The work in the church of those who minister the word, who have the gift of ministry, is to tear down on the one hand and to build up on the other; their tearing down is their building up. A great part of their work is tearing down. It is to tear down everything that is natural, that is not of Christ, that does not have the constitution of the Holy Spirit, and that is not built by Christ into man. Their speaking is for tearing down; however, the result of this tearing down is building.
If we are blessed by the Lord, all of our gatherings will have a tearing-down effect. They will tear down everything that is against Christ, replaces Christ, and usurps Christ’s position. These things are natural; they are not of the Spirit and are not built up by Christ. God’s Word reveals that the work of those who minister the word is to build up the Body of Christ; this building includes tearing down. These ones know Christ, have been dealt with, and have much experience. They know that God’s work in the church is to build the element of Christ into the saints and that this building is entirely based upon the tearing down of everything natural. This is the building work of the ministry.
People may not see light immediately when they hear God’s word and God’s light shines on them. Some people need to pass through a long period of time before they are enlightened. When a person is enlightened, he will see his real condition; he will see the things in him that are not of Christ. He will see that he, rather than Christ, is bearing responsibility; that he, not Christ, is zealously helping the saints; and that he, not Christ, is diligently serving the church. When God’s light shines forth, man sees his condition. He sees many things that he previously justified in himself or were commended by others to be altogether not Christ—these things do not have the tearing down and the building up. They are altogether of the self and natural; they are nothing more than what he had prior to his salvation. They do not come from the building of Christ or the work of the Holy Spirit.
When the light shines in a person, he needs to pass through a period of time to allow the light to work within him. During this period of time, the light within him may point out many things to him every day. For example, he may realize that his speaking is natural and does not have the Spirit and that his conduct is natural and does not have the Spirit. When by grace a person remains under the shining, convicting, and accepting of light, there is the tearing down.
Man often needs the Spirit of God and the light of God to do a severe work within him that human hands cannot aid. Under this kind of condition, a person may feel uncomfortable from morning to evening; it seems that he is doing everything. Whether he is standing or sitting, visiting or not visiting, reading the Bible or not reading the Bible, everything seems to be from himself. Such a condition seems wrong, but actually it is a good sign. Anyone who desires to be built must pass through a process of allowing the light to shine within him every day. This light will reveal his natural speaking and flesh and will enable him to see that everything is natural in himself. A person is truly blessed if he has this painful experience. This is a strong tearing down and a strong shining.
During this time there is an unconscious increase of Christ. Christ is built into and expressed through such a person; this is marvelous. When such a person speaks a message for the Lord, his speaking will be different. His speaking will no longer be an outward teaching to exhort or perfect people. His speaking will tear down and build up. When he speaks, Christ will come forth; there will be something solid that can touch people, not empty doctrine. When he speaks, he can touch man’s heart, he knows man’s natural difficulty, and he knows the activity of Christ’s enemy. In this way, he can do a good work for the Lord. When he visits the saints and fellowships with them, he can touch their difficulties and touch the enemy who frustrates Christ within them. He is a good worker in the hands of God, allowing God to build up the saints through him. This is the result of his being enlightened.
Our God always has a way. In addition to speaking to man through the word of the ministry and through the shining of light, He also uses the discipline of the Holy Spirit by arranging the environment to cause all things to work together for good to those who have received grace (Rom. 8:28). If God cares for us, He will definitely carry out a tearing-down work in us. God can raise up any environment; He can use heaven and earth and great and small things to perfect us. Everything we encounter involves the discipline of the Holy Spirit. In our environment God arranges persons, matters, and things; our spouse, children, relatives, and the brothers and sisters are all for our need. However, although God often speaks to us, we often ignore Him. We often kick against the goads, asking, “Why am I receiving these dealings? Why do I have this situation, this family, and this group of brothers and sisters?” We must be clear that all these things are to break us and build us up so that Christ can come out of us.
The elements of our natural being and our self are worthless in the eyes of God. However, we cannot be delivered from these until our eyes are opened. Whoever has not been delivered from the self and still remains in the natural being does not have the expression of the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ is the fullness of Christ, the Christ who has been built into us and is expressed through us. The self, our natural being, is the difficulty that Christ encounters within us. Our God as the Lord has the authority and the way; He not only gives us the word and light, but He also arranges our environment. What we may consider to be a most troublesome marriage is often the most fitting in God’s eyes; a seeming mistake is not a mistake in God’s eyes. God has arranged every person, matter, and thing that we encounter. God our Father can never be wrong; He knows all of our needs. Therefore, we should not murmur against Him and blame other people; a good environment may not be a blessing to us, and an adverse environment may not be a loss to us. God causes all things to work together for good to those whose hearts are toward Him. This “good” refers to God conforming us to the image of His Son (v. 29). This is also His tearing down so that His Son can be built into us.
If we experience the tearing down and building up, we will express the Body of Christ. Anyone who has not been torn down by God does not have the reality of the Body of Christ, nor does he have the fullness of Christ, the expression of Christ. He may express virtues or merits but not Christ or the Body. God must do the work of tearing down in us. He not only gives us His word and shines in us, but His hand is also upon us. His hand often accompanies His word and His shining. Besides these three things, God may also reprove us. The saints who are full of grace and experienced in the Lord know our condition and may often speak a frank word to us, pointing out what is not of Christ within us. This kind of reproof brings in light and salvation. Ephesians says, “All things which are reproved are made manifest...and Christ will shine on you” (5:13-14). If a person is willing to be reproved and receive light, Christ will shine in him. He will be resurrected from the dead and will rise within, leaving death and entering into resurrection.
There is also a silent reproof. In our experience we may sit with certain saints and be reproved within. Although nothing is said, we may feel that we are too natural, that our actions are of the flesh, that our intentions and motives are not pure, and that Christ does not have much ground in us. We are reproved within simply by sitting with these saints. This is marvelous. In the meetings we may be reproved within even though the brothers and sisters are not speaking specifically to us. This is the result of the manifestation of the fullness of Christ in a meeting. When the element of the fullness is manifested, we cannot help but be enlightened and reproved. Whoever experiences a silent reproof may feel that he cannot bear it, but the Lord’s sustaining grace causes him to ask for the Lord’s mercy and salvation and to condemn everything the Lord condemns.
The building work of God is carried out through the ministry of the word, the shining of light within man, dealings in the environment, and the audible and silent reproof from those who are of the Lord and are doing the work of tearing down and building up. This building work will break down everything of man’s natural being and build up Christ from within. There will be the reality of the Body of Christ only when Christ is built up from within those who receive grace.