| Gods Work - Watchman Nee |
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Secrets to Spiritual Power
God's Work By Watchman Nee from "Secrets To Spiritual Power?"
If what we have laid hold of is merely doctrine or teaching, it will leave us after a while. But if what we have found is light, or revelation, it is life. We will not be able to get away from it. If we have truly seen anything by revelation, what we have seen we have seen; it will never leave us. And we will always see. Every spiritual thing we possess comes by revelation, and it comes in this succession: (1) light, (2) revelation, (3) life-that is, God's life, and (4) His riches (all that He is). To be a coworker with God, we must have revelation; otherwise, we are not working toward His eternal purpose. Furthermore, if we have not seen the eternal purpose of God, we will never see the particulars of the work God has for us to do. Why must there be revelation? Because this light of God kills all that is not of Him-all that is out of man. If our work were only to save people, man would appear to play quite an important role in its achievement. But if our work has as its purpose to build up the body, man must be completely ruled out; for the body is Christ-it is all for Christ-therefore, nothing of man can enter. What really edifies and helps the body the most is not the gifts. Nor is it the utterances of those who have the gifts God has given. What really edifies and helps the body the most is the life that exists within those we contact who deeply know the Cross-those who know the Cross within and bear it daily. A church that tries to build itself up by the gifts will always end up being a carnal church, since the gifts are for the building up of the church in the nursery stage. Why is this? Because the gifts do not alter the inner man. Only the Cross does this! Unfortunately, in the church today the focus of attention is either on what a person says or what a person does. Little emphasis is put on what a person is. The help you have to offer others will always be in proportion to the price that you yourself have paid. The higher the price, the more you have to offer; the lower the price, the less you have to offer. There are two kinds of gifts that God has given to the church: one is the gift of things-like miracles, healings, tongues, etc.; the other is the gift of people to minister-such as prophets, teachers, pastors, and evangelists. The former do not give us more of Christ within; they simply substantiate God's Word. The latter have to do with the ministry of God's Word; they give us more of Christ's life within by building up the inner spiritual life of the church. There is a gift of prophecy that may come through by way of tongues or supernatural utterances under the outpoured spirit, but this is only God's temporary way when there are none of spiritual depth, history, and maturity whom He can use as intelligent vessels for the upbuilding of the church. Suffering is the basis of ministry. And for the life of Christ to be manifested in us, there must be the marks of the Cross on us. It is only when death has been worked into us that His life can flow out of us and into others. What is the reason for such appalling shallowness and poverty in ministry these days? It is that ministers have experienced so little themselves. How few and rare are those who are truly rich spiritually. You cannot possibly take anything of the old creation into the tabernacle (the ministry of the Lord)-not your old mind, your old brilliancy, your old cleverness, your old eloquence, or your old strength. Only what has passed through death is useful to God. You must first lay your dead rod before Him and allow it to blossom before you can be of use to God in service (Num. 17:1-8). Resurrection has only one meaning: that a person has been through death and has received new life. Working for God and serving God are two different things. And only service to God is acceptable to Him. He who wishes to enter the ministry has only to lay his dead rod before the Lord for Him to put His life into it (Num. 17:1-8). Then he must wait for it to blossom. When there is no life left in it to extinguish-when it is dead-it will blossom. What is the iniquity of the sanctuary life (Num. 18: I)? It is the bringing into the service of the Lord something other than resurrection. Trusting in anything of the old creation or bringing anything of the old creation into the work of the Lord constitutes the iniquity of the sanctuary. One can only serve God with that which is of God. Nothing but what comes forth from God can be used in His service. |