Watchman Nee: Do something morethan what is right

"Nothing has done greater damage to our Christian testimony than our trying to be right and demanding right of others. We become preoccupied with what is and what is not right. We ask ourselves, Have we been justly or unjustly treated? and we think thus to vindicate our actions. But that is not our standard. The whole question for us is one of cross-bearing.

You ask me, “Is it right for someone to strike my cheek?” I reply, “Of course not!” But the question is, do you only want to be right? As Christians, our standard of living can never be “right or wrong,” but the cross. The principle of the cross is our principle of conduct. Praise God that He makes His sun to shine on the evil and the good. With Him it is a question of His grace and not of right or wrong.

A brother in South China had a rice field in the middle of the hill. In time of drought, he used a waterwheel worked by a treadmill to lift water from the irrigation stream into his field. His neighbor had two fields below his, and one night made a breach in the dividing bank and drained off all his water. When the brother repaired the breach and pumped in more water, his neighbor did the same thing again, and this was repeated three or four times.

So he consulted his brethren. “I have tried to be patient and not to retaliate,” he said, “but is it right?” After they had prayed together about it, one of them replied, “If we only try to do the right thing, surely we are very poor Christians. We have to do something more than what is right.” The brother was much impressed. Next morning he pumped water for the two fields below, and in the afternoon pumped water for his own field. After that the water stayed in his field. His neighbor was so amazed at his action that he began to inquire the reason, and in course of time, he too became a Christian.

So, my brethren, don’t stand on your right. Don’t feel that because you have gone the second mile you have done what is just. The second mile is only typical of the third and the fourth. The principle is that of conformity to Christ. We have nothing to stand for, nothing to ask or demand. We have only to give. When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, He did not do so to defend our “rights”; it was grace that took Him there. Now, as His children, we try always to give others what is their due and more.

It's a long post so I will be brief.

When you read this I will have finished my remarks to the 1,000 delegates from 125 countries as well as my workshop connecting the role of Christian workers in demonstrating accountability to growing generosity.

I can't describe how exhausting this week has been. Every day from like 8am to 12 midnight, or later.

I started to complain in my heart and the Lord convicted me. Whenever I voiced "this is not right" I caught myself and realized that my role is only to give and trust God.

And I must confess something to the world.

God brought it to my attention today. This is humbling. In 2022, someone did something to me that was "not right" to me. That caused that relationship to get stuck.

Now read this again.

“I have tried to be patient and not to retaliate,” he said, “but is it right?” After they had prayed together about it, one of them replied, “If we only try to do the right thing, surely we are very poor Christians. We have to do something more than what is right.”

Today I chose to do something more than right and to learn only to give.