[John]

UntoHim reminded those of us who were in the earlier days of the Local Church of Witness Lee how we encouraged people to proclaim, “Oh Lord Jesus,” in order to get saved. Yes, that was all there was to it. Based on Mr. Lee’s messages, all one had to do to experience salvation was to call aloud that phrase as if it was magic. At least at that time, a number of people, I would guess, were supposedly saved but were not. Who knows how many stuck around and really did get saved. Some of them may have enjoyed the community and stayed on without actually being born-again.

Yes, the Oh-Lord-Jesus-only doctrine led many into an extreme belief and practice, causing them to believe that some were saved who were not. I am reminded of a prostitute that someone brought to one of our Saturday night gospel meetings in Houston. She complied with the enthusiasm to stand and “call on the Lord” and was even baptized. Afterwards, she was taken to one of the corporate living situations to become a part of the Church community. (Maybe you know the way we used to do it? This was to get her “hooked” on the Local Church.) Sadly, when asked where she was going the next day, she stated that she was going back to work (as a “working girl”). We never saw her again. I guess that it was a one-night stand.

So, there were visitors who got “saved” who didn’t stick. This does not mean, though, that all who were regulars were saved. Here’s another story: Max Rapaport said that when he went to some Local Churches in Asia that he found that many of the members were not saved. He recalled asking some of them to relate their experiences of salvation. They only related how they came into the Local Church. Everything about their talk was in relationship to the Church and nothing was about their experience of Jesus Christ. As a result, he said that he began preaching the gospel in the Asian Local Churches to get them saved.

I would also add the example of Philip Lee. Is this man saved? I only know him by reputation, so I wouldn’t even hazard a guess. Can someone live like the devil, abuse sisters and churches, and actually be a born-again child of God? Maybe he will be saved in eternity but will first be put in a little, dark closet for a time (like the one his dad taught about). Whether or not he is saved, he is an example of one who might not be. At least these examples should give some pause to those who might consider contending that all in the Local Churches spawned by the Living Stream Ministry are saved.