THE DEVELOPMENT OF WHAT IS PRINCELY
Genesis 32:24-31; Numbers 21:14-18 to “staves”;
1 Peter 2:9,10; 2 Samuel 1:17-27
In feeding upon the person of Christ together as we have done this weekend, it is meant to make a moral change in my life and in yours, and in our walk. With that in view, I would like to speak from these scriptures about what is princely. A prince of God is someone who has power with God and with men, and, in whatever circumstance, is an influence for good.
I read this scripture in Genesis 32 because Jacob gets his name changed to Israel. Mr Darby’s footnote tells us that Israel means wrestler, or prince of God. It is clear, dear brethren, from this experience of Jacob’s that something spiritual was born in him which had not been there before, and from this point on, the Jacob character recedes and the Israel character emerges. This experience of Jacob has sometimes been linked with what Paul speaks of in Romans 7. Those chapters in Romans are vital because in them, we learn to analyse ourselves and to recognise what is of the flesh and what is of the Spirit. If you do not recognise that in yourself, you will not recognise it in others. There is a struggle which Paul describes in Romans 7. I wonder whether you have had an experience like that. The experience of wanting to do what is right and having no power to do it is a Christian experience. If there was no work of God in you, you would not have that struggle, but Paul helps us to see that the power to overcome the flesh is in the Spirit. I am convinced from my own experience, beloved brethren, that the secret of spiritual progress individually is in the room we give to the Holy Spirit. That is the key to the development of what is priestly according to God. “Who shall deliver me out of this body of death?” (Rom.7:24); what depths of despair the language conveys to us, but then Paul says “I thank God, through Jesus Christ our Lord”. That is, you look away from yourself and look to Another, the Deliverer, the Lord Jesus Christ. “I myself with the mind serve God’s law.” The “I myself” is the personality that is developed on the line of God’s purpose, on the line of Israel
In this scripture in Genesis 32, Jacob remained alone and a man wrestled with him until the rising of the dawn. I wonder whether we have all had experiences at close quarters with God. This was a landmark in Jacob’s history, something he could refer back to, a point of reference. Beloved brethren, the Lord passes us through deep exercises, night exercises. There is nothing haphazard with God; what He has in view is a positive end. We have the expression here, “Jacob remained alone; and a man wrestled with him until the rising of the dawn”. It is interesting that in Genesis 1, after each day of the creation, it does not say that there was morning and there was evening, but “there was evening, and there was morning”, Gen.1:5. Whatever you or I pass through in the way of exercise under God’s hand, it has in view a positive result, and the present time is no exception. So “when he saw that he did not prevail against him, he touched the joint of his thigh; and the joint of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated as he wrestled with him.” That is, there was a mark left upon Jacob through this experience. He had a limp, and every time Jacob would walk, there would be a witness that he had had to do with God. He was weakened as far as this world was concerned, but the experience of it helped him to be ready to enter into another world, of which, for us, Christ is the centre. Jacob wanted the blessing. That is seen in this chapter; “And he said, I will not let thee go except thou bless me. And he said to him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall not henceforth be called Jacob, but Israel; for thou hast wrestled with God, and with men, and hast prevailed”. There was something born in Jacob’s soul that was not there before. Then Jacob asked for God’s name. He was not given it there, but he was given God’s name in chapter 35, when he arrived at Bethel, the house of God. The place where God dwells, where He makes Himself known, was a suitable place in which to reveal His name to Jacob – “Almighty God”, Gen.35:11. Dear brethren, that conveys to me One with whom there is no possibility of defeat. God had begun a work in Jacob and He was not going to let him go, He was going to complete that work. Jacob was intelligent in relation to this experience with God, for he “called the name of the place Peniel – For I have seen God face to face, and my life has been preserved”.
Have you had some kind of experience like that? Can you look back and say ‘My life was preserved through that experience with God’? It was Job who said “I had heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth thee”, Job 42:5. It is like Jacob here, seeing God face to face and his life was preserved. He passed over Peniel and the sun rose upon him. You might say that the sun rose upon everyone, that the sun shines upon the righteous and the unrighteous. But at this point, Jacob was the object of God’s favour; he was under God’s eye. The sun rose upon him, but he limped upon his hip; that was the mark that he had had to do with God. Jacob had many sorrowful experiences after this event; he had his ups and downs. He spent twenty years in Padan-Aram and God allowed him to become very wealthy. It does not seem that God counted for very much in Jacob’s life during those years, but God never lost sight of him, and He does not lose sight of you either.
Then Jacob had a son – Joseph. Jacob gave him a coat of many colours, for he had a special place in his father’s affections. One day, his other sons came with the coat of many colours, covered in blood, and showed it to him (Gen.37:32). It must have broken his heart. But Jacob’s days went on and brightened. What about our days? By the end of the book, Jacob was morally a great man; he was a prince of God. He went out as a worshipper, he went out as a blesser; these are marks of a prince of God. He said, “Assemble yourselves, and hear, ye sons of Jacob, And listen to Israel your father”, Gen.49:2. There was a blessing for every one of his sons. What a rich knowledge of God Jacob had; he spoke about the God who shepherded him all his life long (Gen.48:15). He was a prince of God.
I read in Numbers 21 principally because of verse 18, “Well which princes digged, which the nobles of the people hollowed out at the word of the lawgiver, with their staves”. Reference has been made, dear brethren, to temple light that comes in conversational meetings; much truth has been recovered on such occasions. It was the princes who dug and the nobles of the people who hollowed out these wells at the word of the lawgiver. That is Christ. Under the influence of Christ typically, the living Head of the assembly, there was exercise and experience which marked these princes; the staves speak to us of experience. There were many readings with Mr Taylor Sr where you can see how the principle of this was worked out. I think we have known something of it as we have been together this weekend. The well, speaking to us of the water which is a type of the Holy Spirit, is different to the river. The river speaks of a resource, and it has an influence. When you have a river going through desert land, irrigation is possible as a result of the river flowing there. But a well needs exercise, it needs digging. These nobles and princes dug, typically under the word of Christ, until they got to the water. It is the fresh and living character of what comes through the Holy Spirit.
I have gleaned from ministry that when the matter of the worship of the Holy Spirit came before the brethren, this chapter was drawn upon in an extensive way, especially this reference which we had in the reading, “Rise up well! sing unto it”. The mark of a prince, I think, is that there is liberty in a living way in his response to God. There was an abundance of water available in this chapter, and another thing that emerges here is that the people began to journey. They had wandered for forty years in the wilderness, but now they began to journey. What was the secret of that? I think that the Spirit was in type beginning to have His place with them so that there was a definite object in view. In Genesis 32, the Spirit typically had a place in an individual way with Jacob; there was something born of the Spirit in him. I would say that our progress collectively also depends on the place we give the Holy Spirit, by way of what is fresh and living.
I read in Peter because of the reference to the kingly priesthood. The holy priesthood is towards God, “to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ” (v.5). As princely development takes place in us, it enriches the service of God. But the kingly priesthood is towards men, so it bears on our testimony. We have been taught that we are here for two reasons, dear brethren; for the service of God and for the testimony. We get them both in this chapter. It is a realm of which Christ is the centre. There is another thing that I want to point out in this chapter, and it is that Peter records that this living Stone, to whom we are to come, was cast out as worthless by men. That means that you cannot enter into the service of God, or the testimony, while you are tainted by things of the world. It is a world that cast Jesus out as worthless. Judas’s evaluation was thirty pieces of silver; the world’s evaluation was that He was worthless. That is my Saviour. I trust that, as a result of the time together this weekend, our testimony will become more heavenly and brighter; “ye are a chosen race, a kingly priesthood”. Gideon was asked what certain persons were like, and he replied, “each one resembled the sons of a king … They were my brethren”, Judg.8:18. I am challenged as to what my testimony is. Does it have a heavenly character about it, or is there that about it which has the mark of the world? We are to be “a kingly priesthood, a holy nation, a people for a possession, that ye might set forth the excellencies of him who has called you out of darkness to his wonderful light”.
Do you remember the time when you received the call in the gospel? Who was it that called you? It was the Lord Jesus. He called you not only in view of your being saved from the present evil world, but also to have your part in this kingly priesthood. As the Spirit is free in you, He will develop in you features that are like Christ, “the excellencies of him who has called you”. Saul of Tarsus witnessed the martyrdom of Stephen; he saw that his face was the face of an angel. It was heavenly, and no doubt that affected Paul. When he was persecuting those who were of the way, and dragging them off to prison, what did he see? I believe he saw in them “the excellencies of him who has called you out of darkness to his wonderful light; who once were not a people, but now God’s people; who were not enjoying mercy, but now have found mercy”. Beloved brethren, let us never lose the sense that we are here today on the basis of being vessels of mercy. It is not what we deserved, but God has moved from His own side, and we have found mercy. We show that we appreciate mercy by enjoying it, which is the indication in the footnote.
I trust that one result of our time together is that the service of God will be enriched and the testimony will be brighter. We need not be apologetic about our testimony in a broken day. We need not be apologetic about standing by what has come to us through the ministry of Paul, which is largely given up in the day in which we are. The truth of Christ and the assembly, as we have part in it rightly, and as these princely features as seen in us, will enhance the testimony.
I have been thinking about the moral glories of the Lord Jesus. When He was before Pontius Pilate and He was falsely accused, He answered not so much as one word. Even a man like Pilate could utter those words, “Behold the man!” John 19:5. I do not suppose that Pilate thought that, down through the ages, those three words would be taken in admiration upon the lips of those who love Jesus. “Behold the man!” Peter had the experience of warming himself by the fire and three times he denied the Lord, but we get the fruit of Peter’s experiences in his epistle. While he was warming himself, he had witnessed a Man who “when reviled, reviled not again … but gave himself over into the hands of him who judges righteously” 1 Pet.2:23. That was the Prince. Think of the One who came down, the bread of life that came from heaven; One who humbled Himself. That is the order of manhood that is pleasing to God, and as feeding upon that order of manhood, it is intended that those features should be developed in us. Paul wrote, “let this mind be in you”, Phil.2:5. He speaks beautifully about the Lord Jesus in Philippians 2, but then he says in effect, It is not just to be a picture on the wall. There is something to be worked out in you and me; “let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus”. That is princely.
It was not my intention to go into the detail of the song in 2 Samuel, but I would like to point out that the language of the song of the bow is princely; it is morally beautiful. Such was the importance of this song in David’s mind that “he bade them teach the children of Judah the song of the bow.” That is, it was not to be forgotten; it was put on the statute book. What the language of this chapter brings out, beloved brethren, is that David remembered the brightest days of Saul and Jonathan. If anybody turns aside, it is a sorrowful thing, but we are to remember their brightest days. God has remembered your brightest day; “I remember for thee the kindness of thy youth”, Jer.2:2. Jacob’s days went on and brightened, but alas, some have fallen away. What a sorrow! How do I feel about that? How do you feel? Do you remember their brightest days? I often think about what a treasury our hymn book is. In the treasuries that were brought to the house of God, there were contributions by men like Joab. Even if a hymn’s author has sorrowfully turned aside, the hymn remains as a monument to their brightest day.
David thought of that. What language he used here, “Saul and Jonathan, beloved and pleasant in their lives”. You might think, ‘David, how could you say that?’ They had hunted him like a partridge (1 Sam.26.20), but there were two occasions when David had it in his hand to put Saul to death, and yet he had respect for God’s anointed. So when news came to him that Saul and Jonathan had fallen on the mountains of Gilboa, he did not rejoice in it, and say, ‘I am going to be king now’. I think that in David’s history, you see the work of God shine out most in adversity. I believe that these experiences, and the composition of this song of the bow, fitted him for kingship. Think of how he spoke of Jonathan: “I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant wast thou unto me; Thy love to me was wonderful, passing women’s love”. Masculine love is individual, as we see in Jonathan here. Feminine love, as far as I see in the Scripture, relates to what is collective; assembly love for Christ. Now, dear young brother and sister, you may come across persons who have manifest love for Christ. Jonathan’s love for David was unquestionable, but he never left the house of Saul. He never took that step, to “go forth to him without the camp, bearing his reproach”, Heb.13:13. David was in reproach, but Jonathan never publicly identified himself with it. You might come across Christians who undoubtedly have love for Christ, like Jonathan did for David, but never identify themselves with Him in His rejection. I read this song of the bow because it is lovely, princely language, morally beautiful and pleasing to God.
I would just close with a reference to a letter written by Mr Taylor Sr. He advised that if you are personally under attack, be as a deaf man that hears not and one in whose mouth there is no reproof, for that is the lead that the Lord gives us1. I would suggest that that was the language of a prince. Let us think about it. I believe that the service of God will be enriched as a result of this time together, and the testimony will be brighter, and I might add, dear brethren, that there will be a quicker resolving of exercises among us to God’s glory. May He bless the word.
Address at Grangemouth
D. Wright
9 August 2014