The Authenticity of Local Church Faith Affirmed and Appreciated
by Many Prominent Christian Scholars Worldwide
1. The conclusion of Fuller Theological Seminary that the teachings and practices of the local churches and its members represent the genuine, historical, biblical Christian faith in every essential aspect. In regard to their teaching and testimony concerning God, the Trinity, the person and work of Christ, the Bible, salvation, and the oneness and unity of the Church, the Body of Christ, we found them to be unequivocally orthodox. (Fuller Theological Seminary – One of the largest multidenominational seminaries in the world.)
2. The local churches are an authentic expression of New Testament Christianity. Moreover, as a group forged in the cauldron of persecution, it has much to offer Western Christianity. In sum, along with Christians from a broad range of persuasions, the local churches are dedicated to both proper doctrine (orthodoxy) and proper practice (orthopraxy). (Hank Hanegraaff- the President of Christian Research Institute , the largest apologetics ministry in the world.)
3. I find it to be thoroughly consistent with historic, orthodox Christian theology in all of its affirmations. Indeed, it is far more explicit and astute in its orthodoxy than what one normally encounters in statements of faith. (Elliot Miller, the Chief Editor of Christian Research Journal.)
4. From my observation, I conclude that the Local Church stands in the tradition of evangelical Christianity, of the Protestant emphasis on biblical authority, of the great Christian mystics’ and pietists’ concern for the inner life, of the millennia-old expectation of a new age, and of born-again, experiential religion. (Edwin S. Gaustad was Professor of History and Religious Studies at the University of California, Riverside, and former President of the American Society of Church History.)
5. I continue to pray that the larger evangelical community in this country and elsewhere will come to realize that the deep biblical commitments and Christian orthodoxy of our influential Chinese brothers/teachers [Watchman Nee and Witness Lee] should be appreciated rather than maligned. (Peter Kuzmic is the Eva B. and Paul E. Toms Distinguished Professor of World Missions and European Studies at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary)
6. But I think that his impact on the West may well be greater than the impact that Confucius had on the West. And I’m talking about Watchman Nee. And the reason is I’m thinking about his book The Normal Christian Life…a book that has impacted our culture in the most extraordinary way. (Hank Hanegraaff spoke on the radio station in USA http://youtu.be/FBmPvsfDpr0)
7. Watchman Nee had become the most influential Chinese Christian writer, evangelist, and church builder. One of his best known book, The Normal Christian Life sold over one million copies world-wide and became a twentieth-century Christian classic. (Congressional Record in recognition of Watchman Nee of July 30, 2009)
8. Tens of thousands turned to Jesus Christ for their salvation and began congregating in simple, New Testament churches, as their Chinese brethren had done in China during the previous two decades. ..Since the early 1960s the spread of the local churches under Lee’s ministry throughout the North and South America, Europe, and Africa has been remarkable. There are more than 4,000 churches and 400,000 believers meeting on every inhabited continent. (Congressional Record in recognition of Watchman Nee and Witness Lee of April 29, 2014)
For more detail please visit: http://an-open-letter.org/ch/testimonies/ and http://21century.us/
