Scripture Reading: 1 Cor. 1:23; 2:2; 12:27; 10:16-17; Rom. 6:6; 12:4-5; Acts 2:42; 1 John 1:3

DAY 1 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 2 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 3 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 4 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 5 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 6 Outline　MorningRevival

«　WEEK 3　DAY 1　»

　　Rom. 6:6 "Knowing this, that our old man has been crucified with Him…"

　　Rom. 8:13 "…If by the Spirit you put to death the practices of the body, you will live."

　　Rom. 12:5 "So we who are many are one Body in Christ, and individually members one of another."

　　The consummation of the work of the cross is the church. The work of the cross goes as far as the Body of Christ and consummates with the Body of Christ. Hence, the knowledge of the cross brings us to the knowledge of the Body of Christ. The cross brings a man to a state of weakness and inability, one in which he totally loses hope in the old creation. When he is brought to this point, he is delivered in a real way from the old creation and brought into the new creation. Everything in the old creation has been condemned and terminated by the cross. The Body of Christ is the new creation; it has nothing to do with the old creation. If we resort to human methods, tactics, and skills (which we have used in the past) to deal with the affairs of the church, the result will only be disastrous. God does not approve of anything that is from the old creation, and He will not allow anything from the old creation to remain in the new creation. Everything of the old creation must pass through the cross and remain on the cross. The church has no use for anything that comes from the old man. The church only takes that which issues from Christ. (CWWN, vol. 44, pp. 790-791)

　　When man fell, he fell because of his own concepts, choices, and judgments. Therefore, God will not allow anything that issues from the old creation to gain the upper hand. The “backbone” of the natural man must be broken; the hollow of his thigh must be touched. Before he will submit to God, he must be crippled and fall flat on his face. This is what God is doing in the new creation. He is smashing everything of the old creation, and He is constituting us with everything that issues from Christ so that we can become the Body of Christ in practicality.…God wants to remove everything in man that is from the flesh. God's children must first deal with the natural life. If they deal with their natural life, they will be in the Body spontaneously, because the Body of Christ is composed of everything that issues from Christ. Nothing of the old man can remain in the Body. As soon as a man passes through the experience in Romans 5 through 8, he can enter into the experience of Romans 12.

　　Today the church is divided because Christians are living in the wrong realm and the wrong sphere. Christians are not living in the new creation or in the reality of the Body of Christ. They are living only in the superficiality of doctrines, which belongs to man's natural life and is part of man's oldness. If every Christian was willing to be dealt with and to leave the natural things and the old creation behind, and if every one of them was willing to live in the reality of the Body of Christ, there would be no more divisions. May the Lord be merciful to us to see what the Body of Christ is. May the work of the cross usher us into the Body of Christ.

　　Romans 12 tells us that the church is the Body of Christ, but it does not explain how the church becomes the Body of Christ. In order to understand how the church becomes the Body of Christ, we have to understand Romans 5 through 8. Chapter 5 tells us that all men are joined to Adam and that man derives his life from Adam. Through Adam's fall, all men have become sinners and have been joined to the old man. Chapter 6 tells us that the old man has to be dealt with; it has to be crucified with Christ. Through Christ's redemption, we have died and resurrected. Chapter 7 says that a man should no longer live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Chapter 8 goes on to explain how we live according to the Spirit.…In order to know the Body of Christ, we have to deal with our natural life. (CWWN, vol. 44, pp. 791, 790, 793)

　　Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 44, pp. 790-793

«　WEEK 3　DAY 2　»

　　Eph. 2:16 "And might reconcile both in one Body to God through the cross, having slain the enmity it."

　　Matt. 16:24 "Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone wants to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me."

　　The work of the cross not only brings us into the Body, but also the Body becomes the very realm within which the cross works. If we were here only as a congregation, we might not need the cross. However, since we are together as the Body, we cannot go on without the cross. The cross will dig away our natural life, our own activities, and any disproportionate growth. The cross is indispensable to the church; it is indispensable among Christians. Whether or not we like it, we have to communicate with other brothers and sisters because we are all in the Body. Because we are in the Body, we have to be restricted and cannot be so free. If we were not members, we could seek our personal enjoyment. Since we are members, we cannot seek our own enjoyment anymore. If we come across a troublesome brother, we need to take up the cross. The cross will test us and sift away all our mixture and uncleanness. We must come under the restriction of the Body. The restriction of the Body will take away our freedom; it will drive us to the cross. Only after the cross has wrought a deep work in us will we be able to coordinate with the brothers and sisters. (CWWN, vol. 38, p. 408)

　　Every Christian is a member of the Body of Christ. Hence, every Christian should come under the restriction of the Body of Christ and learn to bear the cross. Some have a very strong disposition. Such a strong disposition must be broken. Some are very peculiar. Such peculiarity must also be broken. No Christian can boast of his strength or his peculiarity in the church. In the church, anything sharp, glaring, or conspicuous has to be worn away. Spiritually, we all need to depend on the other members, and we all need the restriction of the Body. God may grant grace to some to be miracle workers, and He may grant grace to others to be gospel preachers or teachers. If you can only preach the gospel, you should be satisfied with your function of preaching the gospel and humbly accept the Bible exposition of those who have the gift of teaching. If you have the gift of teaching, you should not think that you have everything; you should also honor and receive others' work. You have to learn to be restricted and allow others to do what you cannot do yourself. You have to learn to accept others' work as well as your own. In the spiritual work, no one is free to do everything.

　　Have you asked God to show you the measure He has given you? You should walk in the measure that God has given you. You can only walk within your measure; you cannot walk beyond that measure. Hence, you have to find out where the boundary of your measure is and accept this boundary. If you do this, you will not be covetous, ambitious, or restless to do many other things. Paul said, “But we will not boast beyond our measure but according to the measure of the rule which the God of measure has apportioned to us, to reach even as far as you.…We are not boasting beyond our measure in others' labors, but have the hope, as your faith is increasing, to be magnified in you according to our rule unto abundance, so that we may announce the gospel unto those parts beyond you, not so that we may boast in another man's rule in things already prepared” (2 Cor. 10:13, 15-16). To go beyond one's measure is to overstep others; it is to intrude upon others and to push others out. We must remember that consecration leads to submission to Christ, whereas humility leads to submission to the Body. The psalmist said, “Nor do I go about in things too great / Or too wondrous for me” (Psa. 131:1). Things too great and things too wondrous are the things that are beyond one's measure. If everyone behaves this way, and if no one exercises himself in great matters or in things too wondrous for him, every member will function according to the measure of each one part.(CWWN, vol. 38, pp. 409-410)

　　Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 38, ch. 54; CWWN, vol. 30, ch. 7

«　WEEK 3　DAY 3　»

　　1 Cor. 1:18 "For the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."

　　1 Cor. 2:2 "For I did not determine to know anything among you except Jesus Christ, and this One crucified."

　　1 Cor. 12:27 "Now you are the Body of Christ, and members individually."

　　We believe in the centrality of the cross, but the cross is not the end in itself. It is a divine means to a divine end. The end is the Body. When the cross has done something quite specific in our life, we find ourselves in the Body. Spontaneously, we find ourselves in the Body.

　　What constitutes us a member of the Body? If God gives us a revelation of the Body, what will be the effect on us? Will the revelation just be a new truth to expound? No, the revelation will mean a revolution! What constitutes us as members of the Body is not something we have experienced or something we have to do, it is Christ in us that constitutes us as members of the Body. It is nothing we are in ourselves that makes us a member of the Body; it is the life of the Lord in us. (CWWN, vol. 46, pp. 1190-1191)

　　The Body of Christ is Christ. Paul did not say anything wrong spiritually when he said, “As the body is one…so also is the Christ” (1 Cor. 12:12). Grammatically speaking, this is wrong; he should have said, “Christ and the church.” But the Head is the Christ, and the Body is the Christ. Everything that comes from Christ constitutes the Body, so everything that does not come from Christ must be ruled out. It cannot get into the Body. It is not a matter of “plus” ; it is all a matter of “minus.” We do not need to get anything or do anything in order to get into the Body. We only need to be stripped of all we are and have. This is where the cross comes in. The cross is the divine means in us of ruling out that which prevents us from taking our place in the Body. The things of our self, temperament, make-up, etc., must all be ruled out. God must touch these things. Some folks have a keen mind and think that they can better understand and minister the Word of God by their keen mind. No! This needs to be eliminated. Often we minister just because we have a keen mind. How many of us need salvation from our mind and the helmet of salvation for our head. The backbone of our natural strength must be broken. We must have a proper perspective on the divine things.

　　If we come to God and ask Him to show us Ephesians and what His purpose is for this age, He will certainly show us the Body. The cross points us straight to the Body, and the Body rules out everything that is of Adam. Nothing that is of us has any part in Him. We cannot add anything to our physical bodies, because they are already complete. So it is with Christ.

　　We must realize that a revelation of the Body is very costly. It will touch the very spring of your life. When this happens, the whole matter of moving as individual members ceases. There cannot be any freelancing in the Body. If I move my finger, the muscles of my arm cannot refuse to move. If my arm moves, my finger cannot but go along with it. All that is individual must go. We have to move with others and wait for others. We cannot go on alone; we have to go on with the brothers. If we expect to see the Body, the matter of other headships has to be dealt with. Other headships are interfering with the absolute lordship of Christ.

　　If we really know the cross, it will lead us into the Body. So many Christians profess to know the Lord, the deeper meaning of the cross, and the truth of the Body, and they profess to be all one in Christ. They stress that the old man must go, but there is a tragic lack in the outworking of their words. All of God's dealings with us have been with a view to prepare us for the Body. All of His work in us is a process of elimination so that we can become functioning members of the Body. (CWWN, vol. 46, pp. 1191-1193)

　　Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 46, ch. 174

«　WEEK 3　DAY 4　»

　　1 John 1:3 "That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ."

　　1 John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from every sin."

　　The circulation of the blood is the fellowship of our body. The fellowship of Christ's Body is also a kind of circulation.…The fellowship in Christ's Body…is the circulation of the Spirit. The Spirit today is the “blood” in Christ's Body. If there were no blood in our body, our body would be dried up and would be dead. Likewise, if Christ's Body did not have the Spirit, it would be like a corpse. Thus, the fellowship of the Body of Christ is simply the circulation, the current, of the Spirit—not the Holy Spirit or the Spirit of God but the Spirit.…In this Spirit there is divinity, that is, God's divine nature, and there is humanity, that is, man's human nature. There is also Christ's person, Christ's wonderful, all-inclusive death, and Christ's empowering resurrection with His ascension. All these elements have been compounded into this one Spirit. When this one Spirit is circulating within the Body of Christ, divinity, humanity, Christ's person, Christ's death, and Christ's resurrection are all circulating. (CWWL, 1990, vol. 2, “A Brief Presentation of the Lord's Recovery, “pp. 414-415)

　　The circulation of the blood is very important to our physical body. This circulation carries nourishment to every part of our body, and it also causes our body to be cherished.…Romans 10:12 says that whenever we call on the name of the Lord, the Lord becomes rich to us. I have discovered that the more we call on the Lord with a loud voice, the more our spirit is released, and the more we are healed and strengthened. Such calling on the Lord will make us very healthy because to call in this way is to exercise. If we are always quiet and shut up within ourselves, we will be very weak. But if we call, “O Lord Jesus! O Lord! O Lord, Amen, Hallelujah!” for ten minutes, the Lord will become rich to us.…The Lord is rich to all who call on Him. To call is not merely to pray. The Greek word for call means “to cry out, “even loudly. In certain situations it would not be appropriate for us to call on the Lord loudly. However, when we are in a proper situation to do so, we should call loudly, “O Lord Jesus! Amen!” By calling on the Lord in this way, we will enjoy the riches of Christ, and we will be strengthened. This is because our calling on the name of the Lord causes the Spirit to circulate within us. This circulating Spirit is the compound Spirit, who includes divinity, humanity, Christ's person, Christ's death, and Christ's resurrection.…When this Spirit circulates within us, we enjoy all of Christ's riches. This circulation is the fellowship of the Body of Christ. (CWWL, 1990, vol. 2, “A Brief Presentation of the Lord's Recovery, “p. 415)

　　The divine fellowship is the reality of living in the Body of Christ. The Lord has been frustrated throughout the centuries because of the lack of fellowship. In Revelation 22:20 the Lord Jesus said, “I come quickly, “but it has been nearly two thousand years, and the Lord is still not back. The reason is that the believers are individualistic, independent, opinionated, and divisive.…The believers seem to be like horses without bridles. Today nothing seems to control them. Actually, the divine fellowship should control the believers.

　　The one thing that should rule us is the divine fellowship. We are restricted in this fellowship. By being restricted in this fellowship, the Body of Christ is kept in oneness, and the work of the ministry continues to go on.…The thing that makes everything alive is fellowship. If we learn to fellowship, we will receive many benefits, especially in the Lord's work. (CWWL, 1990, vol. 1, “The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man, ” p. 357)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1990, vol. 2, “A Brief Presentation of the Lord's Recovery, ” pp.413-431; CWWL, 1990, vol. 1, “The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man, ” ch.17

«　WEEK 3　DAY 5　»

　　Eph. 4:3-4 "Being diligent to keep the oneness of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace: one Body and one Spirit, even as also you were called in one hope of your calling."

　　Phil. 1:5 "For your fellowship unto the furtherance of the gospel from the first day until now."

　　In Ephesians 4:4 Paul says, “One Body and one Spirit.” The Body is mentioned before the Spirit because the oneness among us is related to the Body and is for the Body. Furthermore, this verse not only reveals the uniqueness of the Body; it also shows that the one Body is determined by the one Spirit. Because there is one Spirit, there is one Body. There is not another Body because there is not another Spirit. We must keep the unique oneness of the Body because the Body and the Spirit are one.

　　Moreover, there is only one circulation, one fellowship, of life in the Body. This circulation is the fellowship of the Body of Christ. All the local churches need to be in this unique fellowship. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 2185-2186)

　　Among all the churches that compose the one universal Body of Christ, there is no organization, but there is the fellowship of the Body of Christ. This means that in the proper church life there is no organization, but there is much fellowship. Just as the human body does not have organization but does have circulation, so we should not have organization, but we should have fellowship. If all the churches stay in this circulation, in the fellowship of the Body, they will be healthy. However, the natural human thought is either to have organization or to have nothing to do with others. On the one hand, we should not have any organization among the churches; on the other hand, we should be open to have fellowship with all the churches. However, the church in a certain locality or the churches in a particular region may not be willing to have fellowship with other churches. This attitude is absolutely wrong. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 2186)

　　We are even very short of fellowship with the churches who are close to us geographically. There is very little circulation. If my shoulder were not participating adequately in the blood circulation of my body, it would be sick. No part of my physical body can be separate from the other parts since all the parts must participate in the one blood circulation. Some may think that they are wise to keep themselves separate. But if any part of the Body of Christ is separate, that part will eventually die. The best way to stay healthy is to “receive more blood and to give more blood, “that is, to stay in the fellowship, the circulation of life. Then we will save ourselves and promote the healing of the Body. In some places there has been no peace because of a lack of fellowship. The more fellowship we have, the more peace we have. The reason many people are weak physically is that they sit too much. They do not move. It is the same spiritually. We are sick and weak because we remain with ourselves, in ourselves, and for ourselves.…We need to get out of ourselves by fellowshipping with the other churches. If we want to get helped, the secret is to go to see some brothers in another locality. The brothers in Texas…need to go to…Cleveland and Seattle and break the boundary of Texas.

　　The local churches should fellowship with all the genuine local churches on the whole earth to keep the universal fellowship of the Body of Christ. Any local church that does not keep this universal fellowship of the Body of Christ is divisive and becomes a local sect. Some so-called local churches are not genuine and have become divisions; we do not need to fellowship with such “churches.” But we should have fellowship with all the genuine local churches on the whole earth to keep the universal fellowship of the Body of Christ. If not, we are no longer a church but a sect. A church is one that remains in the Body; a sect is a group of believers who divide themselves from the Body. When my arm remains in the body, it is a part of my living body. If it is cut off and separated from the body, it becomes a dead thing. (CWWL, 1990, vol. 2, “A Brief Presentation of the Lord's Recovery, “pp. 418-419, 421)

　　Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 204

«　WEEK 3　DAY 6　»

　　1 Cor. 10:16-17 "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the fellowship of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the fellowship of the body of Christ? Seeing that there is one bread, we who are many are one Body; for we all partake of the one bread."

　　Around the globe there is only one Christian fellowship—the fellowship of the apostles with the Triune God. This fellowship is expressed at the Lord's table. When we eat the bread, we participate in the fellowship of the body of Christ, and when we drink the cup, we participate in the fellowship of the Lord's blood (1 Cor. 10:16). The Lord's body and blood are unique, and the fellowship of Christ's body and blood is also unique. By partaking of the one bread, we have become the mystical Body of Christ (v. 17). Therefore, this universal fellowship is the fellowship of the Body of Christ. It is the fellowship passed on to us by the apostles. Hence, it is the apostles' fellowship, and this fellowship is with the Triune God. Such a fellowship must be universal. In administration the churches are separate locally, but in fellowship they are united to be one universally. (CWWL, 1984, vol. 4, “Vital Factors for the Recovery of the Church Life, ” pp. 495-496)

　　In 1 Corinthians 10:16 fellowship refers to the believers' communion in the joint participation in the body and blood of Christ. This makes us, the participants of the Lord's blood and body, one not only with one another but also with the Lord. We, the participants, make ourselves identified with the Lord in the fellowship of His blood and body.

　　In verse 17 Paul speaks a strong word concerning the one bread and the one Body, saying that we are one bread, one Body, because we all partake of the one bread. Our joint partaking of the one bread makes us all one. This indicates that our partaking of Christ makes us all His one Body. The very Christ of whom we all partake constitutes us into His one Body.

　　If we isolate ourselves from the fellowship of the Body, we are not qualified to partake of the Lord's body, because the loaf on the table in the Lord's supper signifies the entire Body of Christ. To be sure, the loaf signifies the Lord's physical body sacrificed for us on the cross. This is one aspect of the significance of the bread. Another aspect of this significance is that the bread signifies the one Body. Hence, when we come together to partake of the Lord's table, we need to realize that the bread, the loaf, signifies all the churches. If the church in our locality or the churches in a particular region are isolated from the fellowship of the Body of Christ, we lose the ground and also the right to partake of this loaf. Whenever we come to the Lord's table, we come to practice the fellowship of the Body. The Lord's table is not simply a remembrance of the Lord; it is also a testimony that we who belong to Christ are one.

　　The fellowship of the Body of Christ is expressed and practiced in our partaking of Christ's blood and body at the Lord's table (1 Cor. 10:16, 21). As we partake of the table of the Lord, we need to realize that this partaking is a fellowship, a participation, in the fellowship of the Lord's Body. We drink the cup of the Lord and partake of the table of the Lord. The cup, which is the cup of blessing, is a fellowship of the blood of Christ, and the bread is a fellowship of the body of Christ. Christ, the all-inclusive One, has given His body for us to eat and His blood for us to drink that we may enjoy Him. As such an all-inclusive One presenting Himself to us for our enjoyment, Christ is the embodiment of the processed Triune God who through death and resurrection has become the life-giving Spirit. Today the One who presents His body and blood to us is Christ as the life-giving Spirit. As we enjoy Him in partaking of His blood and body at His table, we express and practice the fellowship of the Body of Christ, the unique fellowship among the churches. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 2180-2181, 2184)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1984, vol. 4, “Vital Factors for the Recovery of the Church Life, “ch. 4; The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 203; Life-study of 1 Corinthians, msgs. 49, 53-54