PAUL AND HIS COMPANY
[p. 10] PAUL AND HIS COMPANY
2 Timothy 3:10,11; Acts 26:12 - 18
My thought on this occasion is to say a word about Paul, to seek to make clear, if I can, the circumstances under which he was introduced and their spiritual significance, and then to show a little the main features of his doctrine and manner of life or conduct, and the accompanying features that are mentioned in the passage I read from 2 Timothy. I have chosen that passage because of its bearing on the last days. Timothy being the chosen servant to take up, and continue, and hand on to the saints that which Paul had ministered.
In speaking of Timothy I would call attention to what I think should be observed in regard of him, namely, that in the first letter he is said to have received gift through prophecy and the laying on of the hands of the presbytery, whereas in the second letter his gift is connected entirely with the putting on of Paul’s hands, as if to impress upon him that, whilst he had to do with the assembly in order, as an apostolic delegate, and consequently the elderhood or presbytery had necessarily place and influence, now the time had come when Paul’s impress must be emphasised. It is well that the elderhood, or presbytery should be observed, but conditions arise in which Paul, as the chosen and faithful vessel of Christ, must take precedence, and so Timothy is to re-kindle the gift of God which was in him by the laying on of Paul’s hands. Then another feature in this second letter is that Timothy was to have an outline of sound words. I mention these, dear brethren, as things to be observed now by us, if we are to be here intelligently and rightly for Christ, He was to have “an outline of sound words, which words”, says the apostle, “thou hast heard of me”.
This involves Paul’s doctrine. Paul’s teaching was to be held in outline in the ministry of Timothy “in faith and love, which are in Christ Jesus”. And then, thirdly, he is to pass on to faithful men the things which he had learned of Paul in the presence of many witnesses that they might “teach others also”. Thus, in this letter, Timothy (or the man of God for the last days) is to be stamped by Paul’s teaching and example. I bring these points forward at the beginning so that we might have in mind how matters stand at this hour, that is, in our day.
Paul and his ministry afford a great test for us in these days. The apostle says in chapter 3, “thou hast fully known [or, ‘hast followed up’] my doctrine, manner of life, purpose”. I mention this because of the importance of following things up from the outset, that we might have clearly in view what the mind of the Lord is. You will recall how Luke writing with method to Theophilus, “having been accurately acquainted from the origin with all things” began “from the very first”; (Luke 1:2,3) hence the great importance of going back to the beginning; that is, of being in exercise, as Timothy undoubtedly was, in order that we should follow things up and miss nothing. And I may remark another feature in passing, namely, that you have in this letter Paul and his company as it appeared at the end, not as it appeared at the beginning. You will recall the word in Acts 13:13, how that after Paul, having started out from Antioch with Barnabas, had caused blindness to come upon Elymas, the opposer of the truth, mention is made of “Paul and his company”. The Spirit of God emphasises the place of this remarkable servant and those who were regarded as his company. That was the beginning, whereas this second letter to Timothy presents to us the company at the end, after having passed through the conflicts, the storms, and all the [p. 12] efforts of the enemy to shatter it, and although discredited, marred and depleted, it remained true, for Paul was still the triumphant witness, and Luke was with him, with others mentioned honourably, and especially Mark. The case of Mark shows that, whilst the enemy had wrought for disintegration, the Lord had wrought in the way of recovery. The restorative grace of Christ is that which we may reckon upon, dear brethren, so that a man who “separated from them” as it is said of Mark in Acts 13:13, “from Paul and his company”, is now sent for, as one who is profitable to Paul for ministry. Wonderful triumph of the restorative grace of Christ! — a grace, as I remarked, which we may rely upon, and indeed which we should always be in sympathy with, for the Spirit of Christ in us always aims at recovery, never at destruction; so that, although a brother may depart from the company, as Mark did, in the end he is serviceable for ministry.
Now I go on to the circumstances under which Paul was introduced, and what one may call attention to, and what is very well known doubtless to most of us, is the assertion at that juncture of the authority of the Lord. He comes in peculiarly as the Lord at that epoch, for it is a most memorable period in the history of the assembly; the enemy having stirred up a terrific persecution against the saints, Saul entered into the houses one after another, as we are told, and in his zeal dragged off men and women, delivering them up to prison, and now by permission of the priests at Jerusalem he sets out with his credentials to Damascus to carry out his mission of persecution and destruction of the people of the Lord. At that moment the Lord manifests Himself in His authority on behalf of the assembly. He had been made “Lord and Christ”, and He is now interfering to assert His authority as such in the way of protection. I commend that simple [p. 13] thought to you, dear brethren, it is a thought most important to us. The wing of Christ’s protection is extended over the assembly, the object of His love; and so the Lord meets this man on the way, having allowed him first to traverse the road from Jerusalem to Damascus.
At this point I would call attention to another feature in the Lord’s position; that is, that He had not only come from God, but He had gone to God. I mention that here so that you may see the setting of Paul’s introduction. The disciples believed that He had come out from God (John 16:30); that was a good deal to believe, but it was not enough; we must believe that He is gone to God, and I am not now speaking of His exaltation or His ascension, but of what was due to Him morally as having been here as a Man on earth for God’s glory. Think of a Man going in to God in the dignity of His Person! I commend that thought to your consideration as the other side to the Lord’s position. It may seem very simple, but it is of all moment for us to apprehend that He has gone to God; the truth of His Person is involved in it, but it refers to what He did as a Man here on earth. He went to God, as having glorified God as a Man here on earth. So He says to Paul, “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest”. (Acts 9:5) He was the Man who had been known on earth, in whom God was glorified, and who could say, “I have glorified thee on the earth, I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do”; (John 17:4) it is that Jesus, that Man, the One whom Stephen had seen in the glory, who had gone in to God. And further, dear brethren, I want to say here that the whole mediatorial system which was to come out and be developed in Paul’s doctrine hangs on this great fact, that He has gone to God, a Man has gone in to God.
Now, not to dwell in detail as to Paul’s introduction, I want to say at this point that whilst the Lord [p. 14] Jesus revealed Himself in this remarkable fashion in bringing down this mighty agent of the devil, God also was at work at the same time; so the apostle tells us, in writing to the Galatians, that God revealed his Son in him. I shall say a word about that on account of the connection here. “But when God”, he says, “who set me apart even from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me, that I may announce him as glad tidings among the nations”. (Galatians 1:15,16) I plead for a moment for that feature, the Father’s work, which is parallel with the work of the Son, and brings in the element of sovereignty, a most important element for us. Whilst the Lord acts from heaven, and speaks to Saul by name, and announces Himself to him as “Jesus”, the Man, God revealed His Son in him. He revealed His Son in him; that is God’s sovereign act, and I want to speak of that, because one feels the immense importance of the sovereign acts of God. Now in acting thus, God acts in relation to the work of Christ; Christ appeared from heaven to Saul, and God revealed His Son in him.
Referring now for a moment to Matthew 16, we find the Father had beforehand revealed the Son to Peter. Peter confessed “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God”, and the Lord said, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood has not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in the heavens. And I also, I say unto thee that thou art Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly”. (Matthew 16:16 - 18) Now “the Christ” was a feature in the revelation to Peter, although the major part of the revelation is the great fact that He is “the Son of the living God”; so that the structure to be reared up would be marked by an understanding of the fact that all things are accomplished, not by human agency nor by combination, but by the Christ. The Christ is the One by whom God effects everything, an [p. 15] immense thing for us to understand, delivering us, as being in the structure of which this is the foundation, from all dependence on human agencies and methods; we apprehend that the Christ not only tells us all things, but He accomplishes all things for God; He is the Anointed. But then there is also in this revelation to Peter that which is living, and I commend to you at the present time the importance of this feature. The structure is to be replete with life, for it is composed of living stones built “on this rock”, which is living; “the Son of the living God”. Now we are said to have come to the city of the living God. This comes about, as I apprehend, through the testimony of the twelve; it is involved in the confession by Peter, but we have an additional thought in Hebrews 12, namely, that we have come to the heavenly Jerusalem, “the city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem”, and this latter, I believe, is Paul’s feature.
I might remark here that the Father; that is, God, acting sovereignly is, as I said, an immense thing for us, because it is a question of what He does at any particular moment. We read in the Old Testament that He lays “for foundation in Zion, a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation”, (Isaiah 28:16) but where is He laying His foundation now? It is for us to know, dear brethren, where He lays it, or rather, where He has laid it. It is quite clear that it is not now in Zion literally; it is laid in the souls of His people. According to His sovereign election He lays it, and so, in bringing in this fresh thought; that is, the Son of God, the Person revealed in Paul, we have suggested the dignity and liberty that belong to sonship. In the letter to the Galatians the apostle develops sonship from that point of view, not as a foundation exactly, but as that which occasions liberty in the souls of God’s people, so that whilst the testimony is living,
[p. 16] it is also in liberty. It is dignified as being the heavenly Jerusalem; that is Paul’s feature. “Jesus is the Son of God”, he says; that is the first preaching by Paul, according to the scriptural record.
Now I come to his commission, in order to get some little light on how matters stood as he began his ministry, and I selected Acts 26, because it is one of his own accounts of the occurrence. Chapter 9 is the account given by the Spirit, whereas the two other records are Paul’s own accounts. On this occasion he is before king Agrippa, and it is quite evident that the apostle is moved in his soul in speaking of it. I mention that, not to occupy you much with it, but one does think of the importance of being moved in our souls. As the truth develops in us we become habituated to soul movement, and, as I might say, soul emotion. Let us not be without spiritual emotions Godward! Let us not be without true holy emotions as we dwell on the magnitude of the truth! The apostle here seems to be moved; he says, “At midday, on the way, I saw, O king, a light above the brightness of the sun shining from heaven round about me”. His heart was affected as he goes on to speak of the light and what it was. Things seemed to have become enhanced in his soul. May God grant that the truth may thus affect us, for, as you will notice, he speaks here of the light in stronger terms than it is spoken of in the earlier record.
Now, passing on to the Lord’s commission, He says, “I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister”. To Ananias He had said that He would show Saul how much he must suffer for Him, but He does not say that to Saul himself, but “To make thee a minister [that is, an ‘official servant’] and a witness”. In chapter 9:6 he is told to “arise and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do”. I want to dwell for a [p. 17] moment on that, so that we might have before us the exact position. He is appointed a minister and he magnified his office; it was not that the office magnified him. If any one has any little bit to do for the Lord now, the thing is to magnify it, to magnify the service, so that it be not regarded as a common thing. We are apt to look at the things of God as common, as ordinary; they are not ordinary.
Now, Paul is a minister, and what I want to point out is that his ministry consisted of two parts; in fact there are two ministries, and they are definitely distinct, and this is indicated here, I believe, in what the Lord says, “both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee”, including, I apprehend, the truth of the gospel and the great truth of the mystery. I would remark here that the ministry of the gospel (Colossians 1:13) had reference to the bringing in of what God is in Christ to men; so he says, which “was preached to every creature which is under heaven”; a statement which shows that the whole creation was in view in the gospel testimony. Then he goes on to speak of the mystery, I am referring to Colossians 1:24 - 27, and to say that he was a minister of it. The line he took in that service was not bringing God to men, but bringing men to God; hence he speaks of the mystery as “Christ in you [Gentiles], the hope of glory, whom we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus”. What a marvellous conception Paul had of the bearing of his ministry; it was “to present every man perfect in Christ”. It is not that I would seek to occupy you merely with the facts relating to Paul, but that we might see what it is to be in “his company”, so to speak, to be thoroughly acquainted with his doctrine and the manner of his service, for [p. 18] I apprehend that our position in these last days depends on cleaving to what is presented to us in him; so he says, “To present every man perfect in Christ”. (Colossians 1:28)
Now I would commend that to all who seek to serve, for the service is to go on. God has brought about changes in the world to a degree undreamt of by us perhaps, and yet the Scriptures indicate it. He has done it, and it is not in relation to a testimony to come, for He is acting in relation to the testimony that is now. That is what God is doing. Let us not be carried too far. God is acting for us at the present time, and He has moved and brought things to pass; He has weakened the world, in order that His people might come out of Babylon and be brought together as in Christ; that is the ministry of the assembly, but the ministry of the gospel stands also. I am persuaded that God would address Himself to every man today as at the beginning. These two ministries remain in the blessed light they afford us, and it is for every one who ministers to know how ministry was carried on at the beginning. On the one hand there is to be the communication of light, the shedding forth of light, in order that the elect might be brought in, might be saved; and on the other hand, the saints, the assembly, have to be awakened and separated, so as to be in the good of “perfect in Christ Jesus”.
And now, dear brethren, let us think for a moment of perfection. Let us not drop to the level of the flesh or of mere mentality in looking at the things of God. The apostle had nothing less than perfection in his mind, and do you think the Lord has anything lower than that in His mind today? What I would say is that Christianity is full measure. Take the way John presents the truth of the Holy Spirit; he says, “God gives not the Spirit by measure”, chapter 3:34. Think of that marvellous statement as [p. 19] marking the present time! Then in chapter 4 the Lord says to the woman, “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith unto thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water”. (verse 10). And then He says, “But the water that I shall give him shall become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life”. (verse 14) Is not that full measure? There are no limitations there, dear brethren. Think of the possibilities there are in the Spirit. Then in chapter 7 the effect publicly towards men is commensurate with this, that is, “out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water”. (verse 38) Think of that, think of the fulness of the measure of Christianity! Let us not lower the standard; let us have it before us. It is God’s way of presenting the truth. He does not say ‘ought to flow’ but “shall flow”. It is the full measure of Christianity, and that is what God is working up to, nothing less than that, and it is for us to have that in view, as the apostle had it in his service, “to present every man perfect in Christ Jesus”. (Colossians 1:28).
I would now just appeal to all as regards the company, the Pauline company, as I may call it, or in the language of Scripture, “Paul and his company”. Is there anyone here who has separated from him and his company? Many, alas! have done it, and I would repeat that the great point for us to see is that there should be recovery. The Spirit of Christ is on that line, and so we get, “he that converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death and shall hide a multitude of sins”. (James 5:20) A great service that! And this leads me to remark for a moment on the principle of limitation. God in His judicial ways deals on that principle; sometimes in mercy and at other times in direct judgment. The lake of fire is a limiting principle, but it is limitation under wrath; hence there is no escape [p. 20] from it, no outlet. But there are limitations in which there is an outlet, that is to say, limitations of mercy. What God did at Babel was a limitation, but it was a limitation of mercy in which there was an avenue left open for God to approach the nations, which He did in Christ, and an avenue open for men to return to God through Christ. Thank God! So God may limit any of us, but His present limitations are the limitations of mercy in order that we may find the way back; for if I am not in Paul’s company, so to speak, or in the company of the Lord Jesus, in the happy fellowship of God’s people, it is a mercy for me to be limited, so we have in the New Testament the principle of binding and loosing. Thank God for loosing, but the binding is equally valuable, for the binding is a mercy if it lead to self-judgment and recovery.
I am not speaking of what is official, but of a principle that should govern us in the house of God. Those who follow the ways of God will know that He continually acts on this principle, and the saints should be in accord with Him in it. We may be slow to exercise the loosing principle, as Peter was. The Lord gave him the keys of the kingdom, saying, “whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”, (Matthew 18:18) but he was very slow to use them; but the Lord leads him to it. The sheet was let down in order to impress Peter with the importance of loosing, because the loosing would involve a wonderful thing, the going up to heaven and coming down from heaven. It opened up an immense area spiritually. If I am bound, I am limited in the enjoyment of the truth, but if I am loosed, I am introduced into the full scope of Christianity, and what is that? It is that which is eternal in character, for Christianity has no limit. It is like the feast of Pentecost, without any time limitation.
[p. 21] Thank God! It is the dispensation of the Spirit in that sense, and He links us up with that which is eternal. What a blessed thing to be loosed, but how solemn to be bound, even though it be by the mercy and judicial discipline of God.
May the Lord bless the word.