«　WEEK 7　DAY 2　»

　　Eph. 1:23 Which is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all.

　　Gal. 1:2 ….to the churches of Galatia:

　　In the church life,…. some Christians are like butterflies; they act independently. Others are like bees; they live and move together. The butterfly flies from flower to flower, going its own sweet way; but the bee works for the hive. The butterfly lives and works individually, but the bee has a body-consciousness. We should all be like bees, having the consciousness of the Body so that we can live together with other members in the Body of Christ. Wherever there is Body-revelation, there is Body-consciousness, and wherever there is Body-consciousness, individual thought and action are automatically ruled out.

　　The Body of Christ is not only universal; it is also local. Every local church is the manifestation of the Body of Christ in that locality. All of the riches of Christ are vested in the local church…. The entire company of believers in a locality, not just a section of the believers, constitutes the church in that locality. The church is not one member; it represents the whole Body in a locality. Hence, when we touch the local church, we touch the Body. Participating in the fellowship of the local church is participating in the fellowship of the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ is not something abstract or unfathomable; the Body of Christ is manifested in the local churches. Anyone who wants to live in the Body in a practical way has to be in the local churches. He should fellowship with the local saints, be edified in the local church, and be built up together in mutuality. (The Mystery of Christ, pp 17, 69)

　　Churches' appearing, is on one hand in a locality within the jurisdiction of a city, and on the other hand, based on the one church one locality principle. At each locality, there can only be one church… In a small locality, there is one church. In a large locality, there can only be one church as well. Jerusalem is a large city with many people. But there can be only one church there… The cities in Asia, though small and with less people, should have one church at each locality, but cannot have one church for two localities. In the Bible, there is only the church in Jerusalem and the church in Antioch (Acts 8:1, 13:1, the “church” at these localities is singular in original text.) There are no churches in Jerusalem and churches in Antioch. …Church should be one per locality.

　　On the other hand, when a region or a province is mentioned in the Bible, because many localities are included, therefore “the churches” of that region or province are mentioned. The “churches” are plural. For instance, in Acts 15:41, there is mentioning of “the churches in Syria and Cilicia.” In Galatians 1:2 and 1 Corinthians 16:1, there is mentioning of “the churches of Galatia”. …in verse 19 there is mentioning of “the churches of Asia.” 2 Corinthians 8:1 mentions “the churches of Macedonia.” …the churches' appearing is local and based on the principle of one church one locality. (Knowing the Church, pp 20-22)

　　since I left mainland China in 1949, about three hundred eighty churches have been raised up on five continents through this ministry…. What God needs on earth today is the practical expression of the mystical Body of Christ…. The future of the Lord's recovery is glorious. I surely believe that whatever the Lord has spoken in the New Testament will be fulfilled. There is no doubt that the Lord is working to recover, to gain, His mystical Body. We need to discern His Body and remain in the Body so that we may enjoy the Spirit for God's administration. (Life-study of 1 Corinthians, p 624)