ACQUAINTANCE WITH CHRIST IN GLORY
ACQUAINTANCE WITH CHRIST IN GLORY
“But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God”, Acts 7: 55.
Last Wednesday we were permitted to look at our first acquaintance with the Lord. I need hardly remark that you never lose the measure of your acquaintance with Him. Alas! you may grieve the Spirit and be under a cloud, but you do not lose your acquaintance; for when you are restored, you return to it. You joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the reconciliation; you have received the Spirit sent down from Himself; “being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received the promise of the Father ... he hath shed forth this which ye now see and hear”; therefore the Spirit is the seal. You know the Person who did the work for you. It is important to bear in mind that in all the offerings in the Old Testament, only the work was typified, though there were persons who were types of our Lord like David. Your first acquaintance with Christ begins when the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. You learn, like Peter, that at the moment you feel like the prodigal son, quite unfit for Him, yet you are so given the sense of His interest in you, that you know Him. He has not only relieved you by His work for you, but He Himself is the resource of your heart in the place where all your sin and misery have been.
Now I desire to present the next step, even knowing Christ in glory. Mary Magdalene missed Him here; she says, “They have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him”. You learn that the Spirit of God leads you to where He is, as it was with Stephen, “He, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up stedfastly into heaven”. Many are clear as to the fact of the Holy Spirit coming down, who do not know the power of the Holy Spirit leading them up to Christ. “He, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up stedfastly into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus”. I propose to set forth, this evening, our acquaintance with Christ in glory, and I will try to explain the effect of knowing Him there. First, the nature of the acquaintance; next, the effect of the acquaintance.
If you know Him where He saved you, you must like to know Him where He is. The Corinthians did not cleave to Christ in glory; that is, they did not seek a greater than Solomon. Every believer has learnt something of Christ in the Jonah aspect; that is, of His death and sufferings, but many do not know Him as Solomon; now He is as much the one as He is the other. There are the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. One might say, How can I know Christ in glory? It is because the Holy Spirit has come down from a glorified Christ. If one did not know one’s self and other Christians, one would be surprised to find that the Corinthians, who were so highly endowed “coming behind in no gift”, did not behold Christ as Solomon. Why? Because they were so full of their own wisdom; here they failed. Hence, in 1 Corinthians 1: 30, the apostle says, “Of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom”. He puts wisdom at the head of the list; they had not learned that. I want you to apprehend, that though you have the Spirit of God, though you are sealed, yet, that you may not have followed the leading of the Spirit of God; for the Spirit of God, when He leads, makes Christ paramount.
Turn to 2 Corinthians 3: 18, which will explain this more fully. “But we all” — that is every Christian — “with open face, beholding ... the glory of the Lord”; or more correctly, “we all, looking at the Lord’s glory with an unveiled face are changed” — or transformed, transfigured — “into the same image from glory to glory”. That brings out the effect. I do not refer to the effect yet, I am dwelling on the nature of this acquaintance first. As the apostle had gained the ear of the Corinthians, he is leading them to see that where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. It is very comforting that, if you are walking in the Spirit, Christ has the first place; He is the wisdom of God. The apostle is pressing the contrast between the law and Christ in the glory. The law was a demand for righteousness, but now there is a ministration of righteousness from the glory. You cannot conceive a greater contrast. It is not merely justification as in Romans, because of the death and resurrection of Christ; but here the righteousness of God greets you. God is glorified by the Son of man, as you read in John 13, and now the righteousness displayed in the glorified Man is ministered to you, you are at home in the glory. Isaiah, when he saw the Lord in glory, said, “I am undone”; you, if you are acquainted with Christ there, are more assured of your acceptance than ever.
May our hearts bless Him for the greatness of His grace! Beloved friends, it is of the deepest importance that you should be acquainted with the Lord in glory individually, otherwise you will not apprehend Him in the assembly. I do not say that you will not learn there, but unless you are acquainted with Him in glory, and know your acceptance there through Him, you cannot recognise Him as Son over God’s house. I am sure, that any true-hearted Christian, young or old, would say, Well, I would like to know Christ in glory. It does not say heaven; it is beholding the Lord’s glory. Glory is a condition. Glory is the expression of God’s satisfaction, according to all His attributes, resting upon the Man who glorified Him.
[p. 341] In John 13, when Judas has gone out (I suppose Judas was the worst specimen of man), the Lord says “Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself”. Well, “He was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father”. Your Saviour is in glory. Are you acquainted with Him there? If you are attached to Him where you are, as in Canticles, you seek His company where He is: nothing satisfies love, even for first acquaintance, but company. He is not here, but you have received the Spirit of God from Him glorified; you can reach Him there. There is no impassable barrier; there is not a drop of water in Jordan. Stephen could look up stedfastly into heaven, and see the glory of God and Jesus. I am trying, in some measure, to illustrate to you this wonderful subject, the nature of your acquaintance with Christ in glory. It is open to everyone, “We all beholding the Lord’s glory”. By faith you see Him, on whom the glory of God rests; and the Spirit conducts the saint, who is walking in the Spirit, to Christ in glory.
The Corinthians, like some Christians, were full of their own mental energy, instead of being led by the Spirit of God. “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God”; and “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit”. I want you to be assured that although you have the Spirit of God, you may be carried away by your own mind, like the Corinthians; in fact, Christians have lapsed into all sorts of failure. The Galatians were trying to improve the flesh. It was laxity with the Corinthians, it was legality with the Galatians; one is as bad as the other; indeed, legality is worse than laxity, because a man cannot stand up for laxity, but he may for legality.
Now look at our text; Acts 7: 55. Stephen is in Christ’s acceptance. It is not merely that you know [p. 342] that Christ is in glory, every one in this room knows that Christ is there, but the question is, Are you in Christ’s acceptance? Are you at home with Him there? If you read the writings of old divines, you will find beautiful statements of their affection for Christ; but they do not rise beyond Christ on earth, and so far they are beautiful, I quite admit; but you do not lose your first acquaintance with Christ risen from the dead, when you know Him in glory. When the heart discovers that “He is not here” it is an immense solace to know Him where He is. You will find this great fact will change the character of everything with regard to yourself and everything else, for it will land you in a new order of things. It is only there you are able to hear the wisdom of God, as the apostle says, “We speak wisdom among them that are perfect”.
I turn to a well-known passage in 1 Kings 10: 2, which in a certain way illustrates the nature of this intimacy: “And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart”. This is a type of Him who is greater than Solomon. “And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not anything hid from the king, which he told her not. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon’s wisdom, and the house that he had built, and the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cup-bearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the Lord; there was no more spirit in her”. I want you to accept in faith the fact which was inaugurated by Stephen; he saw the glory of God and Jesus, and he was perfectly restful there. So that when he suffers unto death — from the opposition of this world — he says, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit”. He is at [p. 343] home there. This I want you to lay hold of in faith: and in the queen of Sheba you learn something of the nature of your acquaintance with the Lord in His own home. She comes to Solomon. You come first as an individual, yet you are connected with His circle of things. Here she comes, and communes with him of all that was in her heart; everything is solved for her. And that is not all, but “there was not anything hid from the king, which he told her not”. He is the wisdom of God. You may say, How is that now? I believe, beloved friends, if we were more apart from ourselves, we should be wiser about things. Our own selfishness is like a mote in the spiritual eye which hinders it from seeing things rightly. No flesh could be in the presence of the glory; hence the apostle sets forth the effect practically in himself, “Always bearing about in the body the dying of Jesus”. Beloved friends, if you taste of this acquaintance, you know Christ outside of everything here; you know Him in glory as the One on whom every ray of divine glory rests.
And He is my Saviour; you are now in His acceptance, you are greeted with righteousness from the glory; it is the righteousness of God. I have said much about the nature of this acquaintance with the Lord; but I must add a word from John 13: 8. The Lord tells Peter, “If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me”. We generally have an imperfect apprehension of this saying. It does not mean merely forgiveness of daily sins. The idea is that He would remove every shade of distance between Himself and Peter. They were acquainted with Him on earth, and attached to Him, but He is going away into a new order of things, where nothing defiling could enter. If you look at Paul’s side of this, it is the holiest of all; but I would confine your attention to this word. You cannot apprehend the nature of this washing, unless you are acquainted with the Lord.
[p. 344] The Lord has entered on a new order of things; and His washing is to remove everything that causes a shade of distance between you and Him, anything which would break communion with Him. Peter had affection, so much so (see John 21: 7), that when he heard it was the Lord, he girt his fisher’s coat unto him and did cast himself into the sea, and yet he was not restored. The Lord said to him after they had dined, “Lovest thou me more than these?” Peter had thought that he loved the Lord more than the other disciples. Peter had affection for the Lord, but he was not in communion with Him; on the contrary he was chief in leading the others astray, going a-fishing.
After they had dined, the Lord exercises Peter’s heart. He removes the distance between Peter and Himself. He finishes by saying, “Follow me”. The true mark of communion is that you follow Him. We see here that the Lord likes to maintain this intimacy. But if you do not know intimacy, you do not seek the removal of that which interferes with it. Many are satisfied if they preserve a good conscience. You could not be intimate with the Lord without a good conscience, but if you are acquainted with Him as Peter was, and would continue your acquaintance with Him where He is, you require to be washed from every shade of distance, everything unsuited to the place where He is. If the Corinthians had been acquainted with Christ in glory, they would know that the practical effect of it is “Always bearing about in the body the dying of Jesus”. If you have made acquaintance with the Lord, you must like to have it continued. He, by His word, will remove every cause of distance. He will exercise your heart about it; because if you are really intimate with Him, you will know when there is a shade of distance; it may not be what you would call a sin, it might be indifference. For instance, the bride in Canticles was asleep, and [p. 345] had to be awakened: that was indifference. That has to be removed; that causes a shade of distance. The more intimate we are with anyone, the sooner we perceive a shade of distance; and if we do not perceive the distance, it shows that we are not intimate. It is not only that in His love, He leads you into this nearness to Himself, but He likes to preserve and continue it; mark His words, “If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me”. He does not say in Me, but with Me; you are not in company with Me.
Let us now look at the effects of this acquaintance. Turning again to 1 Kings 10, you will find that the queen of Sheba when with Solomon was occupied with new things. A type of the new things with Christ. Hence Peter writes, “joy unspeakable and full of glory” — glorified joy — Christ in glory. It is a very simple thing that if you were with Christ in glory, you would be taken up with the things there. If a child goes into a great place he is taken up with the things there. And it is not possible that you should behold the glory of the Lord and not be affected by it. When the queen of Sheba saw “The house that he had built, and the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her”. The first effect upon her was that she was entranced with Solomon’s home circle. She was a great queen, had great possessions, but she is so charmed with the order of things in Solomon’s house that all else is eclipsed. This is only a type, but it shows that the effect of this acquaintance with Christ is, that His immediate interests absorb you. There is a great lack if you do not know the Lord in glory, for you do not know the order of things which suits Him. One might be trying to help another, but he must fail if he does not know the order of things which suits the Lord. The [p. 346] queen of Sheba had not seen things done the same way before; common things were done in a perfect way.
I have already dwelt upon the nature of this acquaintance, and how you find yourselves in Christ’s acceptance in the presence of God, so that you are at home there. Now the first effect of this acquaintance is that you are occupied with His things according to the glory of God; and the second, you get in Corinthians, “We all beholding the Lord’s glory are transformed”. This is the effect of this acquaintance; and here you learn wisdom. Many wish for guidance. If you were rid of yourself in the Lord’s presence, you would be transformed into the same image from glory to glory; it is your own wisdom that is blocking the road. If you looked more at the Lord in glory, you would become more familiar with His glory, and, as the hymn says,
“In this Thy nature grow”. (51:5)
There could not be a more cheering state than that we are “transformed into the same image”. It is not merely “changed”: the word is used only four times in the New Testament, and is translated twice “transfigured” (which, I believe, is the true meaning), “transformed” in Romans 12, and here “changed”. It is most marvellous, because you are outside of yourself; and if you knew what an encumbrance yourself is, you would be very glad that it should be in abeyance. And how blessed would be your course here when thus morally transformed. It is not merely that your judgment is corrected, as in Psalm 73; but you are transformed into moral correspondence to His glory:
“And thus, Thy deep perfections
Much better should I know”. (51:5)
If you are walking in the Spirit, Christ will be paramount; not merely first, but paramount. Then,
[p. 347] as you behold Him in glory, you are transformed into moral correspondence with Him. Stephen is a wonderful example of this; he had been looking for the Lord to come, and to bring times of refreshing from His presence; and all in a moment he looks up stedfastly into heaven — the new line is open, he sees the Lord in glory, and everything is changed; he is turned right round; instead of Jerusalem being the centre, and the Lord’s reign his subject, he is transformed into correspondence with the Lord’s present position. This proves to you the greatness of the effect of knowing the Lord in glory. If you do not understand this acquaintance with the Lord, you will never please Him in service, or be for Him here. I do not say you may not have happy seasons, and know that you have a Friend in Jesus: I do not doubt that you may; but to know Him where He is, is much more. How can you act for Him here unless you know the order of things which suits Him? The glory is the expression of God’s satisfaction according to all His attributes — the greatest contrast to all here.
I need hardly give you other examples, but there is a beautiful one in the two disciples going to Emmaus. They had heard a wonderful exposition of scripture from Himself, and yet they did not alter their course; but when their eyes were opened, they knew Him; they rose up the same hour and returned to Jerusalem. Why? Because His interests now command them. But the best illustration is to get it yourself. Get so near the Lord that yourself has no place, because you are entranced with Him, your one absorbing Object. You will then find that you look at things here in quite a new light, because He is uppermost. When you walk in the Spirit, Christ is in His place in your heart, and you have all the fruit of the Spirit, because the Spirit is unhindered.
One remark more. In the end of John 13 the Lord [p. 348] had spoken about being glorified, and now (chapter 14) He says, “Let not your heart be troubled”. They were aware of the character of things they were connected with; He was going away, and among themselves there was treachery on the one hand, and unfaithfulness on the other, He says, “I have a place for you outside of it all”. I hope you are glad to hear He has a place for you outside of this world.
I trust each one of you will own the deep importance of being acquainted with Christ in glory, and all its blessed effects. Your happiness is complete; for you not only are in Christ’s acceptance in the presence of God, but also you have His own order of things — what “Eye hath not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him; but God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit; for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God”. And not only this, but you are transformed into moral correspondence to Him. There can be no greater satisfaction to the heart; as the hymn expresses it:
“Yet sure, if in Thy presence
My soul still constant were,
Mine eye would, more familiar,
Its brighter glories bear.
And thus Thy deep perfections
Much better should I know,
And with adoring fervour
In this Thy nature grow”. (51:4)
Surely, beloved friends, there is not one of you who does not echo in your heart those words. The Lord, in His infinite mercy, cause each one of us to be more really acquainted with Christ in glory, for His name’s sake.