Build the Church in Peace in the Mingled Spirit with no Noise except Singing and Praising

We can build the church in peace in the mingled spirit with no noise of criticism or judgment but with much singing and praising the Lord!

The church is built in peace in the mingled spirit, without any noise of criticism or quarrel but with lots of singing, even as the temple was built without any sound of hammer or iron tool. Amen!

The matter of the building of the temple in Jerusalem by Solomon has much significance, and the aspects of the temple and of its building can be applied to the church and the building of the church today.

David received the blueprint of the temple from God, and he prepared the materials for the temple and the builders, and he also gained the ground and prepared it for the building.

David typifies the suffering Christ, the Christ who suffered on earth from the manger to the cross; Christ prepared the materials for God’s building and the ground, and He spoke the blueprint of the church.

Solomon was the one who carried out the building up of the temple, with all its details and features; Christ is the real Solomon who builds up the church as the temple of God, and He speaks the word of wisdom (Matt. 16:18).

David also arranged the services of Israel to God related to the temple, which typifies that Christ as the Head of the Body has set up a certain order in His Body for the building up of the church.

On one hand, Christ gave some gifts for the perfecting of the saints; on the other hand, it is not these gifts that directly build up the Body but all the perfected saints who function in their measure that build it up.

However, as members of the Body we should not think that our measure is higher than it is, nor should we despise our function because it is not the same as someone else’s function.

For us to think that we have a greater measure of faith and a larger portion than the apostle Paul, for example, is foolish; we should not think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think.

Thinking of ourselves higher than we ought to think is not wise and it leads to division in the Body.

Yes, we have seen the blueprint of the church, and yes, we have a certain measure and a function in the church, but we should simply function in our measure and not be presumptuous or proud.

On the other hand, each one of us has a unique function in the Body, and the Lord wants each one to function in our measure, not despising our function when we look at others and it seems that they have a greater function than we do.

Praise the Lord, God has placed the members in the Body even as He willed, and Christ is blending the members of the Body so that no one stands out except the Head of the Body, to whom we all hold and whom we obey.

Build the Church in Peace in the Mingled Spirit, without any Noise of Criticism or Judgment

When the temple as the house of God was built, it was built of finished stone, cut at the quarry, so that neither hammer nor axe nor any iron tool was heard in the house when it was being built (1 Kings 6:7). This is very important.

Every piece of stone used for the building of the temple was, in principle, already cut and prepared in the mountains (1 Kings 5:15-19; 6:7).

When the temple was built, there was the need only for these precut and shaped stones to be fitted together and placed one on top of the other; there was no additional work needed, and no hammer or axe was heard.

The temple was built quietly, in peace, without any noise or sound from a hammer or axe.

Rather, what was heard was singing, lots of singing, for the priests and Levites were singing as the house was built. Solomon’s name means “peace”, which means that the church is built by Christ as a “man of rest” in peace, without any noise (1 Chron. 22:9; Acts 9:31; Eph. 4:29-32).

How does this apply to our experience in the church life today? We need to realize that the church is built in peace in the mingled spirit, without any noise of criticism or judgement.

Before we can be built up in the church with the other living stones, we need to be dealt with by God. Before we can function in the church in our measure in a proper way, we need to accept the Lord’s dealings.

Just because we are in the church life for a long time and have some experience of Christ doesn’t mean we are qualified to lead or to be an elder; there need to be dealings that remove any sharp edges and make us buildable in the house of God.

If someone who is not dealt with takes the lead in the church, the church life is full of “the noise of the hammer and axe”; if those who take the lead are dealt with by the Lord and their sharp edges are removed, they build the church in peace.

We all need to open to the Lord’s dealings and allow Him to cut, break, and deal with anything that is sharp, twisted, wrong, and unfit for God’s building.

When someone comes into our meeting and starts to criticize others recklessly or judge them, we should not add to his noise or create any noise; we should simply retreat to our mingled spirit and seek to speak for the building up of the church.

If we respond to the one who recklessly criticizes and speaks evil things, there will be more speaking and debate.

But if we are adequately broken by the Lord and have sufficiently learned some deep lessons, we will not be inwardly provoked when we hear the rebuke of others or when others criticize us.

This is a deep lesson we need to learn in the church life. In our personal experience with the Lord, we need to allow Him to deal with us, remove our sharp and peculiar edges, and learn the lesson of not answering back those who seek to argue with us.

We need to be those who are willing to receive help from others and who can render help to others if others are willing to receive help.

If others are not willing to receive the help, we should not insist but rather, pray for them.

We should be open to helping others by teaching them what we have learned according to the leading of the Spirit.

But if others seek to argue with us, oppose us, or criticize us, we should simply swallow our words and remain silent.

May we allow the Lord to deal with us “in the mountains” and may there be no sound of the axe and iron tool in the church life.

May we cooperate with the Lord to build the church in peace in the mingled spirit, taking Him as our peace.

If a brother who is not dealt with by the Lord (who talks incessantly, who is not a good listener, and who thus has an un-renewed mind) becomes an elder, the church will be filled with the noise of the hammer, axe, and iron tool.

Also, some “noise” can be certain saints fighting with one another by praying to nullify another one’s prayer (see Isa. 50:4-5; Eph. 4:23).

May we retreat into the high tower of our mingled spirit, set our mind on our spirit, and allow the Lord to deal with our desire to react and answer others in their gossip, criticism, or judgment, and may we build the church in peace in the mingled spirit, taking Christ as our peace.

Lord Jesus, thank You for being the man of rest building up the church in peace and without any noise. We open to You, dear Lord, and we allow You to work in our being. Deal with our rough edges and sharp corners. Make us buildable. Make us living stones that can be fitted and built up with others in the church. Deal with our desire to react to others’ criticism, opposition, judgment, and rebuke. May we cooperate with You by being in the mingled spirit as we build the church in peace. Amen, Lord, may Your peace arbitrate in our hearts. Remind us, Lord, to withdraw into the Holy of Holies in our mingled spirit whenever we hear criticism, judgment, arguing, or opposition in the church life. Remind us to not respond but rather to contact You and seek to build the church in peace in the mingled spirit!

Learning the Lesson of Being in Spirit, Enjoying the Crucified and Resurrected Christ, and Singing to Enjoy the Lord as we Build up the Church

The first qualification of someone who wants to serve the Lord, the first character trait that he should have, is that he is a good listener.

He needs to listen to what others are saying, listen to what they are not saying, and listen to what their spirit says.

Many times, however, we are so filled with our own thoughts, feelings, situations, and things, that we have no capacity to listen to others. This kills the fellowship in the church life.

Sometimes in the prayer meetings of the church some saints “fight” with one another in prayer.

One brother may pray, Lord Jesus, sanctify us and purify us, and the next brother may pray, Lord, thank You that we are sanctified and purified already.

This may all sound spiritual and correct, but it is “noise” that hinders the building up of the church.

May we learn the lesson of being in the mingled spirit whenever it seems that someone argues with us, criticizes someone, passes a judgment, or opposes us.

May we learn to withdraw into the Holy of Holies, that is, retreat into and turn to our spirit and build the church in peace by being in spirit (Gal. 6:17-18; Isa. 30:15).

Instead of listening to criticism or trying to respond to it, we should simply sing, praise the Lord, and be full of thanksgiving.

In all our church service the noise we should hear is that of praising the Lord, giving Him thanks, and singing.

This is what was heard when the temple of God in Jerusalem was built: no noise of hammer, axe, or iron tool, but the song of singing (1 Chron. 6:31-32).

After the Ark was at rest, those whom David set over the service of song in the house of Jehovah ministered before the Tent of Meeting with singing until Solomon built the house of Jehovah in Jerusalem.

On one hand, we need to learn the lesson of being in the mingled spirit and building the church in peace and rest.

On the other hand, we should simply enjoy the Lord by singing to Him, praising Him, and offering Him thanks.

It doesn’t matter whether we know how to sing or whether our voice is like the ones singing in the opera; we should simply make a joyful noise to the Lord and sing His praises.

If we are silent before others when they criticise, gossip, oppose, or argue, they will also be quiet.

Then, we need to go further and just praise the Lord, enjoy Him, and give Him thanks.

In ourselves, this is impossible, but we can contact and enjoy the crucified and resurrected Christ, and in our organic union with Him, we can live in resurrection a life for the building up of the church.

We dwell with the King for His work, enjoying Him as the crucified and resurrected Christ to build Himself into us for our being perfected into pillars in the church as the house of God (1 Chron. 4:23; 1 Kings 7:17, 21; Rev. 3:12). Amen!

It is in our organic union with Him, as we dwell with Him and experience Him as the crucified and resurrected Christ, that we can build the church in peace in the mingled spirit.

He works Himself into us and we build up the church with the Christ that is constituted in our being.

By enjoying the all-inclusive Christ as the resurrection power and the resurrecting and life-giving Spirit of the processed Triune God the real and greater Solomon), we can participate in the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings with His God-man living as a man of prayer to be conformed to His death (as the real and greater David) for the sake of His Body (the real and greater temple) – see Phil. 3:10; Rom. 8:11; Matt. 12:3-4, 42; John 2:19-22; 2 Cor. 6:16.

May we be one with such a Christ, cooperate with Him, and build the church in the mingled spirit, with no noise of the natural man but with much singing and praising.

Lord Jesus, we love You and we praise You for all that You are, all that You have done, and all that You are doing for us and in us. Thank You for being our life and our life supply. Thank You for Your care and provision for us. What a privilege it is for us to dwell with the King for His work by enjoying the crucified and resurrected Christ and letting Him work Himself into us for the church. Amen, Lord, we want to be in the mingled spirit to build up the church as the temple of God. Keep us turning to our spirit. Keep us enjoying You. Keep us singing Your praises and thanking You for all things. Amen, Lord, we praise You and we thank You for everything! Thank You for making us the members of Your Body who build the church in peace in the mingled spirit!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Ed Marks in the message, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1956, vol. 2, “Three Aspects of the Church, Book “, pp. 218-220, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-study of 1 and 2 Kings (2022 summer training), week 6, entitled, Going on with the Lord from the Tabernacle Church Life to the Temple Church Life for the Building up of the Body of Christ as the Temple of the Living God.
• Further reading on this topic:
  – The Mingled Spirit, article by John Pester, via Affirmation and Critique here.
  – Living in the Mingled Spirit, The Secret of the Christian Life, via Holding to Truth.
  – The mingled spirit in Ephesians, and experiencing the mingled spirit by faith (via, Messages to the Trainees in Fall 1990, by Witness Lee)
  – Do You Know the Two Spirits—God’s Spirit Mingled with Your Human Spirit? via, Bibles for America blog.
  – Cooperating with the Uniting Spirit, via Church in NYC.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – Aren’t you satisfied and thankful / That our Lord has brought you in / Where His pleasures and His riches flow so free? / So be happy and be joyful, / In the spirit feast on Him, / So God’s garden can bear fruit abundantly. (Hymns #1237, stanza 5)
  – In the church the sound of life upon our ear is falling, / Then we see the joy of Christ expressed on every hand; / Babylon and things of earth in vain to us are calling. / We are home forever in Christ our land. / We’re churching in the Spirit / On the church’s local ground; / We’re churching with our brothers, / Our family we have found. / Oh, yes, we’re churching with the churches, / And we’ll make the earth resound / With hallelujahs for Christ our land! (Hymns #1236, stanza 1 and chorus)
  – We’ll dwell with the King for His work / And work thru each day of the year. / Perhaps ere it passes, the King / In glory Himself shall appear. / Oh, then in some closer embrace, / Oh, then in some nobler employ / We’ll dwell with the King for His work / In endless, ineffable joy! (Hymns #904, stanza 5)