As soon as we are saved, we become members of the Body of Christ. In this Body we have life and we function; hence, we become lovely. Whenever we are not in the Body, however, our life is over, our function vanishes, and we are no longer lovely. This shows that we need to be in the Body. Our old person is individualistic and therefore is a problem. If we would let God fulfill His eternal heart’s desire to gain us as His expression, we need a change of person; that is, we must take Christ as our person. Otherwise, there is no way for the reality of the church to be manifested among us.
The churches in Taiwan have a clearer understanding concerning the ground and the way of the church. Even some young saints testify that they are firm concerning the ground and the way of the church. This is surely the Lord’s grace. We should stand on the ground, live in the spirit, spread the gospel, and be built up together. The saints in Taiwan are carrying out these points. The saints in Taiwan are very clear concerning the ground and stand firm on the ground. This is a great joy to us.
An American brother came to Taiwan and contacted us, looking for a place to meet. After being in a few meetings, he stood up one Lord’s Day and told the saints how he came to be with us. He did not know the ground or the way of the church but was “church hopping” among the denominations. He said that the Lord’s sheep are everywhere and that the Lord is feeding His sheep wherever they are; therefore, every place is about the same. This speaking caused the saints to react, and many stood up to testify concerning the ground of the church. This proves that our brothers and sisters are clear concerning the ground of the church. This is a very good situation.
The ground of the church is indeed crucial. Without the ground, we have nothing. We cannot accept the view that it is good enough for a person to be spiritual, even if he is not on the proper ground. This is vain talk. I have met many believers who did not care for the ground; eventually, their spirituality became vanity. We want not only the ground but also spiritual reality. Spiritual reality is Christ being among us and within us as our person. He must be the person not only in a few saints but in all the saints. Christ, who is our person, is the reality of the church.
In 1957 a group of brothers and sisters from Europe visited us with a desire to fellowship with us. They saw our spiritual condition and how blessed we were. They felt that our young saints were very good. One of the brothers, who was very deep in the Lord, said that he had been serving the Lord for many years, but he had never seen the kind of audience we provided him. This brother was very pleased with the work the Lord has raised up among us. A few weeks later he disapproved of the ground of the church, which we stress, in private conversations and publicly. He said that the Lord had truly blessed us and that our work was good, but the teaching concerning the ground of the church needs to be brought down. Other Western missionaries were also critical of our work. They said that the teaching concerning the ground could be likened to a dead fly in the perfumer’s ointment (cf. Eccl. 10:1).
One day as we sat down together for tea, they complimented the tea in Taiwan, saying that it was very good. I took the opportunity and said, “You enjoy our tea. However, it is regrettable that you are willing to break our teacups. If you break our teacups, we will have nothing to contain the tea. Without the teacups, there is no way to enjoy the tea.” They understood what I meant and made no further comments. If the teacups are broken, there will be no vessels to contain the tea. These believers said that they wanted only Christ, not the church. Although what they said sounded good, it could not be practiced. If we do not want teacups, how can we drink tea? If we do not want the church, what can contain Christ? If we do not want the ground of the church, what can contain our spirituality? This is very clear.
There is one more thing that we must be very clear about. The ground of the church is necessary, but the content and the reality of the church are even more important. The content and the reality of the church are Christ. Christ should not merely be a slogan or a doctrine to us. He must be our experience. This is what it means for Christ to be our person. When all the saints take Christ as their person, the church will have the genuine content and reality.
The Lord has done a great work in raising up many young brothers and sisters in Taiwan. The future of the churches depends on these young saints. The future of the churches depends on whether these saints have a clear view concerning the church. The young saints must not only know the ground of the church but must also see the content of the church, which is to take Christ as their person. Ephesians 1 speaks of the church being the Body of Christ (vv. 22-23), and in chapter 2 this Body is the new man in the spirit (vv. 10, 15-16, 18). Chapter 4 says that we must put off the old man, be renewed in the spirit of our mind, and put on the new man (vv. 22-24). To put on the new man is to put on the church life. We put on the church life by taking Christ as our person for the church. I hope that you will pray-read and study these verses: Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:10, 15-16, 18; and 4:22-24. This is the way to have a clear view concerning the content and the reality of the church.