The three volumes of Basic Elements of the Christian Life present truths in the Bible that are crucial to our life with the Lord Jesus. They cover matters such as God’s plan of salvation, contacting and experiencing Christ in our human spirit, growing in the Lord, and the building up of the church.
God’s plan of salvation is presented in the first chapter, on the mystery of human life. The following chapters detail several basic experiences for a Christian. The final chapter presents the ultimate key to a believer’s Christian life—the experience of Christ in the human spirit. For those seeking God and for believers who desire to grow in Christ, these messages will establish a firm foundation for a rich and meaningful Christian life.
The central point of the Christian life is to know Christ Himself. For this we need to contact and experience Him in a living way day by day. This experience involves some basic elements, including proper spiritual food, regular spiritual worship, and deep spiritual growth.
There are further experiences of Christ that are basic to the Christian life. As believers, we should live according to the higher principle of life, rather than just the principle of right and wrong. When the life of God operates in us, the shining of this life brings us into a proper living and builds us up with other believers into a corporate expression of God, which is the church. This volume details these experiences. These messages impart spiritual food into all believers for both their personal growth in the Lord and for the growth and building up of the church.
In 1927 Watchman Nee published his spiritual classic on Christian growth and progress, The Spiritual Man. In that book Nee presents the simple biblical truth that man is composed of three parts - spirit and soul and body - as a central and necessary revelation for believers to progress in their spiritual life.
In The Economy of God Nee's closest and most trusted co-worker, Witness Lee, builds upon this foundation in order to unveil the central revelation of the Bible - that God wants to impart Himself into man for His full expression in the church. In The Economy of God Lee clearly reveals the move of the Divine Trinity and gives believers practical ways to cooperate with Him for the fulfillment of His eternal plan.
All of the types and figures found throughout the Old Testament present a wonderful view of our Savior Jesus Christ. One of the most significant yet overlooked types is the good land. In The All-inclusive Christ Witness Lee expounds portions of the book of Deuteronomy, showing that the land inherited by the children of Israel is a full type of Christ, who is our New Testament inheritance. He presents a detailed study of some of the unsearchable riches of the good land. Each type is explained and applied to our experience as believers.
From beginning to end The All-inclusive Christ encourages God's seekers to daily experience and enjoy Christ as the good land for the fulfillment of God's eternal purpose.
God views the church, the redeemed believers, from a heavenly perspective. Far from seeing her as defeated by the power of sin and sins, God views the church as the glorious counterpart of Christ. In The Glorious Church Watchman Nee discusses four significant representations of the church in the Bible: Eve in Genesis 2, the wife in Ephesians 5, the woman in Revelation 12, and the Bride in Revelation 21 and 22. In each instance, he presents the church's high calling to fulfill God's eternal purpose.
Recently discovered handwritten notes supplement this new and fresh translation of The Glorious Church, making it the most complete record of the messages given by Watchman Nee from the fall of 1939 to the fall of 1942.
God's desire is to gain a full, corporate expression in man, bearing His image, manifesting His glory, and possessing His authority to deal with His enemy. Few believers, however, realize that this desire can be attained only through God's own life. Even fewer have touched the matter of knowing and experiencing the divine life which has been made available to us through Christ's death and resurrection.
In The Knowledge of Life Witness Lee illuminates the path that leads to life, beginning with regeneration and advancing to knowing the inward sense of life. The Knowledge of Life provides a foundation for the genuine experience of Christ and a helpful introduction to his companion book The Experience of Life.