As we attend the home meetings, we must bring them out of the common realm: out of the commonness of religion, the commonness of tradition, and the commonness of death. The best way to begin a home meeting is not with Scripture reading, prayer, or singing hymns. The best beginning is to have no beginning. If you arrive at the home meeting before 7:30, you may look at the flowers and the grass outside the window. If you really have a burden to pray, surely you may do so. If a brother comes in and says hello to you, you should stand up quickly and shake hands with him and talk with him. But let us observe one thing together: for the sake of time, when it is 7:30, we should begin the meeting. Our prayer should come out spontaneously, not in a religious way. Twenty minutes after the start of the meeting, let us all pray-read the Bible together. There is no leader in any home meeting, but everyone is a leader. Not only brothers can take the lead, but also sisters. We all should remember to begin pray-reading the Word twenty minutes after the start of the meeting. At this time we should also bring out the Life-studies so that anyone may take the lead to begin reading.
Our reading of the Word should not be a dead reading but a living reading. When you have the enjoyment within, just share three or five sentences. When you come to a sentence and receive much supply within, just offer a prayer spontaneously. But you all must remember that whether you pray, give a testimony, or share something, it should not be long. No one should speak longer than two minutes. Meetings like this will surely be rich.
In every home meeting, even though there is no appointed leader, those who prepare something for the meeting are spontaneously the leaders and core members. As every family prepares their meal, there are always one or two who really know how to cook. They should bear the responsibility to do a little more and also bear the responsibility to teach others. Sometimes, it just happens that everyone in a home meeting is a weak one, while in another group there are more strong ones. In this situation one should fellowship with the elders to somewhat balance the strong ones in one area with the weak ones, so that every home meeting has a few core members.
Suppose you and I are now going to a home meeting together. I will use the first message from the Life-study of Galatians for a demonstration. When we come to the portion which says, “The books of Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians form a cluster of Epistles,” I would stop and explain a little bit. I would say, “Brothers and sisters, here it says that these four books form a cluster of Epistles. Which are these four books? They are Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians.” This is to read and also to explain. Then I would continue to read, “...which make up the heart of the divine revelation, in the New Testament.” I would then say, “Brothers and sisters, we have to remember that these four books are the heart.” I would then continue the reading: “Therefore, these books are very important. Ephesians covers the church as the Body of Christ, whereas Colossians deals with Christ as the Head of the Body. Galatians is concerned with Christ, and Philippians, with the experience of Christ. In Colossians and Ephesians we receive a clear view of the Head and the Body. In Galatians and Philippians we see Christ and the experience of Christ.” As I read in this way, someone who is listening may have an inspiration and say, “This is really good! These few sentences point out clearly the main subjects of Ephesians and Colossians. The book of Ephesians covers the church as the Body of Christ, whereas Colossians deals with Christ as the Head of the Body.” While we are speaking like this, we should avoid a preaching tone.
We all know that in Chinese cooking the best dishes are the Peking dishes. Why is this? Because the Peking cooking does not depend on seasonings to enhance the flavor of the food, but it brings out the original flavor of the food. The best way to read the Bible is to not use too much seasoning. Just read the Word in a simple way. In this way people will be more impressed and more touched, and we will save time.
In addition, one principle we should keep well is that the older ones should not assume their seniority by speaking without ceasing. Let the younger ones speak more. When a family gathers together, everyone would be very happy to hear some words uttered from the mouth of the three- or four-year-old granddaughter, and no one would fall asleep. In the home meetings, time and opportunity must be given to the young ones. One principle which is universally agreed upon is that the progress of human society depends on the second generation. The second generation always stands on the shoulders of the first. In the matter of the truth, the young ones may not know as much as the older ones, but the points that they know are fresher than those the older ones know.
We are advancing rapidly in the learning and studying of the truth. We have coined more than a hundred new terms, such as the essential Spirit, the economical Spirit, the Spirit of power, and many others. Today, every field of learning is advancing, especially among the young people. Therefore, we believe that the future of the church and the freshness and livingness of the meetings all depend on the young ones. We should give the time and opportunity to them. This is an unalterable principle. If the young people are given the opportunity, they will become all the more fresh and spiritually prosperous.