In Acts 5 Gamaliel spoke a good word: "Stay away from these men and leave them alone; for if this counsel or this work is of men, it will be overthrown; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them, lest perhaps you even be found fighters against God" (vv. 38-39). If this is not the Lord's recovery, it should be overthrown. If it is not the recovery, let it sink to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. But if it is the Lord's recovery, the opposers should be careful, for they will suffer shame. They will never be able to defeat this testimony. The more they try to hold it down, the higher it will rise up. Church history testifies of this.

Let me share a little of my personal experience. After I was saved, by the mercy of the Lord I became a seeking Christian, one who sought the Lord. The Christians in my home town loved me. One day, however, I was caught by the Lord for His recovery, and a church was raised up in my home town. According to the outsiders, I was the one doing the preaching and teaching there. Before the church was raised up, some of the Christians invited me to speak at their meetings. They even provided transportation to and from the meeting. In China, that was considered an expression of love and respect. But after the church was raised up there, those very ones who invited me to the meetings and even provided transportation for me completely ignored me when they saw me on the street. Then rumors were spread about me. Some of those rumors said that I was teaching heresy. I have been condemned as heretical from the time I first came into the church life. This is nothing new to me.

Fifty years ago, my home town was the most famous city in North China for Bible knowledge. Hearing the rumors that my teaching was heretical, certain young men, sons of fundamental Christian preachers, came to the meetings to find out for themselves what was going on. Prior to this, instead of attending services of their fathers' denominations, they went to operas, theaters, and gambling places. When these young men were engaging in such sinful activities, their parents were not very concerned. However, when some of them were attracted to the church life and caught by it, the pastors began to warn them not to attend the meetings. One of these young men said to a certain pastor, "When I was going to the gambling places and to the theaters, you did not come to warn me about what I was doing. But now that I am going to a place where I can listen to the Word of God and where I am receiving much help in spiritual life, you come to warn me not to go there. Do not come to me again. I have been helped by attending these meetings, and I intend to keep on receiving this help." This shows that the branches were running over the wall.

Throughout the years, the opposers have followed me from my home town to many other places, including Taiwan. A certain preacher purposely went to Taiwan from my home town to try to destroy my ministry. When I was bothered by the opposition, the Lord said, "Look at Paul, and read the book of Acts again. Wherever the apostles went, the opposing Jews followed and caused trouble."

Recently, one of the brothers received a letter from Australia, written by a traveling preacher, filled with negative statements about me. In the whole letter there was nothing positive concerning me. However, several years ago the same man who wrote this letter had written another letter in which he praised me very highly. In the letter written several years ago, this traveling preacher said, "To me, Witness Lee has always been a great man of God in his personal life, and a most fruitful servant of God in his ministry. I'm sure I cannot lace his shoes. I would be a happy man if I thought the Lord would give me half the reward, or even one tenth, He has for His eminent servant." But recently the same person has written a letter filled with slanderous lies about me. It is difficult to believe that both were written by the same person. This second letter was written because the fruitful branch has spread to Sydney. Some, seeing the branching out in Australia, were stirred up and wondered what they could do about it. Hence, this letter was written in an attempt to restrict the branching out of the Lord's recovery in Australia. When I consider things such as this in the light of 49:22, I am happy, for the branches are still running over the wall. What is happening today exactly corresponds to what is written in this verse. The opposers are wasting their time. The more walls they raise up, the more branching out there will be.

How can a traveling preacher, one who preaches the gospel in the name of the Lord Jesus and teaches the Bible, speak lies, even slander a brother? This is the poor situation of today's Christianity. There is no conscience and no moral standard. As long as some can frustrate the Lord's recovery, they are happy. But no wall can frustrate the spread of the branches. In fact, the opposition actually helps the Lord's spreading. This is the experience of Joseph.

In 1958 I was invited to England. From that time onward, some have tried to restrict the Lord's recovery from spreading to Europe. But when the Lord's Recovery began to spread there, they were not able to do anything. The branches are spreading over the wall in Germany, Switzerland, and even in Denmark and Sweden. No one can restrict the spreading of Joseph. If we are today's Joseph, who can restrict us?

Rumors about us have also been spread in Central America and in South America. But praise the Lord that His recovery in Brazil is spreading like wild fire! None of the "firemen" know what to do about it. Before this wild fire began to spread, the opposers in Christianity circulated rumors concerning me and the churches. I ask you to wait for another period of time and see what will happen. Everything depends on whether or not we are today's Joseph. If we are, no one and nothing will be able to restrict the spreading of the branches over the wall.