EXTRACTS
I want to speak about Philadelphia—the last but one of the seven of these local assemblies. Now Philadelphia stands for that which is perfectly suitable and agreeable to the Lord; it stands for that which He can approve of and encourage. I would like simply, without any attempt at argument, to bring before you the fact that Philadelphia was literally an assembly, and hence it furnishes a suitable representation of the truth of the assembly, and Philadelphia goes on to the end. I want you to see this because the question is raised sometimes—Will the Lord sustain to the end the truth of the assembly, will He maintain it, will it be here, or must we give up faith with regard to it? Must we abandon ourselves to the alternative of trying to do the best we can under the circumstances? I think the Lord’s message to Philadelphia provides a very clear and distinct answer to that question. It encourages us in the assurance that the Lord will sustain the truth of the assembly down to the very close, so we need not give up.
Things must be stated clearly. To speak of the truth of the assembly is not pretension or assumption! No, the Lord never did sustain pretension. To say he does not is nothing peculiar to the present moment, for He never did; but I cannot conceive of the Lord giving up the truth of His assembly, I mean in the sense of having the truth of it maintained down here in testimony to the end.
If you have given up all thought of the truth of the assembly being maintained at the present time, I can only say that I am not a bit in sympathy with you, and if you do not treasure in your soul the truth of the assembly, I am sorry for you.
Let me emphasise this—The Lord is not taken up with certain persons or individuals as such. I will tell you what He is taken up with—with the truth of His assembly, and that because of its relationship to Himself. I cannot conceive of the Lord not being interested in that which so closely concerns His own honour and glory. I can understand ourselves not being interested in it, though it is to our shame, but I cannot conceive the Lord becoming indifferent to what involves His honour and glory. If He encourages Philadelphia, it is because the saints there are found identified with the truth of what His heart is set on.
The Closing Ministry of J. Pellatt (Vol. 2, pp.131–133)
Moreover the semblance of love which does not maintain the truth, but accommodates itself to that which is not the truth, is not love according to God. It is the taking advantage of the name of love in order to help on the seductions of Satan. In the last days the test of true love is the maintenance of the truth. God would have us love one another; but the Holy Ghost, by whose power we receive this divine nature, and who pours the love of God into our hearts is the Spirit of truth; and His office is to glorify Christ. Therefore it is impossible that a love which can put up with a doctrine that falsifies Christ, and which is indifferent to it, can be of the Holy Ghost—still less so, if such indifference be set up as the proof of that love.
The doctrine of the reward and crown of glory, which the labourer possesses in the fruits of his ministry, is presented in a very strong light in verse 8. This second epistle puts Christians on their guard against all that is equivocal with respect to the Person of Christ; and exhorts to an unwavering firmness on this point.
J. N. Darby (‘Synopsis’ Vol. 5, pp.357, 358)
The first condition as you speak to the Father is that you wish His name should not in any way be tarnished by anything you do, or by anything that occurs in a locality. At Tyre they embraced one another, it shows they were free for the expression of affection, which is normal church condition. It speaks very loudly to us as to whether we can bring all the children with us, as they did. It indicates a local condition where the wives and children are all in sympathy, and they kneel down on the seashore and pray and embrace one another. What a spectacle for heaven! It is morally what came out of heaven. How refreshing to the apostle on his journey.
J. Taylor (Vol. 15, p.228)
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