At the time of regeneration, all believers receive the divine life and are begotten as children of God. Yet, this life most grow and it does so by regulation unto maturity and function. This regulation comes from revelation and issues in obedience. This word is crucial for our progress and training in the divine life for our maturity and function in our living and service to God.
The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1983, volume 1, contains messages given by Brother Witness Lee from January 18 through December 21, 1983. In 1983 Brother Lee spoke eighty-five messages that were published in Life-study of Jude, Life-study of 1 Peter, Life-study of Exodus, Life-study of 1, 2, and 3 John, Life-study of Leviticus, Life-study of James, and Life-study of Mark. These Life-study messages are not included in The Collected Works of Witness Lee. During the first week in January Brother Lee was in Irving, Texas. He then traveled to Anaheim, California, and except for a one-day visit to Long Beach, California, he remained in Anaheim until the end of the third week in April. Brother Lee then returned to Irving and remained there until the middle of May. During this period he visited Houston, Texas, for a weekend conference. From Irving he traveled to Europe and ministered in Stuttgart, Germany, until the end of May. At the end of his time in Germany, Brother Lee also visited Tubingen. At the beginning of June Brother Lee returned to the United States, visiting New York City during the first week in June and then traveling to Irving and remaining there for two weeks before proceeding to Anaheim. Brother Lee remained in Anaheim until the middle of July, and then he visited Berkeley and San Jose, California, before returning to Anaheim at the end of July. From the beginning of August until the end of the third week in November Brother Lee ministered in Anaheim. He then traveled to Irving and remained in Irving until he returned to Anaheim at the beginning of 1984. The contents of this volume are divided into nine sections, as follows: 1. Ten messages given in Anaheim, California, and Irving, Texas, on January 18 through June 13. These messages were previously published in a nine-chapter book entitled Practical Talks to the Elders and are included in this volume under the same title. 2. Four messages given in Anaheim, California, on January 20 through February 10. These messages are included in this volume under the title Fellowship with Serving Ones. 3. Six messages given in Anaheim, California, on January 23 through August 14. These messages are included in this volume under the title Fellowship concerning the Enjoyment of Christ and a Practical Way for the Lord's Recovery. 4. Five messages given in Chinese in Anaheim, California, on February 11 through 13. They were previously published in a book entitled The Five Great Mysteries in the Bible and are included in this volume under the same title. 5. Nine messages given in Chinese in Anaheim, California, on February 20 through April 17. They were previously published in a book entitled The Subjective Experience of the Indwelling Christ and are included in this volume under the same title. 6. Five messages given in Chinese in Anaheim, California, on February 22 and 23. They are included in this volume under the title The Central Vision and the Unique Ministry. 7. Four messages given in Chinese in Anaheim, California, in February, March, and October. The date of the first message is unknown; the second through fourth messages were given on March 7 and 31 and October 22. The four messages are included in this volume under the title The Chinese-speaking Meeting and the Coordination of the Body. 8. Eleven messages given in Irving, Texas, on April 22 through December 18. They are included in this volume under the title Miscellaneous Messages Given to the Church in Irving. 9. Nine messages given in various gatherings of elders and responsible brothers in Irving, Texas, on April 29 through December 21. These are included in this volume under the title Perfecting the Saints to Preach the Gospel, Present the Truth, Minister Life, and Walk according to the Spirit in Order to Bear the Testimony of Jesus.
"The entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, shows us that God is our enjoyment. God also has His fullness (Eph. 3:19b). He is full for us to enjoy. His fullness is the expression of the riches of Christ, and the reality of Christ is in the Spirit. We know this by the revelation of the Word. The riches of Christ are revealed in the Word. Furthermore, we can realize God as our enjoyment in our spirit (John 4:24)."
When God created man, He placed him before two trees: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. In warning man to avoid the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, God indicated His desire for man to eat of the tree of life, signifying that man should receive God as his life supply. Witness Lee unveils in The Tree of Life that God is not looking for well-behaved Christians; He is looking for those who will experience and enjoy Christ as the reality of the tree of life.
In the Lord’s recovery during the past five hundred years the church’s knowledge of the Lord and His truth has been continually progressing. This monumental and classical work by Brother Witness Lee builds upon and is a further development of all that the Lord has revealed to His church in the past centuries. It is filled with the revelation concerning the processed Triune God, the living Christ, the life-giving Spirit, the experience of life, and the definition and practice of the church. In this set Brother Lee has kept three basic principles that should rule and govern every believer in their interpretation, development, and expounding of the truths contained in the Scriptures. The first principle is that of the Triune God dispensing Himself into His chosen and redeemed people; the second principle is that we should interpret, develop, and expound the truths contained in the Bible with Christ for the church; and the third governing principle is Christ, the Spirit, life, and the church. No other study or exposition of the New Testament conveys the life nourishment or ushers the reader into the divine revelation of God’s holy Word according to His New Testament economy as this one does.
In the Lord’s recovery during the past five hundred years the church’s knowledge of the Lord and His truth has been continually progressing. This monumental and classical work by Brother Witness Lee builds upon and is a further development of all that the Lord has revealed to His church in the past centuries. It is filled with the revelation concerning the processed Triune God, the living Christ, the life-giving Spirit, the experience of life, and the definition and practice of the church. In this set Brother Lee has kept three basic principles that should rule and govern every believer in their interpretation, development, and expounding of the truths contained in the Scriptures. The first principle is that of the Triune God dispensing Himself into His chosen and redeemed people; the second principle is that we should interpret, develop, and expound the truths contained in the Bible with Christ for the church; and the third governing principle is Christ, the Spirit, life, and the church. No other study or exposition of the New Testament conveys the life nourishment or ushers the reader into the divine revelation of God’s holy Word according to His New Testament economy as this one does.
The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1983, volume 3, contains messages given by Brother Witness Lee from June 4, 1983, through January 1, 1984. At the beginning of June Brother Lee returned from Europe to the United States, visiting New York City during the first week in June and then traveling to Irving, Texas, and remaining there for two weeks before proceeding to Anaheim, California. Brother Lee remained in Anaheim until the middle of July, and then he visited Berkeley and San Jose, California, before returning to Anaheim at the end of July. From the beginning of August until the end of the third week in November Brother Lee ministered in Anaheim. He then traveled to Irving and remained in Irving until he returned to Anaheim at the beginning of 1984. The contents of this volume are divided into ten sections, as follows: 1. Two messages given in New York City on June 4 and 5, 1983. The available record of these messages consists of personal notes taken by attendees in the meetings. These notes were edited and are included in this volume under the title Fellowship with the Elders in New York City. 2. Eight messages given in Chinese in Anaheim, California, on June 26 through August 21, 1983. These messages were previously published in a book entitled A Living of Mutual Abiding with the Lord in Spirit and are included in this volume under the same title. 3. Three messages given in Anaheim, California, on June 28 and 29, 1983. These messages are included in this volume under the title Endeavoring to Come to the Full Knowledge of the Truth and Developing the Skill to Present the Truth. 4. Three messages given in Anaheim, California, on July 8, October 15, and November 12. They are included in this volume under the title Fellowship concerning the Children and Young People. 5. Five messages given in Chinese in San Jose, California, on July 22 through 24, 1983. These messages were previously published in a book entitled The Wonderful Being of Christ and are included in this volume under the same title. 6. Two messages given in Anaheim, California, on August 25 and 27, 1983. These messages are included in this volume under the title The Commission of the Lord's Recovery. 7. Ten messages given in Anaheim, California, on August 26 through November 11, 1983. They were previously published in a book entitled The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word and are included in this volume under the same title. 8. Seven messages given in Chinese in Anaheim, California, on October 9 through November 20, 1983. They were previously published in a book entitled Abiding in the Lord to Enjoy His Life and are included in this volume under the same title. 9. Eleven messages given in Irving, Texas, on November 24, 1983, through January 1, 1984. These messages were previously published in a book entitled The Basic Revelation in the Holy Scriptures and are included in this volume under the same title. 10. Four messages given in Chinese in Irving, Texas, on December 3 through 17, 1983. They are included in this volume under the title The Chinese-speaking Work and the Testimony of Jesus.
The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1983, volume 2, contains messages given by Brother Witness Lee from April 28 through December 16. At the beginning of the fourth week in April, Brother Lee traveled from Anaheim, California, to Irving, Texas, and he remained there until the middle of May. During this period he visited Houston, Texas, for a weekend conference. From Irving he traveled to Europe and ministered in Stuttgart, Germany, until the end of May. At the end of his time in Germany, Brother Lee also visited Tubingen. At the beginning of June he returned to the United States, visiting New York City during the first week in June and then traveling to Irving and remaining there for two weeks before proceeding to Anaheim. Brother Lee remained in Anaheim until the middle of July, and then he visited Berkeley and San Jose, California, before returning to Anaheim at the end of July. From the beginning of August until the end of the third week in November Brother Lee ministered in Anaheim. He then traveled to Irving and remained in Irving until he returned to Anaheim at the beginning of 1984. The contents of this volume are divided into four sections, as follows: 1. Seven messages given in Irving, Texas, on April 28 through June 8. They were previously published in a book entitled Concerning the Lord's Recovery and are included in this volume under the same title. 2. Five messages given in Chinese in Houston, Texas, on May 5 through 8. They were previously published in a book entitled Christ in His Excellency and are included in this volume under the same title. 3. Six messages given in Stuttgart, Germany, on May 17 through 30. These messages are included in this volume under the title Endeavoring to Learn and Propagate the Divine Truth for the Advance of the Lord's Recovery. 4. Twenty-eight messages given in Stuttgart, Germany; New York City; Irving, Texas; and Berkeley, California, on May 20 through December 16. These messages were previously published in a forty-three-chapter book entitled The Divine Dispensing of the Divine Trinity and are included in this volume under the same title.
The Collected Works of Witness Lee, Letters and Gleanings, volume 1, contains letters written by Brother Witness Lee from October 23, 1937, through October 15, 1994, and miscellaneous messages given from 1948 through 1964. The contents of this volume are divided into ten sections, as follows: 1. One hundred nineteen letters written to Brother Liu Suey on June 3, 1947, through October 5, 1981. These letters are included in this volume under the title Letters to Liu Suey. 2. Eight letters written to Brother Weigh Kwang-hsi (K. H. Weigh) on September 25, 1961, through October 3, 1974. These letters are included in this volume under the title Letters to K. H. Weigh. 3. Three hundred thirty-one letters written from an unknown date in 1948 through October 15, 1994, to various churches and individual saints; five letters written on April 20, 1967, through March 14, 1968, to Brother Carl Althaus; a letter written on February 8, 1992, to Brother Benson Phillips and all the full-time serving brothers and sisters in Moscow, Russia; a letter written on August 7, 1992, to the young brothers and sisters in the church in Moscow; and a letter written on January 29, 1993, to the saints who completed the first term of the full-time training in Moscow. These letters are included in this volume under the title Miscellaneous Letters. 4. A letter written on October 23, 1937, and published in the periodical The Open Door, Issue No. 2; five letters written on September 6, 1962, through April 9, 1963, and published in Church News, Issue Nos. 53 through 55; four letters written on December 4, 1963, through November 6, 1964, and published in The Ministry of the Word, Supplementary Issues, 1964, Issue Nos. 1, 10, and 12; and thirty-six letters written on April 25, 1968, through April 6, 1977, and published in Church News, Resumed, Issue Nos. 12 through 51. These letters are included in this volume under the title Published Letters. 5. A message given in Swatow, China, on January 17, 1948. This message is included in this volume under the title Fellowship concerning the Gospel, Revival, Life, and Loving the Lord. 6. A message given in an unknown location in 1956. This message is included in this volume under the title Recovering God's Temple, God's City, and God's Word. 7. Four messages given at a location believed to be San Francisco, California, in 1963. These messages are included in this volume under the title Miscellaneous Gleanings, 1963. 8. A message given in a location believed to be Los Angeles, California, in 1963. This message is included in this volume under the title Abiding in Christ by Denying Ourselves and Opening Ourselves to Him. 9. Two messages given in uncertain locations in 1964. These messages are included in this volume under the title Miscellaneous Gleanings, 1964. 10. A message given in an uncertain location in 1964. This message is included in this volume under the title The Use of Marriage in God's Hand.
