CHRIST KNOWN IN THE ASSEMBLY
[p. 441] CHRIST KNOWN IN THE ASSEMBLY
Acts 1:1 - 5, Hebrews 2:10 - 12
JT This paragraph in Acts takes up and epitomises what we have in the endings of the gospels, only in direct view of the assembly. In the endings of the gospels the remnant of Israel is also in view, but here we have the assembly in mind, so that we have the Lord assembling with them. The passage will help us, I believe, to understand the wealth that enters into our position as assembled, as gathered together in assembly. The presentation of the Lord here, of Himself as living, is one thought, and then secondly, “being seen by them during forty days”, is another thought; spirituality enters into that. “Being assembled with them” (verse 4), is a further important thought: He is to be known amongst His own in this sense. “To await the promise of the Father” implies another great feature, that is, the Spirit present with the disciples.
The passage in Hebrews fits in here as bringing out the perfection of the Lord; being made “perfect” through sufferings, and what the saints are as one with Himself, so that He is not ashamed to call us brethren; and then the service of God in singing: “in the midst of the assembly will I sing thy praises”. These thoughts should help us at this time, so that we might have a clearer view, under the Lord’s hand, of the wealth that there is available to us as with Him as Minister of the sanctuary.
CG Have you in mind the wealth that David collected in view of the building of the house of God?
JT That enters into this scripture, and it opens up the subject in 1 Chronicles. David having determined the site of the house, saying, “This is the house of Jehovah Elohim”,(1 Chronicles 22:1) he prepares for it, so that there is an abundance of wealth. I think we need help on these lines, because our services, it will be admitted, are somewhat poor, although having light and assembly [p. 442] order, we need spiritual wealth and freshness. The Colossians had the order. The apostle speaks of “rejoicing and seeing your order”,(Colossians 2:5) but there was defect there, a danger of slipping into ceremonial ways and philosophy.
Ques Which assembly represents the wealth you speak of?
JT I think Ephesians. In view of the way the apostle speaks of the work at Ephesus, we may regard it as the full result of his labours; hence he speaks of more divine wealth there than anywhere; I mean in his epistle to that assembly; so that we have there an advanced thought on what we have in this passage, that is, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ ... having marked us out beforehand for adoption through Jesus Christ to himself ... wherein he has taken us into favour in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:3; Ephesians 1:5,6). But even those terms may be employed and yet we may be wanting in the riches; so that the Lord here says, “Await the promise of the Father, which said he ye have heard of me. For John indeed baptised with water, but ye shall be baptised with the Holy Spirit after now not many days”. Of course, the Spirit has now come.
LCC Does the fact that we have the sufferings of Christ introduced here, suggest to us the way in which that wealth has been liberated?
JT Yes. It is through sufferings the wealth has been secured. It was there with God, the unsearchable riches of Christ were there, but to share them with us was the intent, and in order that the wealth should be shared with us sufferings had to take place, so that “it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make perfect the leader of their salvation through sufferings”. That word “perfect” would imply having gone through the sufferings. He is now in a condition in which we [p. 443] can have part, and in which He shares the wealth with us. We have to understand the word “perfect” there; the same thought is implied in Acts 1, because He presented Himself to them living. He had said on the first day of the forty days, according to John’s account, that He was ascending to His Father and their Father, His God and their God, and that they were His brethren. That gives the bearing of the word “perfect”, implying that He has entered upon a condition in which we can have part, in which He calls us brethren, and shares with us the wealth He has: the Holy Spirit is the subjective power here, so that the Lord stresses that they were to wait for Him. It is important that we understand the word “perfect” — perfect through sufferings. It refers to Christ’s present condition. He presented Himself living after He suffered here. Of course He was living before. He said to Martha that He was “the resurrection and the life”; (John 11:25) in His own Person He was immune from death; He was the eternal life, but then He could not share it with us aside from His sufferings; He was not perfect in that sense. He was always perfect in His own Person, but the word “perfect” in our scripture refers to a condition that God has in mind; a condition which Christ could share with us.
LCC Is it characteristic of the way in which Christ would present Himself to us, and there is always the stamp of suffering?
JT That is the thought. The whole scene is permeated and anointed with the oil or ointment that was compounded in the types, of which a large part was myrrh, alluding to the Spirit of the suffering Christ. The assembly is marked by that as down here; it is not the eternal condition, but what is here now; the tabernacle was anointed with the holy ointment.
Ques Does the fact that the temple was not anointed imply that the thought of suffering will be absent in the eternal [p. 444] state?
JT I do not think it will be prominent; as you say, the temple was not anointed, and that is important to note; the tabernacle was. The Lord in instituting the Supper said, “before I suffer”, but in this passage it is after He suffered. He has entered on a new condition and in that condition we share, and in it He shares with us the wealth that He has. The Spirit is the power of all this.
CG “When he the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13).
Ques Does the wealth come in amongst the saints when the Lord appears living?
JT I think that is the way the truth stands; in the assembly we ought to be prepared for personality, and personal movements both in Christ and ourselves, so it is not a mere theoretic thing, or formal ceremonialism; the Lord’s personality enters into it, so He begins here with presenting Himself living, as if He would present Himself so as to attract, not to relieve or minister to us yet, but to attract us to Himself.
AWR Would there be anything in the reference to “Jehovah Elohim” being mentioned immediately after the reference to the house (1 Chronicles 22:1)? Would it introduce the personal touch?
JT I suppose that is so, as in Genesis 2, Jehovah prefixed to Elohim would indicate the personal side, and all that takes form in Christ, it is in Christ that divine personality is visible. “Seen of angels;” He has come into visibility and in presenting Himself He would attract us to Himself. It is a remarkable expression; it is foreshadowed in David, who “was ruddy, and besides of a lovely countenance and beautiful appearance”, (1 Samuel 16:12).
Rem There is much connected with being able to discern when the Lord as living does come in amongst us.
JT That is what is so needed to have before us in the Lord’s supper, it means a real incoming of Christ,
[p. 445] so that He is to be discerned. “It is the Lord” (John 21:7): that is the idea. The most spiritual man among the twelve, perhaps, was John, and as the Lord appeared in a new way, he says, “It is the Lord” (John 21:7). Peter did not discern Him, but Peter was moved by what John said. This illustrates how, as one in the assembly discerns the Lord, others are affected.
Ques You are not speaking of His coming in as Head and taking up things?
JT No, it is more Himself first. This is a normal presentation; the order here is the presentation, and then that He was “seen by them during forty days” — they saw Him. Notice it is not the same word as in 1 Corinthians 15, where it says, “He appeared”. It is a different word. He appeared to Cephas, and the twelve, and five hundred brethren at once; that is from His side, here they saw Him. That is what we ought to see, not simply that He appears from His side, but we see Him. The Lord might come in and appear, but then who sees Him? In the scene of John 21, Peter saw the Lord on the shore, but did not discern Him. John said, “It is the Lord”,(John 21:7) and Peter moved to Him.
Rem In connection with what you were saying about the Lord coming in, we commence as come together to partake of the Lord’s supper, with the thought of the Lord’s absence.
JT That is right; that fact is before us as we sit down together in assembly; He is in heaven and we are here, but then He comes in. I will come to you, He says, “I will not leave you orphans, I am coming to you” (John 14:18). And the point is, do we discern Him? If He comes in it is that we might discern Him. If we discern the Lord there is wealth in that. It moves you. Song of Songs 2:9 helps there, showing how He is discerned; it says, “shewing himself through the lattice”. ‘Flourishing’ seems to be the thought; it is that you may notice Him, the lattice being between the loved one and Him.
[p. 446] Ques Is it right to think the Lord has made an appointment, and if conditions are right the Lord will appear?
JT I think you might go that far. The attitude of His mind is to come and you would expect Him to do so.
Rem He made an appointment with His disciples and He appeared (Matthew 28:16,17).
JT That is in keeping with Matthew. Matthew is assembly order and authority, not exactly the privilege side. John is the great gospel for that, but in Matthew He makes an appointment, and comes to them. He says, “There they shall see me” (Matthew 28:10). He is a dignified Person; and it is for us to be where He directs us to be, and as we are there we see Him. “Some doubted”, but He went on; that is Matthew’s side. Some of the brethren may doubt and question, but we must not be held up by that; that is the way Matthew presented the truth. It is the authoritative gospel and would stress that we must go on with the truth: the discipline or administration or whatever it may be. The Lord did not stop to remonstrate with those who did not believe. He went on and says to the apostles, “Make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19). That is a big order, but He says, “I am with you” (Matthew 28:20). John tells that the Lord said, “I will not leave you orphans, I am coming to you” (John 14:18), and, moreover, “I will see you again” (John 16:22). Matthew would quote Him saying, “There they shall see me” (Matthew 28:10), but in John the Lord says, “I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one takes from you” (John 16:22).
CG When we discern the Lord coming in, are not our affections moved?
JT Yes. He flourishes Himself, as it were, and there is movement on our side.
Rem “Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord(John 20:20)”.
CG This “lattice” is perhaps something in the mind which would prevent my full appreciation of [p. 447] Him.
JT Yes, some domestic matter, it may be. The loved one is inside the house and He outside. He says to her, “Rise up, ... my fair one, and come away” (Song of Songs 2:10).
Rem It would greatly help us if we came together in faith, as to this being real to us every Lord’s day morning.
JT That is the point, God’s dispensation which is in faith. So that we come together in assembly with the expectation that the Lord will come. He says, ‘This do for a calling of Me to mind’. It is a question of your state. It is a strong word for remembrance. It is only used four times and two of those are in 1 Corinthians 11, so it is our side first. The state of our souls is in accord with calling Him to mind. You would expect Him to move then. His move is next, and we reckon on that, and then it is the Lord. He shows Himself, normally, He presents Himself living.
RT Would you say a little more as to His presenting Himself and appearing.
JT I think the word presenting has its own meaning. If you want to present something, it is not merely that it is there, but there in a certain way. So the Lord presented Himself living, and the assembly is to be living — a living order of things — and I think David helps, as a type, because what is stressed about him is the evidence of life; he was ruddy and of a beautiful countenance. Of Abigail it is said, “the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance” (1 Samuel 25:3). In this she corresponded with David. When the female in Song of Songs speaks of the Lord she says, “My beloved is white and ruddy” (Song of Songs 5:10).
Ques Would you say a word about the memorial and the breaking of bread?
JT The memorial is in the breaking of bread, not in the eating. “This do” refers to what the Lord did; He did not partake of His supper. He partook of the passover. That is what is in mind in Acts 20:7; “We being assembled to break bread”. That is the memorial.
[p. 448] It has often been pointed out that neither Matthew nor Mark mention the memorial; but it is in what the Lord did that He is recalled; His coming in is a further thought. He shows Himself. It is a real presence. The Roman Catholics use that phrase, meaning that the loaf is absolutely changed; it is the body and blood of the Lord, they say. A terrible thing! But the presence of the Lord in the true spiritual sense they cannot have; it belongs to the assembly — today, to those who love Christ and partake of His supper as together in assembly. To these He comes according to His promise; He honours their remembrance of Him in this way.
CG We want to hold to that and not let them have it.
JT We do. They claim to have everything, but morally their claims are nullified as the truth is maintained, in however few, by the power of the Spirit. The real way of overthrowing what exists in Christendom is by maintaining the truth in a positive way.
Rem The two when going to Emmaus did not discern the Lord. That is often, alas! the experience in coming together. We need to come together in faith as to Himself, and then we are able to say, “It is the Lord” (John 21:7).
JT Exactly. He has promised to come, and faith expects Him, but our part in the assembly comes first. We assemble together to break bread. That is what they came together at Troas to do (Acts 20). They did not do it for a considerable time after assembling, however; but that is not the model for procedure, it is rather to remind us that we shall never get the right thought of the Supper except as we listen to Paul.
RT In His presenting Himself living, would He link them on with Him?
JT It is that He is now “perfect”, according to Hebrews 2:10; that is, it is not a flesh and blood condition, but a condition which divine counsel requires. He reached that through suffering and we can have [p. 449] part in it. He presented Himself after He suffered. It is that which is in mind. He says, “A spirit has not flesh and bones as ye see me having” (Luke 24:39). It is flesh and bones, a new condition. Then He says, “Have ye anything here to eat? And they gave him part of a broiled fish and of a honeycomb” (Luke 24:41,42), as if He could have part with them and they with Him, and He partook of it.
LCC Is the thought that the Lord would have us to participate in that new scene into which He has entered?
JT That is what is in mind here. We have the basic thoughts first, that is, the presentation of Himself living. He having charged them by the Spirit. Not that they had the Spirit yet, but He did things by the Spirit; it is to remind us that we are entering on the period of the assembly where operations are by the Spirit. Everything is to be in the power of the Spirit. This is followed by His presentation of Himself living, that is. He is “perfect”, as already remarked. He has reached the state in which we can have part. He is living after He suffered. What we get after the presentation is “being seen by them”; that is what He intended. We are speaking of basic thoughts one after another, and what is meant by, “being seen by them during forty days”, is spirituality. Seeing Him implies spirituality.
CG You do not see Him physically, but He is seen in a spiritual way.
JT It is “during forty days”. We are to grasp that thought, the significance is to teach spirituality. Why did He stay forty days? He did not need to. He could have gone into heaven from the grave. It is on our account.
Ques Is that connected with a private history before we come together for the Supper?
JT Spirituality is built up in the school of God, particularly in seeing Him. The forty days allude to [p. 450] the full period in which spirituality is developed. We should have something corresponding to that — what we see. So that you might ask any Christian, ‘What do you see in the assembly? Give an account of it’. We have it in the prophets — “What seest thou?”
AWR Would the eating and drinking in Acts 10:41 have any bearing on this?
JT Yes. Peter is bringing out there a proof that He is really risen.
Rem Would it be right to dwell on the sufferings of the Lord before the breaking of bread?
JT I think so, as testimony to His love, but that is not the point here. It is after He suffered; this new condition He entered on.
Rem So that the gospels would help us to continue on that line. The Supper is the beginning for us; it sets us on these spiritual lines.
JT You see the Lord. As He is discerned in the breaking of bread there is some change in the saints; there is movement, and you are conscious of it. Then the next thing is, His assembling with us (verse 4). What is He going to do? He assembled with them.
Ques Would that be Hebrews 2?
JT It touches it; He sings the praises. Here it is the order of the basic features of the truth relative to the assembly, and pending the coming of the Spirit, when everything will take spiritual form, so that He “assembled with them”, reminding us that there is such a thing. What will He do? Have I seen the Lord in the assembly? He comes in in the midst but now He is assembling with us.
Ques Have we here the great mediatorial system coming into view in the beginning of Christianity, the Spirit and the Father and Jesus? The assembly coming in to share intelligently in the result of it.
JT That is exactly the truth here — the three divine Persons. The Persons are to be apprehended each in His [p. 451] place.
CG We are to be concerned to know what He will do and follow as He leads.
JT That is the lesson we should learn. You can understand if He has come in, it will then be a question of what He will do. He assembled with them.
Ques How would the promise of the Father affect us?
JT “The Father”, not ‘Our Father’, or even ‘His Father’. It is “The Father”. It is that Person in the Trinity. It is to maintain the character of the dispensation. It helps us to maintain it, and the promise is by Him. The Spirit has come from Him.
LCC Every spiritual instinct found amongst the saints responds to the movement of the Lord.
JT That is it. If the Lord is there assembling with us, you want to know what He is going to do; we are to be keen. You can understand if one has been there how keenly interested he would be. What is the Lord going to do now? Luke 24 gives detail as to these great incidents. It is humbling to have to say it, but the disciples got on very well until the Lord came in, and then there was confusion. They were perturbed.
Rem What is before us now would help to keep our minds free from having the meetings always run on the same lines.
JT As He presents Himself living, there is freshness. Another thing here is that the Lord spoke about “the kingdom of God”. What is said is not stated in detail. “Being assembled with them, commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to await the promise of the Father, which said he ye have heard of me”. As if there must be quiet waiting until the Spirit has His place. As already said, we have here the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Each Person must have His place. What has been said suggests the component parts or features of assembly service, and that is why I suggested these scriptures — that we might see the order in which we are to proceed. We [p. 452] come together to break bread, that is the first thing; the Lord is not there. The breaking of bread brings Him in, normally, and so we see Him. He is seen, and that tests us as to whether we are spiritual. And then being assembled with us, what will He do? It is obvious that we all have to be on the alert spiritually to see what should proceed and move on in it — have part with Christ.
Linking it on with the passage in Hebrews you see the force of the word “suffering” here leading to perfection; how that He is in a new condition and we are the sons that are being brought to glory, and are relatively equal to Him in that sense; so it says, “he that sanctifies and those sanctified are all of one”; that is the order of the truth. Then, “for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name to my brethren; in the midst of the assembly will I sing thy praises”, which is the order in which the Lord, as Minister of the sanctuary, proceeds with the service of God in the assembly.
Ques Would you say a word as to where the affections of the saints come in? You spoke of the three Persons and the place to be given to each of Them. What about the promptings of our own affections?
JT There is a wide latitude for these; wealth is implied in them. David told Solomon what he had prepared — great wealth. Then he says, “thou shalt add to it” (1 Chronicles 22:14). The Lord in coming in adds to it certainly, but there is wide scope for us, so that 1 Chronicles 29 speaks of what the princes gave as well as what David gave. Now in the contributions for the tabernacle the princes were not specially mentioned — everybody gave what he could, but with David what is stressed is more specially the spiritual — those rich in this sense.
CG The idea of leadership comes in in that connection.
JT I think David makes room for that. Headship comes [p. 453] in in David.
Ques What part does the Holy Spirit have in this?
JT It is a question of what part of the meeting you are dealing with. The Spirit is with us always. The Lord says He is with you always. As we sit down together it is the anointing, because it is a question of public testimony. We do not come in like worldly church-goers; although many do. There is no dignity in that. It is a question of how I go into the meeting and how I appear generally. Scripture says the Lord placed himself at table. I think the Holy Spirit helps us there. “So also is the Christ”, in 1 Corinthians 12:12, means the whole company anointed. Then as we proceed in the service we are to rely on the Spirit; He is there personally, as the Comforter, to look after matters, and as we come to the covenant He is the Spirit of it. “The Lord is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:17), too, but the Spirit Himself is allied with the Lord to make the covenant effective — a very important matter. We are made conscious afresh of the love of God. And next we get the “Spirit of adoption”, by which we speak to God as Father.
HW We have been greatly helped of late with regard to the covenant, its teaching, and the place it has in assembly service. Might we not be in danger of dwelling too much on the covenant, detaining us from the true character of the assembly service?
JT We should not be detained overmuch on any of the features, but I am sure as to the covenant that it has not had its full place. The passage read in Acts looks on to the assembly. The endings of the gospels have also the remnant in view, and the assembly is not so clearly in mind. Here we are directly looking toward the assembly, and Christ is presented pending the coming in of the Spirit; His presentation of Himself living is after He suffered, that is, the perfect condition on which He has entered, in which we can have part; then, that we see Him. Luke says here, “being seen by them during forty days”, as much as to say, a period [p. 454] of time with plenty of opportunity to see Him in all the variety of features in which He would be seen, so that they should be spiritual. Then He spoke, and following that He is assembling with them, commanding them relative to the Father — the Spirit. I believe that is the order we should have before us.
Rem I am sure what has been said is important; and we all should get help. The Lord has given definite light regarding the assembly meeting, but we seem to get tied up that we must go through in the same way each time. To recognise the Lord as “living” amongst us would prevent us from that. Is there any warrant that we should have to reach the highest point every time?
JT There may not be power for it, and nothing is gained by carrying on on theoretic lines. We may have a good meeting without it; but Scripture gives us the outline, and if the Lord comes in and is discerned there will be freshness and variety. What is needed is spirituality. “Seen by them during forty days”. That is spirituality. Spiritual intelligence and energy will save us from omitting any feature of the service of God.
Ques Would the way in which the writer of the Acts speaks of what had gone before — “the first discourse” — signify the importance that ministry has? What is being given to us in these days does not set aside what has gone before, but adds to it, and this balances us.
JT Yes. “Concerning all things which Jesus began both to do and to teach”. So that what we seek now to see is what is to be done by us. I think the Lord assembling with them is striking; and now we have the privilege of coming together in assembly, and entering into the spiritual side of it, what the Lord has in it, and the need for spirituality. “Seen by them during forty days”. That was not only for them, but for us; it has come down to us.
Ques Would you say a further word in connection with coming together [p. 455] in assembly?
JT It is the attitude we are in; not for prayer or Bible reading, but “in assembly” in view of the Lord coming in. He says, “My assembly”. What will He do? I think we have been helped as to the covenant because it sets us free. There had been an elimination of that in immediately proceeding to the Father when the Supper was over, whereas I think the Lord would have us to dwell on the Supper as giving scope to His official service in the assembly. Anything needed He will look after, and if we are spiritual we shall wait on that. He had great thoughts in His mind, in the fact that He directs that they should await the Spirit’s coming. It is to remind us to be dependent on the power of the Spirit. The service of God is to proceed according to the mind of God set out in the Scriptures, but in the power of the Spirit.
Ques Have we to wait upon the Spirit as to taking audible part at the Supper?
JT Yes. There should be room for Him. The Spirit as the anointing is for public order and dignity, and then as having part in the covenant according to 2 Corinthians 3, and then as the Spirit of adoption.
AWR The people are distinctly brought into the service, when David says, “Bless now Jehovah your God”, (1 Chronicles 29:20).
JT Yes, and persons are much more in evidence in the inauguration of the temple service than in the inauguration of the tabernacle service. In the latter Aaron is mentioned as there, and washed at the laver, but it is generally Moses in Exodus 40, and the glory came in. It is more the authority of Christ in the tabernacle which has its place in our assembly service in the earlier part. It is the authority of Christ and the presence of the Spirit in the anointing. The anointing is greatly stressed in Exodus 40. The glory came in and Moses could not enter, that is, the time had come when authority was not so essential, but in the inauguration of the temple service there are one hundred and twenty priests [p. 456] with trumpets, and the Levites the singers. They reach a point of unity in song, then the glory enters. Thus persons are in great prominence in the opening of the temple service.
Ques Do you see any connection with Acts 1 there? One hundred and twenty names?
JT Quite so; “the crowd of names”. Names allude to persons of distinction. We must have such for the assembly.
CG Would this experience lead up to spiritual wealth, which you were speaking of at the outset — spiritual riches?
JT Yes. In relation to the temple you are struck with the dignity of the persons and their giving. David and Solomon, the princes, captains and comptrollers (1 Chronicles 29); then as the service is begun, one hundred and twenty priests and singing Levites, and the perfect sound reached: “One voice to be heard in praising and thanking Jehovah”, (2 Chronicles 5:13). It is a question of persons, no anointing, but the persons. And then the glory enters, as if, when a certain point is reached, God will say, ‘That is exactly what I want and that is all for Me’. It is all for God, so that the glory fills the scene.
RT With reference to “after he had suffered”, it would hardly be seemly to go back to the suffering side after the Lord had come in, as it might be before the Supper?
JT I think not. The point is, “perfect through sufferings”. You reach the state of perfection; the condition in which Christ is now and leads on to the great statement: “he that sanctifies and those sanctified are all of one”, of the same kind or order.
Ques Do you mean there is in the saints what answers to Christ’s living condition?
JT Yes. We are like Him, as of His kind or order of manhood; “all of one; for which cause” — not because He suffered for us, but because we are of that kind.
We have come into that condition — “for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren”.
AWR You do not go back to the means by which you have arrived at this point.
JT He is made perfect. He has reached that point and we have part in it, and now “he is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name to my brethren”, and then He sings. The order is perfectly clear, and if we keep in mind that the Spirit is the power, we do not depend on the externals merely, we have substance.
Rem It is really an enjoyment of the wealth; we get occupied with the Lord in a condition beyond the suffering.
Rem Praise thee with singing — is that a sort of climax?
JT Yes. It links on with 2 Chronicles 5; praise reached one note and the glory fills the scene.
FCH What is the force of sanctifying? — “he that sanctifies and those sanctified are all of one; for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren”.
JT That brings the Lord in in another way. The writer had been speaking of God. “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory”. That is God. God doing something for Himself. He has made “perfect the leader of their salvation through sufferings”. That finishes that side; then the Lord Jesus is alluded to as the Sanctifier in the next verse. Of course, the sanctifying process went on at the same time. It is noted three times in Hebrews. We approach it in the reverse way. The first is in chapter 13:12: “that he might sanctify the people by his own blood, suffered without the gate” (Hebrews 13:12). That is separation. The second is Hebrews 10:10: “by which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all”; and this in chapter 2 is the third: “he that sanctifies”. The process of sanctification went on and reaches this [p. 458] climax that He and we are the same as regards the kind of humanity. We have part in His humanity. We are all of one. It is not a question of unity, but kind.
FCH That is the means by which we arrive at it.
JT He has brought us into His own humanity as risen and glorified.
AWR The Man “out of heaven”.
JT Yes. As the heavenly One, such also the heavenly ones — a wonderful thought! And I believe that is what “perfect” means. He has reached a condition He can share with us; otherwise He would have had to remain alone. “Except the grain of wheat falling into the ground die, it abides alone” (John 12:24). Think of His sharing His humanity with us! Of course. He is personally always God, and as Man anointed with the oil of gladness above His companions (Hebrews 1:9).
CG That is a wonderful thought — sharing in His humanity.
JT He is no longer now alone.
FCH It is a necessity if He is not ashamed to call us brethren.
JT That is the point. Viewed as His brethren we are not of an inferior kind of humanity.
Rem That was in mind as He took flesh and blood.
JT He took part in flesh and blood for a purpose, to accomplish redemption; now He is in another condition. Eve typifies the assembly from this point of view. ‘Ishshah’ she is called in this connection. Eve is her name after sin came in; ‘Ishshah’ is her name before there was any sin, and we have part in what that means.
AWR Your reference earlier to “a spirit has not flesh and bones” (Luke 24:39), enters into this.
JT He is not a spirit in this sense, and yet the wonderful thing is that the last Adam is stated to be “a quickening spirit”. But He says, expressly, “a spirit has not flesh and bones” (Luke 24:39), so He is calling attention to the kind of humanity He has now taken on.