GROWTH

^[p. 122] GROWTH

The question is the gain of growth.

There is no meaning in the three classes in 1 John 2 if there be not degrees of growth. Take an illustration — three birds: the first, occupied with its food. The second, embarrassed by surroundings. The third, able to fly unhinderedly.

The “babe” in John is quite different from the “babe” with Paul. The “babe” (a different word) in John knows the Father. Surely that is not a “feeble soul”. The “babe” with Paul is an infant. It is an evident fact that there is no advance in the appropriation of the new which is, by grace ours, but as the old has been refused and abnegated. This is the stone before the wheel with all those who make the objective everything. There could be no subjective but in correspondence with the objective. Christ Himself is the model and source, but there is no apprehension of the new but as the old is refused, and this is true from the very beginning of your spiritual history. The forgiving of your sins is not apart from repentance.

The misery in Psalm 32 is simply because the confession of the sins was not co-extensive with the grace that gave a full discharge from them. The damage to souls amongst us in the present day is the confidence in rank — divine rank — independently of the moral and practical power to support it. A title deed may give me rank; but if I am not personally as great as my rank, I do no credit to my rank; on the contrary, I depreciate it. Alas! this is the state generally.

I am glad that you are encouraged in the Lord’s work. I hope you are seeking to present the church as a chaste virgin to Christ. Almost all the servants are thinking of the good of souls, and but few are thinking of the Lord with respect to the church. The more the saints are for Him, the more they will in every way gain for themselves. May the Lord greatly bless you. The text for every teacher is, “Have ye any meat?” We have never received ^[p. 123] any light or help as to the church from any sect, or from any who have seceded from us.