“THE HIDDEN MANNA”
C. R. Byng
Whilst the Lord’s speaking to these seven assemblies would clearly have an historical bearing, its spiritual import is intended to affect us at the present day. His words to the angel of the assembly in Pergamos would manifestly have a current bearing on us because of the danger of the doctrine of Balaam finding entrance into what should be held unreservedly for Christ. The promises to the overcomers by the Lord Jesus would be related to the features which He discerned as already coming to light in persons who were prepared to stand for Him in those particular conditions, cost what it might. This is not drawing attention to distinctiveness of gift; it may be included, but that is not the main point. An overcomer is a man who is prepared to stand for what is right. The Lord values the moral features of quality that come to light in persons, and the Lord’s own promise to each overcomer would be related to what is already governing the heart and affections of a man or woman who is prepared to stand for Christ.
So the promise to the overcomer in Pergamos would have a rich inward bearing. What preciousness there is in this particular promise, “To him will I give of the hidden manna”.
Are we beginning to get some impressions of the glorious wealth of the hidden manna so that we are governed increasingly by it? It involves the Father’s appreciation of those hidden years of Jesus, coming out in public display as the Father’s voice was heard saying, “I have found my delight”, Luke 3: 22. Do we treasure sufficiently what the Spirit would open up to us as to the Father’s delight in Jesus during those years? How little we know of them according to the written word. We have that choice touch as to Jesus at the age of twelve. But let us make way for the Spirit as He would give us further impressions of the Father’s full delight in that hidden life. Men said that He was “the carpenter”, or “the son of the carpenter”. What delight there must have been to the Father in the Lord’s labours as the carpenter or as the son of the carpenter. Mr. Taylor referred feelingly and affectingly to how Jesus would have taken a plane, or a saw, or a chisel, (J.T. N.S. Vol. 22, p.121). No one else would have handled the carpenter’s tools as Jesus did. How the Father appreciated it! Are we appreciating it more? Are we beginning to get some impressions of the hidden manna, the secret life of Jesus with the Father? Is it governing us increasingly by way of model?
Always entering into it of course, is the intrinsic glory of His own Person as the Son with the Father. As one of the many examples of the way in which the Lord serves as a Model, think of those hidden nights on the mount of Olives—perhaps not exactly the manna, perhaps more the old corn of the land, for the mount of Olives would be a spiritual, heavenly realm, and the Lord retreated there. We have been speaking of the Lord’s departure. Let us remember that before He departed His normal resort was to the mount of Olives. It says at the end of John 7 that, “every one went to his home. But Jesus went to the mount of Olives”. I think these are the impressions that would hold a brother or sister who would desire to be an overcomer. We need to be kept near the Spirit when we think of these things. There is no place for imagination in the spiritual realm, but there is abundant scope for the blessed Spirit of truth to open up to us impressions of what the Son meant to the Father.
So the Lord says, “To him will I give of the hidden manna”. What a divine answer to the doctrine of Balaam! Another has said (and we do well to bear in mind prophetic statements of those whom the Lord has used) that the beginning and kernel of all mischief amongst us is Balaam, (J.B.S. Letters Vol. 2, p.215). Let us be on our watch. We have been reminded of watchfulness and this is something we need currently to watch in ourselves. First of all watching our own hearts and lives, then watching in our homes, and then watching in relation to the beloved brethren, the saints of God. How easy it is to make way for the doctrine of Balaam, the insidious giving way to the Moabitish element that the spirit of worldliness would bring in. O, beloved, let us cry to God that there may be a banner raised up by the Spirit, that overcomers may be raised up in every locality where the Supper is rightly being taken, so that the doctrine of Balaam may be kept at bay. May we have grace and help by the Spirit to judge the spirit of worldliness to its very roots, and to see that it has no part in a realm which is intended to be kept holy and pure for God Himself.
We do not need to go beyond our own hearts and thoughts to realise how easy it is to be governed by a spirit of worldliness. We might well in our prayers, as taking account of what God is doing universally, pray with renewed vigour that the spirit of worldliness may be judged and expelled. It will need overcomers to do it. Let us pray for overcomers. There is no need in public to name places, but in our prayers in private we might name particular localities where God is looking for men and women to stand up in the strength of the hidden manna, to stand for the rights of God and the rights of Christ in the local assembly.
Then the Lord says, “I will give to him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written, which no one knows but he that receives it”. The white stone, no doubt, would remind us of the purity of what is established according to God. We have been speaking together of remembrance and establishment. An overcomer is not a man to be tossed about; he is a man who himself would be taking on the features of purity according to God and of stability. One feature of an elder would be stability. He is not a man who is saying one thing one day and the opposite the next. An overcomer would be a person who in himself is taking character from Jesus as the Rock of Ages. The feature of a stone is to be worked out in us, as in Peter.
The Lord would look for each brother and sister in a locality to be an overcomer in this sense, to take on the character of persons who can be trusted to be the same. Let us take it on in holy desire to be persons who can be known as the same.
Then there is something special, “a new name written, which no one knows but he that receives it”. Are we conscious of having a personal link with the Lord Jesus? It is one of the marvels of christianity that every one of us is intended to be conscious of having a personal link with Jesus which no one else has. It needs all the saints from Pentecost to the rapture to bring out the fulness of Christ. But every one of us in variety, yet in wondrous harmony and unity, is intended to understand in a special way some impression of the glory of Jesus. Saul of Tarsus had it at the very beginning. He would never forget those words of Jesus; they provided a link between Jesus and Paul. I believe every one of us has some special impression of Christ that the Spirit would develop, and thus form us by it. Yet along with this we are to value the impressions that others have. An overcomer is not a man that stands out in his distinctiveness and rules the local assembly—he would have moral power in himself to bring out the feature of overcoming in the rest of the brethren. So the locality would merge as one man to stand for God and to be governed by the truth of what the Lord says to those at Pergamos, “He that has the sharp two-edged sword”. In John’s gospel He says, “I am … the truth”, John 14: 6.
Well, let us be governed increasingly by a desire to be here as those who would be faithful to Christ and encouraging one another to be faithful too. So may there be in every local assembly a full response according to the heart and purpose of God, for His name’s sake.
Word at meeting for ministry, Redbridge
14 March 1975