REALITY
[p. 251] REALITY
My point, beloved friends, tonight is, just to try and present to you if I can, things as they are. It is a great point for every one of us to apprehend things as they are, a very important point for people not to build castles in the air. My point is to see things as they are, not to live in imagination, not to live on the past. There are vast numbers of people who live on the past. It is a great thing to see things as they are. With christians the same thing applies, a great many live really in the past, they relive some past time; but the great thing for an intelligent christian is to live in the light of what is. Now if you want me to tell you ‘what is’ it is summed up in a short expression “The glory of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18), that is ‘what is’.
I am confident of this, that you are never delivered from the glory of man until you get a sense of the glory of the Lord. The heart of man goes out in a certain sense after glory; he dearly loves glory. He dearly loves to see glory in others, if he cannot see it in himself. There is a certain amount of credit, honour, to the race of mankind. Man is not to be trusted, he will always try to be something. Even if they should fail they are trying to build themselves up again. But man is not what he seems. While in certain circumstances he pursues certain aims and objects, yet if circumstances are changed you would find the man changed. It is Babylon. What he is in certain circumstances he may not be in others.
Man is not to be trusted under all circumstances. It is exactly the contrast to the christian. The power of truth in a person under the influence of divine grace, that man can be trusted under all circumstances. “Many believed ... when they saw” (John 2:23), but Jesus did not [p. 252] commit Himself. The Lord did not trust Himself to them. My conviction is, nothing delivers from the glory of the world, the glory of man: (Babylonish principle is the glory of man, and we have had plenty of the glory of man this week, however other people may excuse it, it is all the Babylonish principle, it is the glory of man, it is not the glory that emanates from God; it is Babylonish; ) the only thing that delivers is the “glory of the Lord”. One thing is that the glory of man rests on no foundations, no moral foundations; but when you come to the glory of the Lord, it is distinguished by this, that it rests on moral foundations. It is like the heavenly city in contrast to Babylon; no foundations, and Babylon is destroyed. The heavenly city has foundations, its builder and maker is God. Abraham “looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God”, Hebrews 11:10. I do not care for a city without foundations. I esteem the moral much more than the material. The material may wear out, but the moral will not wear out. What we want is the city that has foundations, “whose builder and maker is God”, Hebrews 11:10. Abraham sought, we have found; that marks the difference between the past and the present. He sought, we find; he never found. But I have no doubt he will have what he sought; he will have the city, he will walk in the streets of it, but at the same time while on earth he did not find. And now we have found; and not only found it but it is called “Jerusalem above ... which is our mother” Galatians 4:26.
Now, as I said before, I have to bring before you the great importance of apprehending ‘what is’ so that you do not live on what is past. Referring to the latter part of the previous chapter, we get the parable of the husbandmen. A man planting a vineyard and sending his servants from time to time seeking the fruit of the vineyard; that is past. All that closes up in the rejection of the Son in the beginning of this [p. 253] chapter: last of all He sends His Son, and they kill the Son and propose to seize on His inheritance. This parable is in contrast to that wedding supper, or dinner, and beloved friends, that does not mark the past, it marks the present. What I should like to make clear is this, that in the presence of Christ on earth, two things overlapped — two courses of dealing, what I might call two courses of action, and they overlapped really in Christ.
On the one hand, God was still seeking fruit. The last message was His Son, God was still on that line, seeking fruit. After all, this parable brings another thought, that Christ came on another ground really; the King makes a marriage for His Son (Christ). Look at the beginning of the Acts. I hardly need to say that God was building the church, and yet on the other hand He was making His last appeals to Israel; if they repented, God would send Christ to them again. Two courses of dealing overlap, and it is in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ on earth. On the line of God’s purposes in connection with the marriage supper He was God’s Son. In Him God was going to establish all His purposes. It is the last closing test on the ground of man’s responsibility. I will bring one thing forward that will prove this. At the close of His pathway, you remember, the Lord cursed the fig tree and the fig tree withered away. It was He who cursed it. It had been digged and dunged about, every test had been applied, and it did not bring forth fruit and now it is never to bring forth again for ever. A succession of servants had been sent to the husbandmen. He had sent a variety of servants, at last He sends His Son. “They will reverence him” (Luke 20:13), but they cast Him out of the vineyard, they predicted the doom which would fall upon them, they would be destroyed and the husbandry would be let out to others. My point is, that after all Christ came on a different line; on the line of divine purpose. He was God’s Son. You will find that the changes are continually rung on the three titles: Son of David; Son of man; and the Son of God. The idea which is connected with the cross is that it is this One by whom the people were tested; whom they crucified, and God raised. Son of man — suffering and glory. Son of God brings in another thought, it is One in whom God establishes all His purposes. You will find that is the connection in which the three titles stand.
It is remarkable if you take this gospel, how the three titles come out. He enters Jerusalem sitting on an ass. He comes in as David’s Son and Zion’s King. He is crucified, and raised, and He is called on to sit at God’s right hand, until His foes are made His footstool. It fulfils Psalm 110. In this chapter God is on another course. In the parable we have before us a certain king makes a supper. There is One in whom God fulfils His purpose. Later on, in chapters 24 and 25, it is the whole; the Spirit of God takes up the whole scene of judgment, Son of man here. He suffered as Son of man, but the Son of man is glorified, and all judgment is committed to Him. Judgment with regard to the Jews; judgment of the kingdom (ten virgins) and then the judgment of the nations.
My point, if you regard the distinctions I have attempted to draw given from Matthew, is that which it pleased God to establish in His Son. He came as the Son of God, in whom it pleased God to establish all the purpose of His mind. I think it is that which is meant in the truth before us. A certain king would make a marriage, make an alliance for His Son. It is a new departure; God is not seeking fruit any longer; not sending to the husbandmen; no, He is on a different line, establishing every thought and purpose of His will in His Son. He makes a marriage for His Son. I will attempt to develop that it is that which marks this moment. Oh, that God would give us grace that we may get the apprehension of the glory [p. 255] of Christ. None of us is clear from running after the glory of man. As you apprehend the glory of Christ you will see that which is the peculiarity of this moment. I take up three things for a moment, I have spoken of them before; I merely now take them up. Three thoughts which are the testimony of God in the Old Testament scriptures; they comprise the testimony of God in the Old Testament scriptures from the time of Abraham downward, there are three items or parts of God’s testimony. The first was ‘His purpose to bless’, the second ‘His purpose to dwell’, and the third ‘His purpose to reign’. I want you to take up these three thoughts. The first, ‘His purpose of blessing’, He would bless; that comes out in Abraham. Second, that comes out in the building of the tabernacle after the children of Israel were delivered out of Egypt. And third in connection with David, God would reign. There was to be the throne, Babylon never was the throne of God. Whatever throne there is it is all Babylonish in character. After all, beloved friends, all thrones are Babylonish in character. It is the power of the gentiles, I quite admit that, but not one is the throne of God.
The throne of God is identified with Jerusalem. No peace for God upon the earth as long as Babylon is in the ascendancy. Every throne is Babylonish. We ought to take that to heart. I take up again these three great testimonies of God: blessing, dwelling, and ruling. God connects all that with Israel. Beloved friends, what I believe is this, that Israel should have been the blessing of the whole earth, if they had been faithful to God, and their father Abraham, the channel of blessing to the whole earth. All the earth in a certain sense is blessed in God’s people. But on the contrary, they fell under the power of the gentiles. They brought themselves under curse, that is what Israel did, they forfeited the blessing, and brought themselves under the curse of a broken law. The [p. 256] blessing of Abraham was there and they should have been the channel of blessing to the whole earth. And they had the dwelling place of God. What other nation had that? God’s temple was not limited to Israel. “A house of prayer for all nations”. It is identified with Jerusalem but mark this, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations”, Mark 11:17. That is what it was, God dwelt there but it was to be for all nations.
It is true that God set up His throne, although God reigned in David. God swore to him, that not only should he reign, but his seed after him, too; “To thy seed”, etc. Beloved friends, these three great parts of God’s testimony in the Old Testament — blessing, dwelling, and reigning — all these three thoughts were in connection with Israel, David’s throne is there, God’s temple was there, and they should have been the channel of blessing. They were no blessing to the rest of the world, they fell to the rest of the world and became idolaters, and God had to say to them by the prophet Isaiah, “The Most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands”, Acts 7:48. The fact is, they were superseded by Christ, and so you get the expression applied to the Lord at the beginning of His course; it was applied to Israel, “Out of Egypt have I called my Son”, Matthew 2:15. It is applied to Christ. He went down into Egypt that the scripture might be fulfilled. In John 15 the Lord says, “I am the true vine”, John 15:1. Israel had the place of the vine. The Lord says there, “I am the true vine”. If I may use the expression, Israel was superseded. There never was fruit; now there is to be fruit. The secret of fruit-bearing was vitality; and the secret — being under Him; they were fruitful because they abode in the vine. Israel was really superseded by Christ.
The force of the marriage supper is this, that every testimony of God which was connected with Israel is taken up afresh in Christ. He was the channel of [p. 257] blessing. Do you know how Peter puts it? He speaks of Christ having been sent “to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities”, Acts 3:26. Taken up in Christ, and Christ is sent to bless them in turning away everyone from their iniquities. There is the thought of dwelling taken up, too; “Destroy this temple”, etc. Remember what the Lord said; there was a temple of God here, “In him should all fulness dwell”, and the Lord could say to the Jews when they asked Him for a sign, “Destroy this temple” (John 2:19) etc.
It is a remarkable expression in Colossians 1, “In him all the fulness of the Godhead was pleased to dwell”, and He became a Man that the Father might dwell there; the fulness of the Godhead might dwell there. He was entitled to David’s throne. He was David’s Son. He was not simply David’s Lord, and therefore He was entitled to David’s throne. The great point is this, that every part of God’s testimony connected with Israel and forfeited by their unfaithfulness, is taken up again now in the Lord Jesus Christ. A new departure — the King making a marriage for His Son — that is an alliance is formed. All the thoughts and purposes of God are taken up afresh in God’s Son, though they failed in Israel. The death of Christ has not altered anything of that at all. The crucifixion of Christ has not altered that which God established in Him. God’s purpose to bless which came out when Christ was here has not gone. Nothing can divert God from His purpose. The wickedness of man may bring upon himself most terrible consequences, but the wickedness of man can never divert God from His purpose. The blessing of God stands; the dwelling-place stands; and then there is Christ entitled to the ‘throne’. We see Jesus crowned with glory and honour. That is what marks this moment. Every testimony of God has found its resting-place in the Lord Jesus Christ; God is not seeking fruit, but [p. 258] making known to us that He has secured all His glory in the Lord Jesus Christ. If people are not affected by what you bring before them, you are little affected by it yourself. And that is a terrible thing but I feel it is the case. You can only affect others as you are affected yourself. Oh, that I might be affected by the great truth that every testimony of God has found its resting-place in Christ. God taking things up provisionally — every purpose established in Christ and settled; when I look at the Lord Jesus Christ I see the purpose of God established and settled, everything rests now on the blessed eternal foundation, righteousness — righteousness established in the cross of Christ — every purpose of God settled. We have before us one simple expression in Stephen. Every purpose is established in Christ in righteousness. Stephen was a man full of the Holy Spirit and he looks up steadfastly into heaven. “He saw the glory of God and Jesus”, Acts 7:55. And what comes out in Stephen? Two things come out: the effect of the Spirit’s conformative power; Stephen was perfectly conformed to Christ, then the moral bearing of baptism, he passed off the scene, he was baptised to death by the stones. He was not baptised to death in that sense until there was the Spirit’s conformative power — he is like the Lord.
He was looking up steadfastly in the power of the Holy Spirit. Do you think you cannot look up steadfastly and see the glory of God and Jesus? I think Paul comes in and begins in a certain sense where Stephen left off. In the power of the Holy Spirit we can see Jesus crowned with glory and honour. What a comfort to know that the word of God can never fail. We rest our souls, everything, for time and eternity upon the word of God. No purpose of God can fail.
Every purpose of God’s heart has its resting-place in Christ; it stands in Christ. Many defects are in the heart of man, but the counsel of the Lord stands, and as I said before, God’s vessel of blessing, and David’s throne belong to Him. At the very birth of the Lord it was said, “He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever”, Luke 1:33. God is bringing to light the blessed truth, not only to establish every purpose of His heart in the Lord Jesus Christ, but it rests on the most solid foundations, divine righteousness and divine power. If I do not apprehend the righteousness of God, I cannot apprehend the power of God. Righteousness comes out in the cross; the power in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Two foundations — righteousness and power. Righteousness must be because of what God is. He cannot utter judgment in vain, righteousness must be established; at the same time if there is righteousness, there is power. That is my main point; I want you to see things as they are. In the power of the Holy Spirit we may be able to look up and see the glory of God and Jesus. Every testimony of God which came out in the Old Testament, every bit and every item of God’s testimony is established in the Lord Jesus Christ; and established on such foundations that it cannot fail.
Beloved friends, a few words as to our fitness for it. It is this, you have got to be apart from everything which is of man. The great thing is to be fit for the marriage supper, and indeed, I trust everyone is fit, the. way is to be free from everything which is of man. What is of man, what is of man’s righteousness, goodness, or faithfulness, is no good at all. The fact is that for the marriage supper you want what is entirely of God; in other words the wedding garment. God provides the wedding garment, not man. You must be in perfect suitability to the occasion; that is what I understand by it.
It would never do to go to a wedding clad in the garb for a funeral. You must be suitable to the occasion; the wedding garment makes you suitable to the occasion. You are divested in yourself of all that is of man — human goodness or competency. I [p. 260] have to come to this, I am not to be trusted. Job did very well in favourable circumstances, but when he was placed in unfavourable he was altered very much. He had to learn that it was perfectly useless to look for any good in man. That is what we have to learn. It is a great thing that we are able to look in the face of Jesus Christ and see the glory of God and know that nothing is expected from us.
There are two great points in it. The one is, or rather the one great point is this, that it is all of God. I take up two simple things in regard to the christian:
righteousness and acceptance. The one is you must be clear, the other is you must be accepted. You say, I cannot understand such a thing; a man clear and yet not accepted. Well, take a bankrupt cleared of his debts; he is clear but he is not accepted. I am not only clear as a christian, but I am accepted. How are you clear? You are clear by believing in God’s righteousness, not believing anything about man’s; really in the apprehension of God’s righteousness. Where the righteousness of God has been expressed is in the blood of Jesus. Man has been, and is, cleared in the apprehension of God’s righteousness as witnessed in the blood of Jesus. God’s judgment has been carried out. Man is clear by faith in the blood; that is one part. Now I say there is another part, I apprehend the power of God that raised Christ; the effect of that is, I get acceptance. Christ is risen, you are accepted with God, but only by the apprehension of the power of God. God does not leave a bit of you standing. Not a bit of the wreck is left standing. You begin afresh by the apprehension of the blood, and cleared in apprehending God’s righteousness and accepted in apprehending God’s power. And now, beloved, I have the wedding garment; in suitability to the marriage. Every purpose of God will stand conformed in the blessed Vessel of His purpose, and the Vessel is the “Son of God”.
[p. 261] It is a blessed thing to see God’s way when Christ was on earth, God proposing the very last test to Israel, and at the same time, setting to work to accomplish all the purpose of His will in His Son. Everything is taken up in Christ, “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily”, Colossians 2:9. He is to sit on the throne of His Father. If I see the glory of God I see it in the face of Jesus Christ. I trust we are in suitability to the occasion, apprehending God’s righteousness, not apprehending ours, and accepted because we are apprehending God’s power. “Delivered for our offences” (Romans 4:25) etc. That is our suitability for the marriage supper. That is what I wanted to bring before you, I could not press too strongly the importance of seeing things as they are at the moment. My impression is that the tendency of the mind is to live in the past; the consequence is they deplore the present. The point is to see the present; no good reverting to the past, but the great thing is, while you apprehend the past, you should live in the present and see what is true of this moment.
As with the children of Israel, God was seeking fruit; God has wiped away everything, all is gone in the cross, and now we begin with God’s righteousness; and as I apprehend God’s mind I am in suitability to the marriage supper, and find that everything, every part of God’s purpose, stands. May God give us to see the glory of the Lord in the power of the Holy Spirit, to be like Stephen, work in us like in Stephen. Like Christ, conformity to Christ; dead and buried, too, in regard to the world, buried in the death of Christ and conformed in the power of the Holy Spirit to Christ in glory.