LISTENING TO CHRIST
[p. 460] LISTENING TO CHRIST
In these verses the Lord indicates who are His brethren and regards them as a circle. He looked round “in a circuit”, as it should read, on those who sat around Him. Divine love is known to those whom He indicates in this circle. They were not a circle of scientists. There are such, those who investigate and arrive at conclusions. One might speak of those who devote themselves to research and have arrived at conclusions as regards certain scientific things; but the circle of the brethren of Christ is in possession of the knowledge that none of those circles possesses. Whatever knowledge they may have as to things, the knowledge of divine love must exceed it, and this knowledge marks the brethren of Christ; they have known it. “Hereby we have known love”, 1 John 3:16.
Think of that, the few, who have no earthly place, who are not marked by this world’s culture, they have a knowledge that exceeds all other intelligence — they have the knowledge of love. The apostle does not say, “Hereby we should know it”, for John presents characteristic Christianity; he says, “Hereby we have known love”. And how? In that Christ laid down His life for us.
I wish we could think of that, and what that circle is, and that each might have a part in it practically — the circle which, as I said, the Lord looked round upon. He looked upon those who sat around Him. It was not a crowd standing in great curiosity round the Lord; they were sitting. This is suggestive of Christianity — a circle drawn to Him sitting down to listen. Those who had natural claims [p. 461] came, but they did not join the circle. They stood outside of it.
Now I mention that because many who have natural links inside are content to stand outside with very little interest. There may be a certain natural interest but there is no spiritual link. His mother and His brethren, as you will observe, stood outside and sent a message. The Lord, as He receives the message, looks around on those that sat there and listened. How happy to be found thus sitting simply and humbly and yet with the intelligence, as I remarked, that exceeds every other in the world — the knowledge of love.
I do not say exactly the knowledge of the love of Christ, for that is not exactly the way John puts it. He says, “Hereby we have known love”, 1 John 3:16. How happy to be in that attitude sitting humbly and simply and yet possessed with that wonderful knowledge of love, and to have the Lord. What marked the mutual ground was the fact that they sat about Christ, and He looked around on them. Can anything be so precious, dear brethren, as the fact that the Lord looks around on those who are drawn to Him, whose interest is in Him, who like Mary of Bethany are listening to what He is saying?
There is a difference between listening to things and hearing things. There are many things that we hear that we would prefer not to hear; but when it becomes a question of listening, then you want to hear. So Mary sat and listened to what He was saying. And so here, those in the circle of His brethren, the circle that He owns as in relationship with Him, are sitting about Him. They are not occupied with any leader or leaders, although the chapter indicates that some of the most renowned Christian leaders were there. Peter was there, as the chapter records; John and James were there,
[p. 462] He had selected them, for He had named them “sons of thunder”, and took them into the mountain that they might he with Him and that He might send them forth to preach, and He named them.
Doubtless these were there, but those who sat around Him did not come to see or hear them — they were sitting around the Lord. Hence, when the natural claim is asserted He puts forth His spiritual claim. But where did it lie? As I said, they sat about Him, but it was more than that, they “did the will of God”; that is Mark’s feature of the brethren of Christ. Matthew has his own feature to present and so have Luke and John, but Mark brings forward the fact that the brethren of Christ are marked off by doing the will of God. They sat around Him and in that attitude are owned of Him as His mother and His brethren.
What I am impressed with is this, that we belong to the circle that is in the possession of this wonderful knowledge of love. No other love has any place alongside of it; hence John says, “Hereby we have known love, because he [without mentioning the name] has laid down his life for us”, 1 John 3:16. That is how John puts things. The thing is so great in his mind that he does not qualify it; it is simply love, and then he adds, “because he has laid down his life for us”.
Then there is the thought of correspondence to Christ. He immediately adds, “and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren”, 1 John 3:16. I suppose it links on with Colossians, which epistle presents correspondence to Christ in the saints. I believe Colossians brings in that Christian circle in which Christ is known, as it says, “Christ in you”; that is to say, Christ in our affections, Christ among the Gentiles known in their hearts “the hope of glory”; and the point of the apostle is to bring in correspondence [p. 463] with our great Leader; we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
I may not have this world’s means, but there is one thing that I have more than this world’s material things, and that is, I have a life from God, and it is my privilege to lay down that life for the brethren. The Lord has led the way, and so the circle is marked by it. Not only have we the knowledge of love, but it marks us, we are affected by it, and thus we know that we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren.