CHRIST AS KNOWN IN THE HOUSE
[p. 217] CHRIST AS KNOWN IN THE HOUSE
Verse 35 of this chapter suggests the Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, as He is to be known in the house. He is in it as having built it, and in mentioning His work in building the house, one is minded to refer to Him as building all things. It is said, “He who has built all things is God”, Hebrews 3:4 but God as in the Person of the Son, “by whom also”, we read, “he made the worlds”. Hebrews 1:2. That word, “the worlds”, as it comes into the mind produces a sense of one’s littleness as finite, for if one thinks of the worlds, one has to take refuge in God, and one may find refuge in God, for “he who dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him”, 1 John 4:16 so that one is filled and restful in the sense of what God is; otherwise one is lost in the very thought of the worlds. The greatest mind must find itself lost as it thinks of the worlds, for the mind naturally enquires what is beyond, and beyond, and beyond, and you have to stop as being finite. Hence in acknowledging God you take refuge in Him, as He knows, and that suffices. As Paul said, “Whether in the body or out of the body, I cannot tell, God knoweth” 2 Corinthians 12:2. The heart rests there; God knows, and as one is humbled in contemplating one’s littleness, one’s admiration of Christ in His greatness is enhanced. He made the worlds, and without Him was not anything made that was made. The mind and heart are subdued as the greatness of Christ is before one. “All things received being through him, and without him not one thing received being which has received being”. John 1:3. “By faith we apprehend that the worlds were framed by the word of God”. Hebrews 11:3. We apprehend, but we cannot take it in; nevertheless the word of God found its expression in Christ; it was carried out by His Son; He by whom all things were made, as [p. 218] John presents it, became flesh and dwelt among us. He came within the range of men, and as dwelling here He was known as coming in and going out among them, and there were those sufficiently interested to contemplate His glory. “We have contemplated his glory” John 1:14. What glory? Not only as the Creator of the worlds, but as dwelling among men. “A glory as of an only-begotten with a father” John 1:14 — that is how He was contemplated. It is thus we begin to get an insight into the house with the Son in it, and the Son in all His personal dignity as an only one with a father. We shall never understand it aright unless we see the Son in it; He is in it according to John’s presentation of truth in family relationship as “an only-begotten with a father” John 1:14 — so that it might be intelligible to all of us.
But in that relation He has our need in view. He is said to be “full of grace and truth” John 1:14; grace to secure our hearts and truth to extricate us from the world; but He is there as an only one, as wearing the glory of an only-begotten with a father. That is what John has in mind. But He is also in the house administratively and for that thought one would refer to Matthew, for Matthew is the great administrative gospel. Each of the evangelists presents the Lord in connection with the house in a sense peculiar to his gospel and understanding that helps us to understand the gospels. The thought in my mind tonight is the house system, God dispensing through His house; that is the dispensation in which we are and in which we have part. So Matthew presents the Lord to us as in the house from the outset. You recall how the wise men from the East were guided by His star. He was the King of the Jews, and the wise men found Him in a house. (See Matthew 2:11.) We have to understand that the dispensation is house-wise; that is the characterising feature of the moment, the dispensing is house-wise. We must [p. 219] first come under the rule of the sceptre, and be instructed by the Lawgiver, but Shiloh involves the house, and the great objective in the house involves the obedience of the peoples Genesis 49:10. Hence the Lord is in the house and the wise men come into it. What is before me is that every one might be encouraged to come into the house. The Psalmist says, “Let us go into the house”; so the wise men go into the house and did Him homage, and having opened their treasure they offered Him gifts, gold, frankincense and myrrh, the Spirit of God opening Matthew in that way with what is due to the Lord in the house. Men have disregarded the rights of Christ in the house, and hence they have lost the activities of the Spirit. The Lord’s rights must come first, and hence the wise men did homage. That is the way to arrive at the house from Matthew’s point of view. If He is born King of the Jews He is born to rule and exercise the rights of God, for there is no room in the house for man’s disobedience. But the fact is that the very grace of God is taken advantage of to disregard the rights of Christ, but we cannot do it with impunity, the government of God moves on, He comes in governmentally. Matthew opens with homage being rendered by Gentiles, a rebuke at the very outset to the legitimate subjects of the King, who were attempting to kill Him. The Gentiles seize the opportunity and if we are to get the benefit of the house of God we must do as the wise men did, we must begin with humble acknowledgment of the rights of Christ in the rule of the house. If we have not done it, take advantage of it now. If you want to get clear of the troubles of Christendom, be wise and bow and acknowledge the rights of Christ in the house.
We might trace in Matthew other instances connected with the house. The ninth chapter gives us the Lord in the house sitting at meat with publicans and [p. 220] sinners. Think of the grace of Christ, sitting at meat in Levi’s house, criticised as one might expect, but full of grace in the presence of the criticism. “They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick”. Matthew 9:12. All the spiritual ills we suffer from may be cured by Christ in the house. Is there one here in spiritual need? Perhaps none of us are quite whole. It is the sick who come in for the administrating virtue of Christ in the house. His presence there involves the administration of mercy for the sick. “I will have mercy, and not sacrifice”. Matthew 9:13. Two blind men we read later in chapter 9, come to Him in the house; they need their eyes opened. Blindness comes over even the people of God, otherwise why cannot they see the plainest spiritual things? They are blind. In Hebrews 12:14 we read, “Holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord”. Many miss the movements of the Lord because of the lack of holiness. There was faith in these blind men for their eyes to be opened, and they received their sight in the house.
In chapter 13 there is the seed-sowing, suggesting the presentation of the gospel world-wide. That exercise does not alone suffice, for souls have to be taught and instructed and the teaching is in the house (Matthew 13:36). The disciples come to him, and said to Him, “Expound to us the parable of the darnel of the field”. Matthew 13:36. A perfect maze exists in the world today; the wheat and tares bewilder and entangle souls so that one’s heart bleeds for them, for the way has become so difficult. The instruction in regard to all this is in the house. If there be obedience to the Lord you will come to Him. The disciples came to Him, and He was available to them in the house and He explained the parable of the wheat and the tares. Note, too, He not only explains the immediate difficulty but goes further. He went on and opened up the precious truth of the assembly; the Lord [p. 221] bringing them thus into the light of the treasure and the pearl. To disentangle us from the evil the Lord first adjusts our souls and then brings us into the light of the precious treasure, the truth of the assembly. That is coming to light today and is found as we come to Christ in the house.
The Holy Spirit is working, too, so that there is not only the recognition of Christ in the house, but of what is due to Him personally. So in the end of the gospel a woman comes with ointment and anoints His head — a becoming tribute to what is due to Him personally. Have we ever been moved in this way to anoint the head of Him through whom all the bounty of God is dispensed day by day? The woman recognises His official place. She would recognise no dignitary in this world; no one who apprehends the gospel of Matthew will recognise religious dignitaries. There is one Man to whom the oil belongs, and only one, and this woman in the intelligence of faith and love draws near and anoints Him for His burial. The air was rife with murder against Him, but there was one heart that loved Him and knew that He was the divinely appointed Administrator; so she anointed His head — a wonderful testimony to the place Christ had acquired in a devoted heart. Do you think this could be forgotten? No one can countenance such a thought for a moment, for the Lord said wherever the gospel is preached this that this woman hath done shall be told for a memorial of her, but everything of man, man’s reasonings, man’s thoughts, as seen in higher critics and the like, are to be entirely discountenanced. We have to see the dispensation of God is in faith and house-wise. Look at the Lord’s words to this woman, to the one who anointed Him officially. Never has there been a person so peculiarly distinguished as this woman set alongside the gospel: “This that she hath done shall be told for a memorial of her”. Matthew 26:13. Such is the Lord’s appreciation; He valued [p. 222] the act and a memorial of her must be preserved. He Himself was about to die to make it effective.
As before stated, Matthew presents the kingly and official side, but in John it is the family side, hence He says, “The servant abideth not in the house for ever, but the Son abideth ever”. John 8:35. Note the word ‘abideth’, not only an administrative place but a place in which to dwell. “The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we have contemplated his glory, a glory as of an only-begotten with a father)” John 1:14; it is the Son with the Father. Have we sufficient spiritual understanding to apprehend Christ in this way — as a Son with the Father? It requires contemplation. I refer you now to two souls who became detached from their teacher. There may be some who are following the leader of a party. John was not that, but he had disciples, those who followed him, but two of these who heard him speak followed Jesus. John spoke feelingly about Jesus; it was a word from the heart, “Behold the Lamb of God”. John 1:36. Perhaps there is nothing we are more lacking in than spiritual feeling. The Lord had feeling Himself. He rejoiced, He sighed, He wept. It was as John looked upon Jesus that he said, “Behold the Lamb of God”. John 1:36. A word from the heart goes to the heart, and it went to the heart of those two, so that they followed Jesus. Jesus knew they were following, but He turned to see. Jesus turned and saw them following, and said to them, “What seek ye?” John 1:38. The first chapter of John suggests the last Adam. He loves to hear you tell the desires of your heart. What have we come here for today? These two said, “Rabbi ... where abidest thou?” John 1:38. They did not wish any abiding place, nor should we where He cannot abide. Now if you want that the Lord would say, “Come and see”. John 1:39. It is a spiritual matter. They came and saw where He abode and abode with Him that day; they would in that way apprehend the Son, and they dwelt with Him.
[p. 223] In chapter 8 the Lord introduces the service of God. It had been turned into the service of sin. Many who pretend to serve are only serving their own wills. Sin is lawlessness; men have disregarded the law of God’s house and substituted man’s will of the worst order. The servant abideth not in the house for ever, but the Son abideth ever. He delighted in the will of God and would abide in the house for ever. This house was to stand out in all its lustre and glory, and be filled with the Son who should serve for ever. We see Him serving in the next chapter. There a man is set free by the Son. “Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him, he said to him, Thou, dost thou believe on the Son of God? ... he that speaks with thee is he”. John 9:35,37. The Lord introduces you into the house in that beautiful way as one who talks with you. In principle the man is brought into it. In chapter 12 a supper is made for Him. That corresponds with the action in Simon’s house, but is more exalted as coming in in connection with the glory of the Son of God, following as it does on chapter 11, where the Lord says to Martha, “Said I not unto thee, that if thou wouldest believe thou shouldest see the glory of God?” John 11:40. So chapter 11 gives us the glorification of God and of the Son of God. He is declared to be the Son of God by resurrection from the dead. He knew in John 12 the work that had been effected in that group. Mary took a pound of ointment of spikenard — a measured amount, note, and very costly. She was intelligent in the glory of God and the glory of the Son of God. Thus we own the Lord in the house in family relations and are there in relation to the Father.