The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1950-1951, volume 3, contains messages given by Brother Witness Lee in 1951 through 1965. Historical information concerning Brother Lee's travels and the content of his ministry during the period of 1950-1951 can be found in the general preface that appears at the beginning of volume 1 of this set. The contents of this volume are divided into five sections, as follows: 1. Seven messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1951. These messages were previously published in a book entitled Being Apt to Teach and Holding the Mystery of the Faith and are included in this volume under the same title. 2. Nine messages given at an unknown time and place. These messages were originally published in separate issues of the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1951, 1954, and 1957. They were also previously published in a book entitled Changing Death into Life and are included in this volume under the same title. 3. Nine messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1951. These messages were previously published in a book entitled The Path of Our Growth in Life and are included in this volume under the same title. 4. Eight messages that were first published in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1951 through 1954. These messages were also previously published in a book entitled The Spirit and Service in Spirit and are included in this volume under the same title. 5. Eleven messages given in various places and originally published in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1951 through 1965. They were also previously published in a book entitled The Operation of God and the Anointing and are included in this volume under the same title.

At the time of regeneration, all believers receive the divine life and are begotten as children of God. Yet, this life most grow and it does so by regulation unto maturity and function. This regulation comes from revelation and issues in obedience. This word is crucial for our progress and training in the divine life for our maturity and function in our living and service to God.

Brother Lee arrived in Taiwan from mainland China in May 1949 and started the work there on August 1 of that year. He remained there until February 1950. During that time he conducted a three-month study of the crucial truths in the Scriptures (see volumes 3 and 4 of the 1932-1949 set). Up to the end of the year, four baptism meetings were conducted, and the number of saints increased from around thirty to over nine hundred. On February 16, 1950, Brother Lee traveled to Hong Kong to join Watchman Nee in the work. He stayed until April 1, at which time he returned to Taiwan. The messages released during this period are included in volume 1 of this set, in the section entitled The Recovery of the Church according to the Pattern on the Mountain. After returning to Taiwan, he continued to lead the church in preaching the gospel and perfecting the saints. A total of one thousand two hundred twelve people were baptized in that year on nine occasions. The church met in twelve homes (that is, districts), six of which were in the city of Taipei and six in the suburbs. Some of the messages given during that time are included in the sections In Spirit, Not in Letter; The Pursuit of a Christian; and The Pure in Heart (see volumes 1 and 2 of this set). He also conducted trainings for the serving ones, but no record has been found of these trainings. On November 17, 1950, Brother Lee visited the Philippines for the first time and stayed for five and a half months, after which he returned to Taiwan on May 1, 1951. The only record of his speaking consists of a talk that he gave in January 1951 in Manila to those who wished to serve (see his personal notes and diaries in volume 2 of this set). After returning to Taiwan, Brother Lee stayed for only two months and returned to Manila quickly. From June 26 through July 24 he was in Manila and held an eight-day conference beginning on July 8. No record has been located of this conference. After returning to Taiwan from Manila, he held a conference on August 5 on "A Christianity of Religion versus a Christianity of Revelation." No record has been found of his speaking in this conference. On September 19 he visited Manila for the third time and did not return to Taiwan until the end of the year. The church in Manila was subdivided into four district meetings, and new arrangements were made in the way of the preaching of the gospel and the edification of new believers. In 1951, during his brief times in Taiwan in May, June, and August, there are records of some of his speakings. These are published in volume 3 of this set. The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1950-1951, volume 1, contains messages given by Brother Witness Lee in 1950. Historical information concerning Brother Lee's travels and the content of his ministry during the period of 1950-1951 can be found in the general preface that appears at the beginning of this volume. The contents of this volume are divided into three sections, as follows: 1. Thirty-eight messages given in Hong Kong in February and March 1950. These messages are included in this volume under the title The Recovery of the Church according to the Pattern on the Mountain. 2. Ten messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in April and May 1950. These messages first appeared in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in volume 4, numbers 6 and 7, and in volume 5, numbers 1 through 6 and 8 and 9. They were also previously published in Chinese in a book entitled In Spirit, Not in Letter and are included in this volume under the same title. 3. Eight messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in the summer of 1950. These messages were previously published in a book entitled The Pursuit of a Christian and are included in this volume under the same title.

The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1950-1951, volume 2, contains messages, articles, reports, personal notes, and diary entries by Brother Witness Lee in 1950 through 1954. Historical information concerning Brother Lee's travels and the content of his ministry during the period of 1950-1951 can be found in the general preface that appears at the beginning of volume 1 of this set. The contents of this volume are divided into six sections, as follows: 1. Ten messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1950. These messages were previously published in a book entitled The Pure in Heart and are included in this volume under the same title. 2. Fifteen messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1950. These messages were previously published as chapters 14 through 28 in a book entitled Christ Being the Burden of the Gospel. They are included in this volume under the title Messages for the Gospel and for the Perfecting of New Believers. 3. A collection of personal notes and diaries written in Manila, Philippines, in January 1951. They are included in this volume under the title Witness Lee's Personal Notes and Diaries. 4. Nine messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, and originally published in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1951 and 1952. They were also previously published in a book entitled Serving according to Revelation and are included in this volume under the same title. 5. Nine articles and reports published in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1951 and 1952. They are included in this volume under the title The Ministry of the Word, Miscellaneous Messages, 1951. 6. Twelve messages given at an unknown time and place. These messages were originally published in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1951 through 1954. They were also previously published in a book entitled Redemption in God's Plan and are included in this volume under the same title.

When God created man, He placed him before two trees: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. In warning man to avoid the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, God indicated His desire for man to eat of the tree of life, signifying that man should receive God as his life supply. Witness Lee unveils in The Tree of Life that God is not looking for well-behaved Christians; He is looking for those who will experience and enjoy Christ as the reality of the tree of life.

In the Lord’s recovery during the past five hundred years the church’s knowledge of the Lord and His truth has been continually progressing. This monumental and classical work by Brother Witness Lee builds upon and is a further development of all that the Lord has revealed to His church in the past centuries. It is filled with the revelation concerning the processed Triune God, the living Christ, the life-giving Spirit, the experience of life, and the definition and practice of the church. In this set Brother Lee has kept three basic principles that should rule and govern every believer in their interpretation, development, and expounding of the truths contained in the Scriptures. The first principle is that of the Triune God dispensing Himself into His chosen and redeemed people; the second principle is that we should interpret, develop, and expound the truths contained in the Bible with Christ for the church; and the third governing principle is Christ, the Spirit, life, and the church. No other study or exposition of the New Testament conveys the life nourishment or ushers the reader into the divine revelation of God’s holy Word according to His New Testament economy as this one does.

"The entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, shows us that God is our enjoyment. God also has His fullness (Eph. 3:19b). He is full for us to enjoy. His fullness is the expression of the riches of Christ, and the reality of Christ is in the Spirit. We know this by the revelation of the Word. The riches of Christ are revealed in the Word. Furthermore, we can realize God as our enjoyment in our spirit (John 4:24)."

In this issue we will continue four lines of ministry. The first line--The History of the Lord's Recovery--contains chapters 3 through 6 of The Recovery of the Church according to the Pattern on the Mountain, which are in volume 1 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1950–1951. This section includes a demonstration on how to conduct a Bible study and messages on knowing the principle of God's work, the Christian pathway, and the whole church serving. The second line--Words for New Believers--contains chapter 33 of Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, Volume 3, which is in volume 3 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1932–1949, and chapters 34 through 36 of Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, Volume 4, which are in volume 4 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1932–1949. These chapters cover topics related to a few matters concerning the living of the believers, the knowledge of God, the faithfulness of God and the righteousness of God, and the selection and predestination of God. The third line--Maturing in Life--contains chapters 9 through 12 of The Kingdom, which are in volume 2 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1972. These chapters speak of the battlefield of the two kingdoms, the kingdom and the soul-life, and the mysteries of the kingdom. The fourth line--The High Peak of the Divine Revelation--continues with chapters 26 through 29 of God's New Testament Economy, which are in volume 3 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1984. This section contains four chapters on the New Jerusalem as the ultimate consummation of God's New Testament economy with its designations and the basic elements of its structure.

In this issue we will continue four lines of ministry. The first line--The History of the Lord's Recovery--contains chapters 9 and 10 of The Advance of the Lord's Recovery Today, which are in volume 4 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1989, and chapters 1 and 2 of The Recovery of the Church according to the Pattern on the Mountain, which are in volume 1 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1950–1951. This section covers how to carry out the New Testament priesthood of the gospel according to the Lord's up-to-date recovery, the recovery of the church according to the pattern on the mountain, and serving God according to the characteristics of life. The second line--Words for New Believers--contains chapters 29 through 32 of Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, Volume 3, which are in volume 3 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1932–1949. These chapters cover topics related to serving the Lord, meeting, reading the Bible, and prayer. The third line--Maturing in Life--contains chapters 5 through 8 of The Kingdom, which are in volume 2 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1972. These chapters speak of the sowing of the seed of the kingdom, the growing of the seed of the kingdom, image and dominion, and the two kingdoms. The fourth line--The High Peak of the Divine Revelation--continues with chapters 22 through 25 of God's New Testament Economy, which are in volume 3 of The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1984. This section contains four chapters on the seven Spirits.