PREACHING OF THE WORD OF GOD

G.W.Brown

Isaiah 40: 10,11; 46; 4; 2 John 1,2,4; Philemon 8,9

Did you sing the hymn? Do you remember what you sang? Do you believe what you sang? We began the hymn with a reference to Jesus:

The mighty God who dwelt in light

Unreached by mortal eye,

As Man came forth the foe to fight,

And won the victory.

I do not think it is always remembered that Jesus who is preached in the glad tidings was and is and ever will be "over all, God blessed for ever", Rom 9: 5. That is the testimony to men from God that the Saviour, Jesus, the Son of God indeed in manhood, is the One who is "over all, God blessed for ever". What a serious thing it would be to miss, to neglect to pay attention to what comes to us in the preaching of the word of God, in the preaching of the glad tidings concerning Jesus. Think of who He is; remember who He is. Receive, if you have never known before, the witness this afternoon as to who He is. We all may be well acquainted with the detail of the way that He went. Perhaps we all have some interest in reading the Scriptures, especially the gospels. Those of us who were brought up in the privilege of a Christian home can remember that as children we were interested in what are sometimes called the stories of the gospels. Do you remember some of the stories in the gospels of the doings of Jesus? Do you remember that Luke the evangelist writes of a ruler of the synagogue who had an only daughter who was dying, and that he sent for Jesus? Little did he know that the One he sent for who as Man had come forth the foe to fight was the mighty God who dwelt in light unreached by mortal eye; that is who it was. When He arrived at the house the child was dead; she was twelve years old. We live in a world where death abounds and continues, and its claims do not cease, do not diminish; no one is exempted from the claim. Doctors may do what they can to remedy sickness, sometimes they do; it is but for a while. Sometimes they are unable to, and children are taken as well as persons of middle age and old men and women. The mighty God as Man came into the world as Man. Death reigned until then. He took the hand of this dead girl of twelve years of age and said "Child, arise" and she sat up and began to speak. He gave her to her parents. How wonderful that is. How wonderful the grace: the Spirit of God says "he commanded something to eat to be given to her". Luke the evangelist was a physician; he would appreciate that grace that thought of a child who had just been awakened out of death. Luke tells us too that He was about to enter a city called Nain and there was a procession going to the grave, a young man being carried out, "the only son of his mother, and she a widow" (Luke 7: 12), and that He touched the bier and said to the dead "Youth, I say to thee, Wake up. And the dead sat up... and he gave him to his mother". What He must have brought to that desolate-hearted widow! What joy He must have brought into her heart! Has Jesus brought any joy into your heart? He has into mine. It may be that you do not know Him, and that is in God's mind in your being here this afternoon. Whatever the circumstances may be that have led you to come, if there should be one here, one young person, or one old person who does not know the Saviour, God is thinking of you, He is caring for you, He is concerned that you might know the Saviour, and that is the principal reason why you are here this afternoon.

Jesus, as you know, went on to the cross. The apostle Peter says of Him on the cross, "himself bore our sins in his body on the tree", 1 Pet 2: 24. He says that to his fellow Christians. How many there are. I wonder if there is anyone here who is not amongst them. If it be so I am assured that God is thinking of you this afternoon at this very moment, thinking of you for blessing that you might come to know the Saviour, that you might be able to say with the apostle Peter, "himself bore our sins". Peter would be able to say, Bore my sins; and I am able to say too that He bore my sins in His body on the tree. He bore God's judgment, He bore the penalty, He bore the wrath of a holy sin-hating God, He bore and carried away the burden of all my sins. His precious blood was shed as hanging dead upon the cross. You remember that a soldier with a spear pierced His side. And His Father was looking on, the body of His Beloved dead hanging upon a cross; the soldier in callousness drew a spear and pierced His side and immediately, it might have read, he was struck by God from heaven. But no, it does not read like that; it says "immediately there came out blood and water", John 19: 34. Precious, precious blood of Jesus. Nothing else, no other blood, nought else; as the beloved hymn writer says :

No act of power could e'er atone,

No wonder-working word

Could, from the brightness of the throne,

Make love's sweet voice be heard.

The love of God was told out as the blood of Jesus flowed on the cross; the God who, as one says, "so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes on him may not perish, but have life eternal", John 3: 16. And that is why the gospel is being preached today. Thank God for every true preaching of the gospel. Wherever He sends His word in the sovereignty of His mercy we pray that it will not return to Him void but it will accomplish that whereunto He sends it. We would pray particularly for His word in this place this afternoon that it may not return void. God is speaking to us every one.

Let no one exempt himself or herself. It makes no difference if you are very young and very wilful, if you are very old and very pious, and I am not despising that; but God would speak to every one of us from the youngest who is able to understand what is being said and to the oldest, in His word God addresses Himself to us. That is what 'the word of God' means, that He is speaking to us. That is what we have prayed for, and I believe God has heard our prayers and will answer them, and that His word will come to us here this afternoon. God grant that it may be listened to by us, that it may be listened to in faith, that it may be believed because it is God who is speaking. It may be poor vessels that actually preach the word but God Himself is behind what is said in His mercy and in His grace and in His love.

And so that love was told out, as our hymn says, that we might be cleansed. Think of God wanting to cleanse a sinner like you. Is that offensive to you? Whether it be so or not I beg you to think about it, that God should want to cleanse a sinner like you and like me. What it has cost Him to do so! It cost the life blood of His beloved Son, His only One. He will have many sons by adoption. Thank God for that. He has already many sons by adoption, but He gave up, He spared not His own, His only-begotten; and His precious blood was shed that God 's holy majesty might be satisfied in respect of the offence of sin and sins, and that God might cleanse the sinner who believes. Now is there a sinner here this afternoon who does not believe? God knows. I am not charging anyone. God is not charging anyone, He is not imputing offences. Offences there are in plenty in your life and in my life, and if God were to mark iniquity, as one saint says in the Scriptures, who should stand? (see Ps 130: 3). Who in this room would stand if God would mark iniquity? But He is not, blessed be His name! At such great cost the precious blood of His own beloved Son has been shed that His glory might be satisfied and the love of His heart be set free and that He might cleanse the sinner.

You may say, Thank God I have known the joy of that; but you may say, I find myself in a very sorry plight because one day I am in the joy of it and the next day I am discovering what a wretched person I am, how wicked my heart is. And if you have never found it I pray God you may find it soon, because He has the answer, and the answer to that was in the burial of Jesus. Paul says in writing to certain, "I delivered to you... what also I had received, that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures; and that he was buried", 1 Cor 15: 3.4. I am very thankful for that because it has taught me that the kind of man I belong to by nature never could please God. I have found it out again and again, I became disgusted with myself until I found rest in the consciousness that God has put that man out of sight in the grave of Jesus. "He was buried; and that he was raised the third day, according to the scriptures". I wonder if you know the Scriptures. I wonder if you could find it. If you wanted to answer the challenge of Paul's word you would be confined to the Old Testament Scriptures because the New were not written. Can you find in the Old Testament where Christ "died for our sins, according to the scriptures"? Could you find it? "And that he was buried; and that he was raised the third day, according to the scriptures". There is a profitable scripture study for those that are younger, because the older believers would all know where to find it I suppose. "He was raised the third day, according to the scriptures". Thank God for the resurrection of Jesus. I spoke to a young woman who was in my employ at one time; her course was very wrong, and she said boldly, You know I go to church. I would not have thought it. She knew that I would not have thought it. I thought perhaps there was something to link on with, but she said, I do not believe in resurrection. Do you believe in resurrection? Do you believe in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus? Do you believe that all the dead will be raised? "The dead in Christ shall rise first", 1 Thess 4: 16. Being changed, what eternal blessing! What a tabernacle they will have! What a home! As one says, waiting to put on our house from heaven (see 2 Cor 5: 2). What a house that will be! We who believe may put on our house from heaven any moment now; not very long at the most. But the rest of the dead will not be raised at that time, not for a long time after, as we measure things, and then they will be raised, not for a house from heaven but for judgment. No, judgment is not part of the gospel. As one servant of Christ said, It is the dark background against the bright light of the gospel for those who refuse God's mercy in His grace. "He was raised the third day, according to the scriptures" and He was taken up into heaven; He ascended. Both are true. He is glorified, He is sitting on the Father's throne. Soon He will take His own throne and reign on earth as well as in heaven. Soon He is coming for His own that they may be with Him in His glory. What a prospect we have who believe on Him! As soon as He appears we shall be like Him, we shall see Him as He is. We shall never be any more as we were. We shall be ever with the Lord and be like Him. It is worthwhile being a Christian, is it not? As well as the appeal to your heart by such a God who spared not His only Son, who "so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes on him may not perish, but have life eternal", what things God offers in the gospel. Did you ever hear the like of that which God offers freely, freely to be taken. All that He looked for was in Him. How easy it should be to any of us to say how unworthy I am of such blessing. He is coming soon, coming for His own:

The mighty God who dwelt in light

Unreached by mortal eye.

He is coming soon as Man, as Saviour, as Lord. Do you know Him? Are you ready for Him? Do you love Him? The wonder is that we do not love Him much more. Is there anyone here who does not love Him? He is appealing to you this afternoon that you might become one of His own, that you might repent and receive the glad tidings.

We read these two verses in the prophet Isaiah, "the Lord Jehovah, will come with might". Well, He has come. "He will feed his flock like a shepherd: he will gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom". What a Saviour, the Lord Jehovah! Jesus, the Saviour of whom you have heard so often; the Saviour whom you love, I hope, and if not until now that from now onwards you will love Him. He will carry the lambs, it says, in His bosom, that is the young ones. He will include you among them. You may say, I know nothing; I am not very old, I know nothing. He would think of you this afternoon, you are one of those He would carry in His bosom. That is why I read from the epistle by John. He writes to a sister whom he calls "the elect lady", and he speaks about her children, and he speaks about the joy he had that some of her children were walking in truth. How came it that they were? They were not born like that, you know. No one is born like that. I think the Lord Jehovah, the blessed Saviour Jesus had gathered them in His arms and carried them in His bosom, and now they are found walking in the truth. That is the mind of God for every young person here. He would include you in the lambs that He gathers with His arms and carries in His bosom. And the old ones? Well, the prophet has a word to the old ones: "Even to old age, I am HE" - that is a name of God, the Saviour - "and unto hoary hairs I will carry you: It is I that have made, and I will bear, and I will carry, and will deliver". In writing to Philemon, Paul calls himself "Paul the aged, and now also prisoner of Jesus Christ". An old man writing a letter from prison. What is it: a cry of anguish? No. An appeal for help? No. A request that someone will come and visit him in his misery? No. Paul the aged is being borne, he is being carried by the Saviour. In his plight he is a good soldier even in his old age, he is a good soldier of Jesus Christ. That is why he can write to a young man and exhort him to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Old man as he was he was active in testimony and in service and in response to God, and He is resting his all on the Mighty One who says, "I am HE, and unto hoary hairs I will carry you". God grant that we may prove it, every one, young or old, for His glory and our blessing, for His Name's sake.

 

CULLEN

28 September 1975

GROWING

P.Martin

1 Samuel 2: 26; Colossians 1: 9,10

These passages refer to growth. While we are here spiritual growth is to take place. It is not as in natural things where we cease to grow when we reach maturity. It is not intended to be so spiritually: Paul says "until we all arrive... at the full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fulness of the Christ", Eph 4: 13. Growth is silent and often unseen; we know that in our families. Mother gets last year's coat out and it does not fit this year; no one knew it would not fit - growth has taken place. It is often said, I did not realise he had grown that much. It shows how growth goes on quietly and silently; and it does so spiritually too. It does not come all at once. We had reference in the reading to keeping the word of His patience (see Rev 3: 10). Sometimes we become impatient and discouraged because we find that growth has not come all at once; but it never comes all at once, at least I do not think so. I think it comes gradually and it comes from our links with divine Persons; it is the divine mind that growth should continue and that it should continue steadily, continue quietly.

Samuel was a boy here; we often read about Samuel and the coats that his mother made and brought to him. It says Samuel grew. In the next chapter we find that he grew and Jehovah let none of his words fall to the ground. He was with God. Before it even speaks of his mother making a coat it says of Samuel that he wore a linen ephod. I think that is the secret of his growth, that he was there before God. You may say that the ephod related to his public service. I think it related to the fact that he was before God. He wore a linen ephod and that characterised him, whatever else he wore, I think. He was before God and served as before God. Those of us who are younger may say we cannot serve; we often feel like that anyway; but there is always something that each of us can do, and can do as serving before God. However young we are we can pray. That is something that children can do, pray to God, pray to the Lord Jesus, He who has died for us, shed His blood for us, lives on high for us - pray to Him. I think Samuel typifies somebody who was constantly in the presence of the Lord Jesus. We need to be that, however young or old. In one sense we are never outside the presence of divine Persons; it is a sobering and yet an encouraging thing. Not that we should want to be, as one could say, "If thy presence do not go, bring us not up hence", Exod 33: 15. The reassurance of the divine presence was what was required. What would it have been to Moses if God's presence had not gone with them? Well, we might say the same today, dear brethren, if the divine presence is not realised by us what will our path be? There have been many who have had their part in fellowship to whom now the divine presence means very little. I speak carefully and humbly; those whom we once walked with are now finding their part in the world around us, the divine presence in one sense meaning very little to them. "If thy presence do not go, bring us not up hence".

Samuel was a boy whose mother was concerned that he should be maintained in the presence of God. We can thank God for any desire that there has been, whether it be on the part of a parent or any other godly person, that we should be maintained as in the presence of God. Thank God for that. You may say, I often desire to get away from it, often desire that the exercises of godly persons were not so pressing. Thank God for the exercises of godly persons in regard of your own soul. I say it carefully, but I say it with reality, because if anyone has prayed for you, as indeed others have, thank God for it. How terrible it would be if no one had concern for you in regard of your soul and your present welfare in regard of the things of God. How sad that would be! But thank God that there have been persons who have prayed for you and are praying for you still. So Samuel had a God-fearing mother; she wanted a child who could be serviceable to Jehovah. What must precede and underlie any public service to God is our part as before Him privately, what we are to God. I would say to the young people, pray; pray to God; pray to God for the brethren. I remember my father telling me, when I once grumbled about some brethren, to speak to the Lord about the brethren and to speak to the brethren about the Lord. You find you cannot grumble to Him about the brethren; it does not work. Speak to God about the brethren; however young we are we can do that. It will create growth in the soul to be in exercise before God in regard of those with whom we are set.

So this boy served, and as I say, he had a linen ephod. You may say, That is a priestly garment. Yes, but priestliness is considering for what is for God. We can do that however young we are or however old; we can do that in our local assemblies, consider for what is for God. Sisters can do it, sisters do do it; thank God for that. Many local assemblies have been maintained in vitality for Christ through the prayers of sisters, but we may all have our part in it, dear brethren, as considering for what is for God. It is not a matter which is just left to the care meeting; it is a daily matter. Paul says "for three years, night and day, I ceased not admonishing each one of you with tears", Acts 20: 31. What was in view in that? Presenting them to God. So Samuel grew, and it says he grew on. Growth did not take place for a while and then stop; he grew on. Sometimes we have bright periods and they stop (I speak from experience) but Samuel grew on; he was maintained in his place before God. The greatest place that you or I have is our place before God. You may say, I treasure my place amongst the brethren. Treasure it indeed; there is no place, in one sense, like it; but the greatest place that you have is your place before God, and if there is to be vitality maintained in your soul, it must be as you treasure your place as before God. How wonderful that God has taken us into favour in Christ, in no other Man! He has not taken us into favour in ourselves but has taken us into favour in Christ, the exalted Man, the Man whom He has delighted to glorify. How wonderful these things are, dear brethren! They relate to our place before God but we are to take it up vitally so that there may be growth and that growth may continue. So Samuel grew on; I would like that for myself, soul progress, so that we might grow on. Paul says to Timothy, "Occupy thyself with these things; be wholly in them, that thy progress may be manifest to all", 1 Tim 4: 15. You may say, I feel what little progress I make. Timothy's progress was to be manifest to all. Is mine? I raise the challenge with myself: Is my progress manifest? Not that we want what is of ourselves to be manifest but what is of Christ, because if there is growth in regard of the work of God it is Christ being developed in the soul, Christ being formed in the affections of the saints. Timothy's progress was to be manifest to all. How the Lord would love that our progress was manifest, that we prospered, prospered spiritually. We prosper materially; in general the Lord has blessed us materially, but that may not always be to our spiritual advantage; we may become independent because of natural prosperity. May we always be kept in humility and dependence upon God. He who gives material prosperity can withdraw it at any moment. John could say to Gaius, "I desire that in all things thou shouldest prosper... even as thy soul prospers", 3 John 2. That was to be the standard, even as his soul prospered. O, dear brethren, let us see to it that what is vital relates to soul prosperity, relates to the place that we have as before God and the place that we give to Christ.

Samuel would no doubt have had to do with, and seen, death constantly in the place in which he was; and constantly, in type, the death of Jesus would have been in his mind; that would have been the area, if one could speak carefully, upon which Samuel would have fed. Think of those offerings that were constantly to be presented, and Samuel would have had his part in seeing, if not actively engaged in, the sacrifices that were being offered to God, all pointing on to the perfect offering of Jesus. One thing that I feel the need of myself is to keep near to the death of Jesus, the One who offered Himself without spot to God. Think of the glory of the Man who went into death! Feed upon it, dear brethren; I speak to those of us who are younger, myself included: let us feed upon the death of Jesus. You will find that it becomes meat to the soul, meat to build up, meat to cause growth. So let us feed upon the death of Jesus, the One who went that way for God, that in Him every thought of God should be secured by His going into death and coming out of it victorious. As coming out of death everything was centred in Him. Think of the One who was raised up from among the dead by the glory of the Father. What glory was there! All the glory of God was secured, centred in Christ, a Man out of death. Dear brethren, how wonderful these things are, but let us feed upon them, because food is required for growth.

In Colossians Paul is encouraging the brethren to grow by the true knowledge of God. He says he had heard of their faith and love; there was that which had preceded. There is that, dear brethren, which we can be thankful for; others have laboured and we have entered into their labours. Think of what the Lord has done through this dispensation. Think of what He has brought down to the day in which we are. There has been constantly a fresh supply of grace from our glorious Head in heaven. How wonderful that is! Never at any point has the history of the testimony been left to continue on its own, it has always had divine supply - a wonderful thing to lay hold of. There are often times when we feel our weakness and smallness in the place in which the Lord has set us but never at any time has the testimony been left to continue on its own; it has always had divine supply. It is a wonderful supply, limitless in its character but powerful too, able to sustain for God here upon earth what would speak to Him of Jesus and which is soon to be translated to be with Him eternally. Well, Paul prays "that ye may be filled with the full knowledge of his will". I do not know what one can say about these things but let us be enlarged in the full knowledge of His will. It does not only relate to ourselves circumstantially and to the way God would enter into those matters; it goes far beyond that - ''the full knowledge of his will". That would relate to what God has in view for us in the time in which we are left here. His will which is operating, together with His ways, both serve His purpose, and we are to be filled with the full knowledge of His will. Paul adds "in all wisdom and spiritual understanding". This does not relate to what we can supply, but we can be filled with all wisdom. There is no need for lack in Christianity; what a wonderful thing that is! "But if any one of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all freely", James 1: 5. The provision of God is so bountiful in order that we should be established here in the testimony in the full knowledge of what God is doing in the day in which we are, so that we are not aimless in our assembly lives. How needful that is, that we have an aim before us, and in that sense we know what God has in view for us so that we are filled with the full knowledge of His will. So Paul says "so as to walk worthily of the Lord" - to walk worthily of the Lord. Our walk reflects where our heart is; we are to walk worthily of the Lord unto all well-pleasing. Persons may look at us in the world; they know what we are, but do we walk worthily of the Lord? How sobering these things are – is Christ reflected in my walk here? Is He reflected or is something else being reflected? Christ is to be reflected. Then we have "bearing fruit in every good work, and growing by the true knowledge of God". Growing - a continual process. Our walk will soon be completed; it is a privilege to be able to walk worthily of the Lord in the day in which we are. It will not always be so; our walk will soon finish.

Enoch was a man upon whom we could write that he walked worthily of the Lord ; he "was not found, because God had translated him", Heb 11: 5. His walk was completed, but in the time in which he was here it was his privilege that Christ should be reflected. What revelations that man had in his walk here; he walked with God. Think of a man like that in a day of smallness saying "the Lord has come amidst his holy myriads", Jude 14. Think of the glory that shone into Enoch's soul. There is nothing, dear brethren, that the Lord would keep from any one of us. He says "In my Father's house there are many abodes; were it not so, I had told you: for I go to prepare you a place", John 14: 2. The Lord in that sense would not keep anything from us, and as we walk with Him there is room for divine disclosures. We are in a day when the Lord is providing divine disclosures. They are not to make us individualists; they belong in the place where the Lord treasures what is according to Himself. But He is making divine disclosures, and He would make them to you. So Paul says "and growing by the true knowledge of God". It is a wonderful thing that the true knowledge of God is open to man. It has not always been so; it was not so in the same way in the past dispensation but it is so today. The greatest thing that we can have is the knowledge of God; let us lay hold of it. Those of us who are young may feel so small when we speak of the knowledge of God, and yet it is open to us. We know God in Jesus; how wonderful that is, that One who Himself is God came into manhood's condition to express God to man. "No one has seen God at any time; the onlybegotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him", John 1: 18. Why did the Son declare God? In order that God should be known and responded to by those who are accepted in Christ. Wonderful thing! In the same chapter we have "as many as received him, to them gave he the right to be children of God... who have been born, not of blood, nor of flesh's will, nor of man's will, but of God" (vv 12,13). Born of God: let us lay hold of what God has done. What stability it brings into the soul. Trace back the work of God in your soul to what God has done; that will bring in stability which would cause us to grow in the true knowledge of God. He has begun the work and will complete it as we grow in the knowledge of Him who has done it. May the Lord encourage us to give more place to the Spirit, to give more place to Christ, to feed upon the One who was here, who gave His life that the will of God and the purpose of God should be completely secured. May we feed upon Him, the One who went into death that we may come out like Him in the scene of testimony. May the Lord encourage us, for His name's sake.

 

MAIDSTONE

13 November 1976

THE CHILDREN'S WELFARE

God is the preserver of all mankind. The fact that He desires that all should be saved and know the truth shows how longingly He cares for our well-being. He is not willing that any should perish and today - the very day you are reading this - is the day of salvation. Most children have heard of the Niagara Falls where the mighty waters flow so fast over the rock-ledge that they leave a dry space underneath where people may walk. In those waters one winter a powerful eagle was feasting on a floating carcase, ready to fly off when danger should come. But, alas, its own feet had become frozen to the poor animal and it was too late to avoid perishing. Be warned therefore by the Proverb about a man "holden by the cords of his sin" and be sure of your eternal welfare now, by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

When God's earthly people Israel were about to enter the land of promise Moses bid them "take great heed to your souls". The children who had been in the desert were now growing up and were to be God's witnesses as well as enjoy His blessings. Therefore they had to be reminded of the words of truth which they had already heard. When we learn a language we try to think in it; in the same way we must learn to think in the language of the land of the living. Only in this way can we “walk and please God". The Holy Spirit has been given to obedient believers for this very purpose.

Joseph - one of the young persons in Scripture who said "Here am I" - was sent to see after the welfare of his brethren. Actually it meant suffering for him but it was God's wise way of saving many persons alive. You will remember too that the sister of Moses when just a girl was a vital link in the life-chain of God's ways. She filled a part which no older person could fill in preserving the life of a babe so beautiful to God. David too when a youth was sent to his brethren to see how they were and God used him to deliver the whole of his fellow countrymen. These incidents prove how God is able to turn simple acts of care into great deeds for His own glory. Are you also ready for any little service?

 

J.C.Evershed