THE NEED OF MEETING HALLS
AND PERIODIC CONFERENCES
We have to anticipate that as we cooperate with the Lord to carry out His ordained way, we will gain a substantial increase. This is why we need the meeting halls. When our number is low, we do not need a hall, but when we gain a certain amount of increase, it is good for all the saints to gather together. When we gain the proper increase, our meeting halls will become very useful. Regardless of how large a local church becomes, there is still the need for the whole church to come together periodically. Such a gathering will be a great stirring up and encouragement to the saints.
In the Lord’s new move in the churches, we need the home meetings, the truth lessons, the Lord’s table, the prayer meeting, and we also need big meetings periodically to gather all the new ones together. We need periodic conferences with all the new converts. For the new ones just to meet in homes to receive nourishment and to learn the truth in the group meetings will not be fully adequate to make them so living and equipped to bear more burden for the Lord. For the long run, they also need to be gathered together for a conference with all of the saints. This kind of gathering stirs up and encourages the saints. This opens the eyes of the seeking ones to see something further. Otherwise, they will remain in their homes, and they will not receive a broader view of the Lord’s move.
LEARNING AND TEACHING THE TRUTH
We also have to admit our failure in the teaching of the truth. The Lord has given us many truths, but not many of these truths have been imparted into the saints. We must change our way of teaching the truths. In 2 Timothy 2:2 Paul told Timothy, "The things which you have heard from me through many witnesses, these commit to faithful men, who will be competent to teach others also." Some may want to do the teaching by themselves, having no trust in others. We surely have to change. If someone in a local church has a deposit of the Lord’s healthy words, he should train the faithful ones that they too may have a good deposit from the Lord and be competent to teach others. All of the saints should be those who are learning and teaching the truth. This is why we published the series of books entitled Truth Lessons. It is possible that these lessons can be used for a group meeting in the homes of the saints every week. Assigned teachers are not needed because each lesson is fully explained. We can read them and impress ourselves with the content.
All of us need to be absolute for the God-ordained way, totally abandoning the old way. If we try to "put our feet in two boats," we will end up in the water. We should determine which boat we want to be in—the boat of the new way or the boat of the old way. The "new boat" works better. For all the saints to meet in their homes and for them to get into Truth Lessons week after week in the group meeings will be very fruitful. Then every family will be revived. The saints will be brought into function. They will work for the Lord by preaching the gospel to their relatives and their neighbors. When the saints are meeting in their homes every week according to the God-ordained way, each home can bring in at least one new one a year. It is even possible for each home to bring in six persons a year. We need to take this new way for the increase of the church.
All of the saints need to learn to teach the truth. They can learn the truth by getting into Truth Lessons. I composed these lessons to make every member of the church a teacher of the truth and a speaker of the truth. After getting into these lessons for half a year in a regular way, the saints will be equipped to speak. The saints can come together to read these lesson books. They can read one lesson a week. After a year, they can finish reading forty-eight lessons. This will be very fruitful for the church life. The God-ordained way will make all the members of the church functioning members.
The Lord has given us all the truths and has brought His recovery to the United States to be a center of His recovery. We need to give ourselves to see the truths of the Lord’s recovery spread to the entire earth. All the dear Christians need the same truths. We have to go out to send them the truths also. We should not try to get them to come out of the denominations to join us. We are not for this. We are for the spreading of the truths that the Lord’s people may be enlightened, nourished, and edified. We have to believe that the truth wins, and the Lord’s words will do a marvelous job. This is the right way to spread the Lord’s recovery without any sectarianism. Whether other Christians would come to meet with us or not is up to them. The local churches have to comprise all the saints.
(Elders' Training, Book 09: The Eldership and the God-Ordained Way (1), Chapter 1, by Witness Lee)
