Fellowship: Critical and Crucial yet Comforting

Since the past few weeks, I have been experiencing a series of serious fellowship with a few brothers concerning their spiritual situation that also very much affected their daily living. The fellowships were very critical in nature, but they very crucial too as it affected their lives so much. And the fellowship towards the end were all very comforting.

All these fellowships were initiated by the persons themselves. As a brother, I opened myself to them and carefully listened to whatever they had to say. As I learned from Br. Watchman Nee, I listened carefully with my ears outwardly and prayed inwardly with my spirit for the Lord's light and revelation concerning each of them. I also tried to discern what was the actual situation and what was the Lord’s feeling concerning each case. I also learned to listened to what they did not say but was lying hidden beneath their tongues. It was a good exercise of my spirit to touch their spirits and also exercised to be one spirit with the Lord.

After listening to whatever they had to say, I expressed the feeling the Lord gave me deep within to each one of them. As I fellowshipped with them, I enjoyed the Lord flow of life and I believe it was the Lord who spoke to each one according to their need. I had much clarity and light within, as I released the burden the Lord gave me for each one of them. I believe, the Lord gave me this experience of being one spirit with the Lord. Then, I enjoyed praying together with each one of them and sensed the flow of life according to their situation. Each one of them went through different situations and each one's need were different.

I also have been reminded by the Lord about not usurping the headship of Christ. Therefore, I did not give them any direction as to what they should do. But to each one, I encouraged them to go before the Lord and submit themselves fully to the Lord. They should simply trust the Lord in their situation and honor the sovereignty of the Lord. I also warned each one of them not to make decision on their own nor do things on their own. But trust the Lord wholly for His work upon each one of them through their situation. The will of the Lord be done and not their own will. 

I do believe they will honor the fellowship and the Lord will preserve each one of them for His divine purpose. I do believe that they will give up their own opinions and feelings and follow the Lord's leading at all cost. May the Lord grace each one of them and gain them to be useful vessels to the Lord.

Life Lesson: God Rescues

Today, one of my greatest mistakes I ever made in my official decision-making was rectified. I took a shortcut route to make things easier and ended up entangled in over a year's period of regrets for not making the best decision. Anyhow, God has been sovereign in leading me to experience Him more deeply. He finally arranged a way for me to fully come out of this situation. The matter is simple, the shortest way is the longest way, and the easiest way is the most difficult way.

In 2019, as a company, we imported a container of Bibles and ministry books from USA. As soon as the cargo arrived at our godown, Covid 19 struck and the whole world was locked down for over a period of a year or so. But before India locked down, we delivered all the special orders to all our customers. During the lockdown period, though we could hardly make any sales of books, what were sold on installment were paid back monthly which became our source of income to keep us floating even when there was barely any business. Thank the Lord for His sovereign provision!

For the payback of the bill amount, I made a decision to adjust with our quarterly budget installment from our parent entity to which we provided literature service. In about two years period, all the bills were paid for. But the mistake I made was that I did not use the bank to pay back the bill, so in the record of the local and central bank, the bills remain unpaid though we actually paid in full to our parent entity. The outward remittance was not carried out but the bills were all paid for by adjusting with the service we rendered. As far as our company and our parent entity are concerned, all bills were cleared. But with the records in the banks, they were still pending. Therefore, every month we receive a reminder for payment from the bank.

I really thought I made the biggest blunder of my life. I even repented before the Lord for this mistake. But the Lord made a way out for me. In 2022, we purchased another bulk copy of New Testament in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Mizo. They were all printed in India so there was no import involved. But the bills were in our company’s name. So, to pay these bills off, these 2019 imported books bills became a channel to pay. Though the route was clear we did not have enough funds then. Only this month beginning, we completed an export to a company in Africa that bought bulk books from us. This amount together with all the sales of the New Testament Recovery Version till date gave us enough money to clear all these pending bills. After so much process in getting documents, today we were able to pay off successfully, giving a big relief from the condemning thought in mind. Finally, it has all been cleared!

I learned very important lessons in life; to never take shortcuts nor compromise on any work in order to get things done more easily. I am so thankful to the Lord for leading me through this and providing the means to sort this matter once and for all. I have learned a lot, spiritually and officially, how to do things in the proper and righteous way all the time.

Thank You, Lord, for this experience of learning from You and gaining You through all these life experiences. 

Lord, You are sovereign. I worship You for Your ways in perfecting me even when I make mistakes. Thank You, Lord!

Amen and Amen

In the recent fellowship with a  brother, though the response from the saints was not initially strong, that became a trigger point to bring forth the need to exercise our spirit in the meeting and receive the ministry of the word with resounding amens and amens. This is not a religious declaration nor a ritualist formality. But a genuine agreement in one accord with the word that has been ministered. A proper Christian meeting should not be uni-directional but multi-directional. The minister ministers the word, and the recipients receive the word not merely as coming from the minister but in agreement with the minister himself. Meaning, the minister's ministry of the words is the ministered ministry of the word too. It is only that one minister and the other receives and the recipients too minister by being one with the minister himself. Therefore, the ministry of the word is multi-directional. Though in a ministry message meeting, one seems to minister, actually all ministers together in oneness with the one who ministers. The minister and the ministered are all one. The minister may minister according to the Lord's burden imparted to him, but all the saints receive the ministry not merely as recipients but also in oneness with the minister by simply amening the ministry of the word. This is the significance of the saints opening their mouths wide and the Lord feeding them with His word through the minister. 

“I am Jehovah your God, Who brought you up out of the land of Egypt; Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.” (Psalms 81:10, RecVer)

This reveals that in the church meetings during the apostle’s time, when one prayed, all the others said Amen, even “the Amen” with emphasis. 

“For as many promises of God as there are, in Him is the Yes; therefore also through Him is the Amen to God, for glory through us to God.” (2 Corinthians 1:20, RecVer)

When we say Amen before God to the fact that Christ is the Yes, the fulfillment, of all the promises of God, God is glorified through us.

In the Old Testament time too, there was the practice of saying amen to the word of God. 

“And Ezra blessed Jehovah the great God; and all the people answered, Amen, Amen, lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshipped Jehovah with their faces to the ground.” (Nehemiah 8:6, RecVer) 

So that he who blesses himself in the earth will bless himself in the God of faithfulness, and he who swears in the earth will swear by the God of faithfulness; Because the former troubles are forgotten and because they are hidden from My sight. (Isaiah 65:16)  

Lit., the God of Amen (twice in this verse); “i.e., the God who turns what He promises into Yea and Amen (2 Cor. 1:20)” (Keil and Delitzsch). Rev. 19:4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshipped God, who sits upon the throne, saying, Amen, Hallelujah! 

I was helped to understand based on the word of God that I must exercise my spirit to receive the ministry of the word by amening the word of God. This is a sign of a normal and living  Christian meeting.

“Otherwise if you bless with the spirit, how shall he who fills the place of the unlearned in tongues say the Amen at your giving of thanks, since he does not know what you are saying?” (1 Corinthians 14:16, RecVer)

Always amen the word of God by saying, "Amen!"

Good Land Flowing With Milk and Honey

“Your lips drip fresh honey, my bride; Honey and milk are under your tongue; And the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.” (Song of Solomon 4:11, RecVer)

“In my heart I have treasured up Your word That I might not sin against You.” (Psalms 119:11, RecVer)

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:16, RecVer)

The constitution of the word of God is not an overnight matter but gathered through accumulation over a long period of time. During this long period of gathering, the Lord also will work on us inwardly with much inward activity now and then. This adds up to careful storage over a long period of time. This will thus become our unique possession of the faithful word and healthy teaching. 

For the gathering, we must pay the price and spend time reading and studying the word of God even with the help of the ministry of the word. This must be followed by the inward activity of the Spirit's move in our inward being. Without such an inward activity of the Lord, all our outward knowledge and services would not value much to God or to the saints. We must have a lot of inward activities which we must further sustain in the Holy Spirit. In the course of time, we can bring up the old treasures collected and use them under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. This is the honey and milk under the tongue and our lips can drip fresh honey whenever needed to whoever needs them. It will be fresh bread and oil to the hearer. This is the treasure the psalmist referred to in the Old Testament, "In my heart I have treasured up Your word." In the New Testament, it is "the word of Christ dwelling in you richly." To have such indwelling treasure is to be rich in the Lord for ourselves and also for our brothers and sisters. This is to be a good minister of Christ.

Now, I understand why the good land promised by the Lord for His people is a land flowing with milk and honey. The physical description of all the riches of the good land are types of the different aspects of the unsearchable riches of Christ. We must experience and enjoy the Lord in all the aspects of the riches of the good land.

“But I have said to you, You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey. I am Jehovah your God, who has separated you from the peoples.” (Leviticus 20:24, RecVer)

“For Jehovah your God is bringing you to a good land, a land of waterbrooks, of springs and of fountains, flowing forth in valleys and in mountains; A land of wheat and barley and vines and fig trees and pomegranates; a land of olive trees with oil and of honey; A land in which you will eat bread without scarcity; you will not lack anything in it; a land whose stones are iron, and from whose mountains you can mine copper. And you shall eat and be satisfied, and you shall bless Jehovah your God for the good land which He has given you.” (Deuteronomy 8:7-10, RecVer)

Now that we have been saved and that Christ the good land flowing with milk and honey lives in us. Therefore, we must labor on Him day and night to extract all the unsearchable riches of Christ. Then store up these riches of Christ as our rich treasure to supply to the needy ones in time of need. To the extent that our lips must drip fresh honey, honey and milk are in our tongues, treasuring up God's word and making Christ dwell in us richly.

Lord, may I enjoy Your unsearchable richness flowing with milk and honey all the days of my life.

Good Minister of Christ

One of the messages in the recent ITERO, Manila training impressed me deeply on my need to be a good minister of Christ. This message is based on what Paul wrote to Timothy. 

1 Timothy 4:6-8; 15,16

If you lay these things before the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, being nourished with the words of the faith and of the good teaching which you have closely followed. But the profane and old-womanish myths refuse, and exercise yourself unto godliness. For bodily exercise is profitable for a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the present life and of that which is to come. Faithful is the word and worthy of all acceptance. Practice these things; be in them, that your progress may be manifest to all. Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; continue in these things; for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

Based on the message of the brother who ministered the word and also on truth points presented in the Bible and the outline of the message, I composed a hymn as my personal enjoyment of the message and also an encouragement to become a minister of Christ Jesus. This message was respoken and emphasized again during the serving ones training we had in New Delhi right after the live training which I was graced to attend in Manila. Therefore, I was all the more encouraged to learn and be perfected to be a good minister of Christ Jesus. The hymn is below. Perhaps, it may need more polishing.

Service: Good Minister of Christ
Composed on 6 October 2023
The message in the ITERO Oct 2023, Manila, Philippines, impressed me a lot on the need to live and serve according to God’s economy, on being “A Good Minister of Christ.”

Key: Bb Major
Time:3/4
Meter:12.8.12.8. with chorus.
Hymn Code:345465556576
Tune #1191 “From My Spirit Within”
 
1) Good minister of Christ is first nourished by Christ,
By eating God’s word as his food;
Goes and speaks faithful words to the saints to supply,
Riches of Christ, spiritual food.
 
     Lord, make me Your minister of life-
     A good minister of Christ Jesus,
     Ministering the sweet flow of life
     By exercising my spirit thus.
 
2) Good minister of Christ sacrifices himself,
Stands absolutely for the truth;
Takes the truth faithfully as his unique standard,
Bless’d by going along with the truth.
 
3) Good minister of Christ speaks oracle of God,
Steward of varied grace of God,
With spirit exercise, self-denial, exalt Christ
Glorifying and expressing God!

4) Good minister of Christ lives by the tree of life
Ministers life and serves the saints.
Takes Christ as the center; not persons, things, matters,
And solves the problems of the saints.
 
5) Good minister of Christ helps the saints in one thing,
To experience and enjoy Christ;
Pursues Christ to gain Christ, lays hold Christ, possess Christ;
To obtain the goal for the prize!
 
6) Good minister of Christ, loving seekers of Christ,
Stores up riches of Christ as food,
Gathered o’er long period, inward deeds being taught
Healthy teachings as spiritual food.
 
7) Good minister of Christ serves with burden from God
Bears people’s burden before God,
Sense their condition and knows what God wants to speak
Serves the saints according to God!

Lord, make me Your minister of life, a good minister of Christ Jesus, ministering the sweet flow of life by exercising my spirit!

Life Lesson: Fear God and Live God

“But if I delay, I write that you may know how one ought to conduct himself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and base of the truth.” (1 Timothy 3:15, RecVer)

The church is the church of the living God and the house of God. All the saints are of God and should live out God. To live God is to express God. All believers have received the life of God, have the innate capacity and ability to organically and spontaneously live God. This is the truth of the church. 

Since the truth is, the church is of the living God, all saints should exercise to live God daily in their church life. Especially, the leading brothers of the church should live God to the extend that they do not think, say, or do anything without God as their source of life. Otherwise, anything done or said would only be of man, downgrading the church to the church of mankind, not of the living God.

Having learned this truth, I live in fear and trembling before God not to be loose and live naturally in the church. Though I don't claim myself to be a leading brother, but as I coordinate with other brothers, we all must be so exercised in our spirit not to misrepresent God in any way. We may have our feelings, thoughts, judgements, and even discernments, but we must be in fear and trembling and check if whatever we feel, think, judge, and discern is of God. If not, however good and reasonable they may be, we must reject them simply because they are not of God. For the church we represent is the church of the living God.

Recently, as brothers we need to consider a matter together that is serious and troublesome. But we all brothers who have been considering this case fellowshipped together, and prayed over the matter what need to be done. The deep feeling we all agreed upon has also been conveyed to the one involved in the matter. And based on the response after the feeling of the brothers was conveyed, we had another fellowship and looked to the Lord together that we do not misrepresent God in anyway but let God do His work upon the ones involved and that the enemy who instigated the matter may be openly put to shame. This was a test for us and the ones involved in the case to learn to live God by taking God as our source. I do believe the Lord has allowed us to pass through such a complicated and complex situation for us to turn to Him and manifest God through the situation. 

A few days later, the brother who was involved in the case came to fellowship with me personally as brother to brother. In the fellowship, I listened to all that he had to pour from his being, and all the while as I listened I turned to the Lord, inwardly praying that the Lord will speak His timely word. The Lord led me to first share the fact of the matter and let him understand that the word of God cannot be violated and what he had done was a fact and it cannot be easily written off. Even if it has to be so, it must be of God and confirmed by the Spirit. I used a verse in Philippians 2:12-13,

“So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only but now much rather in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; For it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure” to help him see how to cooperate with God in dealing with his matter. Then, I fellowshipped with him by sharing my own experiences of how I dealt with improper relationship, experienced the cross to kill all my natural choices, and testified how the Lord blessed me richly by denying my self, taking His cross and following Him. As I felt led by the Lord, I shared with him the blessing of giving up our natural choices, be a blank paper for the Lord to write whatever He wills, and fear God.

This case and others help me personally go before the Lord in prayer. In fact, they have become a burden for me to pray over. This also strengthens my prayer life, praying with burden, and fellowshiping with the Lord intimately. What a blessing in disguise! Praise the Lord for all His marvelous deeds amidst complicated situations!

This is what I have been experiencing these days even as I learn the life lesson of fearing God, living God, and expressing God. Then, the church I am in, will be a church of the living God.

Growth in Life

“To walk worthily of the Lord to please Him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work and growing by the full knowledge of God,” (Colossians 1:10, RecVer)

Today, the Lord has shown me something new concerning spiritual growth. As I was under the Lord’s speaking of the brothers, I received new light concerning what spiritual growth really is. Surprisingly and yet interestingly, growth involves our mind too. I do know vaguely from the book of Romans that states, “And do not be fashioned according to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and well pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:2, RecVer) But, with the brothers' speaking I was further enlightened to see more concernimg how the renewing of the mind helps in our spiritual growth.

Our mind by birth was fallen. But since the time we received the divine life, the Spirit in our spirit has gradually been dispensing the divine life into our mind, renewing it day by day. When our mind is renewed with the truth, it is on the pathway to spiritual growth. In fact, our mind must be brought into the full knowledge of the truth. Once our mind is being renewed, it must must be under the leadership of the Spirit who is in our spirit. We should not foolishly think that we don't need our mind anymore. God gave us a mind to use it. It must be used under the proper leadership of the Spirit, and not in a natural way.

The knowledge of the truth is not merely the outward teachings and doctrines of the Bible. That doesn't mean we do not need to read, learn, or understand the written words. We have to read, learn, and know the truth, and much more, experience the truth based on the written word. Truth is God Himself expressed as the light shining forth. The knowledge of the truth is for us to grow by the subjective experiences of the truth. Therefore, we must read the word of God daily. Then, we will touch the reality gradually. There must be something shining as we read the Bible. We need the knowledge, the objective knowledge, out of which, through the Spirit's anointing, must become our subjective experience. We must exercise our spirit over the word of God, then the light will shine within us; the word will become living, powerful, and operative in us. Then, the we will be brought into the full knowledge of the truth and grow up in the divine life.

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” (John 8:32, RecVer)

Only when we touched the truth, we will be set free. No doctrines can set us free. This truth is the reality who is God Himself. All the ministry materials, the books and outlines, are to bring us into the experiences of Christ as life unto the full knowledge of the truth.

“And He said to them, For this reason every scribe discipled to the kingdom of the heavens is like a householder who brings forth out of his treasure things new and old.” (Matthew 13:52, RecVer)

A scribe is one who studies and knows the word of God. But a scribe must be discipled. The discipline is to bring the scribe into the full knowledge of the truth. So that, all the riches of Christ would become his experiences. In this way, he must further be able to bring forth things new and old. Thus, becoming a householder.

If we have been brought into the full knowledge of the truth, our ministering of the truth and preaching of the gospel will result in Acts 26:18 and 2 Corinthians 4:4.

“To open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light and from the authority of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.” (Acts 26:18, RecVer)

“In whom the god of this age has blinded the thoughts of the unbelievers that the illumination of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, might not shine on them.” (2 Corinthians 4:4, RecVer)

To come to the full knowledge of the truth, there is a need to pursue the truth. The Life-study of the Bible is one of the best way to get into the truth of the Bible. The Bible reading and studying with the help of the life-studies is a good way to get into the truth. Why Life-study? Because the Life-study of the Bible is a simple way to understand the truth in the Bible, it helps to solve common and hard problems in the Bible that hinders one from understanding the Bible, it ministers the life supply to the readers, and brings the readers into the economy of God. This is a way to be nourished with the truth, uphold the high standard of the church life and brings in genuine revival.

“O Timothy, guard the deposit, turning away from profane, vain babblings and oppositions from what is falsely called knowledge,” (1 Timothy 6:20, RecVer)

Such a pursuit of the truth of the Bible with the help of the life-studies should be our burden. Better is, we must make it our family tradition, a traditional of pursuing the life-studies regularly in a systematic way book by book with a long term view with the burden of truth deposit.

This practical way of pursuing the logos of the word of God to be brought into the rhema of the word of God is a way to grow by the full knowledge of the truth.