PERSONALITY

^[p. 82] PERSONALITY

Luke 5:12 - 14; Luke 1:80; 1 Samuel 14:6 - 15

I have in view, dear brethren, to speak of personality as entering into the testimony as that which opens up to us opportunities of testimony; firstly, in the young believer — personality as it shows itself in the believer at the outset, as the effect of the work of the Lord in him, answering his needs as accruing from the working of sin in him; secondly, personality as in the servant of Christ or of God, the servant viewed as in John the baptist; and thirdly, personality in conflict.

Under these three heads I propose to speak of personality as the result of the work of God in believers. Personality must, as with all else, be understood first in Christ; and as in Him, we see how the unregenerate mind is unable to take account of or rightly estimate the personality in man that is according to the mind of God. “When we shall see him”, say the unregenerate Jews, “there is no beauty that we should desire him” (Isaiah 53:2). In their view He was without form or lordliness such as the natural mind would esteem; whereas in the esteem of those who become subjects of the work of God amongst the Jews, he was regarded as “the chiefest among ten thousand” and “altogether lovely” (Song of Songs 5:10,16). Such is the immeasurable difference between the estimate of personality according to God in the unregenerate, and in those who are the subjects of His gracious work by the Spirit.

David of old typifies Christ in this respect, above all others, and is especially presented to us according to his personality, including his appearance, not only in his moral traits, but physically. Over against him were such as Saul, a man of appearance according to ^[p. 83] the flesh. He hid himself indeed, during the process of determination of the king which he was to be; Jehovah graciously performing this service for his people, and directing them to find him among the stuff. That is a very humiliating place to be found — among the baggage! As found, he was an imposing man, but very much of Philistine character; head and shoulders above his brethren, a big man. So with the Philistines, they are those marked by this feature; whether it be physical or educational, the character of bigness was accorded current value then, as now.

Over against such personality we have David, of whom it is said he was a man that could play well, a valiant man, a man of war, and, according to the statement of the Spirit of God, a man with a ruddy countenance and a beautiful appearance. All this is noted over against Eliab, Saul and others, and as we have this description of his personal beauty and attractiveness, we have his name given; that is, his name covers all this. When the name David is given for the first time, it is said, “The Spirit of the Lord came upon David” — meaning Beloved — (1 Samuel 16:13) that was his name; known already, even in obscurity, to heaven, and loved as worthy of love. That has always to be borne in mind; we are to be lovable if we are expecting to be loved. God, indeed, may love us otherwise, being God, but if we expect to be loved it is necessary that we shall be lovable; that is “David” as a name signifies the thought.

This thought, so presented, in such a distinct manner and with such detail by the Spirit, in David as a type of Christ in this respect as in others, is to begin with the believer as he comes in for the benefits of the work of Christ; as he becomes the subject of the touch, the identifying service of Christ; for that is the way we have to view this passage in Luke 5; He identifies Himself with us in touching us. If He ^[p. 84] identifies Himself with us to relieve us from the result of sin, it is that the hideous results of sin should be replaced by His own beautiful traits. It is most logical that it should be so. That we should come into relief of conscience, and retain the ugly traits of sin, taking on the ways of the world’s fashion, is a poor answer to the touch of Christ, for His touch implies that He has had to enter into the depths of death and judgment that we might be relieved of these awful features of sin. What can be more abhorrent in that sense than leprosy? The man was full of it. The Lord touches him, saying, “Go, shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing as Moses ordained, for a testimony to them”, not to the priest alone, but to the whole system. You see, therefore, dear brethren, this passage brings the idea of personality and testimony within the range of every believer, old or young; that at least he has himself to present as testimony. ‘Yes’, you may say, ‘but what about Christ?’ That is true if I am speaking, but the Lord did not send him to speak, He told him to show himself. Let that have its own significance, to the priest and to his class; here is a changed person, hitherto leprous, full of it, in a certain town — now he is cleansed.

Let us suppose the priest knew him before, what a change now! How is it, dear young people, in this respect with you? You got light in your soul a few nights ago through the preaching, relief to the soul, joy came into your soul; but perhaps only momentarily and you have lapsed back a bit into your old ways, retaining your old appearance in dress, or your old manners in the office, or on the street, among your acquaintance. Where is the testimony? I am not speaking of what you say, but what you are — a cleansed leper by profession, but with no appreciable change in your manner and, I may add, in your associations. The Lord would lay it upon your now,

^[p. 85] that you are to be a witness because of what you are personally; that is to say, you are changed. Your old tastes do not remain in you. Moab had “not been emptied from vessel to vessel” and his natural taste remained (Jeremiah 48:11); as professedly believing in Christ you may be sure you will be emptied from vessel to vessel. God has determined to change you. The change is from within, but it is not a mere automatic change, your intelligence is brought in. You have begun to reckon that these things are not in keeping with the light that is in your soul; thus we are all sent in testimony as evidence of the change in us.

Romans contemplates that the young believer gets a mind, and that that mind becomes dominant in him; he says, “I myself with the mind serve God’s law” (chapter 7:25) — that is how the change comes about. It is intelligent, so that we present our bodies “a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your intelligent service” (chapter 12:1). If I present my body to God, it concludes that life, and I can turn round and present it before men, so that the word immediately is, “Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (chapter 12:2). He says, “with the mind I myself serve the law of God”; the Holy Spirit enables me to retain that throughout my history here, and my personality according to God increases. You have in the last chapter of Romans a wonderful picture of men and women who had personality, as if the Spirit of God would give us examples. He begins with the sisters; there are many sisters in the list. They resided in Rome, the capital of the world, and they had the advantage of a testimony there; some were of Caesar’s household, such is God’s way.

“Shew thyself to the priest”, says the Lord, “for a testimony to them”. Every step of the movement ^[p. 86] of that leper as he moved towards the priest was delightful to heaven; he was not like the ten sent uncleansed to the priest in chapter 17, that is another matter. This one was sent cleansed to the priest, and heaven saw moral beauty and personality developing in the cleansed leper; he might retain the marks of his degradation, but this would only betoken what a work was done in him. Simon, the leper, entertained Christ; the ten were sent uncleansed; the point in them was obedience, not the touch of Christ. The first, I apprehend, refers to the Lord’s coming here in incarnation; He could only touch us thus as He went into death for us, but in sending ten uncleansed lepers to the priest, it was a matter of authority, a question of service on high inaugurating the dispensation of faith. In going they were cleansed; and one returns to the Lord Jesus and falls down, and gives glory to God; he became a worshipper; he had no word for that, but he came at once into the liberty of faith, and became possessed of instincts, and knew that the One who commanded him to go, was God Himself. In either case you see personality, in the one, a cleansed leper under the eye of the priest, and in the other, cleansed as he obeyed. Instead of going to the priest he instantly came back to his Cleanser — to One who has authority to command. He worshipped. In either case you see those who come in for the relief that His work brings. Where they had dishonoured God, there is a new personality; “newness of life” shows itself in them.

I go on now to John. It is a question with John the baptist of his showing to Israel, not to the priest. His father was a priest, and had just been uttering most priestly words, but in these words he speaks of Christ, and not of John. Then he comes to John, and addresses him as “Child”, as if the voice of God through the priest, addresses the young ^[p. 87] potential servant — for that is what John was then — as “Child”. Such terms are fitting for a Levite, for they were such potentially from one month old, but this particular one is so addressed, the only one addressed thus. Samuel comes close, as placed in the house of God. It may be the Lord has a voice to some potential servant here; you are but a child spiritually as yet. It is one thing to accept the levitical number from one month old; eight thousand were held for service, and much is said of them in the book of Numbers up to the end of chapter 4; then we get chapters 5, 6 and 7, ending with the wealth of the princely offerings, and then the divine speaking; and then the Levites are presented in chapter 8. Now, think of yourself, young brother, as a potential servant, for you cannot waive that privilege or obligation: it rests upon you. “Thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest”; it rests upon you.

In Numbers 8 they are presented to Jehovah, and then are given to Aaron and his sons for service; such is the outlook of the young Levite.

So they are presented to God, and God says virtually, I will increase them. They are so lovely in My eyes I will increase their number; not the number from a month old, but from thirty years old. They are lovely, fully developed Levites, and He reduced the age limit to twenty-five (verse 24); that is to say, there would be an increase of Levites by one-sixth. God loves the Levites as presented according to His own mind, acting here in bearing burdens, taking on service, but with personality underlying it all. There is not a family in the universe like them! They are all first-born ones: as it says of the assembly, the “assembly of the firstborn who are registered in heaven” (Hebrews 12:23).

Is it not attractive? I think it is. It should be to every one of us. You are to go before the face of the ^[p. 88] Lord to make His way straight; think of the dignity of that!

The verse in Luke 1 says, “he was in the deserts until the day of his shewing to Israel”. How am I going to appear to Israel? Not to the Jews — Israel is a spiritually dignified term, for the saints viewed as the Israel of God have beauty and dignity. The word means ‘Prince’; they belong to the nobility, and if you are shown to them they will discern facts. I am not against education, but as to the matter of ministry it has no place; God goes out of His way to show He does not need it. I am not here to decry anything necessary in the service of God, but I am speaking of the spiritual eye of Israel, how critical that is.

We have been dwelling upon John the baptist, and I need not go further than to say it is a question of personality as in the saints viewed spiritually. There is no hope of escape, and moral defects will all be detected, and you cannot hide them. We must make up our minds for this time of our showing to Israel — how are we to be acceptable? Where are we to get our training? In the deserts. The use of the plural, I suppose, would mean it is more rigorous, the desert characteristically increases; the educational grades are more rigorous as we go on. I have to apply myself to the teaching and there is nothing for the flesh there. There are those who wear horsehair next the skin and do damage to themselves; but that is not the thought. These are deserts; there are many deserts in Scripture, and I believe they provide the school for the levite; the sowing is all to the Spirit, and the reaping is life everlasting, showing that personality is marked by life. It is there; it is a wilderness personality, developed in the refusal of the flesh.

Finally, now I speak of conflict. This section from which I have read in 1 Samuel gives you a sorry picture of the state of things under Saul. He began ^[p. 89] fairly well; the Spirit of God came upon him; but this section contemplates him as rejected. God has already begun with another man, and Saul is left to do the best he can in the flesh, and the best he can do is most miserable. Jonathan here represents the work of God. That is where the levite shines; he works with God. I rise to that level, as the apostle John says, “Our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son” (1 John 1:3). They were on that level in their service. Jonathan wrought with God, and men of initiative do this in a dark day. Apostasy was never more rampant than today; nation after nation is taking on an apostate role, but in the dark day there are levites of God, military men, and they are working with God in secret; they have initiative. Jonathan takes on his armour-bearer only recognising the principle that “two are better than one”. That is the position of the military man today, the point is to work with God. With God you get the initiative; there is power to move in leadership whatever there is to be done; and the proposal of Jonathan is that under certain circumstances we will show ourselves to the Philistines. Hidden for the moment, he resolved to retrieve the position; he resolved in faith with God, that He can deliver, that nothing is impossible: let us show ourselves to them. What are we in the eyes of these big men? David was a stripling in the eyes of Goliath; the Philistine has no eye for that beauty. Jonathan says, “We will shew ourselves to them. If they say thus to us ... Come up to us, then we will go up; for Jehovah has given them into our hand”. I am not speaking of faith, though it is wonderfully present here, but of the showing. Two are better than one in this respect, as in others; they shall have reward for their labour, we need not be afraid to take on another in the holy work of God. The true levitical instinct is for victory that God gives in faith. “We will shew ourselves”;

and they did. The Philistines said, “Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing”; they have the whip hand, as, of course, they have in their own estimation! These men around us are all this kind; they all say, ‘We will show you a thing’. What can they show us? They can show us nothing to any advantage, but it was a sign, I believe, a boast with the Philistines, that they could show things, but a sign to Jonathan of their destruction. Whatever the combination, victory belongs to faith, and Jonathan in the humble way, went up on hands and feet. Think of these great men accepting such a humble mode of attack; but it is the successful one.

Jonathan is the leader, and the armour-bearer follows, as with Gideon and his three hundred men. Personality is seen in this leadership, and Jonathan and his armour-bearer slew twenty men in half an acre of land. Think how God acted as these men show themselves, encouraged by the sign God gave, so that the victory was complete.

I think you will see what I mean. I think every christian here will see the need for personality, according to Christ, in all this. The position is, that the testimony will go on, and the end in victory is sure.