My burden is that we would not follow the fundamental way or the Pentecostal way in dealing with the Word and the Spirit. The fundamental way is to emphasize the Word and neglect the Spirit, and the Pentecostal way is somewhat to emphasize the Spirit and neglect the Word. In the Bible we can see that as children of God and members of Christ we surely need to have the real experience in the holy Word, and to experience the Spirit of God, essentially and economically.
Both the Word and the Spirit are God. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word...and the Word was God.” John 4:24 also says, “God is Spirit.” God is the Word and God is the Spirit for the purpose of reaching us. Without being the Word and without being the Spirit, how could He reach us? It would be impossible. God’s reaching us is in the Word and in the Spirit. Thank Him that He has given the Word and the Spirit as two great gifts to us. We have the gift of the Word in our hands and we have the gift of the Spirit in our spirit. Our problem is related to how we handle these two gifts.
Most of the saints in the Lord’s recovery are at a standstill, not dealing with the Word and not dealing with the Spirit. Some may say that they are dealing with the Word by reading the Bible and even by studying the Bible and reading the Life-study Messages. I admit that this may be so, yet you are not so serious in studying the Bible; you read the Bible indifferently. We do not eat our food indifferently. Every day we eat our food seriously. If I would not eat properly and seriously I would die. Every morning I like to eat a banana and some yogurt. If my wife only provides me with oatmeal for breakfast, I will respond, “Where are the banana and the yogurt?” My response indicates that I eat seriously. My vigor comes from that serious eating.
Do you study the Bible so seriously? When you read the Bible do you look for “the banana and the yogurt?” You may read the Bible and the Life-study Messages, but not seriously. Paul said that some were “inexperienced in the word of righteousness.” The Hebrew believers should have been experienced in the word of righteousness. How many of us could say that we are really experienced in the Word of God and that we do mean business in reading the Word? In the polishing of the messages we are serious in dealing with the Word—just concerning the use of one preposition we may spend fifteen minutes or more. We might ask, “Should we use ‘of,’ or should we use ‘in’ or ‘with’? Upon what verse is our decision based?” This illustrates that we need to be serious to deal with the two great gifts bequeathed to us by the ascended Christ, the holy Word and the Holy Spirit. The Word is in our hand and the Spirit is in our spirit. However, we do not handle them seriously; we just deal with them indifferently. If this is so, then for the long run we will never be healthy and vigorous. We all must become experienced in the word, and we need to have the real experience of the infilling and outpouring of the Spirit. Then we will be full of air and full of gasoline; we will be a car that will run well.
To gain the increase you need the Word and the Spirit. In Acts 8 Philip the evangelist, charged and burdened by the Spirit, approached the chariot of an Ethiopian eunuch who was reading the Old Testament. He asked the eunuch, “Do you really know what you are reading?” (v. 30). The eunuch replied, “How can I unless someone guides me?” (v. 31). From the very chapter which that eunuch was reading, Isaiah 53, Philip expounded the holy Word to him (vv. 32-35).
If Philip would have had no idea or knowledge of that chapter, he could have said, “Sir, I do not know much. You had better bring me to Jerusalem to see Peter. Probably Peter knows this, and will be able to help you.” Although you have not actually said this, in principle what you have done was like this. When the one you were contacting referred something to you, you did not understand and did not know what to say. You may have said, “Nevertheless, Christ is very good. The Lord is tasteful. Just taste and see that the Lord is good.” People would ask, “How good is He? In what way is He good?” You may say, “I cannot tell you, but He is good.” You cannot gain people in this way. You have to be experienced in the Word. Whatever you are asked, you should have the right answer immediately, not out of your own thoughts, but out of the Word. If you say something without a base from the Scriptures, people will not regard that, but if you say something which the Bible says, this will be meaningful to them. If you have a pocket-sized version of the Bible, you can open it up and say, “The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 15:45...” Then you can turn to that verse and read it. People will have to respect you because you know the best book among all the books.
If you refer people to the Bible and give them Bible verses, you will surprise them. To do this you must become experienced in the Word. The thoughtful people, especially the young college students, are desirous of knowing things and substantiating them. You may go to a college student and say, “The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is God.” He would say, “Sir, show me. What verse in the Bible tells us this?” To answer that you do not remember so well would surely weaken your speaking. You should show him some verses which prove this point. You could use John 1:1 and 14 which say that the Word was God and the Word became flesh. Such a thoughtful person may be bothered and say that the name Jesus Christ is not mentioned in these verses. Then you have to show him Romans 9:5, which says, “Christ, who is over all, God blessed forever.” This will convince people. Also, by being experienced in the Word you will find a way of salvation for people. You could present them first with Romans 3:23: “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Then you could turn to John 3:16 and many other applicable verses. Your using of the Bible will convince them that you are not talking nonsensically, but that you are speaking something solid from the best book among the human race. Whenever the Bible is used in this way, the Holy Spirit always goes along with it. The Holy Spirit always honors the holy Word. Do not waste others’ time. Simply present something so precious and so definite out of the holy Word. This will give the Holy Spirit a way to inspire people.
In addition to the Word, you must have the Spirit with you. Since the time we were saved, we have had the Holy Spirit within us, but He has not been within us enough in an experiential way. We may not have any experience of the Spirit for a number of days. When we talk to people, we may not have the Spirit in our experience. To be filled with the Spirit both inwardly and outwardly we must make a thorough confession every day: “Lord, cleanse me and clear me up. I would like to pour out all the dirt and junk from within me to let you have all the ground and all the space within me. Fill me up.” If you have such a dealing with the Lord every day, even every moment, the Spirit within you will be so fresh in your experience. When you talk to people, even though they may not know what is there, they will realize that something within you is quite new and convincing. This is the Holy Spirit working with your speaking in the Word to help the sinners. By becoming experienced in the Word and in the inward filling and outpouring of the Holy Spirit we can do a living work to catch people for the Lord’s increase.
We have found out that the way to gain people directly is by one on one contact. Do not talk to too many; simply talk to one person at a time. This was very much practiced by the Lord Jesus as seen in John 3. Nicodemus came to the Lord in the night, and the Lord dealt with one person, one on one. Nicodemus came to the Lord Jesus, but in John 4 the Lord went purposely from Jerusalem to Samaria to the very well of Jacob. There He waited for one Samaritan woman to come, and He spoke to her in the principle of one on one. In chapter eight He talked to a sinful woman, one on one. In chapter nine He talked to a blind man, one on one. In Luke 19 the Lord dealt with Zaccheus in the principle of one on one. Even Barnabas took hold of Paul when he was newly saved in the principle of one on one (Acts 9:26-27). We must learn to contact people one on one. This has been and still is very much practiced in Taiwan.
Over one hundred thirty young full-timers are in a training in Taipei at this time. All these young people were taught, instructed, and trained to go out on the streets, to go on the campuses, and to visit homes to simply contact people in the principle of one on one. They have learned the secret of talking to people in a very short way. Within fifteen minutes people are baptized. They use Bible verses through the Spirit, and they touch people’s heart, feeling, conscience, and understanding. They catch people. There is no way for people to escape. They become convinced and captured; they repent and are baptized. These full-timers do not use vain talk, for they have learned that people frequently say that they are busy and do not have time. They tell people that they only desire to stay with them for ten minutes. Most people would not reject them. They spend ten minutes economically. Within these ten minutes they do not speak vain things; they speak the word from the Bible through the Spirit. Every day and everywhere they gain people. Once within one week some of the saints in Taipei plus the full-timers, baptized eleven hundred and four new believers. This is to gain the increase with the Word by the Spirit. You need to be experienced in the Word and you need to have the proper infilling and outpouring of the Spirit.