Ⅳ
We need to take care of the saints in everything and in every way for the dispensing of Christ into them:
A
The elders must minister Christ to meet the need of all kinds of people, contacting and visiting them regularly and inviting them to their home for meals—1 Tim. 5:1-2; 2 Chron. 1:10; Col. 1:28-29; Jude 12; John 12:1-11.
B
We must contact the saints and minister Christ to them as the sin-dealing life; the life of Christ is a life that deals with sin, a sin-dealing life—Lev. 10:17:
１
If we are going to minister Christ to a person who has been committing sins, we have to trust in the Lord that we may have the grace with the Spirit to soften his hardened heart—Rom. 2:4; Titus 3:3-4; cf. Heb. 3:13.
２
We do not need to mention his weakness, fault, or sin, because the life of Christ ministered into him will heal him, killing the germs, destroying the problems, and building up a permanent, lasting oneness of the Spirit.
３
We have to do our best to recover a fallen saint; even if it took eight months or a year to get one or two sinful saints recovered, this would be a great thing—Gal. 6:1-2; 1 John 5:16a.
４
This is to bear away the iniquity and solve the problems of the people of God; furthermore, this kind of ministry by the Spirit and in love will maintain the oneness of the Spirit in the church life—Col. 3:12-15.
Morning Nourishment
Lev. 10:17 Why have you not eaten the sin offering in the place of the sanctuary? For it is most holy, and He gave it to you to bear the iniquity of the assembly, to make expiation for them before Jehovah.Heb. 3:13 But exhort one another each day, as long as it is called “today,” lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
If you know that someone has committed some sins, you have to pray for him and learn to minister Christ as the sin-dealing life to him that he may deal with his sins…. First, you yourself must be dealt with by enjoying Christ’s sin-dealing life. Then you must minister such a Christ as the sin-dealing life to others…. Leviticus tells us that the priests were to eat the sin offering in the holy place that they might “bear the iniquity of the assembly, to make expiation for them before Jehovah” (10:17). As you are enjoying Christ as the sin-dealing life, you must have the capacity to bear the iniquity of God’s people. You must learn to minister Christ to the dear ones who are in sin.
To minister Christ as the sin-dealing life to someone is not to go to him to point out his fault and condemn him. This will only cause damage…. A person who sins usually has his heart hardened (Heb. 3:13). If you are going to minister Christ to him, you have to trust in the Lord that you may have the grace with the Spirit to soften his hardened heart. You have to soften his heart and warm up his heart. Then the very Christ as life will be actually, really, and richly ministered to him, and this life, which is the Spirit, will work within him. You do not need to mention his fault, because the life that gets into him as the life supply will do a lot….This is the way to get rid of the sins among some saints. (CWWL, 1988, vol. 3, “A Timely Word,” pp. 54-55)
Today’s Reading
The work to recover the sinful saints takes time. It cannot be quick. You have to be patient. Even if it took eight months or a year to get one or two sinful saints recovered, that would be a great thing. Galatians 6:1 says that when a brother is overtaken in some offense, those who are spiritual should restore him. We have to do our best to recover a fallen saint. Out of one hundred saints meeting together, maybe two or three are living in a sinful situation. Since you are enjoying Christ, you can pick up the burden to take care of one of them. Another brother may have a burden for the same person. Then you and he can fellowship about this one saint and work together to help him. If you two can work together for half a year to get this sinful brother recovered, this is a great, great help to the church life. This kind of ministry is the element for us to maintain the oneness of the Spirit in the church life.The oneness can be maintained only in love by the Spirit. Criticism only builds up division and destroys the oneness…. After six months of your ministering Christ as the sin-dealing life to [a brother], his problem may be gone. This is not only to bear the iniquity of the people of God but also to solve the problems of the people of God. Furthermore, this is a practical way to maintain the oneness of the Spirit among the saints.
Let us all be diligent to keep the oneness and endeavor to live a life of love in the church life. Love builds up, but knowledge kills (1 Cor. 8:1; 2 Cor. 3:6). Always live a life in love. Whether or not you go to help a certain one is secondary. The primary thing is to love all the saints, whether they are good or bad, with the same love. We have a tendency to love the stronger saints but not the weaker ones. We must love all the saints with the same love. As long as someone is a saint, he is a member in the church, and we should love him with the same love with which we love the other saints. This will kill the germs, destroy the problems, and build up a permanent, lasting oneness of the Spirit. (CWWL, 1988, vol. 3, “A Timely Word,” pp. 55-56)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1988, vol. 3, “A Timely Word,” ch. 1; CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “How to Be a Co-worker and an Elder and How to Fulfill Their Obligations,” ch. 4