The Teachings of Witness Lee and the Local Church - Beisner

[aron]

Originally Posted by countmeworthy

This present evil age we are living in is full of ungodly controlling people both in the secular environment as well as the religious environment which is sometimes cloaked under the banner of a 'spiritual' environment.

Lee was no exception. He had his good/spiritual/uncontrolling side but as he gained a loyal following, the spirit of control grabbed hold of him. He may not have started out wanting to control but once a person tastes 'power' mannnn, that spirit of control takes hold.

Look around. It happens everywhere. A 'nobody' runs for city council..then for mayor..and lo & behold, before long, he's the mayor of NYC ! A person becomes a CEO of a company...a -well known- spiritual leader with political connections....and the beat goes on...

Yes, the beat goes on. CMW's post put the dilemma in a nutshell. It is not like these peaceable, Christ-loving people got coopted by a nasty controlling Mr. Lee, but rather at least partly that they chose to become his "loyal following", and this process corrupted both him and them.

Look at the pattern. 1 Sam. 8, the people went to Samuel and wanted a King over them, so that they would be like the nations. It's not like the nasty Saul tricked the people into taking him as King. He was a nobody, but the people created a role for him, he walked into it, and the result was both ruinous for him and Israel.

Look at John chapter 6, verse 15. Jesus saw that the people wanted to seize Him by force and make Him King, so he withdrew and went away, alone, to a mountain to pray. Lee, unfortunately, didn't withdraw. He took the earthly "leader" role that the loyal following wanted.

The example of Jesus is very rare in human history. He chose a heavenly kingdom. Many of His followers get distracted by earthly roles, with all the trappings that go along with them. All the pomp and circumstance.

Matthew 6:1 "But beware of doing your good actions in the sight of men, in order to attract their gaze; if you do, there is no reward for you with your Father who is in Heaven"