Will you please turn to the Gospel according to John, chapter 1? We will read from John 1:24-28.
And they had been sent from the Pharisees.
And they asked him, and said unto him, Why then baptizest thou, if thou art not the Christ, neither Elijah, neither the prophet?
John answered them, saying, I baptize in water: in the midst of you standeth One whom ye know not, even He that cometh after me, the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to unloose.
These things were done in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Let us have a word of prayer.
Dear Lord, we do want to thank Thee for so loving us, for giving Thyself so completely to us. We are what we are today, and we owe everything to Thee. We are thankful.
Oh, dear Lord, as we gather in Thy presence, we want to hear Thy word. We pray that Thy Spirit will release Thy word and impress it upon our hearts, that through Thy word we may be in touch with Thee, the living Word.
Deliver us from everything that is merely superficial. Bring us into the reality of eternal truth. Oh Lord, we want to follow Thee. May Thy name be honored and glorified in the midst of Thy people. We ask in Thy precious name. Amen.
Last Lord’s Day, we shared on this matter: Who are we? Now, as we mentioned last Lord’s Day, we do not like to talk about ourselves. There is nothing to talk about, because we are sinners saved by grace. That is all.
But the Bible tells us that we need to sanctify the Lord, the Christ, in our hearts, and always be ready to give an answer to whoever should ask us concerning the hope that is in our hearts, with meekness and fear. That is what we want to do.
Last Lord’s Day, we mentioned that, so far as we ourselves are concerned, we are not. But we thank God that we are identified with Christ, and that is everything.
He calls for disciples—those who are willing to put themselves under His discipline. He makes such ones His disciples, the people of the Way. That is to say, they begin to live a way of life that the world has never seen. It is not earthly; it is heavenly.
Because of this, they are identified as Christians—Christ-men and Christ-women. They are those who have the word of God and the testimony of Jesus, and they follow the Lamb whithersoever He goes. Brothers and sisters, this is what we want to be, and this is the way we are going.
You remember those sent from Jerusalem—the priests and Levites—came to John the Baptist because they wanted to know who he was. They wondered whether he was the Christ, the Messiah.
But John gave them a very straightforward answer. There was nothing nebulous about it. He said, “I am not.” Then they asked, “Art thou Elijah?” He answered, “I am not Elijah.” Then they asked whether he was the prophet whom Moses prophesied of in Deuteronomy 18. John said, “I am not.”
He knew what he was not. Then they asked, “What art thou?” Thank God, he knew exactly what he was. He said, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord.” I am but a voice—nothing. But my message is everything. That is what I am.
So, brothers and sisters, that is how we feel about ourselves. We are but a voice, preparing the way of the Lord.
But these people were not satisfied. They knew who John was not, and they knew who he was; yet they had more questions. They said, “Why then baptizest thou?” They had been sent from the Pharisees, and probably they were Pharisees.
The Pharisees were a sect in Judaism. They studied the law, interpreted the law, and considered themselves guardians of the law. Therefore, they were very careful about everything. They asked John, “What right hast thou to baptize? On what ground dost thou baptize people, if thou art not the Christ, Elijah, or the prophet?”
Now, brothers and sisters, we need to understand a little background. Baptism was not the regular practice among the Jews. To be in the commonwealth of Israel, one needed to be circumcised. Even if one had been born of Abraham, if he was not circumcised, he would be cut off from the commonwealth of Israel and have nothing to do with God’s covenant.
Circumcision was their practice; baptism was not. Yet, as you read the Old Testament, you do find in Leviticus 8 that the priests—those set apart to serve God—had to be washed. Their whole bodies had to be bathed before they were anointed with oil and entered into the sanctuary.
Why? Because God is so holy. No natural man is qualified to serve God. His body has to be put into the water. We all know what baptism represents: death, burial, and resurrection. In other words, no one can serve God in his natural man. He has to go into death, be buried out of sight, and be resurrected anew.
Then he can be anointed with oil—that is, filled with the Holy Spirit—and serve the holy God. It was a basic principle.
On the other hand, in Leviticus 14, when a leper was healed of leprosy, he had to be bathed—washed all over—before he could reenter the camp of Israel. Why? Because leprosy is a symbol, a sign, of sin.
Sin is so defiling before God that one has to go into death, be buried out of sight, and be resurrected in new life. Then one is able to be in the camp of God.
Likewise, in Leviticus 15, when a person had an issue or bodily defilement, the whole flesh had to be washed before he could come back to the tent. So, according to the Old Testament, baptism was not the regular practice among the Jews.
They considered themselves already in the commonwealth of Israel because they were circumcised. They believed there was no need to go through such a drastic ritual, as though denying the past completely and entering upon completely new ground.
That is why, when John the Baptist baptized people with water, the Pharisees refused to be baptized. They thought they were above it; they had no need for it. Only sinners and publicans repented and received the baptism of John.
There was one thing the Pharisees would accept: if the Messiah came, then He would have the right to demand baptism. Or if Elijah came, perhaps he would have the right. Or if the prophet came, perhaps he would have the right to do it. But John was neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet. “How dare you practice baptism?”
And John the Baptist, thank God, knew not only who he was and who he was not; he also knew what he was doing. He said, “I baptize with water, but there is One who standeth among you, whom ye know not.”
He is before me. I do not even have the privilege of untying His shoe latchet. I baptize with water to prepare the way for the One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit. That is what I am doing.
Brothers and sisters, John the Baptist was not only a voice giving a message; he practiced what he preached. He prepared the way of the Lord not only by a message, but also by baptism.
Apply this to ourselves. If you are not satisfied as to who we are, then probably you will ask, “Why do you gather so?”
In Christianity, you have Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Protestants, national churches, denominational churches, independents, charismatics—every kind of gathering. Some have specific doctrines; some have specific practices. Everything that you need, you can find.
Now, why do you have to meet as another group? Are you not dividing God’s people? Do you have the right to do that?
Unfortunately today, brothers and sisters, Christians take gathering very lightly. We are like butterflies, flying here and there, seeking for honey. We are like migrating birds, flying all around—today in this group, tomorrow in that group.
Wherever I can be satisfied, wherever I can be fed, wherever I can receive blessing—that is where I will go. We do not bother about the truth that God’s people are one body.
We are like the Jewish people when the temple was destroyed. They developed the synagogue. If you have ten Jews, you can organize a synagogue. If you are not happy with your neighbor, you find nine others and have one that suits your taste.
You can worship God, read the Torah, read the prophets, and pray. In the sight of God, there is much freedom. Why not? And the same atmosphere is now in Christianity.
But this is a serious matter. We do not just gather because we like to, because we do not agree with other people, or because we want to be ourselves. Brothers and sisters, why do we gather?
In order to answer this question, you have to forgive me: I have to go to the very beginning, to the very basics.
When our Lord Jesus was on earth, He came to seek and to save the lost. But was that all?
Toward the end of His ministry, as He was rejected by the Jews, He retreated to the border of Caesarea Philippi. Then He asked His disciples, “Who do ye say that I am?”
The world said He was this or that, but He asked His disciples, “Who do ye say that I am? You are My disciples. You have been with Me. You ought to know Me better.”
Thank God, Simon Peter, as spokesman, said, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” You are the Anointed One, the One sent by God on a mission to accomplish a mission. You are the Son of God.
Our Lord Jesus said, “Simon Bar-jonah, thou art blessed: because flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father who is in heaven.” Flesh and blood can only say, “He is like Elijah,” or “He is like Jeremiah,” or “He is like one of the prophets.” But it is the heavenly Father who reveals Christ.
Then our Lord said, “Thou art Peter,” a little stone, “and upon this rock”—this massive rock—“I will build My church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” This is recorded in Matthew 16.
He who by revelation confesses Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God, is transformed in life. He is transformed, as it were, from dust to stone.
As a little stone, the Lord says, “I am going to do something with you. I am the Rock; you are a piece of Me. Upon Myself, I will build My church.” That is why He came into this world.
Unfortunately, the word church that we use today is not a literal translation of the Greek word ecclesia used by our Lord. The word ecclesia means “called-out ones gathered together.”
Dear brothers and sisters, our Lord calls us out of the world. That is individual; that is personal. A father cannot substitute for a son. As people say, God has no grandchildren. Everyone has to be called out.
We are called out of the world, just as the children of Israel were called out of Egypt. Individually and personally, we are called out. But that is not the end.
In the heart of God, He wants a corporate Body. Therefore, the called-out ones are to be gathered together. That is real Christianity—not merely that you are called out and then live independently.
Sometimes we hear people say, “My Lord and I—that is all. I do not need any brother or sister, because they give me problems.” That sounds very spiritual, but it is very superficial. That is not the will of God.
We have much training and discipline to go through. The Lord wants the called-out ones to gather together.
For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.
—Matthew 18:20
We do not gather together as a social club. We gather together into the name of the Lord Jesus—His name, which is above every name. At that name every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
During the lifetime of our Lord Jesus, He mentioned the word church, or ecclesia—better translated as “assembly”—only in two places: Matthew 16:18 and Matthew 18:17.
In Matthew 16, He shows us what the church really is: its universal nature. “I will build My church upon this rock.” He is the Rock, and we are the stones. We are being built up on Him and by Him to be one building, one Body, one people.
There will be spiritual conflict. The gates of Hades will come against it, but the Lord says that because He builds it, the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. This is the universal aspect of the church.
All who follow these principles are in that universal church. The Lord did not say, “I will build My churches.” He said, “I will build My church.” There is only one church—universal.
But then in Matthew 18, the Lord says, “If thy brother sin against thee.” The problem is no longer in the spiritual realm; it is very physical and practical.
The called-out ones gather together, but the world is so large that there is no way for all believers throughout the world to gather together in one place. We are not in eternity yet; we are still limited by time and space.
If we are in Richmond, we are not in Washington, D.C., New York, Seattle, or San Francisco. So how can we gather together? Gathering together is not merely a theory; it is a practice.
Sometimes people say, “I am not with you, but my spirit is with you.” Very spiritual—but that is not what the Lord means. He means that we have to gather together physically.
Because of this limitation, the church has another expression: locally, where you are. Wherever you are, you are with your brothers and sisters.
If you are all alone, you have no such problem. No one will sin against you. But no one will be with you either. That brother must be with you.
Probably because he is with you all the time—not merely once a week or once a month—you become very close. Brothers and sisters are family; they are members of one Body. When people are that close, difficulties arise.
When you are eating, sometimes you bite your tongue. Why? Because your tongue and your teeth are so close together. But your tongue cannot say, “I have been bitten so often; I am going out.” That is impossible.
So when your brother sins against you, what do you do? You go to him in love. You do not seek revenge. You go because you love him and do not want to see your brother in darkness. You seek to restore him.
If he does not listen, take one or two more brothers or sisters—people whom he may trust—and together go and try to restore him. If he still does not listen, tell it to the church.
You cannot tell it to the church universal. Where is it? It is everywhere, but practically it is nowhere. Therefore, there has to be a local expression of the church, where God’s people in a certain locality are together as one Body.
Practically, it means telling those responsible in the church. The church will try to restore him. If he does not listen to the church, then he is to you as a stranger or a foreigner—yet you still love him.
That is the local aspect of the church. These are not two churches. The universal church and the local church are one, because one is the expression of the other.
Before Pentecost, one hundred and twenty believers gathered together in the upper room in Jerusalem. When the Lord returned to heaven, He asked His disciples to go to Jerusalem and wait for the coming of the promised Spirit.
One hundred and twenty gathered together in that upper room. They prayed with one accord for ten days. Then, on the day of Pentecost, suddenly there came a sound of a mighty rushing wind.
Literally, it was like a hard blowing, a hard breathing—like someone breathing in travail, seeking to bring forth a baby. This was the breathing of God. The Holy Spirit had come.
What is the meaning of Pentecost? The meaning of Pentecost is not in the sound or in the sight. The meaning is given to us in 1 Corinthians 12:13.
For in one Spirit were we all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were all made to drink of one Spirit.
—1 Corinthians 12:13
In other words, that was the beginning of the history of the church on earth. In one Spirit they were baptized into one Body. Formerly they were one hundred and twenty individual believers. They might congregate together, but they were not one Body.
With the coming of the Holy Spirit, they were in one Spirit baptized into one Body. They were no longer one hundred and twenty individual disciples; they were one Body with one hundred and twenty members.
Brothers and sisters, do you see the difference? It is an organic difference, not an organizational difference—an organic difference. One Body, one Spirit, one hope of the calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
That is the unity of the Spirit given to us.
On that very same day, three thousand came to the Lord. The Body grew. Then five thousand were added, and God added daily. But what happened?
Those who were gathered together as one Body continued steadfastly in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles, in breaking of bread, and in prayers. They were one. Nobody said, “This is mine.” They belonged to one another—one Body.
Then, because of persecution, the believers began to spread, and the gospel spread throughout Judea, Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
Instead of believers gathering only in Jerusalem, believers gathered in Antioch, Rome, Ephesus, and many other places. These were expressions of the oneness of the Body.
They did not deny the name of the Lord, and they kept the word of His patience. Everywhere they went, even though they were separated by distance, they were one in fellowship.
There were not many churches in the sense of separate bodies. There was one church, one Body, but many expressions in different places. Thank God, this is the scriptural definition of the church.
But unfortunately, even during the time of the apostles, foreign doctrines and teachings began to creep in—not only teachings, but practices as well.
You remember Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. The first matter he addressed was division among them. Some said, “I am of Paul”; some, “I am of Apollos”; some, “I am of Cephas”; and some, “I am of Christ.”
Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? God forbid.
Human weakness began to come in—personal preferences, human affections, friendships—instead of one Spirit, one soul, one mind, and even one speech in Christ.
Not only that: if you read Galatians, another gospel began to come in. Grace was not enough; people wanted law and grace.
In Colossians, people wanted to be perfect, but Christ was not enough. It was Christ plus something else. Then, they thought, you are perfect. God forbid.
These epistles, written by the apostles, show the weakness of man. When God is doing something, because man is involved, the enemy is able to do his work.
If it is the work of Christ, the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. If it is of man, sooner or later, in the shaking, it will be shaken off.
If you study church history, you find that the purity of the church was gradually lost. Instead of one church and one Body, you have many churches and many bodies.
Instead of the church as a living organism, Christianity today has become a giant organization. Instead of meek followers of the Lamb, you have lions everywhere.
There are all kinds of teachings, all kinds of doctrines, all kinds of organizations, groups, and gatherings. Whatever you want, you can find it. If it is not there, you invent one. That is Christianity today.
No wonder the world says, “I do not see Christ, because you people do not represent Him rightly.”
But thank God, men may fail, but God never fails. Men may destroy, but God will build His church.
When you read church history, you may not find these people in official church history, because official church history often presents another picture. Yet in the days of the apostles, in spite of all these departures, there were people faithful to the word of God who would not deny the name of the Lord.
The same was true in the post-apostolic age. Throughout the centuries, here and there, there has always been a small minority returning to the simplicity and purity of Christ.
They would not deny the name of the Lord. They considered the name of the Lord sufficient for them. They would not call themselves this or that. They were simply Christians. They were brothers to one another.
They kept the word of God and did not deny His name. It was rare, and they were persecuted—not only by the world, but by the Christian world.
For instance, consider the Anabaptists during the time of the Reformation. Thank God for the Reformation, because we have an open Bible and have come to know justification by faith.
But the Reformers did not go far enough. There were people who felt that they wanted to return to the word of God and to God’s original revelation. When they did that, they were persecuted by Protestant churches.
Thousands of Anabaptists were drowned. “You want to be baptized? All right, we will baptize you. We will put a stone around you and drown you.” Many died for their faith.
The Lord said, “I will build My church upon this rock; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
Brothers and sisters, why do we gather here? If you know our history, you will know that, to us, it is not something casual. A cost has to be paid.
Before we began to gather together forty years ago, we were in different denominations. Some were Roman Catholic, some charismatic, some Methodist, some Episcopalian, and so forth.
It was not because we had any grudge against anyone. As a matter of fact, allow me to give my own testimony. I was brought up a Methodist. My father was a Methodist pastor and bishop.
The Methodists had been good to me. I received free education from childhood through college. Everybody expected me to succeed my father.
But one day God opened my eyes. I could not remain a Methodist. Christ is not divided. I had to come out of division and return to unity.
A heavy cost had to be paid. By myself, I could not do it, but His grace is sufficient.
The same thing happened to us. When God began to open the eyes of some of us in the early days, we were zealous where we were. Then the Lord began to open our eyes to see the glory of His name.
Why should we have another name besides the name of the Lord Jesus? The Bible says, “Gathered together unto My name.” Why are we Methodist? Why are we Lutheran? Why are we this or that—as though Christ were not enough?
No. We have to gather together unto His name.
When you meet another Christian, usually they ask, “Are you a Christian?” You say, “Thank God, I am.” Are they satisfied? No. They ask, “What denomination do you belong to?”
People are not satisfied with the name of Jesus, as though Jesus were not enough. They have to find something to add to Jesus.
But those who do not deny the name of the Lord—the Lord says that if you do not deny His name, He will not deny you.
Brothers and sisters, we began to see the preciousness, the all-sufficiency, the headship, and the lordship of our Lord Jesus. We want to follow Him, not follow any man.
We want to put ourselves under His authority—not under any man’s authority or issue. He is the Head of the Body, and we are members one of another in His Body.
We want to open ourselves to all God’s people, no matter what label you may have. Whoever the Lord receives, we receive.
Brothers and sisters, we dare not deny the Lord. We dare not neglect the word of God. Whatever He says, that is our heart’s desire to obey.
Through much prayer, and nothing casually, some of us in the early days felt the burden of bearing testimony to the headship of Christ and the oneness of the Body of Christ.
So we came out from the religious world and began to gather together in lowliness and humility, only unto the name of our Lord Jesus.
It is not easy. There has been much dealing in our lives. Many things in us—from the world, from the religious world, from the natural man, from the flesh, and from sin—have to be dealt with.
That Body cannot take in foreign particles; it rejects them. But we feel that it is our responsibility to do this.
Brothers and sisters, that is why, when you come to this place, you do not find a sign telling you who we are or who is gathering together. There is no sign. Why?
Because we do not want to put up another sign to separate ourselves from our dear brothers and sisters in this city.
People misunderstand us. They think that because we gather separately, we are separatists and are breaking the Body of Christ. But the Body has already been broken into so many pieces. Why should we break it once more? We dare not do that.
The reason we gather together is because we want to come out of all divisions and be a testimony to the lordship of Christ and the oneness of the Body of Christ.
Some people ask, “Do you not have a name? Is Richmond Christian Fellowship your name?” Let me explain. That is not our name. We have only one name: the name of the Lord.
But because we live in this country, we must obey the law of this country. The church is heavenly; it is never registered on earth. It is registered in heaven.
Yet because we are still on earth and live in this country, we should not be lawless. The Bible says to obey the authorities set over us by God. We are under this government.
The government requires that if you want to own a place in which to meet, you must register with the government. In registration, you must have a specific name. You cannot register nameless.
That is why we have something like an organization called Richmond Christian Fellowship. It is not a church. It has no control over the church. It is only a legal organization before the government, responsible for the property.
It allows the church to meet there. Therefore, we do not call this a church building, because this is not a church. It is simply a place that we use for meeting.
Every year, we have to hold an annual meeting of that organization. Usually, we have it on Wednesday at prayer-meeting time, because at prayer meeting, those who are really concerned will be there—not merely spectators or visitors.
We always try to explain that the name Richmond Christian Fellowship is not the name of the church. It is the name of a legal person that holds property before the government.
The church is not governed by the trustees of that organization. The church is under those brothers whom God has raised up to be responsible. So, brothers and sisters, I hope in a little way we can explain what this is.
Remember, we are not nameless. We have the name of the Lord Jesus, the name that is above every name. That is the name we consider sufficient for us.
There is another thing that we need to clarify. It is true that we gather here as a local expression of the church universal. Because the church universal is one, it must have an expression on earth, somewhere, showing that Jesus is Lord and that we are one Body.
That is what we intend to be. But we are not the church in Richmond.
If you read the Bible, you find the church in Jerusalem. Even though there were thousands of people there, there was one church: the church in Jerusalem. There was the church in Antioch, the church in Ephesus, and the church in Rome.
That was the scriptural designation of the local church. But today, because of the confusion in Christianity, God’s people have been divided into so many pieces.
There is no possibility that any one group, even if gathering in the name of the Lord, can claim itself to be the church in Richmond. That would not be right.
Let us have a word of prayer.
Dear Lord, Thou art Lord, and we commit this into Thy hands. We pray that Thy life will enter into this life and restore it to health, bringing glory to Thyself. We ask in Thy name. Amen.
So, brothers and sisters, because of the complication in Christianity today, God’s people in the city of Richmond are divided into many, many groups.
Today, you find that in many groups called churches, they include not only those who really belong to the Lord, but even those who do not belong to the Lord. Yet there are still people who are the Lord’s in many groups in this city.
We also recognize that there are people not meeting with us who are more spiritual, who love the Lord more, and who know the Lord more than we do. We recognize that.
Therefore, we dare not exclude our brothers and sisters. We believe that the church in Richmond includes all God’s children in this city. Wherever he or she may be, they are all included. We are included, and they are included.
But what the Lord has raised us up to be is an expression—not the expression, but an expression—of what the church universal is.
In other words, our heart’s desire is to return to the word of God, to what the Lord originally commanded.
We are far from what we should be—very imperfect and very weak. There are many things in us that need to be dealt with. We acknowledge that.
But, brothers and sisters, our desire is that we may return to what the Lord says in His word. That is why we gather.
I hope that, as brothers and sisters come to know why we gather, we will have a love for the house of God.
Those who really love the Lord love His house. We hope that, in seeing what His house is, we may learn to love it, put ourselves into God’s hands, and allow Him to work out His full purpose.
That is our desire. God willing, next Lord’s Day we will try to share further on this matter: What is our testimony?
Let us pray.
Dear heavenly Father, we do want to thank Thee for giving us this time that we may be together in Thy presence and learn Thy word. We pray that Thy Spirit will illumine Thy word, open our understanding, and draw us into Thy word.
May we, by Thy grace, be people who keep Thy word and deny not Thy name. Lord, have mercy upon us. We ask in Thy precious name. Amen.