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Wherever we may be, we should be gathered into the Lord’s name, in our spirit, and with the cross; if we all do this, we all will meet in the same place, although we meet in different localities; this one place is the ground of the unique oneness—Deut. 12:5-6; Jer. 32:39:
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Apparently, we are divided by geography, for we meet in separate cities all over the world on the scriptural ground of locality—the practice of having one church for one city, one city with only one church—Acts 8:1; 13:1; Rev. 1:11.
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Actually, in spite of geographical separation, we all meet in the same place—in the name of the Lord Jesus, in our mingled spirit, and with the cross; this is the oneness, and this is the ground for the proper worship of God:
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Many Christians are divided by their preferences; in the Lord’s recovery we must not be for our preference but for the Lord’s presence as the Spirit of reality, the reality of His name—Matt. 18:20; 1 Cor. 1:10; Exo. 33:14.
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The fulfillment of the type in Deuteronomy 12 is not a matter of a geographical place but a matter of our spirit—John 4:21-24.
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At the entrance of the church there is the cross, and in order to meet as the church, we must experience the cross for the crucifying of the self, for the overthrowing of “reasonings and every high thing rising up against the knowledge of God” (2 Cor. 10:5), and for the exalting of Christ alone so that He may be all and in all for God’s expression and the unique testimony of oneness—Matt. 16:24; 1 Cor. 2:2; 2 Cor. 10:3-5; Col. 1:10, 18b; 3:10-11.
Morning Nourishment
Rev. 1:11 Saying, What you see write in a scroll and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamos and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.Matt. 18:20 For where there are two or three gathered into My name, there am I in their midst.
For convenience and practicality, we meet in the different cities where we live. Apparently we are divided by geography, for we meet in separate cities all over the world. Actually we remain in the oneness and are not divided, for wherever we may be, we meet in the Lord’s name, in the spirit, and with the cross.
Recently, in the prayer meeting of the church in Anaheim, there were saints present from a number of different countries.…Nobody gave a word about the subject of our prayer or about how we should pray. Nevertheless, we prayed in one accord. We could be one in such a way because, in spite of geographical separation, we all meet in the same place—in the Lord’s name, in our spirit, and with the cross. (Life-study of Deuteronomy, p. 79)
Today’s Reading
The situation with most Christians today is very different from this. They meet not in oneness but in many different denominations. Even if Christians from various denominations meet together, they may have difficulty praying together….If the believers in Christ are to be one, they must give up all denominational things and simply come together in the name of the Lord Jesus, in the spirit, and with the cross. This is the oneness, and this is the proper ground for the worship of God.Many Christians,…even though they may live in the same city,…will not meet together because they want to have their own preference. In the Lord’s recovery, we care not for our preference but for the Lord’s presence….Wherever we may be, in Anaheim or Taipei, in London or Tokyo, we should be gathered into the Lord’s name [Matt. 18:20], and we should meet in our spirit and with the cross. If we all do this, we all will meet in the same place, although we meet in different localities. This one place is the ground of the unique oneness.
In the Lord’s recovery, we have one name and one Spirit. We all meet in the name of Jesus Christ, and we all meet in the mingled spirit—in the regenerated human spirit indwelt by the Holy Spirit. We gather together in this spirit, not in our concept, desire, preference, or choice….At the entrance of the church there is the cross, and in order to meet as the church we must experience the cross. The flesh, the self, and the natural man cannot be in the church; they must be crucified. Therefore, we meet in the name of the Lord Jesus, in the mingled spirit, and with the cross. This is the place where we meet, and here we have the oneness which we endeavor to keep in the unique name of the Lord. (Life-study of Deuteronomy, pp. 79-80)
One city may have many meeting halls or districts, but there is still only one church. In a large locality the church may meet in many different places, as did the church in Jerusalem (Acts 2:46-47). In the early days the saints met in their houses, but the meeting in each house was not a church. All the meetings in the different homes were the meetings of one church….Although we may meet separately in several meeting halls on the Lord’s Day morning, and although we have prayer meetings in several dozen homes, we are still one church with one administration and one testimony. Because there is only one church in the universe, there is only one expression of the church in any given place. This is the ground of the church. The church needs to keep the principle of having one church for one place, one city with only one church; otherwise, the church will be divided. (CWWL, 1966, vol. 3, “The Revelation of Christ and the Reality of the Church,” p. 215)
Further Reading: Life-study of Deuteronomy, msg. 11; CWWL, 1966, vol. 3, pp. 213-226