GROWING UP INTO CHRIST
IN THE DETAILS OF OUR DAILY LIFE
When the brothers buy a necktie, it seems that this is a small thing, but the principle in buying it is not small. You have to grow up into Christ in the matter of buying a tie. I am happy to see the young people seeking and loving the Lord so much. But as you are seeking the Lord so much, you need to grow up into Christ when you go to the department store to buy a tie. When you buy a tie, you must have the assurance that you are in Christ. If you are not sure, that means your shopping is not in Christ. With us it is not a matter of right or wrong; it is a matter of being in Christ or apart from Christ. You have to be able to tell Satan, "Satan, look, my shopping is in Christ!" Could you say this? You can cheat me, but you cannot cheat the devil, because he knows.
We also need to consider how we cut and style our hair. Brothers, how about your haircut? When you go to get a haircut, this is not a small matter, because you practice a principle of growing into Christ in all things. This includes your haircut. Have you grown into Christ in the way that you cut your hair? Do not argue with me. Simply go to Christ and check with Him. You may want to know what kind of haircut is right. I would say, "I don’t know. I am not Christ. He knows." I believe that if you go along with Him and go to Him and say, "O Lord, my haircut," you will know what to do. He knows and you know too. Others do not know. But after you cut it, those who are spiritual know whether or not the cutting of your hair is of the flesh or of Christ. They know whether you have grown up into Christ in the matter of cutting your hair.
We need to bring all the items of our daily walk to the Lord, and say, "O Lord," over every item. Do not just say, "O Lord," in a general way, but in a specific way, in an itemized way. Item by item you have to say, "O Lord," and seek His leading. Then you will have the growth in life. This kind of practice will revolutionize you.
The older brothers and sisters may feel that the young people are too much and need to be balanced. But we should not think that our oldness is something of Christ either. We have to grow up into Christ in our oldness. We have to give up our oldness. We need a change. My point is that we have to grow up into Christ in everything.
The sisters should not just call on the Lord in a general way. You have to call on the Lord in everything in your daily walk. You need to go to the Lord with every item of your daily walk and have a thorough dealing with the Lord. Then you will see the change, not by teaching, correction, or outward adjustment, but by the growth in life into Christ in all things. You need to call on the Lord when you buy your eyeglasses. Then the Lord will adjust you inwardly.
If we do not do this, we are not faithful to the Lord. When we use the name of the Lord, we must mean it. Second Timothy 2:22 says that we need to pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Verse 19 says, "Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness." All those who name the name of the Lord must depart from any kind of iniquity. When we say, "O Lord," we have to mean business with the Lord. We do not call on the Lord in a light or loose way. We mean it. If we call on the Lord and yet do not deal with the items of our daily walk, I am afraid that we are being loose with the name of the Lord. This is not good. We have to mean business with the Lord. If we mean business with the Lord by saying, "O Lord," I believe the Lord will point out specific things to us in our daily walk which need to be dealt with. We need to bring every item of our daily walk into the presence of the Lord. In every item we need to pray, "Lord, how about this?" No one can tell us specifically except the Lord Himself.
(The Fulfillment of God's Purpose by the Growth of Christ in Us, Chapter 6, by Witness Lee)
