“MANHOOD”

“MANHOOD”

Numbers 12: 1 - 8; Esther 9: 3, 4; Daniel 9: 20 - 24; 1 Timothy 2: 5

I have read these scriptures to bring one thought before us, that is, the thought of manhood according to God. Manhood involves maturity. With the end of this dispensation at hand, I am sure God is seeking to bring His work to maturity in us. It has often been pointed out that, at the close of the world He destroyed in the days of Noah, God took out of it what was mature — Noah, his wife, his three sons and their wives. There were no children, denoting thus that God secured what was developed ere He destroyed the world that so grieved Him. I believe that God is working to have that result in His people now. The work of God, and the work of the devil, is matured at the end of every dispensation. In the ante-diluvian world, the devil had giants, he had men of name, matured in wickedness, and God had those He saved who were mature through His work.

God is bringing before us the thought of sonship; He is bringing many sons to glory — not children, but sons. That is the great thought God has for His people today — sons representing maturity. On the other hand, there are at the end those whom the Lord speaks of as the sons of the wicked one, not children, not infants, but sons of the wicked one. These will find a head in the son of perdition, a dreadful title — not a child in perdition’s ways, but a fully developed man in the ways of hell — such will be the crown of Satan’s work.

I do not speak against the thought of a babe — in its proper setting, nothing is more beautiful than a babe, but who would like a babe to remain a babe? How sad if one were to remain a little child. God’s thought dear brethren, is manhood. As to the eternal condition it says, “the tabernacle of God is with men” — not only man as a race, but with men. God will have in maturity those with whom He can dwell.

I would refer now to the scriptures read, in order to bring features of manhood before us. First, in ‘the man Moses’, then ‘the man Mordecai’, then ‘the man Gabriel’, (he was an angel, but he is called ‘the man Gabriel’ because in him is set out features that God would have in man) and finally, eternally, and beyond compare, ‘the Man Christ Jesus’. How perfect and varied are the features of manhood set out in the Man Christ Jesus!

I would like to touch on certain features of manhood seen in the first three, and to say a word as to how every feature of manhood, God would have seen in man, is expressed in Christ.

We read of Moses as a babe — and as such he wept. We read “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid.” Hebrews 11: 23. I would say to parents that if you want manhood in your children, you must begin early to hide them. That is faith’s line. Then “Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” Hebrews 11: 24. He refused to find his life in this world, but chose “rather to suffer affliction along with the people of God than to have the temporary pleasure of sin; esteeming the reproach of the Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt.” Hebrews 11: 25 - 26.

You can thus see manhood in the making. When we see lads and young women turn their backs on the world, identifying themselves with the people of God, we can see manhood coming into view. There are great possibilities for such.

For forty years Moses is in the desert attending to sheep, and it says he was content. I do not think manhood according to God will be developed if we are discontented in the circumstances God puts us in. If you want to be a man, according to this pattern, accept contentedly the ways of God. Moses was content, and he never took himself out of those circumstances until God took him out of them.

Later Moses must learn further lessons if he is to be ‘the man Moses’; he must learn what becomes of a rod cast on the ground. It becomes a serpent — authority entrusted to man, apart from divine control, becomes Satanic — a most important thing to learn.

Then he must learn what is in his own bosom — God says to him, “Put now thy hand into thy bosom,” Exodus 4: 6, and it comes out leprous. That is one of the great lessons on the road to true manhood. We must know what is in our own bosoms, and learn how God can deal with it, and break its power. Many are detained at this point for years because they do not learn the lesson, that “in me, that is, in my flesh, good does not dwell:” Romans 7: 18. Yet God can break the power of sin in the flesh. I do not pursue the lessons Moses learnt until we come to the passage in Numbers 12. What glorious features of manhood come out in a few words. Miriam and Aaron speak against Moses, no doubt moved by envy — “Has Jehovah indeed spoken only to Moses? has he not spoken also to us?” verse 2. Envy is not a feature of manhood, it is a feature of infancy, indeed the evidence of a dwarfed state. In this matter, Miriam and Aaron were dwarfed, but it says “The man Moses was very meek, above all men that were upon the face of the earth,” verse 3. Meekness is an outstanding feature of manhood. How far away man has got from the divine standard of manhood as found in this feature of meekness!

Moses did not say a word to assert his rights in this matter. God had something to say, not Moses, but it is in that connection that he is called ‘the man Moses’. I commend it to all here, that one great feature of manhood is meekness as to our own rights. As to the rights of God. Moses had much to say, but as to his own, he had nothing to say. That is manhood.

In addition, God tells us more, He says, “My servant Moses,” verse 7. Manhood according to God is that we are His servants; no one is a man according to God unless He is serving God. If we are not serving God, then we are not men according to the divine thought of God for men. “My servant Moses: he is faithful in all my house.” — another great feature of manhood is faithfulness.

God adds further as to Moses: “Mouth to mouth do I speak to him openly.” I know Moses represents Christ pre-eminently in this matter, but I believe one feature of full manhood is that there is power to have communion with God, not through visions and dreams, but directly.

Manhood as seen in Moses includes meekness, readiness to serve God, faithfulness in His house, and communion with God. The world does not know anything of such manhood — such persons would not be regarded as men in the world. These are some of the features of ‘the man Moses’ — may they be ours in some degree!

I refer to ‘the man Mordecai’. What a man he was! He was great, and he waxed greater and greater. He lived in quite a different day from that of Moses. In Moses’ day, God was directly and manifestly with His people. But in the book of Esther you do not even get the name of God mentioned. God had withdrawn from public identification with His people; and yet we read in that very time of ‘the man Mordecai’, and through him the whole scheme to destroy God’s people was brought to nothing.

We are living in such a day as Mordecai — God has withdrawn Himself from publicly supporting His people. In the beginning of Acts, God was manifestly with His people — “the Lord working with them, confirming the word with signs following,” Mark 16: 20. Who could question that the Lord was with the early church in a marvellous way? But now, we are in the days of captivity as the book of Esther presents, and the Lord is not publicly supporting anything — nowhere will you find manifest any public support of the Lord such as the natural mind can take account of. The Lord in that way has withdrawn. All claims as to miracles and the like taking place now are deception. Where there are conditions that He can support, He does, but in a hidden way as in this book.

What marks the man Mordecai is that in such a dark day as the captivity in Babylon, he is still governed by the divine mind; he has no lesser standard than what is according to the command of God. So that when the edict goes out that everyone should reverence an Amalekite, “Mordecai bowed not”, for God had said that He would have “war with Amalek from generation to generation,” Exodus 17: 16. ‘But’, one might say, ‘It does not matter now, things are in pieces, why should he be guided by a scripture given to Israel in the beginning?’ It says, “But Mordecai bowed not”; he refused to obey the king if obedience meant setting aside the will of God. Here is a man! Under all circumstances he is governed by the known mind of God. How much we need this feature now, and will need it more. The known mind of God is to be the final word, cost what it may.

Another feature of manhood is that Mordecai has sackcloth and ashes — a humble minded man with a sense of the failure that has marked God’s people, and the need for repentance. This is represented in the sackcloth and ashes. He has them, and uses them. In the darkest day he has confidence; he is not in despair. He makes clear to Esther that deliverance will come in from some quarter, but it will come. Despair is not a feature of manhood — confidence in God is. He speaks peace to all his people. He brings in the element of peace amongst the people of God. May the Lord help us to be such as ‘the man Mordecai’ as well as ‘the man Moses’. God has manhood in Mordecai and He wants that reflected in us. We do not expect God, today, to publicly show His hand of approval anywhere until the Lord comes, but we do know that where there is that which is pleasing to Him. He will overrule things and bring the counsel of the evil one to nought. So Haman goes on to the gallows that had been prepared for Mordecai. God justifying His servant because of true features of manhood in him according to God.

Now I would say a word as to ‘the man Gabriel’. How much we can learn from Gabriel! A voice comes to Gabriel, “Make this man to understand,” Daniel 8: 16. Not only has Gabriel himself understanding but he has the power to make others understand. What a precious development of manhood that is! Later ‘the man Gabriel’ says, “I am now come forth to make thee skilful of understanding,” Daniel 9: 22.

Another thing that marks Gabriel, as recorded in Scripture, is interest, and pleasure too, in the prayers of God’s people. I do not mean prayers like Jacob’s — “If God will be with me, and keep me on this road ... , then shall Jehovah be my God ... “ Genesis 28: 20 - 21. I do not know that Gabriel was particularly interested in that prayer, but when Daniel prays, we read, “at the beginning of thy supplications the word went forth,” chapter 9: 23. Daniel prayed, owning his sin and that of his people, praying that God would shine upon His sanctuary, would forgive, and bless His people, and honour His Name. When Zacharias prayed in the temple, Gabriel says, “Thy prayer is heard,” Luke 1: 13. He does not say who heard it, doubtless Gabriel heard it amongst others. When Zacharias says, “How shall I know this?” he says, “I am Gabriel, who stand before God.” This surely is a feature of true manhood. What it would be if there were twenty brothers and sisters standing before God in this district! What does that mean? That such are available. “I am Gabriel, who stand before God,” ready for whatever God wants done through His servant. Elijah was such a man; he says, “As the Lord ... liveth, before whom I stand,” 1 Kings 17: l. Dear brethren and sisters this is manhood! — to be available to God. It is not a question of saying ‘What can I do?’ Gabriel says, “I am Gabriel, who stand before God.” In the book of Daniel, we are told that ten thousand times ten thousand stand before Him. Every one standing there available. Let us take into our hearts that manhood is marked by a deep interest in the welfare of the saints and their prayers; a readiness to impart such understanding we may have; a readiness to stand before God as available as needed.

There are other features — Gabriel says of Daniel “a man greatly beloved,” Daniel 10: 11. Ability to appreciate others who are loved by God marks Gabriel; he did not think that Daniel was detracting from him and that if Daniel is greatly beloved, there will be less appreciation of Gabriel. No, he says, “a man greatly beloved.” He delighted in the pleasure of God in others. Such is manhood.

Anything different from this is childish, and calls for self-judgment.

Gabriel counts the weeks until Christ the Prince comes in. Manhood according to God is always watching for Christ to come in. All is reckoned up in the light of when Christ will come in; thus it was with Gabriel when he announced the birth of Jesus for it is Gabriel that comes to Mary saying, “Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee,” Luke 1: 28; then Gabriel tells of the coming of Christ — “That holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” Luke 1: 35. The Spirit of God calls him “the man Gabriel”. How we are measured by these men! We put ourselves beside Moses, and Mordecai, and Gabriel, and we are consciously small. Nevertheless, let us see God’s thoughts, let us see the pattern, and God would help us to make room for these holy features in our souls.

I close with a word as to “the Man Christ Jesus.” What can be said of such a title, “Christ Jesus”! It denotes that God has expressed in totality His thoughts in relation to manhood. He is the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. The beginning of true manhood is in Christ, the end of true manhood is in Christ. What constituted the manhood of Moses, of Mordecai and of Gabriel, is expressed, perfectly, in “the Man Christ Jesus”, but infinitely more is also seen in Him. What was seen of God in Adam, namely headship in a man, is found in the Man Christ Jesus, the last Adam — there could not be another! What was of God in righteous Abel, is seen perfectly in Christ. What was in Enoch, a man who walked with God, is seen perfectly in Christ. What was in Noah, a preacher of righteousness, in Abraham, the friend of God, in Isaac, the heavenly man, in Jacob, the supplanter of the first man, in Joseph, the fruitful bough — what was of God, in every man that ever lived, resides in the Man Christ Jesus; in character it really came from Him. There is not one single thought God ever desired to be seen in man but is resident in eternal perfection in the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all. I think this great act of giving Himself expresses manhood in supreme perfection. What a contrast to the men of this world! What a contrast to world leaders that have caused such a torrent of blood to flow today. Such do not give themselves. Such do not surrender themselves. Here is the Man Christ Jesus who gave Himself. What a feature! This blessed Man is necessarily, and rightly, eternally first. He is the second Man out of heaven and the second takes the place of the first. “The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.” 1 Corinthians 15: 47. He is Man. The Lord Jesus Christ is not an angel but has become Man, and as such He has given Himself; He will put His blessed impress on all who are His: “As we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly,” 1 Corinthians 15: 49. The Lord as Man is going to give His blessed impress to all who are His, so that we take character from the Man Christ Jesus.

The Apostle says, “In malice be babes; but in your minds be grown men,” 1 Corinthians 14: 20. This can only be as we derive from Christ, take character from Christ, and the Spirit is here for that purpose that He may form the believer after the pattern of the Man Christ Jesus who gave Himself a ransom for all. What is so wonderful, as to the last Adam, is that He took on Himself the burden of all that the first Adam brought in. The first Adam brought in sin, death, burial, and the last Adam took all that woe and burden and put it away. He is the life-giving Spirit. As such He is the last Adam — there can be no other.

Moses expressed some features of Christ, Mordecai expressed some features of Christ, Gabriel expressed some features of Christ,

but every blessed feature is resident in Him, and we have His Spirit: “He breathed into them, and says to them, Receive the Holy Spirit,” so that we may take character from the Man Christ Jesus, and thus be here in manhood.

The more we make room for this, the more we shall reach the great end God has in view. I do commend this to all, in view of the closing up of this dispensation so rapidly, that God is working to have maturity in His people, manhood according to Himself.