PURSUING PEACE AND HOLINESS
Hebrews 12: 14,15; 1 Sam.25:13,18-24
This exhortation in Hebrews to pursue peace and holiness, and to watch lest there be anyone who lacks the grace of God, is very important for us, brethren, because if we do not, it says, “lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and many be defiled by it”. We do not want any root of bitterness, because it spreads. The Scriptures are full of people who were bitter. It is very sad that anything like that should come in among believers. This root of bitterness is what we find in the world. You get hatred and persons jumping one over another to get an advantage. It is prevalent, it is a tool of the enemy and it is sin. The first example in the Scriptures is Cain. He did not like God looking on Abel’s offering and not on his. A root of bitterness crept in and it led to murder. We get many other examples. In David’s history, when he was in rejection, Shimei decried David and was bitter against him; he even went to the length of cursing David. But I do not want to go into all these examples.
What we should see is that there is a positive way of preventing it. “Pursue peace with all, and holiness”. Now pursuing peace is a very important matter. Peace is the principle on which the reign of Christ will operate. I know that it will be grace reigning through righteousness, everything will be on the basis of what is right, based on God’s righteousness. That is what will pervade the whole world then, but the principles that will pervade the world to come publicly are seen in testimony among the saints of the assembly at the present time. It is very important therefore that we pursue peace. It involves that reconciliation has been established, not just reconciliation Godward, but reconciliation manward, meaning that unity is the result. If there is peace, it means there is unity. The Lord came into the company in John 20 on resurrection ground and found that the eleven disciples were together as one. He came in there and said “Peace be unto you”, Luke 24:36. There was recognition that they had been reconciled to God through the death of His Son, through the death of Jesus, and that peace was established. It brought in a unity that could never be broken so far as God was concerned.
But then we also need holiness. That is in contrast to the brashness and ungodliness, the lack of piety which is in the world, and amongst many who profess Christianity but do not practise it. What has been set out so perfectly in Christ, beloved brethren, leads us to rely on the Holy Spirit and the power that He gives us to have holiness in our lives, piety in our lives, so that there might be approach to God which will keep us morally sound. I think the lack of peace and holiness among us is due to the lack of a firm moral basis in persons’ souls. We need to make sure that we have a firm moral basis in our souls. So we have these words, “Pursue peace with all, and holiness, without which no one shall see the Lord: watching lest there be any one who lacks the grace of God”. What a supply of grace there is, and it meets every exigency that comes in. It is seen perfectly in Christ; not only was there seen in Him the favour of God in grace, but there was the maintenance of truth. Grace and truth are a perfect blend, subsisting in Christ.
So we need to feed more on these features of Christ. It is very important that we look at what Christ was to God, and what He is now to God. What He was when He was here, the kind of manhood that He exhibited – that was the manna. But now we find food in relation to where He is now, and that is what we feed on (John 6:57). The grace of God helps us in feeding on Christ, lest there be any root of bitterness springing up. Why would I want to be bitter against my brother, my sister? Why would I? He or she has believed in Christ just as I have. Christ has suffered for him and her just as He has suffered for me. Beloved brethren, in places where difficulties exist because of some root of bitterness that has maybe lasted for a long time, the principles that are set out here by Paul will preserve and keep us. They are pursuing peace and holiness, and watching lest there be anyone who lacks the grace of God. These are the positive matters that will preserve us.
I have read about David. We find from the Psalms that David was in a close relationship with God, and yet, like all of us, from time to time he failed. From time to time we fail, at least I do. Sadly, David was set on warfare; Nabal had slighted him, but instead of asking God what he should do, David took it on himself. There was bitterness in his soul; he said “Surely, in vain have I kept all that this man had in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed … So and more also do God to the enemies of David, if I leave of all that is his by the morning light any male”. He brings God’s name into what he said, but it was only profession; what a murderous spirit he had. Abigail was the answer to that; she generated peace, she generated the grace of God. Although it was not the dispensation of grace, the type is seen here. Abigail provided the features of Christ. More than that, she bowed down to David. That was a very good thing to do. Why did she bow down? She had never done anything wrong, but she took the low ground. It is very interesting that she sent her young men before her, and she was riding on the ass coming down in the covert of the hill. David and his men came down opposite her, and they met in the valley. That is a good place to meet, because we find that in the valley, God is superior there as He is in the mountains. He is the God of valleys as well as the God of the mountains. The prophet says that (1 Kings 20:28), and the valley suggests that we meet at Gilgal. That is a place where we need to judge ourselves; we do not judge somebody else. David was out for warfare and to judge somebody else, but Abigail was going down into the valley in self-judgment and she bows down. She “fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and fell at his feet, and said, Upon me…”. How like Judah that was in Joseph’s time. So here Abigail was displaying the spirit of Christ. It is in principle the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ and that is what is needed, beloved brethren. Let us maintain it.
Now we will never have the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ unless we feed on Jesus Christ, unless we have the supply of this peace and grace that the scripture speaks of in Hebrews. It will preserve us from this spirit of bitterness. We find that assembly problems in the past sometimes arose from bitterness and bad feeling between one and another, and it spread. How sad it is if a root of bitterness springs up and many be defiled by it. So let us maintain the positive principles and feed on Christ, so that no bitterness springs up.
May we be helped in it for His name’s sake.
Word at a meeting for ministry, Grangemouth
22 July 2014
J.C. Gray