The preaching of the gospel is for everyone. The home and group meetings are also for everyone. Likewise, prophesying is also for everyone. When everyone comes together, all speak. Whatever task we set about to do, it is always difficult before we do it. But after we make up our mind to do it, we will joyfully bear the responsibility. Our daily responsibility as a Christian is to practice these four major steps of the new way. Knock on doors to preach the gospel and beget spiritual children; everyone has to do this. After a child is born, everyone has to bear the responsibility of nourishing. There must be not only the nourishing, but also the teaching. After teaching there is still the perfecting, and after the perfecting there is still the prophesying. It seems as if all of these four steps put a demand on people. But if you do not do them, it would be hard for you to be a member of the Body of Christ in the Lord’s recovery. The question is: what kind of Christian do you want to be today? Do you want to be an overcomer, or do you want to be a loser?
The new way that the Lord has shown us is a way ordained by Scripture. Everything that He commands us to do matches the nature of His Body and the principles of the Body. Either we forget about the preaching of the gospel, or we have to do it together as a Body. In the same way, we either forget about the home meetings, or everyone has to do it together. Even if you cannot take care of two each week, at least you can take care of one every two weeks. To care for some is always better than not caring for any! A church where everyone is functioning will not only beget new ones, but it will also retain, sustain, and maintain them. In caring for the new ones there is the need not only to support them spiritually and in prayer, but also the need to care for them physically and in their employment. This is the way to perfect people. In the end everyone will become children of a well-educated family. Everyone who is brought up in this church will be able to preach the gospel and to care for new ones. They will all have home meetings and will be able to care for new ones. They will also be able to have small group meetings to keep and perfect the new ones so that all will be built up together. Eventually, everyone will be able to prophesy. As long as we are willing to practice these things and the more we do them, the more we will become capable and skillful.
I hope that all the brothers and sisters would see that these words are all according to the truth in the Bible. The Bible tells us that to preach the gospel, we do not gather the people to us; rather, we go to them. The Lord has not sent us to remote Africa. As long as we will knock on our aunt’s door, it will be open to us. There is also our uncle’s door on which we have to knock. After the close relatives there are still the distant relatives. Besides these, there are still our classmates and colleagues. When your aunt is saved, she still has her aunts also. There is no end to this kind of preaching.
If you would pick up the burden for the gospel in an aggressive way, not only will you be able to taste the joy and blessing of salvation in this age, but also in that day when you meet the Lord there will be a large group of people behind you. They will all have been saved through you. By then you will surely be exceedingly happy. On the contrary, if you preach to no one today and will not save anyone even when you see them dying, you will have a difficult time facing the Lord. By then there will be no chance for you to do it again. The Lord warns us in Matthew 24 that if we eat and drink with the drunken and the evil slaves, in an hour which we know not, the Lord will come and cut us asunder and will appoint our portion with the hypocrites (vv. 49-51).
In His New Testament economy, God desires to have a Body. This Body must have new ones. We hope that there will be more and more new ones added to the church. By this the meetings will be higher and richer. To achieve this, every member has to function. Everyone has to go out to preach the gospel. After people are baptized, everyone has to nourish. Do not be afraid that your legs will be tired of going to the home meetings. Every one of us should go out to establish the new ones and bring them to the small group meetings. After this we should bring them to the Lord’s Day morning meetings so that they would be cared for and perfected. After half a year, those who are under your care will be able to do the same thing that you do. By then you can divide the small group and renew the cycle all over again. Go out again to knock on doors and bring people to salvation. Set up more home meetings and group meetings. By going on continuously in this way, the church will have the increase and spread.
The new way is not just a method; it is a matter of nature. The nature of the new way is to bring God into man to be mingled with man that man may become the Body of Christ. To arrive at this point we must gain the new ones, feeding them and leading them to prophesy. Outwardly speaking, all these are methods. But these methods match the inward nature of the new way. Today whether it is preaching the gospel, nourishing others, attending home and group meetings, or prophesying in the meetings, all are moves of the Body. In the end the Body of Christ is produced and God’s New Testament economy will be accomplished.