Quote:
Originally Posted by alwayslearning
BTW as you probably know the Brethren writer G.H. Lang wrote a book titled "The Churches of God" which Witness Lee hated because it was a polemic against having a federation of churches. Lang was against this because he saw what it did to the Closed Brethren with Darby as their MOTA. He plainly stated the advantages of independent churches at the local level who were not beholden to any extra local organization, ministry, MOTA etc. No wonder Witness Lee hated it! Imagine if such an idea was actually implemented in the LC system. The damage Witness Lee created would be limited to Anaheim and maybe Taipei at the most. His ministry and the current LSM publishers thereof would be put in their proper place as one among many that local independent churches could use or not i.e. Witness Lee and now the LSM staff would have zero influence or power over any church.
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That's why I bought the book. To see what was it about
The Churches of God that caused such an emotional reaction from Witness Lee. In John Ingalls' account at the 1988 Pasadena Conference, John had this to say;
"
In the first meeting of the conference, November 25th, Brother Lee was in a fighting spirit, fighting against "autonomy" and "federation." He referred to some books authored by George Henry Lang, a servant of the Lord in England during the latter part of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th. In one of his books, entitled The Churches of God, Lang emphasized the need for local administration in the churches. This was the book that troubled Brother Lee. (I had read this book, and being deeply impressed with its strong scriptural basis and timely application to our present need, I had recommended it to others.) Brother Lee called Lang’s book heretical and told the saints if they had them to burn them. I consider this kind of talk reckless and lawless. Brother Lee in years past had commended Lang for his insight and writing on the truth of the kingdom. His books have been recently reprinted and are available today."
http://localchurchdiscussions.com/vB...read.php?t=411
Having read portions of
The Churches of God, it's quite helpful and scriptural. The problem some would have is it's counterproductive to a ministry like LSM that would depend to some degree on churches as financial resources. One could assert once a church is no longer a financial resource, it needs to be "replastered" (see Leviticus 14:33-57).