READING IN LUKE 11
READING IN LUKE 11
One of the most interesting things in this gospel is the formation of the new generation. It is by the word of God. The Lord says that those who hear the word of God and keep it are blessed rather than the mother who bore Him. The generation thus formed was to supersede the generation which then held the ground. The character of each generation is outlined in this chapter.
[p. 57] As we saw last time, the end of chapter 10 shows the Lord’s position as neighbour; and Mary’s characteristic attitude also appears there; she sat at the feet of Jesus and was listening to His word. This presents another service which the Lord was rendering to men; that is, teaching. The Spirit teaches us now, but Christ is always the Teacher; it is through Him that all teaching for men has come. It says of Mary; “having sat down at the feet of Jesus [she] was listening to his word”. She had become interested in Him, and was so free from herself and the cares of this world that she could sit down and listen, in contrast to Martha, who was troubled about many things. There was one thing needful, and that was to sit down and listen to Christ. Mary represents the new generation and how it is formed. The needful thing is to be so relieved of care that we can sit down and listen to the Lord; listen to what He is saying. Christ is the only Speaker; He is the One who has been appointed to speak on God’s behalf.. All Christianity has come out through Christ. The Lord’s ministry contained all the truth in principle. The gospels are like a great reservoir; the water flows out through the epistles. In the epistles generally the truth is ministered to meet the need of souls. With the Lord it was not simply meeting local need, but of unfolding the truth in the full divine height and scope. It does not say exactly that the Lord was speaking to Mary; He was speaking and she was listening. .
In chapter 11 the subject of teaching is continued.
The Lord was praying in a certain place, and one of His disciples said, “Lord, teach us to pray”. They feel the need of being taught, and the Lord teaches them how to pray. They are put into touch with the Father, and then the dumb spirit is cast out; there is power of speech given. We have [p. 58] here, thus, the word of God and prayer, and the power of speech; these things mark Christianity. God has spoken to man, and man has access to God. The creatures of God are sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
The form of the prayer here no doubt contemplated the then existing circumstances, but we have to gather the spirit of it; and what is impressive in a special way is the bountifulness of the divine giving; “how much rather shall the Father who is of heaven give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him” verse 13. Thus we are encouraged to pray. Following upon this the dumb demon is cast out, and “the man spake”; there is ability for testimony. And then the terrible wickedness of the Jews comes out. They alleged that the Lord cast out demons by Beelzebub the prince of the demons, whereupon the Lord shows that if Satan is divided against himself his kingdom cannot subsist. The Lord was casting out demons by the finger of God, and so the kingdom of God had come upon them. This was the great testimony on God’s part, and they were attributing it to Beelzebub; this was the unpardonable sin, as we learn elsewhere.
He that was not with the Lord was against Him; verse 23. There was no neutral ground; the testimony was now too plain for that. In chapter 9: 50, it was: “he that is not against you is for you”, but the Lord had now become more formally a test to the people, so that if one did not come to His side he was against Him. When the truth was revived some years ago there was a good deal of spiritual activity in the different denominations which could be regarded as of God, but now things have altered; the testimony has been established on the one hand, and apostasy is more pronounced on the other; so that if men refuse to identify themselves with the truth their spiritual whereabouts is a matter for grave suspicion.
[p. 59] Verse 28 shows what marks the new generation, and then we have the “wicked generation”. In the presence of the Lord’s wonderful ministry they were looking for a sign. The power of the kingdom was in exercise in their midst, and they were unable to appreciate it. The testimony was, “know this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh”, chapter 10: 11. No doubt that is what is referred to in more, Luke 11: 31, 32. In Luke the thing that had come in in Christ on God’s behalf is in view. In John it is the Person. In the Queen of Sheba and the men of Nineveh there shall arise a Gentile testimony in the judgment against that wicked generation. The sign of Jonas had reference to the Lord’s death. Jonas was a sign to the Ninevites; it was as if one had come out of death to preach to them. The Ninevites had repented at the preaching of Jonas, but the Jews had not repented, although Christ had preached to them, and He was more than Jonas. There had been many signs, but now they should have but the sign of Jonas; the Son of man was going to die. All this refers to the state of the people, which their rejection of the Lord’s ministry had exposed. And then more than Solomon was there. All divine wisdom was present in Christ. The kingdom, the “power of God”, was there, and “the wisdom of God” was there.
“The lamp of the body is thine eye”, verse 34. The eye receives light and illuminates the body. We have to take care of our lamp, or we shall be without light in the body. “When thine eye is simple, thy whole body also is light”. The eye is a lamp for the body only; it does not emit light, but as the eye is simple the body emits light; it is luminous. “If therefore thy whole body is light, not having any part dark, it shall be all light as when the lamp lights thee with its brightness”. When this is so “they who enter in” see the light. At the outset [p. 60] Israel had received light, but it had become a dark body. The light that was in them had become darkness. Verse 36 would involve Christianity at the beginning; what the disciples were. There was simplicity in the reception of the light that shone in Christ, so that there was a luminous body, and all who came in saw the light.
But the responsible church has long since ceased to be luminous; it is now a dark body viewed from without. Of course there is light here while the Spirit remains, but the candlestick has been removed. We look on now to the introduction of the heavenly city as the great light-giving body. But in the assembly the Lord set a great light here; He contemplated others coming in, and there should be light for them. On the day of Pentecost three thousand came in and saw the light.