The Intrinsic and Organic Building up of the Church as the Body of Christ
Message Five
The Intrinsic Factor of the Winds of Teaching for Their Evil Purpose
OPENING WORD OF THE PROPHESYING MEETING
Reading the verses in each day.
Reading the main points in the outlines.
Pray-reading the verses:
Eph. 4:14-15 That we may be no longer little children tossed by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching in the sleight of men, in craftiness with a view to a system of error, but holding to truth in love, we may grow up into Him in all things, who is the Head, Christ.
Titus 1:9 Holding to the faithful word, which is according to the teaching of the apostles, that he may be able both to exhort by the healthy teaching and to convict those who oppose.
Word of Appetizer
What’s the intrinsic factor of the winds of teaching?
These teachings are different from the New Testament teaching concerning the economy of God for the building up of the Body of Christ; apparently, every wind of teaching is good; however, within the winds of teaching, intrinsically, is something different from the apostles’ teaching and is not good; the winds of teaching overthrow the believers’ faith and devastate the church life; the teachings that become winds, carrying the believers away from the central lane of Christ and the church, are deceptions instigated by Satan in his subtlety, with the sleight of men, in order to frustrate God’s eternal economy, which is to build up the Body of Christ.
Spiritual Burden
As members of the Body, we should no longer be “little children tossed by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching in the sleight of men, in craftiness with a view to a system of error”.
The crucial point of the healthy teaching of the apostolic ministry concerns the Triune God processed to dispense Himself as the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit into His chosen ones so that they may be brought into an organic union to receive the divine transfusion and thereby become sons of God and members of Christ; as a result, they can become the Body of Christ to express Christ, the One in whom the fullness of God dwells.
Concluding Word of the Prophesying Meeting
The Revelation of the Truth
The teaching of the apostles is the unique and healthy teaching of God’s eternal economy; the teaching of the apostles is the holding factor of the one accord, causing us to have one heart, one way, and one goal.
As members of the Body, we should no longer be “little children tossed by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching in the sleight of men, in craftiness with a view to a system of error”.
The Experience of Life
Healthy teaching is always related to life and is able either to nourish us or to heal us. Only something living can be healthy. We take only the apostles’ teaching as the healthy words of the Lord Jesus.
There is a good test for discerning the winds of teaching. Certain teachings cause us to be cold and even deadened. If any teaching, regardless of how good or scriptural it may appear to be, has any of these negative effects, this is strong evidence that this teaching is a wind that will blow us away from the central lane of God’s New Testament economy.
Practice and Application
We must be those who are”holding to the faithful word, which is according to the teaching of the apostles”; we must avoid differing teachings and concentrate on God’s economy concerning Christ and the church.
The only way to escape from the waves that are stirred up by the winds of teaching is to grow in life, and the safe way to grow in life is to stay in the proper church life with Christ and the church as the safeguard.
PROPHESYING TOPICS—TWELVE TOPICS PER WEEK
Day 1
T1: The teaching of the apostles is the entire teaching of the New Testament as God’s speaking (1 John 1:3).
(What’s the teaching of the apostles?)
T2: We have both God and God’s speaking (Heb. 1:2).
(What are the three main points of the fellowship in the first four verses in 1 John?)
Day 2
T1: The healthy teaching always conforms to the truth of the faith (Titus 2:1, 8).
(Please explain that we should be reminded to speak the things that are fitting to the healthy teaching. )
T2: All the teaching of the apostles are the Words of Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 2:42; 1 Tim. 6:3).
(Please explain that any teaching that was different from the apostles’teaching was not allowed by the apostles.)
Day 3
T1: Hold to the faithful word, which is according to the teaching of the apostles (Titus 1:9; 2 Tim. 1:15).
(Please explain that the disorder in the church is due mainly to deviation from the apostles’teaching.)
T2: The healthy teaching is always connected with life, which may nourish or cure us (Titus 1:9).
(What is the crucial point of the healthy teaching of the apostolic ministry?)
Day 4
T1: The intrinsic factor of the winds of teaching (Eph. 4:14).
(Please explain that apparently, every wind of teaching is good; however, within the winds of teaching, intrinsically, is something different from the apostles’teaching and is not good.)
T2: All teachings that are different from the unique revelation of God’s New Testament economy are considered by the apostles as winds of teaching (Eph. 4:14).
(What are the intrinsic purposes of the winds of teaching?)
Day 5
T1: The winds of teaching overthrow the believers’faith and devastate the church life (2 Tim. 2:18).
(What’s the good method to discern the winds of teaching?)
T2: Don’t take any teachings easily (1 Tim. 1:3-4).
(Please explain according to your own experiences that we need to learn to discern while accepting teachings.)
Day 6
T1: To teach that the local churches are absolutely autonomous is erroneous (1 Cor. 1:2; 12:12-13).
(Please explain that the church as the organic Body of Christ has nothing to do with autonomy.)
T2: The apostle Paul taught the same thing in all the churches (1 Cor. 4:17; Rev. 2:1, 7).
(Please explain that the teaching of the apostles is the same everywhere despite different areas.)
