RECEPTION
J. Strachan
Luke 24: 50, 51; John 1: 11–13; Acts 17: 10, 11 Romans 15: 5–7
I would like to say a word on reception. Heaven has set on this matter of reception according to the end of Luke’s gospel. It speaks of the Lord Jesus being carried up into heaven. Heaven gave that Man a magnificent reception.
He was worthy to have such a reception. There was a time when the heaven was opened on Him, at the time when the people were coming to be baptised by John, and Jesus having been baptised was praying (see Luke 3: 21). That is what it says about Him, that He was coming the way the people came and the heaven was opened upon Him—a dependent Man—and the voice came out of heaven, “Thou art my beloved Son, in thee I have found my delight”. That happened before any question of public service arose. It was an expression of heaven’s delight in the life of Jesus. That is a wonderful thing, that there was one Man here who was absolutely, in every way, delightful to heaven. So the heaven was opened and that voice came out of heaven. Hence you can understand the feelings of heaven as that Man was carried up there. There was a feeling of pleasure in heaven in having that Man who was so delightful carried up into heaven. There is one Man in heaven who has been delightful to God here and who is filling heaven. You can understand that at that reception every intelligence in heaven would be moved; every intelligence would be filled. What a reception He must have had, a glorious reception! Indeed it says He was “received up in glory”, 1 Timothy 3: 16. How worthy He was to be received up in glory! God has a Man before Him in heaven. He is going to fill heaven with men. But He has one Man in heaven and has infinite pleasure in Him, and He is working out everything in relation to that Man. What it is to heaven to have One who is in every way delightful to God, in whom everything is perfectly blended, every feature that He looked for in men. Therefore you can understand heaven’s ecstasy in having that Man installed in His rightful place.
Now matters are settled as to heaven’s assessment and heaven’s reception of Him, but the question would be, as to believers, what kind of reception is He going to get with us? The One who is worthy of the highest honour in heaven is surely worthy to be received into the hearts of believers. John’s gospel says, “He came to his own, and his own received him not”.
He should have been received there. But it says, “as many as received him, to them gave he the right to be children of God, to those that believe on his name”. John 1: 11, 12. “As many as received him”—I wonder if everyone here has received Him. You know, publicly in the world at the present time many are content to have the name of Christ attached to them in some shape or form. But I think John is thinking of persons who will have an affectionate link with Him. “As many as received him, to them gave he the right to be children of God, to those that believe on his name”. It is a question of what kind of reception He has from believers—not just a nominal reception, but the kind of reception He is worthy of. Surely the Man who is worthy of the highest place in heaven is worthy of the chief place in our hearts. If we have trusted Him, if we have proved His love in dying for us, the One who, as John says, “loves us, and has washed us from our sins in his blood” (Revelation 1: 5), is He not worthy of being received in the fullest possible way in my heart and yours?
I wonder if I could appeal to you, dear young believer. Has He a full place in your heart? He is worthy of it. Oh that He might have an affectionate reception into the hearts of everybody in this room! To such He says, You have been given the right to be children of God. Indeed it is a token of the Father’s love—“See what love the Father has given to us, that we should be called the children of God”, John 3: 1. These are persons who are in line with heaven in receiving Christ. This is the most distinguished family that anyone can have part in, the most distinguished family there ever will be. Think of the opportunity which is within the reach of everyone in this room this afternoon of having a part in the most distinguished family there is in the universe of God through receiving Christ. It is a wonderful opportunity that is within the reach of every one of us, to receive Christ into our hearts, not just to be nominal Christians but to receive Christ in a full way into our hearts. It is the way that leads to life in your soul because John’s intention in writing his gospel is that in believing we might have life in His name—not to be morally dead or half-dead, but believers who have life in His name.
Now in receiving Christ it opens up wonderful possibilities to us. Paul the apostle raised the question with certain disciples, “Did ye receive the Holy Spirit when ye had believed?”, Acts 19: 2. Did ye receive the Holy Spirit? God from His side is abundant in the way of His giving. The Lord conveys that when He says to the woman in John 4: 10, “If thou knewest the gift of God”, pointing to the gift of the Holy Spirit. From God’s side He is rich, He is lavish in His giving. What greater gift could you have than the gift of the Holy Spirit? But the question now for believers, for you and me, is, do we appreciate that gift? Have you received the Holy Spirit? That is our side of
the matter, as I understand it. Have you the sense that you have this gift that has been provided so richly by God? The next thing, of course, that must come up is—Have you made room for Him? What is indicated in the typical teaching in Genesis 24 is that there is room for the servant, room for the camels (see Genesis 24: 25, 31). It is a question of room for the Spirit—hence the importance of the reception of the Spirit and making room for the Spirit.
Now another thing, if we have received Christ, is, are we ready to receive what He wants to give us, what He is making available? You know there is an administration under the hand of Christ. The Father has put all things in the hand of the Son. There is a wonderful administration under His hand, and one of the things is what we have referred to in Acts 17.
Paul and Silas were men who had been given by Christ and something was being dispensed by Christ through these men. Now it says of these Berean disciples, “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, receiving the word with all readiness of mind”. That is the attitude in which we can get the full benefit of what the Lord Jesus is dispensing. It may be done mediately through His servants, but He is the One who is giving it, and this attitude is important, “Receiving the word with all readiness of mind”. There is something noble about the conduct of those persons in Berea, they were “more noble”. They had the kind of attitude that belongs to spiritual nobility and it says they received the word with all readiness of mind.
They did not just swallow everything hook, line, and sinker, as we say, but they searched the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. They did not search the Scriptures to find things to negate what was said, or to oppose what was said, or turn the edge of it, but they turned to the Scriptures for confirmation. That is a very important thing, that when we have been at meetings we do not just go and forget what was said but in our own exercises follow things up afterwards. They searched the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. It is important to go over things with the Lord and get the confirmation of the truth for ourselves, and we can get that from the Scriptures.
Now I am not setting aside what has been given by way of written ministry because that is very valuable. Indeed Paul speaks to Timothy about the good teaching which he had fully followed up (see 1 Timothy 4: 6). By all means follow that up fully. Dear young brothers and sisters particularly, while your minds are young and alert use them profitably to follow up what is available in the good teaching, but please do not overlook what you can receive by way of what comes orally. Receive it with readiness of mind and search it out from the Scriptures to get the confirmation of it in your own soul. It is very important to use our minds rightly. Paul says to Timothy, “Think of what I say, for the Lord will give thee understanding in all things”, 2 Timothy 2: 7. In that way you gain the knowledge which comes, of reflection. That way the Lord helps us. There are many things that we could be occupied with, but this is something I commend to you that you can be profitably engaged with. It is worthwhile going in for the truth because it is the most interesting thing you can possibly have. We get things there relating to divine Persons, divine things, a universal order of things that God has in mind centred in Christ, and there is nothing to compare with it in the whole world.
Now if we receive Christ, how do we receive those who belong to Him? I think Romans 15 bears on that because how we receive those who belong to Christ and are precious to Him is a reflection of how we receive Christ. So it says, “Wherefore receive ye one another, according as the Christ also has received you to the glory of God”. I think there is a fine touch of mutuality in this,
“Receive ye one another”. You regard the saints as precious in the light of what they are to Christ. That will immediately cut across anything in the way of special friendships, or social friendships, among the brethren. What determines things, our companionships, or our regard for the brethren, is what they are to Christ, “According as the Christ also has received you to the glory of God”. That is the way Christ has received us. That is the kind of reception we have had. Now there are certain things in the Scriptures that would convey to us the kind of reception we have—how Christ has received us to the glory of God, and we are to receive one another in the same way. That is not a niggardly reception of one another, or just putting up with one another, but reception because we need one another, especially in view of the service of God. You will notice what it says in the previous verse, “That ye may with one accord, with one mouth, glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. You know, dear brethren, we need each other in view of the service of God. Think of the harmony in that, that there should be a response to God in harmony, with one accord, nothing inharmonious. In our relations with one another we are to have mutual regard and respect and affection for one another so that this idea of one accord can be a reality, not just something we read of in the Scriptures, but something that actually works in our local meetings—“with one accord, with one mouth, glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”. That is how the service of God proceeds in power. So, dear brethren, we are essential to one another. “Wherefore receive ye one another, according as the Christ also has received you to the glory of God”.
Now that is very wonderful, and when you find that condition of things prevailing you will find that the service of God can go on.
In John 20, when the disciples were together. Jesus came and stood in the midst and they rejoiced because they had seen the Lord. Think of the kind of reception He had in that company! Then we have to think of Lord’s day morning when we are convened for the Lord’s supper, and what kind of reception will be waiting for the Lord Jesus when He comes in. Will there be a reception that is worthy of Him? Shall we find that there is rejoicing and that the service of God can proceed with one accord, with one mouth? Will it be that kind of reception He will get? He is worthy of it!
Then there is the reception we are going to have finally. He is in heaven Himself personally. He has prepared a place for us (see John 14: 2) and is coming again to receive us to Himself that we may be with Him. What a reception that is going to be, dear brethren! There will be nothing to compare with it, when the Lord Jesus comes to receive us to Himself. What that event will mean for Him, and what blessedness for us! Meantime Christ has been received up and how blest we are as receiving Him, receiving the Spirit, receiving what He gives with all readiness of mind, and receiving those who belong to Him. May the Lord encourage us for His name’s sake.
Address at Grangemouth
19 September 1981