GUIDANCE IN THE DIVINE HIGHWAY
[p. 331] GUIDANCE IN THE DIVINE HIGHWAY
Matthew 2: 1 - 12; Luke 2: 8 - 20; Luke 22: 7 - 13
I have been thinking in reading these scriptures of the great need of guidance. So that my remarks will follow under the head of guidance. And so I have selected, as I said, these scriptures in Matthew and Luke respectively, both of whom are concerned about the assembly, what it is, and how we find our way so as to have part in it. Hence in Matthew we have a movement from the east, a movement under guidance. These wise men represent an occupation, one in which there may be a suggestion of Christ, not one in which we are honoured by a divine visitation, but one in which there may be a suggestion of Christ. I have no doubt that the suggestion in their case arose in connection with their regular employment; God graciously condescends to meet us where we may be.
They say, “Where is the king of the Jews that has been born? for we have seen his star in the east”. How much inquiry comes up in one’s mind, not curiosity as to the circumstances under which the star appeared. The Holy Spirit never gratifies curiosity. He gives sufficient to show that God is moving. It is said that God made the stars. Undoubtedly He made this one. It is within His province to do these things. Astronomers may tell us there have been none made in this way. But why not? How easily God could prepare, as He did, for the occasion exactly what we are told. And so a star. How easily God could prepare one calculated to remind these wise men, who knew the stars, of Christ. It is within His province to do this. So that they call it His star. As I said, we may inquire curiously how did they know that it was His star? God knew it, beloved.
[p. 332] They did not make it. God made it. He could easily pattern it after Christ, for all that. It was so made and it so appeared that these men recognised in it His star. It was His.
And so it is that in our occupations, some of them may be such as to forbid the divine presence in them or visitation, and yet affording some suggestion of Christ, some reminder of Christ. It is all here on the surface, what I am saying. In a few words and sentences we are told of one of the most memorable things, the most remarkable things, that ever occurred in the east. And these men were guided.
Well, now I want to show you that whilst they moved in the right direction generally, that is to say to the capital of the Jews’ realm, they were deflected, which is very common when divine guidance is afforded. So that they reached Jerusalem and make their inquiry, “Where is the King of the Jews that has been born?” They have no question about that, that He is born; it is a question of locating Him. You see what we want, beloved friends, is certainty in what we are doing, and God ever furnishes us with the means of certainty. So that they are not in the least doubt as to the birth of Jesus. The Holy Spirit tells us in the previous chapter in the verse preceding the one I read, that He was born. They had not a doubt about it. Where is He? they do not say, ‘Is He born?’ but, ‘Where is He that is born?’ You see they were certain of that. It is a great thing to begin our spiritual life with certainty. If we begin in an uncertain way, we are likely to continue thus, like a reed shaken by the wind. Theophilus was written to by Luke with the express intent that he might be certain of the things that are “fully believed among us”. And so God afforded these men certainty.
But then you see they were deflected and made an inquiry from the wrong people. Herod heard of it. He is called the king here. You can easily understand [p. 333] that he feels himself uncomfortable in his royal position. For a man who was born king has to be reckoned with. And so he is troubled and all Jerusalem with him, showing the influence the man had. Jerusalem was with him in this. All is to remind us of the danger of being deflected as we get a bit of light from God. You are certain of the thing, you have not a doubt about it, but now you are making inquiry from people who are likely to becloud your path and create uncertainty.
However, they have recourse to the Scriptures. But the Scriptures may be used for murderous and lying purposes as here. We have murder and lying in Herod. He intended to destroy the child. And he lied. He said he was going to worship Him, but he has recourse to the Scriptures. He makes inquiry of the priests, the leaders, the scribes of the people, who readily tell him from the prophet Micah that Messiah, the Governor, was to be born in Bethlehem. And Herod, being concerned, appears very communicative and confidential. Persons who will confidentially instruct you and help you on your way but have in their hearts a murderous intent have to be guarded against. And he tells them where to go. They might well divine that Herod surely must be a trustworthy man.
They took his counsel and made their way to Bethlehem and the star appeared. Not a glimmer of it around Jerusalem. We are to beware, you see, of being deflected and finding ourselves in areas where the star does not appear. It is the light for the moment, what God has given you for the moment; keep it and do not be deflected! So that as they make their way to Bethlehem, the star appears over the little Child, not in the manger now, He is not called a Babe in Matthew, but a little Child, a young Child. They rejoiced with exceeding great joy as they saw the star. It was well known. You can understand their remarks to one another, ‘We are on sure ground now’. What an atmosphere Jerusalem must have been for them! The more spiritual they were, the more they would sense the attitude of Jerusalem, its coldness and chilliness. Beneath the recourse to Scripture were murder and lying, sure marks of satanic operation. Now they are on sure ground. One knows it well, sure ground in the soul; you know where you are; you have not a question. Here is the star. His star. It is over the Child and it is over where the little Child was. He is the Object.
You see their hearts are moved. It is the King and the King of the Jews. And look, beloved brethren, at the absence of all national feeling at this moment. They might have left the Jews out and said, “the King”, but no, “the King of the Jews”. There is no Samaritan rivalry there. Divinely affected and touched, they had the mind of God. The east has come in for blessing, undoubtedly, on those lines; subordinated to the Jews, God’s ancient people through whom He ruled. Their hearts are touched as they see the star. How sure they are! It is over the Child. And they enter into the house. They take out of their treasures gold, and frankincense, and myrrh, and present their gifts, fulfilling the prophecies of old. And they worship.
Well now, that is one side of the subject. The sequel follows: God says virtually, ‘Now you must not be deflected as before’. He intervenes in a dream. And He says, ‘Do not go back to Herod; do not be deceived by his quoting the prophets’. They were men who knew the stars, which may be taken to represent the principle of navigation. You see if a navigator finds the location of the sun, he can take his bearings. Here they had found the Sun, the great Sun, as I may say. The star directed them there. And now God says, ‘You have got your bearings’. You cannot sail your little bark until [p. 335] you get your bearings. So God says, ‘Now you have got your bearings; but I warn you against the rocks’. As if He were to set a beacon light on those rocks of Jerusalem, ‘Do not go that way or you will be stranded on the rocks; you will make shipwreck, if you go that way’. They returned another way. It is for you to find that. If you are a good mariner, you will. You know the high seas. There are how many ways in the ocean? Who can tell? It is a question of deep waters. They returned another way. That is to say, they did not take that way. That was the point. Beware of the rocks. The whole religious system with all its hierarchical ramifications is studded with divine beacon lights of danger. Beware of those parts. Take another way. It is not their own wills. It is another way. There are such. But do not take that way. They returned another way. They had found their centre.
You see it is a wonderful thing to find your bearings in relation to Christ. There is the mighty ocean, the seven seas, so to speak, including them all. And the navigator knows, if he is one. But he has found his centre, the location of the sun. He returns another way. But he returns. They find their own land. They went back, beloved friends, not now trusting to the light of the star; they had seen the King. Each could say truthfully, “mine eyes have seen the King”. What a moment in your heart’s history when the believer sees the King! “Mine eyes have seen the King”. What a tale they could tell in their own land as they returned another way unmolested, as we may be sure. They found themselves in their own location, wherein to testify of the King.
Now I proceed to Luke. It is another set of circumstances, not wise men, so called, not stars, but shepherds, humble men. There is no discredit, to be sure, on the wisdom of these wise men, for there was doubtless the wisdom that God gave them. We need that. But then the apostle says, “For consider your calling, brethren, that there are not many wise according to flesh, not many powerful, not many high-born”, 1 Corinthians 1: 26. As regards divine selection, there are not many of such. And so Luke in keeping with his presentation of Christ, brings in the shepherds, humble men. Their occupation is difficult, they are keeping their flock by night. They were of that country, they belonged to the neighbourhood of Bethlehem. They were not far away from these holy happenings in Bethlehem. They are engaged unselfishly. Let us remember, beloved brethren, that God takes account of our employment. These men were engaged unselfishly, keeping their flock by night, when others were enjoying themselves, during the census time, in the towns and villages of Judah and elsewhere. People had flocked to the towns. True enough, it was at the emperor’s command. But you can understand what men and women are, as flocked together in the towns, what happens. These men were not there, but engaged unselfishly in attending to their flock.
And now it is not a star, which suggests distance, but the angel of the Lord was there by them. He could identify himself with them; it was another scene entirely. And the whole scene is lit up with the glory. I am now in the pathway with God, very definitely. The angel of the Lord was there by them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them. And he says, “Fear not, ... for today a Saviour has been born to you”. It is for you now. I am reminded of divine interest in me. “To you”. “And this is the sign ...” I am speaking of guidance. “And this is the sign to you”. A sign that they would understand, God graciously taking account of our capabilities. They would understand a manger, being shepherds, men who tended flocks, as the wise men would understand stars. So that the sign is, “this is the sign [p. 337] to you: ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling-clothes, and lying in a manger”. It is the same blessed Person who is presented as the King in Matthew, but now as a Babe. That is to be the sign, the Saviour indeed, Christ the Lord, but the sign.
And so as to fortify them and qualify them to make the search in the right spirit a multitude of the heavenly host were there; they were occupied with praise, as if heaven were to say, ‘If we were searching, we would do it like this’. Having a sense of the dignity of the One, how they would do it — how Gabriel would have done it! how Michael would have done it! It is heaven coming down into the environments of the shepherds to impress them with this wonderful Person. I am lifted up out of myself, drawn to heavenly company. It is meet that I should be. If I am to understand aright as regards Christ I have got to see how they regard Him in heaven, how they do things there. Luke brings heaven in here, as he does when he speaks later of the sheet coming to Peter.
And so they depart, having fulfilled their mission. For the heavenly hosts are at the bidding of God. Everything is done in infinite precision. They do His will — mighty angels. If the histories of heaven were written, there never were such occurrences as these. And the shepherds were brought into it. Think of being brought into that! And the result is, “Let us make our way then now as far as Bethlehem, and let us see this ...” It is not a question of guidance, but of how to get there. Be sure you get there where the Babe is and do it now. “Let us make our way then now”. It is for you to do it. Much has happened. You have been in wonderful environments. It is for you to do it now. And they do it. And they find the Babe. You could see the shepherds making their way into Bethlehem. Where would they go? They had a word, not a star, the angels had all gone,
[p. 338] but they had the sign by word, they had the word of God. Where was the Babe? In a manger. You will not find them knocking at houses, human dwellings. They know where to go. Being shepherds, they would understand these outhouses. Think of the Lord of glory being in an outhouse, think of it, beloved! These men knew what outhouses meant, farm-houses, where the horses fed. That is where they would go.
We have got to accept these things. The Lord of glory, in divine wisdom, has come in that way. These humble shepherds know about these things. They were not stargazers, but flock-tenders, and they knew what these things meant — mangers, stables. It requires humbleness of mind to go by the way of God. You would see them making their way by some poor place to the outhouses where the horses fed. The Lord of glory was there. That was wonderful. You see heaven had come down. What would Michael or Gabriel care whether it was a manger or a palace? But it was a manger. The shepherds would know, you see, they would know. They would think in themselves of the difference between the heavenly hosts, the scene come down, the glory of that One as so indicated, and that lowly place where He lay in swaddling-clothes, lying, it says, “lying in a manger”.
Mary and Joseph were there. And the shepherds had no hesitation, they speak about these things, they speak of what the angels told them. It is much better for young christians speaking about the Lord to use the words of the Scriptures, of the Spirit for the moment. They are more effective than elaborate sermons. They speak what the angels told them. There was wonderment in the neighbourhood. No opposition here. For it ought to be added that the Holy Spirit does not cast any aspersions on Bethlehem. It suggests no opposition in the manger. It was not [p. 339] deliberate. Luke never presents that side. It was just that there was no room for Him. He was content to accept it.
And here soul history begins. I have been speaking of the history of heaven. The next of importance is the history of souls in the light of heaven, what goes on in souls. Mary represents that in Scripture. And so we find here that she kept these things in her mind and pondered them in her heart. That is where she pondered them. Soul history began and she began to take account of things in relation to the Babe, the things that were said about Him. And she began to ponder in her heart. She acquired the knowledge that cometh of reflection.
Now a word as to close guidance. You have guidance as to the King, who is in charge of everything. One rests in confidence knowing Him, the King. Luke presents the Man, the Lord Jesus, coming in in lowliness and weakness as the Babe. I have reached Him in both aspects under divine guidance. Now I want to know where He can be received. And I, therefore, read in Luke 22.
The Lord is concerned as to the order and suitability of the place where the passover is to be kept. And He gives us indication of guidance as to how to reach it. Not only is it a passover, but the breaking of bread, the Lord’s supper for us. And so He sends Peter and John, as we are told, to prepare. You see, now it is a question of what He would have. What He received as He came in was the manger. But now it is what He would have. You want that place. You want to be there. You want nothing less than that. He sends two trusted, tried servants, Peter and John, to prepare. And He says, “as ye enter into the city”; the city will afford you no guidance but — “a man will meet you, carrying an earthen pitcher of water”. So that if seeking guidance to this spot you may look for the man like yourself,
[p. 340] an earthen pitcher. For the vessel in these cases invariably suggests the person, what he is. He has got an earthen pitcher, an earthen pitcher of water.
One is reminded of Elihu in the book of Job. In speaking to Job he says, “I also am formed out of the clay”. “I also”. Job was certainly. As if Elihu would say, ‘I have been nipped off by the potter like thousands of others’. He was a man like Job; he would not terrify him. And so this man with the pitcher of water is a sample man. He knows that you also are of clay, nipped off like himself.
I heard of a man in the city of Paris who had the office of a bishop in an episcopal church there, an English church. An exercised christian went to him and said he had exercises he would like to be met. He frowned upon him. He said, ‘Why come to me? Have you seen one of my deacons? I have too much to do to attend to you’. These are the words of the man’s wife, a christian. There was no sympathy. The Lord Jesus is the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, where our feelings are. He has got a soul. “Now is my soul troubled”. He is capable of feelings, beloved friends. The man with a pitcher of water has got a soul. He thinks with you; he feels with you; he hears your exercises. He seeks to help you. He has got an earthen pitcher. And it is a pitcher full of water. You see he has got something. “Follow him”, says the Lord, “into the house where he goes in”. That is another important feature of guidance. “Follow him into the house where he goes in; and ye shall say to the master of the house, The Teacher says to thee, Where is the guest-chamber where I may eat the passover with my disciples? And he will shew you a large upper room furnished: there make ready”.
Now you see I have got the spot into which the Lord can come. It is furnished. And so the next verse tells us the Lord came and placed Himself.
[p. 341] Luke, ever keeping accurately to the idea of order and comeliness in the assembly, tells us that the Lord placed Himself at the table with the apostles, the twelve. The twelve were with Him.
That is all, dear brethren. I think that in following those three phases of guidance we shall not want. We shall be in the divine highway with certain step. We shall be assured of our position. We are where the Lord is recognised, where He has rights. In Mark it may be translated ‘My guest-chamber’. It is His. You want a spot like that where the Lord has absolute right, where He can come in and open up His heart as He does to His disciples, saying, “With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer”. May God bless the word.