Sometimes in the meetings of the elders and co-workers, the majority of those in the meeting may not say anything, as if they have no opinions. After the meeting, however, one person may say one thing while another person may say another thing, and all their opinions come out. To not speak a single word during the meeting and then to speak many things and express all kinds of opinions after the meeting is a manifestation of the flesh. Such a person avoids speaking in the meeting in order to save his face, because he is afraid that he might not speak well. This is the flesh. However, since he is full of complaints in his heart, after the meeting he expresses an opinion about one matter and another opinion about another matter. This is also the flesh. We need to be delivered by God from caring for our face and personal feelings so that we may be open to speak, to fellowship, and even to debate according to the sense given to us by the Holy Spirit. We should try to learn how to debate with others in the church life without being fleshly. This is not easy to do.
Suppose after someone had just finished expressing an opinion, you were to immediately stand up and say, “Brother, I feel that what you have said is not accurate enough, and I feel that it should be this way.” It would be quite difficult to say this and overturn his opinion without being in the flesh. In Acts there are two phrases which are very pleasant. One is when much discussion had taken place (15:7), and the other is for it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us (v. 28). It is abnormal to become so spiritual that it seems that the Holy Spirit is making all the decisions alone, without the “and to us”-without human beings coming together to discuss things. We should be delivered from our flesh and come together to discuss matters without insisting on our own personal preferences. We should be able to consider a certain matter from different angles and discuss it from various angles. If we are able to do this, the Holy Spirit will be able to move freely among us. This is real discussion. For example, someone may say that the Gentiles should not be circumcised, but I say that God wants them to be circumcised. Another one may say that the Gentiles should not be required to keep the law, but I say that this is not God’s leading. We have to speak what we have observed before God honestly, completely, and without reservation.
We have two patterns in Acts concerning how to fellowship about church affairs. First, we see the matter of discussion in Acts 15:7, which says, “When much discussion had taken place.” In the church life there are some who seem to have no words or feelings at all. They appear to be very spiritual, but in reality they are not spiritual. When a person is learning to deal with his opinions, he often falls into a situation of being overly strict, thinking that to be silent is to be spiritual and that to speak is to be opinionated. Therefore, he completely refrains from speaking in order to be “spiritual.” Actually, this is wrong. It is abnormal for a person to become so spiritual that he has no feeling. In a normal situation the leading ones in the church and the representatives of the church should gather together and should be able to discuss matters thoroughly and completely, even fellowshipping and discussing again and again. There should not be just one person speaking or just a few persons speaking, but everyone should speak and express all the feelings that they have within them. Whether they are elders or deacons, as long as they have any inner sense concerning the matter being discussed, they should speak out clearly.
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