First Timothy 3:15 says that the church is the pillar and base of the truth. In ancient architecture a building was supported by a pillar, which rested on a base. The church is the pillar and base that bears the truth. The pillar and base of the truth are not the elders but the church, which includes every brother and sister. Every member of the church is part of the pillar that bears the truth. Whenever a new one or a young one asks a question related to the truth, we should all be able to answer. Someone may ask what holiness is. We not only should know that holiness is Christ, but we also should be able to find the verse that proves this (1 Cor. 1:30) and expound it.
However, many saints know a certain amount of truth, but their knowledge is not thorough or adequate. In order for the churches to be strong, every brother and sister must bear the truth by learning the truth, experiencing the truth, and being able to speak the truth.
Another test of whether we adequately know the truth may come if someone questions us concerning who the leader of the church is. In Matthew 23:10 the Lord said, “Neither be called instructors, because One is your Instructor, the Christ.” The Greek word translated “instructor” may also be rendered “guide,” “teacher,” or “director.” This word clearly indicates that Christ is the unique Leader. Hebrews 13:17 says, “Obey the ones leading you.” The elders are the leading ones, but Christ is the unique Leader. First Peter 5:3, a word written to the elders, says, “Nor as lording it over your allotments but by becoming patterns of the flock.” The elders should not be rulers of the church but should be examples. We are all under the headship of Christ, and we need to see the truth of His headship.
The truth of the leadership in the church is that Christ is the unique Leader. The elders should exercise to be examples while giving the full headship to Christ. This is contrary to the worldly concept of leadership. If one comes saying that God has appointed him to be the leader of the local churches, none of the saints should accept this speaking, for it insults the unique headship of Christ. All the saints need to know and practice the truth to prevent error from coming into the church. Everyone should know that Christ is our unique Leader. To consider any man other than Christ as the leader of a local church or the Lord’s recovery damages the truth. There is no leader other than Christ. The Lord said, “Whoever wants to become great among you shall be your servant” (Matt. 20:26). The concept of a man being the leader of the churches leads to hierarchy, which is a great insult to the headship of Christ.
In the New Testament age, Christ’s leadership has been fully established, and His headship has been fully completed. Ephesians 1:22 says that God subjected all things under Christ’s feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church. Those who take the lead in the churches must be very careful not to consider themselves to be the leaders. The unique Leader is Christ. We must practice this truth.
We also need to be careful not to build up a hierarchy among the local churches. No church is higher than any other church. It is crucial that we know and practice this truth. If the church in our locality submits to another church, making the other church higher, this is hierarchy. All the churches are on the same level. If we do not practice the truth, the churches will suffer from confusion, dissension, and disharmony.
While the Lord delays His return, we need to know the truth for the practice of the church life. The Lord’s recovery can withstand any kind of attack, because the foundation of life has been solidly laid, but we also need to adequately know and practice the truth. When the pillar of the truth is added to the foundation of life, the building of the church in the Lord’s recovery will be solid. As long as the church upholds the truth, nothing negative will be able to come into the church. Thus, all the saints need to know the truth so that the church would be built up as the pillar and base of the truth.
In order to know and practice the truth, we all need to come back to the Word. While we are reading, studying, or praying over the Word, we need to remember that the truth is in the Word. Second Timothy 2:15 says, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, an unashamed workman, cutting straight the word of the truth.” The Bible is the word of God, which conveys the truth. We saw in the previous chapter that the elements composing the Bible are Christ, His death, and His resurrection. These three elements are the truth, the reality, of the Bible, and this reality is now the Spirit. The Spirit is the reality of Christ, the reality of Christ’s death, and the reality of Christ’s resurrection. Therefore, the Spirit is called the Spirit of reality (John 14:17). This means that whenever we come to the word of God in the Bible, we need to exercise our spirit to receive the Spirit. Eventually, the Word without and the Spirit within will become one in our experience. Christ, His death, and His resurrection are in the word, and they are also in the Spirit. When we take the word into us, it becomes the Spirit. When the Spirit is spoken out from us, it becomes the word. When we read the Bible, we should exercise not only our mind to deal with the printed matter but also our spirit to contact the Spirit. Then the written word will become the living word, and we will receive not doctrine but reality. If we exercise only our mind to read the Bible, we will receive only biblical knowledge and no spiritual reality. However, if we exercise our spirit to contact the Spirit while reading the Bible, the doctrine will become the truth to us.
Some Christians know the Bible well but neglect the Spirit. Christians of another category tend toward the other extreme, caring only for the Spirit and neglecting the Word. Neither category of Christian is balanced. We should not be on either of these extremes. We need the Word without and the Spirit within. We need to know the doctrine, and we need to possess the truth within the doctrine. This will enrich the church life and safeguard the Lord’s recovery from death or anything improper. The Word gives us the doctrine, and the Spirit gives us the reality. When we have the doctrine and the reality, we are balanced, enriched, and safeguarded.