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Additional Quotes about the Local Church by Witness Lee and Watchman NeeA person who knows the order and who truly represents authority is not like this. Suppose here is a matter to be handled. At the beginning, he would allow the brothers to speak about their feelings. One brother may feel one thing, and another brother may feel another thing. Every brother would speak out what he feels. If I am the one who should act as the head, I should fear God. I should not have any preconception, prejudice, or bias, but should simply touch everyone’s feeling. In the end, when I am clear within and am peaceful, I will say, “Brothers, if that is the case, let us make such-and-such a decision.” Every time we discuss any matter, we should learn not to have any arguments, nor to ignore any inward feelings. If any of the brothers feel there is something wrong with the decision, he can still speak out his feeling. The leading one should still listen to this feeling in a serious way and should still consider it. This is the way for the elders to coordinate in the church. Among the elders there is no democracy or autocracy; everyone submits to the authority of the Holy Spirit. No one is too aggressive, or at all passive. Instead everyone places himself fully among the elders. Everyone knows in what order he is placed, and everyone accepts the authority without insisting on anything or resisting any responsibility. This is the way to coordinate together. (Witness Lee, Elders’ Management, 125-126) In the chapter regarding authority we have mentioned that the authority of the elders requires coordination. Thus, the coordination of the elders is closely related to their being the authority. If there is no coordination among the elders in a local church, regardless how strong an individual elder may be, his strength is of no avail. However, when the coordination of the elders exists, though the elders are weak, they can still stand and go on. Strength without coordination is useless, whereas weakness with coordination is tolerable. We can see that the coordination of the elders is of utmost importance. (Witness Lee, Elders’ Management, 113) The situation in Acts 15 was neither democratic nor autocratic; it was a situation like the one we have just described. Everyone opened himself in the Holy Spirit and fellowshipped what he had encountered, what he felt, and what he had observed. In the end, James, who was the authority at that time, after hearing all the words, stood up and stated the way they should proceed. Immediately after James stood up and spoke, no one had anything more to say. This is the principle of authority. The elders should know the place the Lord has put them in, whether as the authority, or as those under authority. They should know in what order the Lord has placed them, whether they are the first or the second. They should know the order here. To know the order is to know authority. You have to accept this authority. Otherwise, there will be no possibility for the elders to be coordinated together. (Witness Lee, Elders’ Management, 124) 1 Timothy 4:14 Do not neglect the gift which is in you, which was given to you by means of prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the 5presbytery. 1 Timothy 4:145 Meaning not merely the elders but the body of elders, the elderhood, implying that they were in one accord, all acting as one. The elders, who are the overseers (3:2), represent a local church, which is the expression of the Body of Christ. The laying on of the hands of the presbytery signifies that the Body of Christ participated with God in imparting the gift of grace to Timothy. This was not a personal matter but a Body matter. (Witness Lee, Footnotes, 984) The building up of a local church requires the proper humanity. It does not depend on our work as much as it does on our humanity. To be temperate, sober, and forbearing is not a small thing. A local church does not need powerful elders, because sooner or later the church will be torn down by them. The church needs forbearing, gentle elders who do not give themselves to anything but the humanity of Jesus. (Witness Lee, Christ as the Reality, 139) The elders should contact people in a proper way, always avoiding involvement in their situations. They should try their best to simply minister Christ and the gospel with God’s salvation, grace, love, mercy, and light in a pure way. Then we will get the benefit. If we do not contact people, there will be a loss; if we contact people carelessly, this will be a killing; and if we get involved in people’s situations, there will be a problem. Therefore, we must try to avoid unhealthy involvement, but do our best to minister something on the positive side…. We are very concerned for the increase in the church, and we have found that the key to the increase in a local church is the elders’ contact with people. Without the elders’ contact with people, it is difficult for the church to gain people. The saints may bring in people, but the key to the increase in the church is the elders. If the elders do not have a proper contact with people, those whom the saints bring to the church may not stay. The elders are the key to the church life. (Witness Lee, Eldership (3), 45) | ||||