THE LIVING IN THE NEW WAY
Following this, we come to see the outline of this chapter. Here, I will use very simple words to explain to you what the miraculously normal living in the new way is.
BEING REVIVED AND OVERCOMING
First, we must be revived every morning. At the end of a day is the night, and after the night is passed is the morning. Every morning we should have a revival from the Lord, a new beginning. For this reason, we should be calling on the Lord and contacting Him immediately upon rising in the morning, and enjoying the Lord and absorbing the His rich supply using two or three verses. Whether it is ten minutes or twenty minutes; it is still all right. It is like eating breakfast. At any rate, we have to eat the spiritual food every morning before the Lord so that our spirit is filled every day.
Second, we must live an overcoming life every day through calling on the Lord unceasingly (Rom. 10:12). Regardless how busy we are, we may still call from our heart, saying, “O Lord Jesus!” We also must deal with sins and be filled with the Spirit at all times (Acts 13:52). As long as there is even a little in the way of trespasses, falsehood, or sins, we should confess and ask the Lord to cleanse us with His blood so that we can maintain the condition of being filled with the Spirit. Then, we walk according to spirit (Rom. 8:4). Our outward movement is governed by the inward spirit. We also live Christ (Phil. 1:21). This is our daily life. If we would practice the foregoing three items—calling on the Lord unceasingly, dealing with sins and being filled with the Spirit at all times, and walking according to spirit—spontaneously the issue is living Christ. Then we speak the Lord everywhere at every time (2 Tim. 4:2). Whether it is in season or out of season, whether it is convenient or inconvenient, we still need to speak the Lord to people, to testify for the Lord. If we would do this, spontaneously we will live an overcoming life. The first two items are concerning ourselves that we may be equipped. The following items are the living we ought to have for our serving the Lord.
SERVING THE LORD AND PERFECTING OTHERS
Third, we must gain people by preaching the gospel. It does not matter who we are, we need to preach the gospel. To preach the gospel is our heavenly profession. We do this by visiting people twice a month for two hours each time. If all the brothers and sisters here are willing to do this, formed in teams of three, working with each other, going to preach the gospel by visiting people twice a month, then you can bring in at least one person per month. That will be twelve persons in a year. As an average, every person can gain four new ones a year.
Fourth, we must perfect the new believers. After we have baptized a new believer, we should not leave right away, but stay for half an hour to an hour to start immediately to set up a meeting in his home (Acts 2:46; 5:42). After that, we go there every few days, and then once a week. We have to lead him this way for about a year. We lead the new believers to go on in the spiritual life and to function in the meetings. We have to teach them how to speak, pray, call hymns, and speak the Lord in the meetings.
Fifth, we must lead a small number of believers by setting up group meetings. Not only do we need to go to the saints’ homes to have meetings, but we need to also lead the new believers to gradually get connected with the neighboring saints, by setting up group meetings that they can have fellowship and contact with one another. In this way they will be stabilized. Then, we lead the new believers to go on further in functioning in the group meetings by speaking for the Lord.
Sixth, we must participate in the district meetings. Finally, we also need to bring the new believers to the district meetings to help them do their best to speak for the Lord and speak forth the Lord (1 Cor. 14:26, 31). In the meetings, if anyone has a hymn, or a teaching, or a revelation, they may pour forth their portion, because we all can prophesy for the Lord one by one. We exercise to be in the same flow and to coordinate with the saints in speaking for the Lord, and we supply to perfect the saints, building up the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:12).
A LIVING FULL OF THE BLESSING
For this kind of living, the working saints should arrange their time every week properly. Every week I need to lead a home meeting and also to help out a group meeting, and then attend the Lord’s Day district meeting, plus the Tuesday prayer and service meeting. Besides this, I would go out to preach the gospel by visiting people every other week. If we would properly arrange our time, I definitely believe that doing this should be very easy. However, in order to be able to do this continuously throughout the year according to a schedule and a plan is not an easy thing. Therefore we need a kind of miraculous life and power, that is our Lord Jesus, to supply us inwardly so that we can live this kind of normal Christian life.
May we all rise up to cooperate with the Lord to receive the burden to push this matter that we may do this continuously. If there is a place with one hundred people meeting together, and forty or fifty of them are willing to practice this—going to gain people by preaching the gospel, perfecting the new believers, leading the group meetings, and attending the district meetings—then assuming that one person can bring in two new ones per year, there will be a one hundred percent increase rate. Even if they can only bring one half of that, they will still get a fifty percent increase; this is for sure. As long as everyone is willing to do this, this is a highway to us. This matter all depends on the brothers and sisters living this kind of miraculous yet normal living every day—going out, coming in, going to work, doing business, and staying at home at proper times, doing everything according to schedule in a regulated way, being revived every morning, and living an overcoming life every day. In this way, not only can we ourselves be preserved, but also it will be beneficial to others. We ourselves can have such an enjoyable church life, our Lord will get the glory, and everyone can be blessed.
(Spoken by Brother Witness Lee on April 17, 1988 in Taipei)
(Messages Given to the Working Saints, Chapter 4, by Witness Lee)
