In the church we should not have different kinds of speaking, because in the church we should have only one mind. In Romans 15:5-6, 1 Corinthians 1:10, and Philippians 2:2, the Apostle Paul charged the believers to be of one mind. We have only one mind. Some people criticize us severely, saying that all the local churches are the same, speak the same thing, and have the same concept. Although they claim that this is terrible, I say that it is marvelous. This is the reverse of Babel.

Romans 15:5-6 even speaks of having one mind and one mouth. The church should have one mouth because the church is one body.

(Witness Lee, LS of Genesis, 494-495)

This oneness is made real and practical by means of the anointing that is upon Christ the Head and that spreads upon the Body. As long as we remain in the Body, we share the ointment. In this ointment we are one. Hence, the anointing of the compound, all-inclusive, life-giving Spirit is the element of our oneness. This means that to be one as members of the church is to be under the Spirit's anointing. If we are not under this anointing, we cannot be one with anyone, not even with ourselve`s.

Oneness does not depend upon our natural ability to get along with others. Some believers may even be proud of having the kind of disposition that makes it easy for them to be one with other people. However, this kind of oneness is not the precious oneness revealed in the Bible. Actually, it is a very distasteful and uncomely sort of oneness. A person who boasts of this kind of oneness actually is not able to be one with others over a long period of time. On the contrary, he may eventually cause a great deal of disturbance. Genuine oneness consists in the anointing of the compound, all-inclusive Spirit as the ultimate consummation of the Triune God. Only under such an anointing do we have a genuine, unchanging oneness. Thousands of us can testify of the oneness we enjoy under the anointing of the compound Spirit. Our oneness has its source in the mysterious mingling of the processed Triune God with the believers.

(Witness Lee, Genuine Ground, 93-94)

"One Body and one Spirit, even as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all" (Eph. 4:4-6). A person is constituted a member of the Church on the ground that he possesses the oneness of the Spirit, and that will result in his being one with all believers on the above seven points. They are the seven elements in the oneness of the Spirit, which is the common heritage of all the children of God.

(Watchman Nee, Collected Works, Set 2, Vol. 30, 78)

There must be a spiritual relatedness among the churches if the testimony of the Body is to be preserved, but there must at the same time be an absolute independence of government if the testimony of the Head is to be maintained. Each church is under the immediate control of Christ, and is directly responsible to Him alone.

(Watchman Nee, Collected Works, Set 2, Vol. 30, 65)

In Matthew 18:19 the Greek word sumphoneo is used for one accord. It means "to be in harmony, or accord" and refers to the harmonious sound of musical instruments or voices. Eventually, the one accord, or the harmony of inward feeling among the believers, becomes like a melody, like music. Every proper melody is harmonious. When we have the one accord, in the eyes of God we become a melody to Him. We become a poem not merely in writing but in sound, in voice, in melody. Our one accord must be like a harmonious melody. Such a one accord is the nucleus of the oneness. In other words, oneness is like a nut, and the one accord is like the kernel of that nut. In Acts 1:14 another Greek word, homothumadon, is used for one accord. This word is from homo, same, and thumos, mind, will, purpose (soul, heart). The word denotes a harmony of inward feeling in one's entire being.

(Witness Lee, Urgent Need, 76)

Paul and Peter encountered the trouble concerning circumcision recorded in Acts 15, but they did not have any division. They tried their best to get the problem solved in order to keep the oneness of the Body of Christ, that is, the oneness of all the local churches in both the Jewish and Gentile territories. Thus, the churches kept the oneness, and there was no division.

(Witness Lee, Eldership (3), 126)

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