We should be bothered about our shortage of increase. If we are not bothered today, one day we may be troubled by the Lord Jesus. This is a serious matter. When we go to see Him, He will ask us about our fruit. According to the parable in Matthew 25:14-30, the Lord has delivered His talents to us, and one day He will come and settle accounts with us. In this parable, the one with five talents and the one with two talents gave an account of what they had done, and they received a reward. The one with one talent, however, received a punishment. One day we will have to give the Lord an account. Whether we will receive a reward or a punishment depends upon what we do in this age. To be a Christian is not a small matter. Much preparation is needed for us to meet the Lord. We must go out to gain people, telling the Lord, “You gave me one talent. Now I would make another talent for a profit.”
We have to rise up. We have no choice but to be Christians. Therefore, we must be normal Christians, not abnormal and disobedient. In society, if a person does not get an education, he will cause himself to suffer. He has to study and make good grades. Then he will be a better person and will live a better life. In the same way, we must rise up to learn something related to fruit bearing. When we do so, we will discover that we need the growth in life, and we will grow. By this, our prayer will change. Previously, we might have only known how to pray in an idle way. We did not mean business in our prayer. However, when we rise up to mean business with the Lord, we will pray desperately with much meaning. We may even fast, not according to a teaching, but according to an inner compelling.
To have the proper group meetings requires much learning. We should not take the easy, natural way to meet, in which several people come together, sing a hymn, pray, and testify in a natural way. We must pick up the skill of fellowshipping and learn how to stir up others to fellowship. As we have pointed out before, in the group meetings we should have fellowship, prayer, care, and shepherding. To speak these four words is easy, but we need to learn how to practice these things organically in a living way and how to stir up others to cooperate to practice them with us in the meetings. I believe that in the churches there will be small groups full of organic fellowship, organic intercession, organic care for one another, and organic shepherding. That will be very enjoyable and a great encouragement to all the believers. Everyone enjoys having a free talk with their friends. If we have a pleasant free talk, everyone will enjoy taking part in it. The group meetings are a few people coming together to have such a pleasant talk. Coming together in this way makes everybody happy. Eventually everyone in the group will know everyone else. This kind of meeting is a joy. However, we have to learn how to have such a meeting. We have spoken sufficiently on this subject. Our need today is on the side of practice.
To come together in the small groups is also to come together to teach and to be taught. Without teaching we can never carry out the central goal of the group meeting, which is to perfect the saints unto the work of the ministry, unto the building up of the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:12). If we do not know how to teach and receive teaching, we cannot attain to the goal of the group meeting, and our meetings will be too low.
In the practice of the new way, to teach is not merely to open the Bible or a particular book to point out certain truths. This is too legal, dead, and vain. To teach in the new way is mostly to answer practical questions. We should let all the attendants of a group meeting know that everyone is free to raise any kind of question. A new one in the meeting may raise a question concerning the origin of the Bible. The attendants in the meeting must supply some answers, and in order to do this, they must have some learning. For this reason we have published many books, including one which tells us where the Bible came from and how it was composed (see Lesson One in Truth Lessons, Level One, Volume 1, published by Living Stream Ministry). The books that we have published are real and practical and meet our needs. We should spend our leisure time to read them. By doing so we will accumulate a good store and a rich deposit of the proper spiritual knowledge. Then we will be equipped to attend the group meetings. When any question is raised, we will have something to answer. In our answering of questions, there may even be new light and new discoveries from the Bible.
All the saints should be equipped. In this regard, we hope that none of the saints in the Lord’s recovery will take the way of traditional Christianity. Every saint must be knowledgeable. Everyone must be able to teach, and everyone must know what to do in the small group meetings. We must render care to others, but if we do not have the growth in life and are not knowledgeable concerning spiritual things, the things of God in His economy, we will not be able to care for the younger ones. In order to attend the group meetings and take care of the younger ones, we have to endeavor to become qualified, perfected, and equipped. Endeavoring to be equipped in this way is a lifelong matter. We should not stop learning. Rather, because we mean business with the Lord, we should be desperate to learn.
No one is too old to bear fruit and take care of the new ones. The older saints among us can at least pray and care for the older ones among their relatives, neighbors, and friends. We need to have two or three younger ones under our care constantly. We should pray for them and take care of all their needs, including their physical needs. There are many ways that we can care for the saints. As we care for the saints, the Body of Christ will be cared for and spontaneously built up. Our care for others should not be in the way of traditional Christianity, in which a meeting is established with a gifted one as the speaker. This kind of care is not genuine. If our care for others is like this, we will not have a good report when we go to the Lord to give an account to Him. At that time He will not listen to our excuses. Rather, He may ask whether or not we heard or read these messages concerning fruit bearing. To hear these messages may be a profit to us. However, to hear these messages places us under an obligation. Now that the Lord has shown us the God-ordained way, we have no excuse. We have to bear fruit and take care of the young ones. This is a serious matter, and this is related to God’s economy. If we all do our part in fruit bearing, God’s economy will be fulfilled.