PRAYER AS SEEN IN THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES (5)
[p. 111] PRAYER AS SEEN IN THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES (5)
Acts 13:1 - 4; Acts 14:23; Acts 16:13 - 31; Acts 20:36 - 38
JT Having pursued our subject to the opening of the door to the gentiles through Peter’s administration, it is thought that we should now look at the work among the gentiles in the hand of the great servant who is especially the apostle to the nations, Barnabas being associated with him at first. Antioch, being the starting point of this great work which continues up to the present day, ought to be specially considered. We see how certain ones are mentioned as given up to the service of God, ministering to the Lord as it says, and fasting; they are occupied in the service of God directly. The Spirit had liberty in this setting to call for these two servants, Barnabas and Paul, and we are told that “having fasted and prayed, and having laid their hands on them, they let them go. They therefore, having been sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia, and thence sailed away to Cyprus”, Acts 13:3, 4. That is, the position is clearly stated, the assembly features developed under the ministry of Paul and Barnabas are marked by the direct service of God, and the Holy Spirit has liberty in which to widen the work, standing as it has for all these centuries throughout the whole world up to this very moment.
It is meet that we should specially notice the beginning of the work, what marked it, the place prayer had, and then what marked the two servants in their service, and then the great work in Philippi. That is, the work in Europe has begun and it is especially marked by prayer. They found prayer was wont to be made there, even before the apostles arrived. Then finally, we see in chapter 20 what a [p. 112] place the apostle had in the affections of the brethren, chapter 20 being a chapter of mutual, reciprocated affections, that is, affection in the servant and in those served. They were mutual, which would be a great matter for us too.
JS We had Damascus yesterday and we have Antioch today. What are the special features marking these cities?
JT What marks Antioch is the work developing from the labours of the scattered saints, not directly from the apostles although they had fellowship in it, having sent down Barnabas, who was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit. He sought out Paul and brought him there and they laboured a whole year, teaching in the assembly, we are told; too Antioch is signalised by one thing: the disciples were called Christians there first; then the service of God appears there, this direct service Godward which we do not get in such a formal way earlier.
HGH Is the suggestion here that prayer is necessary in order that that service might be rightly carried out? We get the Holy Spirit initially moving in relation to it and that is followed by prayer so that the service might be rightly fulfilled.
JT That is what I thought we might see at the beginning, for it is the point of departure for service among the nations and prayer has certainly a marked place in it. The direct service to God is another thing to be noticed; it is not mentioned in this formal way earlier.
ANW What do you regard as the direct service to God? What is it?
JT “Ministering to the Lord and fasting”. There is direct ministry to the Lord.
WL Have you any thought as to the diverse persons who are found here?
JT Persons that are mentioned, I think, are to bring out the idea of personality in the service. It [p. 113] must have been a large assembly, but these are especially mentioned, “prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called Niger, and Lucius the Cyrenian, and Manaen, foster-brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul”. We have here personality, which is a great feature with God. It will be a feature eternally, for personality will be there according to stature, the work of God seen in that sense.
JTJr Barnabas and Saul are already known to us before this chapter. These others, I suppose, are like additional features of the work of God, bringing others to light.
JT Yes; one is called Niger, another the Cyrenian, another what you might call a nobleman, foster-brother of Herod. There is variety as to their original status and there is variety in the persons.
HGH That would give us variety in prayer, thinking of each one as they laid hands on them and let them go. Would that help us on these lines in relation to the various servants serving in their own particular sphere?
JT Quite so; I think that it has been so from the outset in the service of God, in the testimony of God, personality has put its stamp on it; even in Genesis and Exodus, and then throughout the historical books, the prophets, and so in the gospels and epistles we have the idea of personality. It will run on to the millennial day, because the Messiah is called a Prince; when He is spoken of as representative He is called a Prince instead of King. It is generally Prince, alluding to personality.
WL Would you say that they are not asserting their personality here? They seem to be on common ground.
JT The Holy Spirit is asserting it, which is more important. If a man is beginning to assert his personality the Holy Spirit will forget him, He will [p. 114] not mention him. It is men that have personality in the sense of princely qualities that interest the Spirit; those men do not assert their personality; they leave it to others, nor are they concerned about it. It is a question of God and the adornment of His system of things. On the other hand in Revelation 11:13 the world is adorned by seven thousand names, “And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and the tenth of the city fell, and seven thousand names of men were slain in the earthquake”, showing that that line does not continue; it does not survive the catastrophe, whereas the persons whom God would honour are seen above.
AR I suppose what has to be observed in persons who are spiritual is that they are not unduly occupied with their service. It says they were prophets and teachers, gifted men. What was in their minds was the service of God.
JT Instead of exercising their gift, they were exercising priestly qualities; they were serving God in a priestly sense.
SP Is there any significance in the prophet preceding the teacher in importance?
JT There is; the gift of prophecy is greater than the gift of teaching. The order of the gifts is apostles, prophets, evangelists, and then shepherds and teachers (both gifts in one person), so that the teacher is not equal to the prophet. I think God would start out with the principle of adornment in His service as it comes among the nations, so these are not ordinary persons but extraordinary persons.
ANW You say a teacher is not equal to a prophet. You cannot tell which is which of these names.
JT Quite so, but the order is ‘prophets and teachers’.
RWS Is there a suggestion that the gentiles are responding now to the Father’s embrace when [p. 115] the Spirit fell on them? They are taking advantage of the open door.
JT Yes, it is a question of love, the gentiles approached with this expression of affection. It is really like the Father’s affectionate embrace of the prodigal; the Spirit fell on them and the word ‘fell’ is the same idea. This is the excellent start they got in Cornelius’ house. Peter’s account of it afterwards makes it a very beautiful incident, a great incident in the testimony. Then there is the work done by the scattered ones, persons with no distinction. Philip is used, of course, and mentioned, but the scattered ones went to Antioch. He did not go there, so that the course of the testimony was through the scattered ones rather than through him. He was found at Azotus, and later is said to have four daughters who prophesied, but the course of the testimony is through Antioch by the scattered ones who are recognised by Jerusalem. The church still has ears attentive to what God was doing and they send Barnabas, so the stream of the testimony was northward and westward; that is how the matter stands.
SRMcC As Job says, “From the north cometh gold”, Job 37:22. Would this be some of the gold?
JT That is, it would be gold in the sense of discipline, not like the gold of the land spoken of in Genesis 2, which does not suggest discipline but rather the encirclement of the river. Job’s allusion would be to the northern lights, but it would be in the sense of discipline; gold comes in that way.
CHH Is there a progressive and constructive line to these prayers in the Acts, culminating in chapter 21, where they embrace one another?
JT Following and inclusive of chapter 20 it is a question of love that prevailed, especially as between the servant and those served, particularly when he is journeying to Jerusalem. Now that he is [p. 116] on his journeys the different evidences of affection are shown, especially in chapters 20 and 21.
RA The feature of Jabez would mark them here. “Oh that thou wouldest richly bless me, and enlarge my border!” 1 Chronicles 4:10. Hence the Spirit’s voice comes in in relation to Paul and Barnabas.
JT I think Paul’s prayer, “Behold, he is praying”, as we commented on it yesterday, and Peter’s on the housetop, would both have in mind enlargement. It is the Japheth side of the race; his name means enlargement. It is enlargement of a good kind, not colonial enlargement such as we have in modern times, the overflowing of European populations. It is enlargement spiritually and this is the start of it, what there was at Antioch.
AR It was said of them, as nowhere else in the Acts, “The disciples were first called Christians in Antioch” (Acts 11:26). I suppose it would enhance the personality of the saints.
JT It would. The word ‘called’ is an oracular idea. God would have it so. That is to be observed in regard to Antioch; it gives Antioch distinction.
WB What is the value of this word, “Separate me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them”? They seemed to have been already ministering.
JT The time had come for this great matter but the Spirit waited until certain local conditions existed before He proposed it. Our attention is called, especially from chapter 9 on, to local conditions, what conditions are needed for divine operations. God can act in spite of conditions, of course, but He can act in favourable conditions and these are what He looks for in all matters.
SMcC Would this be a twofold aspect of the way that the servant comes into the service? There is the Lord’s own commission to him definitely marking him out as in chapter 9, and then the Spirit operating through the brethren.
JT I think the time had come to mention the Holy Spirit as acting sovereignly; all that we have had ever since and what we are having now is in mind. The point is to get a good start. There is the way heaven regards the servants and then the action of the Spirit Himself here below, not the Lord directing things from above but the Holy Spirit actually in the locality and knowing the local conditions; it involves first-hand knowledge. Of course heaven has first-hand knowledge, but the actual presence of the Spirit here below in a locality implies He has first-hand knowledge of the conditions that are needed for divine operations.
SMcC So that while Saul had a definite sense in his soul of a commission from the Lord directly from heaven, he did not arbitrarily lay it upon the brethren. We would have this kind of thing. Although they must have recognised it at that time yet there comes this period; he is waiting, working and doing things and now comes this moment when he is officially designated by the Spirit for the work.
JT Yes, and local conditions are especially in mind, because even as to himself he is the last mentioned on the list, showing that he has not put himself forward at all. Of course, we would expect Barnabas first without question because he had influence at Jerusalem; that is what some would say. Saul is not trusting that at all, he is not saying that; he is the last mentioned. The general local conditions had ripened, time had afforded the opportunity for this movement of the Spirit. If the Spirit is hampered locally the operations must be hampered.
ANW “The work to which I have called them” would be a matter between the Spirit and these two [p. 118] men.
JT It would be. It goes on to say, “They therefore, having been sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia, and thence sailed away to Cyprus”, Acts 13:4. It was His action to send them forth, but the action of the others is most beautiful, for the Spirit says, “And as they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said. Separate me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them”. “Separate me now”, alludes to time. “Then, having fasted and prayed, and having laid their hands on them, they let them go” (verses 2, 3). That is, they would gladly keep them but they are with the Spirit and there is not the slightest thought of relief locally, that these two would no longer be amongst them, and there would be more scope for the younger men. They “let them go”! It was the Spirit’s demand they were adhering to.
ANW Barnabas and Saul themselves would each know the Spirit had called them, would they not?
JT Perhaps so. You mean that call may have been just purpose in the mind of the Spirit. They may have known, but the Spirit is asserting His will in the matter that they were the subjects of call.
JWD Then you do not think the scripture that says, “A prophet is not without honour, unless in his country and in his house” (Matthew 13:57), is consonant with the spirit of Christianity? Christianity removes that and the prophet should be honoured in his own country.
JT Quite so, it would be a question of the state of his own national connections. The Lord, of course, is alluding to His own position among the Jews; it was their state that was in mind. In a local meeting today a brother who definitely has a gift ought to be loved. If he is not loved in his local [p. 119] meeting it may be a question of the state of the meeting, but at the same time those who are prominent have to bear in mind that they must be lovable if they expect to be loved.
WL I was wondering if that is why the Holy Spirit links on with the state of the meeting at Antioch rather than with the gift that was there. It is “as they were ministering and fasting”, not on account of there being prophets and teachers present.
JT It was the state of the meeting, but at the same time the gift was in mind because these two were gifted men; their ability was in mind. But I was wondering about Mr. D.’s remark and whether he has anything further to say about this matter of a prophet being without honour in his own country.
JWD It has often been quoted as a normal feature necessary for the discipline of the servant, because in most cases the servant is much more in honour outside of his own locality, but I have always thought it was abnormal.
JT It is abnormal. If a man is lovable, as John the apostle was, “the disciple whom Jesus loved”, and his local brethren do not love him, you may be sure the local state is wrong.
PW Could you help us as to the phrase, “The Holy Spirit said”?
JT I would say He would speak through some brother. He would use some vessel, but whom He used is not mentioned. Paul says later, “The Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and tribulations await me”. Acts 20:23. I would say that He spoke through the saints; we know anyway that in Caesarea, in the house of Philip, Agabus spoke and urged him not to go to Jerusalem. The Spirit is not incarnate; He uses men and women to speak [p. 120] through.
AR Normally speaking, you would commence your service in the full recognition of your brethren locally recognising the gift you have.
JT I think a brother ought to have the confidence of his brethren, but it will not do to say he must wait for that, because the lack of confidence might not be his fault. I mean to say, if the assembly assumes that a servant should not minister without having its confidence, that is out of place. The Lord has not committed that matter to it. All that is said here is that “the Holy Spirit said, Separate me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them”. It is a question of whether the Spirit has called a man. The Spirit honours the assembly but the assembly is not sending the servant nor is his service dependent on the confidence of his local company; it is a question of what the Spirit has ordained. If the man has a gift, and the Spirit plainly indicates that He wants to use that man, and the saints are not with him, then the saints are wrong.
CT In other words, is this a command? There can be no hindrance.
JT There could be no hindrance; it was the Spirit’s direct command, “Separate me now”. That is all they had to do.
JS Would you say the assembly in Antioch was in full sympathy with this movement?
JT The assembly is honoured by the Spirit of God asking it to separate these two brothers.
JS The brothers would be lovable.
SP In chapter 15 they are “set on their way” by the assembly.
JT That is the assembly at Antioch and that is quite right, but the assembly was not asked to do it. They were chosen by the assembly to go up to Jerusalem about that matter; it was a doctrinal matter and controversial; but this is a matter of [p. 121] public service in the gospel, and the assembly does not send them; it is the Spirit that sends them.
SP I was only wondering as to chapter 15, whether confidence did not enter into the position.
JT It was important, showing that these men had the confidence of the assembly. It related to a controversial matter; it says, “A commotion therefore having taken place, and no small discussion on the part of Paul and Barnabas against them, they arranged that Paul and Barnabas, and certain others from amongst them, should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question”, Acts 15:2. That was simply as a brother might be asked at a care meeting to do so-and-so, but this refers more to the assembly. The work among the nations is a matter of the sovereign action of the Spirit of God into which the assembly is called as a sort of centre of divine operations; but common missionary practice is not scriptural at all because the truth involves the Spirit sending people out.
SMcC How would this work out today? You would not look for it in the same formal way in the conditions of brokenness we have today.
JT It is a question of having the thing in our minds. A brother wishes to be free in the service, to take up any specific service, and he would like to have the confidence of the brethren; but in no sense do they send him. It is simply that he desires their confidence or fellowship, that is all there is to it.
JWD I understand that in New York you are free to support your local brethren in connection with their levitical service outside the city by giving them money.
JT We do not do it very much. We almost avoid supporting our local brethren; we send it to you and the like!
JWD I have heard of brethren in your locality that you have laid your hands on in [p. 122] that relation.
JT As a matter of fact we do not do that to any great extent, nor is it put on us. Of course we have fellowship with the brethren who are serving and show they are being used, but you cannot say very much about that.
JWD I was wondering whether that would be an acceptable form in which the local brethren would show their laying on of hands.
JT We pray for them, but there are so many that we could not send much far away if we kept giving to them; the number around New York is large.
JWD I am referring to the principle of the thing.
JT Quite so, the principle of support, and especially in our prayers.
ANW Should a brother, otherwise free, be restricted if he has not the confidence of the brethren?
JT Each case has to be dealt with by itself. If some governmental limitation is attached to him, that would apply. The clear position here is that the assembly is brought into the service of God in the sense of a basis or sphere of operation. It represents heaven here below to that extent, but not to the extent of commissioning men to go forth. They would have done so in the past, as in the case of Barnabas whom they sent down to Antioch; and Peter and John were sent to Samaria. But these are all dispensational matters and Jerusalem had a peculiar authority; it is never seen in a gentile meeting.
CHH I was wondering about the case in which the apostle Paul speaks of laying his hands on Timothy and the laying on of hands by the presbytery. What bearing would that have?
JT That would be special to whatever presbytery it was. That would be just the elders, whereas Paul, as an apostle, had special authority; but that [p. 123] would be only in the case of a man like Timothy who was an auxiliary of the apostle, an apostolic delegate. All that sort of thing does not exist today.
JS Would Antioch be regarded as a sort of centre for these men?
JT They came back to it to bring out the principle of the local setting; they regarded Antioch as their local meeting. They stayed there for a considerable time; then they went up to Jerusalem in regard to doctrine. But the general principle of missionary work is stated in these verses in chapter 13; it is the Spirit of God who sends forth and not the assembly.
JHtJr Would there be a link between this and the end of chapter 11 which speaks of their teaching a whole year and the disciples being first called Christians in Antioch?(Acts 11:26) That is, they manifested that they were able to help the brethren.
JT They laboured in the assembly: “They were gathered together in the assembly and taught a large crowd”. That is one of the most remarkable statements you can get. The crowd would gradually merge into the idea of the assembly and vanish, because the idea of a crowd does not fit the assembly. The idea of a crowd must vanish, merge, as taught by apostolic ministers, so the assembly absorbs the crowd, so to speak. That is what you get in chapter 11 and it is all creditable to the remarkable ministry of these two brothers. They laboured for a whole year to bring it about.
J.S. Why a whole year?
JT The four seasons bring out the conditions that cause exercise from every angle of the year. The education will be seen, so you have results stated in chapter 11 and they are named Christians oracularly, the name ‘Christian’ is stamped on the work. So the mission to the nations has an [p. 124] excellent start.
CHH When we sit in a care meeting and the question comes up as to inviting someone for special ministry, is that a correct procedure or should there be some other way?
JT I think the word ‘inviting’ only means opening the door to them. I do not think there is anything out of the way in it. I am sure the Lord is in that. It is just giving a servant liberty; if he proposed to come he could do that, too. It is a question whether you are able to receive him.
CHH If things are normal the one invited should have the confidence of his local brethren as well as that of the brethren who invite him.
JT A brother might be tied up with that ‘should’ if you make too much of it; rivalry and envy are so subtle. Someone would say, I am not happy; that word ‘happy’ might not mean anything. There must be a manifest reason for anything of that kind; your saying you are not happy will not do.
SMcC Sometimes some have sought to assert rights over those who serve, restricting them, taking the place of the Spirit’s having the right to mark out certain ones.
JT I think that should be carefully watched. There should be a very good reason for limiting a brother in his service, that is, if he has ability to serve and his service is acceptable, efficient.
SJH Is the establishment of elders in chapter 14 to maintain these local conditions so that things might work out happily? “And having chosen them elders in each assembly, having prayed with fastings, they committed them to the Lord, on whom they had believed” (verse 23).
JT You are coming to the second section we read. I thought we might come to that now as showing how concerned the apostles were about local conditions, as if they said, We have left good [p. 125] local conditions and we should like to see these conditions prevail in all the assemblies that are formed. The apostles were concerned about the stability of the assemblies that had been formed through their ministry; therefore they selected, or chose, elders, and prayed, that the stability of the assembly should be there. That is why I suggested that verse be read, because prayer is mentioned in the selection of these elders. “And having chosen them elders in each assembly, having prayed with fastings, they committed them”, that is, the assembly, “to the Lord, on whom they had believed”. The idea is now they are set going and the elders would stabilise things; there would be rule locally to maintain good local conditions. If there is not rule in a locality you cannot have good local conditions; rule depends on moral power. If God has given a man moral power and the brethren refuse to listen to him, then they are against the authority of God.
JTJr In Song of Songs 1:6 it says, “Mine own vineyard have I not kept”. I suppose the apostles here really kept their own vineyards; there were right conditions at Antioch before they left.
JT Just so. No doubt the new assemblies that were formed were formed very freely; God worked mightily every day as is mentioned in chapter 16. You may be sure the local brethren would say, How about Antioch where you have just come from? And they would tell them, no doubt, how they got on at Antioch.
AR I have heard the brethren ask you that; it is a good way to look at things. They say, How do the brethren do things where you are?
CAM Do you think that God, in making a new move, gives in that way some kind of a model, as in Acts 13, in view of all this expansion westward?
JT Yes, it is God’s way to set up a model. The garden of Eden was a remarkable place: no doubt it [p. 126] was to be taken account of in later days; but then sin came in. Adam was put there to dress it and keep it, but he did not keep Satan out. That is the principle, the persons in charge, the elders, are intended to keep Satan out. We get the qualifications required for elders spoken of in 1 Timothy and Titus, so that if we were to ask what these elders were in character, we would go to these two epistles where Paul gives us the qualifications. It is important to have men of moral weight locally so that administration does not break down and Satan is not allowed in. The democratic principle must be abolished. It is a question of moral power in rule; a man has not a right to speak unless what he says has moral power behind it.
AHP Does the last chapter of the Song of Songs enter into that subject? “Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon: he let out the vineyard unto keepers; every one for the fruit thereof was to bring a thousand silver-pieces. My vineyard, which is mine, is before me: the thousand silver-pieces be to thee, Solomon; and to the keepers of its fruit, two hundred”(Song of Songs 8:11,12). Would that be the same thought?
JT Very good. Solomon was in mind; in the one thousand pieces the keeper was concerned about Solomon and he represents Christ to us. There is a yield for Him; that is what the apostles had in mind in choosing the elders. Notice the apostles themselves chose them elders in each assembly, that is how it reads in chapter 14:23. That is, the apostles relied on the ability God gave them in discernment to choose these elders. They were not chosen by vote, but by the apostles; it was with apostolic authority or through apostolic delegates like Timothy and Titus. Of course there are no such officials today; it is a question of moral weight amongst [p. 127] us.
JS Would what you are saying be seen in Jerusalem? Judaising teachers went down from there to spread Judaism; Satan had got in at Jerusalem.
JT Yes.
CT It does not say ‘elder’ but “elders”, indicating more than one.
JT You never get one elder mentioned in a town or assembly. The word is always in the plural, the Spirit of God foreseeing what Christendom would come to. So no brother can say, My meeting, my people. The thought is always in the plural.
SMcC The brethren in the beginning of the book were to look out from among themselves men (Acts 6:3), but here the apostles definitely choose for themselves.
JT I think it must point to the youthfulness of the meetings; they were quite young and the apostles took the matter on of selecting the best possible for the service. Of course, those chosen would have authority because of apostolic choosing; the weakness of the position required that.
JHtSr There is not such a thing as apostolic succession in the Scriptures.
J.T. Not at all!
ANW Apostolic authority would be in the assembly always.
JT It would be only there, and there is no such idea as having a brother do a certain thing for a certain time and then another brother taking his place. There is no such thought as that in Scripture.
CT What is your thought about youthfulness in the assemblies?
JT The idea would be to support the weak. The apostles would be concerned that these assemblies should be set up through their work with as much advantage as possible. See how weak Corinth was! But there is no word mentioned of eldership there, [p. 128] a remarkable thing!
JAT Paul sent Titus to Crete that he might establish elders in each city, that things might be set in order. Does that come in?
JT That fits here, only that was done through a delegate, not directly. Titus was sent there to do that; it was part of his work; so Timothy was at Ephesus later to set in order things that were lacking, showing that in the beginning of an assembly the apostles would give them all possible advantage with what they were and had.
CMY How would this feature of fasting work out today?
JT Fasting is denying yourself what is legitimate. That is, deny yourself food so that you might have more spiritual power. I do not think it is much tried.
CHH What do you think about replacing another brother?
JT I have heard of brethren holding so-called offices for a certain period of time and having to give them up so that others might take them on. It is not right at all; it is not Scriptural.
CHH If a brother has the service of announcing and he is not expected to be there, is it right to have someone else in mind to take his place?
JT Order would require it. You do not leave things at loose ends; the Lord is with us in these details. If you do not ask a brother to do it, it may not be done at all, or else done inaccurately.
Ques If a brother was reading the Scriptures and doing it well, would it be right to displace him? Would it be wrong to ask another brother?
J.T. Why should you ask?
Rem I was asked to read the Scriptures in my own local company, so I want to be clear about it. The other brother had to sit down and I have been reading the Scriptures [p. 129] since.
JT Why did they take it out of the other brother’s hands?
Rem They thought it might be good to make a change.
JT That is a human innovation! The reading of the Scriptures should be in the dignity of the anointing. The Lord stood up to read; that was in the dignity of the anointing. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach glad tidings to the poor”. Luke 4:18. Why should the reading be taken out of the hands of a brother who does it well?
AHP The thought is that the younger brethren should read the Scriptures in order to encourage them to be active.
JT That is a detail too, but it is not simply that they should read the Scriptures well but be in the dignity of the anointing in spiritual power. There should be something of the anointing in it and the Lord sets an example in the synagogue at Nazareth.
JWD It has been pointed out that the patriarchal idea is to seek to make room for others and to retreat yourself.
JT I do not understand as to the patriarchal idea.
JWD I heard you give an address on the patriarchal idea, to see others shine in the assembly, always looking for new and fresh material to continue the service of God, to make room for others. I was thinking of the offices in a local meeting, whether to make room for others and retreat oneself?
JT Do you agree with that? The Kelly party asked Mr. Darby to resign the leadership God had given him. What nonsense! God had given him the position. These men, chosen by the apostles, are anointed; that confers divine authority. Who can [p. 130] ask them to resign? If one is disqualified by a misdemeanour that is another matter.
CT If a brother has to give up a service, is it a sign of weakness? Caleb was old but able to go on.
JT Go on as long as possible.
JWD Moses had complete control but there were those appointed to help him, captains of tens, thousands, and so on, as if the spirit of a Moses would make room for distribution of these features in connection with offices.
JT That is quite right, I am sure.
This matter now in chapter 16:13 is the most important of our whole subject, setting out how the testimony came into Europe, what was there before it came in, and how it was continued even in the prison, continued in spite of sufferings and the severest persecution. We have in verses 13 - 15, “And on the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where it was the custom for prayer to be, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had assembled. And a certain woman, by name Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, who worshipped God, heard; whose heart the Lord opened to attend to the things spoken by Paul. And when she had been baptised and her house, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and abide there”. The setting is beautiful! There are the river outside the gate, the women, and a place where it was the custom for prayer to be made. God honoured that; that is the thing to see. It was the entrance of the testimony into Europe. That is what Paul found when he arrived there and he joined in with it, he did not brush it aside, he joined in with it. He did not get any specific work to do for a time, except that. That is what he had and he went on with it. The result was that the Lord opened the heart of a woman in that connection, one of the most distinguished [p. 131] of the sisters spoken of in Europe. She was accustomed to pray there and the Lord honoured it, He opened her heart. Incidentally it is said that she was baptised and her house, as if the house is set up in that connection, in connection with prayer, and then a door opened. So that we have the whole position beautifully set out as identified with what was there in the place of prayer. It was the custom for prayer to be made in that particular place.
JS Would this help us to define the course of the river as flowing in a north-westerly direction?
JT Well, the antecedent to all this is the man from Macedonia. They are now in Macedonia, that is the province. Alexander’s empire began there, showing that God had all this in mind, and this prayer meeting is there. But the man from Macedonia had also prayed in keeping with this river, the riverside prayer meeting. In a vision to Paul he had prayed, “Pass over into Macedonia and help us”. That is the prayer from Europe, a cry for apostolic help in the service of the gospel in this great area of the world that the gospel was entering into and was nourishing in.
CAM You were referring to the danger of the enemy coming into conditions such as Eden. As you are speaking of this matter of the women and prayer it looks as if there were conditions there that would nullify what Satan had done.
JT That is the setting. The next thing is Lydia’s conversion. It is put that the Lord opened her heart, a beautiful expression, to attend to the things spoken by Paul. Do not forget that he is God’s minister, called out as an elect vessel for this very purpose, and it is God’s work therefore. She has her heart opened to that and then she opens her house. The next thing is, “And she constrained us”. She was in earnest in her invitation. Then it goes on to say, “And it came to pass as we were going to [p. 132] prayer that a certain female slave, having a spirit of Python, met us, who brought much profit to her masters by prophesying”. The devil comes in and it is in the street, apparently an open street. He brings in “a certain female slave”, another woman, so it is a female matter. So far the man of Macedonia has not appeared at all, so that the servants must have been tested in that he did not appear; and now this female slave appears, “having a spirit of Python”. Luke is here in this service. “And it came to pass as we were going to prayer that a certain female slave, having a spirit of Python, met us, who brought much profit to her masters by prophesying. She, having followed Paul and us, cried saying, These men are bondmen of the Most [p. 134] High God, who announce to you the way of salvation. And this she did many days”. So that this is a form of attack; she is advertising the ministers. How are they going to act? Are they going to accept the devil’s support? Look at the Salvation Army: it is supported by the world; it accepts the devil’s support. Would the servants of God accept that? Paul is distressed at any such suggestion. “She, having followed Paul and us, cried saying. These men are bondmen of the Most High God, who announce to you the way of salvation”. From such a source as that! It is a good point to consider as to how the service is to be carried on to avoid any kind of support like that.
CHH Would the consequence of that be something similar to the pains of birth in John 16:21? The result there is that a man child comes to light, and here a man comes to light after all this suffering, the man of Macedonia.
JT The man, I suppose, is the jailor. The idea of travail is in the terrible persecution and suffering that had to be endured. This woman with the spirit of Python is the beginning of it; it was an awful thing. The apostles suffered dreadfully but they [p. 133] carried on; prayer must go on in spite of it, between themselves in the prison. We find it now, not at the riverside, but in the prison, in that prison! That is where the prayer meeting is, and a praise meeting and a gospel meeting and a convert! Now we have the real thing for Europe, a real man converted!
WB Why did the spirit of Python introduce a millennial title here?
JT To divert from the present dispensation. Christendom has either gone back to a past dispensation or is anticipating the future one. The real point is the present moment, the present ministry, the present service, which is the gospel Paul preached.
WB It is in contrast to what we get in chapter 13:2, “And as they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, Separate me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them”.
JT Yes, what a difference!
CT The praying of Paul and Silas was at midnight. Was there a feeling of their surroundings and the way things were in darkness?
JT Quite so, but they were in energy. It was a time of weakness but they were in energy; they carried on the prayer meeting, praise meeting, worship meeting and gospel meeting, all in the prison!
FC Do you think Paul would say to himself, Was I out in my calculations regarding this matter in concluding the Lord had called us to announce the glad tidings here?
JT Yes, I should think he would. Like mariners, they had to make calculations along those lines, and no doubt he was tested enough by the delay. “And it came to pass as we were going to prayer that a certain female slave, having a spirit of Python, met us, who brought much profit to her masters by prophesying. She, having followed Paul and us, cried saying. These men are bondmen of the Most High God, who announce to you the way of salvation. And this she did many days”. She was calling attention to them in this way, and no man at all was interested; it surely was a test to the servants.
JWD Is this idea of an earthquake connected with prayer a feature of the dispensation that we can always count on, even in the most dreadful world conditions today?
JT Yes; God’s intervening tests the position. They had the man in mind: he had asked them to come but he did not appear; the women appeared. One of them was soundly brought into the truth, but there is this dreadful woman who is brought into the field. Lydia is not interfering, what is to happen now? Is God going to bring the man in? No, instead of that the prison! What awful suffering! It was a test, but they were superior to the test; you marvel at them. In prayer, it says, they praised God, then they preached the gospel. God gave them the audience, they did not preach to the air, and God gave them a convert, it was the man!
JTJr I am impressed with the ferocity of the attack. They tore off their clothes, then they laid many stripes upon them.
CN So the suggestion is that however dark the situation becomes we continue to pray.
JT That is the point. However terrible the war is, keep on praying. God will do something. He will act in wisdom; He will answer your prayer: the prayer of faith will accomplish something. And in prayer remember to praise; do not forget that in Antioch that is what they were doing, ministering to the Lord. That involves praise. Then God says, I will give you the audience.
WL Would this be an encouragement for our young brethren who are taken from us at this time, to continue praying wherever they go?
JT Pray at all times.
AR [p. 135] I think I can see from these meetings the reason why the brethren in Great Britain were exhorted to continue the service of God in prayer and praise.
JT That is the thought. It is a great triumph that has come about, the service of God in prayer and praise.
CHH Men should always pray and not faint according to Luke 18:1.
JT We might get a little faint. That is our position here but God gives us the audience; we may get a little audience but we do not get many to hear us.
J.Van G. Would you say the house is very important in this subject of prayer, Cornelius’ house, Lydia’s house and then the jailor’s house?
JT That is why the idea of the household is stressed in this chapter. It is attached peculiarly to Paul’s ministry. I believe the gospel service preceded by prayer in our houses is an occasion of blessing; even if there are not many additions, the saints are getting help.
SMcC Sometimes we feel that surely God will not allow our bodies to be touched, but He allowed the bodies of these great servants to be touched, and with what a result!
JT Yes, how affecting that is! A great many of our brethren have had their bodies touched, and we may expect that; but we must not be discouraged by it, it is in keeping with the position.
AR Paul said to the saints at Philippi, “I thank my God for my whole remembrance of you ... because of your fellowship with the gospel, from the first day until now”, Philippians 1:3,5. Would that come in?
JT I think it is beautiful. Philippi seems to be a peculiar assembly in his mind as to what they were to him. He does not even stress his apostleship in [p. 136] writing to them. We should look at the opening verses, “Paul and Timotheus, bondmen of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and ministers; grace to you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”. He does not stress his apostleship. He speaks of certain women who laboured with him but he does not stress his apostleship; he says, “I thank my God for my whole remembrance of you, constantly in my every supplication, making the supplication for you all with joy, because of your fellowship with the gospel, from the first day until now; having confidence of this very thing, that he who has begun in you a good work will complete it unto Jesus Christ’s day”, Philippians 1:3,6. He goes on, “as it is righteous for me to think this as to you all, because ye have me in your hearts, and that both in my bonds and in the defence and confirmation of the glad tidings ye are all participators in my grace. For God is my witness how I long after you all in the bowels of Christ Jesus”. That is one of the most remarkable paragraphs you can find as showing the affections the great servant had for those he had served so well.
CHH Do you not think they would be much encouraged too as the exercise started householdwise, to note how Christianity entered into the household of Caesar? There were saints even there.
JT That about covers what one had in mind in this chapter. It is one of the most important parts of our subject, how the gospel came to the European nations and how it came to us of course, and whether we are taking up these great features now and using them; because success is on those lines. Then finally we see the relation in the way of love between Paul and those he served, and the place he had in their hearts. To touch on Acts 20, it says, “But after the tumult had ceased, Paul having called [p. 137] the disciples to him and embraced them, went away to go to Macedonia. And having passed through those parts, and having exhorted them with much discourse, he came to Greece”, Acts 20:1,2. This would of course include Philippi. Then in the middle of the chapter he embraced Eutychus and at the end of the chapter we have this beautiful comment, “And having said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. And they all wept sore; and falling upon the neck of Paul they ardently kissed him, specially pained by the word which he had said, that they would no more see his face. And they went down with him to the ship” (verses 36 - 38). Beautiful tribute to existing love between the great servant and those he served!
JS Is it an evidence of first love?
JT That is what it was. Clearly Ephesus developed love under his influence because he spent three years there. Compare that with Corinth; he spent four and a half years between Ephesus and Corinth, the great proportion of his ministry, as though God would bring out special features in those two cities. Ephesus is surpassing in the results, has a special part because of the love that enters into this chapter.
JS I was thinking of what he must have suffered in Ephesus: “If, to speak after the manner of man, I have fought with beasts in Ephesus”, 1 Corinthians 15:32.
PW They covered him with kisses.
JT That is the prodigal’s experience passed on. That is what happened in Cornelius’ house, for the Spirit of God coming on the gentiles carried abundance of love. Let it go on in prayer! “But ye, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God”, Jude 20, 21. The point is to keep in what God has vouchsafed us so bountifully in His coming in among the gentiles.