Quote:
Originally Posted by Ohio
Not sure if I have ever found that. Stem Publishing is a major source for exclusive Brethren writings.
One of Darby's earliest writings with a pamphlet called " Separation From Evil: God's Principle of Unity." In that title you can see exclusivism and judgmentalism in its earliest stages. Darby did not consider the positive things of the Spirit (Eph 4) as our uniting bonds, but the common agreement of judging evil. Eventually it was Darby alone and his successors who defined what evil was for all the assemblies. Think about how powerful that is!
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The following is a short excerpt from Watchman Nee's book
Love One Another. He certainly took after the views of the exclusive brethren:
Quote:
Let us therefore see that oneness is not condoning sin but, rather, condemning sin. We are told by people today that in order to be one we have to bear with sin, for if we all learn to bear, then we will be one. Indeed, in the national churches a great number of things are not of God. If a person’s conscience is touched by the Holy Spirit and he begins to be aware and reject certain sins, then he will be labeled by those who do not reject such sin as divisive. As a matter of fact, the real problem is not with him—for he sees—but with those who do not see.
If God’s children were all to judge sin, they would be united as one. The oneness of God’s children is not something carnal, but spiritual; it is a oneness with the Lord. If we do not judge sin, we may become one, but we are not one with the Lord.
pgs 103-104
http://www3.telus.net/trbrooks/LoveOneAnother.pdf
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It becomes quickly apparent that Nee taught something exclusive. Romans 14 and 15 talk about about receiving and not judging. It made me consider these verses in light of what Nee said:
Rom 14:10
But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
Rom 14:13
Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.
Rom 15:7
Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God.
Obviously some of Nee's views were extensions of the teachings of the exclusive brethren. To what extent I don't know, as I am no expert. I would speculate that after his excommunication from the exclusive brethren, he sought to create a similar group. It wouldn't surprise me if there were many parallels.