thechurchinFarmington

412: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO LEARN TO FUNCTION IN THE LORD’S TABLE MEETING IN A COORDINATED WAY

413: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO LEARN, IN WORSHIPPING THE FATHER, TO LINK THEWORSHIP OF THE FATHER TO THE REMEMBRANCE OF THE LORD MEETING IN A COORDINATED WAY

Pray that the saints would learn to function in the Lord’s table meeting in a connected way, coordinating together like a team to pray, speak, and sing hymns and to praise and thank the Lord (Eph. 5:18b-20; Hymns, #867).

Eph. 5:18b-20—Be filled in spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and psalming with your heart to the Lord, giving thanks at all times for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to our God and Father.

Hymns, #867:

As members of the Body Christ we would manifest,

Each learning how to function His fulness to express;

We would not be spectators But each as members move,

None bringing death or damage But each our profit prove.

As in a team we’d never Act independently,

But in coordination, Each would dependent be;

Not acting by our choosing But following the flow,

Distraction never bringing,

The Spirit’s way we’d know.

On Christ we here would focus,

No other center make;

With Christ in sweet communion

His riches to partake.

He is our Head and content,

His Body we express;

Whate’er we do while meeting

Himself must manifest.

Built up in love together,

Not one would criticize;

To perfect one another,

We all would exercise.

Each one from self delivered,

The natural life forsakes;

In grace each trained in spirit

The Body-life partakes.

MINISTRY PORTION:

During the meeting we need to function in the way of coordination. Often in our meetings we are like a basketball team in which each person has his own basketball and plays his own game. On such a team no one cares for the other members, but each one is concerned solely with his own basketball.

However, a proper basketball team uses only one ball and plays in a coordinated way. Likewise, in our meetings we must learn to function in a coordinated way as a team, using only one “ball.” For instance, if one brother begins the meeting by praying, another brother should follow by praying along the same line. Then a third one may choose an appropriate hymn, and after the hymn is sung, another saint may offer an explanation of the hymn. We should function in the meetings in the same way that a basketball team passes the basketball.

To meet and worship the Lord in this way requires training. In order to drive a car, we must be trained. We cannot say that we can drive simply because we have the human life, which has the capacity to drive. We need to practice driving. Only after many hours of practice can we properly drive a car. Similarly, we have been born again and have received the spiritual life that has the capacity to worship the Lord. However, it is not sufficient merely to have this life; we also need the practice. The reason we often come to the meetings empty-handed is that we do not practice preparing ourselves before the meeting. The reason our meetings are often poor is that we do not exercise our spirit to sense the atmosphere and to function in coordination. The more we practice these things, the more we will be accustomed to meeting in this way.

In order to function in a coordinated way, we first need to learn to pray. Functioning in coordination with others depends on the way we pray. Second, we need to familiarize ourselves with the hymns and know how to use them. After someone prays or speaks a word in the meeting, we may have the feeling to continue the burden by calling a hymn. To do this effectively, we must be able to find the hymn promptly. We need to realize that the hymns greatly affect the atmosphere of the meetings. A hymn can bring the meeting either up into the heavens or down into a deep pit. Thus, we need to learn to use the hymns in a proper way and at the proper time. (CWWL, 1964, vol. 3, “Basic Principles for the Church Meetings,” ch. 1, pp. 6-7)

DAY 413: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO LEARN, IN WORSHIPPING THE FATHER, TO LINK THE WORSHIP OF THE FATHER TO THE REMEMBRANCE OF THE LORD

Pray that, in the Lord’s table meeting, the saints would learn to link the section on worshipping the Father to the section on the remembrance of the Lord and would follow the Spirit’s leading to call hymns and offer praises according to the Father’s being and attributes (John 17:6, 26; see Hymns, Table of Contents – “Worship of the Father”; Hymns, #18, ss. 1-2, 7-8).

John 17:6, 26—I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world. They were Yours, and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word...And I have made Your name known to them and will yet make it known, that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them.

Hymns, #18, ss. 1-2, 7-8, chorus:

How faithful and trustworthy too,

My Father God, art Thou;

The universe and all therein

Thy faithfulness avow.

How steadfast is Thy faithfulness!

For this I worship Thee;

It is established in the heav’n,

And ever stands for me.

No turning shadow could there be,

Nor any change with Thee;

As Thou hast been, and now Thou art,

Forever Thou wilt be.

As Thou art faithful to perform

Thy promise and Thy call;

So, feeding on Thy faithfulness,

I take Thyself withal.

The rainbow round about Thy throne

Thy faithfulness declares;

This attribute forevermore

The holy city bears.

MINISTRY PORTION:

When we worship the Father, we do not need a new beginning; we simply need to make a turn. A hymn for praising the Father is also a hymn for worshipping the Father. Although the worship of the Father is another section, it still needs to be linked to the previous section. For example, in the first section of the table meeting if we have seen the Lord’s redemptive love that seeks and brings us back, we should turn to the worship of the Father with this feeling. In such a feeling we can worship God the Father for sending the Lord Jesus to the earth. Hence, our praising and singing will provide a flavor of the Father’s sending of the Son...

When we worship the Father, we often call Hymns, #33 or Hymns, #52, without paying attention to the theme of our remembrance of the Lord. Hence, our spirit often cannot follow when it is time to worship the Father. This is because we do not enter into the atmosphere and feeling of the meeting; we do not enter into the spirit of the hymns that were selected in the section on remembering the Lord. (CWWL, 1952, vol. 1, “Guidelines for the Lord’s Table Meeting and the Pursuit in Life,” ch. 5, pp. 269-270)

Now we need to consider our calling of hymns in the section of worshipping the Father at the Lord’s table. We need to call hymns according to the Father’s being. The Father’s name was not revealed until the Lord Jesus came. He came to reveal the name of the Father (John 17:6, 26), the person of the Father. Thus, we have to call hymns according to the Father’s person, the Father’s being.

We also have to call hymns according to the Father’s attributes, such as His love, His kindness, and His glory. In the table of contents of our hymnal under the section entitled “Worship of the Father,” we have a number of hymns categorized according to the Father’s attributes. These attributes include His faithfulness, His greatness, His wisdom, His mercy, and His love.

We praise the Son according to His person and work, but there is no work with regard to the Father.

We should praise the Father according to His being and attributes. We have to differentiate and discern the hymns according to these two categories: the Father’s being, what the Father is, and the Father’s attributes. (CWWL, 1979, vol. 2, “Basic Lessons on Service,” Lesson 5, p. 34)

386: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE LORD’S TABLE IN CARRYING OUT GOD’S MOVE SO THAT THEY WILL EARNESTLY KEEP IT

387: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE THAT, IN INSTITUTING THE TABLE, THE LORD JESUS MADE A COVENANT WITH THE NEW TESTAMENT BELIEVERS

388: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE THAT TO COME TO THE LORD’S TABLE IS TO ENJOY CHRIST AS THE GOOD LAND

389: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE LORD’S TABLE AND THE LORD’S SUPPER

390: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE FROM THE LORD’S SUPPER HOW THE CHURCH IS A BRIDGE CONNECTING THE LORD’S TWO COMINGS

386: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE LORD’S TABLE

DAY 386: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE LORD’S TABLE IN CARRYING OUT GOD’S MOVE SO THAT THEY WILL EARNESTLY KEEP IT

Pray that from the type of the Passover the saints would see the importance of the Lord’s table in carrying out God’s move and would be encouraged to earnestly keep this weekly feast (1 Cor. 11:23-26; cf. Num. 9:1-5).

1 Cor. 11:23-26—For I received from the Lord that which also I delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread, and having given thanks, He broke it and said, This is My body, which is given for you; this do unto the remembrance of Me. Similarly also the cup after they had dined, saying, This cup is the new covenant established in My blood; this do, as often as you drink it, unto the remembrance of Me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you declare the Lord’s death until He comes.

Num. 9:1-5—Now Jehovah had spoken to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, Let the children of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. On the fourteenth day of this month at twilight, you shall keep it at its appointed time; according to all its statutes and according to all its ordinances you shall keep it. Thus Moses told the children of Israel to keep the Passover. And they kept the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all that Jehovah commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did.

MINISTRY PORTION:

We should not think that partaking of the Lord’s table has nothing to do with God’s move or with our move with God in His activity. The Lord’s table has much to do with God’s move on earth. Therefore, we must keep the Lord’s table.

The Passover includes a number of crucial points. The Passover signifies a new start, because it takes place in the first month of the year. Therefore, the Passover should remind us that we need a new start. The Passover reminds us that we are a people who should have died under God’s righteous judgment. But for us who should die under His righteous judgment, God prepared a replacement, Christ, who died a vicarious death for us, thus saving us from the death-judgment of God’s righteousness.

The Passover also reminds us that we belong not to ourselves but to the One who died for us. Now we should enjoy Him for our entire life. We have been replaced by Christ, we belong to Him, and we should enjoy Him by taking Him as our life, our life supply, and our everything.

The Passover in the Old Testament was a yearly reminder to the children of Israel. Today we, the believers in Christ, have a weekly reminder, the Lord’s table. Every week, on the first day of the week, we should have the remembrance of the Lord at His table, enjoying all that He is to us. However, some may come to the Lord’s table without knowing what they are doing. Whenever we come to the Lord’s table we should be reminded that we need a new start, a new beginning on the eighth day, which is the first day of the week and a day in resurrection. We also need to be reminded that we were destined to die under God’s righteous judgment, but God prepared Christ to be our replacement to die for us. Therefore, we have been saved from the death-judgment. Furthermore, at the Lord’s table we should be reminded that we do not belong to ourselves but to the One who replaced us and who is now our life and life supply. Since Christ is our life and life supply, we should live by Him. This is the significance of the Passover and also of the Lord’s table. Both the Passover and the Lord’s table are feasts. Whenever we participate in the Passover or in the Lord’s table, we partake of a feast to enjoy Christ in the presence of God. This enjoyment is a mutual satisfaction to God and us. (Life-study of Numbers, msg. 15, pp. 112-113)

391: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO CARE FOR THE LORD’S SUPPER BY PROVING THEMSELVES

392: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO TAKE THE LORD’S SUPPER FOR GOD’S ADMINISTRATION BY DISCERNING THE BODY

393: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO EXPERIENCE AND ENJOY THE FELLOWSHIP WITH THE SAINTS IN ATTENDING THE LORD’S TABLE—THE HORIZONTAL ASPECT

394: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO REMEMBER THE LORD IN THE LORD’S SUPPER—THE VERTICAL ASPECT

MINISTRY PORTION:

Regarding the Lord’s supper, Paul uses two crucial words: prove and discern. Verse 28 says, “But let a man prove himself, and in this way let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.” To prove ourselves is to check whether we are eating the bread and drinking the cup in a way that is worthy or in a way that is unworthy. When Paul wrote this Epistle, some of the believers at Corinth ate the Lord’s supper in an unworthy way, not realizing that the cup and the bread were uncommon and different from ordinary food. We must realize that the cup signifies the blood the Lord shed on the cross for our sins. Thus, we should not drink it in a common, ordinary way, but drink it in a way which shows that we realize that it is different from ordinary drink. We should take the bread in the same manner… [W]e must realize as we drink the cup and eat the bread that these are solemn, holy, and divine signs. The cup signifies the precious blood our dear Lord shed on the cross for our sins, and the bread signifies the body He gave for us on the cross. Therefore, we should not treat these signs in a careless manner. If we eat and drink carelessly, then we partake of the Lord’s supper in an unworthy way. We need to prove ourselves to be sure that we are not unworthy to partake of the Lord’s supper. This proving ourselves is that we may be worthy to remember the Lord… Whenever we come to the Lord’s table, we should not just enjoy the Lord; we should also remember Him by proving ourselves. We must ask if we are living in a way that is worthy for us to eat the Lord’s supper. We should never take the Lord’s blood and body in a careless manner. Instead, we should realize that the signs on the table signify the precious blood and body of the Lord. Then we must ask ourselves if we live and behave in a way that is worthy of our eating this supper. This is to remember the Lord. (Life-study of 1 Corinthians, msg. 54, pp. 485-486)

DAY 392: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO TAKE THE LORD’S SUPPER FOR GOD’S ADMINISTRATION BY DISCERNING THE BODY

Pray that the saints would take the Lord’s supper for God’s administration by discerning the Body (1 Cor. 11:27-29; Hymns, #1107).

1 Cor. 11:27-29—So then whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and of the blood of the Lord. But let a man prove himself, and in this way let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not discern the body.

Hymns, #1107, ss. 1-2 and chorus:

We’re gathered here, O Lord, as Thy one Body:

Though we be many, yet we all are one.

We share Thy life and own that we are members,

And thus within, in life we all are one.

There is one Body in this universe,

And we express it here on earth;

We stand as one in each locality

For all to see, for all to see.

There is one loaf, the symbol of Thy body:

’Twas broken so that all the saints may share.

We eat this bread and, as we are partaking,

Our actual oneness with all saints declare.

MINISTRY PORTION:

We have emphasized the fact that when we take the Lord’s table we enjoy Him, and when we eat the Lord’s supper we satisfy Him by remembering Him and caring for God’s administration. But in what way do we take care of this administration? It is by discerning the Body. 

Many Christians have no idea what it means to discern the Body. To discern the Body is first to realize that Christ has only one mystical Body. But look at the situation among Christians today. How many divisions there are! Each denomination and group has its own bread. Some even go so far as to insist that if you have not been baptized by them in their water, you will not be allowed to participate in their bread. When we come to the Lord’s supper, we must discern the Body to determine whether the bread on the table represents the unique mystical Body of Christ. This is a matter of great importance.

The unique mystical Body of Christ is the means for God to carry out His administration. God’s

eternal purpose is to have a group of saved, redeemed, and regenerated people who have become one to be an organic Body to carry out His administration. But Satan’s subtle device is to cut the Body into pieces. This frustrates God’s administration. As long as we are in a division, we are through with God’s administration. For this reason, today’s Christianity has become useless as far as the carrying out of the divine administration is concerned. Christians may preach the gospel to save souls or teach the Bible to help others know the Word. But this is absolutely not adequate to carry out God’s administration. The carrying out of the divine administration needs the unique Body, the mystical Body. Because we realize this, we hate division and are absolutely opposed to it… [W]e must discern whether the bread on the table signifies the unique mystical Body of Christ or if it signifies a division. If the bread signifies a certain divisive group or denomination, we should not take it, for we discern the Body. To discern the Body in this way is to recognize that it is utterly distinct from anything divisive. We discern the Body in such a way for the carrying out of God’s administration. (Life-study of 1 Corinthians, msg. 54, pp. 483-484, 486)

395: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO REMEMBER THE LORD BY EATING AND DRINKING THE LORD HIMSELF

396: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO EAT THE LORD’S FLESH AND DRINK THE LORD’S BLOOD BY BELIEVING INTO HIM AND RECEIVING HIM

397: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO REMEMBER THE LORD BY CONTACTING HIM, EATING HIM, AND DRINKING HIM WITH THEIR SPIRIT

398: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO SEE AND EXPERIENCE THE PROGRESSION FROM REMEMBERING THE LORD TO WORSHIPPING THE FATHER

399: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO OFFER THE WORSHIP THAT SATISFIES THE FATHER IN THE LORD’S TABLE MEETING

400: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO COME TO THE LORD’S TABLE MEETING FOR THE PURPOSE OF REMEMBERING THE LORD HIMSELF

401: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO DO EVERYTHING IN THE TABLE MEETING BY TAKING THE LORD AS THE CENTER AND BY OVERFLOWING WITH THEIR PERSONAL EXPERIENCES OF CHRIST

402: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO LEARN TO THANK AND PRAISE THE LORD AT HIS TABLE, WITHOUT OFFERING PRAYERS OF SUPPLICATION TO HIM

403: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO BLESS THE LORD WITH WELL-SPEAKING CONCERNING HIS PERSON AND WORK BY ADDRESSING THE LORD DIRECTLY

404: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO LEARN TO PROPERLY PRACTICE TO DISTRIBUTE THE BREAD AND THE CUP FOR AN UPLIFTED TABLE MEETING

405: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS’ REMEMBRANCE OF THE LORD TO DECLARE HIS DEATH AND EXPRESS THEIR DESIRE FOR HIS COMING BACK

406: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO HAVE A DEFINITE TIME AND WAY TO WORSHIP THE FATHER AND TO RESERVE AN ADEQUATE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THEIR WORSHIP

407: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO LEARN TO SELECT HYMNS IN THE MEETINGS ACCORDING TO THE PURPOSE OF THE HYMNS AND THE PRINCIPLE FOR SELECTING HYMNS

408: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO DILIGENTLY LEARN THE HYMNS IN ORDER TO SELECT APPROPRIATE HYMNS IN THE MEETINGS

409: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO EXERCISE THEIR SPIRIT TO SENSE THE ATMOSPHERE OF THE MEETING AND APPLY THE HYMNS AT THE PROPER TIME

410: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO REMEMBER THE LORD BY SELECTING HYMNS AND OFFERING PRAISES FOR THE LORD’S PERSON AND WORK

411: PRAYER FOR THE SAINTS TO LEARN TO SPEAK HYMNS TO ONE ANOTHER AND TO SING HYMNS IN THEIR DAILY LIFE