We have to come back to the Bible in everything. To spread the kingdom of God on this earth, to propagate Christ in the human race, to preach His good news to save sinners, is a crucial matter. If we will dive into it without reservation, we will be discipled. All of our natural way, disposition, and character should be crossed out. We should not be natural in any way. In our going out, our way of speaking may be too natural. In the four Gospels, the Lord Jesus did not talk to people in a natural way. Every word out of His mouth was very new, fresh, and refreshing. He talked in one way to the Samaritan woman. He talked in another way to Nicodemus. He talked in still another way to Zaccheus, a sinful tax collector. This is because He did not speak from Himself; instead, He spoke His Father’s word (John 12:49). Even the Lord Jesus had to deny Himself when He spoke to people, putting aside whatever was His and taking the Father’s word, the Father’s speaking. He was the first one to be discipled. He was the Father’s disciple.

Then in Matthew 11:29 the Lord said, “Learn from Me.” In Greek, the base meaning of the word “disciple” is to learn. A disciple is a learner. However, this is not to learn in the worldly sense; it is to learn by our old man being crucified to take away all of our old, natural things. When we go to visit all the ones whom we have baptized, we should not speak one word out of ourselves in a natural way or express anything without being dealt with or crossed out. Then we can have a positive result.

To preach the gospel is the most difficult thing. You cannot be loose in preaching the gospel to unbelievers. Gospel preaching needs your impact, your ability, and even your skill. To get people saved is a top skill. When Brother Watchman Nee was about nineteen or twenty, he preached the gospel very much. One day Brother Nee talked to a very smart, young college student about the gospel. This young man answered: “I am sorry. My father is now in Hades suffering. I do not like to see that my father will be suffering there, and I will be saved into paradise, so I will go to him to suffer with him.” How would you answer such a person? Brother Nee answered in a brief and concise way using Luke 16: “The suffering, rich man begged Abraham to send someone to preach the gospel to his five brothers because he loved his brothers. Don’t you believe that your father, although he is suffering in Hades, still loves you? He doesn’t want you to go there with him. If you would go there, as you have said, you would not be honoring your father. You would be dishonoring him.” This short word convinced that young man, and he said, “I honor my father. For his sake I believe in the Lord Jesus. I will not go to his place, just for his sake.” This example shows us that there is much for us to learn in the preaching of the gospel.

In our full-time training, we give lessons on items such as the all-inclusive Christ, the church, and the basic truths of the Bible. This is because we need the equipment; otherwise, we are too natural. We must endeavor to get into the truths to become fully equipped (2 Tim. 3:16-17). We do not know what kind of person we will face, and we do not know what kind of knowledge we will need to convince that particular person. Without the knowledge and the skill, we may lose many people.

Brother D. L. Moody preached the gospel very much. One night after preaching the gospel, he was speaking to a lady concerning Christ. At a certain point, a disturbance frustrated that lady from being saved at the very time that she should have been touched by the Spirit and regenerated. Moody testified that after this small disturbance, he could not bring that lady back to the point of receiving the Lord. To preach the gospel is a fine matter. I am concerned that we may go out with a good heart, yet with a very loose manner, character, and disposition. When we go to visit people, we must be on the alert, yet we should not let them know we are so serious since that might threaten them. We cannot be loose. We must learn the ways of preaching the gospel with all the detailed points in order to deal with every situation.

You may consider that this is too hard, but the most precious things are always hard to accomplish. To go to visit sinners in order to preach your dear and precious Savior to them is altogether a matter in the spirit. If you do not exercise your spirit or keep yourself speaking in your spirit, you cannot be successful. You have to learn by being discipled. You can use The Mystery of Human Life, but it depends on how you use it. You may use it to kill people, or you may use it to enliven people. It all depends upon your way, your skill, your spirit, and your disposition.
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