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APPRECIATION OF CHRIST

CAC What was before us in suggesting this scripture was that we might see a little of the way by which souls are led into the blessedness of association with Christ. In seeing that, we are brought to the truth of the assembly.

This scene in Simon the leper’s house is very suggestive. It presents an illustration of what the Father is doing — bringing about appreciation of Christ in the hearts of those who are the subjects of His grace. In this woman we see a state of heart brought about by the Father’s grace — a distinct appreciation of Christ. That is what God is working for. He has brought a wonderful Person into the leper’s house. The leper’s house represents what Israel had become; instead of being God’s house, Israel had become totally unsuitable to God. One might say that the leper’s house represents also what the world is in general as a scene of defilement. God brought into this house none other than His own Anointed, in whom all the grace and power of God were set forth as available for man in his defiled state. It was set forth that it might be appreciated. All spiritual progress hangs on the appreciation of Christ. The Father wrought appreciation of Christ in this woman; she was possessed of precious ointment. It is a great thing to have very precious ointment. We can only have precious ointment as our hearts have treasured up Christ; it is only as Christ has become the preciousness to us.

The woman represents the state of the remnant. During the service of the Lord Jesus on earth she had been treasuring up His excellency and perfection and a moment came when, in figure, she poured it back on His head; it all came ^[p. 260] back to Him in view of His passing out of this world; her affections invested Him with the honour of all she had found in Him at a moment when He was about to be cast aside as worthless.

Ques Why were the disciples so out of touch with what was working in this woman?

CAC Well, no doubt they appreciated Christ, but at this moment they did not savour of the thoughts that were of God, but savoured of the things of man. Very wonderful things had been brought to pass. God has brought a blessed Person within reach of our appreciation in this very scene where everything is characterised by sin and Satan; it is the “leper’s house” but He is there in all His excellency. The grace and power of that Person are found in a leper’s house.

Rem As a matter of fact, the disciples fell under the influence of Judas in complaining about the ointment being waste.

CAC Yes, and that is a solemn warning to us. We see in this gospel, and in the others also, how all the excellency of that Person is made available to meet every need of man, and it is for us to appreciate and avail ourselves of all the excellency of that blessed Person; it has all come in for us. Take the cleansing of the leper at the beginning of this gospel, the healing of the paralytic, and of the feverish woman, and the displacement of the power of Satan; everything is there in that blessed Person, and all is to be appropriated for our deliverance. It is just as far as we have appropriated that holy, anointed One in whom it has all come to us that we are delivered. That holy One is God’s Anointed. The appreciation of Christ is the true distinction of the saint. Appreciation of Christ is what distinguishes this woman, she was marked out from all the rest. They were not in tune, not in accord, but this woman was marked out by appreciation of Christ. That is the crown,

^[p. 261] and there ought to be exercise as to how far we have come into the appreciation of Christ.

Rem It is as we appropriate Him that we appreciate Him.

CAC Yes, and vice versa. We learn that blessed One who has come into the scene of need. There is a great contrast morally between what we have here in Matthew and that in John’s gospel. Here it is the leper’s house but in the twelfth chapter of John it is a resurrection scene, the Son of God in a resurrection scene. The glory of God had come in. John 11 is the scene of His glory and not the leper’s house. In this gospel it is the leper’s house, the place of man’s defilement, and into that very place all the grace of Christ has been brought. We need to put the gospel into our own history; we have been lepers, and feverish, and under the power of the enemy, but how far have we personally and experimentally found out what there is in Christ for deliverance from all these things? That is the first point. All the preciousness of Christ has been brought in to be appropriated and treasured up in our hearts.

Rem This is effected by the Spirit.

CAC Yes. The ointment is, I think, a figure of the preciousness of Christ known in the power of the Spirit and treasured up in the hearts of the saints. Then a moment comes when we can anoint Him with it. But we must derive from Him all that we bring to Him. How far have we really appreciated what God has set before us in His anointed One? In Him we see God’s ministry to the need of men. There is not a need, not an exercise, no condition, no experience but there is a perfect answer to it in Christ. Here we are tonight, our state and our experiences are all different but there is a divine answer to the present need of every heart, and we need to keep up this exercise constantly and to find a divine answer in Christ, moment ^[p. 262] by moment.

Ques Why do we not get the good of this?

CAC Because we do not avail ourselves of it, but there is not an exercise that does not find its answer by the grace of God, in Christ. When we appreciate Him, we soon find there is no room for Him here. The woman got an instinctive sense that there was no room in this would for such excellency as was seen in Him who was the joy of her heart. In the sense of all that He was to her, she realised there was no room for Him here. In view of His death she anointed Him; He was God’s Anointed, and her Anointed. We have nothing to give Him which is not of Him: “Of that which is from thy hand have we given thee”, 1 Chronicles 29:14. He loves to be appreciated; He delights when His saints adoringly bring back to Him their appreciation of Himself. In figure this woman poured out her appreciation and affection on His holy anointed head, which had no resting place here. I think we come into accord with God in that way. The would has no room for Him, but the Father is working that the One who is everything to Him may be everything to us.

The Lord traces everything to the Father in this gospel: “Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them to babes” (chapter 11:25), and “Every plant which my heavenly Father has not planted shall be rooted up” (chapter 15:13). All the Father’s work stands, and that work is to give us to appreciate Christ. He has made Christ precious to us; He is precious in the hearts of men; we appreciate Him. This act of the woman is to go along with the gospel; the result of the gospel as seen in the heart of man is never to be left out; it is the subjective side. All is present in grace on God’s side, and the answer in man is appreciation of it in responsive affection. The Lord would have it made quite clear what the result is — appreciation of Christ and appreciation of God, if we may so speak, are brought about in the heart of ^[p. 263] man. Not only is grace presented, but there is an answer in the hearts of men. That is most important. There are many people who believe, but who have not much appreciation of Christ. Indeed, we are all very feeble on that line.

The Lord understood this action of the woman’s devotedness to Him. Often, when there is true devotedness it is not understood, but the Lord understands it. Now it is in the state thus set forth that we are rightly prepared for the Supper. The institution of the Supper is for those who appreciate Christ because, when we come to the Supper, it is Himself that is presented. When He gathers His saints together it is that He may present Himself to us. The Supper is everything to the one who appreciates Him, but nothing to those who do not. We must be in appreciation of Him to be in accord with the Supper at all. How the simplicity of the Supper has been lost! It has been adapted to people who had not any appreciation of Christ, and taken up in a worldly way, but we are to come to eat the Supper as being in the appreciation of Christ, and that strikes one common note in every heart. What He presents is Himself, “This is my body” — it is Himself.

We are gone indeed; He has made an end of us, and presents what He is. The point is what Christ is. It is Christ instead of self. If our faces are turned in that direction it is a most blessed thing: we reach a spot where Christ is all and in all, and we apprehend there is no room for anything but Christ. The cup is the new covenant in His blood. The new covenant ministered to us brings in all that is of God, and that is the new would in which our hearts are made to live. If God makes a covenant every thing is of Himself. “My people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith Jehovah” (Jeremiah 31:14) — full satisfaction. The reason the remission of sins comes in is to clear the ground so that we may live in all that is the outcome of the love of ^[p. 264] God; that is the world in which we live.

Ques Why is the cup linked with the covenant?

CAC Because the love of God is revealed as the spring and source of everything; first we are brought into the appreciation of Christ, then in seeing that God is the source of all blessing, we are brought to God. It is a great thing, the appreciation of the anointed Man and, as there is the appreciation of Him, we are brought to God, who is the spring of everything, and all the blessing is according to the glory of God. There must be the most blessed liberty when we touch that circle. The new covenant refers to Israel, but we have the spirit of it. All is divine. Grace and love and everything is ministered; it is the secret of rest and liberty with God. The remission of sins comes in because the love of God is expressed in that way; that is how it has come to us. God in His nature is active towards us and we are restful before Him. How wonderful that I can be with God on the ground of what He is and what Christ is! Remission of sins is a necessity, but in that way God is known by us. It is a wonderful thing that everything is cleared out of the way, all that would hinder our being happy and entering into the circle where God is; we need to look at things from the divine side — we are taken into favour in the Beloved! How much do we know of it? Now as we come under the influence, under the shining of Christ and one ray after another of His glory is perceived by us, our appreciation of Him is deepened and grows. What joy it is to think I can have Him instead of myself! This is the outcome of the blessed love of God, and then there is a final step of divine joy, that of association. It is hinted at: “I will not at all drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in the kingdom of my Father”, (verse 29). The Lord looks on to a new association in the kingdom of the Father, that of sons; the joy of new and heavenly relationship in sonship in the Father’s presence. One great idea in the gospel is association, and that is sonship. That is the crowning point, but the road over which we must travel begins by learning Him in the leper’s house. Then as God’s ministry is brought to us we learn to appreciate Christ. We get Him instead of ourselves, and He has brought us to God — God acting for His own pleasure. How wonderful if we are in the joy of that association! A new association, a new joy as sons with Him before the Father’s face. It is not wonderful their singing a hymn; all that we have been considering is that there may be a song. What marks the present moment is singing praises, and this singing the hymn seems a little suggestive of it. The Spirit of God’s Son would raise that song. The Spirit of sonship is in the hearts of all those in association with Him, and the praises of God are sung. God is known in the affections of sonship; it is the song of Christ in the midst of the assembly.

If we reach this blessed heavenly association, we shall be quite content on the earthly side to go into Galilee, the place of rejection, the place looked down on by the religious world. If the good of all that which has come before us be ours, we shall not be afraid of Galilee.

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