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From Fundamentalism to the Plan of God
I had been raised and educated in orthodox fundamental Christianity as practiced in the United States. This kind of teaching, although seemingly correct according to the letter of the Bible, still left me with some serious questions unanswered. The first question was how a group of believers may practice the reality of the Body of Christ in which Christ is real and practical. The second question was how the life of the Spirit of God may become real and experiential to the believers. By reading the Bible in a serious and careful manner I could see such a dynamic and vital practice in the life of Paul the apostle. However, in my early search, visiting churches both in the U.S. and in other parts of the world, I could find no practice like Paul's. Then one day a friend introduced me to a group of believers who lived Christ as the reality and the proper expression of the Body of Christ. I had previously seen that no eloquence acumen, marvelous programs, or cathedrals could actualize the Body of Christ. At this point I saw that Christ must be the center, circumference and substance for the producing of the Body of Christ.
The second question, how the life of the Spirit of God can become real to the believers, was also answered as I read the Economy of God by Witness Lee. The answer I found in this book is that the entire Bible shows us that God wants to dispense Himself into His chosen believers: first into the unique center of man--his spirit--and second into man's soul. Thus, Christ's incarnation, human living, crucifixion, and resurrection are so that He may redeem man in order to dispense His wonderful life into His people (John 10:10) and thus produce the Body of Christ as His eternal expression (Eph. 1:22-23) carried out in His Body and through His purposed plan.
Jerry Hyman | Back to List
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