DELIVERANCE OUT OF THE PRESENT EVIL WORLD
J. D. Gray
Genesis 11: 1–8; Deuteronomy 32: 8; Genesis 18: 16–25, 32, 33; 19: 27, 28; Exodus 3: 1–8 (to “honey”); Galatians 1: 3–5
I have an exercise to say something about deliverance out of the present evil world. That is what led me to these scriptures. It is very interesting that Paul in his opening remarks to the saints in Galatia says, “Grace to you, and peace, from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, so that he should deliver us out of the present evil world, according to the will of our God and Father”. What an incentive to us to take advantage of that deliverance! All that stood in the way of it He removed, with a view to our getting the gain of His work and being delivered from the present evil world.
You will notice that I have read of occasions of God coming down. I had in mind mainly the two matters; God coming down to Abraham, and God coming down to Moses. I thought to preface what I had to say by referring to God coming down in regard to humanity in Genesis 11. There is a need to understand God’s relations with peoples, and this scripture affords light as to that matter. The setting in Genesis 11 is that after the flood the whole earth had one language. It was not God’s thought, according to an earlier reference in Genesis, that man should live in one area only in the earth. His thought was that man should multiply and fill the earth as families. No doubt divine Persons had something in mind in that apart from the side of nations. God had something in mind in man filling the earth as families; but man refused to do that. The peoples refused to do that, thy sought to live in a conurbation, a city, rather than be scattered over the face of the whole earth. They sought to build a city whose top should reach to the heavens. But God came down. God has created man, and He never gives up His interest in man as a being that He created. He removed the antediluvian world in His mercy and His judgment. Another believer on the Lord Jesus has said, ‘Every right-minded person would be thankful that God removed the evil that was in the antediluvian world’. Then He brought in Noah and his families. He gave man the right of government which did not exist before the flood, and He desired that they would fill the earth and populate it, but man refused to do that, so God comes down judicially. He comes down to take account of the peoples of the earth. He has never given up that attitude, and He takes account of their schemes and what they will do. He says, “now will they be hindered in nothing that they meditate doing. Come, let us go down”, divine Persons conferring with One Another in regard to man. How God drew near to man! There may have been persons among these peoples who were sympathetic with God. I say that because Genesis 9 brings out, “Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Shem” (Genesis 9: 26), the families of Shem were there. They might have been sympathetic with God but could do nothing to thwart the progress of man to build this city. God confounds their language, He scatters them.
God did not scatter man to put him at a disadvantage to Himself. I would like to bring out how God has considered for men in every dispensation in regard to the light they had. He scatters them, but Deuteronomy 32 shows that in the scattering He sets them in relation to Israel. It says,
“When the Most High assigned to the nations their inheritance, When he separated the sons of Adam, He set the bounds of the peoples, According to the number of the children of Israel”.
That is the family with which He was in relationship. I want to show how God considered for humanity in every dispensation; that in scattering men to limit evil and thwart their purposes, He did not scatter them randomly, He scattered them according to ordained times. Paul says in Acts 17, “having determined ordained times and the boundaries of their dwelling, that they may seek God” (Acts 17: 26, 27). He scattered them in view of their coming into a knowledge of Himself. But man did not avail himself of that. There was failure in Israel, and there was failure in humanity generally.
Idolatry came in to draw men away from God. What had not happened before the flood now took place after the flood. The devil took advantage of the situation and came between God and man; he set himself up as God, the god of this world according to the New Testament. Satan set himself up and drew man into idolatry. So there is a governmental line that runs along after that.
Romans 1 brings out the governmental side that follows on the refusal of man to take advantage of the divine ordaining of his boundaries, in setting him in relation to the sons of Israel, the family with whom God was in relationship. Man despised that. It says in Genesis 10, verse 21, “And to Shem—to him also were sons born; he is the father of all the sons of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder”. It has been pointed out helpfully that Japheth the elder, as possessed of an elder brother’s title, despised Shem (see J. N. Darby Synopsis Vol.1, p.21). Then there is Ham who set himself up to develop empires according to Genesis 10, verses 6 to 12. The line of things that came in with the idolatry is described for us in Romans 1, “For there is revealed wrath of God from heaven upon all impiety, and unrighteousness of men holding the truth in unrighteousness. Because” (Romans 1: 18, 19), it has often been pointed out, the word because shows God acts morally. God acted morally in the scattering of men in Genesis 11 where we read, because of their pride to set something up over against the desires of God and their animosity in relation to what was in heaven. He acted morally and judged them. So in Romans 1 it says, “Because what is known of God is manifest among them, for God has manifested it to them—for from the world’s creation the invisible things of him are perceived, being apprehended by the mind through the things that are made, both his eternal power and divinity—so as to render them inexcusable” (Romans 1: 19, 20).
Then there is another line of things that comes in through idolatry, “Because, knowing God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but fell into folly in their thoughts, and their heart without understanding was darkened—professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into the likeness of an image of corruptible man and of birds and quadrupeds and reptiles. Wherefore God gave them up also in the lusts of their hearts to uncleanness, to dishonour their bodies between themselves: who changed the truth of God into falsehood, and honoured and served the creature more than him who had created it, who is blessed for ever. Amen” (Romans 1: 21–25). It says later, “God gave them up to a reprobate mind to practise unseemly things” (Romans 1: 28). That is the line of things that came into this world through men despising the light that was available, despising God. God brought in a governmental line in relation to man. It is a sober thing to consider. Where light is despised, government follows. That is true. It was so in Genesis 11 where God set up an arrangement of things for their blessing at that time by scattering them and setting them in relation to the sons of Israel. But they despised that and then they thought it not good to have God in their knowledge, leading on to the corruption that came into the world.
Genesis 18 brings out the line that God resorted to, and it continues to the present time, that is the line of faith. God is still interested in peoples. He has put government in the hands of men. I do not have time to go into the whole line of things related to government in their hands, God’s throne in Israel and the failure of that line of things, and God establishing authority under the gentiles; indirect government, God still retaining His position as Lord of the heavens and of the earth. But what I want to stress is that God has an interest in humanity in their affairs. God is still looking at the cities of men. Job speaks about, “thou Observer of men”, Job 7: 20. How wide is His interest! We are not now speaking about assembly interests, but we are speaking about testimonial interests. God always had His interest in peoples, but when you come to Abraham He has a point of contact in the scene of the world, and that is the line of faith. Once He established that, taking Abraham out from the idolatry of the world, calling him out to be separate, God has maintained the line of faith throughout every dispensation since then. It comes down to our day in the Christian dispensation. He is moving judicially in regard to what is taking place in the cities of men. God will hold the magistrates of the cities of men responsible for what they allow in them.
But coming down to Abraham, He has a point of contact with one who is morally apart from the world. I would like to appeal to us. Are we morally apart from the life of the cities of men? Abraham was morally apart from the life of Sodom and Gomorrah. Sodom and Gomorrah are the end of a line of humanity that has despised God. God comes down to Abraham having a point of contact. I would like to raise a question with us; Are we in the same place as Abraham in the cities in which we live? God came down because He was refreshed in Abraham’s company. Think of God having a place in the cities of men where He can come to be refreshed, and then to disclose His mind! I would say, Oh to be among such persons! What a comfort to divine Persons in relation to the judicial line that they are proceeding with, in regard to the world and in regard to Sodom and Gomorrah, that God could come to Abraham. And then it says, “the men rose up thence, and looked toward Sodom; and Abraham went with them to conduct them. And Jehovah said, Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing?” He did not want to hide from Abraham what He was about to do. Are you amongst, am I amongst the persons that have the divine mind? It
can only be if we are morally apart from the lives of unregenerate men in the cities in which we live.
There is a line of living in the world that despises the institution of marriage. It has led to the development of what was in Sodom. We are living in such a world. Let us keep ourselves apart from it morally. We cannot keep apart from it physically altogether, we live in the world, we live in the cities of men, but we want to be apart from them morally. We want to be in the place of intercession. Two men come before us in this section. Abraham primarily, and in the next chapter Lot. Lot was a magistrate in Sodom, but he had no power there, they would not hearken to him. But Abraham had power with God. How God appreciated Abraham’s intercession, one He could confide in. God appreciates the saints. Saints mean holy ones, that is persons apart from evil. Let us keep ourselves apart from the moral evil of the cities in which we live. I appeal to the brethren, I appeal to the younger people, Have a moral judgment of what goes on. Marriage is a divine institution. The younger people here, if the Lord should delay His coming, will be tested by that. We live in a world where there are alternative arrangements, that is the world of Sodom and Gomorrah. It lies under God’s judicial judgment. In grace, God has not acted in judgment yet. How we need to protect the young people, protect them by the truth, so that in the schools they do not come under the influence of alternative arrangements in society, man and man, and woman and woman. That is what is coming to light in these cities in which we live, magistrates giving cognisance to it.
Abraham is apart from that but he is concerned about it, concerned about believers, concerned about men.
We are thankful we live in the day of the grace of God. I appeal to all of us to exercise a moral judgment, a judgment of good and evil. God acts always in a moral way. His judgments are moral, they have to do with good and evil. God values a man like Abraham,
and Abraham appreciates having the mind of God. So in Genesis 19 he went to the place where he stood before Jehovah, where the mind of God was known. I appeal to you, Where is the mind of God known in our cities? Where will you find the mind of God? Saul of Tarsus was directed to the city to find the mind of God. That was not simply the city of Damascus, that was among His saints; among God’s saints in the city of Damascus was where he would find the mind of God. What a resource we have that we can go to the place as Abraham did,
“the place where he had stood before Jehovah”. He has the divine viewpoint, he is in the place where the mind of God is known. Where would you find the mind of God in this city?
God values a man who appreciates the place where His mind is known. It says in Corinthians that a man comes in among the saints, he is convicted, he says, God is indeed amongst you (1
Corinthians 14: 25). What a matter that is to be in the place where God is among His people, and to receive help through the mind of God being known there; not only the mind of God in regard to assembly matters, but the mind of God in regard to the whole breadth of humanity.
The day of grace is now, but God is going to move judicially. He has halted it pending the world being in the present position of reconciliation provisionally, but He is saying to you and me, to live apart from the moral evil in the cities in which we are because He is going to destroy them. Would you want to be a believer that is saved as by fire? Lot thought he could influence Sodom. It says in Peter’s epistle, he “tormented his righteous soul day after day with their lawless works”, 2 Peter 2: 8. How futile it is to live in a world and think you can change it. You cannot change it, but you can live apart from it, and pray for men. Intercession is greater than participation. Your influence with God will be greater in assembly prayer than it would be participating in the councils of the cities in which we live. God has not given up peoples, He has followed peoples. All the families that are there in Genesis 10 will come up for judgment in the
day to come. God has not forgotten about the families of Japheth or Ham or Shem; they will all have to give an account. God will see to that! God finds comfort in persons in the line of faith in whom He can confide. Oh to be among such in a world of idolatry and dissoluteness.
In Exodus 3 He comes down in another way, He comes down in mercy. Moses was interested in divine things. What does he see? A bush that is burning, and the bush is not consumed.
What does it mean? It means that God came down amongst His people. “And Jehovah said, I have seen assuredly the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and their cry have I heard on account of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows. And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians”. He came down in the burning bush; He came down in Jesus. That is why I gave out that hymn that we started with; the Lord of glory coming down from above, a Babe in Bethlehem’s manger growing up amongst men, and humanity was not consumed. What a thing that is! It is not judicial now. God came down judicially in Genesis 11, although in mercy too in view of man’s blessing, and then He came down to see the state of things in Sodom and Gomorrah; He acted judicially. He has not acted judicially in regard to the cities we are in at the present time, but He will act, so be apart morally. Now He has come down in Jesus to bless and to deliver. He came down among men and He did not consume them. Oh the Lord of glory in the gospels, how He attracts the heart! How we love the gospels, seeing that heavenly Stranger move amongst humanity. What He took away in His power He bore in His spirit. How blessed the Lord of glory was, the Lord Jesus.
It says in Galatians where we read, “our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, so that he should deliver us out of the present evil world”. He wants to deliver you. Think of the mercy of God coming down in a manner which would attract our hearts. The Lord Jesus was a Babe in Bethlehem’s manger. He grew up to be a Boy, He grew up to be a Man.
Wherever He went He did good. He healed all who were oppressed of the devil, the Lord of glory. How touching it is. He still remains the Saviour for sinners. He has saved us from our sins. It says here, “who gave himself for our sins”. I speak to a company that is in the gain of that. He brought us into the presence of God reconciled. Not in provisional reconciliation, the world stands in provisional reconciliation on account of propitiation, but substitution involves that persons are reconciled, brought to God in Christ, brought back to God in another Man to be for His pleasure. Will you not seek to get the gain of this deliverance, “that he should deliver us out of the present evil world”? Am I living in the gain of the deliverance that Jesus has wrought? “Who gave himself for our sins, so that he should deliver us out of the present evil world, according to the will of our God and Father”. Why should it be according to the will of our God and Father? Because He desires to have us for Himself, sanctified persons, sanctified in relation to divine things, set apart from this world.
I appeal to all, are we caught up in the world? It may not be the world of Sodom, but are we caught up in the world, the world of Egypt and man’s resources, the religious world and all it goes on with? What world am I caught up in? Divine Persons would have us to be free from that. The appeal is that the Lord Jesus gave Himself for our sins to deliver us; He did that with a view to delivering us from the present evil world. Will He not sustain us? Surely He will sustain us. He has the power to deliver us because He has removed the liabilities that lay upon us, He has removed guilt from our conscience as believers. Sins involve guilt on the conscience. He has removed guilt from the conscience. He has set us at liberty in the divine presence. When our sins were gone, what did we experience? We experienced liberty in the divine presence. While our sins remained, did we desire the divine presence? No! I did not. Once we are drawn to Christ we come to be saved in the power of His life. What a blessed thing that is.
May our hearts be drawn to the Lord Jesus as the One who can deliver us from the present evil world. I appeal to the young particularly, Are you delivered from the present evil world?
The world of Sodom and Gomorrah is going on to judgment. Let us desire to be among those who, like the Thessalonian saints, “await his Son from the heavens, whom he raised from among the dead, Jesus, our deliverer from the coming wrath”, 1 Thessalonians 1: 10. Let us be among those who have the present sense of deliverance, and have an appreciation of the Lord Jesus, “who gave himself for our sins, so that he should deliver us out of the present evil world”. You cannot live in a vacuum. None of us can live in a vacuum. If you are delivered out of the present evil world you must be introduced to another world where Christ is the sun and centre. Paul preached Jesus as the Son of God. Do you know Him as the Son of God, the One who would give you a place in His building? Come under the touch of the Son of God.
Persons who are living in the present evil world know little or nothing of the Lord Jesus as the Son of God, for He is building a house over which He is Son for God’s glory and praise in the present time.
May our hearts be drawn to the Lord of glory. The princes of this age did not know Him. Paul says that if they had known Him they would not have crucified Him. I appeal to you, do you know the Lord of glory? If you know the Lord of glory all other lords will disappear before your view. “This is my beloved Son—hear him”, Mark 9: 7. There is only one Person to listen to, and that is Christ, the One who was transfigured, the One in whom the Father finds His delight. May our hearts be drawn to Him, for His name’s sake.
Address at Edinburgh
14 June 1997