UNITY IN ASSEMBLY ADMINISTRATION

UNITY IN ASSEMBLY ADMINISTRATION

Revelation 21:14-18; Revelation 21:21; Revelation 22:3,4

I shall doubtless have occasion, dear brethren, to refer to other scriptures, though not necessarily turning to them, but one would like to engage your interest in the description we have in this chapter of the assembly as it will be seen in millennial glory, understanding that what is set before us in this chapter represents what God is working to at the present time. It is important to keep in mind that the details that are given in this chapter of the assembly as the product of divine workmanship, are given us not simply as a matter of interest, but that we may see how far the conditions amongst us correspond with them now, and if not, that we should be concerned to accept any adjustment that may be necessary in order that the divine thoughts should be realised.

Now it is very striking that this description of the heavenly city should be given us in this place in the Scriptures, for the preceding chapters have shown us how completely God will carry everything through to completion. We find in chapter 18 that Babylon is judged and overthrown, the false system that attaches the name of God and of Christ to itself will be completely judged. Then in chapter 19 the Lord is publicly vindicated, the marriage of the Lamb comes and His wife who will then have made herself ready is there to enhance the occasion, but it is the public vindication of Christ. Then the Lord is seen coming forth in power and glory and the hosts of heaven following Him, and all that is opposed to Him is dealt with in irresistible power, the beast and the false prophet being taken and cast alive into the lake of fire. Then we find the public vindication of the saints, they are seen sitting on thrones, they are priests of God and of the Christ and they reign with Christ for a thousand years, that is the public vindication of the saints. Then there is the loosing of Satan, for a short period, after a thousand years, and the final test of man, and then the coming in by God in judgment and the great white throne and evil dealt with finally. Then after that there is the introduction of the eternal day, the tabernacle of God with men, and God shall dwell with them and be their God. So the Scriptures show us how completely, how unerringly, God can and will carry everything to a right conclusion, and that is an important matter for us, dear brethren, because the present moment is a moment when we should be concerned as to carrying things to completion, the truth is given to us and the Spirit is with us for that very purpose. Just as God shows that He will carry everything to completion, so He looks to us, at the present time, in our own spheres of responsibility, that is our own local assemblies, to see that things are carried to completion.

Well now, after all that, the Spirit of God gives us this remarkable description of the heavenly city, not in eternity, but in the day of glory, the millennium, and it is seen as a great vessel of divine administration, it comes down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Now to my mind it is very impressive that the Spirit of God, having carried things to completion, should, so to speak, go back and engage us with this wonderful description of what God is effecting in the saints at the present time, and bring it forward not so much in relation to the service of God, although, as I hope I may show, the service of God is not lacking, but bring it out as a vessel of administration. Now I say that, dear brethren, for this reason, that one feels for oneself, and I believe it is true for most of us, that we may have a fairly good knowledge of the truth and of divine principles and so on, but what tests us is administration, that is putting the truth and the principles we know into actual application, that is where we are tested, and a good deal of the ministry of the last several years has been on the lines of administration, because it is in right administration that God is glorified. Hence the Spirit of God, as I say, goes to some pains to describe to us this beautiful vessel, this full expression of the glory of divine workmanship in a vessel which is capable of “coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God.” What I understand by that is that the influence that the saints will wield in that day will be an influence of holy love, that God will be seen in all that is done, we are to understand that administration will be actual, there will be the reigning over cities and so on given to one and another, but in the world to come the administration will be from heaven and it will be by means of the assembly. As we were seeing this morning and this afternoon, it is seen as a great vessel marked by immense substance, the measurements of the city being given in order that they may convey to our minds the idea of immense substance. Hence the importance, beloved brethren, of acquiring and developing in substance, substance that is of God, and substance that is really of God is just found in the measure in which we are formed in love, as indeed it says in Corinthians, if I “have not love, I am nothing.”

Well now, it has often been remarked that the number twelve is prominent in this chapter, constant repetition of twelve, and that is to impress us with love in unity, all the influence and administration of this vessel in that day will be in love, but in unity, a most important matter, beloved brethren, because God is one, and therefore the vessel that is to be expressive of God must be expressive of unity, must be expressive of love, but love in unity, and so twelve is taken up in Scripture as a number intended to convey administrative ability in love operating in unity. Twelve, as we know very well, and I only repeat it to make the point clear, is easily manipulated; you can have twelve ones, or six twos, or four threes, or three fours, or two sixes, but whatever you have it is still the twelve, in unity, but in wonderful adaptability to the needs of the moment, and that is characteristic of love, love is never rigid, love is never legal and hard, love is easily adaptable, while maintaining the truth it is easily adaptable to the conditions that have to be served. How wonderfully adaptable the Lord Jesus was to the needs of the disciples. He would go any length to serve them in love. He would lay aside His garments, and take a linen towel, and gird Himself, and then pour water into a basin, and wash the disciples’ feet, every one of them in turn, and wipe them with the linen towel with which He was girded. He wanted to leave an impression of love, He wanted to give them something that would form them, so that these things should not be simply doctrines or theories, but that they should become substantial in the saints, thus fitting them for the day when we are to come down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God.

I would call attention, first of all, to what it says as to the foundations, “the wall of the city” it says “had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” That is, the ministry of the twelve is connected with the foundations of the wall. The ministry of the twelve was largely connected with the testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, it says in Acts 4: 33, “with great power did the apostles give witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus”; now that is not simply witness to a fact - it is a fact, of course, the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, a most important fact, a fact that is abundantly attested, but it is not only a fact - it has a great moral import, because the resurrection of the Lord Jesus was “resurrection from among the dead,” it was a selective resurrection and involved that God had taken up out of death the Man Jesus, Jesus Christ, the Man who pleased Him, and had rejected every other man. Now we well know that, dear brethren, as sound teaching, but has it really laid hold of us? Because that is the first great feature in the building of the walls of this city, the walls are for the protection of what is within, and the first great feature in the wall is this understanding of the complete rejection by God of every other man and His approval of the Man Jesus Christ shown in His having raised Him up from among the dead. That is to be wrought into our souls, dear brethren, in a very real way, manhood that is approved of God is only learned in Jesus, the fact that He is called Jesus Christ simply means that He is the anointed or approved of God, Jesus is the Christ. We read in the epistle of John that some denied that Jesus is the Christ, but it is of the utmost importance to accept that Jesus is the Christ and give it power in our souls, that is that we want to be in line with God and to allow no other man in a practical way than that which is according to Jesus Christ. How much trouble would be saved, dear brethren, in our own lives and in our localities if this truth was really laid hold of and worked out, if no other man was allowed to have place. Jesus was a Man who sought only the will of God, who sought only the glory of God, who was characteristically obedient and characteristically dependent, there was purity of motive in all that He did, and the motive was that God was in all things to be glorified, and so we can well understand what an immense thing it is, if this is laid at the foundation. Indeed we know that Paul went to Corinth with that in his mind, determined to know nothing among them save Jesus Christ and Him crucified, and we read in Ephesians also “Jesus Christ himself being the corner-stone.” Now that is a matter of great importance, beloved brethren, and I need not enlarge upon it, but I only urge it on us all, because the wall, as I say, is what is for the protection of what is inside the city; the city itself, it says, is “pure gold, like pure glass,” see how the purity is emphasised, the city itself is “pure gold,” that is, the city itself conveys impressions of what is divine, gold speaks of what is divine and this is “pure gold,” it is the glory of God shining untarnished by means of all that is done by the city. And when we say by the city, dear brethren, do not let us lose sight of the fact that the city is composed of the saints, that each one of us has his part in this, we do not want to lose sight of that, although it is the idea of a city, an entity, one great vessel of divine influence and glory, yet in fact it is composed of the saints, and hence we must see to it that the features that mark the city find place each one of us with ourselves. The city, it says, is “pure gold, like pure glass.”

And now I pass on to the gates, because this is a matter of very great importance, beloved brethren, at the present time. It says, “the twelve gates, twelve pearls; each one of the gates, respectively, was of one pearl,” so that from whatever direction the city was approached anyone seeing it would get the same impression, at whatever point administration took place, at whatever point judgment was exercised according to God, the same feature would be seen; it says, “the twelve gates, twelve pearls; each one of the gates, respectively, was of one pearl.” Now each of our local assemblies, beloved brethren, may be rightly likened to a gate of the city. In our localities matters have to be dealt with, administration has to proceed, matters as they arise have to be judged according to God; are the same features and the same principles governing us in all our localities? If not, to the extent that it is not so this feature of the city is lacking. There is a tendency in some places - you will bear with me for saying it - to a certain independence of outlook, a preparedness to adopt a private view or a local view in contrast with that which the Lord has made general among the saints; well, that is out of keeping with this thought of the city. It is an important matter that these things should be faced, sometimes people say, ‘we must see it before we adopt it,’ but then why not see it if others see it? In the book of Numbers we read that when the people of God were to move forward, first of all the cloud moved and I suppose priests, at any rate, would be on the look-out to see when the cloud moved, then the priests had to sound an alarm, and when they sounded the alarm the camp on the east had to move, then they sounded a second alarm and the camp on the south had to move, but there is no word about sounding a third alarm - surely two soundings of alarm should be sufficient to set all the people in movement in their due turn, and even if they had not heard the alarm, or had not paid heed to it, surely they can see that their brethren are moving. If two camps have moved surely the third camp should move, and then the fourth; there is no idea of independence of outlook among the people of God, they all had to move together, even though only two alarms were given all four camps had to move, had to move in a divine order, and if they did not move they would break up the unity of God’s people, and destroy the testimony and God’s pleasure in them. Now this is an important matter, beloved brethren, and the Lord would really call our attention to it, the great danger of independence of outlook and private or local thoughts causing the brethren in some parts to abstain from following that which the Lord is giving to the saints as a whole, and setting up, it may be, private customs or independent thoughts.

You remember in the history of Gideon - and Gideon’s history largely links with the truth connected with the local assembly, and runs alongside the epistles to the Corinthians - that Gideon gained a great victory and the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb, were slain, but then there still remained something to be done, the kings Zebah and Zalmunna had still to be overthrown. And Gideon came to Succoth and he asked the men of Succoth to give bread to his army, he said, “I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna,” and the men of Succoth said, “are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in thy hand, that we should give bread to thine army?” They were not at all in line with Gideon, they were not following up what Gideon was doing, and so Gideon turned from them and went on without them, but he said, when I return “I will thresh your flesh with thorns of the wilderness and with briars.” Then he went to Penuel, and the men of Penuel answered him in the same manner, and so Gideon had to go on without them. But God did deliver Zebah and Zalmunna into his hands, and when that was done and the matter was completed he returned to Succoth and seventy-seven elders were taught with briars and thorns of the wilderness, and then he turned to Penuel and broke down their tower and slew the men. The brethren will understand I am in no sense threatening, or chiding, or reproaching, but one would affectionately beg the brethren not to allow independence of outlook and thoughts and ways, because sooner or later the discipline of God will overtake such as do so. God is bent upon unity among the saints, He is bent upon this feature, “twelve gates, twelve pearls,” the same beauteous feature to be seen in every locality. The great beauty of the pearl is that it is wholly for Christ, it does not allow any element of independence, it refers to the assembly as marked by singleness of eye and formed under the influence of Christ, and that should be seen in every locality, and if it is not seen there is an interference with the unity which God looks for in His assembly, and an enfeeblement of what He intends should be produced as the result of His work amongst us at the present time.

Well now we might pass on in our thoughts to a further feature in the book of Judges, and I might say in passing that you will remember in Hebrews 11 the writer says, “What more do I say? For the time would fail me telling of Gideon, and Barak, and Samson, and Jephthah, and David and Samuel, and of the prophets.” Now that is very remarkable, the Spirit of God refers to three pairs of men and in each case He puts the second one first, that is Gideon followed Barak, but the Spirit of God puts him before Barak, Samson followed Jephthah, but the Spirit of God puts him before Jephthah, David followed Samuel, but the Spirit of God puts him before Samuel. Now I believe the point in that, dear brethren, is that it is Gideon and Samson and David that are prominently in the mind of the Spirit, and that Barak and Jephthah and Samuel were brought in in order to pave the way respectively for Gideon and Samson and David.

Now let us consider Jephthah in that light, as brought in to pave the way for Samson, for Samson, I do not doubt, refers to the recovery of the highest features of the truth. The reason I say that is this, that in the appearing which was given to Samson’s parents, they were visited by one who said that his name was “wonderful,” he said “How is it that thou askest after my name, seeing it is wonderful?” It really point on to our Lord Jesus Christ as brought before us in the gospel of John, where the glory of the Person of Christ is so emphasised. He is indeed “Wonderful,” and not only was the name of this angel of Jehovah Wonderful, but it says “he did wondrously, and Manoah and his wife looked on.”

Now all that is very suggestive of the gospel of John, for if you follow the gospel of John you will find that the Lord Jesus does wondrously, and so wondrously that it calls for contemplation; contemplation is a great feature in the gospel of John, “we have contemplated his glory.” Manoah and his wife looked on, they were held by that which they observed. You follow the Lord in His movements in John’s gospel, especially the power and dignity in which He goes into death and disposes of it, and then rises out of it, and then ascends, as He says, “to my Father, and your Father, and to my God, and your God,” see the glory of those movements, they are movements to be contemplated, and it says “the Angel of Jehovah ascended in the flame of the altar; and Manoah and his wife looked on,” that is to say, it is as contemplating the movements of Christ culminating in His ascension that we get led into the highest features of the truth.

But now, as I say, Jephthah comes in as preparing the ground for that, and in what way? I believe it is that Jephthah in his history sets forth the truth of headship in the wilderness. You remember that Jephthah’s conflict was in the land of Gilead, that is, on the east side of Jordan, it was still the wilderness, the territory given to the people by the conquest of Sihon and Og, it was a wilderness position, and when the men of Gilead sent for Jephthah to come and be their saviour, they said to him, “Therefore we have returned to thee now, that thou mayest ... be head over all of us the inhabitants of Gilead,” and he said “shall I be your head?” and they assured him that he should be their head, and it says he became head and captain over them. Headship in the wilderness is emphasised in Jephthah’s history, and that links with the beginning of 1 Corinthians 11, which is a matter of headship in the wilderness, having in mind the assembly, and the order in the assembly, and the bringing in of the element of subjection in the assembly, in order that we shall be able to move into that which is most precious as following on the Supper.

Well now the beginning of 1 Corinthians 11 is a scripture over which there has been much contention in the past, and it may be still some hesitation or reserve on the part of some, but it is an important element in the truth, dear brethren, if we are to reach the greatest features of the service of God, headship in the wilderness position, the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God. What an important matter that is, that the element of subjection is to be seen in the man as holding Christ as his Head, and in the woman as holding the man as her head, what a word that is for us brothers, dear brethren, as to whether in point of fact we hold Christ as our Head, as to whether we look to Him for influence and impulse, whether our exercises are to take character from Him. We need to do that in order to have more influence ourselves. But then in regard of the sisters, God has placed them in a position of subjection and, therefore, He requires not only that they should be covered in “praying or prophesying” but that at all times there should be authority on their head, because of the angels, in order to show that they acknowledge this principle of subjection. If the chapter is read carefully, in the light that the whole position is one of headship in the wilderness, the sisters will, I am sure, see that it requires that there should always be something on the head that recognises on their part that they are under authority. It says in that very passage “neither is woman without man, nor man without woman, in the Lord,” and “in the Lord” is not simply when you are praying or prophesying, “in the Lord” covers the whole of our position as in responsibility here, and so the whole position of headship is to be recognised if there is to be any power to move into the greatest features of the truth. We know that in the case of Jephthah’s history it involved great sacrifice for his daughter, but the spirit of his daughter was beautiful, she was ready for sacrifice, whatever it entailed for her she was ready for it, seeing that God had given the victory over their enemies she was ready for it, she becomes an example for the sisters to see that in every way the principle of headship in the wilderness is recognised by them.

Now the element of subjection which that calls for is a very important element in the assembly, and will help us in practical subjection to the Holy Spirit, and so we may hope to arrive in greater power and liberty at the highest features of the service of God in the assembly. Samson’s history would bring that before us, not only that it is there objectively in what his parents were allowed to see in the Angel of Jehovah who visited them, but also in what is to be learned from his own personal history, especially after he failed, when it says the hair of his head began to grow again.

Now the great enemy in Samson’s day was the Philistines, and it is the Philistines, dear brethren, which we need to fear. In this day when the Spirit is emphasised I am sure our great danger is the Philistine element in ourselves, that is to say the attempt to seek to compass the truth of God by our own mental energy and activities, instead of being exercised in increasing degree to give place to the Spirit of God, who will teach us the truth and lead us into it, so that we not only understand it in the Spirit, but are able to move in it in the Spirit, that is the essential thing. And, therefore, Samson’s history illustrates that latter feature, it is a question now of developing power in life, the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven, and it culminates in this, that he overthrows more Philistines in his death than in his life. If we would get the full gain of the Holy Spirit of God we must understand that it involves, in a practical way, acceptance of death, but in that acceptance the power of the Spirit becomes a known thing.

Well now there is one thing more, beloved brethren, which I would touch upon; I have sought to speak of certain elements among us which tend to hinder the full realisation of the thoughts of God. Let us bear in mind the thoughts of God as we get them in this chapter, and especially as I have said the “twelve gates, twelve pearls,” it says “each one of the gates, respectively, was of one pearl” each one, not a single locality different from another, that is the idea, that is something, beloved brethren, to take account of. It is not unknown amongst us that in some places things may be done by just a few brothers, holding meetings among themselves, doubtless bringing things to the Care Meeting, but at the same time holding things among themselves as though they were elders and entitled to act as elders independently of the assembly, but that is not according to the truth; if we read Acts 15, when a matter came up for consideration, it says the apostles and elders were gathered together in relation to the matter, but as we read on we find that the whole multitude was present, the authoritative and experienced element was there, of course, in the apostles and elders, and doubtless they would have most to say, or at any rate most to say that was of any value, but at the same time the whole company was there. How are we all going to learn, how are the sisters going to learn, dear brethren, to judge the world and judge angels, if they do not have a living part in all the administration that has to take place in the assemblies, that is why the sisters have been brought in to the Care Meetings, because there is to be formed this great vessel of divine administration, and all the saints are to be fitted to have their part in it. And so, if things are held in the hands of a few it is a disregard of the truth of the assembly, it is important that it should not be regarded lightly, it is really sin in the things of God, and should be forsaken and confessed as such, because it is militating against the truth of the assembly and it is militating against the sovereignty of the Spirit too. We read in 1 Corinthians 12, where it speaks of the sovereignty of the Spirit “to one, by the Spirit, is given the word of wisdom; and to another the word of knowledge ... to another discerning of spirits” and so on, it does not mean that the Spirit must give it to one or another of six or seven or eight brothers, who may have assumed authority among themselves, we must recognise the assembly, and the sovereignty of the Spirit in the assembly to give help by whomsoever He is pleased to use.

And so, dear brethren, bear with me for referring to these things practically and outspokenly, but it is with the single desire that we should all embrace the truth, and that the features of the assembly that are set before us in this scripture that God is looking for, should be practically found in expression in all our localities. The elders have indeed their place, do not let us think that the elders have not their place, the elders are to be treated with honour, and they certainly have a place of influence, but their influence is derived not from their having a kind of “official” position, but it is derived from what they are, and by the way they love the saints, and by the way they serve them and exemplify the truth and commend it, that is where the power of elders lies. If you will notice Acts 20, where Paul addresses himself to the elders of Ephesus, he says, “Take heed therefore to yourselves, and to all the flock, wherein the Holy Spirit has set you as overseers, to shepherd the assembly of God,” “wherein,” that is in the flock, that is where the elders are, “in the flock.” “Take heed therefore to yourselves, and to all the flock, wherein the Holy Spirit has set you as overseers”; that is the Spirit taking account of His own work in the souls of different ones, the love that is there, the care for the saints that is there, and the Holy Spirit brings them forward as qualified and able for the position of eldership, but they are “in the flock,” do not let us forget that. And then Peter in writing to the elders says, “The elders which are among you I exhort, who am their fellow-elder ... shepherd the flock of God which is among you” that is, the flock is among the elders; according to Peter the flock is among the elders, according to Paul the elders are in the flock, in each case it conveys the idea of wonderful mutuality between the elders and the flock and nothing other than that. And so, dear brethren, let these things have place amongst us, let them work out, let the truth give any adjustment that may be needed in the way things are done, so that there may appear under God’s eye that which answers fully to His thought according to this scripture.

And so we find in the verses we read at the close, “no curse shall be any more; and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him,” “his servants,” that is bondmen, but they serve in a priestly way, but here we get an indication that in this great vessel of divine administration, what is, so to speak, giving it tone and power is that the service of God is maintained, maintained by those that are bondmen too, by those who are wholly given to these things, wholly given up to God and His will and His service. His bondmen shall serve Him, serve Him in priestly service, and shall “see his face; and his name is on their foreheads.” They are in the full light of God as known in Christ, and His wondrous name, the name that is becoming so precious to us in these days, is on their foreheads, they stand out, they can be seen by anybody, identified with that name, they have the intelligence of it in their souls and in the intelligence of it they serve the blessed God. So that is what gives tone and character to the administration, that the service of God is carried on by those who are characteristically bondmen, but who are serving in the holiness and the intelligence that belongs to priests.

Well now it is this vessel, dear brethren, that is identified as the bride, that is to say, she is attractive because of her beauty, attractive to Christ, attractive to everyone who sees her, but that attractiveness can be only taken on by us, beloved brethren, as we pay heed to the features that the Spirit of God shows He intends to secure and as we are concerned that those features should find practical expression in the various spheres for which we are responsible. And so the book, we might say, closes with “the Spirit and the bride say, Come” - the Spirit is there, and the bride is there in her beauty as wholly with the Spirit, no element of divergence, no element of contention against the truth, the bride is there marked by the beauty of complete subjection to the truth of God, and as such, she is able without the slightest hindrance to join with the Spirit in one word to the Lord Jesus and to say “Come.” May the Lord help us in it, for His name’s sake.