Question: If a Christian who claims that he is Elijah, sent by Jehovah to help others, comes to our small group meeting, how should we handle him?
Answer: We should simply tell him, “We are open to all who are saved, but we will not receive such speaking. Let me escort you to the door.”
Question: How can we get to know the actual situation of the people we contact?
Answer: In order to do anything, we must have the proper knowledge. If you gave me an English essay to correct, but I did not know English, I could read it a hundred times and still be unable to correct it, because I do not have the necessary knowledge. I would need sufficient knowledge of English grammar in order to correct the essay. Similarly, our ability to know people depends on two factors: how much we have learned and how much we know the spirit of others. We cannot know a person by listening merely to his words; we must touch his spirit with our spirit. How much we have learned to exercise our spirit determines our ability to know others. This cannot be learned in one day; it can only be learned over time. A person who handles fabric every day is able to tell whether a fabric is good or not simply by touching it. Whether we are able to render some help to others depends on how much we know them.
Question: Many of us grew up in the children’s meetings. We love the Lord and the church, and we desire to serve Him full time. How do we conduct ourselves before the older saints who have seen us grow up?
Answer: This is a difficult point. On the one hand, a prophet has no honor in his own country (John 4:44; Matt. 13:57), but on the other hand, as your speech and mannerisms change, and you become stable and serious, the older saints will feel different about you. The most important thing is to always appropriately present yourself before people. For this reason, when you return to your locality, you must be aggressive and make progress so that others will respect you. The attitude of the saints depends on how you present yourself. This does not mean that we are pretentious or put on airs but that we are real.
Question: What do we do if a weak and backslidden brother comes to a small group meeting and expresses his negative views concerning the church?
Answer: Everything depends on the circumstance. Nevertheless, the brothers and sisters need a broad heart, and they need to be considerate of the weak saints who have not been meeting for a while. We should not be offended by what he says. However, if he does this every time, we should ask him to stop his negative speaking or to stay home. Moreover, the saints in the small group should pray, asking for the Lord’s leading concerning how to help such saints. We should not be quick to address the situation. We need a broad and patient heart, and we need to follow the Lord’s leading in the situation to render him some help.
Question: Eighty percent of the saints in my small group are older saints who have been in the small group for some time; it is therefore easy for them to practice the group meeting as they have in the past. What should we do to turn them to the present practice?
Answer: You should not be legal in adopting the present practice. You should not be “reformers” and attempt to change everything once you join a small group. You should simply meet with the saints. Gradually, as you gain their trust, you can begin to speak to them. Even if you make no progress for a year, there is still the next year. The Lord Jesus is full of patience toward us. With Him a thousand years are like one day (2 Pet. 3:8). Hence, we should not be anxious. Our goal is to bring the brothers and sisters to exercise their life function. Some of them might already have formed habits that are difficult to break; nevertheless, we must not cut them off. The Lord will operate and raise up some who have the same vision and burden as we do. We should believe in the Lord.
As you young people go to serve the Lord, you must avoid rushing into things. Instead, you should exercise patience. This does not mean that you should not do anything, or that you should not be concerned or positive. On the contrary, you must be positive, concerned, and burdened but at the same time realize that you must not be hasty in the situation and circumstance. The saints may not be able to match your burden; hence, you need to give the Lord some time to raise up the proper atmosphere. Then the saints will change their view and their attitude, and there will be plenty to do. This can be compared to a farmer who plants seeds and tills the ground in December. This is foolishness; his effort is in vain. Instead, he should be actively getting ready and waiting so that he will be able to plant seeds when spring arrives.
You should not be quick to do anything. You should not say, “I have participated in the training. Now I have a heavy burden to change the situation in my church.” I guarantee that if you do this, you will fail. When you return, you should learn to be patient and wise. You should allow the Lord to change winter into spring in His timing. While you wait, you must pray to prepare yourself and also exercise to make progress. You should learn how to converse with the older saints. If you do not succeed, you can try another way. This is being aggressive, and this is the way to learn to serve the Lord. You need to learn in all these things.
Question: Since the success of a small group depends on whether the leading ones have a clear burden, should we have a training for the leading ones so that we may all get the help?
Answer: This training is to charge you full-timers to be aggressive to learn so that when you join a small group meeting, you will function spontaneously. If it is needed, you may follow the Lord’s leading and share a little concerning His present leading in the church in relation to the small group meeting. Your purpose is not to promote the small groups or to arrange the saints into small groups. That is organization. Our desire is that you function in the Body and bring a little spark of fire with you. The church is not an organization; rather, the church is like an orchard with all kinds of trees. Some trees may not grow so well for a time, but after a while an opportunity will arise, and the timing will be right. We must continue to meet, and the Holy Spirit will lead us. We are not an organization; there is no need to have a set of regulations. We have the Lord, the Spirit, and the Word.
Question: Does the church have a plan for nurturing the brothers and sisters? How do we help the brothers and sisters become persons who are faithful and prudent?
Answer: The church life is a life of nurturing. If we meet regularly, we will be nurtured and nourished. At the same time, the church life causes every saint’s gift and talent to be manifested. Hence, the church life does not suppress the saints; rather, it encourages everyone to manifest his ability so that the gifts and talents are manifested. The churches should encourage the brothers and sisters to travel abroad to visit other countries. This is beneficial. However, we do not wish to make such things into rules, because the church is the Lord’s organic Body; everything in the church depends on life.