God’s church takes locality as its boundary. When the church in a certain person’s house is completely equivalent to the church of that locality, it can be called the church in that person’s house. However, when the “church” in a certain person’s house is smaller than the church in his locality, it cannot be called a church. If the “churches” in the “house” of Cephas, in the “house” of Paul, in the “house” of Apollos, and in the “house” of Christ were added together, there would not be four churches in Corinth, they would still singularly be the church in Corinth. From this we can see that God has never made this type of “house” a unit for the boundary, the jurisdiction, of the church. Since the four houses are not four units, the believers meeting in them respectively cannot be four churches.

There must have been over ten thousand brothers in Jerusalem, and they might have been divided into one hundred houses for meetings. Since houses of this kind are smaller than the city, that is, smaller than the locality, and smaller than Jerusalem, they are not sufficient to become the units of the church. If we add these one hundred houses together, they do not become one hundred churches. In the Bible there is only the singular church in Jerusalem. Since one hundred meetings added together could not become one hundred churches, but only one, this means that each one is not sufficient to become a unit by itself.

If the church in Nymphas’s house (Col. 4:15) and the church in Laodicea (v. 16) are not the same, then when we add them up they must be two churches, but after we add “them” together in this way, God speaks of “the church in Laodicea” in Revelation 3:14, not “the churches” or “the two churches in Laodicea.” They are just one.

When the house is smaller than a locality, it is not sufficient to become a unit. When the house is equivalent to the locality, it is qualified to become a unit. But the unit is the locality, not the house. We must be very clear that the standard unit for the boundary of the church in the Bible is the city or locality. When the house is equivalent to the locality, we can speak of the church in So-and-so’s house. When the house is smaller than the locality, we can add one plus one, but the total is not two; it is still one. We may add ten plus ten, but the total is not twenty; it is one. We may add one hundred plus one hundred, but the total is not two hundred; it is only one. The total is always one. By this we know that a “house” cannot equal the unit for the boundary, the jurisdiction, of the church.

Who can point out from the Bible two churches in one locality? No one! I can only say that one locality has two denominations, or one locality has four sects, or one hundred localities have more than one hundred manifestations of the flesh. But I cannot say that one locality has two or more churches. I can only say that one locality has over one hundred home meetings. One locality only has one church. This is certain.

For the past twenty-eight years, as a result of the Lord’s calling, the denominations have lost their place in the heart of those who love the Lord. The brothers who recommend dividing the church into houses must guard against the suspicion that they are changing things for the sake of defending the sects or themselves. May the Lord cause His children to see that all those who have left the denominations have not necessarily left the sects. May God have mercy on me for speaking frankly.

We must seriously ask our hearts in the light: Am I rejecting the sin of denominations on the one hand, while refusing to “submit to the church” on the other hand, and by so doing have I only come up with the compromise of the house? May the Lord have mercy on those who do this, and may He have mercy on me for speaking it.

I am very sad at heart because at the critical moment when the Lord is moving on victoriously, such a disruption has come in. If we are only slightly disobedient today, a hundred years from now-should the Lord delay His coming-this disobedience will become a great detour for the church. I hope you brothers would fast and pray for our brothers. May God turn back their hearts. On the other hand, those who have contact with them must demonstrate firm and unchanging love so that the Lord could gain back these ones. May the Lord put a fear and a trembling in them. May they know that speaking for the Lord requires the putting aside of oneself. They should be humble, and they should see and listen before speaking. May they also see the serious result of speaking without revelation. Once Ishmael is born, the fleshly will forever persecute the spiritual. This is going on all the time, even until today (Gal. 4:29).
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