May the Lord Bless China

A few days ago, some government officials asked some brothers to pray for the Lord to bless China. This, of course, is the God-given duty and responsibility of Christians.

The Bible says: “I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings be made on behalf of all men; on behalf of kings and all who are in high position, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all godliness and gravity.” (1 Tim. 2:1-2)

“Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for one another that you may be healed. The petition of a righteous man avails much in its working.” (James 5:16) “And seek the peace of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to Jehovah for it; for in its peace you will have peace.” (Jer. 29:7)

“And My people, who are called by My name, humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their evil ways; then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chron. 7:14)

“For we are not presenting our supplications before You based upon any righteous doings that we have done, but based upon Your great compassion.” (Dan. 9:18)

“Truly I say to you, Whatever you bind on the earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on the earth shall have been loosed in heaven. Again, truly I say to you that if two of you are in harmony on earth concerning any matter for which they ask, it will be done for them from My Father who is in the heavens.” (Matt. 18:18-19)

“In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” (Phil. 4:6)

“Reviled we bless.” (1 Cor. 4:12)

“And indeed the plague had begun among the people. So he put on the incense and made expiation for the people. And he stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped.” (Num. 16:47-48)

The ancient church father Tertullian (155-240 AD) said:

“For we offer prayer for the safety of our princes to the eternal, the true, the living God, whose favour, beyond all others, they must themselves desire…Just because he [man] is less than heaven, he [God] is great. For he himself is His to whom heaven and every creature appertains. He gets his sceptre where he first got his humanity; his power where he got the breath of life. Thither we lift our eyes, with hands outstretched, because free from sin; with head uncovered, for we have nothing whereof to be ashamed; finally, without a monitor, because it is from the heart we supplicate. Without ceasing, for all our emperors we offer prayer. We pray for life prolonged; for security to the empire; for protection to the imperial house; for…a virtuous people, the world at rest, whatever…an emperor would wish. These things I cannot ask from any but the God from whom I know I shall obtain them, both because He alone bestows them and because I have claims upon Him for their gift, as being a servant of His, rendering homage to Him alone, persecuted for His doctrine, offering to Him, at His own requirement, that costly and noble sacrifice of prayer dispatched from the chaste body, an unstained soul, a sanctified spirit…With our hands thus stretched out and up to God…the Scripture says, “Pray for kings, and rulers, and powers, that all may be peace with you.” [(1 Tim. 2: 2)]

We respect in the emperors the ordinance of God, who has set them over the nations. We know that there is that in them which God has willed; and to what God is willed we desire all safety, and we count an oath by it a great oath…But why dwell longer on the reverence and sacred respect of Christians to the emperor, whom we cannot but look up to as called by our Lord to his office? So that on valid grounds I might say Cæsar is more ours than yours, for our God has appointed him. Therefore, as having this propriety in him, I do more than you for his welfare…” (Tertullian, Apology, ch. 30, 32-33)

Brother Nee said, “We should change our attitude. We should not criticize, curse, or slander. As long as a regime does not forbid us from worshipping our God, we should bless it.” (CWWN, Vol. 59, Ch. 9)

On February 17, the Jews prayed for the virus situation in China at the Wailing Wall. Shouldn’t we, the Chinese, pray more for our own people? Some believers have been praying continuously for the past few weeks. We suggest to set aside February 23, from 00:00 to 24:00, as a special day of prayer. During this time, let us set aside 15 minutes or more to pray to the Lord, individually or with companions, in person or online, for:

• The ending of the plague
• Peace in people’s heart
• The stability and peace of the country
• The restoration of the normal way of life
• The Lord to bless China
• China to turn to the Lord

The Christian Life Under God’s Government

On March 31st, we practiced the 24-hour/21-day global prayer. In China, there were about 850,000 saints who joined this prayer. Outside China, there were 39,557 people who registered as 7341 small groups through the six websites hosted in the East, and 24,751 people who registered as 5273 small groups through the websites hosted in the West. The total number of saints is 914,328 (12614 groups), plus those who participated but didn’t register. For example, the prayer burden posted on 11 websites reached one million people outside China,. Thank the Lord for what He has done! May all the brothers and sisters who participated continue to pray steadfastly, and go on in a strong way. (For more information, please visit http://unceasinglypray.org).

Being Sober-Minded

“But the end of all things has drawn near. Therefore be sober-minded and be sober unto prayers” (1 Pet. 4:7). Darby, brother Nee and brother Lee all showed us that the subject of both the books of First and Second Peter is “the Christian life under the government of God”. This government is not something only for the life after death or in eternity, but is something specifically for the present. The pandemic is now spreading across the world. Humanity has never faced such a severe trial like this. This is God’s administration. We face not only the outbreak of COVID-19, but also the problems such as the environment, population, refugees, economy, international conflicts, etc. All these problems are without solution. It shows us that “the end of all things has drawn near”. Nowadays all mankind, from the world leaders to ordinary citizens, has been plunged into fear. People started to worry about the future. In the verse above, Peter charged the saints to “be sober-minded”, which means to “be of a sound mind, have a mind of sobriety, and be able to understand things properly and thoroughly without being disturbed “(footnote 3 of 1 Peter 4:7), and also means to “be calm and clear in mind, able to realize God’s economy in His salvation…without being disturbed by fear, anxiety, or any care” (footnote 2 of 1 Peter 1:13). This is the attitude we should have in order to face the challenge of this epidemic. As a brother puts it, “during this time, let us watch less news, but read more Bible; worry less, but pray more.”

Being Sober Unto Prayers

This calm and clear life, without fear and anxiety, is “unto prayer”. Prayer is the center and the purpose of the Christian living. The Lord charged us to “Watch and pray” (footnote 3 of 1 Peter 4:7). To have this kind of prayer, we need to be watchful. We must pray steadfastly. We cannot be loose, otherwise the enemy could give us a sudden attack when we are relaxing. Because of the spreading of the virus, most people have no other choice but to stay at home. Psychologists suggest that people spend quality time with their family at a set time and in a set place. For Christians, we should much more set a time and a place to pray to God. For us, to have a proper living is not just to take care of our psychological condition, but “unto prayers”; not being disturbed is not for redeeming the time only, but “unto prayers”; having no fear is not an issue of positive thinking, but being watchful “unto prayers”.

Having Love Among Yourselves

Then verse 8 says, “Above all, have fervent love among yourselves…” Today this is a great opportunity for us to practice the church life according to the new model, which centers on loving one another and taking care of one another. “One another” in Greek is ἀλλήλων, which is used multiple times in Romans chapter 12 (vv. 5, 10, 16) to describe the genuine church life. It shows us very clearly that the genuine church life is centered on “mutuality”. During this time of seclusion in our homes, we should exercise to stay connected with one another, to take care of one another, and to implement the new model of the church life through the internet. This matter is “above all”. Let us minister the word of God among ourselves “as good stewards of the varied grace of God” (v. 10).

In the next chapter, verses 1 to 4 speak of the shepherding in the church. Verse 2 says, “shepherd the flock of God among you.” The “flock” here, according to the original meaning, does not refer to herds, but “little flock”, i.e., a group of sheep in fairly small numbers. In other words, it refers to the groups in twos and threes. Today, the online social contact in twos and threes provides a perfect setting for the saints to practice this organic shepherding. These “little flock” will produce “vital groups”. The elders should take the lead to be the “patterns of the flock”, shepherding the saints in the vital groups. Then all the brothers and sisters “in like manner” shepherd one another. This is the genuine church life according to the New Testament model. This is the way ordained by God today.

Preaching the Gospel

During the times of crisis, we need to “be humbled under the mighty hand of God” and “gird ourselves with humility”. We need to show people that they cannot “set their hope on the uncertainty of riches”, but they should humble themselves under the mighty hand of God and turn back to God. This way they could be brought through these difficult times and be exalted by God “in the due time”. We should keep preaching the Gospel by making phone calls, sending Bible verses to others by texting, and reaching out to people actively. We can say to them, “you could practice ‘casting all your anxiety on Him’, because except for God, no one can really ease your anxiety, which is ‘the whole lot of your anxiety throughout your entire life’, and ‘the whole life with all its anxiety and all its worries’.” We should speak to them the mystery of human life.

Withstanding the Evil

In the meanwhile, the work of the devil somehow prevails. He kills and hurts men’s body and soul, and “as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking someone to devour”. Therefore we must watch and pray, not only for the unbelievers, but also for the saints. May God keep all men away from the evil so that they will not be devoured by the enemy, and preserve their spirit, soul and body complete at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. May we recover many saints who were lost and bring them back to the fellowship of the Body through our prayers and care.

Remembering All the Saints

Finally, we should pray for the children of God throughout the world, for “the same sufferings are being accomplished among your brotherhood in the world.” We should pray especially for those who are ill, who are in need, who fall into afflictions, no matter what kind of affliction it is—physical, economical, psychological, familial…We should pray according to 1 Pete 5:10 that after they have suffered a little while, they will experience the Lord as the One who Himself perfects, establishes, strengthens and grounds them.

May God strengthen us with varied grace, all grace and true grace during this special time, so that the Gospel can spread continually, the saints could be perfected, and the church could be built up. “To him be the glory and the might forever and ever. Amen. (1 Peter 5:11)” 

Brother Andrew Yu

April 5, 2020

I wonder if you brothers can help to appeal to the saints who have signed up tojoin the subject round-the-clock prayer to particularly intercede for the United States regarding a stoppage of the virulent spread of COVID-19. Thismorning, Dr. Anthony Fauci gave a grim prognosis that the US may have millionsof infected cases and possibly 100,000 to 200,000 deaths from the coronavirus. Apparently,America is facing a daunting task to bring this outbreak under control. Whilethis pandemic is allowed by God under His sovereignty, Satan no doubt capitalizes on the opportunity to destroy humanity and instigate chaos,thinking he can frustrate God. I would like to make an appeal to the saints andthe churches in the US to pray specifically for our nation, but hearing thatthere are many saints who have already joined this day-long prayer, I think it would be appropriate to make this special request. That said, we should nodoubt remember a similar need in the European countries and nations and peopleall over the earth. In brief, the main burdens are:

(1)That heaven would rule;

(2)That Satan would be bound;

(3)That the pandemic would be stopped;

(4)That the authorities would trust in God;

(5)That people would repent and be saved;

(6)That the saints would be sanctified and preserved

(7)That the kingdom gospel and the recovery testimony would spread

(8)That the bride would be prepared for Christ’s return

The Foresight of Brother Lee

Before the Lord comes back, how the church will be? Brother Lee had seen it. He had seen further than all of us. He saw that the church will gradually, slowly  be recovered back to its original way. What is the original way of the church? It is the way in the  first  century, where there were no big meetings, but only small meetings. As the day of the Lord approaches, the church will increasingly return to its original way.

Changing the Concepts, Changing the System, and Changing the Ways

The recovery of the church needs the change of systems. In order for the change of systems to be successful, first we need to change our concept. We must first change our concept, and second, change our systems, and third, change our ways.

For example, in the nineteenth century, the Manchu government promoted the Hundred Days Reform, hoping to enforce the new law. However, her fundamental  system was not changed; they merely changed some of their ways. For instance, the Westernization movement was just a way of doing things, by merely changing the ways of factories and shipbuilding. However, the system was not changed; it was still the feudal system. Eventually, the new law failed and the reform stopped. In contrast, why was Meiji Restoration successful in Japan? It was because the government not only changed a certain ways of doing things, but also westernized the entire system and adopted the western law. This not only ended the feudal system with the samurai that had lasted for more than six hundred years, but also established a new government with the separation of powers.

Turning from Meetings to People, Big to Small, and Coming to Going

A few years ago, I spoke of “turning from meetings to people, from big to small, and from coming to going.” This is to change the concepts and to change the system. Actually, I am not the one who first spoke this; it was Brother Lee. When Brother Lee began speaking of the

new way, the God-ordained way, he spoke of changing  the concepts and changing the systems. And then he endeavored to discourage big meetings and promoted group meetings and district meetings. He said, “The heaven and earth can pass away, but we must go to the small group meetings!” This is to turn from big meetings to small meetings. But after speaking much of it, he realized it was still not good enough, so he turned from groups to homes, turning to even smaller gatherings. This was what he spoke in Taiwan. After he returned to the US, he began to speak of the vital groups. Actually, vital groups are small groups, which are even smaller  units than the home meetings and group meetings that he spoke of in Taiwan.

This means that after big meetings are divided into groups and districts, the saints go from the group meetings, to the home meetings, and then to the vital groups. Actually, the gatherings are getting smaller and smaller. This is to turn from big to small. Furthermore, in that period of time, he constantly spoke of door knocking, visiting people, contacting people, caring for people, nourishing people, seeking the dormant and backslidden ones one by one, and also visiting and contacting gospel friends one by one. From this we see how much he regarded people! This is to turn from meetings to people, and from coming to going.

Changing Concepts

Surely, this does not mean that we no longer have “meetings,” nor does it mean that we no longer have big meetings or we do not ask people to come. Rather, it means that “meeting” is no longer the central figure. The most important central figure is every single “person.” However, many brothers and sisters still have not changed their concept.

For example, some local churches say that they are practicing the God-ordained way, but the responsible brothers still regard the Lord’s Day meetings the most. On the Lord’s Day, they dress neatly. Why do they regard the Lord’s Day meetings the most? Because the number of attendance in the Lord’s Day meetings is the most! Because the number of people in a local church is basically their Lord’s Day meeting attendance. Furthermore, whether a church is strong is also determined by theLord’s Day meeting! When others ask

about the condition of a certain church, they also refer to

the condition of the Lord’s Day meeting! Therefore, we need to hold good Lord’s Day meetings. However, this is “meeting,” “big,” and “coming.” There is no question that the Lord’s Day meeting should be good. When we say “turning from meeting to people,” it does not mean that we are abolishing the Lord’s Day meeting; rather, it means that your mind, attention, and concepts need to turn from “meeting” to another direction, to be set on “people.”

This is first thing: our concepts need to be turned completely; we need to see that the most important matter is every single member, every single person, and we must build up personal relationships with them. In order to build up personal relationships, we need to be “small.” If we are not “small,” we cannot build up personal relationships. Since you can go to where a person is to take care of him, why do you ask him to come? Actually, you want him to come to support your facade. Without the facade, will you still ask him to come? For example, if today the government stops you from having big meetings, or you yourself feel that the facade does not matter and you do not need to have a facade, you will not ask people to come. You would even give up asking people to come, and “coming” would no longer be a problem. Actually, it is tedious to ask people to come to the meetings. Therefore, the concept is crucial. This is a matter of changing our concepts!

Changing the System

If the concepts are changed but the system is not changed, it will still be a problem! What system should we change? We have the elders administrate the church. How do the elders administrate the church? There are always three to four elders administrating together. This is equivalent to a decision-making council. Basically, the first circle are the elders, and the second circle are the district responsible brothers. In a big church, the elders need to oversee the district responsible brothers; otherwise, if the district responsible ones take their own way, it is equivalent to having another church. Therefore, the elders need to spend a lot of energy to oversee the district responsible ones. The most important responsibility of the district responsible brothers is to maintain the Lord’s Day district meeting by devoting their effort and strength to the district meetings. Besides the districtmeetings, areas that require much devotion of

strength are various services: children service, young people service, college service, the managing of church finance, as well as the maintenance and usage of the meeting hall, concerning the different assignment of rooms in the meeting hall, etc. In the early days, the district responsible ones needed to take care all these things.

Now we have improved a little, that is, we have the infrastructure of the gospel, home meetings, group meetings, and district meetings. From homes we expand to groups, and then to districts. However, not many elders can oversee the homes; they can mainly oversee the districts. As far as groups, only a few churches can oversee them. For example, in some localities, now the elders do not even oversee the groups, but let the groups take care of themselves. The elders do not know the condition of the groups, let alone the condition of the homes. So you say, Oh, now our infrastructure is gospel, homes, groups, and districts. Not to mention the churches that have not established the infrastructure of gospel, homes, groups, and districts, even those churches that have established such infrastructure, they have but only the skeletons without the muscles, blood vessels, or nerve endings.

Building the New System of Organic Relationships

Now we speak of changing the system, but how to change? In addition to the old system, the entire administration of the church needs a new system that is more fitting to the organic relationships. In other words, it is not to annul the current old system, but to establish a new system in addition to the old system. The old system is established upon “meeting,” whereas the new system is established upon “relationship.” For example, if a church is to establish an organic relationship now, it will be like   a neural network that has the first circle, the second circle, the third circle, etc. The establishment of this organic relationship can be carried out by the home, group, and district responsible ones taking care of the same group of people, or it can be carried out by another group of people, or even the sisters. Moreover, we need to at least spend half the time to build up and strengthen these organic relationships. Actually, it would not be too much if you spend all your time on doing this.

This    means    that    you    cannot    take    building relationships as a peripheral matter, but a particularly important matter. If you still treat it as a peripheral matter, of course it will become a secondary matter, and you will still take the homes, groups, and districts as the major, important matter; it will still be about meetings, and you will still ask people to come. For example, it used to be that the district responsible ones need to go to take care of the district meetings. If he does not go, the church will  fall apart. But now whether the district responsible ones go to take care of the district meetings, it does not matter, because the new system has the reminders to oversee and to sustain the relationships. For example, two people take care of ten, and ten take care of one hundred, and one hundred take care of one thousand; they call and use WeChat daily, weekly, to connect and supply, so the church will never fall apart.

From the Church of “Meetings” to the Church of “Relationships”

This means that when the responsible ones cannot meet together with the ones they are caring for, they can connect by phones and WeChat daily and weekly to supply, maintain, and strengthen that group relationship. The saints can also use phone and WeChat to supply, maintain, and strengthen the group relationship. Brothers and sisters all learn from patterns. When they see everyone doing things, they will follow to take this way. In this way, the system of the entire church will gradually and slowly turn and change until the church becomes a church of “relationships” and not a church of “meetings.” However, as yet we do not see such a condition! This is to change the system. Actually, this is to spend more time emphasizing, building, and strengthening this new system, and there will spontaneously be a leaning,  developing, and building in this direction.

Concerning the district meetings meeting once a month, if we are unable, it is not a problem to meet once every two months. Nevertheless, we still have the district meetings; but in daily living there should be the constant connecting to build the organic relationship. This is to say that there is no question that the local church is one church in one locality, but the one church in one locality does not necessarily mean having weekly meetings. Even sometimes the Lord’s table meeting can take place in the middle of the week. Therefore, to practice the new system

is not to demolish and dilute the old system that is presently practiced, but to put a greater part of our energy on the new system, that is, to build, strengthen the framework of “relationships.” This framework of “relationships” has layers just as the physical body has layers and every layer is organic.

Practicing the New Way under the New System

Once there is a change in the system, what follows will be the practice: door-knocking, gospel preaching, home meetings, drip-dispensing online, and so forth will automatically come into place. In this way, the entire church life will advance and be built up and strengthened in the direction of the new system. In other words, the new system has its framework, but it is not of the former framework. Presently in the Mainland China there is already this framework, and it will be more so in the future.

The World Situation Becoming More Dictatorial

Many people hope, pray, and ask the Lord to get rid of the dictatorial governments; however, according to the Bible, the world situation will become more dictatorial and not more democratic. The Antichrist will take the way of dictatorship and in the end, it will be a dictatorial form of government. Therefore, the present one-party dictatorship in the Mainland China will definitely continue. Even in the United States, democracy is tending more towards dictatorship. The worldly form of government is heading towards dictatorship more and more and there will be more restrictions in religion with increasing limitations and even suffering of persecutions and tribulations. At that time, the church will return to the way taken by the early church.

The Church Needing to Take the New Way

This is to say that before the Lord returns, the world will become more and more dictatorial and the church will be more and more restricted. However, this does not mean that the church will become weaker and shrink; rather, it should become stronger and blossom all over the earth. If the church is not like this, she will not be able to confront and exist under such a dictatorial system. For the church to cope and adapt to the coming worldly situation, the dictatorial governments, she must take the new way, the God-ordained way. Therefore, I say that Brother Lee

had the foresight to lead the Lord’s recovery in the new way. He did not only look at the expansion of the church, the increase in numbers; rather, he saw what kind of world situation there will be before the Lord returns and the direction that the church must take.

Building according to the Pattern on the Mount

Just as Brother Nee said, this direction that the  church should take is to build according to the pattern on the mount. When the church takes this direction, the  world will begin to see what the church is. In other words, until now, this kind of church has not appeared. When  will the world see what the church is for the first time? It will be during the time of the great tribulation. The great tribulation will be the result of the victory of the dictatorship and not the result of the victory of democracy, because this world will become more and more dictatorial. Some people say, due to the severity of the current coronavirus, So-and-so will be removed. From what I see, he will not be removed! In actuality, the more authoritarian the way he handles this situation the better!  If the onset of this virus had been in the United States, the free press of the US would have scared everyone to death! For the virus of fear is more dreadful and more harmful than any material virus.

Christians Needing to Pray for the Government

We Christians need to pray for the rulers and governments of the countries. Praying for the government is the responsibility of a Christian. This is God’s command and revelation. In terms of the world, the government is the highest organization; although it is the highest organization, it needs Christians to be the priests to intercede for it. If this world does not have Christians, there would be no one in the world who can intercede for the countries, the governments, and the rulers. Therefore, Christians in this world do not only have the right but also the responsibility to pray. What to pray for? To pray that God would help the country, pray that the head of the governments would be upright, have wisdom, make the correct choices, and pray for them to be healthy. This is the basic responsibility of a Christian.

Some people say that Christians should have a mission in society. This word is correct but to implement this mission in society is to pray for the leader of the country, for the government. This is the prime and

greatest responsibility of a Christian as God’s priest. This is like what a church father said to Emperor Constantine, the gist of which is: You are not the one having jurisdiction over me but it is I who is praying for you. If I do not pray for you, you would not have a way to go on! This is really so. As the ruling one, if he persecutes and slaughters the Christians, when he has tribulations, who will pray for him? Only the Christians can pray for him! Praying, interceding, is the way for Christians to participate in their mission in society. The way is not to be like some people in Christianity in Hong Kong, participating at a level below that of Christians. Christians participate in the mission of society mainly by interceding for society and thegovernment.

Negligence in Prayer Being the Forfeiting of Christians’ Responsibility

The clamor in society and in the government is already so confusing, so raucous; if Christians were to add their voice, what kind of participation is this? Marching, demonstrating, protesting, and resisting are things that everyone, whether Republicans or Democrats, knows how to do; but what they cannot do is to intercede for society and for the government. Therefore, the proper job of Christians is to intercede. For Christians not to pray for society and for the government is to forfeit their responsibility. Today Christians are on the streets marching, demonstrating, and protesting, just like what the Hong Kong Cantonese say “Gao Gao Gong”—having nothing to do, so they are just messing around. This is not the way the Christians participate in their mission in society.

The Church Becoming More and More Organic

Therefore, what is most important to us today is to transform, to change our system. The entire world is tending more and more toward the direction of dictatorship; how can the church in the Lord’s recovery confront this situation? This is relevant to the advance of the Lord’s recovery and to the increase or decrease of the number of people in the future. To handle the dictatorial way is by becoming more and more organic and not by becoming more and more political. Let me give you a real example: In 2019 in the midst of the protest in Hong Kong, the loudest noise came from those so called “megachurches.” Having thousands of people, their  noise

was  quite loud. However, I am waiting to see  how many

years will their noise last. After a few years, their mouths will be shut and the noise will be gone. Once China completely takes over Hong Kong, they will have nothing to say.

I spoke to the brothers in Hong Kong in this way: You should now repent; you must wake up! When in 1949 the Communists took over mainland China, the leading brothers did not have time to prepare adequately; therefore, facing a sudden change in the situation, the churches truly did not know how to handle the government. However, now, you have the equivalent of over twenty years to properly prepare. One thing is certain and that is your future will definitely be the same as that of the mainland China. How could you suppose that it will not be the same? You suppose that by making noise on the streets, doing this and that, you will not have the same future? Actually, once these twenty odd years are over, everything will be over. You say, Oh, I will go abroad for my education and migrate to another country; that is fine, but that applies only to a few. The entire church of thousands of people still needs to change its way in order to adapt; if you do not change now, you must do so then. Why not be wiser now and start changing so that when the dictatorial system comes, you will not be caught short-handed.

This is the situation in Hong Kong; actually it is the same everywhere in the world. According to my observation, the world is going in the direction of a centralized authority, not democracy. To want to go the way of democracy, just like Hong Kong, is a naive way of thinking. They say that now Hong Kong is entering into the age of democracy. Actually, democracy is gradually declining; it is near evening, and about to die. You are just beginning to engage in democracy when others have been doing this for decades. You have boarded the wrong boat because the world is not following the trend of democracy. Now they are saying, “Oh! Democracy is right; centralized authority will one day collapse.” But look at the history of China. Since the time of the Chinese revolution of 1911, it is not that China has not tried democracy, but that they were not successful even after several attempts. Even Sun Yat-sen struggled and had to request help from Russia.

Sun Yat-Sen worked on democracy, but eventually the presidential orders could never be carried out. Even

men like Yuan Shikai and warlords during that time also worked on democracy by having presidents, vice- presidents, congress, etc. Go and study the histories of Yuan Shikai and the warlords. Although Yuan Shikai wanted to be a king, which certainly was a misstep, he actually had always wanted to work out a constitutional monarchy. Constitutional monarchy is both monarchic and democratic. He was also working out democracy! I am not afraid to tell the American brothers and sisters that democracy is a dream! Out of the thousands of years of human history, how much of that is in democracy? Speaking from the point of human government of the recent 300 years, democracy is actually an infant.

The great human image in the book of Daniel signifies human government. At the end, human government will be partly democratic and partly autocratic. For this reason, some people say that half of the countries in the world is democratic, and the other half is autocratic. Actually this is not the case; rather it means that there is democracy within autocracy, and autocracy within democracy. For example, such is the case with the United States now as well as mainland China. Currently, they are condemning China for being autocratic, dictatorial; actually China not only has the People’s Congress, but they also have different parties and the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). What is the CPPCC? It has all kinds of parties, including the nationalist party. But as far as China is concerned, democracy belongs to the periphery, whereas one-party autocratic rule is central. They even clearly stated that one-party rule is the dictatorship of the proletariat. Basically, they do not speak of autocracy. Actually, capitalist rule is also an autocracy!

Similarly, can United States be considered a model of democracy? Today, if you want democracy, just like Sun Yat-Sen’s Three Principles of the People, which is nationalism, civil rights, and people’s livelihood. Civil rights are actually the working out of democracy. The Zealots in the Bible were purely political; at the end, they were all destroyed by the Roman Empire. Did the Bible tell us to pray for the Zealots? No! The problem is the world is not going in the direction of democracy. Democracy is only a naïve idea, a childish dream. This is speaking from the viewpoint of the government of the world. But today, we are saying that under today’s

environment of autocracy, we need to take the God- ordained way!

Traditional Christianity Being a Dead-end Road

Today, we are talking about taking the God-ordained way. This is not a question of whether to take it or not; this is a question of life and death. If you do not take this way, there will be no way for you to go. If you do not change, and still continue in the way of traditional Christianity, the way of big meetings, you are on a dead- end road with no way to go on. It does not matter if you have two thousand, three thousand, or five thousand people; you will have no future. This is because this is the world situation; it will not allow you to go on this way. Actually, the Democratic Progressive Party of Taiwan is also going the way of autocracy. Taiwan says they do not want the autocracy of mainland China, and mainland China says they do not want the autocracy of Taiwan. Today, those who are working out democracy are really nonsensical!

The New Pattern for the Church Being the Establishing of Relationships

Today, the new model for the church life is built on relationships. As I have spoken previously, there are four kinds of relationships: first, friends; second, brothers, third, partners; fourth, disciples. This means that the contact, the connecting network of the new model for the church life is a network of relationships; its principal object is to establish relationships. Then there can be gospel, home, group, district, Lord’s Day meetings, etc. In other words, gospel, home, group, district, and the Lord’s Day meetings all hang on the network of relationships. Thus, gospel, home, group, district, and the Lord’s Day meetings are not everything; just like a man’s body does not only have bones, but also has muscles, nerves, blood vessels, etc.

Good “Relationships”: Full of Caring, Sharing, and Fruit-bearing

You say a person has a good complexion because his blood circulation and nervous system are healthy. Similarly, when you say a church is good, it does not mean that she only has good Lord’s Day meetings, but much more she has a good network of relationships. Apparently, meetings are first in the church life, but

actually, the real nucleus and spirit of the church life are  in the relationships built up through care, share, and bear. Thus, everything is carried out in the relationships. What use is any church that merely has many so-called good meetings yet without the caring, sharing, and fruit-bearing?

If you ask those who attend today’s “mega churches” why they meet there, most of them will tell you it’s because of the speaker or for financial reasons. There are no personal relationships! He comes by himself and leaves by himself. You say he belongs to a church, but actually he does not belong to a church; he just comes to make up the number. Is there anyone in the Lord’s Day meetings who comes just to make up the number? Yes, many! Because there is not one who is building up relationships.

Building Up Relationship with the Lord

After my stroke, I was recuperating in Korea. In my reading of John 14—17, I realized that the thought in that passage was basically on relationships. The Lord Jesus said in chapter 5, “You search the Scriptures…Yet you  are not willing to come to Me that you may have life” (vv. 38-40). Actually, “come to Me” is to build up a relationship with Me. What is meant by eating the Lord, drinking the Lord? Actually, that is to come to Me, eat  and drink of Me, and have a relationship with Me. For example, the Lord Jesus said in chapter 14, “I am in the Father and the Father is in Me,” and “I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in You” (vv. 10, 20). These are actually speaking of a relationship, not a congregation nor an organization. He is speaking of the relationship between the Triune God—the Father, Son, and Spirit, and the relationship of the Triune God with the believers.

Building Up Relationship with Man

After you have a relationship with the Triune God, then you need to build up a relationship with others; that  is the fruit-bearing in chapter 15. Once you have borne some fruit, you will have a relationship as believers with others, progressing from friendship to brotherhood. Then in chapter 17, the Lord Jesus prayed to the Father, “I in them, and You in Me, that they may be perfected into one” (v. 23). All this is speaking of building up relationship. The entire book of the Gospel of John does not speak of congregation or organization. It does not care for those things.

Taking the New Way Being to Work Out “Relationship”

Thus, now that we are taking the new way, regardless whether it is the vital groups, one-on-one shepherding, shepherding by “dripping”, or home meetings, they are all for the working out of relationships. The first relationship is not so spiritual: just have an enjoyable time as friends. Just like Brother Nee said in a message that the Lord Jesus came first to be a friend of sinners before He became their Savior, not first to be a Savior then a friend. You see from the record in the Gospels, He was first a friend, then a Savior. But some of us pursue spirituality to such an extent that we cannot be friends unless we are brothers. However, the Lord Jesus was first our Friend, and then He became our Savior. This is not my word; it is Brother Nee’s.

Relationship of Love and an Open Home

At the end, when Brother Lee spoke on love, actually it is on cherishing and caring. At that time, he performed “surgery” on a brother’s house: he said they were making the brother’s house like a fortress, and that was not right. If you only allow those who are spiritual to live in the brothers’ house, how can you gain those who have not met in a long time? How can you care for man, gain man, and bear fruit? It will become a closed brothers’ house. Back in the days when we met in Elden Hall, as soon as a brother and a sister got married, they immediately opened their home, and in the earlier years, they opened even their bridal chamber and never built up their own nest. But later, for the sake of better blending between the newly-weds, they were allowed to move out to live on their own. After a few years, their homes are not open anymore. This opened a big back door for the younger generation. Actually this is very important. Once you do not have a good beginning and there is not a good pattern, what follows will be worse.