LIFE THE SOURCE OF LIGHT
[p. 96] LIFE THE SOURCE OF LIGHT
John 1: 4, 5; Matthew 4: 12 - 17; Isaiah 37: 30 - 32; John 12:1-3; John 12:9-11
JT What is in mind is to show from these scriptures how life, whether in Christ, or in any one of us, or in a company of saints in any locality, is the source of light. The verses in John 1 were read to show that life in Christ was light, but light in a circumscribed sense as referring only to men. The ordinary physical light of the sun, the moon and the stars, serves a wider area; for spiritual life as light has men only in view. So it is thought that the passage in Matthew 4 illustrates how light appears in a locality in this sense: it sprang up. The Lord, as we are told in the passage, left Nazareth and dwelt in Capernaum; it was not simply that He visited the place, but that He dwelt there; so that He represents that of which we are speaking, light in a locality, for it sprang up, we are told. Then the passage in Isaiah helps as to the development of life in christians; it is a vegetable figure, but used not only here but elsewhere to set out life, first the yield of the earth without cultivation, and then with cultivation. Finally, in John 12, life is seen in persons, but as a group characterised by Lazarus whom Christ raised from the dead. It is thought that the passage represents the point in question in the most intelligent and intelligible form as in persons who had had a comparatively long history with Christ, and came under His influence and culture.
BW Would you say a word as to that expression, “In him was life”?
JT The allusion is not to Christ as in absolute Deity, but to Him as become Man; but it refers to His ministry here. It is the past tense: “In him [p. 97] was life, and the life was the light of men”. The earlier verses contemplate Him in Deity, but operating; so that these verses bring down the history of Christ, in that sense, to the incarnation. Hence what is substantial is seen as producing light, but light of a peculiar kind, such as had men only in mind; it was restricted to them.
HEF Why do you say it is in the past tense?
JT Those verses, down to the end of verse 13, are introductory, prefatory remarks to bring down the history of Christ to His position here alone in testimony. The epistle of John carries this forward in connection with the new commandment: “which thing is true”, not ‘was’, “in him and in you”; that is, John’s epistle traces the thought into Christianity, Christ in heaven, and the Spirit here.
HEF Do you mean that in the first it is in Christ personally, and then afterwards in Christ and the saints?
JT Quite: “Which thing is true in him and in you”. Life is now in us through redemption and through the Spirit. That is the ground on which the epistle goes.
EuR That verse ends. “Because the darkness is passing and the true light already shines”. Does that support what you have in mind as to “Which thing is true in him and in you”, being the same principle of life shining as light?
JT Yes. Ordinary light would dispel darkness; but here the light appeared in darkness, and the darkness apprehended it not. It is the true light, because it lightens, or sheds its light on, every man.
What is in mind in these remarks is not so much what is doctrinal, but to apply the thought of substance in the way of life as essential to light for testimony at the present time. In Genesis 1, light was introduced by the command of God; He commanded that out of darkness light should shine. It [p. 98] is not said whence the light came, what it was that caused it, or what substance it was that was behind it. It comes in by the command of God, as alluded to in 2 Corinthians 4: “It is the God who spoke that out of darkness light should shine who has shone in our hearts for the shining forth of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (verse 6), a most exalted thought of light. So the intention is to see that our testimony towards men is not simply in word, but in what we are, whether individually or collectively.
HEF Is that confined to the apostles only, or continued in the saints?
JT I think it is the principle of testimony; it is preceded by our occupation with the glory of the Lord: “We all, looking on the glory of the Lord, with unveiled face, are transformed according to the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Lord the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3: 18); that stands related to the new covenant, but in the next chapter it is expanded in relation to the full position of the gospel: the light shines, and the glory of God is seen in the face of Jesus; the light has shone into our hearts for the shining forth of that, so that we become the medium of it. No doubt it has a special reference to ministers, for they, indeed, are what the apostle is speaking of: “Ourselves your bondmen for Jesus’ sake” (verse 5). Still, the principle is there of the saints being the medium of the light, the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
WBH Would the Thessalonians represent what you are saying?
JT I think they do. They are addressed as “the assembly of Thessalonians”; that is, it is a local thought. It alludes to their local position, to the fact that they grew up there; but they are “in God the Father”, and the sound of the glad tidings [p. 99] went out from them, and correspondingly the shining. They took on collectively from Paul as model, and also from the assemblies in Judaea, showing that they were not unduly local; they were universal as well, and drew from all legitimate sources for the enhancement of what they were. That is a very important matter today, for we are apt to be unduly local; and yet we must be local. They were “the assembly of Thessalonians in God the Father”, showing they were delightful to God the Father, and obviously because they corresponded with Christ in this sense of life and light.
Ques You spoke of substance as being behind the light: does that substance consist in the knowledge of divine Persons as they are to be known in the economy of grace?
JT I should say that. This gospel shows us the features of life developed in Christ so that we might take them on. I think the idea of development is the thing, seen perfectly in Christ; and we take it on on the principle of appreciation and appropriation. I appreciate a thing, and then I appropriate it. So the great elements of life are developed in this gospel, and in resurrection, ascension into heaven, the Spirit coming — all these elements take form subjectively, so that the thing is true in Him and in us; the life which shone in Christ becomes true in us, and thus it becomes light.
AWGT Does Ephesians 5 help in this enquiry as to “the fruit of the light”, and “children of light”?
JT It does indeed, “Among whom ye appear as lights in the world”, Philippians 2: 15. We may see in this gospel how the “sons of light” took form in taking on what they appreciated in Christ. For instance, the woman in chapter 4 appreciated the Lord’s remarks about herself, about the water springing up in her [p. 100] unto everlasting life, in the person; that is one thought, that the body of the believer is a vessel. She left her water-pot, and in that act proved that she was herself in the understanding of what the Lord said to her about her body being a vessel. So in other instances: Peter, at the end of chapter 6, speaks of the Lord as having words of eternal life: “Thou hast words of life eternal; and we have believed and known that thou art the holy one of God”. They had been making progress in chapter 6, and it took the form of knowledge as well as believing. They saw He had the words of eternal life; they had believed and known that He was the holy one of God. That is, Peter came into that light, and took it on in that sense, he appropriated what he valued in the Lord. Others were going away from the Lord; it was a regular apostasy, turning back from Him; and the Lord said to the twelve, “Will ye also go away?”. This is Peter’s answer; so he is taking on the thought of life, and not only that, but the words of it, believing and knowing Christ was the holy one of God, laying the basis for the service of God. And so throughout: you get instances in chapters 9 and 12; first, the thought of “sons of light” alluding to a galaxy of persons, or stars, shining, but shining in perfect order, all in relation to one another; that is what is in mind. That sort of thing is to be in evidence, and where it is, there is light for men.
WET Is that what Paul has in mind in Philippians 2, where he says, “Ye appear as lights in the world” — light as the result of substance appearing?
JT That is what I was thinking. The first chapter of John’s gospel brings out a cluster of shining lights, but they are shining in relation to one another. I suppose the firmament discloses many illustrations of what we are saying; many stars in relation one to another, but in every case [p. 101] they are shining.
CEWB I suppose the man in chapter 9 had a good deal of substance which resulted in light shining in the darkness?
JT That is one of the best illustrations you can get of what we are saying, for the truth was worked out in him. Another great feature of the idea of light is in chapter 12, where the Lord says that the Father’s commandment is life eternal; so it bears upon us as obedient. Paul said that he was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, and what strikes one in relation to this man in chapter 9 is his unswerving obedience to the word of Christ, not only to His actual word, but as pursuing it in its moral bearing, showing the idea of life developing in him on moral lines, leading to his being cast out of the synagogue; he never shone more brilliantly than at that moment. The Lord heard of it, and found him, and said to him, to complete the thought, “Thou, dost thou believe on the Son of God?”. He said, “And who is he, Lord, that I may believe on him? And Jesus said to him, Thou hast both seen him, and he that speaks with thee is he. And he said, I believe, Lord: and he did him homage”. It is a luminary, developed on moral lines. Then chapters 10 and 11 develop what is seen in chapter 12, not only the affection for one another, or simply the thought of the Lord loving the three, Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus, but the wonderful order and intelligence that marked them in preparing for Him in their locality.
BW Is the ointment being poured out in chapter 12 an expression of the fact that living conditions are there?
JT The scene was suited to the service; it took on the character of the sanctuary. But Matthew 4 should not be passed over, how this thought is seen in Christ as leaving Nazareth, and going to Capernaum, and dwelling there; and light sprang [p. 102] up.
EuR What does the springing up convey to you?
JT The Lord was the source of it. It is a remarkable thing that it speaks of light springing up: light usually comes down. I think it is to stress what we are saying, the substantial thought of life; and, of course, it enters strongly into our local positions, raising the question of how we are moving about before our neighbours, how we are doing our business. The Lord dwelt in Capernaum, as any other would, though, of course, “holy, harmless, undefiled, separated from sinners” (Hebrews 7: 26); but He took His place “in the likeness of men” — not simply ‘man’ as a race, but “men”, in their average appearance — making no effort to be other. Anyone might have met Him in the town at that time, or have lived next door to Him; but this light was shining there for all who had eyes to see.
JAP Is it significant that the preaching began there: “From that time began Jesus to preach”?
JT I had that in mind in having it read, because what we are speaking of now is essential to the outgoing of the testimony in our localities; that is what is in mind. It is in relation to that shining that the Lord began to preach. So in John 1: “The light appears in darkness”: it was there.
Ques Have you in mind particularly in Matthew 4 the thought of the local setting, and that there must be spiritual substance if there is to be the setting forth of evangelical testimony?
JT That is what I was thinking in relation to the allusion to Philippians 2: 7. It says, “Taking his place in the likeness of men”. It is worth looking at, because it bears so on our subject. It is not simply that He was “found in figure as a man”, but He was “in the likeness of men”, always unique and distinct; but the thought is that He was at Capernaum, or wherever He dwelt, as we see Him in His [p. 103] ordinary circumstances, making no effort to be other than a man, but fulfilling all that is becoming to men. The word ‘men’ would allude to the variety of circumstances and appearances that we see amongst men. Whether I be highborn or lowborn, uneducated or educated, good-looking or ill-looking, the point is I am in the likeness of men. It is what is current. But in His case, light sprang up: there was no effort about it, no attempt to make a show. It is what was there. In Him was life, and it shone as light for men, as it says in John 1; but here in Matthew it sprang up.
WEB Would the departure into Galilee be anything like the exodus from Egypt, going out with substance? I was thinking of the Lord’s departure into Galilee, mentioned in Matthew 4: 12, a path of reproach, as moving out into the world?
JT I see what you mean: He had been at the Jordan, and had been tempted of the devil. The allusion would be to His being governed by levitical principles. John the baptist had his own place, and he is delivered up; the Lord is guided by that circumstance, taking a lowly place in service. The circumstance of the apprehension of John meant something to Him, showing that He was to occupy ground in testimony; but that is peculiar to Matthew. Galilee is a place of reproach, as you say. Then, following upon that, He was at Nazareth, and He left Nazareth, and went to Capernaum.
HMS Why does the Lord say of Capernaum that it had been exalted to heaven? It is also called “his own city”.
JT It was exalted to heaven by His living there, and on account of the wonderful works done there by Him; hence the judgment that would be meted out to it in the day of judgment as it says (Matthew 11). I suppose that is the case with any country, or town, or city, that is honoured in that way. Of course, it had peculiar force before the Lord’s death, because it was then one of the cities of Israel. But that place is responsible as being honoured by the presence of the testimony of God. What one would like to make clear is that at Capernaum the Lord was moving about as others. Of course He was entirely out in the service of God, no longer working with His hands; but He was in that town, and dwelling in that town, as many are in this town; and the moral force of it would be for ourselves: what is shining from us as in this town? Is there anything springing up in the way of light? The springing up would mean that it is there. You look at a man, you look at him again, and you see this springing up.
WBH Is that thought again seen in Philippians 2, where it says: “That ye may be harmless and simple, irreproachable children of God in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation; among whom ye appear as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life”?
JT It is a very striking passage. First, “in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation”: your ordinary, everyday movements are involved in that: “among whom ye appear as lights”, but there is an additional thought now, “holding forth the word of life”: that is what you are able to say. The shining is what you are; that is in your everyday experiences and circumstances. Therefore it becomes a test to us as to whether we are depending on what we hold and speak of in our meetings, and overlooking the fact that as taking His place in the likeness of men, the Lord was light in every circumstance among men.
SBF Is His preaching, “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn nigh”, calculated to produce in us the same kind of spirit?
JT It is a question of what you should say, you know. Our brother has just remarked on Philippians 2;
[p. 105] we are in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, to appear among them as lights. That is what the Philippians were in relation to one another, and in relation to Christ, too; they were shining. Take Lydia who lived there: she is specially mentioned at the beginning of the work there. You will find that her deportment in her house in relation to her neighbours, and as a woman of affairs, “a seller of purple”, in relation to her customers, all would be shining; it is a question of our ordinary circumstances. But if she had opportunity, she would speak about the Lord, she would speak the truth to souls; that is, “holding forth the word of life”. So with the jailor, another brother there: he would be shining; even if he continued his position as jailor, he would do it in a way that conveyed the truth of what he was. You would see it in his house; we are told that he laid the table for Paul and Silas; that would be shining; that would be light, not just an ordinary occurrence. What a change in the man! And then he rejoiced with all his house, we are told; he was shining.
EuR Would it be like the children of Israel having light in their dwellings in Egypt?
JT Quite so. The passage in Isaiah would show how that even in an uncultivated state, there is the working of life. It is given as a sign in a day of small things: “This shall be the sign unto thee: there shall be eaten this year such as groweth of itself; and in the second year that which springeth of the same; but in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof. And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward”; and then there is the movement out of Jerusalem: “For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that escape; the zeal of Jehovah of hosts shall do this”. So that [p. 106] the work of God in the young amongst us, and persons recently converted, or even persons not committed to the fellowship, will show itself; it will always show itself. But what is specially in mind is the third year: first, “sow ye”, and then, “reap”, and then, “plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof”; that is, we see the working of life; as the Lord says elsewhere, “The earth bears fruit of itself” (Mark 4: 28); there is latent life there. As soon as the seed is sown, life becomes operative, and shows itself. That is the thing to look for. However dark a soul may be through bad teaching or wrong associations, if God is working there will be something showing itself. But the thought is, if that is so, cultivation is to begin immediately; the soul is brought under cultivation; so fruit is expected. You know what you are doing; you are cultivating in view of fruit. I refer to this passage because it helps as to our subject, showing how the work of God becomes apparent wherever it is, sometimes crudely, but the spiritual eye discerns it, and cultivates it. The third year suggests the fulness of the thought; life under cultivation.
CEWB Would the cultivation be by the word of God? I was thinking of the Lord’s words in Matthew 4: 4: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which goes out through God’s mouth”.
JT That is part of the thing. There is the thought of cultivation, involving ploughing, sowing, harrowing, and the like. Then there is the eating, too; that is the result: “in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof”.
HPW Would you say a word as to the principle of taking root downward and bearing fruit upward? Does that apply to us all in a way in connection with [p. 107] soul history with God, productive of life coming out in light and testimony?
JT Taking root downward would mean that one learns to judge himself. “Rooted and grounded in love” is the expression we have in Ephesians 3: 17. Rooting would mean the disallowance of all the selfishness which is natural to us. Young people are prone to be selfish, and to make themselves the centre of everything. The rooting would mean the judging of all that to make room for unselfishness and sacrifice. It is a figure of speech here: the taking root downwards is an agricultural allusion: you must get the roots down to where the nourishment and moisture are for them in the soil. So that rooting would be in a practical way the disallowance of the selfish elements to make room for love. The rooting is to be where one can draw sap and nourishment. So long as we retain selfishness, and fail to judge all the features of the flesh, there is not the grounding. The grounding would mean that I am steady in that position: I am not susceptible to damage by every wind that blows. Taking root downwards means that a person judges himself unsparingly, the more we do it, the deeper the work goes; and the fruit is upward. Bearing fruit upward would mean that cultivation is implied; because it is in an intelligent setting here. “Out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that escape”: it is a question of the purpose of God. The work is showing itself from the standpoint of cultivation in relation to Jerusalem and mount Zion; and that is what I think is implied, that one is ready for the assembly, ready for what we see in figure in John 12.
HPW I think a good many of us are exercised as to the fruit side, but, as you say, the root raises the question of what we take in; all the sap is absorbed through the roots. The fruit is dependent upon what we take [p. 108] in.
JT That is what I thought. So that ministry is important under those circumstances; because I think cultivation is in mind in view of Jerusalem and mount Zion. These are great thoughts of God: “Out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that escape: the zeal of Jehovah of hosts shall do this”. There is a result in what is of remnant character; it is in relation to Jerusalem and mount Zion.
HMS Would not these promises be a very great encouragement in a very dark time when the enemy apparently is in possession of the land?
JT That is striking, because it is in the midst of the answer to Hezekiah’s prayer. This is the sign for Hezekiah — for any of us who are exercised before God about current conditions — in the midst of these attacks. It is not simply that we meet them by the word of God, but in life. The sign is in life, in an irregular way, but culminating in a regular way, a cultivated way; and then issuing in a very great result.
FWW Would you distinguish for us between Jerusalem and mount Zion?
JT The two terms are very often found together. In a most spiritual way we see them in Hebrews 12 in relation to what we have come to: “Ye have come to mount Zion”, which is the underlying thought in the system to which we have come; and then, “to the city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem”. Jerusalem is the administrative thought, that out of which light and rule issue. Zion is the basic thought, referring to the sovereignty of God: “Here will I dwell”, God says, “for I have desired it”, Psalm 132: 14. It is a question of His own selection. A city, of course, is a structural thought, developing the thought of Zion; they are linked together. The sovereignty of God, set forth in Zion, was earlier than what Jerusalem represents. In [p. 109] Ezekiel 16 we have Jerusalem viewed in a marital sense. Jehovah regarding Jerusalem in this way, and referring to how He had found her. Ezekiel 20 is more the general thought of Israel; but in chapter 16 it is Jerusalem. It really develops under Paul’s ministry; it is the organised, structural thought, whence all the light, administration and rule issue. So they are great thoughts, and apply to the present moment.
FWW I was wondering whether on similar lines the sun and moon in Genesis 1 are set in their position in relation to light and rule?
JT Maybe. Zion is a sort of basic thought, a foundational thought; Jerusalem comes in upon it as an organised protection for the working out of administration; indeed, for the working out of all the divine thoughts that lie in Zion, what God is, the counsels of His love.
Ques Is this passage in Isaiah particularly comforting as showing the work of God is to go on in a normal way in the production of life in spite of all the opposition around — the normal development of life?
JT In spite of the opposition so burdening Hezekiah at the time. This would be a sign to him. If God is working, we must be encouraged. “Let thy work appear unto thy servants”, Moses said (Psalm 90: 16); however little it may be, even if it be irregular, and of a mixed kind, yet it is there, and calls forth energy so that it should be there more fully, and in a developed way.
John 12 shows how far the development of life, as seen in Christ, had gone; how great were the results of the Lord’s work; how the principle of life was there in unselfish regard for Christ. One selfish element was there in Judas; but in the main what was there was the product of life in light. Lazarus is characteristic of it. Each one is in his or her place,
[p. 110] functioning as the Lord intended them to function. So it is a local position, as the outcome of life; for Lazarus was raised from the dead, and he was there at table, and persons were believing on Christ because of him, and yet he is not saying anything. So we should have this before us as to the thought of life shining as light. The persons are really sons of light. Not a word is uttered by any of them but Judas, yet the light is shining, so much so that people are coming and believing on Christ because of Lazarus, and Lazarus is saying nothing!
Ques Would you say that this incident is presented in a family setting?
JT It is the best setting in which to see the working out of the truth. We are set together in a family way. It is the very best setting for the work of God to shine, for the light to shine. It is really leading up to the assembly, only it does not go beyond Bethany. The further chapters in John are to perfect us in relation to the assembly. The saints are to be together, not now in employment though Martha was serving, but in the family setting. What brought about this situation? Love to Christ, unselfish consideration for Christ. “They made him a supper”, and Mary has the wherewithal to complete the matter, to fill the house with odour. What a scene it is as the product of the work of Christ! for that is what it is. It is a finished matter, so to say.
HMS Is not this passage all the more beautiful because of being preceded and followed by the spirit of murder? In chapter 11: 53 it says “From that day therefore they took counsel that they might kill him”, and in chapter 12: 10, “But the chief priests took counsel that they might kill Lazarus also”.
JT Very good; indeed, this scene is the outcome of the situation in chapter 10, where the Jews surrounded Christ, as if they would circumvent Him,
[p. 111] and prevent Him proceeding. An awkward situation like that often arises in a locality; brethren feel they can go no further; but the Lord departed “beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptising at the first”, that is, He goes back to first principles; and I believe that chapters 11 and 12 are to show what comes out of first principles. Brethren do not give up because they seem to be circumvented. When they surrounded the Lord, He did not give up; He went beyond the Jordan where John baptised at the first, and, it says, “many believed on him there”. So chapter 11 is to bring out what He can do, what can be done. So we should never lose heart, or give up the work. You get the most remarkable result here from the work of Christ. He is not in a hurry; He is patient. The sisters would have had Him there earlier, but He remains away till the opportune time to get the best result; and the best result is what the saints are, conformity to what Christ is. Life is there in chapter 12, and shining; people are believing because of Lazarus, a man who is not saying anything.
Ques Does he not in that way set forth a man who is risen with Christ?
JT Exactly; it is what the man is, not what he is saying or doing; it says, “Where was the dead man Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from among the dead”.
HPW What strikes people who see such brethren together is the genuine character of everything. It is pure nard; everything is genuine; the atmosphere is genuine, as the saints are together in love.
JT Very good; and the ointment was “kept”; the alabaster is not mentioned at all, meaning, what has already come out in this gospel, that the believer himself is a trustworthy vessel; what he has is not corrupted. We are to “love our Lord Jesus Christ in incorruption”, Ephesians 6: 24. The alabaster box would mean an artificial means of keeping out corruption;
[p. 112] but there is no alabaster here. Mary is the alabaster box herself, she keeps out corruption; she is a lover of Christ.
HB There could not be corruption where there is life.
JT Quite so; life is the greatest preservative. Life is here in every one of them except Judas; he is the only one that breaks the silence. But what a silence it was! Mary represents not only incorruptibility: those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in incorruption; many profess to love Him, but in corruption; but it is to be in incorruption; Mary not only represents that, but she represents one who had thought beforehand about Christ, and had an instinct that He was going to die. She was not deceived; she had the truth. So she kept this ointment for His burial, a mark of spiritual intelligence which involved the seizing of an opportunity to express it, so that the house is filled with the odour of the ointment.
AWGT Would she be an illustration of one in whom the word of Christ dwelt richly, gathering up all He had said?
JT Quite so. She is presented as beginning in that way. The origin of Mary’s history lies in what was said on the mount of transfiguration — not that she heard it there: the word was, “Hear him”, that is, Hear Christ. She was in keeping with that. If we are subjects of the work of God we shall be instinctively in keeping with the light for the moment. She had sat at His feet, and had listened to what He was saying, not asking questions — there was not time for that, for so much was coming out in His word.
EuR Does all this come out in Acts as bearing on the testimony? Peter refers to the Lord as “the originator of life”, and then we have the expression, “the words of this life”, as seen among the [p. 113] saints.
JT Very good. That word translated ‘originator’ is used four times in the New Testament; it means one who expresses a thing, and sets it on, giving a lead to what is meant. So “the originator of life” is One who sets it on that we might see it and follow it.
AH Is that why Lazarus is so important here as being a continuation of life?
JT Just so; he is peculiarly that, because the Lord had him in mind in coming; He had others in mind, too, of course; but the Spirit of God puts it that way: “Jesus ... came to Bethany, where was the dead man Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from among the dead”, meaning he is dead as regards Bethany, no longer a man of the town; he belongs to another world. He is not making a show; it is what he is; there is no effort about it. His testimony is effective, even though the Lord is there. Lazarus is a testimony in himself.