BEING READY FOR THE MORNING

R. Taylor

Exodus 34: 1–5; Matthew 25: 5–13; 2 Peter 3: 13–18; Revelation 19: 7, 8; 21: 9–11

I would like, as the Lord may help, to speak about being ready for the morning. I should say first of all the passage in Exodus is often spoken about as a type of Christ as the Mediator, which is true, but I take the liberty of applying it to ourselves. The Lord had no need to be ready for the morning nor of these tables, so it has its bearing on us to be ready for the morning. What would Moses think about that night? He says in Psalm 90, “Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place” (Psalm 90: 1), then he goes on, “teach us to number our days” (Psalm 90: 12). That is all part of being ready for the morning.

The chapter tells us some things we must see about. God says to him, “neither shall sheep and oxen feed in front of that mountain”. Now that perhaps seemed a bit unreasonable, but it applies to things that we may think are right, but which may have to be laid aside to be ready for the morning. There are things that are not wrong but have to be superseded. How often we hear the claim that there is nothing wrong with it, but God was very specific, “neither shall sheep and oxen feed in front of that mountain”. It means that we are not to be distracted. We were told when we were younger that you have to do your work and “labour at it heartily, as doing it to the Lord” (Colossians 3: 23), and see to righteousness; but all that you have you hold it ready to depart and be with Christ. Scripture warns us as to material things controlling us or hindering us from being ready for the morning. I just leave that as having its own voice to me as I speak, that I might not cherish unduly anything that can hinder me from being ready for the morning.

What a night it would have been for Moses, what expectations must have arisen in his heart. He had asked already to see His glory and God says, Be ready for the morning. Have you ever asked of the Lord to show you His glory? The passage shows that God was more ready to show His glory to Moses, perhaps than he was to be ready for it; and that is so with us, that God is more ready to show us divine things than we are ready to receive them. It is a fact, dear brethren, that you will get light and you will get help as you are ready for it. God shows that in Abraham’s history. If he had not practised circumcision he would never have reached the next step to know God in the appearing in Genesis 18. God starts dealing with us where we were in all our guilt and unworthiness, and He gives us the light of the forgiveness of our sins. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”, 1 Timothy 1: 15. That is the light that has dawned on humanity.

How many have been ready to receive it. Those who have not, get no further light, they are left lost. God has presented in His Son, forgiveness and all the blessings that accompany it, but it is only received as you repent. You will get no further entrance into the things of God till you do. It speaks about the steps in faith of our father Abraham. We may be holding things up because we have not learned lesson one or lesson two before we get lesson three.

That is how God leads us on; we are not able for too much, but He leads us on gently in patient grace. Here He is answering Moses’ request by saying, Be ready for the morning. We speak of the morning; tomorrow morning as the Lord’s supper, too in relation to the coming of our Lord Jesus to receive His saints at the rapture, and also at the appearing; we have to be ready for all these things. Each has its own distinction; as to Lord’s day morning.

He says, am coming to you; as to the rapture He says, I am coming for you; as to the appearing He says, I am bringing you with Me. They raise different exercises but the Lord says, Be ready, whatever it is. He expects us who have known the blessings of being brought into the family of God to be ready for all three. It speaks about loving His appearing, when He will be seen coming in in His glory and be hailed as Lord of lords and King of kings. He would give us the light of these things in order to be ready for the morning. Not only was the ground to be cleared of sheep but there are also these tables of stone. We are reminded that the writing now is “not on stone tables, but on fleshy tables of the heart”, 2 Corinthians 3: 3. Are they ready, or are they burdened with the cares of life? The Lord speaks about some who had their hearts burdened by the cares of life; how they were going to get on next year, how they were going to attain their ambitions, how they were going to realise their ideals and make things perfect here. These things hinder the heart being ready to hear His call.

Moses must have been very attentive as he went forward. The Lord does much for us, you know, but He leaves us to do something. “Hew for thyself two tables of stone like the first”, not just anything would do, but there was something there that was ready to be impressed with divine writing and divine commandments too, because that was what was written on these tables of stone. God showed what was necessary, as Paul was bringing to these Corinthians by the Spirit of God, that God’s arrangements are the basis on which God will show His glory. He does not normally come where there is no appreciation. Sometimes He does and He has to go away. It says, “I called, and ye did not answer”, Isaiah 65: 12. You read of the bride, the spouse, in the Song of Songs where the Lord came and knocked (Song of Songs 5: 2). She says, speaking simply, Lord I am very comfortable, it is not too convenient just now. I have made my arrangements, my plans, I am busy; and there was the Lord knocking.

I did not mean to speak about that in detail but it is a very touching thing in the Song of Songs. I ask you to look at it, how the Lord left liquid myrrh on the handles of the door; I think that is very telling. He came and knocked and there was no answer, but what He left on the door was like a note saying, ‘I died for you’. O, she quickened her steps. She had to go through a good deal of exercise. If we are careless about divine things, dear brethren, the Lord may not answer our first cry; we have to go through a lot of exercise. You cannot just say, Well, I will see about that tomorrow and expect the Lord to be there. He may not be there; that is the fact of that passage. It says she went out and the watchmen found her and evil treated her. Mr Coates has a very fine touch about that. He said she should never have been there for the watchmen to find her. The watchmen were not looking for her spouse, they were looking to keep the enemies out, and there she was looking like a strange woman. Dear brethren, these things are very real in the exercises of our heart. The watchmen found her, but there was that liquid myrrh on her fingers. His saying ‘I died for you’ had touched her affections and she would not rest until she was ready for the morning. How ready she was, “My beloved is white and ruddy”, Song of Songs 5: 10. She speaks of His eyes, now she is recovered, what grace. Mr Darby said,

‘Still sweet ‘tis to discover,

If clouds have dimmed my sight,

When passed, eternal Lover,

Towards me, as e’er, Thou’rt bright’. (Hymn 51)

It was a painful experience for her, that many, myself among them, have known, but the Lord will bring us back with touches of His love.

Now He says, Be ready for the morning, for the writing on these tables which was a covenant. Do you have such a link with Jesus, beloved? Have you listened to His commandments? That is the tables, that your heart is impressed with divine arrangements.

The Lord said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments”, John 14: 15. The tables here set out a claim that the Lord rightly has over us, and He says, Have them with you that you may see My glory and you may live in the warmth of My love. The first tables had to be broken, showing our failure, but God in His grace speaks again. He appealed to us once and now He appeals again. Be ready for the morning, and “Moses rose up early in the morning”. He was not going to be late. He would see that he was there on time, he was ready for the first touches of His love. It is sometimes a good way on in the meeting before some of us realise that the Lord is there. Am I ready

as He comes in to quickly answer to His voice. I often think of Samuel as David came in. It says, “he was ruddy, and besides of a lovely countenance and beautiful appearance. And Jehovah said, Arise, anoint him; for this is he”, 1 Samuel 16: 12. May we, beloved, have affections and expectations like that, that when the Lord comes in we are ready to rise up and give Him His true place. You will notice in each of these passages that I have read it is speaking about being ready.

The passage in Matthew 25 says that those who were ready went in. The chapter of course is speaking very much of the public position, of which we are part, but it is speaking too about church history which is learned in the Bible. Men are spending millions trying to find out about creation. It is all in the one verse, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”, Genesis 1: 1. There it is; simple faith lays hold of it. In the course of time, after the Lord’s rejection, the light of His coming again faded; it says “they all grew heavy and slept”.

They had not been ready for the morning or they would never have grown heavy and slept, because every morning brings its own touch of the glory and blessedness of the Saviour.

They allowed the sheep on the mountain, if you like, to hinder the glory of God shining out in the face of Jesus Christ.

Some had a link with Jesus, others did not, but they all looked the same; they all grew heavy and slept, but the call went forth in the middle of the night, when you would least expect it,

“Behold, the bridegroom; go forth to meet him”. In the history of the church that cry has gone forth; the morning star has already risen. Men speak about the Dark Ages, when persons were lulled to sleep by the power of Rome and darkness covered the whole scene, but Luther received light in his soul that justification was by faith, not by works. It did not need money or penance to get right with God. “The just shall live by faith”—That was a touch of the morning star rising causing some light to shine on a dark sleeping world.

It has shone more brilliantly since, “Behold, the bridegroom; go forth to meet him”. That means you have to rise up from where you are. He is not coming to where you are in this setting; you have to go and meet Him. It means you have to rise up from these sleepy conditions. It means you are an overcomer from these things that would hold you and deflect you from enjoying His glory; “go forth to meet him”.

That is the truth of separation, much opposed maybe, but there is no beholding the bridegroom without going forth to meet Him. The passage of scripture that comes to mind is,

“let us go, forth to him without the camp, bearing his reproach”, Hebrews 13: 13. Response to the Spirit’s call, I believe, would lead to finding the Lord in conditions outside the camp.

Men have tried to bring Him into the profession and what a monstrosity it has been; they have tried to fit Him into politics and all sorts of things. They say, If Jesus were here He would be this, He would be that. Somebody once wrote in a paper that if Christ were here He would be the greatest sportsman on earth. A dear soul wrote back saying, Is that the Man of Isaiah 53? He was not in politics, He was not in sports, He was not in anything here, He was despised and rejected of men, “there is no beauty that we should desire him”, Isaiah 53: 2. He would not have fitted into man’s circumstances at all; He is outside the camp, “go forth to meet him”. It may mean leaving things that you have cherished. Beloved, we are speaking of a moment of great rewards, “go forth to meet him”.

The cry was so powerful in earlier times, there was a great movement throughout Christendom towards Christ, but some found they could not go very far, they were tested. We cannot go in our own strength; we cannot go by saying, I will turn over a new leaf. These things are very experimental because we have all tried them. We have heard an address perhaps that has stirred our hearts, and we say, Well next week I will be different, and we find that we cannot do very much better if any. The test was that some had no oil in their vessels. Dear friend, what use is a lamp without the oil? What use is profession without Christ? What claim is there to power without the Spirit? as this passage brings up most beautifully and yet testing. It says, “those virgins arose and trimmed their torches”. After being asleep, the torches were in bad condition and they needed to be trimmed. They had to cut away things that were no use to them, things that were going to obscure their view. They said, Away with that, it is not giving a true light, it is hindering my links with Jesus. They took away the black parts that would cause the light to flicker and it says that the prudent took oil with their torches. They rose and trimmed their torches. “And the foolish said to the prudent, Give us of your oil”. That is not where you get it. You do not get the oil from another believer although they may help you.

What we have been speaking of today is all very personal; your link with Christ is your own, it is what you learn to cherish. You will not go to meet the Bridegroom because your father or mother taught you to read your Bible and pray. You will be in glory on the basis of your link with Christ and your sins being forgiven, and your joy in the testimony will be in your link with the Holy Spirit of God. So they go forth. They wanted to buy; too late. They were not ready for the morning because they had no link with the Spirit. The Spirit of God quickly stirred some affections in these virgins with the cry. They answer, “Go rather to those that sell, and buy for yourselves”.

I was reading this passage today and the woman in John 4 came to my mind; she was ready to buy. The Lord said to her, If you knew who was speaking to you, you would have asked of Him and He would have given you living water. These foolish virgins had never gone through the exercises the woman in John 4 went through. She went through them quickly because Christ came into her heart. It says she left her water-pot. He said, You would have asked of Me and I would have given you living water, “springing up into eternal life”, John 4: 14.

I think she is an example that now is the time to buy, and the Lord taught her how to buy. He had to speak to her about her sins but they were all quickly dealt with because that Man became enshrined in her heart; greater than Jacob, greater than all that she had known here was One who had an interest in her soul, and who spoke of living water. She said, I am weary coming here every day to draw. How burdensome it all was but He said, You will not need to come again, I will give you living water springing up into eternal life. That is what these five wise virgins came into, the joy of the Holy Spirit of God. The others meant perhaps to do it tomorrow, but the morning came and it was too late. They had often heard about getting the Spirit, and it is in the scripture to ask the Father (Luke 11: 13), but it is more than that.

I think the exercise of that woman in John 4 is the basis of enjoying liberty with the Holy Spirit of God. I see that the Man Christ Jesus, has dealt with all my history; and He has brought me in touch with a living fountain of water, not only outside of me, but in me, springing up into life eternal. O dear friend, make room for it. That is what she did, she went and said, “Come, see a man”, John 4: 29. She made room for that fountain of water to be springing up into eternal life. I like to think of that woman going through the rest of that gospel as a follower of Jesus. Think of her hearing of the Lord’s words about my Father’s house; she was ready for it. She will be at home in the Father’s house, because everything had been cleared, and she knew that fountain of water springing up into eternal life. Well, dear brethren, the exercise is very real and would afford profit in going over it. Do not make it optional because here the feast’s door is shut. The rest of the virgins come saying, “Lord, Lord, open to us”. They knew His name, but the Lord says to them, “I do not know you”. In another part these same persons in principle said, Lord, you taught in our streets (Luke 13: 26), He said, “I do not know you”.

We often ask people, Do you know the Lord’? It is more important, dear friend, Does the Lord know you? The Lord says here, “I do not know you”. Persons may have been at the meetings, they maybe read their Bible, they may have prayed, but they have never had a real link with the Saviour. He says, “I do not know you”. You say, The Lord knows everybody.

He says, I know Abraham, I know that I can confide something to him. I know these persons who have prayed, I know the reality of their exercises, I know the definiteness of their committal. We sometimes say, The Lord knows my heart. It is a very glib thing to say, dear brethren. He knows all right but maybe not what you think. I have known persons going away on a self-willed path and saying, Well the Lord knows my heart; but maybe He does not have the estimation about you that you have of yourself. It is good to get into His presence and get God’s estimation about you. These other five went in, they went in with Him to the feast. The bridegroom is the secret of it all, “Behold, the bridegroom”. It stirs the heart to be ready for the morning.

Peter says, Beloved, as you wait for these things be diligent. That is what the foolish virgins were not, they were not diligent. They knew the terms, they could speak, they could maybe even preach, but they were not diligent. Peter is speaking here about the eternal day. He says, “we wait for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwells righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, as ye wait for these things, be diligent to be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless”. These are like the five wise virgins with the oil, they are making room for the Holy Spirit of God. They have chased the sheep off the mountain, they have cleared these things that could be obstructive, they are diligent. You say, Well it is difficult. Yes, it is. That shows the lack of appreciating the Spirit of God if we appeal to difficulties, if we excuse ourselves so easily. Peter says, Be diligent. If the goal of the rapture, the appearing of Christ, and our place in the Father’s house becomes increasingly real to us we will be more “diligent to be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless”, even in a day like this. I wonder if that is my ideal. We were speaking about peace the other night in the meeting, and this came to my mind in thinking about the peace of God. Peter was asleep in the prison where they were going to behead him the next morning. He knew the peace of God. What could men do?

So in all these circumstances and opposition, Peter says, “be diligent to be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless”. That is the fruit, dear brethren, of having oil in our vessels. Well the passage is very full; there is not time to speak of Paul’s ministry in connection with it, but Peter writes of that in verse 15. Then he says, “take care lest, being led away along with the error of the wicked, ye should fall from your own stedfastness”. Take care, that is Peter’s way of saying, Be ready for the morning. The cares of life, the burdens, the sorrows, all have to be dealt with, to be carried, but he says, “take care lest, being led away along with the error of the wicked, ye should fall from your own stedfastness”.

I want to speak about the Lamb’s wife before we close. It says she “has made herself ready”. Very beautiful, that is the real thing; that is not profession, “the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife has made herself ready”, wonder who is speaking here. It says, “I heard ... as a voice of many waters”. The Lord has taken to Himself kingly power. I believe it is the Spirit’s voice, and “his wife” is the divine estimation of how the saints have been in testimony here, in the time of the Lord’s rejection, faithful in His absence tending to His affairs. She was ready for the morning through looking after the interests of Christ. She attended to the children, but the interests of the absent husband are paramount in the wife’s affections. It says, “his wife has made herself ready. And it was given to her that she should be clothed in fine linen, bright and pure; for the fine linen is the righteousnesses of the saints”. She did not get them in a moment, that was her life’s work. I wonder if we were to be clothed with our life’s work how big a garment it would be, but there it is, “clothed with fine linen”. It was not just the run of the mill, it was not a coarse thing. She had attended in detail to the Lord’s interests. That spirit would always be there at the care meeting, looking after His interests, not only the care meeting but day by day. That is where the fine linen is woven, looking after His interests. The Lord says, “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven”, Matthew 6: 20. You say, How do you do that? You do it in your prayers. It was said to Cornelius, “Thy prayers and thine alms have gone up for a memorial before God”, Acts 10: 4. God has your name in heaven.

John was told, “Come here, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife”, and he saw her “coming down out of the heaven from God”. The Bridegroom had been her commanding object and here she is. The Bridegroom is Christ in His own glory, indigenous to heaven. It is not just as He was here, it is Christ in His own glory, the glory that the Father has given Him; that is what you see in the Bridegroom. Mr James Taylor speaks about the Lord on the mount of transfiguration that He was there in full dress. In the army they have khaki for their normal garments, but when a ceremony comes they are adorned in full dress, all various colours.

That is like the Bridegroom; He is there in full dress. O to see Him thus, dear brethren, would captivate our hearts, and that is what produces the fine linen, and the wife is there, suitable for the marriage having made herself ready. May the Lord encourage our hearts, dear brethren. The morning is coming; be ready for the morning, for His name’s sake.

Address at Kirkcaldy
18 February 2006