THE NEW AND LIVING WAY
THE NEW AND LIVING WAY
I would like to make a few remarks in the hope of elucidating a passage in Hebrews 10 which sometimes presents a difficulty to the minds of christians — “A new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh”. It appears to me evident that the ‘flesh’ is brought in here instrumentally as the means by which the way has been made. The flesh served as a ‘veil’ in the case of Christ, hiding from men’s eyes the glory of God which was present in Him, until the time came of His death, in which the love of God was fully declared. Short of the cross there was not the full declaration of God’s love. “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us”. On the other hand, it must be borne in mind that they who are to approach still have sin in them, and are in mind naturally legal. They are not perfect in themselves. Now both these difficulties are met in the way of entering the holiest. The answer to the first is in the blood of Jesus, the witness as before God of death — the removal of the man that was unsuitable to Him through sin, in the righteous One; while the answer to the second is in the new and living way which Christ has made in the revelation to us [p. 252] through His death of the love of God. Legality begets fear, while perfect love casts out fear. Our way to God is dependent on a way having been made from God to us. He has approached us in love, expressed through Christ’s death, and in the apprehension of that love all difficulty in approaching Him is removed. By the body of Christ’s flesh we are become dead to law, for law, as a principle of requirement, is incompatible with the love of which Christ’s death is the expression; and hence the bond must become powerless when God reveals Himself.
It is striking that the flesh, which in Christ hid God, has become the means by which His love has been expressed. While, on the other hand, the man after the flesh has been removed, God has, in the removal, been fully revealed.
It should be added that we on our part have to take the way by which God has come to us — in the acceptance of the truth that our old man has been crucified with Christ, and that consequently we cannot approach God after the flesh, but only as formed by His power according to His nature, in which He has been pleased to make Himself known to us. We have our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. God is Himself the standard of our cleanness.
1897.
Hebrews 4:12-16 I do not care to be an expositor of Scripture but rather an exponent of what Scripture reveals. There are things which affect people most deeply when apprehended — things which underlie the letter of Scripture. It is waste of time and playing with the things of God and with people to occupy them merely [p. 253] with the letter. I have studied doctrine, as many, but doctrine does not affect you; what is merely mental passes away, is forgotten. If but one thought is seized in divine power it will form a link in your soul, and I shall be satisfied — the rest will be forgotten. There are three things which do affect people, viz., the revelation of God — the light of God; the love of Christ; the power of the Spilt.
The revelation of God is by the gospel and has its effects. “The word of God is living and powerful.. “.
that is not the letter, a Bible, but the word received is living in a christian’s soul — apart from this you cannot live ‘unto God’. The living principle in me is the revelation of God; as one has said, Whatever is presented to me as an object for my faith, becomes the principle of life in me when received — I live by it, my relations with God are formed by it. Scripture is not history, but is intensely moral throughout; its object is to make God known.
The first thing we know of God is that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried and was raised again the third day (1 Corinthians 15); the gospel, according to the commission in Luke 24. Facts are preached, but what lies behind these facts? The revelation of God! God has laid Himself out in His goodness to secure the affections of man’s heart. Christ’s death is the declaration of God’s righteousness, this is the moral basis of God’s work in the soul. God’s righteousness is for cleansing us from sins, but also for deliverance from the power of sin — which is effected in the light of His righteousness; you apprehend His rights and you are thereby set free.
The resurrection — God’s power. Death is the extremity of man’s weakness (1 Peter 1), like Abraham I now have hope in God. I am not afraid of His power, nor of His righteousness now, for they are in my favour.
The Spirit is given upon faith in these facts, and by His power I respond to God’s love (Romans 5). Thus the word of God is now quick, it lives in me. Light is my life.
Further, I now find the word is analytical; it searches me, various contrary elements in me are manifested — will, sin, unbelief, are discovered; all this that I might be maintained in deliverance. There is no good dwelling in me, e.g., death is in me as well as on me. Let the heart be kept under the sense of God’s love. Flesh and its tendencies are there and remain to the end, but the Spilt delivers. The conflict between flesh and Spirit is not, or should not, be continual, but by His power the body of the flesh is put off.
All this is very absorbing; let the word be paramount and accept death to all that is here. According to the will of God we have our work here, occupations, but they are not “our living”.
South Norwood, 1897.
Galatians 5: 16 to 6:2 The truth of the presence of the Spirit has affected us most strongly — both the individual and the collective side of that truth. It has changed our thoughts about everything in christendom — we saw there was no room left for the Spirit’s presence in the sects, and this drove us out of them. The recognition that the Spirit is in me individually had an immense effect on me — it must be so; firstly the flesh must be displaced by His presence (verse 24).
Christ has done everything for us, the Spirit does everything in us. Christ has taken the place of a servant towards the believer for ever — even in heaven, there He will minister its joys to us (Luke 12); the [p. 255] Spilt is not a servant to the believer (He may be to Christ) — the Spilt takes sole control of you, like a house under new management. He becomes the well of water in you springing up, i.e., He displaces.
All that the death of Christ is to God, must be made good in us. There are these three types of Christ’s death — Passover, Red Sea and brazen serpent; the last is that the state of man in flesh has been condemned. All this has been effected at the cross for God; we learn it in detail. Passover — God’s righteousness, so that He is free to act, gets a free hand; this is effected in us by our becoming “servants to righteousness” (Romans 6), you get the light by the gospel but it is effected in you by the Spirit.
The Red Sea — the power of the enemy has been broken (Hebrews 2) and death now expresses God’s love, so that I am no longer afraid of Him, but make my way to Him through the death of Christ. All men were under death and in the Old Testament approach was only by the witness of death, e.g., Abel, etc. God came out to man through Christ’s death, in love; it is no longer the witness of God’s judgment on man but the expression of His love to man; John 3:14-16. It is now the way to God, thus the enemy’s power is broken. This is effected in us when the Spirit sheds abroad God’s love in our hearts; the gospel brings the light of God’s love but the Spirit gives the sense of it in the heart, the warmth, the sense of God’s love and holiness, His nature.
Brazen serpent — Romans 8:3 — for God, flesh came to an end there in order that the Spirit might be given to man and when He comes, He cannot tolerate the flesh which God has already condemned. Hence the strife of Galatians 5:17; it should read, “that you should not do the things to which you are prone”. This is the well springing up, i.e., it begins at the bottom, its active energy to take sole possession of me for ever, it displaces the flesh (verse 24 is what is [p. 256] normal of christians); He gives deliverance from the dominion of flesh.
Love and holiness are nature, righteousness and power are attributes of God. People are largely formed by their associations. We have new associations, viz., with God’s love and holiness, and the Spilt forms us to make us at home in these associations. He does a double work; He delivers from flesh, and He forms us after God’s nature in the new associations. Some people desire to be introduced at court — here court is brought to us by the Spirit (Romans 5:5) and we go to court in the holiest — led by Christ. The holy oil was not intended to sanctify and to invigorate flesh (Exodus 30).
This wonderful work is going on now. Scripture does not refer much to us in heaven, but says much about what goes on in us now. Christ’s death must be effective for me as well as for God. Monks had no idea of the function of the Spirit to form us in the divine nature. Not only am I risen (which is delivered), but I am quickened (i.e., made alive in the divine nature).
South Norwood, 1897.