SPIRITUAL SUBSTANCE

P. Buchan

John 19: 25–27; 2 John 1–4, 13

Dear brethren, I feel the lack of substance myself but it came into my mind as our brother spoke of Luke 8 that you get the thought of substance there and certain women are available to minister it. As I look in the hall today, there are a lot more sisters than usual and we are thankful to see them. Now, in speaking, I am seeking to encourage us to go on in these difficult times through which we are passing. The use of this word substance affected me, as we think of those sisters in Luke 8.

Then you get these sisters too in John 19. Our brother said that in Luke’s gospel, there are certain women who are available. In John 19 there is one brother available, that was John. It is very encouraging to us because we are reading the book of Revelation locally, where we learn what was in his heart. John was in prison in Patmos and yet full of the glories of the Lord Jesus, and he had substance in abundance. Dear brethren, as I say, we feel the lack of it, though we would be strengthened to go in for it.

These women in John are by the cross of Jesus. In that first hymn we sang (No. 298), you get some impressions of what that means—“by the cross of Jesus”. It makes you think more about it. We need to study more what it means to be “by the cross of Jesus”; it is for each of us to know what it is. We know where He is now, of course. But then it says, “by the cross of Jesus stood his mother”. I am thinking of this reference to “his mother”, something to affect our hearts. The other sisters are spoken of too, including Mary of Magdala. Now John has this other favour to do. Jesus is on the cross, He is looking down, and He sees His mother there. He says to John, Now you take care of her. Dear brethren, let each one of us seek to be available to comfort somebody else. It is a need at the moment, to be available to serve the saints. I was affected too by the sisters—there are so many sisters who are needed. These are difficult times, we have much to go through, and we are so much looking to gain by it. So Jesus looks at John, He gives him something to do, something to work out.

That made me think about other sisters who are available. There is something rich about it. It says, “The elder to the elect lady”, that is how John speaks of her. It does not say who the sister is, but it is “the elect lady”. We want to think that way when we are speaking about our local sisters, to encourage them, to think of them that way, that they are elect ladies in God’s grace. He has brought us into the truth—elected us into it. Peter speaks about it too, “She that is elected with you” (1 Peter 5: 13), but here John says, “The elder to the elect lady and her children”. We have the children and we are thankful for them. John was pleased with these children, he knew them, and goes on to speak about them—“whom I love in truth”. Think of John using language like that! Now, dear brethren, are we acting according to the truth?

At the last local ministry meeting, this matter was raised about the truth—The Way, the Truth, the Life, that was it. And now we have the truth again; he says, “all who have known the truth, for the truth’s sake which abides in us and shall be with us to eternity”. This opens up a great knowledge of God. How great it is, “from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love”. Then he adds, “I rejoiced greatly that I have found of thy children walking in truth”—that is more important. Dear brethren, walking in the truth is what we are to do, not to have it in our heads only, but be walking in it, be in keeping with it. And he says too, ‘Watch what you do’. It is the sister’s responsibility often at the door. People come to the door, they want to come in, but you do not let them in because what they are saying is wrong. They are elect sisters indeed, who can stand for what is right and can say what is the truth and what is not. The same thing happens with our children in school.

Things are said that are not right at all and the children probably have to say, That is not right. Hear what they say and state, Well, that is not right, it is not according to the truth.

Dear brethren, we must strengthen the young ones to go on, to maintain what is right because they want to do it for Jesus who has done so much for them, and in doing so, seek to help others.

Then it says, “The children of thine elect sister greet thee”, that is another one. There are two elect sisters mentioned here. I cannot say who they are, I do not know who they are. But in Luke’s gospel we are told of two named sisters, who are mentioned in chapter 1, Elizabeth and Mary. Even something is recorded of their conversation in the hill country; they were full of substance. May this encourage and strengthen us to go on and do what is right, and to honour and praise Him. In the name of the Lord Jesus.

Word in meeting for ministry, Kirkcaldy
7 May 1996