Too many real Christians are still wild in their thinking. Their minds have never been refined and renewed because their minds have never been regulated by God’s inscribing. Similarly, many sisters are dear, but their emotions are poor, peculiar, and ugly. I have been ministering for more than thirty-five years, and I do know the problem in the church with the sisters. Their problem is their emotions. I do not like to contact many sisters because of their troublesome emotions. If the emotions of the sisters could be dealt with, the church would be spiritual and truly in the heavens. If the sisters and even the brothers would simply cooperate with God and let Him inscribe on their emotions, let Him put the regulating of the inner law in a deeper way into their emotions, then their emotions will be renewed. The building of the church has been very much frustrated by the emotions of the brothers and sisters. The building cannot proceed in a successful way simply because the emotions of the dear saints have not been dealt with and renewed by God. God needs a full and thorough cooperation so that He can inscribe His law upon our emotions. What is the growth in life? It is the constant inscribing of God’s hand in us.
It is the same with our will. The natural will of some people is wild, stubborn, stiffened, and hard. Others, however, are so soft that it seems they have no will at all. Some brothers among us are like this. If you say the earth is heaven, they will say, “Yes, it is heaven,” but if you say it is the earth, they will say, “Yes, it is the earth.” Whatever you say is right, because they have no direction, goal, or will. In the so-called churches in Christianity today, people admire this kind of person. They say, “Look how nice he is. Whatever you say, he just goes along with you.” However, there is no possibility for a person with such a soft will to be coordinated in the church. We can build a building with solid stones, but we cannot build with mud.
On the other hand, there are many in the church that if you say, “This is the earth,” they will say, “No, it is heaven,” and if you say “It is heaven,” they will immediately say, “It is the earth!” This is a stubborn will. A good number of brothers like this never go along with others. When they initiate something, they feel it is right, but if others initiate it, they say no to it, even if it is the same thing. If such a brother is driving, he may say, “Let us go on Beverly Street,” but if someone else is driving and takes Beverly Street, he will say, “No, go on Third Street.” We do not realize how fallen our will is. This is why it is hard to build the church. I have learned this, and I am still learning. In my early days, even thirty years ago, I caused trouble with the brothers and sisters, because at that time I did not know the secret. Today if someone says, “Go on Beverly,” I go on Beverly, and if they say, “Go on Third,” I go on Third.
The problem is that for many years after we were saved, we did not cooperate with God to let Him inscribe His law on our mind and will. If we cooperate with Him and let Him inscribe His law on our will, we will have the renewing of our will; a real transformation will be worked on our will. Our will, in this case, will be good and adequate for the building of the church. If the brothers’ mind, emotion, and will have been renewed by God’s inscribing, we will see the real growth in them.
I like the phrase God’s inscribing. God inscribes Himself as the law on our mind, emotion, and will. Then this law is not only put into, but inscribed upon us. The law is written by inscribing. At this point the one law becomes many laws: a law in the mind, a law in the emotion, and a law in the will. One law becomes many laws, just as the one river in Genesis 2:10 was parted into four streams in four directions. The one law in our spirit becomes many laws in our many inward parts.
Christianity with its teachings today is too shallow. Many Christians are deep in the doctrinal letter, but they do not know much about the inner life. Many seek victory over sin and the overcoming of their besetting sin. However, if we learn the lesson to cooperate with God to let Him inscribe on our mind, will, and emotion, there is no need to seek victory over sin. There will be something deeper within us. Then we will see transformation, an inner change. Even only two years after being saved, a brother may have a great change, not merely in his outward behavior and conduct, but in his way of thinking, of loving and hating things, and of making decisions. Such a brother has growth and a real improvement, and within him we can see a measure of Christ. Our measure of Christ depends on how much God inscribes on our mind, will, and emotion, how much God works Himself into us. First He puts Himself into us, and after this He starts inscribing all the time. This inscribing is the regulating, and this regulating is the work of the inner law. The regulating depends on the inner sense, and the inner sense comes from the fellowship of life. This is very practical.
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