Well, for starters, I must admit that I do not claim to be an expert on Watchman Nee. However, allow me to suggest some brief points.

1) Watchman Nee apparently believed in on-going present-day revelations outside of the Bible. So, for instance, he could write this (I'm quoting from the WatchmanNee.org Web site):

"What the Lord revealed to me was extremely clear: Before long He would raise up local churches in various parts of China. Whenever I closed my eyes, the vision of the birth of local churches appeared...."

I did a search of the Complete Works of Watchman Nee at Christian Fellowship Publishers and could find no statements such as this made by Watchman Nee. Realize that the Living Stream Ministry is a cult from which this quote comes from which is known to create statements of Watchman Nee that Watchman Nee never made. When people critique Watchman Nee they usually do so by going to a cult (Local Church) which has nothing to do with Watchman Nee and was created after Nee was imprisoned for life. Realize that the Local Church operates by central hub, but Biblical locality is without a central hub. Moreover, Nee's little flock today rejects the Living Stream Ministry cult material from which this Presbyterian (soul annihilators) quotes from since they have many false teachings like modalism and created many writings said to be of Watchman Nee that are nowhere to be found in addition molesting existing writings by Watchman Nee. For example, Stephen Kaung (owner of CFP) is quoted as saying Witness Lee went too far.

This differs significantly from Reformed Theology, since we believe that the fullness of God's revelation is contained in Scripture alone. In other words, God speaks to us today through his written Word, not through direct revelations.

"That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him" (Eph. 1.17). God speaks to us today by the indwelling Holy Spirit with revelation directly in agreement with God's Word. Therefore, what is the real difference between between Reformed Theology and that of OSAS Arminian? It is that under calvinism, there is the pride of belief they are premade for salvation, whereas OSAS Arminian shows us in the Scripture that God makes man in His image to have the right to choose His redemption so He may grace the sinner with His uncreated life. Therein lies the difference. Most people who are of the reformed ilk are not born again because of this false way of salvation which requires them to alter the Scriptures. The truth of their mistaken assumption is that predestination is by foreknowledge, not by pre-designing a person to choose.

Making such a case from the Bible is beyond the scope of this forum...expounds all the relevant biblical passages to make the Reformed case against present-day direct revelations.

The Word of God is beyond the writer the forum of the Presbyterian, I concur. The evil spirit within reformed theology says revelation does exist in the spirit, but if this were so there would not be the indwelling Holy Spirit. Indeed, there is no indwelling Holy Spirit in the bulk of those in the reformed camp.

2) The Watchman Nee web site also says this about Watchman Nee:

"Because of what he saw in the Word, he was exercised to live purely and singly by faith in God not only for his living, but also for every aspect of the Lord's work. Hence, he steadfastly refused employment by any person or organization."

Again, the choice of words by the Living Stream Ministry cult of Witness Lee and Sons is misleading as is the reformed theologist's interpretation. For example, Watchman Nee inherited a company which he worked at for a short time before selling it and giving the proceeds to the Church and those in the Work for the Church. Watchman Nee does not promote poverty, but he himself showed his devotion to God. In fact, Nee ha said if a person is rich and can afford nice things or eat expensively, he may be so at liberty in the Lord to do so. Through Nee's writings you find he states such things as elders should have jobs as he addresses the matter of those who are responsible for the workings of the Church. However, those in the Work for the Church never draw a salary. They my be supplied and even given money, but they are not to treat the Work for the Church as income. This is the pastoral system not found in the Scriptures, borrowed from the RCC, Eastern Orthodox and taught in Protestantism too. Realize in the above verses that Paul did not say men should be paid as secular workers in the Church, but as per "food and clothing" (NLT) or "carnal things" (ASV) (v.11). Watchman Nee, like Paul, even so, did not demand of others such pay so as not to be blamed, yet here we have reformed adherents actually blaming Watchman Nee for his humility.

3) Nee also believed "that, according to the Bible, denominations are wrong. . ." Certainly, denominations are not ideal. All Christians should have a visible witness of unity. But, unfortunately, there are differences of opinion in matters of faith and practice. And for conscience' sake, there must be different denominations of Christians who disagree over very simple practical issues. For instance, do we baptize babies or no? We Presbyterians say yes; our Baptist brethren say no. How would these two groups do church together? What would be the official policy on baptism?

Actually, Nee points out that when one says they are "in Christ" not of a denomination that is dividing falsely too. All differences should be resolved according to Biblical locality as was the case in the first century when you had the church of Ephesus in the churches of Asia Minor or the church of Jerusalem in the churches of Judea or today, the church of Fresno in the churches of California. God knows man's heart and does not allow denominations by requiring fellowship according to each locality as a miniature of the new city. For conscience sake this is God's will, and for conscience sake against God's will to divide by denominations. There are not denominations in the Bible, and no rationalizing denominations, for this is merely man's flesh and paycheck for those in the pastoral system. The Bible does not baptize babies and baptizing is burial and resurrection at the age of accountable according to their own choice for God to grace them with His life. Presbyterians are wrong on this matter, so are the Lutherans. How does God handle differences? He says resolve your difference in your locality, but do not bring it to other localities by creating some vain denomination or false Sardis revival. Solve this problem locally only! Therefore, you bring your differences together to resolve them instead of separating and creating division, learning to live with one another to arrive at the truth.

That said, however, we should keep in mind that Reformed Theology does teach the unity of the church. For example, we believe that while our Reformed Baptist brethren worship in a different building than we do, and even though they don't baptize infants, we are still part of the same universal and invisible church. They are no less the body of Christ than we are. We might wish that it be otherwise, but, unfortunately, this side of glory, and for the sake of Christian liberty, denominations are necessary.

Baptists are reformed only in the sense that they contradict themselves by holding to some of the 5 points of calvinism while some of the 5 points of osas arminian. False revivals, false reformations, are not true reformation according to Biblical locality. What can we say about these various divisions in Christendom? Certainly we can say that a greater percentage of Wesleyians are saved than Presbyterians since Wesleyians do not believe in the pride of thinking they are premade for salvation since God does not save that way. All those saved are the universal church. What the Church needs is for members of the body of Christ to come out of these man-made organizations to abide in Biblical locality of the first century (Ephesus Rev. 2.1-8) to restore this lost love.

4) Watchman Nee's influences seemed to have been associated with the Plymouth Brethren and the writings of John Darby. These folks basically taught that office in the church was unbiblical. So, he didn't believe in churches governed by elders as we Reformed do. Also, going hand in hand with these influences would have been the approach to interpreting the Bible called "dispensationalism." Reformed theology does not adhere to this method of interpretation, but rather believes in what is called "Covenant Theology."

This is an incorrect statement in several ways. What are the truth of these mistaken assumptions? The Plymouth Brethren and John Darby did not teach, and nor did Watchman Nee, that office is unBiblical. Rather, drawing salary is unBiblical for those in the Work for the Church. An informal apostle today receives direct revelation from God to do the Work of an apostle. Elders, on the other hand, hold office, being selected by today's equivalent of an apostle, which we may call informal apostles. However, they hold jobs just like you and I, and they do not draw salary though they may receive supplies and gifts and donations unrequested. The difference between the calvinist reformed is that they need salaries disabling any work they do since this was not the way in the Scriptures. Regarding dispensations, God uses time, who can deny the dispensations of time? There was the age of innocence, the age of government coming into being, the dispensation of the law, and today, the dispensation of grace (mystery age of the Church period - Rev. 2 & 3). Reformed calvinism does not adhere to time because calvinists are usually historicalists. This means they have no faith that Christ can return to reign in Person for 1000 years mentioned 6 times (Rev. 20.2-7 - 3rd last chapter of the Bible), and they conclude this time of Hitler today as the millennial peace. This is a dead conscience that thinks such a thing. Those who know God works in time (dispensations) also believe in covenant theology, that being, that God has had various covenants for today we are under a New Covenant in the Church which is received beforehand, before the nation of Israel who had received the Old Covenant. Men in their flesh pride themselves on things showing something is amiss in their heart of hearts.

The basic difference between the two systems of reading the Bible is that dispensationalism divides the Bible up into different ways in which God saves his people. Covenant Theology believes that there is only one way in which man is saved by God from the fall to the return of Christ; and that is by grace alone, through faith alone, because of Christ alone.

Dispensation does not teach different ways of saving people. There is only one way of saving people, through the cross, whether it is a looking towards the cross or back at the eternal cross. What we have seen the unsaved calvinist do is sin the sin of bearing false witness to defend what? Pride of preselectionism and false eschatology and other bad doctrine like soul annihilation and baptizing before the age of accountability, which is vanity. So what we simply find is a passivity in the mind of a presbyterian. Such closed mindedness is indicative something rotten.

Well, this should give you some basics. So as not to sound uncharitable, however, I would also recognize that Watchman Nee was used by the Lord in a very powerful way to spread the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Nee apparently believed that many people in China were relying upon their works to gain eternal life, but his emphasis in preaching was upon the finished work of Jesus Christ. And for that work we rejoice and thank God.

Notice the sly deceit. Watch carefully. The writer (unknown) from this presbyterian organization says "Nee apparently believed that many people in China were relying upon their works to gain eternal life", though Watchman Nee never said this or even implied it for it is by the work of redemption through the cross that salvations is given by the grace of God as Nee so taught, and Watchman Nee was an informal apostle and the most spiritual Christian that I have ever read. Watchman Nee's foremost work is The Spiritual Man (CFP), one of only two books he ever published of size - white covers only. This is the best work ever produced in the Church regarding the dividing of spirit, soul and body in the redemptive design.

Love, in Christ,

Troy Brooks