THE BELIEVER'S BODY

T.E.Druckenmiller

Exodus 21: 2-6; 1 Corinthians 6: 15 (first section), 19, 20; Mark 14: 50-52; 16: 2-7

One desires, beloved brethren and friends, to speak about the believer's body. We have been engaged with the thought of service, and one is impressed with the value of our bodies in view of serving God. In thinking of it what has come home to one is the way the Lord Jesus held His body for the will of God. We would remember the reference in Romans 12 to the presentation of the believer's body "a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your intelligent service" (v 1). I believe that means putting our body on the altar without recall. One feels the need for drawing attention to that, because in most of our lives there may have been committal but with some measure of recall. As times of pressure and testing have come in there has been unpreparedness perhaps and we have drawn back from the work. But the Lord would help us, I believe, to be more committed to His interests, and to see that He in all things has the preeminence. As we look in Exodus at these words as to the Hebrew bondman we may get some fresh touch, as we often do in reading this section, of the perfection of the pathway of Jesus, how He held His body for the will of God as a Man here. Think of the preciousness of Jesus corning in and touching humanity in infancy, as a babe in Bethlehem's manger! The Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, came into this world that way: "the holy thing... which shall be born", Luke 1: 35. Oh, think of the message of the angel to Mary, and then His incoming, and how Scripture presents it! May some fresh impression come into all our hearts of the preciousness of the movements of Jesus in this scene.

One thinks often of the words of Luke, what "Jesus began both to do and to teach" (Acts 1: 1), His activities in love, how He met that man in Luke 8, how He came near to the woman in John 4, how He spat on the ground and made mud of the spittle and anointed the eyes of the man in John 9. These were activities of the love of Jesus. And, too, the words that He spoke, what He said to each of these persons. But, dear hearers, there is what He is saying to us today. In the gospel we need to realise more that the Lord is speaking still from heaven; from the time of the outshining of the Lord of glory to the beloved apostle Paul, speaking has been from heaven, and we continue in the preciousness of that. It may be through human vessels which the Lord would use, and I believe the appeal today is that He wants to use you and He wants to use me. In His grace He has come near and He wants us to be in His service day by day. Are you prepared to take up in committal the offering of your body? Am I prepared for the offering of my body without recall? It was so with Jesus. As we look at the precious words here: "If thou buy a Hebrew bondman, six years shall he serve; and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing", we think of the way the Lord served. Then it goes on: "if he had a wife, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master have given him a wife, and she have borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out alone". We note the reference to 'alone' in this section; it says or 'with his body'.

But then it says - and we want to come to these words in verse 5 - "But if the bondman shall say distinctly, I love my master, my wife, and my children, I will not go free". The Lord Jesus Christ is the only One who fulfilled this scripture because what motivated Him in all that He did was love for His God and Father. Think of the perfection of love in Jesus! As it says here: "if the bondman shall say distinctly, I love my master, my wife and my children". The Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, said that: I love My master, I love My wife, I love My children. His preparedness to serve His God and Father: "I do always the things that are pleasing to him", John 8: 29! And how He served in love for His assembly! He "delivered himself up for it", Eph 5: 25. Oh the preciousness of the love of Jesus and how He served in relation to the lambs! Think of His appeal to Peter in John 21 as to the lambs and the sheep - the individuals, you and me, in our need for food, in our need for shelter, our need for care and protection. The Lord has served in that way. We think of that hymn: 'O what a Saviour is Jesus the Lord! ' (No.169). May we be appealed to today, in this precious time of the outshining of the glad tidings, to commit ourselves afresh to the Lord Jesus Christ, the One who served in this way, the One who said distinctly, I love my master, I love my wife, I love my children.

You will recall that scene presented by John in his gospel, where Jesus from the cross looked and said to John "Behold thy mother", and to His mother "behold thy son", chap 19: 26,27. The Lord would awaken feelings of affection in our hearts for one another. I believe if we understood the value of affection for one another more we would be more effective in our service to one another. In this section love is the motive behind these words. What is the motive behind what I say and what I do? That is a challenge to us. Whatever I say and whatever I do, I am tested by my motives: Luke speaks of what Jesus began both to do and to teach. We can see clearly in this section the feelings of the Lord and how He was brought before the judges: "shall bring him to the door, or to the door-post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl; and he shall be his bondman for ever". I suppose in a sense Isaiah 53 brings out how the Lord was taken to the door-post. One does not understand exactly how it would work out, but I believe, as we think through scripture, we get touches of how the Lord moved, His submission. to His master, and what it would be to have His ear bored through with an awl. It says prophetically in Isaiah 50: "morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear" (v 4). Think of the life of Jesus, morning by morning, what that was in the sight of the Father, to see the Son in dependent manhood walking in this scene, and His ear opened morning by morning to have a word for instruction, to teach one that is weary. Have you not known what it was to be weary, heavy laden? The Lamb of God wants to give us rest. Will we allow Him to come near and speak a word to us, in our weariness, in our need, whatever it may be? He is just as available today from the glory above as He was when He was in proximity to men physically. We want to get hold of it, each of us, young and old, how near the Lord Jesus Christ is to us. This One who served for these wages of love is in readiness to serve you and to serve me. Will we trust Him? Much has come in as a result of sin, and the need of mankind is great. How the enemy has done it we are told in the parable, where the wheat was growing up and the tares grew with it, and the master says "A man that is an enemy has done this", Matt 13: 28. Oh the sorrows we know so well! An enemy hath done it, the enemy of our souls; he would hinder our progress in the things of God, and he has hindered us. May we understand what it is to move in this world as those who are committed to going forward in dependence upon our God and in confidence in Him in the holding of our body in relation to the will of God as our Lord has done.

In Corinthians we come on to that thought of the believer's body, in two touches there. Firstly it is "Do ye not know that your bodies are members of Christ?". I do not know whether all have committed themselves here - we preach the word of God with the feeling of yearning and urgency of heart - most if not all have committed themselves to the Lord Jesus, confessed His name, committed themselves to the pathway of the will of God. Most have committed themselves to the Lord's supper: what a precious occasion that is! We might say more of that later, but one just refers to the need to think about our bodies as members of the Christ. Paul asked these two questions here: "Do ye not know that your bodies are members of Christ?", and then "Do ye not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have of God; and ye are not your own?". The believer's body is a member of Christ. Think of the world, its memberships, its associations, the kinds of things that men have done to try and combine to meet the power and the effects of sin upon the human race. One thinks just for a moment of Daniel; when he was tested, when he prayed three times a day with his window open toward Jerusalem, those men opposing him "came in a body", chap 6: 6. There is pressure upon one and another through the combines of men. I believe the Lord would give us a sense of confidence in Him, how He will help us through as we realise the preciousness of being members of the body of Christ, those who are His, those who are called by divine calling, those who have presented their bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to Him. May we realise the value of yielding ourselves to Jesus, owning Him as Lord, being committed to Him in a fresh way today.

Then, too, "Do ye not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit... ?". I believe we would rightly draw attention to the power of the Holy Spirit here in the believer. Have you desired His presence? Have you sought His company, the company of a divine Person in your walk and in your pathway here? We think of our bodies, what they are, and the Holy Spirit: has He a way in you? Do you commune with Him? One would be asking these questions of oneself, feeling the urgency of the need for it in the days in which we walk. One was thinking, too, of that precious little song we used to sing as children as to our bodies. A lot of these things that we used to say we may have forgotten but it comes to one's mind afresh:

'Two little eyes to look to God,

Two little ears to hear His word,

One little mouth to sing His praise,

Two little feet to walk in His ways,

Two little hands to do His will,

One little heart to love Him still'

Do we hold our bodies in that way for the will of God, in preparedness to serve our Lord Jesus Christ, in preparedness to look to Him and to hear His word and to have part in the singing of His praise? The Lord loves to hear the praise of even the very youngest. Think of when He came into Jerusalem "mounted upon... a colt the foal of an ass", and they strewed their garments in the way; and the Hosannas of the little children, and how the Lord said "If these shall be silent, the stones will cry out", Luke 19: 40! The Lord is looking for an answer from every heart; that would include everyone from the youngest to the oldest. Let us give our hearts to Jesus. Let us submit ourselves to Him. He is worthy of our trust.

It goes on in this section to refer to the word that you are not your own, "ye have been bought with a price". Oh, the price! Let us speak about the price. What it has cost the Lord Jesus Christ to secure you and me for eternal blessing with Him! He went the way of the cross, where He was made sin, "that we might become God's righteousness in him", 2 Cor 5: 21. He shed His precious blood. Think of what the wicked hands of man have done, and yet He went that way in submission to the will of God: "not my will, but thine be done", Luke 22: 42. What words they were as spoken from the lips of Jesus the Son of God! Let us allow these precious thoughts to come into our hearts afresh, and may they affect us so that our bodies are held for the will of God. I think that is what Paul must have had in mind. Then he says "glorify now then God in your body". What a precious thought that is! How will you or I glorify God in our body? The Lord Jesus spoke to Peter about that - "by what death he should glorify God", John 21: 19. Think of what the beloved apostles went through! They stood in relation to their Saviour, we are told that they each went through martyrdom. Then we think of the awakening in the dark ages and how many went through martyrdom, how they held their bodies for the will of God. At home we have recently been encouraged to read a little in Miller's Church History; there are some excellent portions there to read. One man confessed his Saviour and then in the torment and the torture of his captors he submitted to them, renounced his submission to Jesus because of the way his body had been put through pressure; but then in the mercy of God he re-awakened in his conscience and heart and again stood true to his Lord, and when they placed the fire behind him he said, No, put the fire in front of me. He was prepared in that way to go forward in answer to the will of God.

These are the realities of the sufferings of the present time that many have endured. If you or I were called to have such a part in the close of the dispensation will we yield our bodies, will we submit them as a living sacrifice? What an intelligent service it is! Oh, may the Lord help us to understand these precious scriptures and be in the gain of them by the Spirit's power. The Lord said of the Spirit: "he shall receive of mine and shall announce it to you", John 16: 14. Do you want to see, do I want to see, these precious things? It may be that in the sorrows of the testimony we have been hindered, or maybe we have hindered ourselves. Whatever the case may be, it does not have to be that way any more; we can go on in the sense of confidence in God as those who are prepared to offer ourselves. It is like the Nazarite's vow; if he was defiled there is the opportunity to be recovered.

Well, that brings us to Mark, that beloved servant. Paul, in writing to Timothy, says "Take Mark, and bring him with thyself, for he is serviceable to me for ministry", 2 Tim 4: 11. That comes out in this gospel. One has not thought sufficiently about the references at the end of the gospel to the young man. I believe it should be an encouragement to us, though, to enquire why there are these two references to "a young man". In the first it says "And all left him and fled". That is a reference, beloved, to even the disciples leaving Jesus and fleeing. And then it says "a certain young man followed him with a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men seize him; but he, leaving the linen cloth behind him, fled from them naked". I think others who have taught us indicate that Mark has some reference to himself here as to the desire to follow. There was the desire with the disciples to follow, in fact they all said they were prepared to go even to death, and the Lord said "The spirit... is willing, but the flesh weak", Mark 14: 38. We feel our weakness and we would be conscious of it, and here it comes into expression, this young man followed, but then when he was seized he fled, leaving the linen cloth behind him - "fled from them naked".

When we think of the history of Mark our thoughts would go to Acts. In chapter 15: 26 it says, Barnabas and Paul, men who have given up their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. But then over the page it says in verse 37: "Barnabas proposed to take with them John also, called Mark; but Paul thought it not well to take with them him who had abandoned them, going back from... the work". There was the desire to go forward, even with Barnabas, one who had given up his life for the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. It shows how near we come to these holy precious things, and how Nazariteship may be defiled. But the Lord in the gospel today would encourage our hearts that it is a day of recovery, and a day of blessing, and that you and I can have part in it, in the preciousness of the carrying forward of the testimony of Jesus. I believe that is what these occasions would stimulate our hearts to do, to be in the service of our God, to be committed to the pathway of the will of God.

To come on to the young man in chapter 16, it says they saw a young man "sitting on the right, clothed in a white robe, and they were amazed and alarmed". What a different picture here! Here is a young man within the tomb, the tomb of Jesus. Would that we would go there by the Spirit's power today to view this scene. In the opening of this chapter it says of the women: "very early on the first day of the week they come to the sepulchre, the sun having risen. And they said to one another, Who shall roll us away the stone out of the door of the sepulchre?". Matthew tells us that there was an earthquake, and there was an angel descending from heaven - think of the earth affected, and heaven affected! - and the stone was rolled away and the angel sat upon it. Oh, the victory of Christ risen! Let it be in our hearts today that the Saviour Jesus, the One who served in lowliness, who yielded Himself to the will of God and went into death, that He has come out in victory, glorious Saviour, wondrous Saviour, as we sing! Is He your Saviour? Do you know Him? Have you confessed His name? Have you put your trust in Him? We would be urgent, dear brethren, dear friends, in the need to yield ourselves like this young man. It says he was clothed in white. Our thoughts turn to Revelation where persons, it says, made their clothing "white in the blood of the Lamb", chap 7: 14. You and I must be in the good of it. Let us maintain ourselves in that way, garments made white in the blood of the Lamb. It is available to us, and one just commends these few words to us all with the desire that we should have our part as those who are committed, who would hold ourselves - "Out of Egypt have I called my son", Matt 2: 15 - in view of being here for the service of our God. May we be encouraged to be committed to the interests of Christ. How He loves His own! We want to encourage one another to move in relation to them. We do not draw attention to any in particular, but it is committal to the Lord, and He will help you to find where He is. In Luke there is another touch; it says "they found not the body of the Lord Jesus", chap 24: 3. But in this section in Mark it goes on to this young man, and he says "go, tell his disciples and Peter, he goes before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him, as he said to you". It is in the company of His own that you will find the presence of the Lord. One would commend it to us all, and we need to be more committed to it, for His name's sake.

 

TORONTO

11 October 1981

THE CHILDREN'S FRIEND

You will say at once 'that is Jesus' and even the very young ones will know that He is 'a Friend for little children' as the hymn says. In His lifetime here He proved this when He took even infants into His arms for blessing and bade the little ones come to Him. In those days it might have meant a journey to find Jesus, but now that He is 'above the bright blue sky' all can come to Him in thought and in spirit. At His ascension He passed majestically through the heavens, first the region of the birds of the air, then through the angels' dwelling and the seat of the various heavenly powers. Then He went above all heavens to God the Father at whose right hand He sat down, the perfect work of redemption having been completed. The believer has the privilege of seeing Him there by faith.

A beautiful, descriptive touch in the Proverbs is that "The friend loveth at all times", and surely we can say this of our Lord Jesus by personal experience! If He loved us so as to deliver Himself up to be crucified for us we can have no doubt that He will love His own through everything. How often heavenly truths are illustrated by earthly incidents. I remember reading of a family man who was called up by the casting of lots to fight in the American Civil War. He was unable to find a substitute but on the morning of the day on which he had to report for duty a young man whom he knew came to him offering to go in his place as he himself was unmarried and had no dependants. In one of the battles the young man was dangerously wounded, died and was buried close by the battlefield. Just a board with the simple words 'He died for me' marked the grave later on.

Another gem from the Proverbs is "Faithful are the wounds of a friend". It is not easy to write about these words except that we must always remember that a friend means one who loves. I expect that this explains why the Lord sometimes allows in the lives even of young believers things that vex and are hard to bear. His love will bring the grace for needed help and His word tries us as to whether we have the affections of a friend towards Him. So the question arises, does our love for Him lead us to serve Him here? At the time when He had just instituted the Lord's supper He asked His lovers to prove their love by keeping His word. Do you respond to His longing?

 

J.C.Evershed