Weekly Pursuit – Week 1 of July
Verses:
Acts 28:31 “Proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness, unhindered.”
Excerpts:
The book of Acts does not have an ending. After chapter twenty-eight, many of God’s vessels are still carrying on with His work. God is after the same vessel today that He ordained at the beginning. This vessel is the church. God is not after an individual vessel today, but a corporate one. Since God is after a corporate vessel, His children must be brought to the awareness of the Body of Christ and the Body life. Otherwise, they are useless in His hand and can never fulfill His goal.
There needs to be overcomers that come out of the church. But even the testimony of the overcomers is maintained on behalf of the corporate whole; it is not for individuals alone. The overcomers are not men who consider themselves extraordinary, better than others, and who put everyone else aside. The overcomers work on behalf of the whole church. They do the work, while the whole church gains the benefit. The overcomers are not for themselves; they stand on the ground of the church, and they are there to bring the whole church to perfection. They stand on the ground of the church and maintain their stand on behalf of the church. Even the victories of the overcomers are corporate victories.
The vessel God is after is a corporate one. Therefore, we have to learn to live the Body life. In order to live the Body life, we have to deny the natural life and be judged and dealt with by God in a deep way. We must learn obedience, and we must also learn fellowship. In this way, we will have the chance of becoming God’s vessel. (The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, (Set 2) Vol. 37, Chap. 21)