[kisstheson]

Before I begin to consider the actual contents of the 42 messages contained in "That They May All Be One, Even As We Are One", I should mention one thing that is very striking about these two volumes - like me, you can read all 42 messages and still not know who is the audience to which TAS was speaking. All you know is that they are dear brothers and sisters in Christ in Manila, the Philippines.

I guess I am too naive for my own good, but it took three external sources - Rex Beck's biography of TAS, Herald Hsu's testimony, and the video posted by "the Church in Manila" on youtube.com - for the light to dawn that TAS was speaking to those dear ones who were "on the other side of the fault line" of the terrible split that took place in the LC in Manila back in 1961. The details of any division amongst God's people are always distasteful, so let this summary suffice: The LC in Manila had willingly and enthusiastically "handed over" their church to WL and in such an unscriptural situation things went from bad to worse. When the smoke cleared, two of WN's co-workers, WL and Simon Meek, had divided from one another and the LC in Manila was split into two irreconcilable parties. It was a very tense situation. Ugly stuff.

Two of the leading brothers, Simon Meek and Wu Ren-Jie, invited Herald Hsu to come to Manila and almost immediately dear brother Herald asked the other brothers to send a letter of invitation to TAS. Waiting on the Lord for a clear sense that the time was right, TAS waited almost two full years before arriving in Manila in late January of 1964. The amazing thing is that, given his own history with WL, TAS could have easily seized upon this major disaster in the LC and really attacked WL, but he did not. From Message 1 to Message 42, all the speaking is focused on Christ, our experience of Christ, our growth in Christ, and the Father's delight in Christ. Completely absent are any mean-spiritedness, animosity, or self-vindication by TAS. Lee and the terrible split are never made an issue. Instead, Christ alone is the focus, Christ alone is exalted and Christ is given His rightful place, which is Head over all and All in all. Now that I know the black background and I am reading through these messages for the second time, I have to appreciate not only the words TAS spoke, but even more, the words TAS did NOT speak!!