Let me now share a word concerning the book, The Normal Christian Church Life. This book is composed of a series of messages given by Brother Nee in 1937. I was present when those messages were given. In fact, Brother Nee even asked me to give one of the messages for him. One morning Brother Nee called me to his home, told me that he was ill, and asked me to take his place in giving the message. When I told him that I had no idea what he would be speaking about, he gave me all the points of that message, which was on the line of Antioch. I wrote down the points, rushed back to the meeting, and informed the attendants that Brother Nee was ill and that he had charged me to deliver the message. I then related to them all the points regarding the line of Antioch that Brother Nee had given to me. At another time Brother Nee gave that same message himself. Later, in 1937, the co-workers gathered in Hankow, a city in central China, to escape the Japanese invasion. At that time Brother Nee delivered those messages a second time. Then he polished them and printed them as a book in 1938. After this, he spent more than a year visiting various countries in Europe. During his stay in London, he translated his book into English with the help of a British sister. It was published in 1939 under the title, Concerning Our Missions. In 1962 a brother in the United States was burdened to publish an American edition of the book entitled, The Normal Christian Church Life. He was granted permission to do so, and the book was published by International Students. The American edition was widely distributed, and many people have read it. After reading this book, some have attempted to practice the local church life. They used this book to cause more divisions. We should not blame this book for these divisions; those who use this book to build their own work should be held responsible for this.
Certain so-called Christian workers have been hoping to establish a new work. However, they did not have any new concepts. By reading Brother Nee’s book, they discovered some new concepts to feed their desire, and they began to establish local churches. But what they established was neither genuine nor pure. If they were genuine and pure, they surely would have learned that the Lord’s recovery had already come to this country, and they would have contacted us. This would have been real oneness and a genuine beginning for the church life. Nevertheless, many who have read The Normal Christian Church Life have begun their own work without contacting us. Some of these were in the charismatic movement and had learned that speaking in tongues was not the way to build up the church. They also realized that old Christianity was over, and they wanted nothing to do with it. But they did not have the proper way to go on. After reading Brother Nee’s book, they felt that they had found the way.
Some who were influenced by Brother Nee’s book have said that the practice of the Lord’s recovery is too frank and too bold. Therefore, they invented another way. This way is to pretend to be something you are not. Those who follow this way claim that they are practicing the church life, but they do not want to call it the church.
Those who sincerely desire to have the church life will contact us. But instead of contacting us, some have used The Normal Christian Church Life to cause new divisions. Those who have done this have been those outside the Lord’s recovery.
In a few cases divisions have been caused by those who were once within the Lord’s recovery. One brother who has been helped by the Lord’s recovery attended the conference in Los Angeles in 1964. In one of the meetings he testified that as he saw me coming off the plane in a particular city, the Holy Spirit told him that he had to submit himself to me. He gave strong testimony of this publicly, and he did submit to me. The following year he gave this testimony a second time in our conference. However, not long afterward, he was distracted by a famous preacher from England, and together they spoke at a yearly conference on the east coast of the United States. When I was earnestly invited to be one of the main speakers at this conference, I rejected the invitation. The next year I was invited again. I also rejected this invitation, telling them that I did not have the anointing to participate in that kind of conference. Then the one who started this conference turned his back on me and began to fight against me. Eventually, that yearly conference became a failure and has been discontinued. Now this dear one, who has a group of his own in a certain city, has been fully distracted.
In 1963 a particular traveling preacher who knew nothing about the Lord’s recovery visited my training in Los Angeles. Apparently, he was caught for the Lord’s recovery. He discontinued his work and came to stay with us. He stayed for some time and learned many things, including the truths of God’s eternal purpose and the tree of life. After about three years, he suddenly claimed to see another line in addition to the line of Jerusalem and the line of Antioch. As a result, he left in 1969, taking with him all he had learned in the Lord’s recovery. After that, he kept returning to our meeting hall after the meetings to pick up printed materials. Not too far from Los Angeles, he has founded a work which he calls a local church.
Another division was caused by a brother who wanted to have his own ministry. He thought that the recovery was the best opportunity for him to build up his ministry. Because the intention of brothers like this is to establish their own work, sooner or later they will cause divisions. This particular brother eventually began his own work in another locality. Some of the saints there, being innocent, received help from our conferences and trainings. Gradually they began to realize that what they had seen elsewhere was not being practiced in their locality. These saints had a genuine motive for the Lord’s recovery. However, the intention of this brother was not purely for the recovery. Eventually, the real situation was exposed, and some of those in the lead rejected the Lord’s recovery.
Thus, some outside the Lord’s recovery have used this book, The Normal Christian Church Life, to begin so-called local churches. Actually, they have created more divisions. In addition, some insiders, who were with us for a while, but who would not give up their intention, were exposed and were no longer able to hide under the cloak of the recovery. Eventually, they went out to do their own independent work.