The second step was for Paul to meet in the homes of the newly saved believers. We can see this from the book of Romans. First, in chapter one Paul talked about the content of the gospel. After that, in chapters two and three, there is the initial gospel for the home meetings. Following that, from chapter four to chapter eleven, he talked about the walk of a believer in Christ. This was probably a message for a small group meeting of the local saints. Then, in chapter twelve, in verses 4 and 5, he said that as there are many members in one body, and all the members do not have the same function, so also we all are one Body in Christ, and severally members one of another. Possibly this is a development from the group meeting to the district meeting. Here, Paul encouraged the saints to prophesy in the meetings. He said, “And having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us exercise them accordingly: whether prophecy, according to the proportion of faith” (v. 6).
Paul did not cover prophesying in chapter one. In chapter one, he talked about everyone having sinned and being in need of the gospel. In chapter two, he talked about the Jews having sinned. In chapter three, he talked about all having sinned and come short of the glory of God (v. 23). In chapter four, he talked about circumcision. In chapter five, he talked about the different inheritances in Adam and in Christ. Chapter by chapter, he went on to expound and teach the Roman believers. By chapter twelve, he mentioned prophesying. We can say that Paul began in Romans with the preaching of the gospel, proceeded on to the home meetings, then to the group meetings, and finally ended with the district meetings. He was helping the ones under his teaching to prophesy in the meetings.
It is as if Paul was saying: “Formerly I brought you the gospel of salvation and offered you to God as sacrifices. Now you have been nourished and have grown through the home meetings. You have also attended the group meetings and have been perfected there. Now you have to prophesy in the meetings, offering yourselves up as living sacrifices.” Paul led the believers under his care to present themselves as living sacrifices. He also presented these perfected saints full-grown in Christ to God in all wisdom. “Whom we announce, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man full-grown in Christ; for which also I labor, struggling according to His operation which operates in me in power” (Col. 1:28-29).
Ephesians 4 tells us that Paul desired that all the saints would arrive at a full-grown man (v. 13). He desired that all the saints would be perfected and be able to do the work of the ministry, for the building up of the Body of Christ. There are three steps to Paul’s work as a priest of the gospel. First, he preached the gospel to save and bring in the sinners. Second, he perfected the newly saved people that they would offer themselves up. Third, he warned and taught in all wisdom until these believers became mature in Christ; then he presented them full-grown. For this he labored.
Paul did not say that he worked for this. Rather he said that he labored for this. It is not enough for us just to work. We have to labor as well, struggling and striving according to the operation which He operates within us. Our struggling does not depend on our own strength. Rather, it is according to the operation of Him who operates within us. We all have had the experience that no matter how tired and discouraged we are, after we kneel down and pray for a few minutes, we feel a great power operating within us. This is similar to what Paul describes in Colossians 1:27 when he says that Christ in us is the hope of glory. This Christ who was the life and person in Paul’s spirit was the means whereby Paul labored. It was through the operation of this power that he labored, struggled, and strived, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom, to present every man full-grown in Christ to God. This is what we hope to see.
Since 1984, I have been coming to Taiwan twice a year. What I hope to see is that all of you would be able to be presented full-grown. Now, we are not doing poorly with the first step of bringing people to salvation. The second step, which is to perfect people by the home meetings, the group meetings, and the district meetings, is still less than ideal. We are like students studying diligently, but having not yet graduated. Since the introduction of the new way during the past four years, thousands of brothers and sisters in Taipei have given themselves to the small groups aggressively. Because we are in a laboratory, we constantly change the way of practice. I also know that some have not been able to take this. I want to tell you that the Old Testament exhorts us not to be an unturned cake. In all these changes, you have all been turned. Today you are no longer unturned cakes. Now your spirit in the meeting is much different from what it was four years ago. When I listen to your singing and speaking, I realize that your spirit has definitely improved. But we must advance to the stage which Paul described, a stage in which our inner man is daily renewed.