As believers in Christ who are learning to receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness so that we may reign in life, we need to imitate the apostle Paul to bring the local churches into the fellowship of the Body of Christ.
We may not be the apostle Paul in his function or capacity, but we can all enter into his burden and feeling for the Body of Christ. Amen!
Our portion of inheritance as believers in Christ is to reign in life. We should stand against any accusation and deceiving work of the enemy who is trying to lie to us, cheat us, and defraud us of our prize.
It is our right as children of God to reign in life with Christ, and we can experience this today, even during our lifetime.
This means that today we can enjoy the Lord as grace, and we can enjoy Him not only just a little bit but in abundance.
Oh, there is an abundance of grace!
When we touch the throne of grace (Heb. 4:16), grace as a river is flowing abundantly.
When we give ourselves to just enjoy the Lord, the enjoyment of the Lord as grace will flow as a river, and grace will reign in us.
We may be predisposed to complain about our situation and the things around us, or we may stoically endure anything that the environment and people around us throw at us.
No matter what kind of disposition we have, when we receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness, grace will abundantly saturate us and will reign in us.
This means that, in any situation we’re in, as we enjoy the Lord abundantly as grace, we will care more for the enjoyment of Christ than for dealing with any problem.
When things happen and we don’t like them, when others mistreat us, or when we are about to get upset about something, the enjoyment of Christ as grace will reign.
Just imagine what will happen if we all choose to turn to our spirit and turn our heart to the Lord in all situations and under any circumstance!
If we all pay attention to Christ, who is grace embodied coming to us to fill us with the enjoyment of God, we will be saved in His life much more, and we will be enthroned over any situation.
We will be above and beyond anything that happens to us, and no matter how others treat us, we are reigning in life. Hallelujah!
Our reigning in life is by receiving the abundance of grace and also by allowing the divine life in us to rule and reign.
The divine life in us is a real thing, a real and living person; day by day the Lord becomes more and more real to us, and He reigns in us.
On one hand, the enjoyment of Christ is enthroned in us, and on the other hand, the divine life within us regulates us and rules in us from within.
When we’re under the Lord’s authority in all things, we can reign in life.
May we enter into this experience more and more so that the Lord may gain those who reign in life with Christ over all things.
Reign in Life by being in the Fellowship of the Body of Christ in the Local Churches
![That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:3 For your fellowship unto [the furtherance of] the gospel from the first day until now. Phil. 1:5](https://i0.wp.com/www.agodman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/That-which-we-have-seen-and-heard-we-report-also-to-you-that-you-also-may-have-fellowship-with-us-683x1024.webp?resize=400%2C600&ssl=1 "That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:3 For your fellowship unto [the furtherance of] the gospel from the first day until now. Phil. 1:5")
In Rom. 16:1-16 we see a particular aspect of our reigning in life: when we reign in life, we enter into and live in the fellowship of the Body of Christ in the local churches.
We will even enter into the burden of the apostle Paul to bring the local churches into the fellowship of the Body of Christ.
Reigning in life is not something individualistic and independent; I cannot reign in life by myself.
There are many Christians who say that they reign in life but who actually built up their own righteousness and live not Christ but their own self-made holiness for their own glory. Oh, Lord Jesus!
Reigning in life is a Body matter. When we reign in life, we are conscious of the Body of Christ.
When we truly reign in life, we realize that there is one Body in this universe, and no matter in what locality we meet as the local church, we are part of the one Body of Christ.
When we reign in life, we will enter into and live in the fellowship of the Body of Christ.
The matter of fellowship is a great one; one of the greatest recoveries in the church life in the Lord’s recovery today is fellowship.
We treasure fellowship and we are constantly learning to fellowship with the Lord and with one another.
What does it mean to fellowship? Does it mean only to open up our situation with all its details for others to know and pray about it?
When we first had fellowship with some of the saints and they said, Let’s have some fellowship, we may have wondered, What should we fellowship about?
And when they asked us, How are you doing, brother? Our answer may have been, I am fine.
But then they may have asked again, How are you doing, are you doing fine? We may have thought about it, and then opened up a little about our situation.
No matter how much we try to be a good Christian, apart from the fellowship of the Body of Christ in the local churches there’s no way to survive or be a good Christian.
Fellowship is a joint participation (1 John 1:3) in which we enter into an enterprise, an activity together in a joint way, and we participate together with the saints in what the Lord is doing in us and among us today.
What the Lord is revealing to us, we open to the saints, and what the saints see of the Lord, they share with us.
We all participate. We don’t stand back as an onlooker, checking out what others do and having a critical or appreciative attitude; rather, we all participate.
As we grow in life and receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness, we reign in life; as we reign in life, we participate in the fellowship of the Body of Christ.
We treasure the fellowship of the Body of Christ. However, we cannot have true fellowship in the Body unless we reign in life.
There’s nearly no living of the Body because of the lack of reigning in life.
If we enter into the joint, common participation, the fellowship of the Body of Christ, the Lord will have a way to bring us into the actual experience of reigning in life, and as we reign in life, we will have more fellowship in the Body.
Among all the churches that compose the one universal Body of Christ, there is no organization but there is the fellowship of the Body of Christ (Phil. 1:5).
There’s no head church nor is there a hierarchy among churches; there is only the fellowship of the Body of Christ.
We open to the Lord and we open to one another; we open to the Lord and, in a genuine way, we open to others, without any pretence or sense that we have to do it as a practice.
When we reign in life, we fellowship with the Lord and we fellowship with the saints.
When we reign in life, we honestly seek to fellowship with the Lord and we genuinely fellowship with the saints so that we may know the Lord’s mind in so many different areas, for we want to be one with the Lord in carrying out what He wants to carry out.
Lord Jesus, keep us receiving the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness so that we may reign in life and be in the fellowship of the Body of Christ. Amen, Lord, we open to You to fellowship with You in sincerity and truth. We open to the members of the Body so that we may have fellowship in the Body of Christ. Hallelujah, in the church life and among the churches there’s no organization but there’s the fellowship of the Body of Christ! Oh, what a privilege we have to fellowship with the Lord and to fellowship with one another! Amen, Lord, it is our right and responsibility to enter into this joint participation of God and man for the interests of God on the earth. Teach us to fellowship with You, dear Lord, and how to fellowship with the saints in the Body. We want to be members of the Body who reign in life and abide in the fellowship of the Body of Christ!
The Fellowship of the Body, the Fellowship among the Churches, is the Circulation of the Spirit
The fellowship among the churches is the fellowship of the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 10:16).
In Rom. 16 we see how, by his recommendations and greetings from vv. 1-24, Paul was blending together many saints and many churches under his ministry for the practical living of the Body of Christ in the universal fellowship of the Body.
We believers in Christ who have received the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness need to practice the restriction and limitation in the divine life and learn to fellowship in the Body of Christ with all the saints.
The Lord’s recovery is based on the truth that Christ has only one Body, and this one Body of Christ is expressed in many localities as the local churches (Eph. 1:22-23; 4:4; Rev. 1:11).
Because there is one Spirit, there is only one Body; just as the Spirit is one and flows in all the members of the Body of Christ, so this one Spirit produces only one Body (Eph. 4:4; 1 John 1:3, 7).
Because there is only one Spirit, there is only one circulation of life in the Body of Christ, and this circulation is the fellowship of the Body of Christ.
There is no “local fellowship” or “local circulation” in the Body; there is the fellowship of the Body of Christ.
There are matters that need to be fellowshipped mainly locally, but we all are in the one fellowship of the Body of Christ, which is the circulation of the Spirit in and through and among all the members of the Body.
The fellowship of the Body of Christ is the circulation of the Spirit; when the Spirit is circulating within the Body of Christ, all that Christ is and has is being added and constituted into all the members.
Christ’s divinity, humanity, His person, His death, and His resurrection are all circulating among the members of the Body of Christ by means of the circulation of the Spirit.
There are many local churches, maybe even many thousands of local churches, but there is only one Body of Christ, and there’s one circulation of life in the Body.
There is one Body and one Spirit (Eph. 4:4); the Body is mentioned before the Spirit because the oneness among us is related to the Body and is for the Body.
The one Body is determined by the one Spirit; because there’s one Spirit, there is one Body.
We must keep the unique oneness of the Body because the Body and the Spirit are one.
Without the Spirit circulating in and among the members of the Body of Christ, the Body is empty and has no life; when we remain in the fellowship of the Body of Christ, we have the circulation of the Spirit and we have life flowing in us.
May we all remain in the circulation of the Spirit in the Body of Christ so that we may develop and grow in a healthy and proper way.
May we be saved from any concept regarding organization or hierarchy among us, and may we learn to be open in fellowship with all the churches.
The divine fellowship is the reality of living in the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 1:9; 12:12-13, 27).
We should treasure fellowship so that we can be saved from our individualism.
One of the reasons the Lord has been frustrated from coming back soon, as He promised in Rev. 22:20, is that we believers in Christ are individualistic, independent, opinionated, and divisive.
There is a lot of control and organization in Christianity today with all its denominations, sects, free groups, and sects; there is no fellowship among the churches for the building up of the Body of Christ.
Who today fellowships not only with the Lord but also with other churches on earth?
Who allows the Lord to restrict him in the fellowship of the Body, checking with the Lord and with the Body concerning things related to his human life and spiritual life?
Who fellowships in an open way with the Body related to his work in the Body?
Many do great work for God according to their own opinion and feelings, and many carry out a ministry for the Lord based on the burden they have for the Lord.
But who is willing to open to the Lord in fellowship and also open to the other members of the Body, allowing the fellowship of the Body of Christ – the circulation of the Spirit among the saints – to limit him, restrict him, and keep him in the Body?
We need to be those who take the lead to be restricted in the fellowship of the Body.
As we reign in life, we will remain the one circulation of the Spirit in the Body of Christ.
Lord Jesus, we want to keep the unique oneness of the Body of Christ by remaining in the fellowship of the Body, the circulation of the Spirit in the Body. Amen, Lord, save us from doing anything without fellowship with the Lord and with the Body. We want to be in the reality of living in the body of Christ by living in the divine fellowship. Amen, Lord Jesus, we love to be in the circulation of the Spirit in the Body, enjoying the Lord with all the saints and having fellowship among the churches! Blend us together, Lord, and remove all differences and negative items in us and among us as we fellowship among the churches in Spirit! We no longer want to hinder You from doing what You want to do by not having fellowship in an open and genuine way in the Body of Christ. Gain this among us, Lord, the circulation of the Spirit among the churches for the building up of the Body of Christ!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Ray Mulligan in the message for this week, and portions from, Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 2185-2186 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, An Overview of the Central Burden and Present Truth of the Lord’s Recovery Before His Appearing (2023 July Semiannual Training), week 8, entitled, Reigning in Life.
- Similar articles on this topic:
– Why Believers Need Spiritual Companions, article via, Bibles for America Blog.
– Encourage the fellowship among all of the local churches and to bring all of the saints into the reality of the Body of Christ through the practice of blending. Read more via, A Faithful Word.
– Thoughts on the Fellowship Between the Generations, article via, Living to Him.
– The fellowship of the churches in the Lord’s recovery, a portion from, The God-Ordained Way and the Eldership, Chapter 2, by Witness Lee.
– Principles Concerning the Lord’s Table in View of the Oneness of the Body of Christ, article via, A Faithful Witness.
– “One Body in Christ” – the reality and practicality of the Body of Christ as revealed in the book of Romans, article by Ron Kangas in, Affirmation and Critique.
– The fellowship of the eternal life, a portion from, Abiding in the Lord to Enjoy His Life, Chapter 7, by Witness Lee. - Hymns on this topic:
– The communion of the Spirit / Is the fellowship we share; / All the brothers, all the sisters / Only for the Spirit care. / Now the Spirit in the churches / Speaks to those who have an ear. / Seven Spirits for the churches / Are our blessed portion here. (Hymns #1123 stanza 3)
– Oh, this perfect way of gladness, / Brotherly love! / No more fear, imparting sadness, / Brotherly love! / Now is our sure affirmation, / Life and Spirit our foundation, / Building up, the consummation— / Brotherly love. / Seed of life within us growing, / Brotherly love. / Philadelphia now is flowing, / Brotherly love. / To this love God has restored us; / Everything will fall before us; / Love is over all victorious, / Brotherly love! (Hymns #1277 stanzas 4-5)
– God be with you till we meet again; / By His counsels guide, uphold you, / With His sheep in love enfold you; / God be with you till we meet again. / Till we meet, till we meet, / Till we meet at Jesus’ feet; / Till we meet, till we meet, / God be with you till we meet again. (Hymns #861 stanza 1 and chorus)
About aGodMan
Very much enjoyed this portion. The fellowship of the body is indeed a mystery. How to remain in fellowship…. Does our speaking or conferring with another saint fulfill this? Where exactly can we find “the body of Christ?”
What I have found helpful is what I might call “practicing the body.” Just as I fellowship with the Lord without visibly seeing Him, I do the same with His body. I talk things over, run things past, and bring the body along with me in my experiences with God.
Though it may seem unusual, delusional perhaps to some, it is something that emerged without forethought or design, spontaneously, when fellowshipping with Jesus. I simply found myself speaking to the collective saints. So enjoyable. But it begs the question, though this may help me, how does it help the saints, the body?
I can’t really answer that. I believe it helps my portion, my sharing on Lord’s Day. It also strengthens my standing before the enemy, as I am never alone. It is strange though, for just as I am in Christ and He is in me, I find the same with the body for I am in the body, the body is in Christ, and Christ is in me. I also have experienced a much greater love for the saints. Is it reciprocated? I have no idea, but as long as love for God grows, that is good enough for me.
So, is this being “body conscious.?” Maybe, or maybe I’m kidding myself.
But my prayer is that somehow, miraculously, the body is blessed, as I am, through this mystical interaction.
The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 2185-2186, by Witness Lee
Hallelujah!😃🙋🏽🙏 Amen!
I enjoyed the main difference between the Churches within the regions, and the church in a locality or universality.
As blood circulated in our body for our human life, our fellowship, the Spirit, is the circulation of the one body. Therefore one body one Spirit. What a logical revelation of the word? Praise Him!
Amen, dear saint, for this divine circulation, may there continue to be a lot of traffic between the churches!
We who reign in life should be willing to practice the restriction of the divine life.
The oneness among us is related to the Body and is for the Body, and the one Body is determined by the one Spirit.
Without the Body, the Spirit is empty and has no life.
It’s in the Body-life that we truly reign in life.
We must follow in the footsteps of the apostle Paul, who truly cared for all the saints in all the churches.
We need to serve the churches and care for them no matter the cost, even to the extent of risking our necks for the churches of Christ.
May the Lord grant us all a heart that is wide & broad enough to embrace all the churches.
In Romans, we see the pattern of the apostle Paul, who as one reigning in life preached the gospel to the gentiles with the view that they too would be brought into the fellowship of the Body of Christ, experiencing the circulation of life through the Spirit.
In such a church life the saints greet one another, supply one another both spiritually, and where needed materially in the fellowship, being conscious of their fellow members and the other local churches which together constitute and express the Body of Christ.
Ameeeen!!!
Hallelujah for the fellowship, the joint participation of the Body of Christ through the fellowship of the Holy Spirit bringing every part of the Body into the mutual concern and into the blending life of the Body of Christ wherein we can truly reign in life and satan is crushed under our feet.
Oh Lord Jesus!!!!
Listen to the audio version of this article via,
This speaks to the unfortunate fact there there are OTHER fellowships which are NOT “divine.” Just this morning someone was asking about, seeking a “black church.” Oh Lord! “There is no black church that is a GENUINE Church, because there is only ONE church in the universe,” I replied.
It is so unfortunate that many who believe only believe what satisfies them and meets THEIR need, not in what satisfies GOD and meets GOD’S need. Praise the Lord that HE put us here in the ministry of this age in order that we, in our local churches, may experience and enjoy the genuinely DIVINE church life.
(1 Tim. 1:6; 6:21; 2 Tim. 2:18; Rom. 12:13)
“O Timothy, guard the deposit, turning away from profane, vain babblings and oppositions from what is falsely called knowledge, Because of which some, professing this, have misaimed regarding the faith. Grace be with you.” (1 Timothy 6:20) Recovery Version
“I marvel that you are so quickly removing from Him who has called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel, Which is not another gospel, only there are some who trouble you and desire to pervert the gospel of Christ.” (Galatians 1:6-7) Recovery Version
“Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized into the name of Paul? Now I mean this, that each of you says, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ. I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, that no one may say that you were baptized into my name.” (1 Corinthians 1:13-15) Recovery Version
The genuine oneness is the only effective inoculation against division in the Body of Christ!