FAILURE IS NO PLEA FOR DISCOURAGEMENT

^[p. 81] FAILURE IS NO PLEA FOR DISCOURAGEMENT

I do not think it helpful to occupy minds with the church’s state on earth, that is — its invalid state. It is quite clear to me that in Revelation 2, Revelation 3 there are four churches, or four aspects of the church on earth which run on to the close; and I apprehend that one of these predominates at any given time, but where is the great profit from having a correct diagnosis of the professing body? I believe that if we were more imbued with John 17 — the Lord’s heart opened out to His Father about His own to the end — that we should not only have the clearest diagnosis, but we should be ministering the suited food to help on His own in accordance with His desires. There are seven phases of the church there, and I cannot accept that one should be cast off. I believe that Laodicea is the exaltation of Adam through Christianity — Christ as the new creation left out, and this I see going on far and wide every day. I should be very sorry to take the ground which your correspondent does, that Christ is outside of us. Through grace, I know that this is not true, and I must not deny His grace to us; and as a remnant in the truth of the assembly, we study to retain Him, instead of being content to go on without Him as the systems have done.

The arrogant ignorance of your correspondent is that because brethren have failed there can be no more hope. It is nothing to him that the church as a whole has failed and is in ruins, but that the brethren, the recovery before the end has failed, and therefore that there is no more hope, as if God could not revive His testimony where He had given most light through those who were faithful to it; the Lord could raise up witnesses for Himself, however great the failure. Has there not been failure from the days of Paul and Barnabas? Has not every failure only left the field more open for the Lord’s special acting when there was simple grace to follow Him? Thus it was with Paul. Thus it was at Plymouth over forty years ago. Thus it was at ————’s defection, and thus ^[p. 82] it will be now. I believe there is a most earnest ear now, not only in the meetings which I go to, but generally. I believe the great thing in the present day is setting forth the new creation, our completeness in Christ, and this always in connection with the destruction of the body of sin. This necessarily leads to the heavenly man with his new manners, like a uniform, the manners of heaven set forth on the earth. Look at Ephesians 4, Ephesians 5; you will find there a range from the church down to the servants that you will not find in the Romans.