Day: October 16, 2022

The Chinese refer to those who regularly burn incense and worship idols as “kind men and faithful women.” When you enter a Buddhist temple, you do not feel as warm as you do when you are in the meeting hall. This is an indication that the meaning of human life is Christ, and Christ is the meaning of human life. Wherever Christ is, human life has meaning. Wherever there is no Christ, human life has no meaning. A family that does not have Christ is in misery and darkness. A society that does not have Christ is in darkness, and a country that does not have Christ is pitiful.

We are certain that Taiwan is peaceful and has a prosperous situation because the local churches are here. This is the reason that Taiwan is blessed. This is not a small thing. Man is the meaning of the earth. The meaning of being a human is being a Christian, and [149] the meaning of being a Christian is Christ. Christ is the meaning of our human life.

THE NEW JERUSALEM BEING
 THE CENTER AND THE MEANING
 OF THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW EARTH

Revelation says that when the new heaven and the new earth appear, the New Jerusalem will come down out of heaven (21:1-2). Do not think that the New Jerusalem is a physical city. Revelation uses signs to speak of spiritual things because spiritual things are mysterious. This can be compared to the fact that we cannot take a photograph or draw a picture of electricity, because electricity is mysterious and invisible. The New Jerusalem will be in the new heaven and the new earth, but the New Jerusalem is not a physical city. Revelation uses the sign of a city to describe a spiritual situation. The center and the meaning of the new heaven and the new earth are the New Jerusalem.

THE CHURCH BEING A FORETASTE
 OF THE NEW JERUSALEM

The New Jerusalem is the aggregate of all those who have received the Lord throughout the generations. In other words, we are the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem is the center and the meaning of the new heaven and the new earth in the new universe. Although the New Jerusalem is not yet here today, we have a foretaste of the powers of the age to come (Heb. 6:5). The church today is the New Jerusalem. The church is a foretaste of the New Jerusalem. The brothers and sisters in Kaohsiung are the expression of the New Jerusalem in Kaohsiung, and the brothers and sisters in Tainan are the expression of the New Jerusalem in Tainan. When we comprehend this point, we will declare, “Hallelujah! We are the New Jerusalem.”

BEING FILLED WITH CHRIST IN ORDER TO BE
 THE MEANING OF OUR COMMUNITIES

As Christians, we should be joyful and sing even when we are walking. Some saints may say that this is too much, but it is not too much. In every community there is a need for a group of Christians to be filled with the Lord and to sing about the Lord. If we do not [150] sing, we are not proper Christians. As Christians, we are the meaning of our family, our society, and our country. If I am not a Christian, my family is miserable. Without the church and the believers, our society is dark. Without Christ and the church, our country is pitiful.

We thank the Lord that in human society there are Christians and the church. However, we must ask whether we are proper Christians. If we are not proper Christians and if the church is not proper, our society will not have meaning. May the Lord have mercy on us.

In the church we need to be filled with Christ to the extent that we are beside ourselves. Otherwise, we will not be today’s New Jerusalem. We should never have a “Sunday service” or even sing hymns as if we are in a “Sunday service.” We should be full of inspiration when we sing hymns, and we should be joyful when we sing. Those who attend “Sunday services” are influenced by Christianity. The early Christians were not like this. They were joyful people (Acts 2:46).

THE TESTIMONY IN SAN FRANCISCO

The brothers and sisters in San Francisco, especially the young saints, are like the early Christians; they have a special flavor. They wear gospel vests not only during a gospel march but also every day. The students in college and high school are not restricted in what they wear. Hence, the young saints wear their gospel vests even in their classrooms. During lunchtime, the saints form a line and enter the cafeteria singing. When all the other students are focused on them, they declare, “Jesus is Lord!” Then they speak to the students concerning the Lord Jesus as the real food. In this way they preach the gospel and also eat lunch. This is a group of people who are the meaning of human life. Without them, their school has no meaning and neither do the classrooms and the cafeteria.

Not only do the young saints have a special flavor but also the working saints have a special flavor. The working saints are not as free as the students, because they are under the restriction of their companies. However, they wear gospel vests on their way to work, but at the door of their respective companies they take off the vests before entering their offices. As soon as they go outside for lunch, they put on the gospel vests. The saints wear gospel vests when they go to a restaurant also. Sometimes the restaurants do not welcome [151] them, but some people were saved in this way. The saints are the meaning of those restaurants. There is the need for some Christians to declare “Jesus is Lord!” in the restaurants.

BEING BESIDE OURSELVES FOR THE GOSPEL

Preaching the Gospel to Our Family

Suppose a young brother is saved, but his parents are still not saved. The old religious way is to tell him to pray for his parents’ salvation and believe in the Lord’s promise in Acts 16:31. This brother would then pray to the Lord with tears, asking the Lord to have mercy on his family. Sometimes the Lord listens to this kind of prayer. However, there is a better way. The brother may know which evening his parents are at home, and he can ask some young brothers to visit him that night. These young brothers can sing a song to his parents and give a testimony. In this way his parents will be saved, and he will no longer need to cry before the Lord. The Lord does not want us to cry. On the contrary, He wants us to sing triumphant songs, declaring that Jesus is Victor, that all things in heaven and on earth belong to Jesus, and that every country belongs to Him. Not only so, our family and our parents belong to Jesus.

We need to change the way that we preach the gospel. Even the sisters can preach the gospel in this way. A sister can invite other young sisters to her home to testify to her parents. We need the Lord to strengthen us. We are not acting or performing. We are beside ourselves for Jesus.

Paul Being beside Himself in Preaching the Gospel

During May and June of 1935 I returned to Chefoo, and that summer Brother Watchman Nee stayed in my home. During that time we held a week-long conference in Chefoo. One day Brother Nee released a message from 2 Corinthians 5:13: “Whether we were beside ourselves, it was to God.” To be beside oneself means to be seemingly foolish. He also used Acts 26 where, after Paul defended himself before King Agrippa, Festus the governor said to him, “You are insane, Paul. Much learning is driving you insane” (v. 24). Paul said that it was not much learning but that it was God in him who emboldened him to speak freely so that he was beside himself. For this reason Brother Nee said, “Brothers and sisters, I want to tell [152] you that if your believing in Jesus is not to the extent of being foolish, your believing is still not up to the standard.”

Believing in the Lord to Be beside Ourselves

This message touched me, so when I went home, I knelt down and asked the Lord to forgive me because for ten years, from 1925 to 1935, I had believed in Him but not to the extent of being beside myself. Later I learned that if we are up to the standard, we will always be beside ourselves. We are “fools” for Jesus. Once we are beside ourselves, we will also be foolish.

CHAPTER THREE

THE MEANING OF HUMAN LIFE
 BEING THE MEANING OF THE UNIVERSE

The meaning of human life is the meaning of the universe. Although there are other planets in our solar system besides the earth, no human beings or organisms have been found on other planets. Scientists are still looking for life on other planets. According to the Bible, the place where God put life is earth. The earth is the center of God’s attention because man, who was created by God, is on the earth. Hence, the center, the focus, of the universe is man. If there were no human beings on earth, the earth would have absolutely no meaning. The lions and the tigers are powerful, but they are unable to accomplish anything meaningful. Everything that is meaningful on the earth is accomplished by man. Man is the meaning of the universe. The meaning of human life is the meaning of the universe. On a smaller scale let us use Taiwan as an example. Taiwan would have no meaning if no one were living on it. Taipei would have no meaning if no one were living in Taipei. A school would have no meaning if there were no students in it, and of course, a family would have no meaning if there was not even one person in the family.

THE MEANING OF HUMAN LIFE—
 GOD ENTERING INTO MAN
 TO BE EXPRESSED THROUGH MAN

The meaning of the universe is the meaning of human life. The meaning of the universe is centered on man. This means that if human life is void of meaning, the universe is also void of meaning. For this reason we must know the meaning of human life, which is God entering into man so that He may be expressed through man. The meaning of human life is for man to express God and to represent God. If we do not express or represent God, our human life is void of meaning.

Some young people feel that as long as they study, their future is [146] secure. However, what will they do after they finish their studies? Some young people may say that they will make money. Money is not a good thing; it is an evil thing. The young people need to consider what they will do with the money they make. Will they spend it on eating, drinking, and being merry, as the rich man did in Luke 12:19? If this is their intention, they are studying in order to become slaves to eating, drinking, and being merry. They are getting a college education in order to make money so that they can eat, drink, and be merry. This means that they will become slaves to eating, drinking, and being merry.

The Higher the Education,
 the Stronger the Sense of Emptiness

Within every person there is a sense of vanity and emptiness. While they are in school, they feel empty, and when they begin working, they still feel empty. I believe that every young person has had this feeling. When you were in elementary school, you studied diligently, and your parents supported you. You might have felt that entering junior high school was an achievement. Then you continued to study in order to enter high school. When you were in high school, you probably began to feel a sense of vanity. You continued to study diligently in order to finish high school and enter a university. When you entered the university, the sense of vanity within you might have deepened. Before entering the university, you thought that passing the entrance examination was something wonderful; hence, you worked hard. After you achieved this goal, you felt only vanity. From this time onward, young people experience the vanity of human life again and again. After graduating, some young people continue with graduate school and earn a master’s degree or even become a doctor of philosophy. I have met many people with a Ph.D. who told me that their degree gave them a sense of vanity, of emptiness. If they did not have their degree, they would not feel as empty. When they obtained their degree, their sense of emptiness increased. The more education a person receives, the emptier he feels. Eventually, when he graduates from the university and begins to work, the sense of emptiness within him becomes stronger.

Marriage and Careers Being Unable to Satisfy Man

Some young people look forward to getting married. They think [147] that once they are married, they will be satisfied. They do not know that every married person says that marriage is vanity of vanities. Many people wonder why they are married. What can they do when they are married? They can do nothing but taste emptiness. It is the same with those who are successful in their careers and become wealthy. The higher their position, the emptier they feel, and the more money they make, the emptier they feel.

Christ Entering into Man
 to Make Human Life Meaningful

Education, marriage, and careers cannot satisfy man because the meaning of human life cannot be found in these things. The meaning of human life is Christ entering into man. When Christ enters into you, your human life will have meaning. Not only so, the universe will have meaning. If there were no saved person in Taiwan, even if there were millions of people on the island, the island would have no meaning. If no one in the city of Taipei were a Christian, the city of Taipei would have no meaning. However, praise the Lord that there are Christians in Taiwan and in the city of Taipei. As Christians, we are the meaning of human life in Taipei and in Taiwan.

SINGING JOYFULLY BECAUSE WE HAVE THE LORD

Have you ever seen pedestrians whose faces were shining and who were joyfully singing? What kind of people do you see walking on the streets? Some of the pedestrians I have seen were sorrowful, some were heavy-burdened, and some were toiling and laboring. I have not seen any who were so overcome with joy that they were singing. (Of course, we should not consider those who are drunk or who suffer from mental illness.) If there are any joyful pedestrians, they surely must be Christians. The saints who meet regularly in Taipei are joyful because they have the Lord in them, and they sing spontaneously wherever they are. This changes the atmosphere of the city. If the brothers and sisters would sing hymns on the streets, at bus stops, in buses, and even in restaurants, their singing would cause a very definite change in the atmosphere in the city of Taipei.

This should be our living. Not only so, all the saints in the church in Taipei should go out and sing on the streets every two weeks or once a month. The gospel marches should continue, but [148] our appearance should change. The gospel vests need to be changed. They need to have a new look. On Saturday or on the Lord’s Day the saints can go out in teams and sing on the streets. This will bring meaning to the city of Taipei.

CHRISTIANS BEING THE MEANING OF THE UNIVERSE

We must realize that the meaning of the universe is the same as the meaning of human life. If the earth were not in the universe, the universe would be empty. If there were no human beings on the earth, the earth would be empty, and if there were no Christians, human life would be a complete tragedy.

If there were no Christians in your family, it would be a tragedy. What was the situation before Jesus came to your family? How we thank the Lord that our families have Jesus. Not only are our parents saved, but we also are saved. This has brought meaning into our families.

Many of us come from families that used to worship idols. Have you ever seen a family that worships idols being happy after their worship? I have seen many families that worship idols, but I have never seen them in a joyful mood. Some families even have a designated room with a little shrine where they go to burn incense. However, even after burning incense, they are not joyful. They are not singing. It is hard to sing when one is filled with death. Idols represent demons, and demons belong to Satan, who is the source of death. Hence, the worship of idols annuls the meaning of their human life.