The Intrinsic Essence of the Church is the Divine Life, which Generates the Church

The intrinsic essence of the church is the divine life, for the divine life generates the church; the divine life is nothing but the processed Triune God dispensed into us and being dispensed into us as the now-dispensing Triune God.

This week we come to a new series of Holy Word for Morning Revival focused on the 2021 International Chinese-Speaking Conference with the general subject of, The Intrinsic and Organic Building up of the Church as the Body of Christ. And in particular this week the topic is The Intrinsic Essence of the Church for Its Organic Existence.

We may understand the words in this title but we may not have a clear vision and revelation, a real seeing, of what this really is.

Our natural man usually looks at things and understands them, especially the things in the Bible, in their outward aspect, their external aspect, looking at what is manifested. The Body of Christ has an outward aspect, but there is also an inward aspect, even an inward, intrinsic essence.

The emphasis is on these two words: intrinsic and organic. In the Lord’s light, we need to see not just the outward aspect but also the intrinsic aspect of the church; we need to see not just the outward structure but also the inward organic reality.

The Lord’s Body has these two particular aspects: the intrinsic and organic aspect, which is related to life, and the extrinsic and outward aspect.

The intrinsic things, the things related to life, are always more mysterious; we need the Lord’s light to have the true understanding and knowledge so that we may have such a reality and even live in such a reality.

We need to live in the inward and intrinsic aspect of the church as the Body of Christ so that the church life would be for the building up of the Body of Christ intrinsically.

When we speak of intrinsic, we don’t just mean something inward; it is not merely something inward as opposed to something outward.

Rather, it is the element and essence pertaining to a person, a matter, or a thing. When we speak of the church as the Body of Christ, the building up and the fellowship of the church, we need to touch the essence; we must touch what is most intrinsic.

We need to look at the church as the Body of Christ from an intrinsic and organic perspective. Organic refers to something absolutely related to life.

We are not robots, and the Body of Christ is not a robot but rather, an organism; it is a living organism, full of life.

May the have mercy on us and show us the intrinsic and organic aspect of the church as the Body of Christ for its organic existence.

Paying attention to the Intrinsic Essence of the Church – is the Divine Life, which generates the Church

What is the intrinsic essence of the church? What is it that produces and generates the church? The intrinsic essence of the church is the divine life, which generates the church.

When we speak of essence, the essence of something, we are referring to its most intrinsic part; the most important positive factor of the church is its intrinsic essence, which is the divine life.

When some speak of the church, they refer to the building of the church, the physical building; others pay too much attention to the outward aspects of the church, such as the meetings and organisation of the church.

Many times Christians are fighting and arguing with one another because they have turned from the intrinsic essence of the church to something outward, and it is easy for these outward things to divide us.

There are four intrinsic matters of the church: the essence of the church, the growth of the church, the building up of the church, and the fellowship of the church.

The essence of the church is nothing else but the divine life of God, the eternal life, the uncreated life, the indestructible life.

It is this life that generates the church, for whoever receives the divine life of God becomes a member of the Body of Christ (1 John 1:2; 5:1).

Such a divine life cannot be seen with human eyes, but it is the essence of the church.

Just as we can’t see the structural steel of a building because there are so many other building materials fitted together and built together with it, so we can’t see the divine life, but it is what generates the church.

What is the divine life? It is the embodiment of the processed Triune God; when Christ came, He said, I am the way and the reality and the life, and in Him was life (John 14:6; Col. 2:9).

The Triune God passed through the processes of incarnation, human living, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, and He became the divine life that can be dispensed into us.

Everything is related to life; it is the divine life that regenerates us and makes us members of the church as the Body of Christ.

We need to pay attention much more to life than to work, for if we lose the intrinsic aspect of the church, even though we may have many outward works, we will lose the essence of the church.

We may pay so much attention to what we do for the Lord or to the many necessary aspects of the practical daily church life, but our attention must be focused on the intrinsic rather than the outward aspect of the church.

We must first pay attention to life, take heed to the divine life, otherwise, we lose the intrinsic aspect, the essence, and the church does not have an intrinsic aspect and existence.

When we pay attention to the intrinsic essence of the church, which is the divine life, we will be kept in oneness, and we will be for the fellowship and building up of the church.

But when our focus is shifted from the intrinsic essence to the outward aspects and practical details related to the church, it is easy to be divided.

All the practical things related to the daily church life are absolutely necessary, but we take care of all these things by paying attention to the intrinsic essence of the church.

Our focus is the increase of the divine life, the flow of the divine life, and the growth in the divine life, not anything outwardly.

We want to foster the growth in life, help one another to advance in our experience of life, and minister life to others.

Lord Jesus, thank You for regenerating us with the divine life to make us members of the church as the Body of Christ. We want to focus not merely on the outward practical things related to the church but on its intrinsic essence. Hallelujah for the divine life, the uncreated life of God which has been dispensed into us at the time of our regeneration! Grow in us, Lord, and cause us to grow in the divine life for the building up of the church as the organism of the Triune God! Hallelujah, we have the indestructible life of God in us, and we are intrinsically members of the church as the Body of Christ, the organism of the Triune God! Amen, thank You, Lord!

The Intrinsic Essence of the Church is the Divine Life, the Processed and Now-Dispensing Triune God!

The intrinsic essence of the church, the innermost and deepest part of the church, is the indestructible life of God.

Nothing can destroy the church, no matter how many Roman Emperors, pagan kings, evil people, and atheists want to negate it, persecute it, destroy it, and wipe it out.

The deepest part of the church, the innermost essence of the church, is the eternal life, even the resurrection life.

This life is not a thing; it is the Triune God Himself who was processed through incarnation, human living, crucifixion, and resurrection to become a life-giving Spirit.

The Triune God was incarnated, passed through human living, was crucified on the cross to accomplish redemption, and in His resurrection, He became a life-dispensing Spirit.

Now the Spirit is a life-giving Spirit to dispense the divine life into us and cause us to be the church as the organism of the Triune God.

Every moment, every second, even right now, He is still doing the work of dispensing Himself into us as life; this divine life is actually the now-dispensing Triune God.

The intrinsic essence of the church is the divine life, the indestructible life, which the processed Triune God has dispensed into us and is no dispensing into us (John 14:6; 10:10b; 1 Cor. 15:45b; Rom. 8:2, 10, 6, 11; 2 Cor. 5:4).

Life is the Triune God Himself, the dispensing of God Himself; God didn’t give us something called “life” – He is dispensing Himself into us as life.

He went through a long process to accomplish His divine dispensing.

Today He is in our spirit, continually doing the work of dispensing; He is dispensing His life into us.

Christ came as life, He came that we may have life, and as the last Adam, He became a life-giving Spirit.

Now He is the Spirit of life, the Spirit who gives life, and He comes into us to cause our spirit to receive life.

When we set our mind on our spirit, we gain more of the divine life within. He is growing in us as life and He gives life to our spirit, soul, and body.

He wants to dispense the divine life into every part of our being – even into our mortal body – to make us persons of life!

The divine life generates us by the regeneration of the Spirit in our spirit; the divine Spirit begets the human spirit, and these two spirits are mingled as one (John 3:3, 5-6; Rom. 8:16; 1 Cor. 6:17).

As the dispensing Triune God, He can regenerate us by dispensing His divine life into our spirit, He can transform us by dispensing His divine life into all the parts of our soul, and He can glorify us by dispensing His divine life into our mortal body to transfigure it.

Because we have the same essence, the divine life, we love one another.

As we remain under the divine dispensing of the divine life, we can be one in the Body, and we can love all believers in Christ, whether they have the same background as we do or not.

So many problems among Christians can be solved when we pay attention to and focus on the intrinsic essence of the church.

In our spirit, we are one. In our spirit, all believers in Christ have the divine life, and we are mingled with God.

God is not only high and almighty – He is also a dispensing Triune God to impart the divine life into us as the essence of the church.

He is dispensed into us through the Spirit in our spirit; He came into our spirit and joined Himself to us, and now we are the children of God living in the organic union.

Hallelujah, in the organic union with the Lord we are one spirit with Him (1 Cor. 6:17)!

Lord Jesus, we open to Your divine dispensing! Thank You for coming into us to be joined to us and be one spirit with us. Hallelujah, the life-dispensing Spirit is in our spirit, and we can set our mind on the spirit to be filled with the divine life in our soul! Keep us continually opening ourselves to You so that You may dispense the divine life into us for the intrinsic essence of the church. Grow in us. Cause the divine life in us to grow every day until we are filled with life in our spirit, soul, and body! Amen, Lord, swallow us up in life until our whole tripartite being is filled and saturated with the divine life! Keep us in this organic union with You in spirit, receiving the divine dispensing of the now-dispensing Triune God!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, the message by Minoru Chen for this week, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1989, vol. 4, “The Organic Building Up of the Church as the Body of Christ to be the Organism of the Processed and Dispensing Triune God”, ch. 1, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, The Intrinsic and Organic Building up of the Church as the Body of Christ (2021 International Chinese-Speaking Conference), week 1, The Intrinsic Essence of the Church for Its Organic Existence.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – Oh! Christ, expression of God, the Great, / Inexhaustible, rich, and sweet! / God mingled with humanity / Lives in me my all to be. (Hymns #501)
  – As the body is the fulness / To express our life, / So to Christ the Church, His Body, / Doth express His life. (Hymns #819)
  – Cause us to grow in life divine each day / That we may be transformed and built by Thee / Into a body to express Thyself, / That Thou in us Thy Church and Kingdom see. (Hymns #829)