The Purpose of the Vital Groups (4) – To Live the Church Life
The purpose of the vital groups is also to live the church life. Second Timothy 2:22 says, “Flee youthful lusts, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” This is the way to live the church life by the vital groups.
By Pursuing Righteousness
We live the church life by pursuing righteousness. To pursue righteousness is to take care of God’s righteous way. Matthew 5:20 says that unless our righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, we shall by no means enter into the kingdom of the heavens. The kingdom is a matter of righteousness (Rom. 14:17a), and according to the Epistles, this surpassing righteousness is Christ Himself lived out from us (Phil. 3:9). We have to live out Christ as our righteousness.
By Pursuing Faith
To pursue faith is to take care of God’s faithfulness. Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith it is impossible to be well pleasing to God. Also, when we come to God, we must believe that God is and we are not and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. We should pursue faith, which links us with God. We must be a person linked with God.
By Pursuing Love
To pursue love is to take care of God’s heart. Love maintains our relationship with others. Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians 13 that among faith, hope, and love, love is the greatest (v. 13). In 8:1 Paul says that knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. To forgive people is a matter of love. To visit people repeatedly without being disappointed or disheartened is also a matter of love.
By Pursuing Peace
To pursue peace is to take care of God’s peace in producing the church for our relationship with others in the church (Eph. 2:14-17; Rom. 14:17b). Ephesians 2:14 through 17 says that Christ crucified all the different ordinances in order to make peace. Our opinion is a kind of ordinance. All the ordinances have been crucified, so we can have peace. The church life in the vital groups needs peace. Christians are divided because there is no peace among them due to their many opinions and concepts. Without peace we become fruitless. We are branches of Christ as the vine tree. We should bear fruit, but fruitfulness depends upon our peace. If the branches fight one another, how can they bear fruit? Our fruit-bearing is killed by different opinions.
Through the Calling on the Lord out of a Pure Heart
We pursue the Lord as righteousness, faith, love, and peace through calling on Him out of a pure heart, seeking nothing but the Lord only, without ambition or greediness. We express our opinion because we are ambitious. We want to be something in the church or be the leader in our small group. We need a pure heart to live the church life. (The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “The Vital Groups”, ch. 1, pp. 65-67)
The church in Zamboanga 