MUTUALITY IN CONTRAST WITH CLERICALISM
[p. 39] MUTUALITY IN CONTRAST WITH CLERICALISM
Matthew 23:8 - 12; Matthew 26:20
— The end in view in the gospel of Matthew is to form us, as believers, in view of the assembly, and a feature that we find particularly in Matthew is mutuality. Mutuality does not accord with clericalism. The Lord gives formal instructions to His disciples that they were not to allow themselves to be called ‘Rabbi’. That does not mean that there should not be teachers among the saints; thus, Ephesians 4 speaks of the gift of “teacher”, but the Lord insists that the disciples should not be recognised officially as ‘Rabbi’, for, He says, “one is your instructor, the Christ”. “and all ye are brethren”. He alone has the right to take the place officially as ‘Instructor’; then, He adds: “All ye are brethren”. The place of “brethren” is greater than every official position. All that is official will pass away, but the relation of brethren will continue eternally. This relation involves the family; and however distinguished a brother may be as being an elder, or as having a gift, he always comes back to his place in the family. The Levites were all first-born. Each Levite occupied the place of a first-born, and the epistle to the Hebrews teaches us that we belong “to the assembly of the first born who are registered in heaven” Hebrews 12:23. This knowledge in our souls sets us free from all that is official; if sometimes we have to take a prominent place in service, we revert afterwards to the place of brethren in the family; we shall then have no desire to be called guides or instructors, or yet to be known as fathers. The Lord says, “Call not any one your father upon the earth; for one is your Father, he who is in the heavens”.
[p. 40] But that does not mean that we may not exercise a fatherly influence among the saints. Paul speaks of himself as “the aged”, and of Timothy as his son, his child. He says to the Corinthians: “If ye should have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet not many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the glad tidings”, (1 Corinthians 4:15) but he would not have allowed himself to be called ‘father’, although he was their spiritual father. The apostle John also speaks to his children. It is good that an advanced brother should exercise a fatherly influence among the saints; it is of great importance to them; but that advanced brother always remains a brother, forming a part of those of whom the Lord speaks when He says, “All ye are brethren”, and that for ever. The thoughts of ‘fathers’, ‘young men’, ‘little children’ belong to the present period; but the relation of ‘brethren’ — “all ye are brethren” — will subsist eternally. When the Lord was about to ascend to heaven, He spoke of the disciples as being His brethren — “Go to my brethren” John 20:17. The thought is that He is to be “firstborn among many brethren” Romans 8:29.
— “But the greatest of you shall be your servant”.
— To lay stress on those words, the Lord adds: “And whoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled”. A gift or devotedness or love may afford a brother a place of distinction, but this distinction only has value if it is laid at the Lord’s feet. In Revelation 4, the elders cast their crowns before the throne. He who has the highest place is ready to take the lowest. If I profess to be a devoted or distinguished servant, I ought to show it by being the servant of the saints. Paul says, “We do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus Lord, and ourselves your bondmen for Jesus’ sake”, (2 Corinthians 4:5) and later on, “all things are for your sakes” 2 Corinthians 4:15. He was gifted and fitted to serve the saints; he was in that way the property of all. The greatest among us ought to show a moral superiority in being ready to [p. 41] wash the feet of the disciples. That is what is very clearly taught in the verses which we have read. We must accept these principles, if we wish to have part in the assembly of God. The thought is that where the disciples are, there is to be a vessel for God’s use, and that each believer is to be found in his place in that vessel.
— The first epistle to the Corinthians gives certain enlightenment on this subject. There is the thought of the temple, that of the assembly, and that of the body. Would you say a few words on these three thoughts?
— In connection with the temple, we have light in the locality; in connection with the body, we have the expression of Christ in the locality. It was essential that each saint at Corinth should be in his place in the assembly.
— It is much more to be a brother than to have one of the most distinguished gifts; the relation of brethren will abide during eternity, while the gifts will pass away.
— To each one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. The most obscure member does his service, and it would be a mistake for him to take the place of an official servant; each saint is a servant. All the Levites, from a month old and upward, were numbered. No doubt there are special services attaching to the gifts; but in principle, every saint is a servant.
— Naturally, the most precious thing is to be simply a brother.
— “And ourselves your bondmen for Jesus’ sake” 2 Corinthians 4:5.
— In chapter 16 of Matthew, the Lord leaves the Pharisees and Sadducees. “And he left them and went away” Matthew 16:4. The disciples also had followed the Lord to the side opposite to that of the Pharisees and Sadducees. But they had forgotten to take bread. The Lord takes the opportunity of saying to them: “See and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees” Matthew 16:6. Although having taken a direction opposed to that of the Pharisees and Sadducees, we might carry away the leaven with us; having left the position itself, we might have kept with us the leaven of the system, when we should be preserving intact the precious relation of brethren.
— In chapter 26, we see how this relation is preserved. “And when the evening was come he lay down at table with the twelve. And as they were eating he said, Verily I say to you, that one of you shall deliver me up” Matthew 26:21. They were all at table with Him; they were all eating the same thing, and it is while they were eating that the Lord submits them to a test, and this test applies to all. He says, “I say to you, that one of you shall deliver me up” Matthew 26:21. It is not to draw attention to Judas, to his guilt, but to show that they were all eating the same thing. He does not address Peter or John separately, but all together; they all had the same feeling at that moment. They were all eating the same thing, and it is then that He puts them to the test. It is a wholesome test for our souls, when the light of the Lord is shed on us all.
Now, the Lord puts the Supper before them, and we have here the thought of mutuality, so as to be searched all together. We are all tested and we discern that we have each one the tendency to do the same evil act. That preserves us from being hard toward our brethren. I cannot be hard toward others; I cannot act as a Pharisee. Without the grace of the Lord, I should be as guilty as he who committed the evil deed — how this thought humbles me! — I cannot act in a priestly way towards others. The apostle says to the Galatians: “Ye who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of meekness, considering thyself lest thou also be tempted” Galatians 6:1. When Peter puts the question to the Lord, “Lord, how [p. 43] often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? until seven times?” (Matthew 18:21) the Lord answers him: “I say not to thee until seven times, but until seventy times seven” Matthew 18:22. If one among us sins, he is none the less a brother, and the brother should be saved: “Go, reprove him between thee and him alone” Matthew 18:15. Not a single brother must be lost, for he is of too much value. It is for the weak brother that Christ died; 1 Corinthians 8:11.
In verse 26 it says, “And as they were eating” Matthew 26:26. If the saints do not eat, there is no hope of their making progress. The Lord’s supper should remind us that we should be eating continually; the test of which we have spoken is that mentioned in 1 Corinthians 5: “Let us celebrate the feast ... with unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” 1 Corinthians 5:8. It is a feast which lasts seven days. The subject is eating; those who were eating are spoken of twice when the Lord introduced the Supper in Matthew 26 (in verses 21 and 26). They were eating the passover. In 1 Corinthians 5, the feast is to be celebrated with unleavened bread. There is a distinction between the passover and the feast of unleavened bread. Our Passover is Christ. Our Passover has been sacrificed. The unleavened bread represents what we provide ourselves; we provide it in the sense that we are maintained in a certain state of soul involving self-judgment; it is a daily exercise. If we provide unleavened bread, we can partake of the feast with enjoyment; if these conditions are fulfilled in the locality, the feast of the Lord will be well understood.
It says, “Take, eat”. In Luke it does not speak of eating. In Matthew it is a question of forming a spiritual condition in believers, so that they might take their place in the assembly with intelligence and enjoyment; that is Matthew’s point of view. What is needed is the reality of life and enjoyment of the thing. “In malice be babes; but in your minds be grown men” 1 Corinthians 14:20. The passover is connected with the old system; something new is now introduced, and before setting aside what was old, all the light of the old economy is presented in its fulness. In the old system, all that God was for Israel was included; and this is what is presented before the introduction of the new order. The Lord gives them another cup: the cup of the new covenant in His blood poured out for them. What God had been for Israel is set aside until the millennium; all will be taken up again in the future. The disciples were to drink of the cup. So we have the Lord’s supper, which is more than the passover. The Lord said, “Take, eat: this is my body”, (Matthew 26:26) and later, “Drink ye all of it” Matthew 26:27. They were all to do it, all the disciples. That supposes no clerical idea; it is simply a thought of mutuality.
In chapter 20 of the Acts, several brethren met together: Paul, Timothy and other distinguished brethren. It says, “We being assembled to break bread” Acts 20:7. The principle is: “We being assembled”. After having each performed a different service, they all come back to this blessed experience which puts them on a footing of equality; all are on the same level; all are brethren. It is mutuality, and not clericalism. In chapter 4 of the Acts, Peter and John, after having been distinguished in service and sufferings, and having been let go, went to join their own company; they formed part of it. “Having been let go, they came to their own company” Acts 4:23. If the apostles are mentioned, they are mentioned together; but when they arrive in the company all identity is lost; all is levelled; all are known as brethren. Afterwards, each may return to his service, but at the Lord’s supper, each has his place as a brother.
— It is a comfort and a joy, to the heart of those who are in service, to sit down with others as brethren, in rest and peace, to be occupied with Christ, and [p. 45] not with service. The most distinguished brother rejoices when the weakest expresses a few words of thanksgiving, though he may only pronounce five words. The weakest and the most advanced have both received the Spirit of liberty, quite as much as the apostle Paul; and all cry, Abba, Father. Why not appropriate these things?
— It must not be forgotten that in Acts 20 there were distinguished brethren and local brethren. Paul was there to rejoice with the others. They were gathered together “to break bread”. There was no president. The principle which characterises this passage is: “We being assembled”. Paul discoursed; one may give an address, after worship, but there are no directions for that.
— In 1 Corinthians 15, it says that the Lord was seen by “Above five hundred brethren at once”, (1 Corinthians 15:6) but it does not speak of distinguished brethren.
— Through Paul, we have the Lord’s supper. As a result, the whole company is led into the heavenly regions.
Reading with J.T. at Lyon, 3rd May, 1926.