Outline
C
God’s blessing is based on our one accord, being in harmony in spirit with one another, having real coordination, and having genuine oneness—Acts 1:14:
１
When we minister the word, fellowship, and pray, we should not criticize others; in particular, when we pray with others, we should avoid praying in a contradictory manner.
２
We must absolutely avoid criticizing others in the ministry of the word; criticizing others shows that we are narrow, and this will lead to division.
３
We always need to have an attitude of respect, cooperation, and coordination with others; we should serve others according to our portion and honor the portion of others, because both portions have been entrusted to us by the Lord; everyone should have the humility to not regard his portion more highly than another person’s portion—Phil. 2:3-4.
４
The brothers need to learn the lesson of being broken, accommodating others, and respecting others’ function; only in this way can we preserve the consciousness of the Body and produce the building among us.
５
We should all be of one soul to pray for, supply, and support whoever is speaking a message; if those who serve the Lord are continually disagreeing instead of being in one accord, the enemy, the saints, and even the children will know it.
６
We should not give the saints the impression that our speaking is higher than that of others; instead, the saints should have the impression that our speaking is in harmony with the speaking of others.
７
When a brother speaks, some may be critical and say in their heart, “I know this already”; this kind of spirit is destructive to God’s work.
８
Because the faithful saints are observing us, we must be careful not to do anything or say anything that stirs up their concern for us and for the Lord’s recovery—1 Cor. 1:10; 2 Cor. 12:18; 1 Tim. 4:12; Titus 2:7-8.
９
Pride invites destruction, but humility brings in blessing—Prov. 16:18; 1 Pet. 5:5.
10
A reason for the lack of building among the serving ones is that they are short of love for one another:
ａ
The Lord’s word to us and His prayer for us were to love one another—John 13:34-35; 15:12, 17.
ｂ
There should be an extraordinary love among the serving ones; such love for one another comes from our oneness with the Lord.
ｃ
The elders and co-workers should shepherd one another and love one another to be a model of the Body life—21:15-17; 1 Pet. 1:22.
Morning Nourishment
Phil. 2:3-4 Doing nothing by way of selfish ambition nor by way of vainglory, but in lowliness of mind considering one another more excellent than yourselves; not regarding each his own virtues, but each the virtues of others also.When we serve together, we must absolutely avoid criticizing others in the ministry of the word. Some may speak about prayer and others about meditating; some may speak of being zealous and others of being in the Holy of Holies. These are not heretical teachings; they are merely different in emphasis. Criticizing others shows that we are narrow, and this will lead to division. If this is the way we work, there will be no building among us; on the contrary, there will be destruction.
We should simply labor positively and learn to receive help from others. We should realize that no one can do our part…However, we also need to admit that we cannot replace others. Every person has his own function. When we minister the word, fellowship, and pray, we should not criticize others. In particular, when we pray with others, we should avoid praying in a contradictory manner. (CWWL, 1957, vol. 2, “The Administration of the Church and the Ministry of the Word,” pp. 243-244)
Today’s Reading
We need to respect the ways of the ones with whom we serve. Even though the elders will not force a group to study a certain book or speak certain things, we should not casually change what they commit to us…It is all right to study either John or 1 Thessalonians; it does not matter which book is studied…In our service we should always avoid changing the ways of others. Changing the way others do things indicates that we have not learned many spiritual lessons. It also indicates that we are inexperienced in the way we conduct ourselves.Some brothers lead the saints to serve fervently, hoping that they can spend more time to learn to fellowship with the Lord and to know the indwelling Spirit. We should not change their practice. We should even praise them, saying that it is good to love the Lord and be fervent. However, our praise should not be insincere. It should positively supplement their labor. We always need to have an attitude of respect, cooperation, and coordination with others. We should serve according to our portion and honor the portion of others, because both portions have been entrusted by the Lord. Everyone should have the humility to not regard his portion higher than another person’s. We should take care of others’ feelings. Unless they speak heresy and create problems for the work and the church, we should always respect them, be accommodating toward them, and receive help from them.
May the Lord grant us grace to see that this is a matter of life that involves being broken and being humble. Those who can reach a goal without forcing others to take their way are truly humble. As those who love the Lord, we desire to live for Him and build up the church. These goals are right, but there are many ways to reach these goals. For example, preaching the gospel with a brother is a good goal that can be done according to his way or according to our way. We receive the blessing when we do not force others to do things our way. If we have spiritual content, we can minister his way, and if he has spiritual content, he can minister our way. Both ways are acceptable.
The brothers need to learn the lesson of being broken, accommodating others, and respecting others’ function. Our Lord is great, and His work has many aspects. Thus, we must be faithful to what the Lord has entrusted us with and learn to work in coordination with others, respecting what they do. Unless they speak heresy, we should not interfere, intervene, or criticize. Only in this way can we preserve the consciousness of the Body and produce the building among us. (CWWL, 1957, vol. 2, “The Administration of the Church and the Ministry of the Word,” pp. 244-246)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1984, vol. 2, “Elders’ Training, Book 4: Other Crucial Matters concerning the Practice of the Lord’s Recovery,” ch. 5