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Molded by Fire • Nov 01st 2005

The Present State of the Lord’s Testimony (Part 3) | The UCLA Message Turning Point

Church History Fellowship Organic Church

In this powerful continuation of The Present State of the Lord’s Testimony, Gene Edwards recounts the unforgettable moment surrounding his now-historic UCLA message — a message that would shape decades of organic church life and Christ-centered gatherings.

What began as an unexpected invitation to speak became a turning point. With no prepared outline and only three fragmented thoughts in his mind — the old man, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, and a third thought he later forgot — Gene stepped into a moment that would alter the course of a movement. That message would go on to become one of the most widely circulated Christian recordings of its time.

But this session is not merely about history.

It is about the foundation of the Lord’s present testimony on the earth.

Gene describes driving down Stark Road, pulling into a vacant lot, kneeling in the dirt, and placing the entire work on the cross before it ever began. “Lord, this is not my work… Whatever happens here, it goes to the cross tonight, and it stays there forever.” That prayer would define everything that followed.

From early gatherings in Isla Vista and Goleta to rented chairs no one filled, to heartbreak, division pressures, and testing, the central conviction remained unchanged:
We will never divide.
We will never defend the work.
We will build only on Christ.

This message explores:

  • The spiritual cost of beginning a work of God
  • The refusal to protect, defend, or weaponize ministry
  • The difference between institutional outrage and Christ-centered foundation
  • The enduring clarity of the Lord’s testimony

Gene reflects on the Moravian spirit, the influence of Watchman Nee, and the call to return to something organic, unified, and rooted in knowing Christ Himself — not preserving a structure.

Even decades later, he affirms that the vision was clear from the beginning: the present testimony of God must be built on Christ alone, without division, without defense, without striving for survival.

This is not a polished success story. It is an honest recounting of testing, tears, clarity, and unwavering commitment to the cross.

If you are seeking to understand the spiritual roots of organic church life — or if you desire to see the church built without division — this message speaks directly to you.

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Mike, you know how upset they could get over absolutely nothing? They became outraged because they had rented 30 chairs and nobody showed up. They raged, had fits, and threw fits for days, weeks, and months. We rented 30 chairs, and they didn’t show up. Now, the point is, and you’ll have to hear the rest of the story to understand. Mike, that was their way. They could get so outraged over absolutely nothing; tear their clothes and throw dirt in the air because of something that just was, to ordinary human beings, would not mean anything. This is not a pretty story, is it? Well, it’s the present state of work of God.

I’m going to pose this as a question. Can anybody remember the last sentence I spoke at UCLA?  You listen to me because this was embedded in my soul as strongly in that moment as it is today. In light of all the garbage I had seen, I was about to say, “And it starts here now, today, and we will never divide.” Isn’t it wonderful? And we have never broken that ever. We have never been engaged in defending our work or standing against opposition. Now, many years later, we have sought to build a foundation every day of our lives on Christ alone, knowing Him and never picking up any weapon to use against the enemy. It was that early, brothers, and man, did you get tested. Boy, did you ever get tested. It got really bad. You were there, Jay, and you came out of fire sparkling like diamonds, and that’s the story you tell. But I’m not through talking to you about the present work of God on the earth. We are here for such a time as this; we’re going back to the way the Moravian has been, and we’re going to do a hop, skip, and a jump over this parable, distorted tragedy story, and conduct.

I want to apologize once more, but if I don’t tell this story, it’ll never get told, and I think we are good. Now it’s time for you to step up to the plate and build on this foundation, or we’ll quit now, and I’m going to go home and write books.

Look, it’s time for a question. Yes, brother.

Audience: What were the three thoughts you had in your mind before the UCLA message?

I thought that there’s the line of the old man, there’s the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, and I have no idea what the third one was, but any one of them would have easily kept me busy for an hour and a half as an introduction. I got all that done in a little over an hour. Even to this day, someone can be listening to tapes and come up against the UCLA tape, and it just stops them cold. We have a beautiful history, saints. It’s a beautiful thing, and we have been through that, and everything else, and I am going to tell you again: when I stepped into Isla Vista, I was clearer than anybody else on this earth. What the present testimony of God on this earth needed, still is, and will be till I die. If I were you, I would give some real serious thought to not going any further, because by the time you hear the rest of the story, you’ll probably want to catch the next plane out.

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