Certain hymns are good to use near the beginning of the meeting because they contain no particular subject. After singing such a hymn, the right thing to do is to have some prayers in order to seek for the Lord’s guidance. We may not be assured about the direction of the meeting, so we simply come to the Lord to seek and feel for the direction. In a certain prayer, we may all sense the flow and know that this is the point we should hit in that meeting. At this point, to call the wrong hymn will bring down and disturb the meeting, and the saints will not know which direction to go. We need to learn these principles.
Certain ones may call a hymn that is not fitting because they neglect the sense, the feeling, within. We all must learn that in our spiritual coordination, knowledge is not the first thing we need. The first thing we need is our sense and feeling. We have to follow the flow, the atmosphere, of the meeting by our sense, not by our knowledge. Then after we sense something, we can exercise our knowledge to either express a prayer or choose a hymn to fit what we sense.
Sometimes the sense of the spirit in the meeting is very general, and there may be no definite sense from the very beginning of the meeting to the end. At that time, we should not categorize the exact feeling in the meeting. We should simply use the hymns and even pray in a general way. That will express what is in the spirit of all the saints. When we express a general feeling, all the spirits of the saints will say amen. We may, for example, sing hymns concerning the sweetness of the Lord in a general way. There is no need to say that the Lord is the reality of the offerings or that He is food to us. We can simply enjoy the sweetness and freshness of the Lord in a general way. To emphasize that the Lord is the offerings may be too strong and definite at that time. At such a time, to sing a hymn with a definite subject is too much, and to repeat it is worse. To call such a hymn is due to functioning according to knowledge without the exercise of the inner sense.
I say again that in order to follow the flow in the meeting, the first matter is not to exercise our knowledge but to exercise the spirit. We may use the temperature of the air to illustrate the exercise of the sense followed by the exercise of knowledge. To feel that it is hot is not a matter of knowledge. It is simply something we feel. Even a little baby who does not know the word hot will react if he feels too hot. This is a matter of feeling, of sense. After we have the sense, however, we need a certain kind of knowledge to know what to do. After we sense the heat, we have to exercise our knowledge to know the exact temperature and to decide whether to wear spring, fall, or summer clothing. This is the proper use of knowledge. First we exercise our sense, and then we exercise our knowledge to do something that fits the sense. This is the right way to follow the flow in the meeting.
Some may move according to the teaching that we have to keep the same subject in the meeting, without checking with the inner sense. Sometimes, however, the Holy Spirit would lead us in one line and then go on to another line. This is very meaningful. In some meetings I have been in, we were on the line of the Lord’s ascension at the start of the meeting. The flow was very clear, and right away we began in a high way, in ascension; then after one or two hymns and some prayers, there was the sense that the ascended Christ as the heave offering is our enjoyment today. The way to connect these two lines is mostly by prayer. We may pray, “Lord, You are the ascended One enthroned with all authority in the heavens and on the earth. Yet, Lord, You are within us to be enjoyed by us day by day as our food.” Spontaneously we apply the ascended Christ, the heave offering, as our enjoyment. If we have the proper preparation through learning, the Holy Spirit will move among us in a free way.
I have been in this kind of meeting. As we enjoyed the Lord very much, a sister prayed, “O Lord, the more we enjoy You, the more we are transformed into Your image,” or “The more we enjoy You, the more we are one with You in the heavens.” This kind of prayer brought us into the heavens. Then right away one or two hymns followed this prayer. While we are in the heavens with the Lord, a prayer may follow to say, “O Lord, we are not only on this earth enjoying You as our food and drink, but we are one with You in the heavens.” At such a time, to stay on one subject is like playing one note on an instrument; that is not music. To play different notes on different levels is music.
The practice requires learning and preparation on our part. On the one hand, we can critique our meetings, but on the other hand, I am happy because I see improvement. However, we still have to learn more. The Holy Spirit needs our coordination. If we have the proper preparation, then in the meeting when we see the Lord as the heave offering lifted up to the heavens, spontaneously within us there may be the feeling: “O Lord, You are so high, yet today You are also small, near, and available within us.” In this way we bring the Lord down into our enjoyment. After praying in this way, we can exercise our spirit to choose a hymn about the Lord as food and drink.
Sometimes we may start from the point that the Lord is ascended, glorified, and enthroned, but the Holy Spirit may guide and lead us to review the Lord’s life. We may spontaneously have the deep feeling to say, “Lord, Your glory today reflects Your sufferings in the past.” In this way we come to the cross to see the sufferings of the Lord on the earth. This is very meaningful. We should not think that we always need to be on the line of ascension.
We need to keep these points in mind and put them into practice, especially in the Lord’s table meeting. We must first exercise the inner sense to sense the atmosphere, and then we should exercise our knowledge to do something, to express something, such as choosing a hymn to fit what we sense. One brother may express something, and many others will express the same thing. This is because they are in the flow, having the same feeling.
Home | First | Prev | Next