Witness Lee Visits Los Angeles
The longer we went on together at Westmoreland, however, the more intense was our desire for the church life, which we felt we did not have there and were not enjoying. Some of us (including Samuel Chang, Ted Wen, and James Reetzke) felt that we would not continue any longer at Westmoreland Chapel and would even leave. It was at this point that Witness Lee came to Los Angeles (Thursday, December 5, to Saturday, December 7, 1960). Some had not met him when he first came in 1958, so this was the first time to meet our brother.
December 5, 1960 we met at Samuel Chang’s house in Los Angeles. At that time Witness Lee helped us to become clear on a number of matters by posing a series of questions and ministering the following:
1. What do we mean by church ground?
He said, “The church ground does not refer to the foundation of the church but to its site. The local church is a representation of the universal, like a foreign consulate in a city. If a country has more than one consulate in a city, we would say that that government is divided. The proper ground in the Old Testament was destroyed by the enemy, and God’s people were scattered and exiled. Even after some of the exiles returned to Jerusalem, the proper ground of oneness, some chose to stay in their divided and scattered state. Today the ground has been lost, and there is a scattering of God’s people.”
2. Does the measure of Christ determine which is the right church?
“We should not confuse the state or condition of the church with the ground of the church. The state is spiritual, relative, and comparative, whereas the ground is absolute and definite. If the ’measure of Christ’ is the standard, it will always be possible to find a church with a greater measure of Christ. The church in Laodicea had a poor measure of Christ, but it was still the right church.”
3. What should be our relationship to Christians in the denominations?
“We should fellowship with them but do nothing to build up their denomination. We even fellowship with brothers who are Roman Catholics. As long as a brother is in Christ, there is a basis for fellowship. But we should also be faithful to the one church ground. Nehemiah’s word was, ’Come back to Jerusalem. Leave the ground of Babylon.’”
4. If we are convinced of the ground, can we speak in other places?
“We need the personal guidance from the Lord, but be on alert. Let them know that their ground is wrong. Daniel was a prophet in Babylon, but his attitude was always toward Jerusalem.”
5. What should be our attitude toward groups who have no ground, are not denominations, and yet preach the gospel?
“The Lord is sovereign. He speaks through whomever He wishes. But be wise. The final goal is to build up something. The final purpose is not only to bring sinners to Christ, but to build them into one spiritual house.”
6. How does our stand affect our oneness with all Christians?
“Our oneness can only be in Canaan and not in the Roman Catholic Church. We must stand on the local ground, subject ourselves to the authority of the Holy Spirit, and submit to the self-denying cross. As long as we are still in Babylon, there can be no real oneness.”
Continue Meeting with Westmorelands?
On Saturday afternoon, December 7, we met in Ted Wen’s apartment. Brother Lee came there to report to us of the time he had just had with C.J.B. Harrison of Westmoreland Chapel. For six hours, he and Brother Harrison met together. Witness Lee said that things were not clear at Honor Oak, but that Westmoreland was even more unclear. If Westmoreland were a denomination, we should leave it. He defined a denomination as a group who had a special name or a special fellowship (i.e., some are accepted, some rejected) or a special doctrine. He also said that it was not clear whether or not they were on the right ground.
Brother Lee was not at peace and had some reservation about Westmoreland. He asked the question, “Is now the right time?” Continuing, he said, “We run a risk if we continue in this line [remaining apart from Westmoreland]. Such would be a shame to the Lord, to His name, and to His teaching. I am confident that the Lord will do a work in Los Angeles. We do not want to frustrate the work of God at this time. I am concerned for our future, so it is better to stop now and wait and see. You cannot do anything that is doubtful. We must always act from a pure conscience.”
On the following day, the Lord’s Day, we met together at Westmoreland Chapel.
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