MEN WITH GOD

F.C.Mutton

Exodus 32: 15-21; 34: 29-35; Acts 20: 7-12

I wish to emphasise the immense advantage that lies with one who is habitually in the presence of God. Moses represents that. He had two extraordinary periods of forty days and forty nights with God. Each would be a period of nearly six weeks with God. Dear brethren, our holy privilege, which is open to us and which we should seize, is to be in the presence of God; through Christ by one Spirit we have access to the Father. One of the most wonderful facts of Christianity is that we have access to the Father at any time. We should of course make regular opportunity for this. There were set times for drawing near to God in the Old Testament. What a fine expression that is! It is in the footnote about the feasts in Leviticus 23: 4; 'fixed times for drawing near to God'. Let us not forget them; they are of special importance and value. But at the same time the fact remains that to go into the Father's presence is open at all times; in any moment of need, or at any moment when we are free, our spirits can resort to where He is. The more we are characterised by being in the presence of God, the more ready we shall be (this is an incidental result of being with God) for any situation that arises. One's tendency is that an emergency drives one to God, which in a sense is right, because an emergency casts us upon Him; but what I see in men of God in the Scriptures is that they are so habitually with God that they could be faced with a sudden emergency or crisis and be equal immediately to acting for God in that situation. It is so important in our local situations, or in situations that affect the saints universally, that you and I should be marked as persons who are with God, and can represent Him in these situations - speak for Him maybe in them, but at any rate in our spirits and outlook represent Him.

So in the first incident of which we read, in Exodus 32, Moses had had this extraordinary period in which God had granted to him a complete unfolding of what He was about to introduce, the glorious tabernacle system. This glory, of course, does not compare with the glory of that to which we are brought, but it is glorious in so far as it speaks of and looks forward to what is established in Christ. It is splendid in its varied glories and we love to go over every part of it whether it be the ark, or the mercy seat, the veil, the boards, the curtains, the altars, the pure table, the lampstand; all these concepts, the whole design, and every detail entering into it, came straight from the mind and heart of God, expressing both in its detail and its wonderful unity and completeness the final holy order of things in which God would find His rest in Christ, finding His abode in a scene established by virtue of the shedding of the blood of Christ, and filled with the fragrance of that blessed Man. He was to have, too, a priestly family to draw near to Him, suitably attired, gloriously attired, in garments of glory and ornament; not men approaching in any sense in unworthiness or unsuitability, but men secured through the work of Christ in dignity and glory, able to present to Him in great variety and immense abundance what spoke of Christ.

Now Moses had had all this unfolded to him. How impressed he must have been as to it, and what anticipation he must have had in looking forward to the actual establishment of this divine pattern among the people of God, and the setting up and functioning of the priesthood, the high priest having his unique glory and distinction. One of the items spoken of is that gold plate engraved "Holiness to Jehovah!" which was to be on the forehead of the high priest. Then the breastplate of judgment: that was one of the things described, and in it were to be the Urim and Thummim, 'light' and 'perfection'. All this had entered into the soul of Moses and laid hold of him in its glory and attractiveness. Nothing like it had ever been heard of before, it was out of heaven. In a sense perhaps there is a link with Luke 3: 22 where in the fullest sense heaven was opened and all heaven's glorious thoughts and concepts for this dispensation began to move forward. So here, in the type, all this came out of heaven, the light of God's pleasure, and here was the great mediator, Moses, whose privilege it was faithfully to establish it all.

Where we read in Exodus 32 "Moses turned and went down from the mountain, with the two tables of the testimony in his hand". What must have been his feelings! What a sense he must have had of the glory of what had been committed to him, its holiness, the need for the maintenance of the spirit of judgment that this holy system might be set up and established! Then, as he draws near to the camp, it says in verse 17, "And Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, and said to Moses, There is a shout of war in the camp. And he said" (Moses said) "it is not the sound of a shout of victory, neither is it the sound of a shout of defeat; it is the noise of alternate singing I hear". That was his trained ear, the ear of a man of God, the ear of a man who had been with God, a man who could detect sounds and put a name upon them, a man who, you might say, in a moment, could sum up the situation, have the mind of God as to it, and act for God in it. This was certainly not the product of Moses' upbringing in Egypt; it was the product of his whole course of education in the school of God, including his finishing education on the mount with God. So he acts for God in this critical and solemn situation of idolatry. There is no record of his turning to God here; he acts in the instincts, the immediate, righteous, holy, instincts of a man who has been in the presence of God. What need there is of such men and women! He moves with right feelings into this situation. Anger is a divine attribute; God's fierce anger is spoken of. It says here that "when he came near the camp, and saw the calf and the dancing, that Moses' anger burned, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and shattered them beneath the mountain".

Then he takes the initiative; what a man he is! - a man who can act for God. Beloved brethren, we have been reminded earlier of what is princely. A prince is one who acts for God in dignity and moral power, and here Moses acts as a man of God on behalf of God. He takes the immediate initiative; he takes issue with what had come into this area, the people of God, God's inheritance. At great cost God had intervened, typically the cost of the shedding of the blood of Jesus, and delivered His people from Egypt. He brought them through the Red Sea and He was going to plant them in the mountain of His inheritance, His sanctuary. Now they have turned to idolatry! Moses is possessed of God's own feelings as to this situation; he took the calf that they had made, and burned it with fire, and ground it to powder. You might have thought that it would be sufficient to have burned it with fire, but no, he ground it to powder; you might have thought that that was sufficient, but no, he strewed it on the water, and made the children of Israel drink it. You see the power of the man to deal with all that had risen up against God, and also to bring inward conviction as to its character to the people. This is a man who comes out from the presence of God and acts for God effectively and powerfully; then immediately he places the responsibility where it belonged, to Aaron.

I do not dwell on this, dear brethren, I bring it forward as emphasising the immense need for us to be with God. We rejoice in being together; we find great strength and edification in that, but we also need, though we prove the presence of God, of course, in our comings together, to frequent the presence of God ourselves personally, so that you and I as individuals, in a day of general breakdown and departure, may be able to act with God and for God in relation to every situation. I would urge that we reach our judgment of matters in the presence of God, that our judgments and our standards may be formed there. We so easily, especially perhaps in relation to things that seem doubtful or borderline, find excuse. I may say, So-and-so is free to do it; or, So-and-so allows his children to do it. There should not be diversity of judgment or outlook among us. What I covet to see is a man or a woman, or a young brother or a young sister, who has been with God and can say, That is wrong; I am not touching it. It has the character maybe of idolatry about it, and without counsel or advice - though they are available when needed - you can act as being with God, and act for God, putting a name on things, especially on what has the character of idolatry. How many idols there are! How many different forms they take, all cunningly devised by the enemy to divert us from God and from the glorious system of response and praise and service and testimony in which He wants each of us to function. Idolatry in any shape or form disqualifies us, or at any rate seriously impairs our being for His pleasure in that glorious system.

In chapter 34 we have a wonderfully positive aspect of being with God. Moses had been active for God in the earlier crisis with divinely-given instinct; he had taken the tent and pitched it outside the camp and everyone who sought Jehovah went to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp. Moses had had wonderful divine confirmation in verse 9 of chapter 33: "when Moses entered into the tent, the pillar of cloud descended, and stood at the entrance of the tent, and Jehovah talked with Moses". What wonderful confirmation! God stands by the man who had stood for Him, and God will always stand by those who stand for Him and give them His own confirmation. Now that crisis had been met, and Moses had again been on the mountain with God, and again he was there forty days and forty nights. Where we read in chapter 34 Moses was coming down from the mountain and the two tables of testimony were in his hand. God in His mercy and faithfulness was going on with His people; He was not relinquishing His thoughts. How thankful we are for that; and let none of us, dear brethren, be in any sense shaken as to that glorious fact that, though there has been terrible breakdown and turning aside, God is proceeding with all His thoughts. It was not a modified tabernacle system or a modified law that Moses brought down; not at all; it reaffirmed God's committal to His original thoughts and purposes, and Moses had been with Him as to that. May we be with God as to His committal to His own thoughts in their entirety. He is filling them out, proceeding with them; and in the day of display they will be seen secured in their entirety and glory.

Now there is additional glory; how encouraging that is! There is nothing about the skin of Moses' face shining in the earlier section we read, but there is here; in fact it is a dominant thing, that "Moses knew not that the skin of his face shone through his talking with him". What a blessed thing this is! how attractive! How good it is to look upon the dear brethren and see shining faces! I am not referring to any natural amiability, but it is one of our great joys surely to look upon the faces of one another and see in the countenances of the brethren the product of having been with God. Now, dear brethren, we owe this to one another, that in this sense our faces should shine through our communion with God. This will be the effect with anyone who frequents the presence of God; the skin of his face will shine through his talking with Him. What a way to come among the brethren! What a way to be in the testimony! I remember a comment of Mr Taylor's as to Paul's reference to the new covenant - which would link with this, how we are transformed from glory to glory - he said that you can see the change even in the countenances of the brethren (see Vol 46, p.189). This change will not occur save as we frequent the presence of divine Persons, but as we are in Their presence the effects of it will be manifest.

I think it is very attractive that Moses knew not that the skin of his face shone through his talking with Him; he was not conscious of it. He had been very conscious, blessedly conscious, of the presence of God, but this was the product of that communion brought down among the people of God. It says "when Moses came down"; this is what happened when he came down. Do we come down thus? Do we come among the brethren, do we fill out any little part we have in the testimony, as those who have come down from the presence of God? May we know more of that holy presence; it is really the atmosphere of heaven; it is where the Father is, where Jesus is, and we have access there. I have not the slightest doubt that anyone who spends time there will bear the marks of it; you can tell in that sense where a person has been. You can certainly tell where an earthly or worldly Christian has been; they have a pinched look, an undernourished look; but I love to see the appearance of a person who has been with God; it bears the shining. So we can shine on one another, in that sense bringing in something of the atmosphere, the glory, the affections of heaven. It cannot but be that if we are in the presence of love's economy in its own realm we shall bring something of the spirit and atmosphere of it among the beloved people of God. May we do so, to enrich the situation! Here, of course, the imperfection of the old dispensation comes into view because they were afraid to come near to Moses, so he put a veil on his face. How delightful what follows: "And when Moses went in before Jehovah to speak with him, he took the veil off, until he came out"; no veil there! "We all, looking on the glory of the Lord, with unveiled face, are transformed according to the same image from glory to glory", 2 Cor 3: 18. Thank God we can say very simply, very thankfully, that in our comings together we experience this shining.

This faithful man, Moses, this shining vessel and servant, would answer to what Paul speaks of in our day as a competent new covenant minister. It says he spoke to the children of Israel what he was commanded (see chap 35: 1); what a fine thing that is! There is a very great need of service of this character; a great need of it on Tuesday nights. Brethren should come to those meetings as having had to do with God, with shining face to speak what they are commanded. That is not an optional matter at all. If the Lord lays something on a person, then he is under love's obligation to convey what has been given to him. It is a matter of the greatest sensitiveness. You may come to the meeting with an impression and it may not be required at all. It has rightly been said that it will keep. But if something is laid upon you to speak as we are together let us be like Moses who spoke to the children of Israel what he was commanded. That would be the word of God. This is the economy functioning. "And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone". What a ministry! What a minister! We would see it in Paul when he departed in Acts 20; how they sorrowed that they would no more see his face. What that face expressed! How high he had been! He was caught up to the third heaven, given peculiar privilege. What communications he had, whether there as "a man in Christ" or in the prison in Rome. He was a competent new covenant minister, not only entrusted with a ministry but suited through his relations with God, with Christ and with the Spirit, to convey it competently, and to exemplify gloriously what he communicated.

In Acts 20 "there were many lights in the upper room where we were assembled". It was a place of shining, there were named personalities there - their names are given in verse 4 - and Paul was there. What a fine occasion it would be; what varied shining! We are often reminded of what is astronomical, Paul speaks of it in Philippians 2: 15; "among whom ye appear". I know that is more in testimony; but we are to shine among the saints too in heavenly lustre. The many lights in the upper room suggest a precious representation of the work of God in these various localities.

This was, you might say, the top storey; the discourse was profitable and intensive; there was an urgency about it. "Paul discoursed to them, about to depart on the morrow". There was much to be conveyed and he prolonged the discourse till midnight. Then something quite unexpected happened: "a certain youth, by name Eutychus, sitting at the windowopening, overpowered by deep sleep... fell from the third storey down to the bottom, and was taken up dead". What a thing to happen in a meeting! - a meeting of such character and distinction, when Paul was doubtless urgently enticing the brethren into the higher regions of the truth. You would like to have heard the enquiries of such men as Sopater and Aristarchus. The meeting was going along and prospering and then this unexpected disaster occurs. A young man, with all the potentialities of a young man, "fell from the third storey down to the bottom, and was taken up dead".

Then we see Paul's immediate action. I refer to this because I think it shows the action of a man with God, with God in the higher levels in relation to what He was opening up and setting up, but with God now in a sudden, critical emergency. "Paul descending fell upon him"; you catch the sense of the immediacy and urgency of Paul's action. Paul was under the Father's influence. Did not the father fall upon the neck of the returning prodigal and cover him with kisses? This is the divine economy finding expression in Paul, the descending mind, the immediate readiness to act. I believe this enters into our meetings, dear brethren. There is the aspect in which, in our occasions together, the Lord would open up to us what is greatest and highest and richest - and may we have an appetite and interest to press forward with the exploration of it. As we well know, everything in one sense is out, the revelation is complete, but in another sense the frontiers of what you and I have entered into and enjoyed are constantly being pressed forward - just as there are places in the atlas; you can see them there, but they have never been explored. So the Spirit would entice us and encourage us to explore and penetrate into what still lies beyond us in the realm of what has been revealed - a most important aspect of our comings together.

But another important aspect is that the current state among us is met by a man who is with God. These things go on together, and I believe that the headship of Christ and the presence of the Spirit enable both ends to be served, that the word would bear on the current state among us and on dangers among us. So Paul for the moment breaks off his ministry and attends immediately in the spirit of the Father and of Jesus to this young man. It says "But Paul, descending fell upon him, and enfolding him in his arms". This is the action of a man who had been with God. Can we do this, dear brethren? I think it is very important that relations between younger brethren and older ones should be of this kind. Can we do anything of this nature: "enfolding him in his arms"? May the younger people have a sense that they are deeply in the affections of the older brethren; may they have liberty with them. We may perhaps at times unintentionally appear to be a bit aloof, we may forget young people's names, and that kind of thing, but let them be assured that they are in our hearts. I read a remark of Mr Taylor's the other day in which he said that when he looked upon the young men and women he said, 'They are the hope of Israel'. Oh the potentialities and possibilities of the work of God in the young people; they are the hope of Israel. If the Lord tarry, everything depends upon them. Let them have a sense that they are loved and cherished. May there be an attitude with those who are older which makes them available so that they are free to speak of difficulties; and if they get into real trouble as Eutychus did, may there be these resources of love. Paul "enfolding him in his arms, said, Be not troubled, for his life is in him". That is the crucial thing. A young person's appearance may perhaps be unpromising; you may say there is little there. Paul says, with the discernment of a man who had been with God, His soul is in him, there is life there. And that life was revived. This incident finishes, "And they brought away the boy alive, and were no little comforted". This is the operation of a man with God. So it says "And having gone up, and having broken the bread, and eaten, and having long spoken until daybreak, so he went away"; the service is completed. Well, may the Lord greatly help us in these things. May each of us be much more familiar with the presence of God so as to be able to come out in His grace and power and act for Him, for His glory, in His Name.

 

TUNBRIDGE WELLS

29 April 1978