THE MAN CHRIST JESUS
A. P. Devenish
Exodus 2: 16–20; Genesis 40: 9–14, 23; 41: 8–14; 1 Samuel 16: 6–12
It is in mind, dear friends, to speak of the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all. The writer of the Hebrews speaks about being negligent of so great a
salvation and there was negligence in these scriptures that I have referred to. Moses had done so much for these seven daughters, how much they owed to Moses that day, when he helped them; he rose and helped them, and watered their flock. Moses is a type of Christ, the man Christ Jesus. Think how much He has done for us. I suppose all must realise how much the Lord Jesus has done for us; He suffered on our account, bore our sins, those of us who have faith, in His own body on the tree. He suffered under the wrath of God, in order that salvation should be ours, but have we left the Man behind? Have we enjoyed what He has done, have we come into the gain of what He has done? Yet, practically, have we left the Man behind?
That is what Reuel says, “where is he?” I would say, Where is Christ in your life? Where is He in my life? Where is He? Is He supreme in your heart? Has He the chief place there? So Reuel says, “Call him”. He says, “where is he? why then have ye left the man behind?” Many Christians, and perhaps we are among them, receive and accept the benefits of the glad tidings, all that has been effected for us by Christ, and yet we have left the Man behind, the Man Christ Jesus. He is worthy of our love, beloved friends. We not only need to put our faith and trust in His precious work, but to receive Him into our hearts, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all.
I referred to Joseph, again it was a matter of negligence with the cup-bearer. It says about him that he forgot him. The appeal of Joseph was, “Only bear a remembrance with thee of me”.
He had interpreted to him his dream, brought before him a lovely type of the life of Jesus. He had been restored to his office as the chief cup-bearer and Joseph says, “Only bear a remembrance with thee of me when it goes well with thee, and deal kindly, I pray thee, with me, and make mention of me to Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house”. But then, it says in the last verse, “the chief of the cup-bearers did not remember Joseph, and forgot him”.
He was restored to his office, reinstated we might say, but the one who interpreted to him his dream, he forgot. But then, he as convicted when Pharaoh’s dreams could not be explained, he remembered the one who had interpreted to him his dream. It says, “Pharaoh sent and called Joseph”. I want to make a practical application of this; it may be that we shut the Lord Jesus out of our lives, and the wisdom that comes from Him. Paul says in the Corinthian epistle, He has been made unto us wisdom. I would especially speak to the younger brethren, not to shut Him out of your life, not to make your own plans, your own arrangements, do you own will, and practically shut out what is available in Christ for your blessing. Open the door of your heart to receive Him. It says, “Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph”. Christ is just there available. He is not at any great distance from you, just send and call Him and He will come, and all the wisdom that He has will be available to you. Joseph is but a type of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Man Christ Jesus.
I think so many of us, and I speak for myself, try and arrange our lives according to our desires and plans, and practically exclude the Lord Jesus. He is just there available to be called upon. He has been made unto us wisdom, meaning He is available in order that we should have His wisdom in the working out of our lives, giving Him the place that is due to Him. As long as Joseph was in prison, Pharaoh’s dreams could not be interpreted, there was no one great enough, but Joseph was great enough, and the man Christ Jesus is great enough.
He has been made unto us wisdom. How wonderful it is, that He has become so available to you and to me. The scripture says, “unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given”, Isaiah 9: 6. It also says, “a Saviour has been born to you”, Luke 2: 11. It is wonderful how the Lord Jesus has drawn near! Just call Him and He will come, and all the wisdom you need in your life will be available to you. You will not make all these mistakes that some of us have made.
So, only call, send for Him. How simple, and perhaps how different, our lives would have been if we had given Him the place that was due to Him. Do not leave Him in prison in that sense, that is, do not shut Him out of your heart, do not shut Him out of your life, just call and send for Him. He will be delighted to come and fill your heart with His love, and give to you wisdom; so that as not having your own will, your own arrangements, your own plans, but just submitting to Christ, you will find things so much better. You can trust the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all.
I referred to Samuel, again it is negligence. Samuel had called Jesse and his sons for a meeting in order to choose Jehovah’s anointed and the only one who was to be anointed, the man after God’s own heart was not there. Fancy making such an arrangement, and perhaps we do likewise, and the man after God’s own heart is neglected; he is out feeding the sheep here. Eliab came before Samuel and what does God say? “I have rejected him; for it is not as man seeth”. Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel but God had not chosen them.
Man’s judgment is coloured by distinctive men in the world, maybe in the sports world, maybe in the business world; men rise up in their personal glory, as persons who have succeeded, but the only man that God could anoint was not in this gathering. He has to be brought in. Samuel says to Jesse, “Are these all the young men? And he said, there is yet the youngest remaining”. Surely it would have been right for him to be there! But no one could see the attractiveness of David, no eye could have God’s estimate of this man, who is a type of the man Christ Jesus. It says, “And he was ruddy, and besides of a lovely countenance”.
David represents the Lord Jesus in all His attractiveness. Oh that today your heart would be attracted to Christ, that you may be among those, as in this further gathering, to whom Jehovah said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is he”. Have you ever done that, dear friend, have you ever distinguished Christ? We spoke the other day of the woman in Mark 14 who anointed His head, and the Lord says, ‘What she could she has done” (Mark 14: 8). She was criticised, and we may be criticised, we may be under reproach because the man Christ Jesus has become supreme in our hearts. Let us do what we can, every one of us can do something, every one of us can commit ourselves to the man Christ Jesus. He is so attractive. David represents the Lord Jesus, he is so attractive, the man after God’s own heart, the beloved of Jehovah. Is He beloved to you? Is He your choice? He is God’s choice. Would that He might become your choice, He is well worthy of our love.
I just allude to the woman in Luke 7. What I see in that chapter is Simon’s neglect. The Lord says to Simon, “Seest thou this woman? I entered into thy house; thou gavest me not water on my feet ... Thou gavest me not a kiss ...My head with oil thou didst not anoint”. See the neglect of Simon! The Lord Jesus was in his house, there salvation was available to him, he did not reach out his hand to take it. He was so close to him, “The word is nigh thee, in thy mouth” (Romans 10: 8), the Lord was near to him but he neglected the Lord Jesus. But what does it say about the woman? “But she has washed my feet with tears”. Have you washed the Lord’s feet with tears? Have you felt your guilt, the guilt of your sins? Have you sorrowed in relation to your sins? Have you wept about your sins? It says, “she has washed my feet with tears”. What those feet meant to that woman. He brought the tidings of God’s grace to her and He took her sins to Calvary.
I remember a beloved brother preaching on this, ‘Many sons and many sins’. He has brought many sons to glory, but here it is many sins. He carried her sins to Calvary, He bore her sins in His own body on the tree. How she valued those feet! How beautiful His feet were. “Thou gavest me not a kiss”, think of that. Have you never given the Lord a kiss? He longs for your love. How this must have affected the Lord Jesus when she gave Him a kiss, “but she from the time I came in has not ceased kissing my feet”. But as to Simon, He says, “Thou gavest me not a kiss”. Think of being there, in the presence of the Lord of glory, the man Christ Jesus, and not giving Him a kiss. Has this been characteristic of your life, that you have not given Him a kiss? He longs for your love, He wants you for Himself. I would appeal to everyone here today to think about this, the Lord is longing to be loved, to have a kiss. Would you deprive Him of what would so please His heart? “My head with oil thou didst not anoint”, here we have it again, the anointing, “but she has anointed my feet with myrrh”. How wonderful to thus distinguish the Lord Jesus.
So He says, “Her many sins are forgiven”. Have you known that in your soul? Have you known that consciously in your heart that your sins are forgiven? It is wonderful to receive the word, “Thy sins are forgiven”, but to be conscious that your sins are forgiven involves the presence in your heart of the Holy Spirit. How much needed is the gift of the Holy Spirit, available to those that ask. We cannot function, as pleasing to God, apart from the Holy Spirit, apart from the anointing. Indeed, no one can say Lord Jesus except in the power of the Holy Spirit. Here it is that she anoints His feet but I would just take this opportunity of speaking to you about receiving the Holy Spirit. He will bring into your consciousness that your sins are gone for ever, never to be raised against you again, and He will give you an appreciation of the man Christ Jesus. You will be like this woman and like those that surrounded David, you will anoint Him and say, This is He. May the Lord bless His word.
Preaching at Dundee
10 April 2005