THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL - THE REPORT OF WHAT GOD HAS DONE
[p. 355] THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL — THE REPORT OF WHAT GOD HAS DONE
Ques This is a lovely gospel here. Does it contrast with Stephen’s preaching? There was conscience-work in his address. He was trying to reach the people’s conscience.
CAC Yes. That was not exactly the preaching of the gospel, was it? If was a kind of indication of the ways of God and a bringing home to the nation their guiltiness. I suppose we do not get many examples of the preaching of the gospel in the Scriptures.
Ques In verse 33 does “raised up Jesus” mean brought Him in, not raised Him from death?
CAC It is the raising up of Jesus in the midst of Israel after the flesh. It does not refer to His resurrection, but to the fulfilment of promise in bringing Him in, as is said in verse 23, “Of this man’s seed according to promise has God brought to Israel a Saviour, Jesus; John having proclaimed before the face of his entry among the people the baptism of repentance”. It refers to what was raised up in the Person of Jesus who “entered” among the people. That is a beautiful word — “His entry among the people”. It evidently refers to what we read in Luke 4 of Him in the synagogue of Nazareth; He entered as the anointed Preacher. We know that all the power of it was in the Babe born, but His “entry” among the people was after His baptism.
Rem There is the quotation from Psalm 2.
CAC That is, it was the Son of God begotten in time. What strikes one in connection with the preaching of the gospel in Acts is the way what God has done is made prominent. The emphasis is on God and His acting.
[p. 356] This chapter ought to be of the deepest interest to us; it is almost the only example of Paul’s preaching that we have.
Ques Why does he appeal twice to those who fear God (verses 16, 26)?
CAC I suppose he referred to the Gentiles who had been attracted and were frequenting the synagogue as proselytes. The gospel is properly addressed to that class of persons.
Ques Would you say that blessing is impossible apart from that?
CAC Well, there would be nothing to work on. Those are the only people who will profit by the preaching of the gospel, but then you cannot tell at what moment the fear of God may come into a man’s soul; it might come in as he listens to the preaching. That is the foundation of all the work of God in any soul. The fear of God can come as an instantaneous flash of light, and it is the result of the working of God in the new birth. As far as the natural man is concerned we are plainly told that “there is no fear of God before his eyes”. All preaching should be in view of the work of God in souls: you look for evidence of it.
Ques To go back, would you say why you think resurrection is not referred to in verse 33? In verse 30 we read, “God raised him from among the dead”, and then “we declare unto you the glad tidings” and in verse 34, “But that he raised him from among the dead”.
CAC He speaks of the Lord’s death and of God raising Him from the dead, and then of His appearing for many days, but in verse 32 he goes back and begins again and says, “We declare unto you the glad tidings of the promise made to the fathers, that God has fulfilled this to us their children, having raised up Jesus”. That is the wonderful fact that Jesus has been raised up — brought in — the Son of God, begotten in time.
Ques In the Old Testament it is said that God would raise up for the people a Deliverer. Is the term used in the same sense here?
CAC Yes. The next verse, “But that he raised him from among the dead” is a further thing. First He was raised up as the living embodiment of the grace of God, and that is what we see all through the gospels, particularly in Luke, where He is the blessed Vessel and Preacher of the grace of God.
Ques Why is prominence given in the gospel to what God has accomplished?
CAC Because the whole object of the gospel is to win men for God. This chapter is of vital importance to us, because it is the gospel as Paul presents it and Paul is our apostle. There are three gospel preachings given to us: one on the day of Pentecost, that is Peter’s address to the Jews; one, Peter’s address in the house of Cornelius to Gentiles; and here we have the preaching of Paul, and gospel preaching now only has divine value as it conforms to these three preachings. I do not say nothing is to be added.
Ques What would you say about Philip’s preaching? He preached Christ.
CAC But we have not got his sermon! These are the only three sermons we are given, and they are models for all preachers now. What Paul said in Jerusalem and what he said before the Roman rulers were more an apology — his defence, as he calls it. These are the three outstanding gospel preachings to be considered carefully by all who preach. We may have got on a bit, but I doubt if we can manage the business of preaching any better than Peter and Paul.
Ques What about the preaching on Mars Hill?
CAC That was not the gospel. Paul was there declaring the unknown God, but not setting forth the gospel. Sometimes we have to address men according to the conditions in which they are, and cannot present the gospel to them, but then you always have the after meeting in view! It is an essential part of the preaching. Sometimes it may be necessary to warn people to flee from the wrath to come, and to tell them of One appointed to judge and of the day [p. 358] approaching, but then you will find there will be an after meeting! Every preacher has that in view. You see it in Athens; Dionysius and Damaris and others came to Paul because they wanted to hear more. The preaching is only half the business; you expect that someone will come up and say, I am deeply impressed with what I have heard and would like to know more about it. You find it here in verse 43; “Many of the Jews and of the worshipping proselytes” wanted to see more of it; they “followed Paul and Barnabas”. What do we preach for if we do not expect an after meeting?
Rem If a preacher had that in view how it would affect his meeting!
CAC All through the gospels we see the principle of the after meeting; and Peter’s preaching produced it; and Paul’s. These are the models.
What strikes one is that the emphasis is on what God is doing. Paul begins, “The God of this people Israel chose”, and he brings God into prominence all through. That is the wonderful character of the message and the strength and power of it.
Someone said to Mr. Stanley, ‘I suppose you feel it necessary to be very much in prayer?’ His answer was, ‘Well no, I have such confidence in the power of the word that I do not feel prayer is very necessary’. He was a man of prayer, but he was not going to advertise that. That is not what he would have prominent, but rather the power of the gospel. He never preached, I suppose, without souls being converted.
The word of the gospel is all connected with the place which belongs to Jesus the Mediator. God has appeared to men in a Man. First He raised up a blessed Man in whom He presented Himself to men; then there was the great necessity of His death to bring in propitiation and redemption; then God raised that One from the dead. It is all what God has done, and now certain things can be announced. The gospel is not exactly an invitation, but an announcement.
He has raised Him from the dead, never to see corruption. Now if there is no corruption it proves death has got no [p. 359] victory; death is annulled. We see that only in Christ, and nowhere else. If I look around I see it stalking abroad; it is not annulled there, nor in myself. I may die at any moment and go to corruption, but if we want to see death annulled we look at Christ. It is annulled there!
Rem God raised Him from the dead.
CAC That is the gospel — the actions of God in Jesus, and in relation to Jesus. It is stressed in the preaching that God did it. You do not get that in the gospels; there you find that He is risen; it is the inherent power that is in Himself by which He came out of death. The gospel record ends in each case by saying, He is risen, not, God raised Him; they magnify what He is in His own Person. But in the glad tidings we see Him on the mediatorial side, and that would bring home to people how interested God is in them. The object of the gospel is that men may turn to God and get into happy relations with Him through Jesus. That is what makes material for the assembly, for such people are ready to serve God and praise Him. You have “received the word of the report of God by us”, Paul writes to the Thessalonians. That is the gospel. It is the reporting to men of what God has done. Everything we see in Jesus in the gospels, all the beautiful perfections of His grace — that is God! Every act, every word — that is God! He is the Object of God’s heart, given up to die, and God raised Him from among the dead.
Rem The gospel is really the glory of God in the face of Jesus.
CAC That is it; so that the soul that receives the gospel gets a wonderful impression of what God is. The old style of preaching was that God is a righteous judge and man is a sinner under wrath, and Jesus came in to pacify God and make Him favourable to man, the result being that many souls felt happy to trust Jesus but were afraid of God. Such souls have not the gospel.
Ques What is referred to in the expression “the faithful mercies of David”?
CAC That is very fine. The word in Isaiah 55 — all [p. 360] connected with David as a matter of promise — could only stand on resurrection ground. In Psalm 89 which speaks of God’s faithfulness to David and his seed, you find repeated references to heaven, and what is “for ever”, and what is “established for ever”; that clearly looked far beyond David to Christ in whom all could be established beyond death. “Sure mercies” have to do with what is eternal in character. Nothing “sure” could be connected with a man who is going to die. After David had “ministered to the will of God” — a lovely expression! How could anyone do more than that? — “he fell asleep ... . and saw corruption”, although he had ministered to the will of God. It shows that all that is sure must be connected with the One typified in David. All that David typified was seen perfectly in Jesus, and all is established in Him beyond death. If man is to be blessed everything must be put on the ground of resurrection. Isaiah 53 must come before Isaiah 55. God has been glorified in righteousness in the blessed One whose soul has been made an offering for sin. Now everything is on that footing. The very One whose soul passed through all the sorrow and sufferings of death spoken of in chapter 53 will “prolong his days, and the pleasure of Jehovah shall prosper in his hand”. That is in resurrection. Then follows what chapter 55 speaks of. Chapter 53 had all been fulfilled in the death of Jesus, as Paul tells them (verse 27). Now remission of sins is preached — remission in the absolute sense, which means sins are sent away never to come back. We all know that there are two words translated by our English word ‘forgive’; one means that you show grace to a person who does not deserve it. In Luke 7 we have this word: “He forgave both of them” — that is, He takes up the attitude of grace towards all men, Simon and the woman alike; but then you get a second word in what is said to the woman: He says, “Thy sins are forgiven”; that is remission in the absolute sense — the thing is absolutely discharged, the question completely and finally settled and dismissed, never to be reopened. Simon did not get remission.
[p. 361] Remission is the portion only of those who accept the gospel. The preaching is to make known the proclamation of remission, and those who accept it receive remission. The thing is so righteously settled that there is complete absolution. You can set forth to men what is in the heart of God. That is where forgiveness is.
Ques Would you say that receiving remission we learn relief, but in forgiveness we learn the Person?
CAC Forgiveness is in the heart of God. God holds no grudge against me. It is a matter of the dispensation. There follows therefore a warning; it will not be always so. “Behold, ye despisers, and wonder and perish; for I work a work in your days, a work which ye will in no wise believe if one declare it to you” (verse 41). There is forgiveness for all in the heart of God. That is the thought of grace and willingness to forgive, and that notwithstanding all the rebellion and obduracy of His creatures; but what is preached is absolute remission in the name of Jesus.
Rem And that is where justification comes in.
CAC Remission and justification are pretty much the same. Justification from all things is that the whole matter is so divinely settled that we may say with all reverence God cannot open the question ever again; it would be unrighteousness — what is impossible to Him. It is the mind of God that it should be so. When a believer believes the gospel he has the consciousness that he has done something that pleases God.
Ques I suppose Paul was addressing mainly Jews here.
How would his remark about the law of Moses — “from which ye could not be justified in the law of Moses” — fit in now?
CAC The law was a perfect standard of divine requirement from man. Every man, woman and child has some standard; now the point is, could any standard justify? The law of Moses is the perfect standard, but even by it man cannot be justified. What is there really applies to all men. It [p. 362] could never be right for a Gentile to steal or kill or commit adultery.
Rem We might say that the preaching of the gospel is to bring what is in the heart of God to man.
CAC And also to bring to light the work of God in the heart of men, “and believed, as many as were ordained to eternal life”.
Ques Is it possible for a soul to have the light of what is in the heart of God without being blessed?
CAC There is a certain knowledge of the terms of the gospel in very many in a country like this, but that does not involve that there is any action of faith. Faith is a personal link with God. There is the feeling, ‘If it is not true to another person in the room, it is to me’. It singles out believers from everyone else in the audience even though they all know the terms of the gospel.
There are those who judge themselves unworthy of eternal life (verse 46) and God accepts their own assessment. There is then nothing for it but to turn away from them to those who will have it. You bring that in as a warning. It is always the way with God. If you will not have what is in His heart for you, He will find someone else who will.