BROTHERLY TRAITS
[p. 94] BROTHERLY TRAITS
John 20: 17, 18; Genesis 13: 8, 9; Genesis 14: 13 - 16; Genesis 45: 14, 15; Exodus 2: 11 - 15; Judges 1:3-7; Judges 1:17; Judges 8: 18, 19
What I have before me is to seek to convey the divine idea of “brethren”. This term has become very familiar to us. It has ever been so among men. Abel was the first to be called “brother”, and therefore the term early entered into the language of our race and I suppose now occurs in connection with every branch of the human family. But in modern times it has become familiar in a peculiar way in that it has been made the designation of a certain class of Christians. And as thus used it has been reduced from the high level of John 20 to the level of an ordinary religious designation in Christendom. As thus reduced it is like “as a gold ring in a swine’s snout”, as is said in Proverbs 11: 22. My exercise tonight is to seek to lift it in our minds out of that setting into its own proper place according to God. The Lord Jesus Christ has given it a place, for He puts precious things in their own right setting. I hope that tonight, by the Lord’s help, we may see a little of the setting of this precious stone, as I may so speak of it.
It is seen in the John 20 in its most exalted character. A few men known as very ordinary in this world, fishermen and the like, had been drawn to Jesus and had been His companions. On several occasions He had referred to them as His brethren, especially as His mother and brethren after the flesh sought to assert their right to His attention. The Lord was accustomed to speak to small, as to large, companies, and Matthew and Mark tell us that on one such occasion His mother and brethren stood without asking to see Him. It was reported to Him, but instead of relinquishing His [p. 95] holy spiritual service in speaking of His Father and His Father’s things, He continued speaking, and looking around on His disciples said, “Behold my mother and my brethren: for whosoever shall do the will of God, he is my brother, and sister and mother” (Mark 3: 34). He thus introduced a great moral barrier between the spiritual and the natural. He lifted the term out of the natural into its spiritual setting. So as risen from the dead He sent a message to His disciples by Mary, saying, “Go to my brethren and say to them, I ascend to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God”. He needed not to give Mary a list of the names and addresses, for she well knew where to find them. She knew whom He had in mind. She came to the disciples and told them that “she had seen the Lord, and that he had said these things to her”. Thus we have the circle delineated, and the term “brethren” placed in its most exalted setting.
Now I want to show from the Old Testament some of the traits of brethren. By these traits we may come to know our brethren and to scorn the applying of the term to a mere religious body. There are thousands of our brethren whom we do not know. It may be their fault, or ours, but they exist nevertheless. It is for us to lay hold of the term and what it applies to, and seek out our relations. Divine love in us would lead to this search for our brethren, to our clinging to them when found, and to the laying down of our lives for them if need be. I believe we should use the Old Testament for the detail it gives us. In the New we get divine directions and statements of doctrine; in the Old we have the definitions. Things are shown there, they are exemplified. Christianity is not simply a system of doctrines, it is also a system of principles and examples. The Lord Himself takes the lead in this, saying, “Come to me, all ye who labour and are burdened, and I will give you rest.
[p. 96] Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me” (Matthew 11: 28, 29). He is the Model for us. The Old Testament furnishes us with designed, not accidental, illustrations given with divine care and precision.
Let us begin with Abram. The first feature of a brother seen in him is that he refuses to quarrel, he is not contentious. It is said in 1 Corinthians 11: 16, “If any one think to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor the assemblies of God”. The man was ruled out. Now there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle. Abram says, “I pray thee let there be no contention between me and the ... for we are brethren”. He refuses to contend. Of course you will understand that I am not here speaking of questions affecting the truth. In such cases the brother would be like the lion, and not turn away from any. If it be a question of Christ or the truth, the brother will take a stand at all costs. But when it is a matter of land or other personal interests, or feelings, he refuses to contend. Like Mephibosheth he says, “Let him even take all, since my lord the king is come again in peace to his own house” (2 Samuel 19: 30). Here Abram says, in effect, ‘If you choose the right I will turn to the left, or if you choose the lift, I will go to the right: under no circumstances let us quarrel’.
Then Lot is captured, and Abram goes to rescue him. Lot had no claim upon Abram. In choosing the well-watered plain of Jordan he had treated him in a most unbrotherly way. Like Demas he had loved this present evil world. But Abram dwelt by the oaks of Mamre. He was not in the world, he settled by stable things, things that abide. And he was Abram the Hebrew, the separate man. As sure as we put on the initial idea of the brother we shall be found dwelling by stable things. We “receiving a kingdom not to be shaken” (Hebrews 12: 28).
[p. 97] Abram lived in relation to that, and had three hundred and eighteen trained servants born in his house at his command. What headway, what progress, he made! As we take up the exercises connected with the brother, God will see to it that we go on to greater things. But as for Lot, he could not even influence his sons-in-law, who mocked him. He had absolutely no influence. So Abram takes his life in his hands and pursues the enemy and rescues his brother. Lot did not deserve this, and hence we see here the second great feature of the brother — he altogether sinks personal feelings. His brother is value to him, of more value than flocks and herds, though he be a worldly Christian. Abram pursues the enemy a long way, even to Hobah, on the left hand of Damascus. It was a very long way, a great undertaking for the sake of one brother. But Abram was equal to it. How easily we sometimes let our brethren slip through out fingers! “A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city” (Proverbs 18: 19). Let us then see to it that our brethren do not get offended. Abram must have his brother even if he has to lay down his life for him, which indeed he did in principle.
Joseph is the next, representative of the brother “born for adversity;” not his own adversity, but the adversity of others. He gathers up all that had preceded him and exemplifies the idea of the brother in a more complete way than is seen in any save the Lord Himself. Joseph is a most striking type. He knew love. That is the next great thing. He was loved by his father. When a lad of seventeen his father had made him a coat of many colours; he came in for a peculiar expression of his affection, he was distinguished as a loved one. There are such who stand out among the saints in this way. The apostle John was one of them: he was the “disciple whom Jesus loved”. It is a delightful thing to get into the [p. 98] company of one who knows love and can convey love. This the privilege of the brother. So we find Joseph, having had keen experience of suffering at the hands of his brethren, now meets them under the most extraordinary circumstances. He is lord of all Egypt, and his brethren come to him to buy corn. He knew them, but they did not know him. How many of our brethren around us we do not know. We are all typically “one man’s sons”, but are of many mothers. Joseph’s brethren typify the Lord’s people as found among the systems of this world. We have one common Father, but who is our mother? The mother has much to do with the upbringing of the family. Jacob’s family had four mothers.
Now we find that Joseph’s brethren have to confess that they were twelve brethren (Genesis 42: 13). They do not pretend to say, We are. They say, We “were twelve brethren ... the youngest is this day with our father, and one is not”. What feelings must have arisen in their hearts as they said, “one is not”. The ten are lined up before their brother as guilty of murder. What will the brother do under such circumstances? You will say, ‘The case is hopeless’. But no; let us see what he will do. He was but an Egyptian to them, but in his heart was a deep pent-up reservoir of love towards them. He was so powerfully affected that he wept over them. Here we have another point, love never fails. And in this most extraordinary situation it avails to bring the brethren to repentance. This is one of the greatest of its feats. Love can do it, it never fails. How does Joseph act? He first puts them in prison. ‘A hard man’, you say. But he could weep in doing it. This is love’s way, the way of wisdom. He also had the silver cup put in Benjamin’s sack. By these means he brought his brethren to repentance. Judah now says; “We have an aged father, and a child born to him in his old age, yet young; and his brother is dead, and he alone is [p. 99] left of his mother, and his father loves him”. Ah, the bold, hard, remorseless feelings are giving way to soft and tender sympathies! He says we have a father and we have a brother. This is the result of coming into the presence of Joseph. He can serve them as none other can. And now he can make himself known to them. “He fell on his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck”. Benjamin gets the first embrace, the two brothers are brought together in the deepest affection and sympathies. “And he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them”. Now we have the twelve brethren set up together in the holy bonds of affection. How much this spirit is needed today — the moral power, constancy and faithfulness to serve all the brethren in holy love!
Next let us turn to Moses. How he loved his brethren and understood what was comely amongst them. Stephen, in Acts 7: 26, quotes him saying to those who strove together, “Ye are brethren, why do ye wrong one another?” We find him, though learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, mighty in words and in deeds, the great prince of Pharaoh’s house, coming down to look upon the burdens of his brethren, the oppressed Hebrews. He sees an Egyptian smiting one brother. We cannot say what his status was, he may have been just an insignificant slave or brickmaker. But he was a brother. His hands may have been hard and smeared by toiling at the brick-kiln. But he was a brother. We read that Moses “turned this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he smote the Egyptian and hid him in the sand”. That was one day’s work. Stephen tells us that he thought they would understand that God by his hand would deliver them, but they did not. Our brethren do not always understand, we have need of patience in serving them. On the next day he sees two of his [p. 100] brethren quarrelling. Of course, one was in the wrong. Moses says, “Why art thou smiting thy neighbour?” He that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, “Who made thee ruler and a judge over us?” You see he had a rebuff for his love. So he has to flee the face of Pharaoh and is exiled forty years in the land of Midian on account of love for his brethren. He laid down his life for them as did Abram. He sacrificed all for them.
Now in connection with Judah and Simeon, we find very beautiful brotherly relations existing. They portray brethren dwelling together in unity. Judah was the big influential brother, the leading tribe. He says to his brother Simeon, “Come up with me into my lot, and let us fight against the Canaanites, and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot”. So Simeon went with him. How this spirit is to be coveted in our warfare with the Canaanites, the spiritual powers of wickedness in heavenly places! If unity comes in the most potent power will be broken. They slay ten thousand of the enemy and find a powerful man, Adoni-bezek. They cut off his thumbs and his great toes, but they do not kill him. Why not? Because it is a question of a moral victory. He is brought to repent and realise that he as to do with God, and not merely with the brethren. There is the power of limitation among the people of God. Unity is imperative. If it is not present Satan will find an opening in the ranks, of which he, the shrewd enemy, will not fail to take advantage. Judah and Simeon fought side by side, and God was with them. No doubt Adoni-bezek is typical of a person exercising an undue influence over the people of God. He says, “Seventy kings, with their thumbs and great toes cut off, gleaned under my table: as I have done, so God has requited me”. His power of initiative is taken away, and he has to own that God’s hand is upon him.
[p. 101] Then he is brought to Jerusalem and he dies. He will never trouble the saints again. This was a great exploit, a great moral victory.
Finally, in Judges 8 we have what links up with John 20. Gideon is a type of Christ. He says to Zebah and Zalmunna, “What sort of men were they?” They say, “As thou art, so were they”. They were his brethren not merely in name, but also in likeness. They were typically like Christ — “each one resembled the sons of a king”. Royalty marked them. Gideon says, “they were my brethren, the sons of my mother”. They did not have many mothers like Joseph’s brethren. They were all typically Christians walking in the light of the assembly. As the light of the assembly stamps us it gives us heavenly character. In human organisations there may be many true Christians; all have the same Father, but not the same mother. They take character from the human organisations to which they belong. The assembly is “our mother”, Jerusalem above, which is free; Galatians 4: 26. She gives to the saints a heavenly dignity and liberty. It is the maternal side imparting heavenly character like Christ. If I think of God as Father, that is the link I have with every brother. But many are also the product of human, not heavenly, systems.