnated, crucified, resurrected, and ascended Christ who is still ministering in the heavenlies for the carrying out of God’s New Testament economy. We have to follow such persons and we have to take their leading. Their leading is the proper leading for all the churches. (Elders’ Training, Book 7: One Accord for the Lord’s Move, pp. 69-70, 74, Witness Lee)

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VII. ENTERING INTO THE LORD’S MINISTRY IN THE PRESENT AGE