CONDITIONS SUITABLE TO THE HOLY SPIRIT
J. G. Wain
Acts 1: 9–17; 2: 1–4, 17, 18, 42; 20: 4–12
I trust the Holy Spirit may help to say a word from these scriptures as to the conditions to which the Holy Spirit came and the effects of His presence, affecting as it would our manner of life, and the quality of our life. As we have been taught, this book could be described as ‘the acts of the Holy Spirit’. It is a tremendous reality, dear brethren, that the Holy Spirit is here—the promise of the Father. At the beginning of this recovery, in which we have part, what was prominent was not so much any particular persons, but the living activity of the Spirit. About 1827, numbers of believers, often unknown to one another, and in various parts,were meeting in houses to break bread, having moved out from what had become lifeless, in which the Spirit’s place was denied by clerical systems. These persons were moved by the Holy Spirit. Among them were a number whom the Lord equipped and raised up to help the saints. Beloved Mr. Darby, Mr. Wigram, and others who could be named, served to bring out the divine mind in a broken day. It is good to reflect on that, dear brethren, for the testimony is to be continued in our reliance on the Spirit, and, our faith in the Spirit. And it is good if, as believers, we trace our origin back, free of sectarian thoughts, to what there was at the beginning in the apostles. That was distinctive, of course; we would have to be careful how we thought and spoke, because what existed in the beginning of Acts was unmarred, and the Spirit had wonderful liberty.
We read in Acts 1 of these persons who were the products of the Lord’s own teaching, of His own ministry, of His own gracious love and service. It is a tribute to the Lord that there were persons here who could stand after He had left, and before the Spirit came, a tribute to the Lord’s own precious work and service. He had assembled with them for forty days, being out of death. A glorious Man, unchanged by what He had been through; changed as to His condition, but unchanged in His lowly grace, He went in and out among them, assembling with them for forty days. What days they were, distinctive and unique in their glory. These persons were being taught by Him still, and were being equipped to introduce this wonderful period of which we are now at the end—the assembly period, when Christ is on high and the Spirit of God indwelling the saints of the assembly.
Now two things, amongst others, marked them. One was that they were waiting for Jesus to come again, and the other that they gave themselves to continual prayer. The Lord Jesus was taken up from them after that period of forty days, which was a very full time of education for them commencing, as we see in John 20, when He made Himself known to them in resurrection. During that period He presented Himself living with many proofs, and assembled with them, speaking to them of the things which concern the kingdom of God. On one occasion He appeared to above five hundred brethren at once (1 Corinthians 15). What impressions would have been left with these beloved saints when He left them! He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. So the dispensation of faith was established.
They had been used to seeing Him appearing to them; they had been accustomed to His word, immediately responsive to their questions and their problems; but now He was out of sight, yet not far away. We are in that time when He is out of sight. As we sang earlier,
‘The heav’ns which now conceal Him,
In counsels deep and wise’.
The time of His coming again is near. “This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven, shall thus come in the manner in which ye have beheld him going into heaven”. Is that not wonderful? That time is near, the blessed hope of the church, when He will descend from heaven with a shout and every one of His own will be caught up in divine power to meet Him in the air. He is coming, dear brethren, we might say, all the way—into the air—to meet us. They were waiting for that time; we should be waiting as well. These are the conditions the Spirit would look for, and He would stimulate in our hearts the hope of His coming. The last chapter of Revelation refers to Him as “the bright and morning star”, shining in the night and attracting our hearts, harbinger of the dawn of the day. That hymn (No. 36) which we sang is so expressive of what the day will be when He appears in His glory, and everything will be changed; the problems will be gone and gone for ever. Then in verse 13 we get the apostolic company named one after the other, those that have that distinctive place, selected personally by Christ, who had been with Him during all the time of His ministry here from the baptism of John until that moment, and they stand there as a witness to the solidity of all that had been effected in the death and resurrection of Christ. Let us give place, dear brethren, to what has been established authoritatively in this dispensation through the apostles, including Paul.
Here we have these devoted men, and also several women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brethren. They were all one, He had secured them and here they were. “These gave themselves all with one accord to continual prayer”. These are the conditions that the Spirit would delight to
come to—“together”, “all with one accord”. There was absolute unison of thought and affection for Christ, awaiting the promise of the Father, according to His word. “These gave themselves all with one accord to continual prayer”. Now that is something, I believe, that is very much needed by us and which the. Spirit of God finds pleasure in, a dependent, waiting people. In those days Peter could stand up with the brethren and refer to the Scriptures; the Scriptures were to be brought forward in their living character, as inspired by the Spirit of God, to meet the needs at any moment and any exigency that could possibly arise in the history of this wonderful testimony which had now begun. Dear brethren, let us in our measure relate ourselves to what has been established in this way; it would deliver us from much.
So Acts 2 refers to the time when they were again together. You notice they did not go back to the temple in Acts 1. They returned from the mount of Olives and went to the upper chamber. These things are so suggestive of the need of getting above the level of all that would be represented in Jerusalem, the city where the Lord had been cruelly treated and murdered. They were in the upper room. There is need for this lifting of our thoughts and our vision, dear brethren, there is need of it constantly, and the Spirit would help us as to it—“the hill country”; “the upper districts”; “the upper chamber”. In Acts 20 we get it again, we read of the upper room where they were. This is all related to what was at the beginning. Paul related himself to what was at the beginning; he related himself to the other apostles, as we know; he is particularly to be our guide, as the apostle to the nations, of whom we are, bearing on the assembly and the wonderful features of the dispensation in which we have such a blessed part.
In chapter 2 “they were all together in one place”. You see how this is emphasized at the beginning—and it needs to be emphasized—now, that we should have one outlook. Problems would recede if we had one outlook—Christ’s glory in His assembly, that what is suited to the presence of the Spirit; and to the presence of Christ, might be maintained in the spirit of humility and in dependence on the power that is available—in the Holy Spirit. Deep feelings are referred to; Mr. Darby’s note is a help as to the sound out of heaven—‘they heard blowing, as of hard breathing’. What deep feelings have entered into the Spirit’s presence, beloved brethren! Jehovah says in Exodus 23: 21, “Be careful in his presence, and hearken unto his voice”. We need to respect the assemblings of the saints—because of the Spirit’s presence. That deep breathing was heard. This was a tremendous occasion when the Holy Spirit came from the ascended Christ, the promise of the Father, the Comforter, to undertake for the saints in every need that could arise; and these were the conditions to which He came, the solidity of the work of God, the result of the labours of Christ in these beloved people. It speaks of “the crowd of names”; they are all one, but the names would mean there was variety in the personalities formed in God’s ways; but they were together with one accord; there is no discord, they are all together in one place.
Oh that we might more realize the Spirit’s pleasure in taking His place amongst such! It says,
“It sat upon each one of them”. Personal identity is important; we are not mass-produced; God has His own ways in dealing with us; He has His own discipline to help us; His government is to help us; His ways are to help us, in view of formation—that Christ might be reproduced in us. This is the labour of the Spirit, to provide something
that corresponds to the heart of that blessed Man in heaven. Much more could be said, but I read the verses in chapter 2 to see how the Spirit’s presence embraces “your sons and your daughters ... your young men … your elders … my bondmen my bondwomen”. Bondmen and bondwomen suggests devotedness, and there is a need of more devotedness, in which the Holy Spirit finds pleasure. The evidence of devotedness is here today; that so many brethren should come so far to be together is something that heaven takes account of, and there is a reward, a present one and a future one. The Spirit finds pleasure in having His part in relation to the younger ones, “your sons and your daughters … ... your young men … my bondmen and ... my bondwomen”. Well, may there be promoted in us a greater desire to provide conditions that are suited and acceptable to His presence.
That is involved in verse 42, “And they persevered”. That is an interesting word, is it not?
Sometimes we find it a bit hard, particularly when we are younger, and we may need a little stimulation and encouragement to persevere. “The teaching and fellowship of the apostles”
might have been a bit testing, you know. The apostles were formed men; they were not reeds blown in the wind; their teaching would be direct; it might be somewhat demanding at times—but these saints persevered. These dear souls persevered, and we need this perseverance—“they persevered in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles, in breaking of bread and prayers”. Note—“persevered in ... prayers”; prayer is again mentioned. How important this is, dear brethren; it really impresses me with the great need of more prayer; perhaps less talk and more prayer.
Now I refer to chapter 20 to see how the Spirit’s activity is carried forward through the
labours of this “elect vessel”, Paul, through whom the Lord has communicated His mind for us at the present time. Let us make way for this servant whom the Lord has so used.
Sorrowfully, we have to say that amongst some believers his word is somewhat discounted.
Many troubles stem from the non-acceptance of the Lord’s authority through this vessel, of whom the Lord says, “This man is an elect vessel to me”, Acts 9: 15. The Lord would be jealous as to what He has communicated through those epistles of Paul’s for they are authoritative from Himself. In Corinthians, where Paul treats of practical matters which should mark us, Paul says, by the Spirit, “If any one thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him recognise the things that I write to you, that it is the Lord’s commandment”, 1 Corinthians 14: 37. So prosperity for us lies in the acceptance of Paul’s word. It is Paul who is prominent here as a vessel of the Spirit, and it is remarkable how he maintains in this upper chamber in Acts 20 what was founded at the beginning in the upper room.
First of all we have a sample of the effects of the Spirit’s work in these seven named persons.
The first is a son of someone known to the brethren. I commend to our younger brethren particularly that we look up the meaning of these names. (There is a helpful list of proper names and their meanings at the end of Mr. C. J. H. Davidson’s Concordance). Their meanings are interesting and instructive. These persons were all different, and came from different places. It is similar to the crowd of one hundred and twenty names in chapter 1; each has a name—each is a personality, each the product of divine work and teaching. So Sopater is the son of a brother evidently known to Luke, the writer of the Acts. His name means
‘saving father’. What an influence to value in a locality! We should be very thankful for parents who have learnt from God
and taught us the truth. Sopater was a Berean. In Acts 17: 11 we are told that the Bereans
“were more noble … receiving the word with all readiness of mind, daily searching the scriptures …”. We need this Berean spirit of diligence—daily searching the Scriptures. We should not be content with a rushed reading of a verse for the day—although there could be a blessing even in that—but need a diligent searching for the living word.
I have been arrested by Mr. Darby’s preface for readers of the ‘Synopsis’ (it is at the beginning of those volumes). He warns about the danger of spiritual laziness. Mr. Darby refrained from expressing many of the deep emotions that arose in his heart as he wrote about the Scriptures because he wished the word in its living power to enter into the soul of the reader, and to produce not only knowledge but true communion with God. The Spirit of God has indited the Scriptures and He will help us to read them and get the gain and life of them, to bring us into the present enjoyment of the mind of God. May we be more marked by this energy and diligence.
Now a young man named Eutychus is referred to as sitting at the window-opening. His name means ‘wealthy’. We need to be careful that our outlook is right, dear brethren, in this age of materialism. Thank God for every blessing we receive, for His goodness and His bounty. He has given us all things richly to enjoy; but let us be kept in a spirit of dependence, and free from worldliness. Eutychus fell out of the window. We would not like anybody to do that!
But Acts 20 does not dwell so much on the fall. You do not dwell on the failures of young people; they were comforted to have him alive; his soul was in him. He was taken up dead, but Paul says, “His life (or ‘soul’) is in him”. There is a great need of soul with us, right feelings
for one another. Paul followed his course; he descended. Can we descend to anyone in trouble? Paul descended, and enfolded him in his arms. Think of the affection of the great apostle, descending to embrace that boy. The chapter is a very telling one. Verse 1 says that Paul embraced the disciples. His was not just authoritative teaching; the presence of the Spirit in that man meant that something of that ‘hard breathing’ was evident in relation to the saints he served; he embraced them. Then he embraces this boy. Eutychus had got into a poor state and fell, but he is recovered, and he is now a wealthy person with something to contribute as he is taken up again among the brethren.
At the end of the chapter the saints embrace Paul. How wonderful divine feelings are amongst the saints! We would like to have met Paul, would we not? We shall one day. These dear brethren wept because they would not see his face any more. What a countenance he must have had! It does not say, they wept because they would not hear his fine addresses any more, but because they would not see his face any more. What he meant to the saints as a vessel of the Spirit! What deep feelings marked him! The Spirit’s activity has this in mind, that the saints become lovable. Christ being formed in the saints is one of the greatest treasures and witnesses there is on earth. Let us furnish conditions in which the Spirit has liberty to do this, as we are occupied with the glorious Man who is in heaven. May the Lord help us, for His name’s sake.
Address at Walton-on-the-Naze
11 March 1989