The Universal Priesthood
First Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people acquired for a possession, so that you may tell out the virtues of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
“Among us, every saved one is a priest, a serving one. As such, everyone should preach the gospel directly to his family members, relatives, colleagues, schoolmates, and neighbors. This way of preaching the gospel is according to our appointment by the Lord to go forth and bear fruit (Luke 10:1-6; John 15:16). We are all branches of the Lord as the vine (John 15:5); as such, we need to bear fruit personally, not asking others to do it for us. We should visit people personally to preach the gospel and lead them to be saved and regenerated, and we should also nourish, teach, and perfect them.” (W. Lee, The Ministry of the New Testament Priests of the Gospel, ch. 1)
For the increase in the church in Los Angeles, we need to see who we are and exercise our priesthood. Pray that the Lord would gain us as a group of people who live in His presence by spending time with Him to be filled and saturated with Him. Pray for each saint to be connected with a companion to pray for the Lord’s interests on the earth. And pray for our church life to be filled with much begetting, nourishing, perfecting, and building so that both we and the Lord would be satisfied.
“We have to see that if the one-talented ones do not rise up to serve, there is no way for the church to go on. The priesthood is a universal priesthood. This is the greatest recovery of this century.” (W. Nee, The Resumption of Watchman Nee’s Ministry, p. 338)
Children’s Work Perfecting Conference
“We must realize that the children’s work is a crucial burden. Every locality must be aggressive in the children’s work, because there is a greater future in the children’s work than in the campus work. Generally speaking, it is easier to bring in children, and once they come in, they usually remain. Our history confirms this fact.” (Crucial Words of Leading in the Lord’s Recovery, Book 3: The Future of the Lord’s Recovery and the Building Up of the Organic Service, pp. 218-219)
There will be a perfecting conference for parents and those who serve with the children on Saturday, November 5 from 9am to 12pm at the church in Diamond Bar meeting hall. The first session will cover matters related to being parents and the second session will be about the children’s work in the churches. Registration deadline is October 30. Donation is $15; no lunch provided. Details at SCYP.com.
High School Conferences
The Southern California high school conferences are October 29–30 in Irvine (brothers) and Anaheim (sisters). From LA, we are expecting 20 young brothers (plus 4 serving ones) and 12 young sisters (plus 8 serving ones) to attend.
L.A. Intercollegiate Meeting
This Saturday, October 29, 6-9 pm we will have our Los Angeles joint college meeting at CSUN. Please strongly pray for: (1) many college students to be released to come from all parts of Los Angeles; (2) solid blending and relatedness to be built up among the different campuses; and (3) the strong release of the spirit and the Lord’s fresh speaking. May the Lord perfect us into one so that more in Los Angeles may believe into the Lord Jesus (John 17:21)!
Southern California ITERO Review
This Saturday, October 29, there will be an important all-day gathering (9 AM to 9 PM) in Anaheim for the elders and responsible brothers in Southern California. The primary purpose of this gathering is to review the nine messages from the recent ITERO in Australia. Please pray for this time, that the Lord would bless the fellowship among all the brothers for the building up of the churches here.
Winter Training Registration
The winter training is a time for all the saints to receive the Lord’s fresh speaking. Ask the Lord to release more of us from the affairs of human life to participate in this training in Anaheim or in the webcasts in LA. We believe “that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6). At the same time, we know that “it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13). Ask the Lord to stir our hearts to pursue Him actively.
Leeds, United Kingdom
After many years of prayer, the saints in Leeds will take ground and hold their first Lord’s Table on October 30. Please pray for a strong beginning to the church life in Leeds, with many saints attending from throughout the UK.
Announcements
- Morning revival: Crystallization-Study of Exodus, vol. 8, week 45.
- Audio of the October 16 joint meeting of the church in LA is available at http://tinyurl.com/jssxyrk.
- The Children’s Work Perfecting Conference will be on November 5 in Diamond Bar. Registration donation is $15. Register by October 30 at http://www.scyp.com/forms.
- The 2016 Winter Training will be December 26–31 in Anaheim (live) and Los Angeles (simulcasts). Registration deadline is October 30. For saints in LA, go to http://tinyurl.com/wintertrainingla.
- The International Thanksgiving Conference will be in San Jose, CA from November 24–27. Details, including hotel group rates, are posted at https://churchinlosangeles.org/prayer/.
- The Lord’s Move in Europe:
Information about serving in Germany this fall is at http://germany2016.amanatrust.org.uk.
Giving for the Gospel Work in Europe instructions are at http://www.lordsmove.org/information.html. Giving for the UK Building Fund instructions are at http://www.lordsmove.org/ukbuildingfund or you may give to the church in LA, designated for UK Building Fund.