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Additional Quotes about the Local Church by Witness Lee and Watchman Nee
In these last days the Lord is going to vindicate His
way by means of the rich Word and the living Spirit. Where is the Lord? He is
wherever there is the rich Word and the living Spirit. Nothing else can be
considered as signs of the Lord’s presence. If we meet without the riches of
the Word and without the livingness of the Spirit and yet claim to meet in the
name of the Lord, our claim is meaningless. It is vanity. There is no
confirmation, no reality, to back up what we say. There is no need for us to
claim that we are the church. As long as we have the rich Word and the living
Spirit, that is the vindication that we are the church. Where the Lord Jesus
is, there you will find the rich Word and the living Spirit.
(Witness Lee, LS of John, 126-127)
Many difficulties arise in the church today because
God’s children sacrifice the truth. A local church became divided after a
brother said, “I had no intention to be separated from you, but last night
something happened in the church, and I was not informed of it. Today I will
no longer meet with you.” The truth is absolute. If the brother’s separation
of himself was right, he should have done so even if he had been informed of
the matter. Likewise, if the brother’s separation of himself was wrong, he
should not have done so even when he was not informed of the matter. If he is
absolute for the truth, the act of informing him bears no significance. If his
separation is based on a lack of informing, man has been elevated above the
truth. Another place wanted to have separate tables and to break bread
separately because a brother was offended when he asked a question in the
meeting and did not receive an answer. If it was right for him to separate
himself, he should have started another table much sooner. If it was wrong for
him to separate himself, he should not make an excuse of not receiving an
answer to his question. This is what it means to be absolute to the truth. If
having separate tables is according to the truth, there should be separate
tables, even if the brothers are attached to one another. If having separate
tables is not according to the truth, there should not be separate tables,
even if there are offenses. Brothers and sisters, have you seen this? We must
deny all forms of self before we can serve the Lord. If there is any pride,
selfishness, or thought of receiving respectable treatment as a condition for
upholding God’s word, we are putting ourselves above God’s truth; we are
saying that we are more important than His truth. This disqualifies us from
His service. In our service to the Lord, we have to deny ourselves absolutely.
Whether or not we like what is happening and whether or not we feel hurt about
something have nothing to do with the issue. If something must be done one
way, it must be done that way no matter how we feel. Even if we suffer greatly
by doing so, we still have to do it. Even if others mistreat us, despise us,
or count us worthless, we still have to do it. We cannot force God’s truth to
go our way just because we want to go that way. Man is too bold; he always
forces God’s truth to follow him.
(Watchman Nee, Collected Works, Set 3, Vol.
52, 153-154)
Question: Concerning the ground of the church, we
have said that there should be only one church in a city, because there is
only one unit. Some people, however, speak of “the church in a house,” quoting
the Scriptures as their basis, as being an additional unit to the locality.
They imply that the church may possibly have several units in a locality. What
should we say to this kind of statement?
Answer: The New Testament has a total of four
passages which refer to “the church in a house,” that is, in a
home.
Romans 16:5
“And greet the church, which is in their house.”
“Their” refers to Prisca and Aquila mentioned in verse 3. Here the fact is
simple. The church in Rome, like hundreds and thousands of other local
churches, first started in the house of a brother. This means that the
principal members of such a house were brothers and sisters in the Lord. At
the same time, there were not many members in the church; therefore, they used
this brother’s house for their meeting place. This is a historical matter, not
a doctrinal matter. It is possible to give an explanation for a doctrine, but
it is impossible to give an explanation for historical events, because
historical events are facts. Anyone who is acquainted with history knows that
hundreds and thousands of churches first started in homes. Therefore, the
church in a certain place became the church in a certain person’s house. The
church in Rome was the church in Prisca and Aquila’s home.
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