BASIC PRINCIPLES RELATING TO THE ASSEMBLY
Exodus 32: 26-29; 33: 7-11; 35: 20-24
I desire to speak about some fundamental thoughts entering into the recovery and maintenance of the truth of the assembly. The passages we have read in the book of Exodus present them in type indeed in a characteristic way; they evidently refer to what took place in the time in question, but they have the present time in view. The end of the ages is come and all that God has worked in the past was in view of the present day, the day of the Spirit.
Several thoughts in these passages relate to the assembly. One of the first is that the assembly is a “habitation of God”; that is what has been brought to light from the outset when the Spirit came at Pentecost—God establishing by this fact His dwelling here on the earth—as it is said in Ephesians, “a habitation of God in the Spirit”.
God had had His dwelling in a temple, and before that in the tabernacle. Solomon had built Him a temple according to divine instructions, and God was pleased to honour it with His presence and to fill it with His glory, but as Stephen says of it: “the Most High dwells not in temples made with hands”, and when the Lord came down here, the temple was soon displaced. In fact, it was morally in virtue of the presence of Christ here; the Lord finding in the temple the tables of the money changers and the sellers of doves, put them out saying, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations … but ye have made it a den of robbers”. And later on, we read that He says, “Destroy this temple …”, referring to His own body, “and in three days I will raise it up”.
So that, if in God’s ways, on account of His longsuffering, the temple that Solomon had built, or rather the temple that had been restored after the captivity, subsisted for some time, morally it was displaced by the fact of the presence of Christ here below. He was the true temple, according to what He Himself said: “The Father is in me”. God had His dwelling down here in Christ, to His great satisfaction, and He was thus perfectly expressed in every movement of Christ. But the Lord, having accomplished the work of redemption and being gone up on high, the place of God’s habitation took another form—the Holy Spirit descended on the one hundred and twenty at Pentecost, and later on others still—and the habitation of God on the earth was established in the assembly, by the fact of the presence of the Holy Spirit dwelling in those who believed. From this moment, God’s habitation is the assembly, as the apostle Paul says to Timothy, “in order that thou mayest know how one ought to conduct oneself in God’s house, which is the assembly of the living God, the pillar and base of the truth”. As the truth came to light, the Lord was able to give His own the revelation that the saints on the earth were “his body”. He says to Saul of Tarsus as to the persecuted saints, “Why persecutest thou me?” showing by that that the saints were inseparably linked to Him as being “his body”, and that He resented everything that was done against them as if it had been done to Himself.
The assembly is envisaged here in its most elevated and precious character, the body of Christ, and that is what gives value to every other aspect in which it can be considered. It is infinitely precious, beloved, to keep in our minds the fact that an intimate link exists, holy and eternal, between the assembly and Christ, and that His assembly being entirely drawn from Him is at the same time the exact expression of Christ. In speaking of it, it is said elsewhere, “the fulness of him who fills all in all”.
It is therefore of the greatest importance that, however weak and small the position may be in a locality, we should keep in our minds God’s thoughts as to His assembly and realise that the faithfulness of Christ and the power of the Spirit are enough so that a response should be furnished to the persons of the Godhead, in the present time, according to what the Lord says to Philadelphia, “hold fast what thou hast, that no one take thy crown”.
The passages we have read have in view certain fundamental characteristics which enter practically into the truth as to the assembly and the maintenance of this truth.
God had already appealed to His people so that they should make Him a sanctuary where He could dwell among them. How touching it is, beloved, this desire of the heart of God to dwell among His people; He will dwell there eternally. He would actually have His dwelling with men; but very soon God would have His desire, that His redeemed people, who owe Him everything, give Him a response in preparing a sanctuary for Him, and He Himself prescribed the conditions. He gave the smallest details, the specifications; but the materials have to be furnished by His people, and each had to bring and also work at the construction of this sanctuary.
So God watches that our affections, our personal exercises, should be in accord with preparing Him a sanctuary. The word “sanctuary” is very significant, implying the necessity for holiness as the first character which must mark this dwelling so that God may dwell among His people.
But look at the sin of the golden calf, taking place before even the tabernacle was constructed. It is a very serious consideration. The Israelites had indeed received the light as to God’s desire that His people should make Him a sanctuary, but before that could be realised, this terrible matter of the golden calf came in!
They made a golden calf, or rather Aaron made it, of the rings which they took from their ears—rings of gold. That is to say that this refers, I think, to certain features of the truth which have not penetrated into the heart but, being grasped superficially by the people, were only fit to be cast in a mould. Aaron took them and put them in the fire, and with the help of a chisel made a calf and said: “To-morrow is a feast to Jehovah!”. This clearly shows that they had not abandoned Jehovah, but they were expressing the evidence that the calf was their conception of Jehovah and that they were going to worship this conception, as we find written in Psalm 106: 20: “they changed their glory …”, referring to God Himself, for without the least possible doubt, it was He who was the glory of His people: “And they changed their glory into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass”.
We have a picture of what Christendom has become as to the worship of God, so called, ‘divine worship’, established in a human mould, what men have prescribed and established according to certain features of the truth perhaps, but which they have cast in a fixed mould, and God calls this idolatry. They proclaimed a feast to Jehovah; they offered up burnt-offerings and peace-offerings; and then the people “sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to sport”. That is to say they sought to make a show of fulfilling the service of God on the one hand, and at the same time to live for themselves, and to authorise covetousness in their heart!
In such conditions, Moses could only stand at the gate of the camp and say, “He that is for Jehovah”. Moses made an immediate appeal to the heart, in view of a complete separation from this state of things.
I say all that, dear brethren, because you will notice that it is after these exercises mentioned in chapters 32 and 33 that the tabernacle is in fact constructed, which we find in chapters 35 and so on. That is to say, that the truth relating to the assembly—to which these passages refer—is reached as a result of having to face the exercises illustrated in chapters 32 and 33, and from having to persevere in these exercises.
So it is said, “And all the sons of Levi gathered to him”. Each of us, beloved, must be a son of Levi. The Levites had to be taken, by God’s command, “from among the children of Israel instead of every firstborn”. When God had slain all the firstborn in Egypt, and had spared the firstborn of Israel, on account of the blood, He claimed the firstborn for Him, but then He chose the tribe of Levi instead of the firstborn.
Thus being a Levite expressed a recognition of God’s rights over us in redemption. Each of us must be a Levite. It is not at all a matter of considering the Levites as those who have a special gift, although indeed that might be right from a certain point of view, the Levites could be devoted in view of a special service in the ministry; but in another aspect, a “Levite” is one who is committed to the testimony. That is the significance of the word “Levi”. That is to say, that a true Levite is really attached to Christ and attached to God, as recognising that divine love has established rights over him in redemption. As it is said, “ye are not your own … for ye have been bought with a price”. So that each of us must consider themselves a Levite.
“And all the sons of Israel”, it is said, assembled to Moses. And he said to them, “Put every man his sword upon his hip; go and return from gate to gate through the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his friend, and every man his neighbour”. That was a most rigorous order, but it had to be executed. They had to break with every natural feeling, and even in some cases, do violence to natural affections, but let us not forget that it was a matter of God’s rights.
It was a question of God’s desire to have a sanctuary—a sanctuary prepared by His people—and God demanded the most complete separation from all that was opposed to His rights, without possible compromise.
“And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses”. It is said that about three thousand men fell among the people that day, and Moses says, “Consecrate yourselves to-day to Jehovah, yea, every man with his son, and with his brother, and bring on yourselves a blessing to-day”. The principle on which the blessing depends is an absolute separation—without compromise—from all evil, having judged the evil first in our souls from the point of departure, and then, in absolute separation from all those who maintain what is contrary to God. This is the first principle, and the only one which could assure the blessing.
Chapter 32 is an appeal to separation without compromise, and we discover the same thought as to the present dispensation in the second epistle to Timothy, where it is said, “Let every one who names the name of the Lord withdraw from iniquity”. So that we must withdraw from all iniquity. I do not doubt that there would be some special allusion to the religious world which gives no place to the Spirit of God, but which institutes systems according to man in which the Lord’s commandments are ignored, so that iniquity reigns in such a world, and it could not be otherwise. Let us never forget that iniquity necessarily reigns where the Spirit of God is not recognised and does not have His place.
But this passage also relates to those who may occupy a position outside the religious system, and who being astray from the truth, continue to walk according to principles that are not in accord with the truth—that also is iniquity.
This is not the time to have mixture, beloved, but rather one to discern clearly and to recognise if we desire to have God’s blessing and to secure a response to God as to His thoughts as to the assembly, we have to go on following these lines and choose as a point of departure to refuse every form of evil without compromise.
In chapter 33, Moses leads us further on. He takes a tent. In another version it is said, that he took a tabernacle, but we have to understand that the tabernacle as such had not yet been built. The instructions had been given, but it had not been constructed. What Moses did is to take a tent and pitch it for him outside the camp, far from the camp, and he called it “the tent of meeting”, but what is to be remarked here is what Moses did—he acted in accord with principles. He was not afraid to act according to the principles even though he found himself at the head of a position outwardly very weak, a position that the people perhaps despised? An ordinary tent pitched outside the camp, far from the camp, and called “the Tent of meeting”! The people could say, what pretension! But it was according to God’s mind—it was His mind that His place of habitation should be outside the camp, far from the camp, and that the meeting of saints together should be on the basis of recognising this principle. As we have already said, separation from all iniquity and the principle of unity according to God are the only acceptable conditions for a meeting according to God.
Moses therefore took this tent and pitched it outside the camp, far from the camp, not as near the camp as possible, but “far from the camp”, which expresses very clearly how far God abhors all mixture as well as evil.
And it came to pass that those who sought Jehovah went out to the tent of meeting which was “outside the camp”.
I am referring there for a moment to 2 Timothy 2; not only is there an appeal made to us there to withdraw from iniquity, but we find there the great objective that each of us who loves the Lord should definitely take into consideration: the fact of becoming “a vessel to honour … serviceable to the Master, prepared for every good work”. See the possibilities, beloved! A vessel to honour “prepared for every good work”; this is the end that can be reached from facing the exercises by which each of us can come to it.
It speaks of “good works, which God has before prepared that we should walk in them”, so that one who desires to be a vessel to honour has the possibility of being “prepared for every good work”.
And so, therefore, if we are disposed to follow the directions given in 2 Timothy 2, it is essential that we do not lose sight of a single thought of God.
Surely, whoever is in principle a Levite has the desire to be a vessel to honour, sanctified, serviceable to the Master. What right could rival the Lord’s rights over those He has redeemed, to have them for Himself, sanctified, serviceable to the Master, prepared for every good work? And if we have at heart to become such, it is necessary to be in separation from every vessel to dishonour.
How could a believer be a vessel to honour if he remains in a system that dishonours the Name of the Lord Jesus? It may be that this believer is a very active believer, his piety may be indisputable, we have not to judge that, for the Lord brings hidden things to light. He will make manifest the counsels of hearts and each shall receive “his” praise from God—that is to say if he merits some praise, God will give it to him. But I say this: how can a believer, however pious he may be, be a vessel to honour according to 2 Timothy 2 if in fact he is identified with what dishonours Christ and if he remains linked to such an element? That is impossible, and it is important to grasp that if we want to be vessels to honour, we must necessarily separate ourselves from all iniquity, and we also separate from vessels to dishonour so as to become vessels to honour, sanctified, serviceable to the Master, and prepared, it is said, for every good work.
So therefore, whoever sought Jehovah went out to Moses to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp, and it is added that all the people rose up and each stood at the entrance of his tent and looked after Moses. They did not go far; they remained in the idolatrous camp, and from there they sought to have a glimpse of what was going on outside the camp—that does not have great value.
Then we read, “And it came to pass when Moses entered into the tent, the pillar of cloud descended, and stood at the entrance of the tent, and Jehovah talked with Moses”. What a privilege! Jehovah spoke with Moses! Moses stood there in a suitable position, in this position he is both to receive divine communications, and not only that, but reciprocally, he can address himself to God. It is not simply that Jehovah spoke to Moses, but that He spoke with Moses.
Further on, it is said that He spoke to Moses “face to face, as a man speaks with his friend”. To speak with his friend—this is the blessing of communion. “Face to face” signifies that you can regard yourself mutually, to the face, in full uprightness, without anything coming between the two. That is what characterises the relations between Jehovah and Moses, the latter having taken this position without compromise far from the camp. Jehovah expressed His approbation by the fact that He came down in the form of a pillar of cloud and that He spoke with Moses “face to face”.
We find then that Moses “returned to the camp”. The Lord Himself has the right to do that; He has the right to move where He pleases, in the whole camp of Christendom. The Lord has this absolute right. As to ourselves, the only place that we occupy is that which is taken by Joshua; he departed not from within the tent. It is said that “Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, departed not from within the tent”. Do you think that that implied narrow-mindedness? Not at all. Joshua is a man that God fully approved of. Joshua is the man who goes right to the end. He went through the wilderness in faith and in power. He led the people in the land, and we see here what Joshua’s beginnings had been.
It is in Exodus 17 that we find the very beginning of Joshua’s history. He is engaged there with the conflict against Amalek, that is to say, that he recognises the Spirit and refuses the flesh; he does not submit to the flesh. In the passage that we are considering, he is mentioned a second time, and what marks him here is the refusal of a neutral position. He cannot accept neutrality. It is said that he “… departed not from within the tent”. He was already consecrated to the position and quite determined not to leave it; it is this position that God fully approves, beloved. There cannot be a neutral position when it is a matter of the truth.
After having created the light, the first thing that God did was to separate light from darkness. It is one of the first principles with God, that light should be separated from darkness, each being called by its right name; from then on we can see that God has never tolerated a neutral position; he departed not from within the tent. Although he was a young man, he held this position firmly, being also marked by definiteness in his decision.
We have there what I call the fundamental principles on the basis of which it is possible to establish the truths of the assembly.
At this time, it was only a question of a tent of meeting; having this essential moral feature of “holiness to Jehovah”, as it is written, “Thy testimonies are very sure: holiness becometh thy house, O Jehovah”, Ps 93: 5.
This is the foundation here and nothing can be built up according to God unless this foundation is well established and firmly maintained.
In chapter 35, we have a movement of heart on the part of the people, a movement of heart that manifests itself with individuals. We come across this expression several times, “and every man …”, which clearly suggests an individual movement contributing as a result of exercise among the people, to securing a dwelling place for Jehovah, a house according to His thoughts, and it is said, “every one whose heart moved him, and every one whose spirit prompted him; they brought Jehovah's heave-offering for the work of the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the holy garments”. You see what a vast field extended before them, “every one whose heart moved him …” They had taken account of the divine indications given previously, that is to say, that they had before them, in mind, the Tent of meeting, and the service, the service of God that would be carried out in the Tent of meeting; and also the holy garments—they had all that in mind.
It is very important for us, dear brothers and sisters, to allow our minds to be occupied with divine thoughts, what God seeks, so that we have before us the full extent of what we can see that nothing should be neglected.
Then it is said, “And they came, both men and women … every man that waved a wave-offering of gold to Jehovah ...” and “every one who was of willing heart brought nose-rings, and earrings, and rings, and bracelets, all kinds of utensils of gold”. That is to say that gold is the first thing; it is presented in the most diverse forms and always refers to what is divine, and more especially to what is of the divine nature, that is to say, love. Love is the divine glory—the clear expression of what God is in His nature. What He is is His glory, and His glory is love—that is why gold had to be found in His dwelling place, it is what is suitable as the expression of what He is Himself.
If we consider the temple that Solomon built, we are struck with the great quantity of gold found there. Everything in all the parts was of gold. Clearly, this was gold covering other materials. There was wood and metal, and if you were to go into the interior of the temple, you would be impressed by the gold—whichever way you turned you would see gold, and that is what God particularly seeks, beloved—love—love among His own, because He is love. He dwells in conditions of love and will not dwell in other conditions. What God seeks among us is love in all its most varied forms, love expressed in different ways.
We cannot fail to be impressed by the numerous mentions made in the epistles relating to the varied forms of the expression of love. It is as if, by the intermediary of Paul, the Spirit of God found His delight in establishing the truth not only in an abstract way, but also to show us how the truth is to be expressed in a concrete and practical way; this last point is very important.
In the epistle to the Romans, the apostle says: “But I commend to you Phœbe, our sister, who is minister of the assembly”, “minister of the assembly”, it is what characterised her. Whatever had to be done in the assembly, Phœbe was available for that.
“But I commend to you Phœbe, our sister, who is minister of the assembly”, what an honour for this sister to be thus qualified by the apostle. And he adds, “… she also has been a helper of many, and of myself”. What a marvellous expression of love in this sister! Love was there truly in Phœbe, and she was available to express love in whatever way was needed. One could say that Phœbe brought “all kinds of utensils of gold”.
Paul continues his enumeration and he says, “Salute Prisca and Aquila”. Another sister is mentioned here, and her husband with her, both equally valuable, and the apostle says that they “staked their own neck” for his life. Do we not have here another expression of love in Prisca and Aquila?
All was found part of the house of God and we can easily understand what satisfaction God obtained from such elements. If we take account of these diverse expressions of love mentioned in the New Testament, we understand what possibilities are suggested to us to bring all kinds of utensils of gold as elements suited to God’s dwelling place.
Of Onesiphorus, Paul says, “he … has not been ashamed of my chain”. Think of this badge of honour, to have refreshed the apostle Paul! You would doubtless have thought that a man like Paul had no need to be refreshed; that he was above such necessity, that being so spiritual he would see everything from an elevated point of view? Yet Paul himself tells us, “he has often refreshed me”, and “being in Rome sought me out very diligently, and found me”. You can be assured that Onesiphorus did not bring Paul comforts of a social kind or anything similar; but he was given a lot of trouble to seek him while he was in bonds. He was not ashamed of his bonds, as Paul says; he had sought him very diligently and found him—not that he would come and bring Paul gifts or something similar; but he came to refresh the apostle: this was the expression of love and God found His pleasure in that. The expression of love must be there in God’s house so as to adorn it.
Then he speaks in another epistle of Epaphroditus: Epaphroditus had been available to carry to the apostle the Philippians’ gift. They themselves had sent the gift to the apostle to comfort him and to confirm their love to him, but it was necessary in view of the conditions that someone should be charged with transmitting this gift to Paul. Epaphroditus offered himself for this service; it was certainly a perilous mission; in any case, he nearly lost his life; but God had mercy on him. What is to be considered is that he was available as Isaac had been, to be offered as a sacrifice on the altar, so that the Philippians’ love could be communicated to the apostle Paul. On the other hand, we know that when the apostle told the Philippians that he had been ill, he was very upset—such was his love for them. Thus, beloved brothers and sisters, we see from these different cases in how many different ways love is found in expression; it is a question of a disposition of heart—“every one who was of a willing heart”—bringing out all that would adorn God’s dwelling place.
There is also such a man as Epaphras, who knowing the Colossians’ needs, feeling that they could get away and that they were in danger of failing to be perfected, combatted for them that they should be perfect and complete in all the will of God. You could be quite certain that Epaphras did not come to light after a hurried or superficial prayer; he would expose to God what the state of the Colossians was, their needs, and the influences which were being introduced and imposing hindrances on them progressing in God’s work; this man of prayer was not afraid to spend time on his knees, combatting for them with zeal, and also with intelligence, so that they should be perfect and complete in all the will of God.
Tychicus is also mentioned; the feature that marked him is that he knew how to inform the saints of Paul’s state of health, and transmit to the apostle the news about the state of the saints. He is one of those who knew to consider everything from a spiritual point of view and only give the necessary information.
We could multiply examples that testify of these numerous and diverse expressions of love. The epistles are full of these interesting references to brothers and sisters with particular features that mark each; they are the expressions of love in its varied forms.
It speaks in Exodus of men and women who had a willing spirit; of those who brought a great variety of golden utensils. Everything could be put together. It is indeed certain that no nose ring remained, or any bracelet or earring.
There could only be these ornaments in God’s house by virtue of the gold of which they were made; and so all could be brought together and serve as the ornamentation of God’s house, securing pleasure for God in His dwelling place.
Then we read, “And every man with whom was found blue, and purple, and scarlet, and byssus, and goats’ hair, and rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, brought them”. My thought is not to enter into consideration of what each of these elements represent. They each have their own particular significance. It is said, “and every man with whom was found …”, which raises the question, what could be found with me? Is there purple? Or scarlet? The purple refers to sufferings for the testimony. The altar was covered in a purple cloth; the purple is also suggestive of rule, to suffer for the testimony and reigning thereafter are inseparable one from the other: “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him”. So we can well ask ourselves how far we are worthy to reign with Him? How much purple is found with us? Our qualification to reign with Him depends on our capacity to suffer for the testimony—“If we suffer with him, we shall also reign with him”.
Scarlet is mentioned next; scarlet refers to true distinction according to God, not in any way a distinction according to man. In the epistle to the Galatians, it is a question of some who put themselves forward and glorified themselves as they had no right to do; while others having the right were marked by features that came from God—they were pillars. The scarlet makes allusion, I think, to this prominence for which certain are qualified.
In what measure are these elements—the purple, the scarlet—found with us? As it is written, “every man with whom was found” found these things. It is therefore what is found with certain ones, and they brought it; that is to say, that it was not a question of them keeping the glory for themselves. The intention is that everything should be brought and put together, and built together, so that the whole constitutes the characteristics that God seeks for His dwelling place.
“All they that offered a heave-offering of silver and copper brought Jehovah's heave-offering”, it is then written. We must all have silver and copper, beloved; the silver is the proper recognition of the rights of the Lord Jesus over us in redemption—the rights of God over us in love—the practical recognition of these rights according to what is said, “ye are not your own … for ye have been bought with a price”. May these words resonate in our ears! If there is someone among us who likes to do his own will, who takes pleasure in choosing his way, may these words resonate in his ear: “ye are not your own … for ye have been bought with a price”. Accept the fact with joy, beloved. Submit your will to the will of Christ and examine if you have silver with you—the recognition of the fact that you belong to “another”. It is the basis of all spiritual prosperity. You remember that in the incident related in 2 Kings 4, when the widow cried to Elisha to know how she was going to act as to the creditors, he said to her, “what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid has not anything at all in the house but a pot of oil”, v 2. It was just what she needed, provided that she had empty vessels. He counsels her to go and ask for vessels—empty vessels. Notice that she had to borrow vessels, vessels that did not belong to her. It is such vessels that she was to use. See exactly that each represents a vessel that does not belong to us, but a vessel that we are going to use. We are not our own, we have been bought with a price. Each of us must be a vessel that does not belong to us, but which is available as being able to be used by the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, and it is in such conditions that we face our obligations, and not only that but we will have enough to live on the rest.
So, beloved, we all have to possess silver, and also copper for the copper in the Scriptures represents the judgment of evil.
Finally, in Exodus 35: 24, it speaks of “every one with whom was found acacia-wood”. The acacia wood is suggestive of what is found in the Lord Jesus, the features which marked the Man—the order of Man—that God sought, the only order of Man who could suit Him. God has raised Jesus Christ from among the dead, but He has left every other kind of man in death. I often think of this fact—it is very impressive to think of it—when the Lord Jesus was in the sepulchre, how many millions of men were also there, of whom some without doubt had been great men in the history of this world; but come the moment when God raised Jesus from among the dead, and all the others were left in their tombs. Could there be a clearer expression of the fact that God had found His entire satisfaction in this Man, and in Him alone? No other man could satisfy God, that is what the acacia wood represents, and for us it is a matter of knowing how far we are really formed in the appreciation of Jesus—this kind of Man, Jesus Christ.
Paul, writing to the Corinthians, said to them, “examine your own selves if ye be in the faith”; and then, “prove your own selves: do ye not recognise yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you, unless indeed ye be reprobates?” So the apostle makes an appeal to them, inciting them to take account of the work of God in them, how far they had been formed after Christ, engaging them to allow this work to operate in them and to develop—leaving the Spirit free room to enlarge them, judging and repudiating everything else in us.
Those therefore who had acacia wood brought it; I would insist on the value of this wood of which the ark itself was made. This wood speaks of the Lord Jesus in His perfect and holy humanity. But the boards equally were made of acacia wood, and they refer to the saints as being by the work of the Holy Spirit of the same order of man as Jesus Christ Himself.
Other things were brought which are mentioned, but on these I do not enlarge. What we have said is enough to show that if the basis is laid in complete separation from evil, and that this separation is maintained without compromise—the whole neutral position between what is of God and what is not being an impossibility in Christianity—if as I say we have secured suited conditions and we maintain them, the ground is propitious and we can come to what is constructive in a positive way in bearing the features which have been considered, and then we will realise in reality that God is provided with a dwelling place that is acceptable to Him.
HEMEL HEMPSTEAD
21st April 1951
Translated from the French magazine, ‘Ondées’,
November 1951
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