COMING TO CHRIST AND WHAT MIGHT HINDER US

A. P. Devenish

2 Kings 5: 1–3, 8–14; Mark 2: 1–12; 10: 13, 14, 17–23, 46–52; Genesis 24: 54–59

It is in mind to speak about coming to Christ and what might hinder us. I have no doubt that the enemy of our souls is against any one of us coming to the Lord Jesus and giving our heart to Him. He would do everything he can to hinder us. I suppose that Naaman had himself before him, his self-importance; I suppose that would be Naaman’s problem. Naaman’s hindrance was himself. “And Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man before his master, and honourable, for by him Jehovah had given deliverance to Syria; and he was a mighty man of valour, but a leper”. As far as we can tell the sequel shows us that it was his pride really that stood in the way of his blessing, and alas it is so with many.

The way that God has chosen to effect our salvation is not our way, but this little maid has a message. She says, “Oh, would that my lord were before the prophet that is in Samaria”.

Think of the longings of this little maid. I wonder if we would have been so outgoing towards others if we were in her position, “the Syrians ... had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman’s wife”. Probably we would have been thinking about ourselves. It was a sad situation that she was in, away from her parents, away from her friends, away from her home, away from Israel, but there was no evidence that there was any discontent or complaint with her. She was concerned about Naaman.

Surely that is a lesson for us, not to have ourselves before us, complaining about our circumstances or our problems. What you see in her are the compassions of God coming into expression. “Oh”, she says; what an impression of feeling, “Oh, would that my lord were before the prophet that is in Samaria! then he would cure him of his leprosy”. How often I have asked the Lord to give me a love for souls; I would that I had more. Perhaps many of us feel that, to be able to express the compassions of God towards men, women and children.

Then it says, “And Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot”. You see, he is coming in all his dignity, his personal greatness; it was Naaman who stood in Naaman’s way of getting the blessing. It says, “And Naaman was wroth, and went away and said, Behold, I thought, He will certainly come out to me”. He was the centre of his thoughts, but then he had servants. It is beautiful to think of how these servants served their master.

I want to speak about that, how the hindrances were removed by the gracious service of these persons who, I would say, loved Naaman and would be thinking of his salvation. What would he have done without these servants? It would be hard to think that he would have plunged himself in the Jordan without the influence and appeal of the servants. I want to speak about this because we want to serve one another, help one another. I suppose he would have just gone away back a leper except for these servants. It says, “he turned and went away in a rage”. It lets you see what kind of a man they had to deal with. Could he be helped? Is it possible that he could be helped? Was there anyone who could help him? It says, “his servants drew near, and spoke to him and said, My father”. Is that not lovely? “My father”, not master but “My father, if the prophet had bidden thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he says to thee, Wash and be clean?” What a service to render to one another, to those who may need such a service. What affection was there, and what happened? He “plunged himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God. And his flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean”.

I just turn to Mark 2 where this man had difficulty in getting to Jesus because of the crowd. Maybe the crowd would hinder us. There is no reliability in the thought of a crowd, but he was borne by four. What does that mean? There were those who were sympathetic, they had a universal outlook, they would be thinking of all men, “that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth”, 1 Timothy 2: 4. That is a test to us. It says, “Jesus, seeing their faith”, the faith of the four. They would be men with great sympathy for this paralytic man who was unable to move, unable to walk, unable to stir from his little couch, as it says in another scripture (Luke 5: 19). They had probably visited him before this incident to see that poor man, and saying, He cannot get off his couch, how sorry we feel for him; but then we have heard about the Master, we have heard about Jesus; if only we could get him to Jesus He would be able to meet his condition, and they took this difficult way.

The crowds hindered them. I would say that in scripture crowds usually hinder; what is partisan hinders the work of God, and crowds hinder, they are unreliable, they sway this way and that way. At the beginning of the gospels the crowds generally were glad to hear Jesus.

They hung on His words, it says in one scripture, but towards the end of the gospels they are swayed by the religious element and they say, “take him away, crucify him”, John 19: 15. See how unreliable, unpredictable, crowds are, but these four men were priestly. They knew where Jesus was; they were energetic and dug through the roof and brought him to Jesus.

“But Jesus, seeing their faith, says to the paralytic, Child, thy sins are forgiven thee”. That was the first thing to be met, the moral issue, the guilt; it is looking on to the work of Christ, the atoning sufferings of Jesus. He could say, “thy sins are forgiven thee”, in the light of what He was about to go through on our account; He bore our sins in His own body on the tree.

Then He goes on to meet the physical difficulty. It is the teaching of the new covenant in these verses; the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit are both in this section. He says, “Arise, take up thy couch and go to thine house”. And it says, “he rose up straightway”.

That involves that he had power in himself to be able to rise up off his couch and it says, “he went out before them all, so that all were amazed, and glorified God”. Well, let us seek to get one another to Christ, to get persons to Christ, not be swayed by the crowd or by influence.

Do not be swayed by adverse influence but have a heart for souls. Would that I had a greater love for souls, to express the compassions of God and, not only that, but be energetic and priestly, in view of bringing souls to Christ.

I just come to Mark 10, “Suffer the little children to come to me”. It says, “And they brought little children to him that he might touch them”. Would you not as parents of little children do that, bring little children to Jesus to touch them? But it says, “the disciples rebuked those that brought them”. Maybe it is myself that stands in the way, maybe the crowds, it may be the disciples. They were not in accord with the feelings of Christ, the feelings of Jesus, towards those children. They were religious, I suppose, in their activities here. The Lord was indignant. You look at the scriptures to see how many emotions come into expression in Jesus. He was angry in one place, the man with the withered hand. They watched Him to see if He would heal him on the sabbath and He was angry. He wept in another place. In Luke 19

He weeps audibly, the note says audibly. Think of standing beside Jesus and hearing Him weep audibly over Jerusalem. He was kind, compassionate. It says in Luke 7 that He was moved with compassion in relation to the widow of Nain. The gospels are full of the feelings that would attract us to Christ. Just go through them and see the emotions, the feelings that were expressed in Jesus; how wonderful they are. He cried out with a loud voice; He said, “Ephphatha”, how feeling the Lord was and it comes out in the presence of such need amongst men. I wonder if we read the Scriptures to learn about these. I think wherever we read in the Scriptures we should say, Can I find some expression of Christ in them?

We go on to this young man in Mark 10 and what hindered him was his possessions. He wanted eternal life so that he could live for ever to enjoy his possessions. So there is myself. I am a hindrance to my own blessing, the crowd is a hindrance, the unreliable, unpredictable, character of a crowd, easily influenced. The disciples can be a hindrance. O, you say, Surely that cannot be, but it says, “the disciples rebuked those that brought them”, and He was indignant. He says, “Suffer the little children to come to me”. In Mark 10: 16 it says, “And having taken them in his arms, having laid his hands on them, he blessed them”. Would you not like to be in the arms of Jesus? He would touch you and He would bless you. Bring the little children to Jesus. Do not be like these disciples. Perhaps what they were religiously hindered and the Lord was not to be hindered. He says, “Suffer the little children to come to me”.

Well, then of this young man, it says, “And Jesus looking upon him loved him”. I think He saw what was there potentially in a young man coming to Him. Mark has in mind recovery and has in mind the service of God towards men, and Jesus looked at him and loved him. No doubt there was that in him that was lovely in His eyes, as having in mind what he was potentially, what he could be, what he would be if he came. But then he was held, he was hindered by his possessions. Jesus says, “Children, how difficult it is that those who trust in riches should enter into the kingdom of God!” It says, “But he, sad at the word, went away grieved, for he had large possessions” and they hindered him from coming to Christ. They hindered him from getting the gain of salvation, of the Lord’s blessing. How many things he had done. He said, “Teacher, all these things have I kept from my youth”. They gave him some status, he thought, but he was hindered because of his possessions. I would think the Lord grieved over this. “And Jesus looking upon him loved him”; but then it says, “how difficult it is that those who trust in riches should enter into the kingdom of God! ... And they were exceedingly astonished, saying to one another, And who can be saved? But Jesus looking on them says, With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God”.

I will just go on to the blind man. It says, “And many rebuked him, that he might be silent”, I suppose they were embarrassed. This one would create a scene. He was coming, Jesus the Nazaraean, the Son of David, and a large crowd was there again, but he would not be passed by. He says, “O Son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me”. Many rebuked him, that he might be silent, Do not cause a stir, do not make a scene. But he felt the need so much, “he cried so much the more, Son of David, have mercy on me”. Think of the remarkable intuition the man had! The Lord was just about to enter into Jerusalem, and this man realised that the One who was coming along this way was the Son of David. He was a king, “Son of David, have mercy on me”. As I said, he felt his need so much that he cried out so much the more. It says, “And, throwing away his garment, he started up and came to Jesus. And Jesus answering says to him. What wilt thou that I should do to thee? And the blind man said to him, Rabboni, that I may see”. There are only two times that this word is used; once is in John 20 when Mary says, “Rabboni”, and the other is in this instance; Rabboni meaning ‘my Teacher’ involving affection. When you have a teacher at school you learn your lessons, but there is not that affinity, that link of affection; you see this man soon came into it. He says, “Rabboni, that I may see. And Jesus said to him, Go, thy faith has healed thee. And he saw immediately, and followed him in the way”. The result was that he followed Him in the way, and that was a suffering way. Mark’s gospel has in mind a suffering way; the Christian way is a suffering way. I suppose what really would prepare us to walk in a suffering way is love for Christ. That would be the only thing really that would prepare us, would make us equal, make us desire to follow in the suffering way is love for Jesus.

Well, I just finish with Genesis 24, a well-known scripture. The servant had come from Abraham in order to secure a bride, a wife, for Isaac, and the time came for her to decide what she was going to do, and the brother and the mother would have hindered her. Natural relationships, natural feelings, can be another thing that hinders us. Alas, so often, we are influenced by a wife, influenced by a husband, influenced by children, and be hindered from proceeding on this journey to Christ. Alas it is so! You may say it sounds very fine what they are saying, “And her brother and her mother said, Let the maiden abide with us some days, or say ten; after that she shall go”. Ten days is the full period of responsibility, and if the enemy is at anything at the present time it is to hinder us the full time of responsibility, the full time that we can be here for Christ and can devote ourselves to His interests. They are saying in effect. It is all right if you go to be with Christ when He comes or when you die, but this period of your life when you are here and could be available to serve God and to serve man, just remain with us, do not get out of this family situation; we want you to stay with us. The Spirit says typically, “Do not hinder me”.

I would say the Spirit would say in this word today, Do not hinder Me, I am bringing Rebecca to Isaac. Paul says, “I have espoused you unto one man, to present you a chaste virgin to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11: 2), but then he goes on to say in that chapter, “But I fear lest by any means, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craft, so your thoughts should be corrupted from simplicity as to the Christ” (2 Corinthians 11: 3). You see, the serpent is involved, the enemy of your soul is involved, the one who would hinder the fulfilment of God’s thoughts; the serpent is involved,

“so your thoughts should be corrupted from simplicity as to the Christ”. You may say, It is too strong to say that the enemy was involved in this request that she should remain with them for ten days; but that is what it was, using natural relations, using natural links and feelings and hindering Rebecca in type from this journey with the Spirit to Christ. Well, one’s desire is that we may take heed to these things that we may not be hindered, beloved brethren. The Spirit is occupied with Rebecca, typical of the assembly, a wonderful vessel which is for the heart of Christ, and this is the journey that brings her to Isaac. Isaac is meditating in the fields; what is he thinking about? I suppose he has the mind of heaven and he is waiting for Rebecca. Let us be concerned that nothing hinders us from coming to Christ.

That is my simple message today to each one of us here. We all know what hinders us; you know what hinders you, I know what hinders me, but let us come to Christ. I do not think I could speak of anything more wonderful than the experience of a soul coming to Christ. May it be so, for His name’s sake.

Preaching at Denton, Texas
1 September 2002