MAY 26TH, 1929
MAY 26TH, 1929
MY DEAR BROTHER IN THE LORD, — I am sorry that I have been unable to reply sooner to your letter, but I have thought of you with much interest in relation to your exercises, and have prayed that the Lord may grant you an abundant furnishing of grace, mercy and peace at all times, and particularly when depressing conditions are present.
There are certain physical conditions which tend to depression, and the enemy is ever ready to take advantage of them that our joy may be diminished and the Lord may not receive the full note of praise of which He is so worthy. As to the sins of the past we glorify God and the word of His grace by simple confidence that the death and blood of Christ have settled every question. It is our privilege to cherish the thought that full forgiveness is in the heart of God; He refuses every charge; He remembers our sins and iniquities no more; and He ever regards us as those to whom He has made Christ to be wisdom and righteousness and holiness and redemption. I take it that you have not any difficulty as to this, or as to the complete satisfaction of God in the Person of Christ and in His sin-purging work, but that you are troubled at times by depression which deprives you of conscious joy in divine favour.
It is a comfort to know that nothing can touch the ground of peace on which our souls are with God. That is, Christ and His precious work are unaffected by any experiences through which our souls may pass. Physical and mental conditions may have a great effect on our feelings, and the amount of joy which we have consciously, but Christ in [p. 180] unchanged perfection is ever before the face of God for us and it is our privilege to hold to this and to bless the Lord at all times for the precious truth of it.
Certain conditions may even be the direct consequence in God’s government of past evil. Such things have to be humbly accepted as the mighty hand of God upon us; they help to maintain true self-judgment in our souls before Him, so that repentance is deepened as time goes on. But then all this is in view of our being exalted in Christ. The learning of what I am, and of what I have been, is truly humbling, but it need not be distressing if I see that all those conditions which have been present with me have just been the occasion for God to bring to light what is in His own heart. When I see this those very conditions magnify before my soul the greatness of His salvation in Christ. The weakness that is in myself, and the many things which I have to deplore in my past, or perhaps even in my present, make me thankful to know that God has brought in another Man, and has secured in Him all His own thoughts of blessing man-ward. There is what is perfect and absolutely for God’s satisfaction and delight in Him, and it remains unaffected by what I find in myself. Nay! every self-discovery makes His perfection more a necessity to my heart. What I learn and experience in myself makes me rejoice to believe on Another in whom every promise of God is Yea and Amen.
It is a wholesome thing to remember what we were as in the flesh. See 1 Corinthians 6: 8 - 11; Titus 3: 37; 1 Timothy 1: 12 - 16; 1 Peter 4: 3; Ephesians 2, etc., etc. But it will be seen that when the time past of our lives is referred to the object of the Spirit of God is to enhance the appreciation in our hearts of that grace which has reached and blessed us through the Lord Jesus Christ. These scriptures, and many others, show that it is our sinful state and course which provided God with an outlet for all that was in His heart as a Saviour God. The conditions on our side were the very occasion for the shining out of the blessed God in the revelation of Himself in grace. They have furnished Him with the opportunity to make Himself known in His true character and nature. Self-judgment on our part is suitable and essential, but it is divested of the depressing features which would otherwise accompany it when we see how our sinfulness has made God a necessity to us in the true grace which the gospel [p. 181] makes known. Hence conviction of sin is ever accompanied by an attractive sense of goodness in God which can be counted on, notwithstanding all that we are conscious of on our side.
Satan would use the thought of what we have been to cast us down, but God would ever use it to make His grace in Christ more precious and indispensable. The more I learn myself the more thankful I am for the death of Christ, which has not only removed my sins but brought my whole history as in the flesh to an end. We are divinely entitled to honour God in the greatness of His grace, and of His salvation in Christ, and to dwell ever on the efficacy of His precious blood through which we have redemption in Him.
Physical or mental depression caused by bodily conditions may be of such a nature as to tend to affect for the time conscious enjoyment of spiritual blessing. This makes the priestly grace and service of Christ a very great necessity if we are to be sustained in liberty of spirit, and He does not fail to minister it to us. Such conditions are of the nature of infirmity, and it is well to fully recognise them as such, even though there may be in them a governmental element which calls for special humbling under the mighty hand of God. They are, nevertheless, the subject of the sympathy and succour of Christ as Priest. He prays for us that faith may not fail, even when under God’s hand we are feeling how grievously we have erred. His intercessory service of love takes account of everything, and we may be fully assured of this at all times. The conditions may not be at once relieved, but we may be sure that they will be, and that it is ours to trust Him fully at all times.
I may have experiences concerning which I have to say, “This is my infirmity”, and they cast me upon the mercy and faithfulness of Christ as the blessed One who succours weakness in unfailing priestly grace. He is a present living Resource and Refuge for me, and every conscious weakness is an occasion to look straight to Him for divine succour and deliverance. A sinking Peter cried, “Lord, save me”, and the mighty Hand was outstretched at once. I would encourage you to turn directly to Him in your times of special need, with confidence that His love is unchanged and unchangeable. He can make you a peculiar vessel to honour in spite of all the weakness you find in yourself. That very weakness makes [p. 182] you need Him in a special way, and the way you learn Him through it, and in it, will be your special bit in His testimony, and your distinction in the kingdom by and by.
We may honour the Lord by holding fast confidence in Him even when we are cast down. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is “the Father of compassions, and God of all encouragement”, and He “encourages those that are brought low”, 2 Corinthians 1: 3; 7: 6. I think you must have proved this, at least in some measure, and you will undoubtedly do so in times of need as you turn to Him.
With much prayerful interest and love in the Lord Jesus,
Yours affectionately in Him,
May 26th, 1929.