According to Acts 12:5, when Peter was in prison, “prayer was being made fervently by the church to God concerning him.” The interceding of the church is a great blessing. When we encounter problems, the prayers of the church are a great blessing. If we take actions by ourselves that limit the ability of the church to support us through prayer, this is a sad and pitiful situation. It is a great blessing that we can turn to our local church for prayer when we have problems. However, if we have a problem with the church, we will limit the ability of the church to earnestly pray for us. This is a strong proof that we have lost the position of being blessed.
Verse 31 of chapter 9 says that the churches in various places “had peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.” It is quite marvelous that this verse does not say that the saints in various places had peace, being built up and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Rather, it says that the churches in various places had peace, being built up, and went on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. In other words, if we are not in the church, we will have no part in the peace enjoyed by the church. If we are not in the church, we will be excluded from the comfort received by the church. Only those who are in the church can enjoy the peace and the comfort received by the church. Only when we are in the church can we have a share in the church’s blessings.
Verse 41 of chapter 15 says that the apostle Paul “passed through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.” This verse does not speak of confirming the saints but of confirming the churches. If we have a problem with the church and are divided from the church, we will have no part in the confirming that is to the churches. Without such a part, we can quickly fall to the point of opposing the apostles’ testimony. If we blame and criticize the church, it will not be long before our situation is even more pitiful.
Recently, we have been blessed to see that Christ is our person, and we have been full of rejoicing concerning this matter. However, some have tried to pour cold water on this truth and have even left the church. They not only have lost the blessing of the church, but they have fallen to the point that they even oppose the blessings that God is bestowing on the church. In contrast, many saints have responded in their spirit and are exultingly praising, saying, “Hallelujah! We never saw that the Lord is our person. Now we see it. What a great blessing this is!” It is amazing that some are willing to pour cold water on this by blaming, condemning, and criticizing.
May the Lord preserve us so that we never fall to such a pitiful state! We are in the church. Whenever we see that the church is being blessed by God in His grace, we are joyful, and we leap with praises. However, once a person leaves this ground, he begins to oppose the blessings received by the church. It is a strange thing that when a person leaves the ground of the church, regardless of what the Lord has done in the church and regardless of what happens in the church, he can only criticize and oppose. This is a pitiful situation. May the Lord have mercy on us and keep us forever on the ground of the church and in the practical church life. If this is the case, we will have a part in every blessing that the church receives. Sometimes, even when we are sick or unable to attend the meetings, the blessing that the church receives comes upon us because we are standing on the ground of the church and living in the church life. However, once we lose this ground and oppose the church, we have no part in the blessings bestowed on the church.
In Acts 20:28 Paul charged the elders in Ephesus to take heed to all the flock and shepherd the church of God, which God obtained through His own blood. The verse does not stress sheep but the flock. Paul did not say that the elders should shepherd the saints; he said that they should shepherd the church of God. This indicates that in order to receive God’s shepherding, we must be in the church. Once we lose the church, we lose the Lord’s shepherding. Hence, it is a serious matter when a person has a problem with the church and when a person loses the ground of the church and the life of the church.
The last speaking of the Lord is in the book of Revelation. Although Revelation includes seven epistles to seven churches (1:11; chs. 2—3), the entire book of Revelation is an epistle. John received a command from the Lord to write this book. He did not write to one saint or even to all the saints but to the seven churches in Asia. We also know that a person’s last words tend to be the most important and most precious. The last book of the Bible is Revelation, which is the Lord’s last word, and this book was written to the churches, to seven local churches. If we are not in the church, it will be difficult for us to hear the last words of the Lord. In this book a specific charge to the churches is repeated seven times: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22).
In order to properly hear someone’s speaking, we must stand in the right position and face the proper direction. If you are speaking over there, and my ears are not facing your direction, it will not be easy for me to hear your words. In order to hear, I need to turn and position my ears in the proper direction. In order to hear what the Spirit is speaking to the churches, we must be in the church. This is the proper position. If we are not in the church, how can we hear what the Spirit is speaking to the churches? This is not a small thing.
My heart leaps with joy that there are so many young people in the church. I was a young man at one time, and I was even saved before I was twenty. After I was saved, however, I was groping in the dark for seven years. I did not know the blessing that comes from being in the church as soon as a believer is saved. When I was saved, I did not have even one-tenth of the blessing that you have today. You are truly blessed because you are in the church. You were saved in the church, and you are receiving grace in the church. In contrast, a person loses the blessing when he loses the ground of the church.
I hope that we will all see this matter clearly. Facts are stronger than reasonings, which avail nothing. Time is the best test. With the passage of time, everything becomes manifest, including what is right and what is wrong, what is the church and what is not, and what is approved by God and what is not. God eventually manifests everything in a clear way.
Four years ago a small number of people went out from among us. They claimed that the Lord had left us and taken His glory with Him. I believe that many of us still remember this kind of speaking. Four years have passed, but has the Lord left us? I am not saying this to defend myself or to glorify myself; rather, I want you to see the true situation. When I returned to the Far East this time, I could see that the churches are very living and that the brothers and sisters are growing. I am truly thankful to the Lord and give all praise to Him. The Lord has done this, and He has done it in the local churches. The church is precious. When we are in the church, we receive His blessing.