CHRIST AS LIGHT IN THE SOUL
[p. 195] CHRIST AS LIGHT IN THE SOUL
There is nothing much more striking in Scripture than the way in which we get incidents grouped together in the gospel of Luke. It has been pointed out that Luke concerns himself very little about chronological order: his habit is to group incidents together so as to present a kind of picture.
Now I desire to put together the incidents and the parable related to us here, for they give us a very interesting picture of Christ. What we want is the apprehension of Christ. The apostle Paul could say that be counted all things loss for the “excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3: 8), he appropriated Christ in that way. Then again, the object for which gifts are given is “until we all arrive at the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God”. Ephesians 4: 13. The faith and the knowledge of the Son of God would bring us into unity; and gifts were given to that end. Christ is the blessed Head, and we have to grow up into Him in all things; we grow up, in point of intelligence, in Him who is the Head. I will make use of the incidents I have read in order to present Christ.
Christ is here brought before us in three aspects. In the first part of the passage I have read, we have the Son in relation to the Father. Then we learn what Christ is to man, as Neighbour; then what He is to the disciple; Mary sat at His feet and heard His word. In regard of the Father, all things are delivered to Him of the Father; then in regard to man, in being Neighbour to the one that fell among thieves, He is really Neighbour to every man; then as to Mary, Christ is light to the believer’s soul. It is our privilege to know Christ in all these lights. Our blessing depends upon our being led by the Spirit of God into the knowledge of Christ. You have an unction from the Holy One, and know all things; we [p. 196] know the things which are centred in Christ. I cannot conceive that an unction from the Holy One would do anything else except lead us into the knowledge of Christ, and that which is centred in Him. You are not taught of man; you may have certain things brought under your attention; gifts are given to that end, that truth might be kept under the attention of the saints; but you are not taught of man. I am not your teacher, nor anyone else: you are taught of God. The anointing refers to the Spirit of God, who is the teacher of the people of God. The anointing teaches in an indescribable kind of way, I could not attempt to explain how people are taught by the Spirit of God. The mighty power of the Spirit in the believer brings his heart under the influence of the love of God, and if you come under the influence of divine love, you make rapid and natural progress in the things of God.
The first point I want to touch upon is that which Christ is to the Father. In Romans 6 we read that He was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father; here He says, “All things are delivered to me of my Father”. The Son is the object of the Father’s counsel and the subject of the Father’s love: He is the centre of the Father’s system. It is a great thing to apprehend that the Father has in view a system of blessing, a universe of bliss, in all its varied parts, which originated in the Father’s counsels, and of that system Christ is the centre, so that He may order everything according to the love of God. We get an idea of it on the mount of transfiguration, when He received from God the Father, honour and glory.
There is one word more in regard of that: “No man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father”. The Son is not known to us in His own proper being: He is only known to the Father in that way. We never know the Son other than become incarnate, and in that sense subject to the Father: “my Father is greater than I” John 14: 28. We know Christ as the blessed sent One of the Father, that He might make known the Father, and the Father’s counsels, of which He Himself is the blessed centre. There is nothing hid from us as to what Christ is morally; and we are privileged to know all that He is according to the Father’s counsel, even what He is as an object of the Father’s love; but His own proper being, as such, is known only to the Father.
You may remember the remarkable prayer at the end of the third of Ephesians: the expanse of the system of which Christ is the centre is there brought before us, and the apostle prays that the saints might know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge. That gives us the idea of how Christ will order everything according to divine love. It is a great thing to apprehend what Christ is; Head of that system which originated in the counsel of the Father and in which God will be glorified, and every circle ordered and affected by divine love, so that the whole system will be pervaded by God. That is what Christ will bring to pass, that God may be glorified in everything; as we sometimes sing: —
‘Of the vast universe of bliss,
The centre Thou, and Sun’. (11:4)
We get the same thought stated a little differently in the gospel of John. The Lord says, “The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand”. This brings in the additional thought that the Father loves the Son. John brings it in there to show that the Son is the test of everyone. He that is not subject to the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. The Son coming in has of necessity become a test to man: every man is tested by the Son. The Jew is an example of the one who is not subject to the Son, and has come under the wrath of God. Wrath has come upon them to the uttermost, because having been tested by the Son they are not subject to Him. The Jew after the flesh shall not see life, but the wrath of God continues on him.
I desire that the Spirit of God may lead us into the apprehension of what Christ is to the Father. We could [p. 198] know nothing about it unless it had been revealed; but the Spirit is our teacher, to lead us into all that which is revealed. The things that are revealed belong to the people of God. It is our privilege to enter into them, and the capacity to do so lies in our being formed in divine affections; it is very much as in natural things, as a child is formed and developed in affections towards its father, it gets a ready entrance into the father’s things. The point in regard of the people of God is, how much we love. “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard ... the things which God hath prepared” — for whom? “For them that love him” (1 Corinthians 2: 9), the great point is to love God. And why do we love God? Because He first loved us. The Spirit is given to the believer, and the love of God is shed abroad in his heart, and the answer on the believer’s part is that he loves God. Every christian loves God, and as we love Him, we get a ready entrance into the things of God.
Now the One to whom all things are delivered of the Father has become Neighbour to man, and the distance is bridged between the Father and man. It is a very blessed thing to meditate upon Christ as man’s Neighbour. In order to make that point clear, I refer to the man that fell among thieves. That man evidently presents to us the Jew, but not the Jew in his best estate, for the thieves had left him nothing, neither reputation, possessions nor covering; they had wounded him, and stripped him of his raiment, and left him half dead. That is the position in which the Jew was when the Neighbour appeared. The Neighbour did not appear before the Jew was stripped and impoverished. The Jew did not make use of the privileges and opportunities which God had placed within his reach, and God allowed him to be served in that way by the thieves. That was the position into which Christ came: Israel had been carried away captive by the Assyrian, and the Jew led captive by Nebuchadnezzar. The man that fell among thieves was beyond the power of priest or Levite. The truth is that the Jew represents man under culture. There are two [p. 199] figures employed to present the Jew to us: the vine and the fig-tree. The fig-tree represented man under divine culture; the Jew had the opportunity of knowing what man ought to be for God. Then in case he failed, God placed within his reach means of atoning for his failure. That was the system connected with priest and Levite. A system of offerings had been provided on the part of God in case of failure under responsibility. It was a curious system, in which grace was really mixed up with law, and the point was whether man could maintain himself in fidelity to God under those conditions. We know what came of it: when they were in the wilderness they went after Baal; when they came into the land, they worshipped the gods of the land. They were degraded to the level of the heathen, and God allowed them to be carried away captive; and God brought in the Babylonish power on the decay of Israel.
Now it was into that state of things that Christ came. The Neighbour came when everything was it its worst, when the Jew was robbed, stripped, and half-dead. Things had come to that pass that the legal system was of no use to them. Then came the Neighbour, full of grace and truth, seeking to affect man by grace, bringing the light of what was in the heart of God. He came with illimitable power to support man, if they received the grace. He could support them down here; the Lord proved that in regard to the disciples. He supported them in all their ministry, so that He could turn to the Father at the end and say, “Those that thou gavest me I have kept” John 17: 12. Not only did He minister to them of the abundance of grace, but, so long as He was down here, He kept them in the Father’s name. When the Neighbour came upon the scene, it was the darkest day in the history of the Jew. It was not the beginning, when Moses or Joshua was there, but the day when everything had come to ruin on the footing of responsibility.
Now why I bring that before you is because, if Christ came as Neighbour to the Jew in such a condition as that, when all was hopeless, then Christ may just as truly [p. 200] be Neighbour to the gentile. When everything had failed, the Jew was a simple subject for grace, and grace came to him. The Jew had no claim on the Neighbour, and if He came to the Jew in that plight, He can be Neighbour to the gentile. I have no doubt that the teaching of the parable is to show us the position into which Christ has come, not simply in regard to the Jew, but in regard to man as man. The Jew representing man under culture had entirely failed to answer to the mind of God, and God no longer goes on with the culture, but the last Adam, as Neighbour to man, has come in.
We have in the gospel pretty much before our minds where Christ is now, at the right hand of God, and we are accustomed to the thought of Christ coming again. But what we have not sufficiently taken into account is the position which Christ occupies at the present time, not simply in regard to God, at God’s right hand, but the official position He has in regard of man — I do not say of the believer: He is Lord to the believer; but my point is the position He occupies in regard of man as man. Christ has come in as Neighbour to man: to what man? To the man that stands in need of Him. And what man is there that does not stand in need of Christ? What man upon earth can be said to be self-supporting? The king on his throne is not self-supporting, and no other man is. If a man can support himself for time and eternity, he does not want Christ; but if man is not self-supporting he wants a neighbour.
Now the Neighbour expresses the present position which Christ occupies in relation to man. We are told in Scripture that Christ is the Head of every man — that is at the present time — and that He is the Mediator between God and men. None of these three terms, Neighbour, Head, or Mediator, expresses the idea of Lord; they present an entirely different idea, but every one of them expresses the relation in which Christ stands officially in regard of man at the present time, and of which relation every man is free to avail himself. That is what the gospel unfolds.
[p. 201] I just say a word in regard of that which Christ ministers. The priest and Levite ministered nothing; they had nothing which they could minister. The man was in such a plight that he was beyond the power of their service; but the Samaritan had oil and wine; he had, too, his own beast. I have no doubt that what Christ ministers to the one who is in need of Him is grace and the Spirit. Both are in the power of Christ: grace, through redemption, and the Spirit of life. We have found that Christ came in divine love into the place where we were; He came to the cross and identified Himself with our position, and we have received from Christ the abundance of grace and the Spirit, that is, living water.
It is wonderful to think that Christ has become available to us, and that we on our part have availed ourselves of Christ, and a link has been established between Himself and us; that link is the Spirit which is given to us. Everyone that has the Spirit which Christ gives is attached to Christ. The grace of God is presented in Christ in order to attract us to Him; then He imparts to us living water in order that we may be attached to Him. We have an unction from the Holy One; we are in Him, and He is in us.
That is the fruit of Christ having come in as Neighbour. One delights to think that He has come in at man’s lowest estate. The Jew and the gentile were both alike bad, but the Neighbour came in to rescue us, and He has done this, poured in oil and wine, and shown us what the heart of God was toward us. The Lord has imparted to us of His Spirit, that we might be maintained down here. We are kept by the influence of Christ. I do not believe anyone is kept except in that way. We are not kept by seeking to be proper in our conduct, or by precepts; we are kept in our path by the influence of Christ. What keeps you under the influence of Christ? The Spirit which is given to you. Being kept under His influence, we are preserved and guarded down here, are saved, we go in and out — have liberty — and find pasture. The influence of Christ is so potent that we do not need the [p. 202] fold to guard us; we are kept in spite of every kind of evil, maintained by the influence of Christ. I would not underrate for a moment the importance of our obligations to one another, to wash one another’s feet; but the real power which operates upon saints down here is Christ, and it is in that sense that we bring forth fruit unto God. Were it not for the influence of the sun, the earth would not get rain, and we would not get fruitful seasons. It is under the influence of Christ that we get rain. It comes upon us by the influence of Christ, and there is sunshine; and under sunshine and rain we bring forth fruit unto God. It is the blessed result of Christ having come in as man’s Neighbour, to minister grace to the heart of man, and the Spirit of grace, by which we are maintained in our pathway, in this scene of difficulty and contrariety.
In the latter part of the chapter we find Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus, and bearing His word, and Martha complains. There can be no doubt that Martha was attached to Christ; but she was restless, whilst Mary had more spiritual instinct. I very much like to see people with spiritual instincts. I would rather see saints right by instinct than by intelligence. Mary could not have told you why she sat at the feet of Jesus; she would not have defended herself. But the Lord spoke for her, and rebuked Martha — very tenderly, because He loved Martha; but He approved of Mary. Christ was light to her soul: that is what I understand by her bearing the word of Christ. People are sometimes content to say they have heard the word of Christ; a verse in John 5 is not infrequently taken up in this way, but the point there is the present attitude of the soul; it is the one hearing His word. Not that has heard it, or will hear it: it is characteristic. So here; Mary sat at the Lord’s feet and heard His word, and He speaks of it as “that good part”, and the good part should not be taken from her. There would not be a moment in the history of Mary down here when she would not be sitting at the feet of Jesus. She might have to take up other things; she very [p. 203] likely had to take her part in the serving, but she never would give up that attitude. What I understand by it is the recognition of Christ as light to the soul; and there is another thing in connection with that, and that is, the refusal of every other light. The Colossians were disposed to look to other lights; teachers were coming along, attempting to turn them aside by philosophy and vain deceit. These set themselves forth as lights. In our day we get the light of science, and philosophy, and criticism; but a Mary would not listen to either one or the other, because neither science, nor philosophy, nor criticism could for a moment tell you what is in the heart of God. The only One who could do that is the One who came from that heart. I do not care to know anything except what is in the heart of God. Science may be interesting, but what moral effect will it produce upon me? The heart of man needs to know what is in the heart of God towards him, and that is what Christ is capable of unfolding; He makes me acquainted with the love of God in its application towards me here from beginning to end. That is the word of Christ, and there is no word which can be compared with it. It is altogether peculiar, and could belong to none but the Son.
In our pathway here we can say we have known and believed the love that God has to us. We come under the discipline of God; but that is the proof of His love; He chastens us because He loves us. Then “as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4: 17), this disperses all that remains of fear. The love of God is made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because as Christ is, so are we in this world. I put it side by side with a verse in Romans 8, nothing “shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord”. It is in that way that love is made perfect with us.
Now that is the light which Christ has brought to us. What do you think is going to comfort you in this world? The knowledge of the love of God. “All things work together for good to them that love God”. Romans 8: 28.
[p. 204] A great many things here appear very crooked; we pass through many exercises which disturb our spirits; but all things work together for good to those who love God. And who are the people who love God? They are those who have found out that God loves them. I shall come into the day of judgment in a certain sense, because everyone is to be manifested there; but the truth remains, as Christ is, so are we in this world.
Remember that Christ has commended the attitude of sitting at His feet. It is a great thing if it should mark us. Do not be content with having heard His word, but take good care that you are always hearing it. His word is the light, and do not pay attention to any other light. You do not want what is after the traditions of men, and the rudiments of the world, because in Him dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Let your ear be circumcised and attentive to hear the word of Christ, that you may be instructed by Him and led into the knowledge of the love of God, not in its application to you in heaven, but down here. It is a great thing to have Christ as the light of the soul, because it never fails; it is a true and wholesome light, and carries with it no evil consequence; it is full of blessing, not only for eternity, but for time. If you should be called upon to do any little service here, the thing is to do it still hearing the word of Christ. There is no other; I wish all would take account of that. Many read other things, and get damaged by them. I dread a great deal of the reading which is abroad, which is damaging the young; the point is to sit at the feet of Jesus and hear His word. It was properly the attitude of the man that fell among thieves, when he found out that Christ was his Neighbour. The next thing for him was to be found in the position of Mary.
Do not be content with listening to me, but ponder these things for yourselves. Seek to apprehend first what Christ is to the Father, the object of the Father’s counsels; then what He has become in service to man, to the man that stood in need of Him; and then what He [p. 205] is to the believer as the blessed, unfailing light of the believer’s soul, so that he should not stand in need of any other light. May God give us to be always attentive to the word of Christ!