According to our present situation there is an urgent need for the light of the truth and the supply of life in the small groups; there is not much need for in-depth explanation. In our practice of the small groups, we need to have the light of the truth and the supply of life.
When we come to a small group meeting, there should not be any formality. The meeting can begin in any way. If the chair that you sit on is not comfortable, you can switch to a little stool. In a small group there is no need for polite talk or religious rituals and methods. When we come together, we should greet one another spontaneously and have a spirit of mutual concern, mutual teaching, and mutual care. We may say, “Thank the Lord, we have two more saints today than the last time.” Another saint may say, “Yes, I really thank the Lord. Last time I came and tasted the sweetness of fellowship among the saints, so I am here again today.” Then a more experienced saint may say, “Thank the Lord, our fellowship last time was really sweet,” and he may continue with a prayer: “Lord, we thank You that this brother came last week and was touched and graced by You.” In this way, spontaneously everyone will enter into prayer. Perhaps the brother who was graced by the Lord would follow in prayer and say that he received much help last time from reading a portion from Romans. This is a good opportunity to enter into the truth of the Bible according to his need.
To pursue the truth in fellowship during a small group meeting, we can use the Recovery Version as much as it is needed. The purpose of reading the Recovery Version is to help the saints understand the Bible, see light in the truth, and receive the supply of life. This depends on our labor in the Word. Hence, before the meeting we must read through the portion of the Scriptures that will be covered that day with the related footnotes and Life-study messages.
We can practice with Romans 1:1-4. In the meeting we can read the outline for this portion and then read the text. In the small group there may be time to read only four verses, but in our preparation we should prepare more verses. We do not need to read the footnotes, nor do we need to recite the verses. We only need to remember the thought in the verses. After reading the verses, some saints can speak the content of the verses. The more experienced saints can add a little explanation of the verses. Then there can be prayer related to the content of the verses: “Lord, we truly thank You. You are the subject of the gospel. The gospel is not concerning heaven or hell but concerning You. According to the flesh, You are the Son of Man, and indeed You are a man. According to the Spirit of holiness, You resurrected from the dead and were designated the Son of God. Hence, You are the Son of God. You are God.”
The footnotes are for us to be equipped. Hence, we need to study the footnotes thoroughly. If someone in the small group meeting asks about the meaning of the Spirit of holiness, we can explain, but not in the way of a study. We can also say that if the saints want to know more, they can get a copy of the Recovery Version and study it.
In order to use the Life-study messages, we must prepare before the meeting so that we know which points need to be stressed and which points do not. For example, Message 2 of the Life-study of Romans is on the gospel of God. Suppose the first paragraph is read in the meeting. When you get to the portion that says, “The Christ in the four Gospels was among the disciples; the Christ in Romans is within us,” we should take the opportunity to speak three or five sentences to stress this point. We may say, “After Christ died and resurrected, He became the life-giving Spirit who dwells in our spirit.” Or we can select a different portion from the message that concerns Christ and read it together to emphasize life and not truth. In this case we may say to the others, “The book of Romans shows that the Lord Jesus today is not the same as He was with Peter, James, and John. Today He has passed through death and resurrection and has become the life-giving Spirit to dwell in us and to be our life practically. We have the same life and the same living with Him.” Then all the saints can fellowship based on the portion of the message that was read.
After the fellowship we can give a three to five sentence summary, such as, “Paul’s word in this portion is a crystallized speaking. It shows that our precious Lord Jesus is a man in the flesh. He is also God with divinity. He went through human living, died, resurrected, and became the life-giving Spirit to dwell in us. We hope that after this fellowship we all will live in Him every day, taking Him as our life, having fellowship with Him daily, and living Him out.” All those in attendance will never forget this kind of summary.