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Int’l Training for Elders and Responsible Ones (Spring 2013)
General Subject
The Experience, Growth, And Ministry Of Life For The Body
Message Titles
Message 1 Living in the Fellowship of the Divine Life
Message 2 Dealing with the Natural Constitution in Order to Be in Resurrection
Message 3 The Urgent Need of the Growth of Life and Growing in Life by Dealing with the Heart
Message 4 Growing in Life by Dealing with the Spirit
Message 5 Being a Qualified Servant of God by Having the Complete Experience of a Called One
Message 6 The Ministry of Life
Message 7 Growing unto Maturity to Become the New Jerusalem as the Ultimate Consummation of the Church
Message 8 Living a Sacrificing Life in the Body and Ministering Life to the Body for the Growth of the Body Int’l Training for Elders and Responsible Ones (Spring 2013)
The Experience, Growth, And Ministry Of Life For The Body
WEEK  1
Living in the Fellowship of the Divine Life
Scripture Reading: 1 John 1:2-7, 9
1Joh 1:2  (And the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and report to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us);  3  That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.  4  And these things we write that our joy may be made full.  5  And this is the message which we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.  6  If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth;  7  But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from every sin. . . . .  9  He who says he is in the light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now.
Week 1  Day 1
I. We need to enter into the vertical and horizontal aspects of the fellowship of the divine life:
A. The fellowship is the flow of the eternal life within all the believers, who have received and possess the divine life; it is illustrated by the flow of the river of water of life in the New Jerusalem—Rev. 22:1. 
Rev 22:1  And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of its street.
B. First John 1:2-3 and 6-7 reveal that the fellowship of the divine life has both a vertical aspect and a horizontal aspect:
John 1:2 He was in the beginning with God.  3  All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not one thing came into being which has come into being.
1. First John 1:2-3 says, “(And the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and report to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us); that which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ”:
a. The vertical aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with the Triune God; the horizontal aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with one another.
b. The initial experience of the apostles was vertical, but when the apostles reported the eternal life to others, they experienced the horizontal aspect of the divine fellowship.
2. Verse 6 says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth”; this is the vertical aspect of fellowship.
3. Verse 7 says, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another”; this is the horizontal aspect of fellowship.

 Week 1  Day 2

C. We need to see the relationship between the vertical and horizontal aspects of the divine fellowship:
1. If you do not have the proper fellowship with the Lord, it is difficult to have fellowship with your fellow believers; in the same way, if you do not have the proper fellowship with your fellow believers, it is difficult to have fellowship with the Lord; the reason for this is that the divine fellowship is one fellowship—Acts 2:42. 
Acts 2: 42  And they continued steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles, in the breaking of bread and the prayers.
2. When we are not in this fellowship in a practical way, we are out of the Spirit, out of the Triune God, and out of the divine life—cf. 2 Cor. 13:14; 1 Cor. 1:9; Phil. 2:1.
2Cor 13: 14  The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
1Cor 1: 9  God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Phil 2:1  If there is therefore any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of spirit, if any tenderheartedness and compassions,
3. We should try to have fellowship with our fellow believers as much as possible; this divine fellowship not only corrects us; it also molds us and even reconstitutes us; this fellowship brings the divine constituent into our spiritual being, causing a change in our being.

Week 1  Day 3

4. Fellowship also indicates a putting away of private interests and a joining with others for a certain common purpose; hence, to live in the divine fellowship is to put aside our private interests and join with the apostles and the Triune God for the carrying out of God’s purpose—Acts 2:42; 1 John 1:3; 1 Cor. 1:9; 3:6, 12.
Acts 2: 42  And they continued steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles, in the breaking of bread and the prayers.
1John 1: 3  That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.
1Cor 1: 9  God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
1Cor 3: 6  I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth. . . . .  12  But if anyone builds upon the foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, grass, stubble,
D. The divine fellowship is the reality of living in the Body of Christ:
1. The reason that the Lord has not yet come back (Rev. 22:20) is that the believers are individualistic, independent, opinionated, and divided.
Rev 22: 20  He who testifies these things says, Yes, I come quickly. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
2. By being restricted in the divine fellowship, the Body of Christ is kept in oneness, and the work of the ministry continues to go on; the thing that makes everything alive is fellowship—Eph.  4:11-12; cf. Ezek. 47:9.
Eph 4: 11  And He Himself gave some as apostles and some as prophets and some as evangelists and some as shepherds and teachers,  12  For the perfecting of the saints unto the work of the ministry, unto the building up of the Body of Christ,
Ezek 47:9  And every living creature which swarms in every place where the river goes shall live, and there will be very many fish when this water comes there. And the water of the sea shall be healed, and everything shall live wherever the river comes.
E. The fellowship of life, the inner flow of life, results in joy and in the inner shining, the inner ruling, of the light of life—1 John 1:4-5; John 1:4; 8:12; cf. 2 Cor. 5:13.
1John 1: 4  And these things we write that our joy may be made full.  5  And this is the message which we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.
John 1: 4  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
John 8: 12  Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall by no means walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
2Cor 5: 13  For whether we were beside ourselves, it was to God; or whether we are sober-minded, it is for you.
Week 1  Day 4
II. We need to enter into the two aspects of the divine fellowship by the two spirits:
A. We need to enter into the vertical aspect of the divine fellowship by the divine Spirit, the Holy Spirit—13:14; 2 Tim. 4:22:
2Cor 13: 14  The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
2Tim 4: 22  The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
1. The Spirit Himself is the fellowship because the fellowship is the flow, the current, of the Spirit; this is like saying that the current of electricity is just the electricity itself; the current of electricity is electricity in motion.
2. In the same way, the fellowship of the Holy Spirit mentioned in 2 Corinthians 13:14 is the Spirit in motion; the grace of Christ is Christ Himself enjoyed by us, the love of God is God Himself tasted by us, and the fellowship of the Spirit is the Spirit Himself moving within us.
2Cor 13: 14  The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
B. We need to enter into the horizontal aspect of the divine fellowship by the human spirit—Phil. 2:1; Rev. 1:10:
Phil 2:1  If there is therefore any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of spirit, if any tenderheartedness and compassions,
Rev 1: 10  I was in spirit on the Lord's Day and heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,
1. If we are going to have real fellowship horizontally with one another, we need to exercise our spirit—1 Tim. 4:7. 
1Tim 4: 7  But the profane and old-womanish myths refuse, and exercise yourself unto godliness.
2. If we exercise our spirit, we will never talk in a worldly manner, speak negatively about the saints or the churches, or gossip about others’ mistakes and failures; when we exercise our spirit, the nature of our conversation will change because our spirit is holy—2 Cor. 6:6.
2Cor 6: 6  In pureness, in knowledge, in long-suffering, in kindness, in a holy spirit, in unfeigned love,
C. The horizontal fellowship is interwoven with the vertical fellowship; this interwoven fellowship is the real fellowship:
1. When we fellowship with one another in a genuine way by exercising our spirit, we are eager to pray and contact the Lord; this shows how close the relationship is between the vertical and horizontal aspects of fellowship.
2. Our horizontal fellowship with the saints brings us into vertical fellowship with the Lord; then our vertical fellowship with the Lord brings us into horizontal fellowship with the saints.

Week 1  Day 5

D. The divine fellowship is everything in the Christian life:
1. Just as the current of electricity is the electricity itself, the fellowship of the divine life, the flow of the divine life, is the divine life itself.
2. Our Christian life is a life of the fellowship of the divine life. 
3. The apostles wanted to have fellowship with the believers—this is horizontal fellowship; then the apostles stated that their fellowship was with the Triune God—this is vertical fellowship.
4. We should be vertically fellowshipping with the Lord and, at the same time, be horizontally fellowshipping with one another. 
5. Eventually, in this divine fellowship God is interwoven with us; this interweaving is the mingling of God with man. 
6. We must realize that when fellowship disappears, God also disappears; God comes as the fellowship.
III. Our fellowship is deepened through the cross:
A. In the whole universe there is only one thing that takes away all the obstacles between God and us—the cross.
B. Verse 6 of hymn #737 in Hymns says, “Fellowship is deepened / Thru the cross of death; / Fellowship is lifted / By the Spirit’s breath”; without the Spirit and the cross, we cannot have real fellowship. 
C. The first line of Hymns, #279 says, “First the blood, and then the ointment”:
1. The blood is a strong sign of the cross, and the ointment is a type of the all-inclusive, compound Spirit.

Week 1  Day 6

2. These two elements are mentioned in Leviticus 14:6-10 and 14-18; in this portion of the Word, we are told that a leper, signifying an unclean sinner, is to be cleansed first by the blood; upon the base of the blood, then the oil, the ointment, is applied:
Lev 14:6  As for the living bird, he shall take it and the cedar wood and the scarlet strands and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was slaughtered over the running water.
              7  And he shall sprinkle it on the one who is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times and shall pronounce him clean. Then he shall let the living bird go into the open field.
             8  And the one who is to be cleansed shall wash his clothes and shave off all his hair and bathe in water, and he shall be clean. And after that he may come into the camp, but he shall dwell outside his tent seven days.
             9  And on the seventh day he shall shave off all his hair; he shall shave his head and his beard and his eyebrows, even all his hair. Then he shall wash his clothes and bathe his flesh in water, and he shall be clean.
            10  And on the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish and one ewe lamb a year old without blemish and three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour for a meal offering mingled with oil and one log of oil.
            14  And the priest shall take some of the blood of the trespass offering, and the priest shall put it on the lobe of the right ear of the one who is to be cleansed and on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot.
           15  And the priest shall take some of the log of oil and pour it into the palm of the priest's left hand,
          16  And the priest shall dip his right finger in the oil that is in the palm of his left hand and sprinkle some of the oil with his finger seven times before Jehovah.
          17  And from the rest of the oil that is in the palm of his hand the priest shall put some on the lobe of the right ear of the one who is to be cleansed and some on the thumb of his right hand and some on the big toe of his right foot, upon the blood of the trespass offering.
          18  And the rest of the oil that is in the palm of the priest's hand he shall put on the head of the one who is to be cleansed. Then the priest shall make expiation for him before Jehovah.
a. The blood and the ointment are applied to the lobe of the leper’s right ear, to the thumb of his right hand, and to the big toe of his right foot; the ear signifies our listening to the word of God, the hand signifies our doing the things of God, and the foot signifies our taking the ways of God. 
b. Spiritually speaking, leprosy is composed of the wrong hearing, the wrong working, and the wrong walking; because we are lepers, we need first to be cleansed by Christ’s redeeming blood, and then upon the blood we need the anointing oil. 
c. Consummately, our cleansing is by the divine fellowship of the Spirit based upon the cleansing blood of Christ.
D. The divine fellowship is the dispensing of the Triune God into us, the tripartite men, making us and God one; the Greek word for fellowship means “joint participation,” and this joint participation issues in oneness:
1. Actually, fellowship is just oneness; when God is fellowshipping with us, and when we are fellowshipping with God, that makes God and us one.
2. In the whole universe there is a big oneness, and this big oneness is the divine fellowship.
3. The Lord desires to make us all one as the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are one; in John 17 the Lord prayed, “That they may be one, even as We are one” (v. 22b); the church’s oneness is a part of the divine oneness of the Divine Trinity (v. 21a). 
John 17:21a That they all may be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us;
4. Eventually, the church and the Divine Trinity are one in fellowship—14:21, 23.
John 14: 21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, he is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him. . . . .  23  Jesus answered and said to him, If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make an abode with him.
E. We must experience the cross in order to be thoroughly in the divine fellowship:
1. Because there is an obstacle within us toward another brother, our fellowship with him is not that thorough; we may avoid contact with certain saints because of the obstacles within us to the divine fellowship.
2. Our fellowship is not thorough, and obstacles remain within us because we do not have the cross in our experience—Gal. 2:20a. 
Gal 2: 20a   I am crucified with Christ;
3. Hymns, #631 says, “If no death, no life”; this means, “If no cross, no Christ”; furthermore, “If no Christ, no Spirit; and if no Spirit, no fellowship.”
4. In Matthew 16:24 the Lord said, “If anyone wants to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me”; the Lord used the words his cross, indicating that there is a particular portion of the cross for each one of us in order to cross each one of us out.
5. Actually, to bear the cross is to deny the self, to put the self to death, to apply the cross of Christ to the self all the time. 
6. In order for us to have the horizontal fellowship, we need to deny ourselves; to deny ourselves means to be senseless about ourselves; then we can never be offended.
7. We need the experience of the cross to deepen our experience of the divine fellowship—cf.        1John 1:9.

1John 1: 9  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

WEEK 1 — DAY 1

Morning Nourishment

1 John 1:3 :That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.:
6-7 “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth; but if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another...” The fellowship of the divine life revealed in the New Testament is abstract, mysterious, and very difficult to define. The Greek word rendered fellowship in 1 John 1:3 is koinonia, which means joint participation or common participation. According to this verse, the divine fellowship is not only with the Father but also with the Son. In 2 Corinthians 13:14 this divine fellowship is called “the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,” in Acts 2:42 it is “the fellowship of the apostles,” and in Philippians 2:1 it is the “fellowship of spirit.” From these portions of the Word, we can see that the divine fellowship belongs to the Father, the Son, the Spirit, the apostles, and all of the believers. They are all involved in this fellowship. This divine fellowship involves many persons; hence, it is mutual. It is impossible for just one person by himself to have this fellowship. The fellowship is one, but it involves many persons. (The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man, p. 143)

Today’s Reading

One of the best illustrations of fellowship is electricity. Electricity is mysterious yet very real. Electricity is manifested in light bulbs or fluorescent lamps when the current of electricity flows through them....The bulbs and lamps are connected by the current of electricity. In a community or city, all of the homes are joined together by the current of electricity which flows into each of the homes. This current of electricity is an example of fellowship. The fellowship is the flow of the eternal life within all the believers who have received and possess the divine life.  By the flow of electricity, all of the homes are kept in oneness. Similarly, by the flow of the eternal life, the fellowship, all of the believers are kept in oneness.  First John 1:2-3 and 6-7 reveal that the fellowship of the divine life has both a vertical aspect and a horizontal aspect. The vertical aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with the Triune God. The horizontal aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with one another.  First John 1:2-3 says, “(And the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and report to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us); that which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.” The vertical aspect of fellowship was initially established with the first apostles. The apostles then reported to sinners the eternal life in order that they might have fellowship with the apostles. Before the apostles reported the eternal life to them, the apostles themselves already had the vertical fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ (v. 3).  The initial experience of the apostles was vertical, but when the apostles reported the eternal life to others, they experienced the horizontal aspect of the divine fellowship.
Verses 6 and 7 of 1 John 1 also indicate the vertical and horizontal aspects of the divine fellowship. Verse 6 says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth.” This is the vertical aspect of fellowship. Verse 7 says, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another.” This is the horizontal aspect of fellowship. Both aspects of the divine fellowship are closely related; therefore, it is difficult to say which aspect comes first.  If you do not have the proper fellowship with the Lord, it is difficult to have fellowship with your fellow believers. In the same way, if you do not have the proper fellowship with your fellow believers, it is difficult to have fellowship with the Lord. (The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man, pp. 143-145)
Further Reading: The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man, ch. 17

MESSAGE SEVENTEEN

THE VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL
ASPECTS OF THE FELLOWSHIP
OF THE DIVINE LIFE

Scripture Reading: 1 John 1:2-3, 6-7; 2 Cor. 13:14; Phil. 2:1-2

The fellowship of the divine life revealed in the New Testament is abstract, mysterious, and very difficult to define. The Greek word rendered fellowship in 1 John 1:3 is koinonia, which means joint participation or common participation. According to this verse, the divine fellowship is not only with the Father but also with the Son. In 2 Corinthians 13:14 this divine fellowship is called "the fellowship of the Holy Spirit," in Acts 2:42 it is "the fellowship of the apostles," and in Philippians 2:1 it is the "fellowship of spirit." From these portions of the Word, we can see that the divine fellowship belongs to the Father, the Son, the Spirit, the apostles, and all of the believers. They are all involved in this fellowship. This divine fellowship involves many persons; hence, it is mutual. It is impossible for just one person by himself to have this fellowship. The fellowship is one, but it involves many persons.
One of the best illustrations of fellowship is electricity. Electricity is mysterious yet very real. Electricity is manifested in light bulbs or fluorescent lamps when the current of electricity flows through them. If the bulbs or lamps remain intact and the current of electricity flows, the electricity appears. But if the bulbs or lamps are broken, the electricity disappears. The bulbs and lamps are connected by the current of electricity. In a community or city, all of the homes are joined together by the current of electricity which flows into each of the homes. This current of electricity is an example of fellowship. The fellowship is the flow of the eternal life within all the believers who have received and possess the divine life. By the flow of electricity, all of the homes are kept in oneness. Similarly, by the flow of the eternal life, the fellowship, all of the believers are kept in oneness.

THE DIVINE FELLOWSHIP AND ITS TWO ASPECTS

First John 1:2-3 and 6-7 reveal that the fellowship of the divine life has both a vertical aspect and a horizontal aspect. The vertical aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with the Triune God. The horizontal aspect of fellowship refers to our fellowship with one another.
First John 1:2-3 says, " And the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and report to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us. That which we have seen and heard we report also to you, that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed the fellowship which is ours is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ." The vertical aspect of fellowship was initially established with the first apostles. The apostles then reported to sinners the eternal life in order that they might have fellowship with the apostles. Before the apostles reported the eternal life to them, the apostles themselves already had the vertical fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ (v. 3). The initial experience of the apostles was vertical, but when the apostles reported the eternal life to others, they experienced the horizontal aspect of the divine fellowship.
Verses 6 and 7 of 1 John 1 also indicate the vertical and horizontal aspects of the divine fellowship. Verse 6 says, "If we say that we have fellowship with Him and walk in the darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth." This is the vertical aspect of fellowship. Verse 7 says, "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another." This is the horizontal aspect of fellowship. Both aspects of the divine fellowship are closely related; therefore, it is difficult to say which aspect comes first. If you do not have the proper fellowship with the Lord, it is difficult to have fellowship with your fellow believers. In the same way, if you do not have the proper fellowship with your fellow believers, it is difficult to have fellowship with the Lord.

EXPERIENCING THE VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL
ASPECTS OF THE DIVINE FELLOWSHIP

The reality of the divine fellowship is one of the most neglected things among the believers. It is hard to find many who are in the reality of fellowship. Positionally, we all are in this fellowship, but in our daily living, very few of us are in the reality of fellowship. We may have the matter of fellowship in name, but we may not have it in practicality. I have tried to practice this fellowship, but I have to admit that I have not been completely successful in maintaining this fellowship hour after hour throughout the day. When we are not in this fellowship in a practical way, we are out of the Spirit, out of the Triune God, and out of the divine life.
Before we were saved, we were sinners living in sin and dead in sin. We were not involved in the fellowship of life. One day someone reported to us the eternal life (1 John 1:2), and we believed in the Lord Jesus. From that moment we were brought into the divine fellowship. Two things are very striking about our initial experience of the divine fellowship. First, it is difficult to find one person who believed in the Lord directly by himself without the help of someone who preached the gospel to him. Nearly everyone heard a report first and then believed. Second, there is almost always a deep relationship between the one who reported or preached the gospel and the one who received the report and got saved.
Many years ago in mainland China, I preached the gospel a number of times to large congregations, and many people were saved through me. Because I preached the gospel to them and they were saved through my preaching, many of them felt intimately related to me, even though I never talked with them personally. My point in relating this experience is that there is almost always an intimate feeling between the person who gets saved and the one through whom he gets saved. I cannot forget the female evangelist through whom I was saved. She will always be so dear and precious to me because through her I was brought into the divine fellowship. Her preaching of the gospel to me was related to the horizontal aspect of the fellowship of the divine life. After receiving her word, I went to the Lord and was brought into the vertical aspect of the divine fellowship.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL ASPECTS
OF THE DIVINE FELLOWSHIP

There is a close relationship between the vertical and horizontal aspects of the divine fellowship. Our vertical fellowship with the Lord is affected by our horizontal fellowship with others. If we do not have a proper relationship with those around us, it is difficult to have a good fellowship with the Lord vertically. The reason for this is that the divine fellowship is one fellowship. Each day we should be in the divine fellowship, vertically and horizontally. Most of us may think that we daily start this fellowship according to its vertical aspect, followed by its horizontal aspect. Most of the time, however, this is not our experience. Since most of us have spouses, other family members, or roommates living with us, our fellowship usually begins in a horizontal manner. If we have a quarrel with our wife, husband, or roommate in the evening, we will find it difficult to start our vertical fellowship with the Lord in the morning. We must maintain both the vertical and horizontal aspects of the fellowship in order to be healthy spiritually.
In Ephesians 4:25 the apostle Paul said, "Wherefore, having put off the falsehood, speak truth each one with his neighbor, for we are members one of another." In this verse the word neighbor refers to the brothers and sisters. We must be right with our fellow believers in order to be kept in the divine fellowship. In our experience we often cannot have vertical fellowship with the Lord without first having horizontal fellowship with other believers.
A saint who has a proper living and who is victorious is one who is always in the divine fellowship, vertically and horizontally, all day long. We must learn to fellowship with the Lord more, and we must also learn to fellowship with the saints more. We must thank the Lord for those around us, and we must endeavor to have fellowship with them. The brothers and sisters should have thorough fellowship with one another, even concerning practical things related to their daily living. We should have fellowship with one another to such an extent. When we fellowship in such a way, we receive the benefit.
We may feel that we should only fellowship with those around us about the messages we have read or some other spiritual activity. Of course, our fellowship should include this. However, our fellowship should also include many practical things. I have discovered that the biggest shortage among us is fellowship. Our problem is that we do not have the habit to fellowship, and many of us do not like to fellowship. We must realize that when we fellowship, the Lord is involved. When we turn away from fellowship or stop our fellowship with our fellow believers, the Lord is kept away.
We should try to have fellowship with our fellow believers as much as possible. This divine fellowship not only corrects us; it also molds us and even reconstitutes us. This fellowship brings the divine constituent into our spiritual being, causing a change in our being.

THE DIVINE FELLOWSHIP BEING THE REALITY OF LIVING IN THE BODY OF CHRIST

The divine fellowship is the reality of living in the Body of Christ. The Lord has been frustrated throughout the centuries because of the lack of fellowship. In Revelation 22:20 the Lord Jesus said, "I come quickly," but it has been nearly two thousand years, and the Lord is still not back. The reason is that the believers are individualistic, independent, opinionated, and divisive. The Roman Catholic Church controlled people by its organization, but those who broke away from Catholicism brought in division after division. The believers seem to be like horses without bridles. Today nothing seems to control them. Actually, the divine fellowship should control the believers.

The one thing which should rule us is the divine fellowship. We are restricted in this fellowship. By being restricted in this fellowship, the Body of Christ is kept in oneness, and the work of the ministry continues to go on. When we are out of fellowship, everything is finished. The thing which makes everything alive is fellowship. If we learn to fellowship, we will receive many benefits, especially in the Lord's work.

WEEK 1 — DAY 2

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WEEK 1 — DAY 2

Morning Nourishment

1 Cor. 1:9 “God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Eph. 4:25 “Therefore having put off the lie, speak truth each one with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.”
It is hard to find many [believers] who are in the reality of fellowship.  Positionally, we all are in this fellowship, but in our daily living, very few of us are in the reality of fellowship. We may have the matter of fellowship in name, but we may not have it in practicality. I have tried to practice this fellowship, but I have to admit that I have not been completely successful in maintaining this fellowship hour after hour throughout the day. When we are not in this fellowship in a practical way, we are out of the Spirit, out of the Triune God, and out of the divine life. (The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man, p. 145)

Today’s Reading

Before we were saved, we were sinners living in sin and dead in sin. We were not involved in the fellowship of life. One day someone reported to us the eternal life (1 John 1:2), and we believed in the Lord Jesus. From that moment we were brought into the divine fellowship. Two things are very striking about our initial experience of the divine fellowship. First, it is difficult to find one person who believed in the Lord directly by himself without the help of someone who preached the gospel to him. Nearly everyone heard a report first and then believed. Second, there is almost always a deep relationship between the one who reported or preached the gospel and the one who received the report and got saved.  Our vertical fellowship with the Lord is affected by our horizontal fellowship with others. If we do not have a proper relationship with those around us, it is difficult to have a good fellowship with the Lord vertically.  The reason for this is that the divine fellowship is one fellowship. Each day we should be in the divine fellowship, vertically and horizontally. Most of us may think that we daily start this fellowship according to its vertical aspect, followed by its horizontal aspect. Most of the time, however, this is not our experience....If we have a quarrel with our wife, husband, or roommate in the evening, we will find it difficult to start our vertical fellowship with the Lord in the morning. We must maintain both the vertical and horizontal aspects of the fellowship in order to be healthy spiritually.
In Ephesians 4:25 the word neighbor refers to the brothers and sisters.  We must be right with our fellow believers in order to be kept in the divine fellowship. In our experience we often cannot have vertical fellowship with the Lord without first having horizontal fellowship with other believers.  A saint who has a proper living and who is victorious is one who is always in the divine fellowship, vertically and horizontally, all day long. We must learn to fellowship with the Lord more and we must also learn to fellowship with the saints more. We must thank the Lord for those around us, and we must endeavor to have fellowship with them. The brothers and sisters should have thorough fellowship with one another, even concerning practical things related to their daily living.
We may feel that we should only fellowship with those around us about the messages we have read or some other spiritual activity. Of course, our fellowship should include this. However, our fellowship should also include many practical things. I have discovered that the biggest shortage among us is fellowship. Our problem is that we do not have the habit to fellowship, and many of us do not like to fellowship. We must realize that when we fellowship, the Lord is involved. When we turn away from fellowship or stop our fellowship with our fellow believers, the Lord is kept away.  We should try to have fellowship with our fellow believers as much as possible. This divine fellowship not only corrects us; it also molds us and even reconstitutes us. This fellowship brings the divine constituent into our spiritual being, causing a change in our being. (The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man, pp. 145-147)
Further Reading: The Mending Ministry of John, ch. 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

THE FELLOWSHIP OF LIFE

Scripture Reading: 1 John 5:20; 1:2-7; 1 Cor. 1:9; 2 Cor. 13:14; Phil. 2:1

JOHN’S EMPHASIS ON LIFE

“And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true; and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life” (1 John 5:20).
This verse is the conclusion to 1 John. It is a strong declaration that Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God and who has come, is the true God and eternal life. At the beginning of this Epistle we are told that the One who was with the Father in eternity and was manifested in time, and who was seen and handled by the apostles, is declared life to us. Then, at the end of the Epistle, we have this verse quoted above, which tells us that the very One who has come to us and in whom we are is the real God and life eternal.
What a bold word is this! Though Paul wrote fourteen letters in all, and though he did tell us that Christ is our life, he was not as emphatic as John here in declaring that this very Person is life to us.
There is a strong emphasis in the New Testament that God’s intention is to give Christ, His Son, to us as life. When we believed in Him, we received Him not only as our Redeemer and Savior, but even the more as our life. I keep repeating this because, even though the New Testament stresses it, it is almost unheard of in Christian circles.
What Christianity emphasizes to those who are saved is the improvement of their behavior. They are told that since they are saved and are children of God, they need to behave in a way that will glorify God. The Apostle John, however, in his mending ministry stresses life. We declare unto you…life! This is the thought with which he opens 1 John.
The same emphasis is found in the Gospel of John. “In the beginning was the Word…and the Word was God.…In Him was life” (1:1, 4). In 10:10 the Lord Jesus declared, “I came that they may have life and may have it abundantly.” In 14:6 He said, “I am…the life.” In 11:25 He said, “I am the resurrection and the life.” John writes boldly, telling us that Jesus Christ the Son of God is life to us.

THE INDWELLING CHRIST

Some may think that we make Christ too low when we say that He is in us. Christ, they say, has been highly exalted by the Father. He is seated on the throne far above all. How could we demean Him by saying He dwells in us pathetic, low human beings? They may want to keep Christ in His exaltation, but Christ would respond, “Yes, I am far above all, but I am omnipresent. I am indeed in the heavens, exalted to the throne. But don’t keep Me up here! I want to leave the mountaintop and go down to the valley to be with My people. I like being in them. I am in them! Whatever they are doing, wherever they go, I like being in them!”
To teach that Christ does not indwell His people indicates that some Bible verses are being ignored. At the end of Matthew before the ascension, the Lord Jesus told His disciples to go and disciple all the nations, adding “behold, I am with you all the days until the consummation of the age” (28:19-20). He did not say that He would be with them or that He had been with them. No! “I am with you.” Go with Me, because I am with you! The Lord is still on earth today. He is within us.
Those who reject the indwelling Christ claim that Christ is too great to be contained in small, puny man. Such logic must be condemned. The Bible clearly gives us the Lord’s words, “Abide in Me and I in you” (John 15:4). It also says, “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col. 1:27). Yes, He is great. No one is greater. Yet He is small enough for us to contain Him. Hallelujah! We can contain the great Christ. He is unlimited, yet He is within us. He is our life.
I am not trying to prove a doctrinal point. Doctrine without experience has no value. It is like going to a restaurant and studying the menu, but not eating a meal. It is like being in the kitchen reading and appreciating a recipe but not getting out the ingredients and preparing it.
Theologians may be full of Bible knowledge but without experience. Of what use is that? They need to learn to cook instead of just talking about the menu!

GOD’S DESIRE THAT WE LIVE CHRIST

Dear saints, be deeply impressed that Jesus Christ is your life. God does not want you to improve your behavior; He wants you to live Christ. He does not want you to begin loving your wife and no longer hate her; He wants you to live Christ. As you live Him, you will love others. Whatever you are doing, God wants you to live Christ. Paul said, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” (Gal. 2:20) and “to me to live is Christ” (Phil. 1:21). To me to live is not love. It is not humility. It is not frankness or kindness. To me to live is Christ. Christ is our life; He must become our living.
We need to pray in a definite way. “Lord, I want to live Christ. Keep me in Your Spirit so that I never forget that You are my life. When I am about to lose my temper, remind me that You are my life. When I am about to love someone, remind me that You are my life. When I am about to act in a humble way, remind me that You are my life. When I smile, remind me that You are my life.”
This must be our prayer not just once but over and over again. Before we begin our day, we should tell the Lord, “Remind me during the whole day that You are my life. In dealing with my children, or in dealing with my parents, I want to take You as my life. I know You do not want me to try to improve my behavior. Your desire is to have Yourself lived out of me. Keep this before me all day long whatever I am doing. O Lord, remind me that You are my life!”

THE MEANING OF FELLOWSHIP

When I was young, the word fellowship used to puzzle me. In Chinese the word was usually translated fraternity, a kind of social brotherhood. Gradually, due to our influence in the Far East, the word fraternity has largely been dropped, and now the word used is fellowship.
The Greek word for fellowship means mutual participation or communication. According to the New Testament revelation, like in 2 Corinthians 13:14, it can be likened to the term transmission, which is used for electricity and means a sending back and forth. When the electric lights in the ceiling are turned on, the electricity flows into them. When the lights are turned off, the current stops. Though the electricity is still there, the transmission has ceased. The electric current is the transmission of electricity from the power plant into this building. It goes back and forth.
Fellowship is like this. It is not merely friendly contact with others, as in a fraternity. It is instead a powerful, dynamic transmission from one place to another and then back to the original place. We have Christ in us as life. When this life functions, it is fellowship. Life corresponds to electricity; fellowship corresponds to electric current. Electric current is simply electricity itself in motion. Fellowship is nothing less than Christ Himself as life moving within us.
“God is faithful, through Whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor. 1:9). This fellowship into which we have been called is simply Christ Himself moving within us. While Christ remains in us, He is life. When He moves in us, He is the fellowship.

LIVING CHRIST BY FELLOWSHIP

We live Christ by fellowship; that is to say, we live Him by His moving in us. Before we were saved, we were alone. We may have had lots of schoolmates and relatives, but we were actually by ourself. Even after we were married and had our spouse with us, we were still by ourself. Once we got saved, however, we were never again alone. Now wherever we go and whatever we do, we have another Person with us. Sometimes we are pleased with Him and love Him. Other times we are annoyed with Him and secretly wish He would go away and leave us alone.
There are times when we want to be alone. Once in a while we like to go off by ourself and take a little break. When it comes to other people, we can do this. This One, however, our Christ, we cannot escape from After. we are saved, we may still want to go to a movie. Even if we do go, we do not go alone. Christ accompanies us. No Christian is single. We may not yet be married, but if we are saved, the Lord Jesus is always with us. It is impossible to be alone.
Christ wants to be our life. Formerly we were one person, but now we are two. With one person there is no fellowship, but with two there is the possibility. If we want to live Christ, we must not do anything by ourselves. To do even the best thing by ourselves is to fail to live Christ. We live Him by fellowship, which includes mutuality. We are not single. There are two of us; between us there is a mutuality.

NOT ACTING ALONE

When I say that the way to live Christ is by fellowship, I am referring to this mutuality between Him and you. Never do anything by yourself. If you keep this one principle, it will be easy for you to live Christ. If you are about to talk with your wife, you must do so with another Person. Brothers, let us all learn not to talk to our wives by ourselves. Sisters, you must not go shopping by yourselves. Do not write a check by yourself. Do not talk to others by yourself. Do everything by fellowship. Always have this other Person with you in whatever you do. Then you will live Christ, not yourself.
This is especially important in your talk. Do you want to pass on the news that a certain sister is pregnant? You may find that before the words can leave your mouth, that other One will not agree. You do not realize how accustomed you are to doing things by yourself. As soon as you meet someone you know, you begin to talk about who is about to get married or who is having what kind of trouble. This is gossip. By whom? By Christ? Never. It is by you when you are living yourself.
You would not think of stealing. You know this is sin. You need to realize that in the Lord’s eyes to do things by yourself is ugly. It may not be sinful, but it is ugly.
Always keep in mind that you have a Partner who is with you; in fact, He is in you. He says, “Abide in Me and I in you.” This is your position and your status, but you neglect it. In your daily life, you would not tell lies, but it may not bother you to gossip. You may think of it as common to pass on information to others. You may look at such things in that way, but what does your Partner say
You may be encouraged to love others. It is right to have love for others, but you must check whether you love them by yourself or by fellowship. It is not a matter of love or of hatred; it is a matter of living Christ or living yourself. Either you live, or Christ lives out of you.

CHRIST MOVING WITHIN

When the life within, which is Christ Himself, moves, that moving is fellowship. Fellowship means mutuality. It includes mutual communication, participation, and enjoyment. Christ enjoys you, and you enjoy Him. There is a transmission back and forth between the two of you. Within you there is a current for your daily life. Rather than doing things by yourself, you must do things by that current between you.
You may feel at a disadvantage if you do not have a strong will and it is hard for you to make up your mind. Be assured it is of no help to make up your mind to live Christ. To make up your mind to live Christ does not work. You must realize that He is in you, moving in you. When He moves, His moving is the fellowship. He Himself is the fellowship. There is a flowing from Him to you and from you back to Him.
This transmission occurs even when you do what is not proper. You may have gone shopping even when you realized that the Lord Jesus did not agree with you. While you were on the way, there was some fellowship within, a current moving, which said, “Don’t go!” You may have replied, as I myself have done many times, “Lord, You are not really that narrow, are You? I don’t go shopping like this very often. It is not evil, like going to Las Vegas to gamble. I am going to buy something which is useful.” I am sure many of you have had such experiences. This indwelling Lord is dealing with you. As long as He is moving, the current is flowing.
In 1933 I went to Shanghai for the first time. As a young man, I had no love for the world, but I did have an appetite for spiritual books. Shanghai was a densely populated city. There were many missionaries there and a good many secondhand Christian bookstores. In those days I was hungry to read spiritual books in English. During those months my behavior was nearly blameless. My only fault was in going to the secondhand bookstores. Whenever the brothers did not occupy my time, I would slip away to those stores and buy those old books. All the while, I felt condemned. The fellowship within said, “You are doing things by yourself.” But I could not stop! Such books as George Müller’s autobiography and the writings of G. H. Pember I had heard of previously. Now I had the chance to have a copy of my own. When I got back, I would put them on the table, happy to have them on the one hand but rebuked on the other. The fellowship within was strong against me.
In buying those books I was in myself; I was not living Christ. I was doing what I loved. It was not evil, but I was living myself. While I had no heart for the horse races, which were famous in Shanghai, and no heart for the newspapers, I did find that going from bookstore to bookstore was a real entertainment to me. I did collect a good many books. Some of them I brought with me to the United States. While I was living in Los Angeles, one day I put out for the trash collectors five big cartons of books. These had been bought by me in Shanghai while offending the Lord.
Years ago I could not have told you how to live Christ. Now, because of my experience all through the years, I can tell you there is no other way except, firstly, by fellowship. Remember that you have a Companion who indwells you. He is always with you. You are no longer single. He is your life. When He moves, He is the fellowship. Do everything by this fellowship. If you have your being by it, you will have a wonderful life. All day long you will live only Him. You will not only be doing good and overcoming; you will be living Him. He will be lived out of you because of your living by fellowship with Him.

TWO SPIRITS

This fellowship is the fellowship of Christ (1 Cor. 1:9). Since Christ today is the life-giving Spirit, it is also the fellowship of the Spirit (2 Cor. 13:14). Since Christ indwells our spirit as the life-giving Spirit, it is also the fellowship of our spirit (Phil. 2:1). The fellowship is a matter concerning these two spirits.

As you practice, you will realize that the Lord Jesus is in you. When He moves, that is His fellowship. This fellowship is, on the one hand, of the Spirit, and, on the other hand, of your spirit. Christ is the life-giving Spirit in your spirit. Here you enjoy Him and He enjoys you in mutual participation, communication, and transmission. Here you live by Him and He lives by you. You live Him out and He lives in you.