FAITHFUL MEN
E. M. Walkinshaw
John does not tell us, dear brethren, who the “he” is, because it is not necessary. The “he”
who laid down His life for us is Jesus, and His action originated in love. I think the Holy Spirit of God would specially call our attention to that Person and His love. “Hereby we have known love, because he has laid down his life for us”. I suppose everyone here has known it, as our departed brother knew it. It involved, I believe, a total committal on His part. Another scripture says, “Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures; and that he was buried; and that he was raised the third day, according to the scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15: 3, 4), but I think John has in his mind the total committal of the Lord Jesus even to the point of laying down His life. What a life it was! one by itself, a life in blood and flesh
of absolute and infinite perfection. There was never the like before, nor has there been since; therefore we can see the immensity of the sacrifice of Jesus in laying down His life for us. Of course, He glorified God in it, but I believe the touching appeal here is that He laid it down for us. How many times those two simple words appear in Scripture, what has been done for us.
So we think of the immense sacrifice of Jesus, who gave up His life in that condition of blood and flesh, never to be resumed in that condition. His life was taken again, in another condition, as He said—“I lay it down of myself and I have authority to take it again. I have received this commandment of my Father” (John 10: 18); but when we think of the brief span of the life of Jesus in blood and flesh (as I said, never before was there the like nor has there been since), we get an impression of the immensity of the sacrifice of Jesus in laying down His life for us.
But then John says, “and we ought for the brethren to lay down our lives”, and I would like to make a strong appeal to each of us, especially younger men here, to hold your life at the disposal of the brethren, using that relationship in no more limited meaning than John gives it. “We ought for the brethren to lay down our lives”—I believe our brother laid down his life for the brethren. He held it at their disposal; a brother, a father, and a teacher, one who will be greatly missed. Nevertheless, as we are here, I believe the Spirit of God would appeal to each of us, specially younger men, to hold our lives at the disposal of the brethren, to lay them down so that something may be secured for the heart of Christ and for the pleasure of God.
How wonderful!—“We ought for the brethren to lay down our lives”.
I read the next passage because there we get Paul exhorting a young man, I suppose in the most difficult circumstances. Paul himself was about to depart and we might have thought that that would be a catastrophe in the testimony. As to love, and the place Paul had in the heart of Christ, he could not be dispensed with, but no servant, as such, is indispensable.
There is only one Man who is indispensable, and that is Jesus; He is indispensable to all of us. Paul is encouraging Timothy. He says, “Thou therefore, my child, be strong in the grace which is in Christ Jesus”. Everything for God is in that Man, in a safe place; the purpose of God is in Christ Jesus, everything established. No matter, Timothy, what happens in the time to come, everything is established for God in Christ Jesus. What a comfort that is, dear brethren. And now we think of this man as a young man. Some of us are getting older; we know not how many days we may have left, any of us. Of course, we may all go together; we would be very happy about that; but looking at the testimony, we know not how long, or how many days, we have left, and we would love to encourage our younger brethren.
We think of Timothy and what he had heard from Paul. It is what Paul taught, what we call Pauline ministry, that is to be carried through; the assembly in its heavenly relations with Christ, but also the assembly here in the economy of local assemblies. It is all to be carried through, whether it be the representation of God here, or the assembly for the heart of Christ.
“The things thou hast heard of me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men”. He does not say gifted men. They may be that, but a gifted man may be unfaithful.
Some gifted men have been unfaithful. What Paul says here is, “these entrust to faithful men”. Beloved brethren, gift is sovereignly given; faithfulness is a moral
quality. We cannot all be gifted, because that is a matter for the Lord, but we can all be faithful. May the Lord help us to be faithful. Our brother was undoubtedly gifted, but he was also faithful, and moreover he was a soldier.
There are many that work hard, and many may be fellow-prisoners of Paul, but when it comes to being a fellow-soldier of Paul we are inclined to dodge the issue. We are not to feed on conflict, but we are to be prepared for it, dear brethren. “Take thy share in suffering as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (v.3). May we know what that is; may our younger men commit themselves to it. Think of what has been delivered to the saints in the recovery; think of the progressive ministry; our brother held firmly to it. He not only knew it as having apprehended it in his mind, but it was built into his soul, and it is just that that gives moral power. May we learn to value what has been delivered to us in the recovery, to treat of it in the power of the Holy Spirit, to know what it is to be faithful in it, and to know what it is, when necessary, to enter into conflict to defend it.
Our brother is gone; he is with the Lord. He died in the Lord. I think that could be justly said.
The word today is for us who remain, and the Lord would not simply challenge us, but I believe He would encourage us to be marked by faithfulness in the few days that remain; faithfulness to the truth, faithfulness to Himself, of course, and learning what it is to hold our lives available to the brethren. May the Lord strengthen us all in the path, and specially may our beloved sister, and the family, know His sympathy, not something learned as a text of Scripture, but something learned in its living reality. May it be so, for His glory and pleasure.
Word at the burial of Mr. A. A. Bellamy, Buckhurst Hill
26 February 1981