A Letter from Hank

A Letter from Hank Lettertop

Hank Hanegraaff

September 1, 2010

Christian Research Institute
Post Office Box 8500
Charlotte, NC 28271-8500

Dear Partner in Truth,

I have seldom known anyone more fully yielded to Christ than 80-year-old Mr. Liu.*

Today, Mr. Liu has one of the most beautiful smiles in the world . . . and no self-pity. Meeting him, it was hard to believe he spent much of his life in Chinese prison camps for his faith, suffering persecutions you and I can only imagine—such as being paraded through the streets in a dunce cap for the foolishness of believing in God. I asked him the same question you would have, “How did you endure it all?”

Then Mr. Liu told me about Watchman Nee’s book, The Normal Christian Life. Through the book, he fully grasped that he was crucified, died, buried, risen, and ascended with Christ. He considered that he himself no longer lived—only Christ. In that truth, he found the courage to hold fast.

Others have spoken about the impact of The Normal Christian Life on their faith. For that reason, it was always on my “to read” list, but somehow I never made time . . . until I met Mr. Liu. I’m so glad I did. My friend, I was really convicted by this book—by Nee’s simple but profound illustrations, and how he put into words what’s been missing from so many Christian’s lives.

You and I both know how important right doctrine is. To remain faithful in a world that claims feelings are just as important as facts (if not more so), we have to know the Truth about what we believe and why . . . because Truth matters, and it always will.

But it has been well said that many Christians are “straight as the barrel of a gun and just as empty.” We can have our doctrine absolutely correct, all our i’s dotted and our t’s crossed, and still be spiritually hollow. As Paul exhorted Timothy, “Watch your life and doctrine closely.”

That’s why I’m so eager to get Watchman Nee’s The Normal Christian Life to you, for those spiritually dry seasons we all face. You’ll see how Mr. Liu stayed true through hunger, hardship, and humiliation . . . and how you and I can live the crucified life through our own trials and testings.

I’ll send you a beautifully bound, richly appointed collector’s hardcover edition of The Normal Christian Life when you partner with me in ministry through your financial support again this month, as my way of saying, “Thank you for all you do!”

B1025large I’m sure you’ll find, as I did, that Nee’s illustrations drawn from daily life make it easy to apply complex spiritual truths. For example, I know many people who’ve struggled with the role of the Law in our lives. “But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire,” Paul writes in Romans 7:8. “For apart from law, sin is dead.” Then in 7:12, “So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good” (NIV). How can the Law be good, if it produces sin in me? Watchman Nee explains,

“If you have a very clumsy servant and he just sits still and does nothing, then his clumsiness does not appear. But if you say to him: ‘Now come along . . . get up and do something,’ then immediately the trouble begins. He knocks the chair over as he gets up, stumbles over a footstool . . . If you make no demands upon him his clumsiness is never noticed, but as soon as you ask him to do anything his awkwardness is apparent at once. The demands were all right, but the man was all wrong. We are all sinners by nature. If God asks nothing of us, all seems to go well, but as soon as he demands something of us, the occasion is provided for a grand display of our sinfulness. The Law makes our weakness manifest.”

Isolated in a bleak Chinese prison camp himself in 1952 for his faith, Watchman Nee must have thought his public ministry was over. He died in that camp, probably never knowing his lectures had been placed into this little book . . . a book that can still inspire you and me to a closer walk with Christ decades later. God blessed his faithfulness, as a branch growing over the prison wall, reaching from East to West.

Similarly, you may not realize the far-reaching impact of your gifts to CRI. Of course, you know you help keep The Bible Answer Man on the air, the website running, and plenty of hard-hitting resources available. But truths grasped today will also bear fruit for years to come, and people you touch through your support now will influence countless lives in the future.

So please, as God leads you, join me again with your generous gift of support this month. And be sure to request your copy of The Normal Christian Life when you do. Thank you for your partnership!

...because Truth matters,
Hanksignatureblue

Hank Hanegraaff
President

P.S. Watchman Nee is perhaps the most significant spiritual mind ever to emerge from China, with lessons we all need. Don’t forget to request your beautifully bound hardcover edition of The Normal Christian Life by calling 1.888.7000.CRI (1-888-700-0274) or log on to www.equip.org to give by credit card and request your book. Thank you for reaching out to share the Truth with a waiting world.

P.P.S. You can even request multiple copies to share with friends by calling 1.888.7000.CRI (1-888-700-0274).

*Mr. Liu’s name has been changed for his protection.