THE CHURCH AND THE TESTIMONY
[p. 273] THE CHURCH AND THE TESTIMONY
It is a great thing to have an apprehension of what God intended to be the vessel of testimony down here; many are not clear about this. in the millennium it is certain that the church will be a full expression to the universe of the grace of God, a verse in this epistle shows this, chapter 2:7, “That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:7) — the church will be the light of the universe morally; it will be the witness of the exceeding riches of God’s grace. The nations of the earth will walk in the light of it, and for the reason that it is God’s great witness of the exceeding riches of His grace. You get the same thought presented in John 17:21, “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me”. And again in verse 23, “that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me”, John 17:23. In the first it is that the world may believe, it is a testimony for faith; and afterwards it is that the world may know, it will be no longer to faith then. The heavenly city will have that character, it will be the display of the exceeding riches of God’s grace. But what is important to see is that the church is now the vessel of God’s testimony; there is no other down here: the church is the pillar and ground of the truth. Many think that the individual servant is the vessel of testimony, but that is a mistake. It is true that the church is not set as a teacher (and yet the gifts are set in the church) — but the church is to be filled to all the fulness of God, that there should be in it, morally, the display of God. The mighty power [p. 274] of God is working in the church to this end. In the world we see man’s power working, but in the church the mighty power of God, and to this end, that there might be a continuation here of that which was set forth in Christ when He was upon earth.
The seven churches in the beginning of Revelation are looked at as light-bearers upon earth; in that way we see the responsibility of the church to be a light-bearer for Christ. The warning is held over the church that its candlestick would be removed when once it failed to answer to the mind of Christ; but, while the warning still impends, it has not yet been actually carried into effect. I refer to that passage to show that the thought in the mind of God is that the church is the vessel of testimony. We cannot set up now to have things as at Pentecost, but we can cling to the divine idea that everything in the house of God is to be in the power of the Holy Spirit. Nothing save what is of the Spirit is suitable to the house. The recognition of the Spirit’s presence has brought us together in these days, and it is of all importance that we should not go outside of what is of the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit is here to report the glory of Christ; we have not the place of the apostles to bear witness to what Christ was here, but we have the Holy Spirit to depend upon; He is here to testify of Christ. What is effected for God here is effected by the Holy Spirit. We may obtain apparently greater results by having recourse to man’s ways, but these do not effect what is for God.
I want now to show you how the power and activity of God here are connected with saints, in order that they may be here in the place of testimony. The moral progress of saints is from light to testimony, and we can go no further than that; we could not go beyond what we get in the prayer in Ephesians 3. There is a testimony here for God — for principalities and powers, too — but still in the face of the world.
[p. 275] We have all begun in receiving the light of the revelation of God, the gospel brought the light of that to us; the gospel has revealed God and His thoughts. God has come out of His place to make Himself known; He has come out as light, no longer remaining hid in thick darkness, but the veil rent. If we are defective, the reason is that we have such poor acquaintance with God. Many know and believe facts, but you have no true moral foundation save in the knowledge of God; and we ought therefore to give attention to the import of the death and resurrection of Christ in which God is learnt. In death, God Himself was revealed; in resurrection His pleasure was expressed in power in regard of man. In the death of Christ everything was effected God-ward; in the resurrection everything was in principle effected man-ward. Christ was raised from the dead, He could not be holden of it. And now we have the kingdom, which is a moral necessity, in order to the disentanglement of good and evil; when there is the complete and final solution of good and evil there will be no longer a kingdom, but until then, if God reveal Himself in grace, the kingdom is a moral necessity. There must be the complete disentanglement of good and evil. The great white throne is the finish to it. There is grace for the protection and promotion of good, and power to subjugate evil. This is true in its application to us, even as it will be in a public way in the kingdom by-and-by. The Lord will not tolerate our wills. It was for sin that Christ died on the cross, and the purpose and end of the nurture and admonition of the Lord is that we should become sensitive to the presence of the Spirit, the result of this being that we are enabled to distinguish between Christ as Lord and Christ as Head.
The effect of the nurture and admonition of the Lord is to set us free practically from the working of our own wills, so that by the Spirit we may become sensitive to what Christ is as Head.
[p. 276] Christ as Lord will carry out all the will of God in power. He went into death to lay the basis, and He will bring into this world in a public way by-and-by the blessings that we know in our souls now. He will reign in peace; there will be no turmoil then, but peace — we have it now by the power of the Holy Spirit. Administration is committed to Christ as Lord; but we have to learn also what He is as Head; as Head He pervades and gives character to everything. He is Lord over everything, but He is Head in a sense through everything; for instance, in being Head to the church He gives character to the church, as it is His fulness — as Head of all principality and power He gives character to all, for through Him all are reconciled to the fulness of God. So, too, as Head of every man — every order of man in the universe of bliss has his character from Christ. Israel is in accord with the heavenly city, and the nations walk in the light of it. Principalities and powers will have their character from Him — He is Head of all principality and power. The head is the seat of intelligence, and we have to learn that Christ is our Head; we do not always like to have our own direction set aside, but Christ has to become our intelligence. It works in us in this way, we are knit together in love; the spring of intelligence in divine things is love, for God is love. We cannot have the “riches of the full assurance of understanding” (Colossians 2:2) if we do not begin with being “knit together in love”, Colossians 2:2.
It is of great interest that Christ as the anointed One is to give character to everything, even to the principalities and powers. The church, too, is anointed; it is pervaded by Christ, room being given to Him as Head. The church is called the Christ; 1 Corinthians 12. In the close of Ephesians 3 the apostle prays that there may be the suited state in the saints to be here in testimony. There were two parts to the apostle’s ministry — first, to preach the unsearchable [p. 277] riches of the Christ; and secondly, to make all see the administration of the mystery; then he bows his knees. He could unfold the wisdom of the mystery, but he could do no more, and God only could effect in saints the state which is according to His mind and pleasure. You do not suppose that any ministry can effect in you a state. It may give you light as to what is to be, and instruct you in the will of God, but the real work in saints is effected in the power of the Holy Spirit, so the apostle turns to prayer, that the saints may be in the good of what God is effecting down here.
I want now to bring before you what is presented as God’s work here: see chapter 3:6. There had been in the cross the exclusion of man, Jew and gentile, but the cross is also the expression of the love of God; man and his will is excluded in order to make room for Christ. And in consequence we get that the apostle preached the unsearchable riches of the Christ — unsearchable, because He is divine; and further, he was to make all men see the administration of the mystery.
Now turn to the prayer which is addressed to the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ — God is the source of creation, but the name of Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is identified with counsels. Then we get the power of that same Person — different from the power of creation. The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is exercising His mighty power in regard of the inner man of christians; the inner man is what is of God; our outward man comes under discipline, not the inner man. The mighty power of the Spirit of the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is set for the strengthening of our inner man, and the more it is so the more we are delivered from the depressing circumstances of the outward man. The object is that Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith. In the universe of God everything will come under the anointing; Christ is the [p. 278] anointed Man, and all will come under Him. All will have its character from Him. And it is God’s pleasure in regard of saints that Christ, from whom everything is to take character, should dwell in our hearts by faith. And the object is, that we may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height. It does not say what of; I believe it is of all that will come under the anointing, of all that will take its character from Christ, the Anointed — really of the glory of Christ.
What is prayed for here expresses in a way the testimony of Scripture. The source of all Scripture is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; the energising power in it is the Holy Spirit; and the object of it is Christ. Now what is true in regard of the revelation of God in the word is true in regard of the church. The body, the church, is to be a complete witness of God here, and it is brought to pass by the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, through the Spirit, in bringing in all that is after Christ. All saints are bound up with the vessel of God’s testimony here; the enemy has succeeded in marring the vessel of testimony, and all is now as feeble as can possibly be, but it is a great favour to have the light of God’s mind in the darkest day. All will come to pass, for the church will come out having the glory of God, and her light like unto a stone most precious.