THE BELIEVERS’ LIVING FOR THE BUILDING UP
OF THE ORGANIC BODY OF CHRIST
The Basic Principles
In order to live such a life, there are a number of principles and details that we need to pay attention to.
Not Walking as the Nations Walk,
in the Vanity of Their Mind
The first principle is that we should not walk as the nations walk, in the vanity of their mind (v. 17). Everyone in the world, both young and old, male and female, lingers in his or her mind. Even while they are sleeping, they remain in their mind. This is why so many people have dreams. If someone thinks about having a big house or a good car, he will dream about these things at night. This is to walk in the vanity of the mind. Whatever is in the mind is vanity. The wise King Solomon said that everything under the sun is vanity of vanities (Eccl. 1:2). As a saved person, we should never walk in the vanity of the mind.
Not Being Estranged from the Life of God,
Which Is for the Divine Dispensing
The second principle is that we should not be estranged from the life of God (Eph. 4:18). We the believers have the life of God within us. But even we are quite often estranged from the life of God. We do not keep ourselves linked, connected, and joined to the divine life. We do have this life, but we do not use it or depend on it. Instead, we put it aside. It is a serious thing to be estranged from the life of God.
Electricity may be installed in a building, but if even a thin piece of paper is inserted between the wires, the electricity will be stopped. It is easy to stop the electrical current. If we stop the electrical current, electricity will still be here, but there will be no way to apply it to us. In such a case, we will be estranged from electricity. It is the same with the life of God. Although we have the life of God, we can easily be estranged from it.
Not Ceasing from Caring for
the Feeling of Their Conscience
The third principle is that we must not cease from caring for the feeling of the conscience (v. 19). Our conscience must be very keen. It must be in a good condition. Whenever we sense condemnation in our conscience, we need to take care of it immediately (Acts 24:16). It is a dangerous thing to ignore the conscience.
(The Economy and Dispensing of God, Chapter 10, by Witness Lee)
