DIVINE PLEASURE IN EXPRESSION
DIVINE PLEASURE IN EXPRESSION
Genesis 22: 11 - 18; Hosea 14: 1 - 7; John 20: 14 - 18
It must be evident to anyone who is at all observant, that God finds pleasure in the expression of things, an expression which conveys something that is according to His mind, otherwise there is no answer to the wonderful fact that He has moved, from what we might call — for want of a better word — an uncreated sphere where He dwells in light unapproachable. That is a wonderful thing.
There was a moment when creation came into existence. The heavens are as much part of creation as the earth — all of them — scripture speaks of three, and then speaks of all the heavens, not revealing how many there are, but the heavens were created and the earth was created, God, as the Creator, choosing to bring into existence a creation. What for? We could not attempt, of course, to answer that fully; no one knows fully; but it is quite evident that God found His pleasure in it. That is an answer that we can give; the elders give it, and the elders know.
It was said to one of the elders, “Sir, thou knowest”, and the elders say, “for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created,” Revelation 4: 11 — all “the heavens, the earth, the sea, and all that in them is,” Acts 4: 24, as said the saints of the early church. “For thy pleasure they are and were created”, God finding His pleasure in having in His creation something that would express what He was, some feature of Himself. His pleasure evidently is to express Himself.
So God created the heavens. Of what do the heavens speak? They speak of height; “the heavens for height”, it says. In what He created God would indicate the thought of elevation. As far as our minds are concerned the height of the heavens is infinite; we cannot compass the height of the heavens. It says, “The heavens for height, and the earth for depth, and the heart of kings is unsearchable”, Proverbs 25: 3. Then God made two great lights. God found His pleasure to express in vessels of light that feature of Himself, so that when we look at the sun or the moon or the stars God would convey to us an impression that He is “light”. Light is a characteristic of God. “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” 1 John 1: 5. I believe that works out in everything He made. You find in scripture an immense variety of things used to tell us about God, and if we had eyes to see, everything that He has created would speak of God.
God uses the lion; He made the lion to speak of Himself, to convey to us this characteristic of God that He never turns back. The lion does not know anything about turning back. That is a reflection of God; God expresses in the lion that characteristic of Himself that He never turns back.
He made behemoth. “Behold now behemoth”, He says to Job (Job 40: 15). The only thought we have of behemoth is a hippopotamus; God made behemoth, to express in a creature some little conception of His own strength, the strength that is in the creature speaking of the strength of God, the Almighty God.
God made the ant. “Go to the ant”, He says (Proverbs 6: 6). What do you learn about God in the ant? Wisdom and resourcefulness. God made it, though so small, to express His wisdom.
He made the rivers and the fountains of waters, to convey to us that He is the fountain of living waters. Lately one has been enjoying this humbling feature that there is not a man on earth that can make one drop of water. Think of the ocean, the rivers,
the springs that run out of the hills, think of the rain — all the men on earth combined could not make one drop of water. God is telling us, you see, that He is the source of living refreshment; He conveys it to us in the fountains, springs, rivers, the rain, the dew, and so on, in all creation.
The Lord Himself said, “Consider the lilies”. God made the lily. Nobody else could make a lily; The Lord says, “Consider the lilies”. We learn in them how God loves to have everything beautiful; He loves to see things clothed beautifully. Why did He make the lily if it were not so? And that idea runs through. I believe a good deal is only for the eye of God, because in tropical seas, if you could go down to the bottom of the ocean, there is beauty there. What is it for? “All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord”, Psalm 145: 10; every one of them speaks of God. Many things have been corrupted by sin, but they were made to speak about God.
But one does not want to deal with creation merely, but that we might see how God desires to have things expressed, not simply that we have them in the mind, abstractly, as alas is so with many of us; but God wants them expressed. I do not think He would have created the universe if He did not want things expressed.
So God said, “Let us make man in our image”; He would have a living man on earth to represent Him, so that as the lower creation saw Adam they recognised something of God. He would have representation on earth, and God made man with that in view. To represent Him in quite a different way from behemoth or the lily; and so you find that running right through scripture. God said, “Let them make me a sanctuary”; a structure that would express what was in His mind, and He took Moses up to the mount to show him the pattern of the things in the heavens, so that he could build on earth what would express God’s mind.
How perfectly it all came out in Christ! God brought in that supremely wondrous vessel — “a body hast thou prepared me” — for the expression of all that He is. There is nothing partial in Christ. We see a ray, a glimpse of the Creator in the ant, a feature in the lily, one or two characteristics in the sun, but when you come to Jesus, all that God is and that He desires to express, He has expressed in its fulness in that blessed Man. If it is beauty, it is seen there, and you cannot name a single feature in the universe of God but you can find it perfectly in Christ, not one. Start from the bottom of the ocean and go up far above all heavens, you will not be able to locate a single feature, characteristic of God, but what you will find it set forth perfectly in Christ.
Then you have a city “whose builder and maker is God”, Hebrews 11: 10. God builds a city, so that His glory might shine out in it. John says that he saw “the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of the heaven from God, having the glory of God”, Revelation 21: 10, 11. Her shining expresses the glory of God. Out from that vessel, shine the rays of the divine glory, as in none other except Christ. Then, believers, you and I, are vessels — “vessels of mercy”, says the apostle, “which he had before prepared for glory”, Romans 9: 23, and our bodies temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6: 19). God looks upon each of His own as a vessel in which He would express livingly what is of Himself. What a wondrous dignity!
Now, it was just that that I wanted to touch upon in these scriptures, to encourage our hearts to make room for the expression of things, not merely to have them as thoughts or desires. I think you will see from what I have said, that God finds great pleasure in things being expressed. So that Abraham has to do with God who knows the thoughts and intents of the heart, who can divide between a thought and an intent. I do not know that you and I can do that often, if at all, but God can look into every man’s heart and dissect a thought from an intent. God says to Abraham, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of”.
Why should God say that, seeing He looks into Abraham’s heart and knows what he thinks? God wants things expressed, not merely thought; He wants to see the thing. I do not understand why He created anything if it is not for that. It would appear that God finds pleasure in seeing the thing expressed. So Abraham takes Isaac and binds him on the altar, and takes the knife to slay his son, and after that you get what is seldom done — God speaking from heaven and repeating a man’s name. God said, “Abraham, Abraham!” That is not often done. It indicates always that the one who is named twice comes particularly under the notice of the Lord. It is the evidence of peculiar interest in the person that is named. God says, “Abraham, Abraham!” and then He says, “Because thou hast done this”, not thought it, not held it in the mind abstractly, but “because thou hast done this, and hast not withheld thy son,
thine only son, I will richly bless thee, and greatly multiply thy seed, as the stars of heaven, and as the sand that is on the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth bless themselves”. But it was “because thou hast done this”.
You will find when men do things that please God He always has something to say that indicates how delightful it is to His own heart; for Abraham had portrayed in a living way just exactly the attitude and the blessed work of God, what God would do in Christ. He that “spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all” had been portrayed in life for the pleasure of God — and God said, “because thou hast done this”. God wants things done, He does not want them thought merely, and He finds peculiar pleasure in seeing them done, particularly on the line of sacrifice. The apostle Paul indicates that to the Corinthians. He had been boasting about them, how willing they were to sacrifice and that they were “ready a year ago”, but then he tells them that he thought it necessary to send two of his companions so that they should not only be willing but that they should do it. That is what God wants; He wants it done.
We all believe in sacrifice abstractly; I mean, the thought of sacrifice is no strange thought to us. We read of it and think of it and remember it; it is a theme that is constantly before us, and I am thankful to say that one observes in the hearts of the brethren more than ever that they are willing, but the Lord wants it done. So the Apostle says, Now then, do it, not think it, not be willing only, but do it. And God will have something to say peculiarly to those who do it. I am sure it is the time for sacrifice at the end. It was so at the beginning.
It says of Barnabas amongst others that he “having land, sold it”. He not only thinks it, not only was he willing, but it says he sold it and laid the proceeds at the Apostles’ feet, and they gave him a name “son of consolation”; the thing was done. One would encourage us, dear brethren, to do the things, and God will give His approval in a peculiar way. If there is a brother or sister anywhere to whom God can say, as it were, “Abraham, Abraham!” as seeing he or she is doing it, we will all get the gain of it. All the nations of the earth will get the gain of Abraham’s act. “In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed”, and so, every true element of sacrifice — the act, not the word or thought will bring great gain amongst the saints everywhere.
Now I wanted just to add a word or two in connection with the other two passages. The Spirit of God, through Hosea, says to the people, as conscious of their departure, “Take with you words, and turn to Jehovah; say unto him, Forgive all iniquity, and receive us graciously; so will we render the calves of our lips”. Why should we say that? God can see what is in our hearts. God wants to hear it; you may say you think it, well, but God wants to hear it. It says, “Take with you words” — not thoughts — “and turn to Jehovah; say unto him, Forgive all iniquity, and receive us graciously”. I believe a great many difficulties in local meetings would clear up if we would say things. We are often quite content to think them, but God’s blessing comes in when the things are said, whether it be to God or to one another. I cannot exactly tell you why God wants it said. I know amongst one another there is a great deal of difference between thinking a thing and saying it, and if an acknowledgment of wrong doing is due on the part of any, the word from God is, “Take with you words” and say it, and God will come in. What a lot He has to say after that! What He would be to Israel when they had said it, when they had rendered this acknowledgment! He says, “I will be as the dew unto Israel “. He would come in and bless them and give them the features of the cedar and the vine and the influence of the dew in their hearts. So, as enjoying the forgiveness and being received graciously, what follows is, “so will we render the calves of our lips”. That is a remarkable expression. God wants the “calves of our lips”. The idea, of course, is sacrifice, and indeed the Apostle makes it clear. He says, “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise continually to God, that is, the fruit of the lips confessing his name”, Hebrews 13: 15.
Now, there would not be any difficulty in hiving off if that were recognised. One hears of meetings with one hundred, one hundred and fifty, and even two hundred, and they say we have not the power for two meetings. Why? Because there are those to whom this has never appealed. That is why. God wants the “calves of our lips”. You say, I praise in my heart, but He wants the sacrifice of praise as the fruit of our lips. One would appeal affectionately to brothers who are silent, that God wants what is in your heart expressed. The thing is not complete without it. One longs that this should come into your heart, that God finds great pleasure in the calves of the lips being sacrificed to Him. Now,
if there are forty, or thirty, or twenty brothers and every one of them brings this sacrifice we would not speak about not having power. Here are forty brothers in a place, every one of them coming on the Lord’s Day morning prepared in their hearts to present the calves of their lips. There is the prayer meeting, and forty are present, every one lifting up holy hands in prayer to God. What delight to God! That is what He wants. He does not want it simply to be abstract; He delights in having it expressed. It is clear from the universe that He loves the expression of His own work. And so, in the assembly He wants every brother to bring the calves of his lips, the sacrifice of praise, the fruit of our lips. The Apostle does not say the fruit of our minds or our thoughts, but the fruit of our lips. It would not be long before a meeting of one hundred and fifty would divide into two, or probably three, if all the brothers saw this and made room for it in their hearts and brought their tribute, the sacrifice of praise, the fruit of their lips confessing His name; and God will have something to say. I am assured He would bless us as He did Abraham and as He did in Hosea. He would make the dew to come down and make the vine to flourish and the cedar of Lebanon.
Now, I just wanted to confirm that from one or two other passages, particularly the one I read in John. There is Mary standing at the sepulchre weeping, with wondrous holy thoughts of Christ and deep affections for His blessed Person going through her heart. What He was to her! She is weeping, and the Lord is there, but not recognised for the moment by Mary. You say He could look into her heart. So He could; as it says in Luke 9, “perceiving the thought of their heart”; every thought is perceived. Well, you say, is not that enough? No, it is not enough for God; it is not enough for the Lord. He knows exactly what Mary is thinking as she stands weeping, but He says to her, “Woman, why dost thou weep? whom seekest thou?” You say, He knows what she wants and why she is weeping. Yes! but He wants to hear it. It is manifest He wants the calves of her lips, He wants what is in her heart expressed. She says, “Sir, if thou hast borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away”. The Lord wanted to hear that, and He drew it out of her. Nothing would gratify His heart so much as hearing it, and when He hears it, He says, “Mary”. She, like Abraham, comes under the personal recognition of Christ; the fruit of her lips has been offered. You say, It was not very intelligent. That is not the point. The Lord drew that statement out of her heart; He wanted to hear it, and when He heard it He recognised her and conveyed to her heart that she was personally known to Him — “Mary”.
And then He conveys to her the light of those heavenly and eternal relationships which He has secured for His brethren; He gives it to her. If He finds expressed from us, not only in heart but with our lips, what ministers to His heart, then He is free to speak to us. That is what the Supper is for. You come in and sit down in the presence of the emblems. The Lord would use them to draw out of our hearts the expression of what is there so that He can hear it, not only that it should be there, but for Him to hear. Surely we desire to minister to Him. I believe, if the brothers particularly would wake up to these wonderful privileges the Lord would have something very wonderful to say to us all. Do not wait until our contributions are marked by profound intelligence; let them be expressed; bring the calves of our lips, the sacrifice of praise continually.
You see it in many other scriptures. Think of the occasion when the Lord had His own around Him, looking again into every heart, and He says to them, “Who do men say that I the Son of man am?” not, who do they think? but, who do they say? And then He says, “But ye, who do ye say that I am?” Peter says, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God”. He said it; he not only thought it, but he said it. That is why the Lord asked. That He might hear expressed what was in their hearts, and He says, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood has not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in the heavens. And I also, I say unto thee ... .” See how He personally addresses Peter, having heard what Peter had to say. He said, “I say unto thee that thou art Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and hades’ gates shall not prevail against it”. What a lot He has to say when Peter, on behalf of them all, expresses what is in his heart as to Christ.
You have this confirmed in a most touching way in Luke 24. There are the two going to Emmaus, and the Lord draws near and says, “What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as, ye walk, and are sad?” And they say, “Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?” And He says, “What things?” And they tell Him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him. But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, today is the third day ... .” They opened out to Him just what they were thinking. Sometimes we are ashamed to say what is in our hearts because we fear it may need a little adjustment, and therefore we do not say it. But the Lord wanted to hear it. He said to them, “What things?” What are you thinking about? I believe the Lord would help us if we would say it. Those two erring ones were quite prepared to be adjusted. Indeed, the Lord says, “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” And then, “beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself”, and their hearts burned within them as He talked with them. If they had refused to say anything they would never have got that. If they had just been prepared to be quiet and to be onlookers, just those who stand by and let someone else do all the speaking, see what they would have missed. These wonderful unfoldings of Christ from the scriptures came out from those two telling the Lord what was in their hearts; He made their hearts burn within them.
Now, I think you will see that these things have in view the expression of the work of God in whatever measure it has taken shape in our hearts. It was feeble enough, as we would say, perhaps, in Luke 24. But, whatever the measure of the work of God in our hearts, the Lord wants the thing expressed, and He wants the fruit of our lips, “the calves of our lips”, as Hosea says, rendered to Him, and if He gets that it will be followed by His having something to say. It will be followed by His opening up to our hearts the necessary adjustment, and, it may be, further light as to His blessed Person, and the unfolding of the great thoughts of God as to the assembly against which the gates of hades cannot prevail. It all comes out on our side through being prepared to express what is the work of God in our hearts, whatever the measure.
One would just desire in speaking of the thing to encourage the brothers particularly, and all of us, to be available in sacrifice, as Abraham was and as the early believers were. Do not look at it as a beautiful picture, but do it, and God will have something to say. “Because thou hast done this ... in blessing I will bless thee”. And then “the sacrifice of praise continually to God, that is, the fruit of the lips confessing his name”. He wants it rendered; He would come before our hearts to draw it out so that it might be heard, and it will be followed by an unfolding of blessed light of His glory to our hearts. May the Lord encourage us.