Quote:
Originally Posted by Cassidy
...there are thousands, wait, tens of thousands of Christians that have confirmed the special commission and apostleship/ministry of both Watchman Nee and Witness Lee...
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Our recent discussion of Nee and his place in the church, and where Nee implied his place was in the church (without saying it directly), reminded me of the above quote. According to some, Nee and Lee have "special commission", which according to their teachings was from the Holy Spirit.
But what if there are hundreds of thousands, wait, millions of Christians who have NOT confirmed the special commission and apostleship/ministry of both Watchman Nee and Witness Lee? Do we have a vote? Do we divide along "yea" and "nay" lines, with those churches who say that they have been "helped" by the ministries of Nee & Lee separated from those who have not? And for that matter, how about those assemblies that are "absolute for the ministry of Nee and Lee" versus those that are merely "positive"?
Does the fact that Watchman Nee has been read into the Congressional Record help us? Or the fact that Billy Graham has a Hollywood Walk of Fame star? Of course I am being facetious, but really the fact that Nee sold a lot of books doesn't do it for me. We might then say that Joel Osteen or Joyce Meyers or Rick Warren might have that "special commission", too. Perhaps Lee should have gotten in line behind Warren or Osteen.
And if this choosing, this setting aside is of the Holy Spirit, then how are the saints supposed to discern? We are back at square one, with a popularity contest. And so we yet again remember the scene in Mark chapter 9, "And they all were arguing among themselves as to which of them was the greatest." The devil isn't stupid. If he can get a successful ruse going he will keep it going. Why invent new tricks when you can still use the originals?
I keep thinking of recent poster
amrkelly's remarks that he had 'sight', or 'discernment', to understand Nee's gift to the Body. Don't we all? I mean, we all agree there is the Holy Bible, that reveals to us God's Son, Jesus Christ the Lord. He is truly the savior of the world. We all see this, and hold it to be true. When the apostle Paul wrote that "there are apostles, prophets, and teachers" in the assembly of the faithful, how are we supposed to discern? Should we simply agree with ones who are adamant that their favorite writer/teacher/speaker is God's anointed, special vessel?
Again, it plays back into Mark 9 for me. I'd rather that we dispense with jawing over titles and positions. Just minister. There are lots of poor out there, lots of scoffers, unbelievers, sick, confused, and those who are addled by winds of teaching. Just minister. Whatever you are is what you are. At the 'Bema' God will pronounce judgment, and place you exactly where you belong; no higher or lower. What I find ironic is that we here in the flesh today are also placed exactly where we belong. If we spend our time & effort focused on church hierarchy and whatnot we simply confirm of what spirit we serve. We are convinced that we have to suss all this out for "good order in the church", even while ignoring the long trail of wreckage associated with such fixations.