Matthew 28:19 says. “Go [ye] therefore.” The “ye” here does not refer only to the little company of disciples. It does not refer only to the hundred and twenty who prayed that day at Pentecost in the upper room. Rather, it refers to all those who believe in the Lord. All believers past and present are included in this “ye.” We who are the disciples of the Lord should all go out. Only then will this match the nature of the Body that God desires. What God is after is not an individual gospel giant but a Body.
Hence, the preaching of the gospel must be done by every member of the Body. This is like my walking. When I walk, not only do my feet walk; my legs, shoulders, head, and even my whole body walks as well. We cannot find any place in the entire New Testament that the Lord charges only a minority of believers to preach the gospel. What we see is that the Lord commands all the believers when He says that “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and disciple all the nations” (Matt. 28:18-19a). All authority has been given to us. Therefore, when our gospel teams go out to speak to others, they have to be bold. They should not be afraid of heaven or earth. They should be afraid of no one for the Lord Jesus has given us all authority in heaven and on earth! Therefore, every one of us can preach. No matter who we see, we can tell them boldly, “Repent, and believe in Jesus!” This is the organic functioning and the organic move.
Gospel preaching in Christianity is not an organic move. Rather, it is an organizational movement. Pastors are hired to come and preach while all the other believers rest and listen. This is organization. Today we are the members of the Body of Christ. All the brothers should go and preach the gospel. All the sisters should also go and preach the gospel. Everyone should go and preach the gospel. If we do this, this will match the nature of the content of the New Testament. Let me say again that the content of the New Testament has nothing to do with a congregation, a denomination, or an organization. What God is after is a Body. In the matter of preaching the gospel, all the members of the Body of Christ with no exception should preach and should move.
Not only should everyone preach the gospel, they should all participate in home meetings and group meetings as well. All the elders know that, on the one hand, they wish that there could be as many people as possible in their church. On the other hand, they are afraid that there would be too many people. This is because the more people there are, the more problems there are, and often it becomes impossible to take care of all the problems. Formerly we used to set up leaders to take the lead. These leaders then became another kind of pastor and preacher. This way does not match the nature of God. Now every one of us is a leader. For example, if a small group has fifteen people, all fifteen come to speak and to learn. While others are speaking, I am learning, and while I am speaking, others are learning. If there are some mature ones in the small group, there is all the more reason for everyone to learn. Eventually, it will not be only one that is teaching; instead, everyone will teach. This is what is meant by everyone participating in the home and group meetings.
If five hundred people are baptized today, immediately we should have five hundred brothers and sisters come forward to claim one baby each. Although they may not be begotten through you, yet when you claim them for your own, it is as if you had begotten them. After being nourished for six months, these new ones become stabilized. You will then lead them to the small group meetings so that they will get acquainted with those in the small group. In this way, gradually they will also know how to care for people and help people. When they see you praying and caring for people and meeting their need, they will learn to do the same. This is like a big family where the younger brothers and sisters learn to do what the older brothers and sisters do. When we establish a model in the group meeting, the newly baptized ones will find many lessons to learn. This is to have all the members function together. A small group where all the members function together becomes a body. Whenever the church moves, all the members act together in coordination as one body.