SPIRITUAL MEN IN RELATION TO THE TESTIMONY HERE
[p. 255] SPIRITUAL MEN IN RELATION TO THE TESTIMONY HERE
Acts 4: 31 - 37; Acts 7: 54 - 60
EJMcB I thought both Barnabas and Stephen were suggestive of the spiritual man, and the effect of spirituality on man. In the first case a man is recovered of God; and in the second you find the effect of spirituality in its proper and right bearing.
TR Do you mean that in connection with the first there is a man set free to be here for God, and in connection with the second a man prepared to go to heaven?
EJMcB Properly speaking the, spiritual man is fit to go to heaven; the actual translation is, in a sense, a consequence and detail. What I think would help is to see how the effect of spirituality recovers you wholly for God. What is striking in Barnabas is that he has land and is a Levite. The Lord was the portion of the Levite; as recovered he becomes a serviceable vessel for the testimony in this scene.
JT Barnabas had great respect for the apostles. This marked him at the outset. He laid the price of the land at their feet. The same thing is seen in chapter 2. “They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship”.
EJMcB Is it not suggested in Barnabas’ name? They called him the “son of consolation”.
JT This chapter would help us to see how the early believers respected the apostles; those having lands or houses sold them and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet. It was not that Barnabas did not value the land; but he sold it and brought the money to lay at the apostles’ feet; a great evidence of the respect he had for the authority vested in them.
FL Distinct spiritual marks came out in this man, and these were appreciated by the apostles,
[p. 256] for they give him another name. It was not his mother or father who gave him that name, it was the apostles who called him “Barnabas”. He starts with appreciation for what the Lord had entrusted to them, and they reciprocate the appreciation.
EJMcB It is a great thing to get a name in connection with the testimony.
JT It is not here like the purchase of a worldly title. Barnabas had no thought of receiving distinction; that in being so designated by the apostles, it would give him a status amongst them; he really, had profound respect for them. To promote the testimony was his object, and he received his name in that connection. A spiritual man will always respect divine authority.
PJ It is striking to see the conditions under which he identifies himself with the apostles; they were in reproach, and more than in reproach, they were being persecuted, as mentioned in the former part of the chapter. It is easy to speak about it now, but we should be prepared to take a stand with the apostles, or their testimony, under all circumstances.
EJMcB It is well to remember that the testimony is in as great reproach today, though in a different character, as it was in that day. If a person is going to identify himself with the testimony, it will mean a really spiritual move. You do not get identification with the testimony by merely attending meetings of brethren; it involves that a man’s life and interests move in that direction.
AAT I think it would help if you give us an idea of what the testimony is.
EJMcB I think you see the point of the testimony at any distinct moment is to appreciate what is of distinct interest to heaven. There has never been a moment in the history of this earth that there has not been something for God, of distinct interest [p. 257] to heaven, that is the testimony. What is of interest to heaven at this moment is Christ; and the wonderful thing is that there is a company of people on earth who are formed after Him. The character of the moment when Barnabas comes to light is particularly instructive. You have outside, the raging of the heathen; the religious world, with its fearful sin, has allied itself with the heathen world; but inside you have people marked by prayer. In this connection this remarkable man appears.
JT I think the allusion to verse 25 is good. “The kings of the earth were there, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For in truth against thy holy servant Jesus, whom thou hadst anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the nations, and peoples of Israel, have been gathered together”. They rightly gauge the situation in that prayer.
FL How comprehensive that is. It takes in the whole earth, every element, religious, political, educational, barbarian; it is a remarkable covering of all that world which Satan controls against the Lord and against His Christ.
JT God had anointed His holy Servant to carry out His thought; hence there was the testimony, and consequent opposition.
EJMcB I had thought that Barnabas got this name because he greatly appreciated the idea that was dear to the apostles. Amidst all the raging wind there was this man who appreciated the divine thought. It is exceedingly interesting at a particularly trying moment in the history of the testimony when some one steps out distinctly.
TR The Lord, in His grace, brings consolation through Barnabas to His servants.
AAT Why is Barnabas singled out in this way? In the second chapter there were those who had [p. 258] possessions.
FL I think that is it; but he did it when the testimony was in reproach. I recall in a town where Christ was greatly dishonoured, the breaking of bread stopped, there was power for ministry. At that time three young sisters came into fellowship, when there was no breaking of bread; and I am sure they were “daughters of consolation”. When the testimony is under special reproach it is very different to the time when things are outwardly prospering.
AFM I suppose there was nothing wrong in Barnabas having land; the point is the use he made of it.
JT That is what I thought. So far as he had gone he would support the testimony; instead of using it himself he puts it into the hands of the apostles, indicating his respect for the authority that was there.
EJMcB It comes close to us in this way The Levite should be governed by the priest; Barnabas recognises the true priestly system of things; and, recognising that, he turns the land to good account and puts it into the hands of the apostles. The apostles were not priests more than other believers, but they were spiritual and as such appointed over divine things. My exercise in presenting this particular chapter is that we might recognise this so that what we have in the way of spiritual possessions might come under divine control, and so be for the good of all the saints. One sees a great deal of service but it does not secure results for God. Why? Because it is not under divine control.
RSS It was the common people who supported the Levite, and it was the Levite who supported the priest.
JT Barnabas, in acknowledging the apostles, owns that they were of the true levitical family; his levitical privileges, as connected with the law, had come [p. 259] to an end.
EJMcB The effort of the enemy to destroy spirituality by a counterfeit is very solemn. I think one of the greatest gains we could have in these last days in spiritual things is that you get preserved from counterfeits.
PJ Barnabas gives up earthly possessions for heavenly ones.
JT He acquired a place in the “walled city” which was secured to him for ever. I refer to Leviticus 25. He gave up a place in the country, so to speak, for a place in the city. He obtained a place in the assembly.
EJMcB As regards the appointing of the deacons, it was what you might call an act of convenience rather than an act of the Spirit; the Spirit rebukes it, because He takes one of the deacons and puts him on a higher platform than any one at that moment. I refer to Stephen.
JT The Spirit of God takes up two men from the deaconship and gives them the first place in the testimony; and, for the moment, the apostles are in the shade.
FL Service is very glorious when you hear the Lord saying, “I am among you as he that serveth”. Stephen and Philip are according to that. The Lord puts glory upon it.
AM Is that the “good degree” that Paul speaks of to Timothy?
JT Stephen and Philip purchased a good degree. The apostles said, “It is not reason that we should leave the word of God and serve tables”. It is true that they were called to that, but one is compelled to own there were certain limitations about the twelve which do not appear in Paul. He never hesitated at difficulties, and never regarded any service as too much trouble for him. We find Paul taking up service such as this later, even working with his hands to supply the need of [p. 260] others.
EJMcB Do you not think the attack is really against the spiritual man? If you want the height of a spiritual man you must go to Paul. Take Peter for a moment: look at the difficulty he had in going to Cornelius’ house; it was not spiritual; it was born of his environments.
JT It is very remarkable that if you despise anything that seems to come in your way God will use some one else, and that one is liable to eclipse you. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might”.
EJMcB Take those who were full of the Holy Spirit, when asked to serve tables, they did not say, ‘It is too menial’, but they took the service up. Then two of them stand out distinctly as serving in spiritual things.
JT The lessons drawn from these incidents recorded in the Acts are most essential that we should learn. It is a question of what the heavenly is. If an angel were to come now he would do anything the will of God required, and never question it. In the Gospels it is recorded that the disciples said to the Lord on one occasion, that He should send the multitude away; but the Lord says, “Give ye them to eat”. The Spirit of Christ is to meet need. Now what you see here is that Stephen shines; his face was like that of an angel. There was a carrying out of the will of God in that man; that is the idea in Stephen; he went to the lowest point in regard to service; it is a question of God’s will. The apostle says later in regard to those who carried money for the saints, “messengers of assemblies, Christ’s glory”, 2 Corinthians 8: 23.
FL We do not appreciate enough that with the coming in of the Lord Jesus there came a Man of another pattern, One who could say, “I delight to do thy will, O my God”. Stephen’s face shines in the light of One who delighted to do the will [p. 261] of God.
EJMcB I think the way he handled the Old Testament Scriptures was remarkable.
FL Where did he get his learning?
EJMcB “The spiritual discerns all things”. There is very little doubt, if we knew more what it is to be really in the Spirit, in accord with the Man in glory, we should be able to understand and discover Christ in the Scriptures in the most extraordinary way.
Do you make any allowance for what has occurred up to chapter 7, regarding the order of the assembly, because of the fact that Judaism had not been finally set aside?
JT All that came out in the assembly was testimony to Israel; at the moment it was provisional. God had set up a new order of things in Jerusalem; that is to say, Jesus had gone out of the world at Jerusalem; He had died there. Moses and Elijah were speaking of that on the Mount.
Now, the grace of God is seen in that He establishes a spiritual order of things in Jerusalem on the ground of the intercession of Christ, which was available for them all. That was a wonderful testimony of the grace of God. But then the rejection of Stephen is the end of all that.
EJMcB Using a figure might simplify it to our minds. What you find is, that the encasing preserved the butterfly, and as it broke the butterfly got liberty; and you see a spiritual man in Paul; there was no room for what was spiritual in Jerusalem, but for a moment it was preserved there. The point is that the soul should rise to the thought of the heavenly man.
AFM Was Stephen the butterfly?
EJMcB I think Paul was. Stephen is the last link with the earthly system and this was broken; the product is a man moving about over the whole earth in spiritual power; that is Paul.
[p. 262] Rem So the Lord had raised up Stephen for a special occasion.
EJMcB I think it is an immense thing when anyone serves the saints to the extent that they are turned undistractedly to Christ. I see that in Stephen; everything else gives place to Him, and his testimony turns the saints to Christ.
Rem This would involve the sovereign work of the Spirit at the moment.
EJMcB I do not think the Spirit of God works arbitrarily, but opportunity is given to each. You brush the saints’ boots if you can, and if you are great enough to do it you will get spiritual advancement. We are surprised that the Lord does not give us something remarkable to do, but we are not great enough. When these people had to serve tables they served happily, and they, at least Stephen, began to be most profoundly instructed in old testament Scripture.
Rem The Lord gives the principle, “If I, then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet”.
EJMcB What one covets is to be spiritual enough to do anything for the saints; some of us say, If He gave me a little more room I could do something?
PJ It is beautiful to see how Stephen takes character from Christ.
EJMcB “Such as the heavenly One, such also the heavenly ones”.
JT He stands out as a board of the tabernacle; the tremendous pressure he sustained here reminds you of the Ark of the covenant; that is, of the Lord when here. The wind was blowing from another direction, and Satan brought to bear upon his spirit the whole pressure that he had at his command, so that you are impressed with the strength, or power of endurance, that was there. That is the idea of the “shittim wood” used in the ark, it [p. 263] is durable.
BTF Do you take Stephen to represent the full light of Christianity?
JT I think personally he is a reflection of the heavenly; his face shines as that of an angel.
FL I suppose doctrinally he is illustrative of the end of 2 Corinthians 3. “We all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord”.
EJMcB In principle, in the early part of the Acts, you have heaven looking down here, but with Stephen you have a man with his eye definitely fixed upon heaven, and the characteristics of the Man in heaven come out in him.
FL So he is transformed morally before Saul and the others. His words “Lay not this sin to their charge” are an expression of the spirit of Christ.
JS You were saying just now that the testimony was sustained through the Lord’s intercession. What do you mean?
JT What was introduced in Jerusalem was in answer to the Lord’s intercession. He had prayed the Father for the Spirit, and, having received of the Father the promise of the Spirit, He shed forth that which they then saw and heard. It is a wonderful testimony of grace that He should bring it in for them; it was available for those who had put Him to death.
RSS “Father, forgive them”.
JT It is quite in keeping with that; the Spirit was there for them; they had to be baptised and they should receive remission of sins and the Holy Spirit. Christ had brought that in for the Jews, and that continues as a testimony up to chapter 7.
Now you have it changed; it is a question of God closing with them. The incident of Stephen is like the closing up of the case on God’s behalf, so that when God enters into judgment He might be clear.
[p. 264] God must be clear in what He is doing, and in grace He justifies Himself, in giving up Israel, through Stephen’s address.
JS So Stephen goes back to God’s beginning with Abraham.
JT He begins with God who has a glorious system in mind for Israel; they resist all that. “Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost; as your fathers did, so do ye”. They had resisted that, but it was all over there. The God of glory had appeared to Abraham; the glory was now in heaven.
JS They had always, and still were, resisting the Spirit.
RSS So Stephen’s address was a justification of God.
JT Yes, that is what I understand.
FL One might say with reverence that he was God’s advocate for the moment, and was delivering the final charge to justify God in setting aside Israel.
JT It throws a wonderful light on God’s ways with men. Stephen reviews, as it were, the witnesses on God’s side. God had intervened on account of His glory, and His ways with Israel were all founded on that. The prophets bring out how wonderfully patient God had been with them, and finally the Holy Spirit is given on the intercession of Christ, whom they had murdered. The last great witness was Christ; and the activities of the Spirit having been resisted, God’s case is closed; He is justified.
RSS Stephen brings in two great characters, Joseph and Moses. There is great glory connected with those men, and both were refused.
JT All such men and such gracious dealings on the part of God are simply His witnesses. Now Stephen is refused, they bring all the evidence together, God is justified in hiding Himself from the house of Jacob.
BTF Would you take Stephen as an example [p. 265] of what you commenced with as spirituality, or would you go further and take Paul?
JT Stephen’s honour is that God was pleased to charge him with this great service, and then he dies for the testimony, in complete accord with the spirit of all the other witnesses, even of the Lord Himself. He dies as a priest as he interceded for his murderers.
BTF Would you add that he died in the full light of the revelation of God at that moment?
JT Yes. He died in the spirit of Christ; he died gloriously.
ANW In what relation does the testimony of what he saw in heaven stand to his own testimony?
JT The Son of man standing is in relation to previous witnesses. That is, He is still waiting on Israel; but their answer to that is stones. Stephen was not crucified; Israel committed themselves to his death; that is an idea in stoning.
EJMcB Up to that moment Israel was the great thought before God; and now there is this testimony as to the kind of man God is occupied with; He is standing in heaven.
FL The Man in the glory becomes a new and distinctive point; it was at that expression that they turned upon Stephen. That, of course, gives character to Christianity.
PJ It is remarkable that Saul was found here.
JT I have no doubt but that Saul’s spiritual history dates from here; “Saul was consenting unto his death”, but then he had witnessed nothing like that before; the Spirit of Christ was in Stephen.
FL So in the ways of God he undoubtedly was brought there on purpose.
JT I thought, that the “kicking against the pricks” had reference to that; his conscience was [p. 266] affected.
PJ The apostle reminds one, bringing it down to the present day, of an unconverted man: he may do certain things against a child of God, but when converted he will never forget what he has done.
EJMcB I thought, in relation to your remark that he was a witness of these things that when the Lord laid hold of Paul he got a spiritual conception of that sight; after he got the Spirit he came to the import of the incident in a remarkable way.
JT The Lord’s word to him out of heaven had reference to what was going on in his soul. If the Lord speaks to us He takes account of what may be going on in our souls.
FL Undoubtedly the kicking against the pricks would be the constant striving against his own conscience. The sound of that voice, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge”, must have been ringing in his ears.
AFM I suppose Saul is raised up to continue the testimony that was begun in Stephen.
JT The conscience was touched there, no doubt, but then he has to learn grace, and one of the most touching things in the narrative is that the Lord spoke to him in the Hebrew language; as much as to say, ‘Saul, I know you are an Israelite, you are Hebrew of the Hebrews, and you have great veneration for what is Hebrew’. It seemed to be especially in order that Saul might have every possible advantage, that his heart might be subdued by grace. And then He says, “It is hard for thee”. What consideration on the part of Christ for that man!
JS There was a witness to Saul that glory had been transferred from earth to heaven.
RSS Do you think the work of God in Paul’s soul began at this point?
JT I think the Lord’s communications to him had reference to Stephen’s death. In the second chapter it is simply a “sound out of heaven”; whereas here there are distinct articulations in a known language. Christ, as Man, is in heaven, and He speaks directly from thence.
J.S. What is the idea?
JT In chapter 2 there is the assertion of heaven’s right to speak; but in chapter 9 you have distinct words, and these words express divine sympathy and grace in a remarkable way.
FL I suppose in that there is a suggestion, that while it could be understood by one to whom it was spoken, it was simply a “sound” to those to whom it was not addressed. It establishes a point of sovereignty in heaven to single out and speak to whom it will.
Rem I would like you to say something in regard to the greatness of Christ in supporting Stephen as a vessel of the testimony.
JT Of course, it is a testimony to the greatness of Christ, but see what a man Stephen was. Extraordinary spiritual power is evidenced in the fact that he could rise above such fearful pressure of opposition and manifest the spirit of Christ in it. In dwelling upon the Ark we must not overlook the boards of the tabernacle.
EJMcB I think what you have been saying is beautiful; in regard to the material structure, boards were there, but here is spiritual material for the superstructure. It is to sustain that which is heavenly.
RSS So in that way Stephen was a sample board, or sample Christian.
EJMcB I suppose we might say that the mark of a spiritual man would be that God’s thoughts [p. 268] would be maintained. This would involve separation from everything that is contaminating.
JT Stephen covers everything from the appearance of the God of glory in Mesopotamia to this point. Stephen dies, but the testimony lives; that is the idea of a board; it is to sustain the testimony.
Stephen sustained the testimony in dying.
AM Would you say that Stephen practically sets forth the power of resurrection?
JT He is an example of practical endurance. There was power to sustain the testimony before the fiercest opposition. It is that side of the spiritual man we see in him specially.
AFM Is it open to us all to be boards?
JT Oh, quite. I have often thought that the beginning of a board is seen in a child who answers to the injunction, “Obey your parents in the Lord”. As to us, if our days are long, it is assuredly to support the testimony, and you begin by obeying one that loves you; namely, your parents. It is God’s consideration for a child to put authority in a parent; it is easy to obey one that loves you. You show yourself to be a board because the idea of a board is that God’s will is carried out, not mine.
Ques What do the sockets of the boards represent?
JT It is that things are set up on the ground of redemption. Silver refers to redemption.
FL If a child is to have prolonged days in view of the testimony, it becomes a question with the parents as to the shaping of the board, to bring them up in the discipline and admonition of the Lord. We should all have the testimony in view in that way.
WLP I was going to ask you to say a word in connection with “living stones”.
EJMcB In the tabernacle you have a system in your mind connected with a wilderness position, having reference to God possessing “all things”.
[p. 269] When you come to a temple or fixed building, you have a different thought. You can understand that any genuine Jew would have the idea of the temple being the embodiment of the light of God for His people at that time. Now the temple is a living idea, and saints are connected with the living system of things in which the light of God for His people is at this moment. Peter refers to a “spiritual house”, and we living stones in it.