The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1952, volume 1

Book excerpt: Brother Witness Lee was in Taiwan at the beginning of 1952. In the middle of January he conducted a seven-day conference in Taipei, Taiwan. We do not have a record of the messages given at this conference. Beginning on February 3, he conducted a ten-day special conference. These crucial messages are included in the section entitled Serving according to Revelation in volume 2 of the 1950-1951 set. On February 27 Brother Lee went to Manila, Philippines, and he returned to Taipei on June 17. During his time in Manila he conducted a conference on March 30 through April 4 on the subject of life and service. We do not have a record of the messages that he gave during that conference. However, we have Brother Lee's personal notes on various other meetings during his visit to Manila. They are included in the section on Brother Lee's personal notes that he made in 1952. After returning to Taiwan from Manila, Brother Lee conducted a two-week special conference beginning on July 13. The general messages are included in the section entitled Christ and the Cross in volume 1 of this set. There were also special messages for responsible ones on how to work, how to administrate the church, and how to conduct meetings. After the conference, beginning on July 28 Brother Lee conducted another two-week series of meetings on what the church is, the knowledge of the Son of God, Christ as the building material for the church, knowing the self and the natural man, the character needed for a worker of the Lord, the exercise of the spiritual life, and how to conduct meetings. These messages for the serving ones are included in the sections entitled Guidelines for the Lord's Table Meeting and the Pursuit in Life; The Crucified Christ; The Vision, Ministry, and Leading of the Lord's Serving Ones; and How to Administrate the Church, which are in volumes 1 and 2 of this set. Beginning on September 22 and ending on November 7, Brother Lee conducted a study, which took place five days a week, on the book of Romans. This study brought in a consecration of between four hundred and five hundred saints. The messages given during the study are included in the section entitled Revelations in Romans: Seeing God's Complete Salvation in volume 2 of this set. On November 12, at the conclusion of the study on Romans, a love feast was held with over two thousand in attendance. At the end of the love feast Brother Lee gave the following word: "A normal Christian must pursue equally in four things: life, truth, the gospel, and service. Most people pay attention to the first three things but neglect the last. This is why we need to make this up. We need to realize that all the services and expenses should be borne by all the saints; no one is in charge of everything or responsible for everything. All those who are called by the Lord to work for Him are in the Lord's work. Although they minister and lead in spiritual affairs and help the churches, they do not burden the churches materially. They look directly to the Lord in faith for all their needs. The Lord has cared for them." On December 10 Brother Lee left Taipei to visit Manila. The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1952, volume 1, contains messages given or published by Brother Witness Lee in 1952. Historical information concerning Brother Lee's travels and the content of his ministry in 1952 can be found in the general preface that appears at the beginning of this volume. The contents of this volume are divided into five sections, as follows: 1. A collection of personal notes and diary entries written in 1952. These are included in this volume under the title Witness Lee's Personal Notes. 2. Five miscellaneous articles and reports that were originally published in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1952. They are included in this volume under the title The Ministry of the Word, Miscellaneous Messages, 1952. 3. Twenty-two messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in the summer of 1952. These messages originally appeared in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1952 and 1953. They were also previously published in a book entitled Christ and the Cross and are included in this volume under the same title. 4. Twelve messages given in a training in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1952. These messages were previously published in a book entitled Guidelines for the Lord's Table Meeting and the Pursuit in Life and are included in this volume under the same title. 5. Fourteen messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in the summer of 1952. These messages were previously published in a book entitled The Crucified Christ and are included in this volume under the same title.