During the past twenty centuries, there have been many disputes and divisions in Christianity. These have been the result of a lack of the proper knowledge concerning the apostles’ teaching. The New Testament is a very clear book, and its entire contents are the apostles’ teaching.
Some may argue that there are many other things in the New Testament, such as baptism. Over the centuries Christians have disputed over the kind of water—hot, cold, fresh, or salt water—in which people should be baptized. Some Christians have become preoccupied with many small details concerning baptism. For example, the Greek word for baptism indicates that baptism should be by immersion, but some Christians have argued over whether a person should be immersed in the forward or backward direction. Christians have also argued over such matters as the number of times a person may be baptized. This kind of preoccupation shows that these believers do not know what the apostles’ teaching covers.
In the United States there is a constitution, yet not everyone is qualified to interpret it. In this country there are nine very skilled Supreme Court justices who have the responsibility of interpreting the Constitution. Our laws acknowledge that they are qualified to be the ones who interpret the Constitution. Regarding the apostles’ teaching, it seems that everyone feels qualified to interpret it. A recent publication was put out by some opposing ones indicating that God’s economy is in opposition to deputy authority. Such a writing is a sign that there is division among us. A few brothers and sisters have caused a division in the Lord’s recovery, and they are speaking and writing quite freely. Therefore, we must have a clear view of the apostles’ teaching in order to counter them with the truth.
We have studied the history of the Brethren, especially of those who were with John Nelson Darby. If something had happened among them like the situation we are encountering today, they would have promptly excommunicated the instigators. From our very beginning, more than sixty years ago, we realized that this was not the proper approach. Although through the years we have suffered from the dissenting and opposing ones, we would not pursue the practice of excommunication. In Romans 16:17 Paul begged us to “keep a watchful eye on those who make divisions and causes of falling contrary to the teaching which you have learned, and turn away from them.” Titus 3:10 says, “A factious man after a first and second admonition refuse.” A factious person is a sectarian person. We should warn such a person once, then a second time; if after that he does not repent, we should reject him. Rejecting any kind of division is similar to the medical practice of quarantining. To keep oneself away from anything divisive is to exercise to quarantine the divisive ones.
If a family member becomes very sick with a contagious disease, the family will not excommunicate that member. However, that member needs to be quarantined in order that others in the family would not become infected. The quarantining does not mean that the family no longer loves the ill member. On the contrary, this is a means of expressing love toward that member and toward all the other family members. The quarantine is exercised to keep that member safe and to keep the whole family from being contaminated with the illness.
Because of the present situation among us, I felt burdened to speak to the saints at the end of the 1989 winter training regarding the apostles’ teaching and the New Testament leadership. As I was speaking, I realized that those meetings were not adequate to cover these two matters; thus, we will spend time during this term of the full-time training to cover them in a more thorough way.
The apostles’ teaching is the entire speaking of God in the New Testament. The entire speaking of God in the New Testament concerns God’s New Testament economy from the incarnation of God to the consummation of the New Jerusalem. God’s New Testament economy has been unveiled to us in the Lord’s recovery.