Week of March 23
All Grace and Growing in Grace
“But the God of all grace, He who has called you into His eternal glory in Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself perfect, establish, strengthen, and ground you.” (1 Pet. 5:10)
“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and unto the day of eternity. Amen.” (2 Pet. 3:18)
In [1 Peter 5:10] all grace refers to the riches of the bountiful supply of the divine life in many aspects ministered to us in many steps of the divine operation on and in us in God's economy. The initial step is to call us, and the consummate one is to glorify us, as mentioned here, “who called you into His eternal glory.” Between these two steps are His loving care while He is disciplining us, and His perfecting, establishing, strengthening, and grounding work in us. In all these divine acts, the bountiful supply of the divine life is ministered to us as grace in varied experiences. The God of such grace will perfect, establish, strengthen, and ground the persecuted believers after they suffer a little while. (LS of 1 Peter, pp. 308-9)
Second Peter 3:18 says that we need to grow in grace. Grace is God Himself with divinity processed through incarnation, death, resurrection, and ascension. All these elements of grace are within us to be one with us. Grace is God Himself as our life to be one with us, to save us, to make His home in us, and to be formed in us. We need to grow in such a grace for His glory today and unto the day of eternity. Second Peter 3:18 is the concluding word of the apostle Peter's writings, indicating that whatever he has written is of, in, by, and through the grace of God. This finishes the gleaning of the field of God's grace in Peter's writings. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 1, “Crystallization-study of the Epistle to the Romans,” p. 460)
Pray for the saints to experience God's “all grace” in many aspects ministered to them step by step for the divine operation in God's economy, so that they would grow in grace unto eternal glory in Christ Jesus.
All Things Cohering in Him
“Because in Him all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or lordships or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and unto Him. And He is before all things, and all things cohere in Him.” (Col 1:16-17)
To cohere in Christ is to exist together by Christ as the holding center, just as the spokes of a wheel are held together by the hub at their center (Col. 1:17, note 2). Many things happening in these days might outwardly seem confused and incoherent, but we must hold to the Lord's word and praise Him that He is the cohering center of all things.
Lord, we ask You to fully exercise Your coherence on earth among us and with all the thrones, lordships, rulers, and authorities throughout the United States and around the world.
SoCal Junior High Brothers Conference
This weekend, March 28 to 30, brothers from across Southern California will gather at Oak Glen for the Spring 2025 Junior High Brothers Conference on “The Spirit.” For this conference, please pray:
- For the Lord to prepare the hearts of all of the young brothers in Southern California.
- That the messages spoken would be relevant and timely to meet the needs of the brothers.
- That spiritual companionships would be built through spending time together during the conference.
Also pray for the high school sisters returning following their conference two weeks ago, that they would enter into what they heard and live a hidden life to satisfy God's heart in their daily life and in the church life.
ITERO
The 2025 April International Training for Elders and Responsible Ones will be held in Anaheim from April 4 to 6. Please pray for the Lord's speaking in this training and for the intensified spreading and building up of the churches as the Body of Christ as a result of the operating of this word in the elders and responsible brothers and in all the saints. Pray for the speaking brothers and all the brothers traveling.
Spring European University Conference
Pray that the Lord's speaking from the last weekend's conference for university students in Europe (March 21 to 23) will keep operating in the students and bring them to a deeper knowing of God and His economy. May the Lord strengthen this young generation into the inner man to choose: (1) to overcome the temptation of the Babylonian diet; (2) to live in the principle of a Nazarite as a holy, voluntary sacrifice to God; (3) to join themselves to God's desire through His word; (4) to learn in the Body to bind and loose on the earth what has been bound and loosed in the heavens; and (5) to respond to God's call to become part of the corporate smiting stone that will destroy the great human image and bring in God's kingdom.
UK Building Project
The first phase of construction for the new FTTL training center is currently taking place. This phase includes new electrical installations, demolition of the existing classrooms, installation of foundation and retaining structures, excavation and leveling of the site, and laying of underground services. The burden is then to press on as quickly as possible to complete the remaining phases of the training centre and the development of new accommodation.
Please pray that the Lord will provide the necessary funds, construction permissions, and serving ones to carry out this major construction project in a timely manner to meet the Lord's need. May the Lord gain this facility for the young people in Europe to be trained for His move on the earth.
For information regarding participating in this current building project by either praying, giving, or going, visit www.amanatrust.org.uk/page/reports. To give through the Church in Los Angeles for the new training center, please follow instructions at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings. Designate offerings for “UK Building Project.”
Pakistan
Pray for gaining more educated university students through gospel preaching. May the Lord soften their hearts and remove the veils so that they can recognize Jesus as God.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 5 of Living a Christian Life and Church Life Under the Government of God for the Economy of God. After next week, starting April 7, we will begin Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (2), vol. 1 (December Semiannual Training).
- Memorial Day Conference: The 2025 International Memorial Day Blending Conference will be held in Phoenix, AZ at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown from May 23 to 26. Saints in LA who are considering attending in person are asked to RSVP by April 30 at tinyurl.com/memdayla.
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The series on “The Crucial Points of the Truth in Paul's Epistles—Ephesians” continues this week starting at 7:25 pm in Anaheim and at lsmwebcast.com.
- Bibles for America's recent blogpost “What Does It Mean to Call on the Name of the Lord?” is available to read and share at blog.bfa.org.
- Junior High Brothers Conference: March 28 to 30 at Oak Glen.
- High School Brothers Conference: April 11 to 13 at Oak Glen.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.
Week of March 9
Allowing Christ's Life to Be Lived Out
“In whom all the building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord.” (Eph. 2:21)
“If you are reproached in the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” (1 Pet. 4:14)
“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it are the issues of life.” (Prov. 4:23)
In order to grow in life for God's building, we must love the Lord, take heed to our spirit, and guard our heart with all vigilance to stay on the pathway of life. If we want Christ's life to be unhindered in us, we must experience the breaking of the cross, the killing death of Christ in the all-inclusive Spirit of Christ as the Spirit of glory, so that the following obstacles within us can be dealt with and removed.
Being a Christian means not taking anything other than Christ as our aim. The obstacle to this is not knowing the pathway of life and not taking Christ as our life. The second obstacle is hypocrisy. A person's spirituality is not determined by outward appearance but by how he takes care of Christ. The third obstacle is rebellion. We may be very active and zealous in doing things but still imprison and disobey the living Christ within us by ignoring Him. The fourth obstacle is our natural capabilities. If these natural capabilities remain unbroken in us, they will become a problem to Christ's life. (Living a Christian Life and Church Life under the Government of God for the Economy of God, msg. 3, III. A-B, 1-4)
May the Lord have mercy on us so that we would be enlightened to see how many obstacles there are in us and how much these obstacles restrict God's life. Actually, the obstacles in us are not limited only to these things. Nevertheless, there is one solution to all these obstacles in us—we must pass through the cross and let the cross break us. If we want Christ's life to be unhindered in us, we must experience the breaking of the cross and allow these obstacles to be dealt with and removed. This will allow Christ's life to be lived out from us. (CWWL, 1953, vol. 1, “Knowing Life and the Church,” pp. 136-140)
Living Uniquely for the Gospel
“I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: Proclaim the word; be ready in season and out of season; convict, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching.” (2 Tim. 4:1-2)
The gospel is Christ, who is the very embodiment of the processed Triune God, reaching us as the consummated Spirit, who is the consummation of the Triune God for our enjoyment. According to the truth, the gospel is the entire New Testament…Personally, the gospel is a wonderful person, and according to the truth, the gospel is the entire divine revelation of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. God's New Testament economy is the gospel. We have to believe in such a gospel, preach such a gospel, and live uniquely for such a gospel. The consummated Spirit, who is God Himself reaching us, eventually has become the seven Spirits in Revelation. The seven Spirits are also a part of the gospel…
The Lord commanded us to live for this gospel uniquely. What are we living on this earth for? Do we live for our profession or for our job to make a lot of money? What is man living for? Poor human society has so much activity but no goal. Do we have a goal? Our goal is the gospel, and our gospel is the Triune God processed to be the very Spirit within us as our salvation's our life, as our life supply, and as our all-inclusive enjoyment. (CWWL, 1987, vol. 1, “Being Desperate and Living Uniquely for the Gospel,” ch. 3, pp. 47-48)
Pray that the saints would live a gospel-preaching life, being desperate and living uniquely for the gospel and saving time each week for contacting people.
SoCal Korean-speaking Blending Conference
This year's Southern California Korean-speaking Blending Conference will be held—in person for the first time since the pandemic—this Lord's Day, March 16, 9:00 am to 12:30 pm, in Arcadia. The subject will be “The Way to Live in the Reality of the Kingdom of God and to Bring in the Kingdom of God.” Meetings for children and young people will be provided, as well as lunch boxes. Please pray:
- For the Lord to bless this conference by releasing His burden to the saints regarding the way to live in the reality of the Kingdom of God and to bring in the Kingdom of God.
- For the saints to experience genuine blending in the Body of Christ and enjoy the oneness of the Spirit.
SoCal High School Sisters Conference
The Southern California High School Sisters Conference takes place this weekend, March 14 to 16, at Oak Glen. The topic is “A Hidden Life.” Please pray:
- For the Lord to prepare the hearts of each high school sister this week.
- That each one would experience going higher far away from the earthly things to be with the Father privately to have intimate fellowship with Him in a secret way.
- That companionships would be built through spending time together during the conference.
Also pray for the junior high sisters returning from their conference last weekend, that they would enter into what they heard and also seek to experience the mingled spirit this week in their daily life and in the church life.
FTTA-MA
The spring term of the Middle-age Training in Anaheim begins next week on March 17. The goal of the training is to foster living, functioning, overcoming members of the Body of Christ for the fulfillment of God's eternal purpose!
Please pray for the Lord's covering and blessing of all the trainees, serving ones, and their families. Pray for the rich infusion of the truth into each trainee and for the Lord's maturing them through His moving within each one and His using the outward environment.
French-speaking Europe
Many cities in French-speaking Europe are ripe for harvest; existing churches also need shepherding and strengthening. Currently, we have 16 full-time serving ones on the team in Paris, but many still need long-stay visas to remain. Our original goal was to have 20 serving ones by this summer, but we now realize that if we had 50, they would all be fully occupied. We need many more saints to migrate in order to meet the long-term need—not only full-time serving ones, but also students, families, and mature saints.
Please pray for the Lord to send workers to match His present move and for the release of long-stay visas for these saints.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 3 of Living a Christian Life and Church Life Under the Government of God for the Economy of God (Thanksgiving Conference).
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The series on “The Crucial Points of the Truth in Paul's Epistles—Ephesians” continues this week starting at 7:25 pm in Anaheim and at lsmwebcast.com.
- Memorial Day Conference: The 2025 International Memorial Day Blending Conference will be held in Phoenix, AZ at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown from May 23 to 26. Saints in LA who are considering attending in person are asked to RSVP by April 30 at tinyurl.com/memdayla. Details, including recommended hotels at discounted rates, are in the information package on this site.
- ICSC: Archived messages from the recent International Chinese-speaking Blending Conference in Anaheim are available to watch for free until March 18 at lsmwebcast.com.
- Junior High Brothers Conference: March 28 to 30 at Oak Glen.
- High School Brothers Conference: April 11 to 13 at Oak Glen.
- Bibles for America's recent blogpost “How Does God's Light Help Us Grow?” is available to read and share at blog.bfa.org.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.
Week of February 2
Christ Being Formed in the Saints
“For though you have ten thousand guides in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.” (1 Cor. 4:15)
“My children, with whom I travail again in birth until Christ is formed in you.” (Gal. 4:19)
When the Galatian believers were regenerated through Paul's preaching of the gospel to them the first time, Christ was born into them but not formed in them. Here the apostle was travailing again that Christ might be formed in them. To have Christ formed in us is to have Christ fully grown in us. First, Christ was born into us at the time we repented and believed in Him, then He lives in us in our Christian life (2:20), and, finally, He will be formed in us at our maturity. Christ's being formed in us is needed that we may be sons of full age and heirs to inherit God's promised blessing, and that we may mature in the divine sonship.
The goal of our service in the church or in the ministry must be to minister Christ into others. It is not adequate simply to say that we preach the gospel, for it is possible to preach the gospel without ministering Christ to others. Our burden must be the ministering of Christ. Once again I say that this requires labor and suffering. It demands prayer, patience, and love. According to our experience, such a ministry is a battle, a wrestling. The subtle one, the enemy of God, is active to bring in frustration or distraction. We do not know from what direction he will attack next. Hence, we must learn from Paul to be burdened to minister Christ and also to appeal to the saints' affection that their hearts may be touched. (Life-study of Galatians, 2nd ed., msg. 23, pp. 201-202)
Pray that the saints would labor to beget new believers and travail to minister Christ to them so that He would be fully formed in them.
A New Creation Is What Matters (Gal. 6:15)
“When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be terrified, for these things must take place…And there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences; and there will be terrors.” (Luke 21:9, 11)
“We know that all things work together for good to those who love God.” (Rom. 8:28)
The good in v. 28 is not related to physical persons, matters, or things. It refers to our gaining more of Christ and having Him wrought into our being, that we may be transformed and conformed into the full sonship (cf. footnote 3 on this verse).
Let us pray:
- For God's people to love God, be occupied with the new creation, and not be anxious due to natural disasters, human violence, or political situations.
- For God's people to be transformed day by day and conformed to the image of God's Son (v. 29).
- For the gospel to reach and be received by many people around us.
- For more shining lampstands to be raised up around the earth.
FTTA Middle Age
February 25 is the application deadline for the spring term of the middle-age training (FTTA-MA), which begins March 17. Attendance in recent terms has been half or less of the pre-pandemic peak number. Ask the Lord to release many, especially from all over North America, whether young or old, whether new or decades in the recovery, to realize their need of training and to match Isaiah's willingness to declare, “Here am I; send me” (Isa. 6:8).
Oxnard
A group meeting in Oxnard, California began this month. Oxnard is about 20 miles from the church in Thousand Oaks. This group includes some with church life experience and some new people. Please pray for the continuation and development of this group in experiences of Christ and His Body.
FTTA Gospel Trips
Gospel trips involving 163 trainees from FTTA and other training centers visiting 18 countries in Europe began on January 23 and will finish on February 9. In addition, 97 FTTA trainees are visiting 27 cities in the United States. Please continue to pray:
- That the Lord will fully cover the travel, safety, security, and health of all participants.
- That the Lord will blend and build all the saints involved so that He can fully bless these trips.
- That the sanctifying Spirit will go before the saints to prepare the hearts of those the Lord has chosen.
- That the gospel of the kingdom will be prevailing and reach all those the Lord desires to save.
- That the Lord will add remaining fruit to the churches as His testimony in each of these nations.
For regular reports and updated prayer lists, go to ftta.org/gospeltrips.
Cairo International Book Fair
The 56th Cairo Book Fair is taking place from January 23 through February 5. One of the Arab world's most prominent cultural events, this is the largest book fair for the Arabic-reading public as well as the largest in the world that is open directly to the public. The annual CIBF is an important opportunity for the Arabic literature work in Egypt to present ministry publications openly to the public. Pray for the last day of this book fair—for new contacts, friends, and beneficiaries of this ministry.
Announcements
1. Morning Revival: Week 4 of our guided reading through Galatians.
2. 2025 ICSC: The International Chinese-speaking Blending Conference will be hosted by Living Stream Ministry February 14 to 16 in Anaheim. All the saints are invited and encouraged to attend. Translation via ListenWIFI app (formerly called Listen Everywhere). Details at www.icsc2025.org
3. Bibles for America's new blogpost, “7 Tips to Build up a Habit of Reading the Bible Daily,” is available to read and share at blog.biblesforamerica.org.
4. SoCal Spanish-speaking Conference: Audio recordings and outlines from the recent conference on “Living the Kingdom Life by Living a Hidden Life” are now available at audio.socalspanish.org.
5. LSM Radio Programs: Life-study of the Bible with Witness Lee focuses on the enjoyment of the divine life as revealed in the Scriptures. Spoken ministry portions are followed by a lively discussion. For example, all 45 episodes on Galatians are available at www.lsmradio.com/programs/galatians.
6. Living to Him has a podcast series particularly helpful to working saints, including two recent episodes on being vitalized by “Setting Proper Goals,” at livingtohim.com/the-living-to-him-podcast.
7. Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.
2025년 1월 26 일 주간 기도문
듣고 믿음을 위해 함께 모임
“그분께서 여러분에게 그 영을 넘치게 공급하시고 여러분 가운데서 능력의 일을 행하시는 것은 율법의 행위로 말미암은 것입니까, 그렇지 않으면 믿음을 들음으로 말미암은 것입니까?” (갈 3:5)
“그러므로 믿음은 듣는 데서 생기며, 듣는 것은 그리스도의 말씀을 통해서입니다.” (롬 10:17)
단지 같은 말을 반복해서 듣게 될 것이라고 해서 집회에 불참(不參)하지 말라. 우리는 거의 매일 같은 음식을 먹지만, 매일 아침식사를 해야 할 필요가 있다. 만일 음식이 같다고 해서 먹기를 거절한다면, 우리는 필요한 음식을 공급받지 못할 것이다. 마찬가지 원칙으로, 우리는 하나님의 공급을 받기 위하여 교회 집회에 참석할 필요가 있다. 듣고 믿음을 위해 집회에 간 것과 가지 않은 것에 큰 차이가 있음을 우리는 간증할 수 있다. 우리는 그리스도와 교회에 대하여, 그리스도의 죽음과 부활에 대하여, 그리스도가 생명 주는 영이 되기 위하여 과정을 거치신 것에 대하여 몇 번이고 듣게 될지도 모른다. 그러나 이러한 것들에 관해 들을 때마다, 우리는 그 영의 공급을 받는다. 그러므로 합당한 그리스도인의 집회는 듣고 믿음을 위한, 듣는 집회이다.
교회 집회에서 말하는 사람들도 또한 듣는 자가 되어야 한다. 왜냐하면 그들도 또한 자신이 한 그 말을 듣게 되기 때문이다. 우리 가운데 교회 안에서 말해 본 사람들은 말을 많이 할수록 더 많이 듣게 된다는 것을 간증할 수 있다. 올바로 말하는 사람은 먼저 자신에게 말하고서 다른 이에게 말한다. 만일 당신이 자신에게 먼저 말하지 않는다면, 당신의 말은 진실하지 않다. 우리가 진실되게 말하는 사람이라면, 우리가 말한 것을 누리는 첫 번째 사람은 우리 자신이 될 것이다.
매 집회마다 우리는 듣고 믿음을 위해서 함께 모여야 한다. 이 믿음은 하나님의 은혜에 대한 감사와 영접과 받아들임이다. 믿음을 통하여 우리는 하나님의 은혜에 연결되고, 하나님의 은혜에 참여하고, 하나님의 은혜를 누린다. 반복해서 지적한 바와 같이, 이 은혜는 우리의 누림과 모든 것이 되기 위하여 과정을 거치신 삼일 하나님이다. (갈라디아서 라이프스타디 메시지 14)
로스앤젤레스
“주님의 말씀이 여러분에게서 마케도니아와 아가야로 울려 퍼져 나갔을 뿐 아니라, 하나님을 향한 여러분의 믿음도 각처에 퍼져 나갔습니다…” (살전 1:8)
최근 로스앤젤레스 지역에서 발생한 산불과 관련하여 주님의 권익을 위해 계속 기도해주십시오.
- 모든 것이 머리이신 그리스도 아래 통일되는 그리스도의 경륜의 성취를 위해(엡 1:10)
- 믿음의 가정에 있는 서로를 위해(갈6:10)
- 주님께서 그분의 간증이 되게 하시려고 우리를 두신 로스앤젤레스 도시를 위해(살전1:7-8, 고전 1:2). 우리의 지역사회에서 주님의 치유하시는 임재를 우리와 만나는 사람들에게 가져다 줄 수 있기를 기도해 주십시오.(마9:20-22). 우리의 이웃, 동료, 학우를 포함하는 로스앤젤레스 모든 이들에게 주님의 긍휼과 돌보심에 하나가 될 수 있기를 바랍니다.
남가주 찬양과 사역집회
일년에 두 번 남가주에 있는 모든 대학생들을 토요일 저녁에 함께 와서 주님께 함께 경배하고 주님의 말씀을 듣도록 초대합니다. 이번주 토요일인 2월 1일에 UCLA가 캠퍼스 내 모임을 주최합니다. 고등학생 시니어들도 또한 초대합니다. 다음을 위해 기도해주십시오:
- 더 새로운 이들을 포함하여 우리 남가주 전역의 많은 학생들이 와서 적극적으로 참여하도록
- 주님께서 그분의 말씀하심을 통하여 하나님의 목적에 대한 새로운 이상을 그들에게 주입하시도록
- 특히 우리 UCLA 학생들이 방문하는 성도들을 기쁘게 환영하고 섞이도록
FTTA 복음 여행
FTTA와 FTTL에서 총 163명의 훈련생들이 주님의 움직임에 협력하기 위해 유럽의 18개국을 방문하고 있습니다. 이 중 50명은 프랑스에 있습니다. 또한, 97명의 FTTA 훈련생들이 미국의 27개 도시를 방문하고 있습니다. 여행은 1월 23일에 시작되어 2월 9일에 마무리됩니다. 기도해 주십시오:
- 주님께서 모든 참가자들의 여행, 안전, 보안, 건강을 온전히 덮어 주시도록.
- 주님께서 참가하는 모든 성도들을 섞으시고 건축되게 하심으로 이 여행들을 주님이 온전히 축복하실 수 있도록
- 거룩하게 하시는 영께서 성도들보다 먼저 가셔서 주님께서 택하신 자들의 마음을 준비하시도록.
- 왕국 복음이 강하게 전파되어 주님께서 구원하시고자 하는 모든 이들에게 닿도록.
- 주님께서 각 나라에서 그분의 증거를 위해 남는 열매를 교회들에게 더하시도록.
정기적인 보고서와 업데이트된 기도 목록은 ftta.org/gospeltrips에서 확인하실 수 있습니다.
영국 건축 프로젝트
지난 한 해 동안, 새로운 런던 전시간 훈련 센터(FTTL)의 주요 건설 프로젝트를 시작하는 데 필요한 자금을 확보하지 못했습니다. 대신, 건설 프로젝트에 헌신하던 대부분의 성도들은 일을 찾아야만 했습니다. 2024년 여름, 성도들의 팀이 그들의 봉사를 마무리하던 시점에, 그들은 바우 하우스 훈련 센터 프로젝트가 가능한 시점에 시작될 수 있도록 부지를 완전히 준비했습니다.
인력 감소에도 불구하고, 우리는 여전히 런던 전시간 훈련의 급격히 증가하는 필요, 특별히 주거 문제를 어떻게 해결할지 고려해야 했습니다. 현재 유럽 전역과 전 세계에서 온 50명 이상의 훈련생들이 있으며, 최근 프랑스에서의 복음 전파와 목양 활동을 통해 더 많은 이들이 주님께 얻어지고 훈련에 참여할 것으로 기대하고 있습니다.
현재 바우 하우스 시설은 약 100명의 훈련생을 수용할 수 있으며, 런던 전시간 훈련센터 강의실은 모든 가구를 치울 경우 최대 150명까지 수용 가능합니다. 새로운 훈련 센터가 건축되면 1,000명이 앉을 수 있는 시설을 갖추게 됩니다. 이는 유럽 전체에서 이와 같은 성격의 첫 번째 건물이 될 것이며, 훈련생들에게는 물론 성도들의 섞임을 위해서도 놀라운 유익이 될 것입니다.
주님께서 필요한 자금, 건설 허가, 그리고 런던 전시간 훈련 센터와 우드랜드 캠프의 건축을 수행할 수 있는 봉사자들을 공급해 주시기를 기도해 주십시오.
관련영상은 다음의 웹사이트에서 확인하실 수 있습니다amanatrust.org.uk/page/reports. 현재 건축 프로젝트에 기도로, 헌금으로, 또는 직접 참여하는 방법에 대한 자세한 정보는 다음의 웹사이트를 확인해주시기 바랍니다. amanatrust.org.uk
새로운 훈련 센터를 위해 LA교회를 통해 헌금하시려면 다음의 안내를 따라 주시기 바랍니다 www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings. 헌금은 “영국 건축 프로젝트(UK Building Project)”로 지정해 주십시오.
카이로 국제도서전
제 56회 카이로 도서전이 1월 23일부터 2월 5일까지 열립니다. 아랍 세계의 가장 유명한 문화행사 중 하나로, 이것은 아랍어를 읽는 대중들을 위한 세계에서 가장 최대 규모의 도서전이고 대중에게 직접 공개되는 세계 최대 규모입니다. 연례 카이로 국제도서전(CIBF)은 이집트에 있는 아랍어 문서의 일이 대중들에게 공개적으로 사역 출판물들을 소개할 수 있는 중요한 기회입니다. 새로운 접촉대상자들, 친구들, 그리고 이 사역의 수혜자들을 위해 기도해주십시오.
Week of December 29
Material Offerings and Full-time Service
“I exhort you therefore, brothers, through the compassions of God to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service.” (Rom. 12:1)
“For none of us lives to himself, and none dies to himself; for whether we live, we live to the Lord, and whether we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore whether we live or we die, we are the Lord's.” (Rom. 14:7-8)
Today, when we speak of handing ourselves over, we are not talking about what we have to do to take care of our money. Rather, we are saying that a person has to offer himself up for the Lord and for the gospel.
First He wants us; then He wants what is ours. We ourselves have to come to Him first before we can bring what we have to Him. If we do not come, God will not accept what we have. All the brothers and sisters have to see that everything is for the Lord and that everything has to center around the Lord…Although some function in their money-making ministry while others function in their ministry of the word, the center for both must be the same. (The Resumption of Watchman Nee's Ministry, vol. 1, pp. 310-311)
To be full-time does not mean that you need to give up your job. To be a full-timer means that whatever you do, you do to the Lord; whatever you are, you are to the Lord; and whatever you have, you have to the Lord. If you remain in a job, you remain there to the Lord. If you leave your job, you leave it to the Lord. As long as you are to the Lord you are a full-timer.
Let us rise up to go full-time, either by dropping our jobs to go out or by remaining in our jobs to make more money and give every cent to the Lord's move…The wise way is that we all take the full-time way…This is what the Lord needs! (Elders' Training, Book 8: The Life-pulse of the Lord's Present Move, pp. 121-123, 126-127)
More Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ in 2025
The December Semiannual Training was held last week in Anaheim and by video in LA. The general subject was “Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (2).” Video trainings will continue to take place in the coming weeks and months around the world.
Please pray:
- For the Lord to advance His move on the whole earth through the operation of His word for the building up of His Body and the preparation of His bride.
- For the saints to digest and assimilate the rich content through their spending time with the Lord and applying what they heard in prayer, until all the points become their experience and enjoyment.
- For the saints and the churches to advance in 2025 in the experience and enjoyment of Christ, so that Christ would be formed in us by our allowing Him as the all-inclusive Spirit to occupy, possess, and saturate our mind, emotion, and will, until every part of our inner being bears the image of Christ for Him to gain a fuller expression of Himself on the earth.
Bibles for America
The past year has been full of challenges and upheaval. The world situation continues to be volatile, and people everywhere are full of anxiety. Bibles for America has also faced difficulties, including shipping delays, increasing costs, and changes to marketing platforms. Despite everything, we praise God that we have His Word as a sure foundation on which to stand.
In 2024, we began exploring different ways of reaching people with God's Word, such as social media and audio streaming advertising. We are also happy to share that the video studio has been completed, enabling us to produce more videos on the truth and the Christian experience. Please continue to stand with us in prayer as we seek the Lord's blessing on this labor.
Atlanta Meeting Hall
The church in Atlanta is burdened to rebuild their meeting hall after a fire in June 2020 caused extensive damage to the hall. Currently, an additional $3 million is needed to meet the estimated total cost of $12 million. Saints in LA who are burdened may participate financially through the church in Los Angeles and designate their offerings for ‘Atlanta Meeting Hall.'
Further details, including proposed architectural renderings, are at hall.churchinatlanta.org.
French-speaking Europe
A number of gospel trips will be taking place from late January to early February. Please pray for the Lord to open the hearts of the people and to bring His seekers in contact with us.
Let us also continue to ask the Lord to supply all the saints who live in French-speaking Europe, and all who are there on “shepherding trips” for weeks or months, to labor diligent in ministering Christ to the seeking contacts so that these ones may grow in truth and life and be added to the church. Beseech the Lord to thrust out more workers into this harvest and to release the long-term visas.
For all the latest reports of the gospel and shepherding trips, click here.
The Lord's Move in Europe
Please pray for the migration of burdened saints to strengthen the Lord's testimony in nine critical European cities in 2025—Paris, Geneva, Brussels, Belfast, Dublin, Vienna, Prague, Rome, and Athens.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 3 of Material Offerings and the Lord's Move Today. Next week, we will cover Week 5 from this book. After that, we will get into Galatians with recommended resources.
- Winter SCYP Blending Conference: January 11 to 12 in Anaheim. Please contact serving ones for event and registration details.
- SoCal Spanish-speaking Conference: January 17 to 19 at the Ministry Conference Center, Anaheim. Pray for the Lord's abundant blessing during this time. The sessions are open to all the saints. All relevant information is posted at conf.socalspanish.org.
- FTTA: A video of the graduation meeting on December 21 is available for a limited time at ftta.org.
- LSM Conferences & Trainings: Information on upcoming Living Stream Ministry “feasts” can be found at lsm.org/announcements/events.html.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.
Week of December 15
The Church as the Kingdom of God, the Expansion of Christ
“…He presented Himself alive after His suffering by many irrefutable proofs, appearing to them through a period of forty days and speaking the things concerning the kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:3)
“Proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness, unhindered.” (Acts 28:31)
Luke's writing [of Acts] both begins (1:3) and ends [28:31] with the kingdom of God.
The fact that the proclaiming of the kingdom is the propagation of the resurrected Christ is proved by the words teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ in 28:31. This indicates that the kingdom of God goes together with the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. To teach people the things concerning Christ is to spread the kingdom of God. Therefore, the kingdom of God is actually the propagation of the resurrected Christ.
This book was not actually ended; rather, it was left open that more may be added. The reason for this must have been that the work of the Holy Spirit in preaching Christ for His propagation, multiplication, and spread through the believers of Christ was not yet completed and needed to be continued for a long period of time. Such an evangelistic work for Christ's propagation, multiplication, and spread is according to God's New Testament economy for the producing of many sons for God (Rom. 8:29) that they might be the members of Christ to constitute His Body (12:5) for the carrying out of God's eternal plan and the fulfillment of His eternal will. This is revealed in detail in the twenty-one Epistles and the book of Revelation, which follow Acts. The church produced by Christ's propagation and multiplication is the sphere in which God is expressed and in which He reigns in Christ; hence, the church becomes the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God, along with Christ's propagation and multiplication, grows out of and spreads from God's life. Acts is a record of the spreading of Christ; it is also a record of the kingdom of God, because the kingdom of God is the expansion of Christ. The gospel that is widely preached in this book is the very Christ as the gospel (5:42), the gospel of Christ, and it is also the kingdom of God as the gospel (8:12), the gospel of the kingdom of God. The preaching of such a gospel will continue and advance until the whole earth becomes the kingdom of Christ (Rev. 11:15). (Life-study of Acts, 2nd ed., pp. 605-606)
2024 December Semiannual Training
The December Semiannual Training will be held in Anaheim from December 23 to 28. The general subject is “Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (2).” In addition to the saints attending in person in Anaheim, many saints all over the earth will participate by video. Please pray for the release of the Lord's up-to-date speaking to His whole Body and for the advance of the Lord's move on the whole earth through the operation of His word for the building up of His Body and the preparation of His bride.
FTTA Graduations
This Saturday, December 21, the graduation meeting for the 2024 Fall Class of the Full-time Training in Anaheim starts at 9:30 am at the Ministry Conference Center. Saints are warmly invited to attend in person or online at www.ftta.org/graduation.php. In the afternoon, the Middle-age Training (FTTA-MA) graduation starts at 3:00 pm at 1853 W Ball Rd and will also be live-streamed at a different link.
Please pray for the 30 FTTA and 23 FTTA-MA graduates, for their presentations this Saturday, and for them to “follow the Lamb wherever He may go” after the training (Rev. 14:4). May these dear ones continue to pursue Christ, gain Him, live Him, and minister Him for the building up of the Body.
The Church in Santa Barbara
The brothers in the church in Santa Barbara have been in fellowship and prayer for younger families to move there to strengthen the church life and to support the college work at the UCSB campus. Also there are students at Santa Barbara City College with a potential to join our Bible studies and church meetings. Currently, one brother is taking the lead with this heavy burden and thus there is the need for others to join in and share the burden of shepherding these students.
May the Lord encourage and lead younger couples and families to move to Santa Barbara/Goleta to strengthen the church and shepherd the students. Praise the Lord for His move on these campuses!
Geneva, Switzerland
Geneva is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous in the French-speaking part of the country. It is consistently ranked among the top 10 cities in the world for quality of living. Earlier this year, many saints visited Geneva as part of the Olympic Gospel Trips. Through the fellowship of the co-workers in Europe, it is now one of the nine critical European cities targeted in 2025 for migration to strengthen the Lord's testimony there. Please pray:
- For solid couples/families to migrate to Geneva and that they would have the capacity to open their homes and join the local saints in cherishing and nourishing the new ones.
- For a group of saints in Geneva to be vitalized and begin practicing the God-ordained way.
- For the saints in Geneva to be coordinated with the serving team in Paris for the follow-up care.
- For the saints in Geneva to be more blended with the other localities in Switzerland and France for the reality of the Body of Christ.
- For the Lord to raise up a shining golden lampstand in Geneva and in many French cities for the carrying out His divine economy.
Madrid House Purchase
Pray that the Lord will release the funds to complete the purchase of the house next to the meeting hall in Madrid, Spain to greatly expand the usefulness of the church's property to the church there and the Lord's move in the Iberian Peninsula. Specifically, pray that the remaining 16,900 Euros would be provided by January 6, 2025. The final installment will be due in March.
A detailed letter can be downloaded at lme.org/reports.html. As the Lord leads, saints in LA may participate in giving through the Church in Los Angeles designated for “Madrid House.”
Australia
This week there will be a Training for Serving Brothers (December 19 to 20) followed by the National Blending Conference (December 20 to 24) in Sydney, Australia. Please pray for this important annual gathering of the saints in Australia during their summer holiday. The conference topic will be “Living in the Reality of the Kingdom of God,” based on the messages given at the October ITERO. Two brothers from Southern California, including one from Los Angeles, are en route to Australia to minister to the saints for this training and conference. Please pray specifically:
- For the training of the serving brothers to perfect them in their one accord and their common fellowship for the building up of the Body of Christ.
- For the blending of the 11 churches in Australia that will be represented there, including saints from other areas too, with sweet fellowship and harmony throughout the blending conference.
- For the ministry of the word concerning the reality of the kingdom of God such that the saints can (1) live this personally and privately before God, (2) as well as corporately, which spontaneously issues in the genuine church life (Rom 14:17), and (3) spread this gospel of the kingdom throughout Australia.
- For the covering of the saints' traveling and health.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 12 of Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1). Next week, repeat Week 12 or enjoy verses and content from the Semiannual Training. Starting Monday, December 30, we will pursue Week 3 of Material Offerings and the Lord's Move Today.
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The final ministry meeting of the fall term is this Wednesday starting at 7:25 pm. Saints are invited to join online or in person at the Ministry Conference Center.
- SAVE THE DATE: The 2024 Winter SCYP Blending Conference will be January 11 to 12 in Anaheim. Please contact serving ones for event and registration details.
- Thanksgiving Conference: Recordings are on lsmwebcast.com at no charge until December 31.
- LSM Conferences & Trainings: Information on upcoming Living Stream Ministry “feasts” can be found at lsm.org/announcements/events.html.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.
Week of November 10
The Bread of Life and the Word of Life
“As the living Father has sent Me and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also shall live because of Me.” (John 6:57)
The primary purpose for which the Lord Jesus came down out of heaven to the earth was to accomplish one central matter—to give Himself to us as food—the bread of life—so that He could be eaten by us as spiritual nourishment and be digested by us to become our constitution.
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” (John 6:63)
Chapter 6 of John closes with the word of life, which is the means for us to receive the Lord as the bread of life. If we receive the Word, we will have the Spirit, and if we have the Spirit within us, we will have Christ as the inner supply of life. May we all realize that our need is Christ as our life supply and then daily contact Him as the life-giving Spirit embodied in the Word. (Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1), msg. 7, II, IV.G, 1-2)
United States
“…His grace, which He caused to abound to us in all wisdom and prudence, making known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure…to head up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth, in Him.” (Eph. 1:7-10)
Following last week's elections, let us all give ourselves to cooperating with the Lord in prayer and to enjoying the Lord's abounding grace that we may: 1) know more of the mystery of God's will and see it worked out around us; 2) continue to pray for His will to be accomplished at every level of government in the United States; and 3) be headed up more in Christ so that through the church He can head up all things in the heavens and on earth.
SoCal College Conference
This weekend, November 15 to 17, college students from mostly quarter system schools will gather at Oak Glen for the second of two college conferences. We will be covering the topic of “The Wonderful Jesus in Matthew and Mark.” From Los Angeles, we have 48 students from the Westside and Valley areas registered. For around half of these students, it will be their first time attending the college conference and need much prayer.
Please pray for:
- The Lord to unveil Himself to each student in a very personal and fresh way.
- The students to come forward to Lord, leaving behind all other concerns and distractions, as they sing, fellowship, and listen to the messages.
United Kingdom – Autumn University Conference
This weekend, November 15 to 17, there is a conference for university students taking place in Doncaster, UK. The total number registered for this conference is 226, including 86 serving ones, 30 FTTL trainees, and 106 students. The general subject will be “The Two Joys.”
Please pray:
- That the hearts of all those attending will be softened and prepared for the Lord's speaking.
- That each one will see the Lord's joy set before Him to have the church, will have a divine sense of value concerning the church, will see that the Christian life is a life of enjoyment, and will enjoy the Lord Jesus as the coming Bridegroom to hasten our marriage to Him.
- That the enemy will be bound in every way, be put to open shame, and suffer loss in every aspect of the conference and in the lives of our next generation.
French-speaking Europe
“The harvest is great, but the workers few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest that He would thrust out workers into His harvest.” (Matt. 9:37-38)
Beseech the Lord to supply all the saints who live in French-speaking Europe, and all who are there for weeks or months, to shepherd many contacts to growth in truth and life and into the church life. Also beseech the Lord to thrust out more workers into this harvest and to release the visas for them to live in France and in the surrounding nations.
The Lord has been assembling a full-time team to support what the Lord is raising up in the cities where we had gospel trips. Praise the Lord that already 16 have responded to the Lord's call to serve Him among the French-speaking people. Currently, they are meeting in the mornings for prayer and fellowship as they are being blended together. Please continue to pray that by the summer of 2025 there will be at least 20 saints serving in this way.
Azerbaijan
Pray for more high-quality students, the sons of peace who are willing to read the Bible, to be gained, and that the Lord will grant the church four remaining fruits by the end of the year.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 7 of Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1).
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The ministry meeting continues this week starting at 7:25 pm.
- Semiannual Training: December 23 to 28 in Anaheim. Registration for the live training in Anaheim is closed, but for video training in LA remains open until December 8 at tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla.
- Thanksgiving Conference: November 28 to December 1 in Atlanta, GA. Interested LA saints can get more information and RSVP at tinyurl.com/thanksgivingconfla.
- Bibles for America's recent blog post “What Is the Church according to the Bible?” is at blog.bfa.org.
- Free e-Booklets: Living Stream Ministry offers free e-booklets to read and share. For example, sixty nuggets and gems have been extracted from the Life-study of Philippians with timely topics such as “The Rich Word for Living Christ” and “The Way to Be Freed from Anxiety.” These e-booklets may be accessed for free at www.lsm.org/life-study-philippians.
- Post-ITERO Blending Fellowship: A recording of the blending fellowship in Warsaw after the ITERO can be viewed at lsm.org/blending. The fellowship opens with a 78‑minute speaking by Brother Ron Kangas and concludes with several reports on the Lord's present move in Europe. Translation is available by following instructions for selecting a language track.
- The LA Years: This oral history project at www.layears.org documents the early years of the church life in Los Angeles from 1958–1974, including written history, photos, and first-hand testimonies.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.
Week of October 27
Enjoying Christ as the Real Jubilee
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to announce the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to send away in release those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, the year of jubilee.” (Luke 4:18-19)
“…Today this Scripture has been fulfilled…” (Luke 4:21)
Christ has already come, so the age of jubilee is here, but we do not have the jubilee in us unless we have allowed the Lord Jesus to come into us...Even if we have believed into Christ and have allowed Him to come into us, unless we allow Him to live in us and unless we live by Him, we are not practically living in the jubilee. If we live by Christ in a certain matter and allow Him to live in us, we enjoy jubilee in that matter. In this way everything pertaining to that particular matter is to our satisfaction. (CWWL, 1984, vol. 4, “The Jubilee,” pp. 7, 10-11)
The living of the jubilee is a living in the enjoyment of Christ, a living of enjoying God as our inheritance and real freedom. The living of the jubilee is a life in which we take God Himself, Christ Himself, in every situation; then He becomes the primary factor and center in us to overrule all the troubles of human life. Because everything is under His sovereignty, we should pray, “Lord, fill me, gain me, and possess me; no matter what my outward situation is, I just want to enjoy You.” We need to be today's ministers and witnesses by living and proclaiming the gospel—Christ as the jubilee of grace—for the accomplishing of God's eternal economy. (Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1), msg. 5, IV.F, 1-2)
United States
“Immediately I was in spirit; and behold, there was a throne set in heaven, and upon the throne there was One sitting.” (Rev. 4:2)
Pray that the saints would see a vision of the throne as the center of God's administration and that they would know that the heavens do rule in the midst of the present world situation.
“I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings be made on behalf of all men; on behalf of kings and all who are in high position, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all godliness and gravity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of our Savior God, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the full knowledge of the truth..” (1 Tim. 2:1-4)
Pray concerning “kings” and all who are in high position at every level of government, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all godliness and gravity and that men may be saved and come to the full knowledge of the truth.
Semiannual Training Live Registrations
This Thursday, October 31 is the firm deadline for saints in LA and Santa Clarita to register for the upcoming in-person December Semiannual Training in Anaheim ($205). Video training registrations will be due later on December 8 ($130). To register, go to tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla.
May the Lord grant us to highly value the semiannual trainings and encourage one another to have a heart for these trainings, and may the Lord grace us to bear the burden to pray for the semiannual trainings so that He as the seven Spirits of God may have an unhindered way to continue to speak the present truth to the churches.
North & South America Korean-speaking Conference
This weekend, there will a blending conference for Korean-speaking saints in both North and South America. The subject is “Living in the Reality of the Kingdom of God.” The two conference sessions are Saturday, November 2 from 5:00 to 6:30 pm and Lord's Day, November 3 from 9:00 am to 12:30 pm PST. All information and Zoom links are at tinyurl.com/2024KoreanConf.
Please pray for all the Korean-speaking saints in the Americas to join this conference and enjoy the reality of the Body through the blending in the up-to-date words of the ministry.
SoCal College Conference
This weekend, November 1 to 3, college students from mostly semester system schools will gather at Oak Glen for the first of two college conferences. We will be covering the topic of “The Wonderful Jesus in Matthew and Mark.” From LA, we have 15 students from the downtown area (mostly USC students) planning to attend. Among these ones, many are very new and need much prayer! Please pray:
- For the Lord to unveil Himself to each student in a very personal and fresh way.
- For the students to come forward to Lord, leaving behind all other concerns and distractions, as they sing, fellowship, and listen to the messages.
- For the shepherding and feeding of the newer students, including a good number who need to get transferred out of Satan's kingdom and into God's kingdom through baptism!
The Lord's Move in French-speaking Europe
“Another Angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer, and much incense was given to Him to offer with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” (Rev. 8:3)
Christ (the Angel, cf. Rev. 7:2, note 1), through the intercession at the incense altar, manages the universe. This intercession is the corporate Christ including “the prayers of all the saints.”
The seed of the Lord's present move in French-speaking Europe was sown in 2021 when a small group of saints began to pray for the Lord to have a breakthrough in gaining more people and for more lampstands in French-speaking cities. These saints had no plan for a work but they were not content to have the situation remain the same. They met to pray a number of times every week; they did not discuss what to do and were not even considering the Olympics; they simply prayed.
Then the Lord began to move by bringing together co-workers from France, UK, Germany, Spain, and Poland for days of prayer and fellowship. The Lord erased all the boundaries. The fellowship and coordination became the reality of the Body of Christ! The result in this year was beyond what we could ask or think.
Beseech the Lord to continue what He has done, to bless the current shepherding labor, to strengthen the churches, and to raise up new churches in French-speaking Europe.
Expansion of the Lord's Move in Europe
Petition the Lord to spread the lesson of prayer and coordination from France to expand His move to reach all of Europe!
Ukraine and Russia
Please pray concerning the ongoing war, that the Lord will protect the tripartite being of all the saints and will rule in the heavens over every aspect of this situation for the advance of His economy on earth.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 5 of Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1).
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The ministry meeting continues this week starting at 7:25 pm.
- Semiannual Training: December 23 to 28 in Anaheim. Registration is open for LA saints at tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla. Registration due October 31 (live) or December 8 (video).
- Post-ITERO Blending Fellowship: A recording of the blending fellowship in Warsaw after the ITERO can be viewed at lsm.org/blending. The fellowship opens with a 78‑minute speaking by Brother Ron Kangas and concludes with several reports on the Lord's present move in Europe. Translation is available by following instructions for selecting a language track.
- Bibles for America's recent blog post “What Is the Church according to the Bible?” is at blog.bfa.org.
- SCYP Children's Work Conference: Saturday, November 9, conducted in person only in Anaheim. Translation provided. Register by November 3 at scyp.com/children.
- Thanksgiving Conference: November 28 to December 1 in Atlanta, GA. Interested LA saints can get more information on hotel rates and RSVP at tinyurl.com/thanksgivingconfla.
Week of October 13
Experiencing the Triune God for the Constitution of the Kingdom
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and disciple all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matt. 28:18-19)
Into in Matthew 28:19 indicates union, as in Romans 6:3 and Galatians 3:27. To baptize people into the name of the Triune God is to bring them into spiritual and mystical union with Him. There is one name for the Divine Trinity. The name is the sum total of the Divine Being, equivalent to His person. To baptize someone into the name of the Triune God is to immerse him into all that the Triune God is.
According to Matthew, being baptized into the reality of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit is for the constituting of the kingdom of the heavens. Unlike an earthly society, the heavenly kingdom cannot be formed with human beings of flesh and blood (1 Cor. 15:50); it can be constituted only with people who have been immersed into the union with the Triune God and who have been established and built up with the Triune God, who has been wrought into them. (Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1), msg. 3, II.E, 2, F, 1, 2, G.7, 8)
Heavenly Rule over the United States
“Let every person be subject to the authorities over him, for there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are ordained by God.” (Rom. 13:1)
To be subject to the authorities is to recognize God's authority and to respect His government over man. God ordains the authorities over man in order to maintain peace and security in human society so that He may have the time and the opportunity to preach the gospel, to save sinners, and to build the church for the spread of His kingdom. (Footnotes 3 and 4 on Rom. 13:1)
As the church, the Body of Christ, let us continue to trust in the Lord's sovereignty and cooperate with Him by praying and laboring together with Him for the advance of His economy.
Sacramento Meeting Hall Update
Praise the Lord! As of October 9, a total of $3.45 million was received from the churches and saints around the world. Thank the Lord for the prayers of the saints and the supply in the Body to reach the goal of $3.25 million by the October 15 deadline. This is the Lord's blessing on our oneness in the Body. We appreciate all the support concerning this purchase and would like you to rejoice with us.
The new property will need another $1.25 million for repairs and remodeling work to make it useful for future blending. The offerings that exceed the closing cost of the property will be dedicated to this renovation work. Please continue to pray for this next step.
A video tour of the property is at www.churchinsacramento.org. As the Lord leads, the saints in LA may continue to give through the Church in Los Angeles designated for “Sacramento Meeting Hall.”
France – Shepherding Trips
A letter in English is available at lme.org/reports.html concerning an urgent need for short-term shepherding trips to French-speaking Europe to care for the seeking ones who were contacted during the Bible distribution trips. This next stage of the move requires more concentrated, detailed contact with new ones, hence burdened saints are requested to stay for a longer period of time. Please pray:
- For many saints who participated in the gospel trips to return for one to three months to meet the urgent need to participate in follow-up shepherding trips to care for all the new contacts.
- That those burdened to serve full-time in French-speaking Europe will receive the needed visas..
As the Lord leads, saints in LA burdened to give may do so through the Church in Los Angeles designated for “Paris Olympics.”
Middle East
Please pray that recent developments in Israel and the surrounding region will be under the ruling of God's throne so that He will work out the counsel of His will. Pray for the saints there to be strengthened into their inner man, so that they are not shaken by what is happening, but live a life that expresses God and cooperates with God's move.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 3 of Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1).
- Bibles for America's new blog post “What Is the Church according to the Bible?” is available to read and share at blog.bfa.org.
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: The ministry meeting continues this week starting at 7:25 pm.
- SCYP High School Conferences: October 25 to 27 in Cerritos (sisters) and Huntington Beach (brothers). Registration was due October 13.
- 2024 North & South America Korean-speaking Conference: Via Zoom from November 2 to 3. Detailed information in Korean can be found at tinyurl.com/2024KoreanConf.
- SCYP Children's Work Conference: Saturday, November 9, conducted in a hybrid format, with an in-person location in Anaheim. Translation provided. Register by November 3 at scyp.com/children.
- Semiannual Training: December 23 to 28 in Anaheim. Registration is open for LA saints at tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla. Registration due October 31 (live) or December 8 (video).
- Thanksgiving Conference: November 28 to December 1 in Atlanta, GA. Interested LA saints can get more information on hotel rates and RSVP at tinyurl.com/thanksgivingconfla.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.
Week of September 29
Enjoying Christ as the New Wine
“Neither do they put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out, and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.” (Matt. 9:17)
“For even as the body is one and has many members, yet all the members of the body, being many, are one body, so also is the Christ.” (1 Cor. 12:12)
The new wine here signifies Christ as the new life, full of vigor, stirring people to excitement. When we receive His life, it works within us all day long to stir us up and to excite us. This new wine strengthens us, energizes us, and makes us very happy.
The fresh wineskins signify the church life in the local churches as the container of the new wine, which is Christ Himself as the exciting life. The kingdom people are built into the church (16:18), and the church is expressed through the local churches in which the kingdom people live (18:15-20). They are regenerated persons who constitute the Body of Christ and become the church (Rom. 12:5; Eph. 1:22-23). The Body of Christ as His fullness is also called “the Christ” (1 Cor. 12:12), referring to the corporate Christ. The individual Christ is the new wine, the inward exciting life, and the corporate Christ is the fresh wineskin, the outward container that holds the new wine.
We have Christ in a corporate way as our church life...The church is God's ultimate goal. When we arrive at the church, we are in the ultimate consummation of God's purpose. (Life-study of Matthew, 2nd ed., pp. 323-329)
ITERO and the Gospel
The October 2024 International Training for Elders and Responsible Ones takes place October 4 to 6 in Warsaw, Poland. The general subject is “Living in the Reality of the Kingdom of God.” Brothers in many churches around the world (including Los Angeles) will watch videos of the messages according to different schedules throughout the month. Please petition the Lord for an increase in our living in the reality of His kingdom. Pray also for the travel and health of all the brothers, the release of the Lord's up-to-date speaking, the blending of all the brothers from different countries, and all the practical arrangements at the hotels and the training venue.
Following ITERO, the afternoon of October 6 will be a blending meeting in Warsaw to which all the saints are invited. Lord, bring all who attend further into the experience of Your one Body! Overcome the language differences and release many into fellowship with saints they have never met before! “There is no distinction between [nations, languages, and appearances], for the same Lord is Lord of all and rich to all who call upon Him” (Rom. 10:12).
The week of October 7 to 13 there will be gospel trips in eight European nations. These will include local saints serving with ITERO brothers and their wives. These gospel trips include distribution of Recovery Version NTs and contacting people with the desire to shepherd them into the church life. Lord, unveil many people and shine into many hearts “to illuminate the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).
UCLA
Saints, we truly depend on and appreciate all of the prayers for our welcome activities last week at UCLA. We are continuing to enjoy the Lord's blessing of bringing many new students to our events. Looking ahead, now we are entering a crucial phase where we need your continued prayers. As we head into the first full week of classes, please pray:
- For the Lord to bring forward the new students who are truly open to Him and are willing to follow Him as the great light more and more.
- For the forming of Bible study groups where mutuality and nourishment from the Word are fresh and enjoyable to all students.
- For the cherishing, refreshing, and connecting together of the students at our mini-retreat this Saturday.
Sacramento Meeting Hall
Please pray for the completion of the purchase of a new meeting hall property in Sacramento and for the Lord to release the funds to pay the purchase price $3.25 million by the October 15 deadline.
Once the 2.48-acre property is secured, there will be some retrofitting, upgrades and repairs estimated at around $1.2 million for a total cost of $4.45 million. A detailed letter with a brochure of the property is at www.churchinsacramento.org. As the Lord leads, the saints in LA may give through the Church in LA designated for “Sacramento Meeting Hall.”
France – Shepherding Trips
Now that the gospel trips in French-speaking Europe have concluded, there is an urgent need to care for the ones we have contacted over the last five months. In many areas, groups of new ones have begun meeting consistently. This next stage of the move requires more concentrated, detailed contact with new ones, hence burdened saints are requested to stay for a longer period of time. Please pray:
- For many saints who participated in the gospel trips to return for one to three months to meet the urgent need to participate in follow-up shepherding trips to care for all the new contacts.
- For the release of one-year visas for the full-timers migrating to France; so far, four graduates of the FTTA Extension in Boston and two serving families have applied.
All reports, as well as more information on migration, are posted at lme.org/reports.html. Saints in LA burdened to give may do so through the Church in Los Angeles designated for “Paris Olympics.”
Middle East
Please pray that recent developments in Israel and the surrounding region will be under the ruling of God's throne so that He will work out the counsel of His will. Pray for the saints there to be strengthened into their inner man, so that they are not shaken by what is happening, but live a life that expresses God and cooperates with God's move.
Cambodia
Pray for continual breakthroughs in the young people's work across the country, that the Lord can gain more quality young people who are open to Him. Pray also for the saints to establish a habit of going out weekly to visit people for the gospel and for shepherding.
For report with photos, see the September 2024 issue of the Lord's Move to Asia newsletter:
- lmasia.org/newsletter/2024-newsletter/september-3 (English)
- reurl.cc/7dV9X9 (Chinese)
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 1 of Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ (1).
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: Due to preparations for ITERO, this week's ministry meeting on October 2 has been canceled. The meeting will resume on October 9 at 7:25 pm.
- December Semiannual Training: December 23 to 28 in Anaheim. Registration opens this week for LA saints at tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla. Registration due October 31 (live) or December 8 (video).
- Thanksgiving Conference: November 28 to December 1 in Atlanta, GA. Interested LA saints can get more information on hotel rates and RSVP at tinyurl.com/thanksgivingconfla.
- SCYP Junior High Conferences: October 11 to 13 in Diamond Bar (sisters) and Irvine (brothers).
- SCYP High School Conferences: October 25 to 27 in Cerritos (sisters) and Huntington Beach (brothers). Registration is due October 13.
- Ways to Give: Information about the church's online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.