第八週■週四

w08d04-ch

晨興餧養

徒二十 24『我卻不以性命爲念，也不看爲寶貴，只要行完我的路程，成就我從主耶穌所領受的職事，鄭重見證神恩典的福音。』

   二一 19『保羅問候了他們，便將神藉着他的職事，在外邦人中所行的事，都一一述說出來。』

雖然這些經節〔徒一 17、25，林後四 1，提前一12〕啓示新約的職事是團體的，但另外一些經節卻好像指明職事是個人的。…行傳二十章二十四節是指保羅個人的職事，因爲保羅說到他從主領受的職事。因此，這節裏的職事是個人的職事。…二十一章十九節〔也〕明確是指保羅個人的職事。…其他似乎是指個人職事的經節爲：提後四章五節，以及歌羅西四章十七節。在提後四章五節保羅囑咐提摩太『盡你的職事』，這顯然是鼓勵他盡他個人的職事。歌羅西四章十七節說，『要告訴亞基布：務要留心你在主裏所領受的職事，好盡這職事。』顯然這是指亞基佈個人的職事（李常受文集一九七八年第三册，四三七頁）。

信息選讀

在思想這些說到個人職事的經節時，我們需要知道所有的信徒都是這一個身體上的肢體。就整體而言，身體只有一個團體的職事，沒有許多的職事。雖然身體有許多功用，但身體的職事是一個。比方說，…說話是我身體的職事，這個職事是團體的。雖然如此，我身體的每一部分也有各自的職事。嘴說話，手作手勢，腳來支撐。但是把所有肢體的職事都加在一起時，就合成了身體那獨一的職事。這個例子表明身體各肢體的眾職事不是分開的職事，而是獨一團體職事的各部分。

關於職事的事，我們需要清楚聖經中的真理，以及今天基督教裏的光景。起初在使徒時代，只有一個身體和一個職事；但因着召會的墮落，產生了分裂和公會。現在每一個分裂都有自己所謂的職事。…在各公會裏，執事、牧師、傳道人的工作是建立公會，而不是建造身體。因着每一個人都是建立他自己的公會，他就無法和別人同工。

我們和公會毫不相干。在主的恢復裏，我們乃是爲着恢復基督作我們的生命和一切，使召會得着建造。爲着完成神在祂恢復裏的目的，我們需要回到起初，回到純正的話裏。在新約裏只有一個獨一的職事。從使徒時代直到如今，這個職事並沒有結束，我相信我們是這職事的延續。我很高興的說，我是在這職事裏，我是這職事的一部分。我們是按着新約的經綸在這獨一的職事裏。

使徒時代沒有公會。因着召會的墮落以及許多分裂的存在，現在表面上看來有許多的職事。我們在主恢復裏的人旣有分於這獨一的職事，就是使徒職事的延續，我們怎能接受公會和分裂的職事？不，我們不能。假如我們接受了，恢復就要受到破壞。正確的職事就是按照神新約經綸的職事，乃是爲着建造基督的身體，但別的職事則是爲着建立公會。爲這緣故，我們不能接受建立公會的職事（李常受文集一九七八年第三册，四三七至四三九頁）。

參讀：真理信息，第四章。

WEEK 8 — DAY 4

Morning Nourishment

Acts 20:24 But I consider my life of no account as if precious to myself, in order that I may finish my course and the ministry which I have received from the Lord Jesus to solemnly testify of the gospel of the grace of God.

       21:19 And having greeted them, he related one by one the things which God did among the Gentiles through his ministry.

Although these verses [Acts 1:17, 25; 2 Cor. 4:1; 1 Tim. 1:12] reveal that the ministry in the New Testament is corporate, certain other verses seem to indicate that the ministry is personal…Acts 20:24 refers to Paul’s personal ministry because Paul speaks of the ministry which he had received from the Lord. Hence, the ministry in this verse is the personal ministry. Acts 21:19 definitely and clearly [also] refers to Paul’s personal ministry… Other verses that seem to refer to personal ministry are 2 Timothy 4:5 and Colossians 4:17. In 2 Timothy 4:5 Paul charged Timothy, “Fully accomplish your ministry,” apparently encouraging him to fulfill his personal ministry.
Colossians 4:17 says, “Say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfill it.” This evidently points to Archippus’s personal ministry. (CWWL, 1978, vol. 3, “Truth Messages,” pp. 318-319)

Todays Reading

In considering the verses that speak of personal ministry, we need to realize that all the believers are members of the one Body. As a whole, the Body has one corporate ministry, not many ministries. Although there are many functions in the Body, the ministry in the Body is one. For example,…my speaking is my body’s ministry. This ministry is corporate. However, each part of my body also has its own ministry. The mouth speaks, the hands make gestures, and the feet render support. But when the ministries of all the members are added together, they total the unique ministry of the body. This example indicates that the many ministries of the members of the Body are not separate ministries but part of one corporate ministry.

Regarding this matter of the ministry, we need to be clear both about the truth in the Bible and about the situation of today’s Christianity. Originally, during the time of the apostles, there was one Body with one ministry. But due to the degradation of the church, the divisions and denominations came into existence. Now every division has its own so-called ministry…The ministers, pastors, and preachers in the various denominations are working to build up the denominations, not the Body. Because each is building up his own denomination, he cannot work together with others.

We can have nothing to do with the denominations. In the Lord’s recovery we are for the recovery of Christ as life and everything to us for the building up of the church. For the fulfillment of God’s purpose in His recovery, we need to go back to the beginning, back to the pure Word. In the New Testament there is one unique ministry. From the time of the apostles until now, this ministry has not been terminated. I believe that we are the continuation of this ministry. I am happy to say that I am in this ministry, that I am part of this ministry. We are in the unique ministry according to the New Testament economy.

At the time of the apostles there were no denominations. Because of the degradation of the church and the existence of many divisions, there apparently are now many ministries. Can we in the Lord’s recovery, who share in the unique ministry, the continuation of the ministry of the apostles, accept the ministries of the denominations and divisions? No, we cannot. If we accept them, the recovery will be damaged. The proper ministry, the ministry according to God’s New Testament economy, is for the building up of the Body of Christ, but the other ministries are for the building up of the denominations. Because this is the case, we cannot receive the ministries that build up the denominations. (CWWL, 1978, vol. 3, “Truth Messages,” pp. 319-320)

Further Reading: CWWL, 1978, vol. 3, “Truth Messages,” ch. 4