THE NORMAL ACTIVITIES OF THE SPIRIT
J.R. Our hymn helped us to understand what God had in mind in purpose, given to the Son, and, in a sense, given to the Spirit too, that He may bring to pass the formation that was in mind in divine purpose. I thought we would inquire together as to the normal activities of the Spirit and that we should put ourselves in the way of these activities. It is normal to be led by the Spirit of God as in Romans 8—“as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God”. But then we have to learn to operate by the Spirit—“if, by the Spirit, ye put to death the deeds of the body, ye shall live”: that is our part of the matter. We are to put to death the deeds of the body; we cannot do that of ourselves, and the Spirit will not do it for us, but we have to learn to operate by the Spirit to put to death the deeds of the body that we may live. Then certain normal activities follow—led by the Spirit, we cry, Abba, Father, and the Spirit Itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. These are the Spirit’s normal operations which we put ourselves in the way of by certain actions of our own. In Galatians is the great matter of sowing to the Spirit. I would like to inquire about how we do that. When we sow anything we have a certain crop in view, because what we sow we reap. Therefore it is good to be intelligent in sowing, to sow to the Spirit so that of the Spirit we reap eternal life. Then in 2 Corinthians 3 there is what the Spirit will do, but there is our part in the matter—“we all, looking on the glory of the Lord, with unveiled face, are transformed according to the same image”. Again, that is the Spirit’s normal activity, to transform us, but then that depends, on our side, on looking on the glory of the Lord. That is what is in mind to inquire about.
C.F.D. Do you think that being led by the Spirit of God is in the wilderness setting of things? As we learn to be led by the Spirit of God in the wilderness, will that have its reflex in the service, because we are learning intimacy and nearness which will carry through?
J.R. Exactly. I suppose “led by the Spirit of God” refers to the last phase of the wilderness journey. In chapter 20 of Numbers Moses failed and Aaron died and Miriam died. There is no mention of the ark, there is no mention of the cloud; they sang to the Spirit and from that point they made progress in journeying. I think this refers to the last phase of the wilderness journey.
C.F.D. That helps us to understand how the Spirit relates Himself to the final movements of the testimony here. Do you think that, in the sphere of testimony, we are led by the Spirit, but when it comes to the collective side of things we are led by the Lord?
J.R. Surely, we are gathered for the service. The Lord takes over, I understand; His headship operates. But in that last phase of the wilderness journey as I said, Moses failed, Aaron died and Miriam died; there is no mention of the cloud, there is no mention of the ark which had been mentioned in chapter 10, but they are in principle led by the Spirit of God. It is like our own time; we do not have outstanding leaders like Moses and Aaron and that kind of thing, but the Lord calls our attention to the Spirit of God. Shall I say, it is more difficult? It causes more exercise to be led by the Spirit than it did to follow a lead in ministry for instance. It works in localities too, certainly at occasions like this, but the leading of the Spirit operates in a local gathering it seems to me.
C.F.D. Leadership of the Spirit operates in our local gatherings: now just open that up a bit.
J.R. Well, we know that everything administrative and everything in the service of God operates in our localities. In the end everything comes down to our local settings, to individuals, of course, but to our local settings. We do have the privilege of other gatherings together, like this occasion, but things work out locally, do they not?
C.F.D. I am just trying to get help on this thought that the Spirit of God is regulating things locally. The Spirit of God is establishing things in a locality and His work is coming to light, but you are expecting the Lord to lead us as we are together collectively, whether it is in a reading like this, in the service of God, or in the ministry meeting. Is that right?
J.R. I think so. We have no universal leaders nor one with the gift of government; I do not think so. Government depends on localities, and the quality of the government depends on the quality of the persons in the locality. This is a testing matter actually. Previously we had men who could call attention to principles applying and so on, but local difficulties now are worked out locally. So much depends on conditions in our localities.
L.McF. We speak of the Spirit coming in and helping us, but room has to be made for Him. Conditions have to be such that He is free to serve, do you think?
J.R. Yes, I think so. Did not the princes dig the well?—“Well which princes digged”, Num 21: 18. That was the exercise of persons who have gone before us to make room for the Spirit. I like to think of room for the Spirit but also putting ourselves in the way of the Spirit’s activities to give Him the advantage. We either give advantage to Him or to the flesh, do we not? The flesh and the Spirit are opposed to each other. Anything of the flesh or the first man hinders the Spirit’s activities.
L.McF. I was noticing that. It says in verse 6: “For the mind of the flesh is death”; and then in the next verse: “the mind of the flesh is enmity against God”. It is negative in a way but still we need to see that such a line of things does not get us anywhere.
J.A.P. What you say is confirmed in Acts 15, is it not? In the discussion the apostles referred to the Holy Spirit, and then when the meeting is over they said, “it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit” (v 28). Would that be what you have in mind?
J.R. I think so. “It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us” was the conclusion, was it not? I think it is more difficult, more testing, to be led by the Spirit than in former years when we followed universal ministry. Of course we have it all in print now, but currently, as far as I can see, things depend on what is local. Hence the need for the building up of personnel in our local assemblies. I say again, the quality of government in the locality depends on the quality of the persons in the locality. We have had abundance of instruction; we have the advantage of the teaching of all those who have gone before, but we do not have their personal influence. The object in reading ministry is not just to get our heads filled but to take on the features that were displayed in those who ministered. It is a deeper exercise than just to quote.
C.S.E. I was looking at Acts 13: 2: “And as they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said”. That speaking would come through someone in the locality, but the background is that they were ministering to the Lord. Do you think that is basic?
J.R. That is good. Now that you have called attention to that scripture, who was ministering to the Lord and fasting? Were they these five persons mentioned? It says, “Now there were in Antioch, in the assembly which was there, prophets and teachers”—there are five names mentioned, “and as they were ministering to the Lord and fasting”. Does that refer to these five persons? They were in the assembly in Antioch but it seems to refer to the five persons mentioned. In other words, they made themselves available to be sent by the Spirit by the attitude of ministering to the Lord and fasting. What do you say about it?
C.S.E. I thought there might have been more persons there at the time but these were prominent. I suppose the ones mentioned were the ones who were used to bring in the mind of the Spirit, but I am not too sure.
J.R. It seems like that. It says, “Now there were in Antioch, in the assembly which was there”, certain persons; and then, “as they were ministering to the Lord”—they were in the assembly, and they were persons who were exercised so that the Spirit could call them in view of service. So He comes to persons in localities. What do you say?
C.S.E. It sounds good. They were in a state, as you have been saying, to be used by the Spirit; the Spirit had ready access, if I might use that word, to these men to use them to bring in the mind of the Lord.
J.R. Exactly. Two were sent and three were left, because to care for the local setting is very important, is it not? There were two to go to the work but three were left there; in fact the first mentioned and the last mentioned were sent, the others were left there to care for and keep the locality right.
J.A.P. Officially the Lord gives the lead in the assembly, He leads the praise, but in a way the Spirit, if made room for, might help us to arrive at something. Maybe you could distinguish that a little more for us.
J.R. It seems to me the Spirit is immediately with us; He dwells in the bodies of the saints. The Lord is not immediately with us, He is with us mediately. The Spirit, shall we say, is nearer to us than any other One of the Godhead. Is that true?
J.A.P. That is very helpful to me. The Lord Jesus comes and goes but the Spirit is here all the time as we gather.
J.R. Yes. He dwells in the believer and dwells in the company.
C.F.D. When the objective response to the Holy Spirit was being opened up amongst us, reference was made to the Spirit’s ‘augmentary service’. Does that fit in in relation to what our brother said?
J.R. I would think so.
G.D.P. In the wilderness setting it says, “Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee to the place that I have prepared. Be careful in his presence, and hearken unto his voice: do not provoke him, for he will not forgive your transgressions; for my name is in him”, Exod 23: 20, 21. Is that the thought of the Spirit’s presence?
J.R. That is very good and very important; it has often been referred to as the Spirit; “Behold, I send an Angel before thee”—a capital ‘A’, is it not? In verse 23 it says, ‘‘for mine Angel shall go before thee”; it is not any angel, it is “mine Angel”. That is what the Lord says in Revelation: “I Jesus have sent mine angel”, chap 22: 16. Perhaps it is a special intimacy.
J.A.P. That is very good.
J.R. That is our side of the matter, is it not? The Spirit will lead us and it is proper to sonship to be led by the Spirit, but our side is to put to death the propensities of the body, anything that would obstruct, anything that would hinder the normal operation of the Spirit of God. It goes on to say: “ye have received a spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba, Father”. That is again the Spirit’s normal activity. “The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are children of God”. Room is made for all that by our putting to death the deeds of the body, that is our side of the matter; and then it is what the Spirit is active in, His normal activities.
C.F.D. How do you employ the power of the Spirit in putting to death the deeds of the body?
J.R. As far as I can see, you must intend to put to death the deeds of the body. You must intend to keep subject the propensities of the body. We must first of all have that desire and have that intention. Then we find practically that we do not have the power to do it ourselves, we have to learn to do it by the Spirit. The Spirit will help us as we do that but we must first of all desire and intend. Do you agree?
C.F.D. You are helping us because it is a very practical matter. What you are saying seems to me is involved in the fact that the Spirit does not assert Himself; the desire has to come from our side and we employ His power to work through the matter. But He does not assert Himself as to our matters, does He?
J.R. That is right. You see it with Rebecca. “They called Rebecca and said to her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go, Gen 24: 58. But later on it says, “Rebecca arose ... And the servant took Rebecca”. When she arose the servant took her to her destination, but He waits until she arises.
K.N.P. She was ready with the answer to that question. It is a question whether we are amenable to be taken by the Spirit. She had some experience with the servant earlier at the well.
J.R. She was not the product of the servant, she was the product of the well, I suppose. She lived by drawing from the well. It was not the first time she had come to the well when the servant arrived, but the servant took her on as she was able to answer to his own desires. I think the well is a local idea. I do not want to say too much, but men find water and then they build their cities where the water is. It is a local idea. Rebecca lived by the local well, you might say, and she was formed in a certain character by living that way.
L.McF. Moses sat by the well in early Exodus and that was the commencement of operations in him, do you think?
J.R. Yes. It was a big change for Moses to sit by the well. The seven daughters of Jethro came along; the shepherds hindered, but Moses arose and helped them. He did not slay the shepherds as he did the Egyptian, which he could well have done, I suppose. A different character was formed by sitting by the well.
L.McF. Putting to death the deeds of the body is not a once and for all matter. It has to be maintained as long as we are here.
J.R. Exactly. It flows from being minded to do so; I have a certain purpose in mind and to arrive at it I am minded not to allow the propensities of the body to operate.
J.A.P. Would what we are saying open up John’s ministry a little? After chapter 13 the Lord Jesus dwelt much on the Spirit, as if to say, the apostles will have their place but it is the Spirit finally who will help us to the end of this dispensation. Is that it?
J.R. I am sure.
J.A.P. Is what you are saying that, when the well is sung to in Numbers 21, leadership in the ordinary sense receded?
J.R. That is right; and they are able to overcome Sihon and Og later on. They were to overcome these giants in principle in the power of the Spirit, two big men—self-importance and self-indulgence I suppose. It is like putting to death the deeds of the body. If the body had its way it would be self-important and self-indulgent, but by the Spirit we have power to overcome these giants.
A.S.H. To communicate spiritual things by spiritual means (see 1 Cor 2: 13) you would have to be indwelt by the Spirit. I was thinking of what John says, “I became in the Spirit on the Lord’s day”, Rev 1: 10. But as a continual thing is a different point, is it not?
J.R. Yes. We read this morning about Simeon: “it was divinely communicated to him by the Holy Spirit, that he should not see death before he should see the Lord’s Christ”, Luke 2: 26. The Spirit must have had His way with him; there was no hindrance on his side. The Spirit will communicate with us if we are in a suited state, as you say.
C.S.E. So practically at the Supper, if I take part early I need the Spirit’s help to be maintained throughout the service; if I take part late, then I need the Spirit’s help to maintain me right up to that point.
J.R. I am sure that is so. It is quite remarkable how the service of God is maintained actually. Our difficulty to maintain things is more through the week though, because things work at the Supper pretty well, I would think; it is one of the occasions when the body functions, because no one is prominent, we are all helpers one of another and promote the one thing.
D.McF. I wondered if you could help us as to being taught by the Spirit. Is that something different?
J.R. I would not think so. The scripture quoted from 1 Corinthians 2 refers to being taught by the Spirit and is very important. It says, “which also we speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, communicating spiritual things by spiritual means. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him”. Then he speaks about the fleshly man, which is somewhat different. The natural man is what the note indicates: ‘the man animated merely by his created soul, without the teaching and power of the Holy Spirit’. We have the advantage in having the Spirit and to be taught by Him. In fact it goes on there to say, “But we have the mind of Christ”. By having the Spirit we think as the Lord does; this is a lot to say but it is possible. “We have the mind of Christ”, it says, the thinking faculty. What do you say about that?
C.F.D. It is certainly a great test. It is marvellous to think that the thinking faculty or the mind of the Lord is available to us through the power of the Spirit of God. I think it enhances the whole thought of the Spirit.
J.R. It says earlier in that chapter (v 11): “For who of men hath known the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? thus also the things of God knows no one except the Spirit of God”. In other words, if I had your spirit I would know exactly how you acted, what motivated you. Well, we have the Spirit which is of God. It is an amazing thing. “We have received”, it says, “not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, that we may know the things which have been freely given to us of God; which also we speak”. We do not realise the value of having the Spirit which is of God. He has given us not only His Spirit but He has given us of His Spirit.
C.F.D. What is the difference?
J.R. Well, it is a little nearer: “I will pour out of my Spirit”, Acts 2: 17. It is because we have the Spirit which is of God that we have the mind of Christ.
G.D.P. I do not know whether this is right, but Caleb had “another spirit in him”, Num 14: 24. He could communicate what the divine mind was, whether they should go up and so on.
J.R. Exactly.
J.A.P. I was told that what men call prohibition is really a substitute for the Spirit. If we want to be right we seek grace from the Spirit to help us to be right.
J.R. Exactly. It says in 1 John 4: 13: “Hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, that he has given to us of his Spirit”. What can we say? “Given to us of his Spirit”; does He share His Spirit with us? Is that going too far?
C.F.D. No. It is raising enquiries in our minds. Does “of his Spirit” relate to the fact that it takes the whole assembly for the Spirit to find its abode? We have “of his Spirit”, each has part in that sense. Now the Lord was great enough to have the Spirit in its entirety, but it requires all the saints at the present time. Is that what is involved in this expression “of his Spirit”?
J.R. I suppose it is in the fulness of it. It says, “if God has so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us. Hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, that he has given to us of his Spirit”, 1 John 4: 11-13.
K.N.P. Would “of” be something of the character, and should that character come out in us?
J.R. I think so.
J.A.P. According to the section that you referred to in 1 John 4, “the Father has sent the Son as Saviour of the world”, v 14. We could not get into that testimony unless this other side is right, love amongst ourselves. These things are in the power of the Spirit.
J.R. Quite so. Now in Galatians we have sowing to the Spirit. We are sure to get the crop we sow. It is good to be alerted as to what we are sowing because we will surely reap that crop, it is inevitable. Maybe later in our lives we wish we had sown a different seed.
C.F.D. In that section why does he begin the verse that way: “Be not deceived: God is not mocked”?
J.R. It would alert us, would it not? “Be not deceived: God is not mocked” does not mean that He does not like to be mocked; He is not mocked. “Whatever a man shall sow, that also shall he reap”. It is true; whatever we sow when we are young we reap according to that crop.
C.F.D. I am sure it is so. But it is something we do not think very much about when we are young. In the world they say that a young man has to sow his wild oats, but that was never intended to be in Christianity. Surely if you put a certain seed in the ground, that is the seed that is going to come up; you cannot change that.
J.R. No, you cannot.
K.N.P. Is it of note that in chapter 5 he refers to the fruit of the Spirit, and then in chapter 6 to the sowing? Is it an encouragement to sow in the right direction? If you know what the fruit of sowing to the Spirit is, it helps and encourages us to go in for it.
J.R. I think that is right and very important.
L.McF. There are those who are habitually at the meetings. I think that is part of sowing to the Spirit.
J.R. I am sure it is. It goes on to say, “he that sows to the Spirit, from the Spirit shall reap eternal life: but let us not lose heart in doing good; for in due time, if we do not faint, we shall reap. So then, as we have occasion, let us do good towards all, and specially towards those of the household of faith”. It is a very practical matter; it is how we live really. We are sure to get a crop according to what we sow.
L.McF. It is not all negative; the positive side is in view.
J.R. Yes, exactly.
J.A.P. I suppose that one of the concerns we all have in our localities is not just to attend the meetings, right as that is, but to come up with some sense of freshness. Would what you are saying help us?
J.R. I think so. So we read 2 Corinthians 3, these two important verses: “But we all, looking on the glory of the Lord, with unveiled face, are transformed according to the same image from glory to glory”. It is how we become like the Lord and become like each other too. But it depends on our looking in that direction: “we all, looking on the glory of the Lord, with unveiled face”. That is, His face is unveiled. Transformation takes place by the Spirit effortlessly as our outlook is on the glory of the Lord. When a seed produces fruit, it is effortless, it is life. And so with this transformation, it is what the Spirit does inwardly and, as far as we are concerned, effortlessly. Our side is to look on the glory of the Lord.
C.F.D. Therefore again we have to come to the fact that there has to be the desire for this. Moses said to Jehovah, “Let me ... see thy glory”, Exod 33: 18. That showed the inward working of the man’s affection, did it not? He had a desire to see the glory of the Lord. Do you think this is important for us? This is a collective idea, is it not? As we come up to the Supper should there not be this desire in our hearts to see the glory of the Lord?
J.R. I am sure. It is only one hour a week. I think “we all” is not collective. It is not ‘you all’, it is not the locality in Corinth, it is “we all”, that is all believers individually; that is as I see the context of it. We apply it, of course, to coming up to the Supper, which is very true, but it says “we all”, that is all believers. It includes Paul and those writing with him and the Corinthians—“we all”. What do you say about that?
C.F.D. That is the way we have been helped to understand it, that it involves all believers. I think, what you are saying is certainly right. “We all” is open to all believers, but behind it there has to be a relationship with the Spirit of God.
J.R. If we all answer to verse 18 we will all be together. We will be transformed according to the same image, that is like the Lord Jesus and like each other; that is the work of transformation.
J.A.P. I need a little clarification on this. Paul was writing from Ephesus and is saying to the Corinthian brethren, “we all”; he is including himself and them, but would you allow that we touch this in the service of God on Lord’s day morning?
J.R. O yes! it works then, but that is one hour of the week.
K.N.P. Would Romans help us? It says, “be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”, chap 12: 2. That would be all the time, would it not, and involve the Spirit?
J.R. Exactly. But if this was our occupation we would become more like the Lord Himself and more like each other. This is the direction in which we are meant to be looking constantly, looking on the glory of the Lord. That is how near the Lord and the Spirit are if, very closely linked, are They not?
C.F.D. You are making this very practical. You are speaking about the Supper involving one hour of the week. Now we are in our homes on Monday morning. Do you look for the glory of the Lord at the family reading and prayer? How is this worked out?
J.R. It seems to me it is looking in that direction, occupied in that direction. Of course you have work to do and duties to perform, and so on, but the main line of our thinking is verse 18.
C.F.D. That is very helpful.
C.S.E. In Hebrews 12, with regard to the race, it says, “looking stedfastly on Jesus the leader and completer of faith”, v 2. It is the same idea. The note says, ‘looking away from other things and fixing the eye exclusively on one’. Would that help us?
J.R. That is just the idea.
G.D.P. Do we see that in Stephen? “But being full of the Holy Spirit, having fixed his eyes on heaven, he saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God”, Acts 7: 55. He becomes like the Lord later on.
J.R. He certainly was like the Lord. He had the same kind of spirit like the Lord had: “lay not this sin to their charge”. Martyrs must have been maintained by this attitude; bound at the stake, enduring excruciating sufferings, they were able not only to suffer but suffer in a right spirit, the Spirit of Christ. Wonderful, really! And they prayed for their persecutors.
G.D.P. The first scripture says if we suffer with Him but it refers also to our being joint heirs with Him.
J.R. Quite so. I think “we all” is individual, that is, we all individually have our attention in this direction. How we answer to it, of course, is another matter, a matter for exercise I suppose, but it is the only way to be transformed according to the same image. Transformed is progressive; it is cumulative and progressive.
C.F.D. The note is ‘metamorphosis’ which may be a progressive idea.
J.A.P. In Exodus 34, when Moses came down from the mountain, there is the thought of the glory, but it was restrained in the people because of their state, but here it is not to be restrained. There was distance with the people and Moses, but Paul is at something very close here, our relations with the Lord Jesus.
J.R. If the people had Moses’ spirit they could have looked on his face. We have the Spirit of the Lord, we have His Spirit, and therefore we can look on His glory. If the people had had Moses’ spirit they could have been formed in that spirit, but they had not that spirit. They were at a distance, as you say. But we are not of letter but of spirit, the Spirit quickens; the Lord is the Spirit.
J.A.P. Which divine Person is that?
J.R. It seems that the Spirit and the Lord are so closely linked that it is difficult sometimes to distinguish, but I think when it says “even as by the Lord the Spirit” there are two Persons there, the Lord Jesus and the Spirit, so closely linked together. Our looking is to be on the Lord Jesus personally; the Spirit operates in us in view of formation. What do you say about it?
J.A.P. I am helped by what you say. Then it says, “but where the Spirit of the Lord is”; that is very close too. Sometimes we are cut and dried a little bit, but there is mystery in this great matter, is there not?
J.R. Surely.
C.F.D. So you could only look on the glory of the Lord by the Spirit; that is the only spiritual vision that we have, is it not?
J.R. Hebrews says, “we see Jesus ... crowned with glory and honour”, chap 2: 9. That must be by faith and by the Spirit. There is a very close link between the Lord and Spirit in this chapter. He said earlier in the chapter; “Ye are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read of all men, being manifested to be Christ’s epistle ministered by us, written, not with ink, but the Spirit of the living God”. Then it goes on to, “the Lord is the Spirit, but where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty”. Transformed is that we are progressively changed. It is applied to the Supper—I suppose it does apply then, we are transformed at the Supper—but we come back to where we were before. This involves a continual and progressive transformation, does it not?
C.F.D. You are helping us, giving us a general application of something that is to go on all the time. If five minutes ago you had put that question to me—we are transformed according to the same image—I would have related the idea of metamorphosis more to the time when we are progressing through the service of God. We are going forward, there is change, and it all involves the Spirit of God, involves looking on the glory; it is a progressive idea during that period of time. Would it be right to think that?
J.R. At the end of it we come back to it, we are formed.
C.F.D. We are still sitting on our seats: is that what you mean?
J.R. Yes. This involves, as far as I see, a progressive transformation—progressive and cumulative. Would that we progressed more in this way and were together more and like each other, because we become like the Lord by reason of the Spirit’s work of transformation.
A.S.H. He makes Himself known in the breaking of bread. As He comes in we would view Him in the progression that we just spoke about and we would be in unison moving on together. We view Him through the eye of faith and the Spirit. Would that be right?
J.R. Yes, faith and the Spirit go together. It has been said—and I think there is some truth in it—that the Spirit helps us according to the measure of our faith. All we have down here is in faith. We do not see anything by sight yet: we will eventually. We see each other of course: that is very important, and to get the best of each other too. The fact that we are reduced in numbers gives us a fresh appreciation of each; maybe the Lord intends that.
J.A.P. What you are saying about the service of God expanding is very interesting and it leads to greater things, which is like the house in Ezekiel, the only house that expands as it goes up. I think it is very fine, that the Supper is in the wilderness and all the preciousness of it, but what it leads to is wonderful to think of.
J.R. It says, “according to the same image from glory to glory”, that is progressive from one glory to another, is it not? I do not deny that it takes place at the Supper, but this is what is meant to come into our lives, that there is progression from glory to glory. We are together for an hour in the week at the Supper and we usually do well then, but it is through the week where we need this transformation. Would that be right?
L.McF. So we begin at home; we do not wait until we get to the Supper.
C.F.D. We come from a sphere of glory; there is glory in the houses as there was amongst the children of Israel; we come up with that into a realm of glory and that leads on to the glory of sonship. Is that the way this expands?
J.R. Well, do we go back to the glory of our houses again?
C.F.D. We would have to go back.
J.R. Yes, but it seems to me that “from glory to glory” is progressive; you do not go back to anything, you keep going on; it is cumulative, progressive.
C.F.D. I need help as to what you are saying because, if we get into what is heavenly in the service of God, which is the intention, we do not stay in it all the time; we have to come back to our circumstances, but we can come back as heavenly personalities. Would you say that?
J.R. That is quite true.
K.N.P. Is the key the “looking on”? Looking would be all the time, would it not? That is how it would work out and would maybe apply when we get home too.
J.R. That is what I would say. After the Supper we very soon drop down, do we not? There we certainly make progress on the way up, but when the meeting is over we very soon come back to earth.
C.F.D. After the meeting is over you can hear all kinds of conversation going on that really does not belong to heaven at all.
J.R. Exactly. This does not contemplate that; it is transformation, progressive transformation from glory to glory, not to come back to what we left.
K.N.P. Do we come back with something more than we left with?
J.R. Yes we do.
K.N.P. That involves progression, does it not? Our appreciation of Christ is increased as we look on Him and His glory.
J.R. Quite so. And we get impressions at tile Supper, too, which are very valuable, something to work out through the week.
K.N.P. As we get more impressions it would help us to keep looking, so it is a self-fulfilling thing, is it not?
J.R. I think so.
PLAINFIELD
13 November 1993
These notes were revised for first publication but not by Mr Renton
Key to initials -
C.F.Dadd, Plainfield; C.S.Elliott, New York; A.S.Hinkson, New York; D.McFarlane, New York; L.McFarlane, New York; J.A.Petersen, Plainfield; G.D.Pfingst, Plainfield; K.N.Pye, New York; J.Renton, Edinburgh.
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EARLY PREACHINGS OF THE GOSPEL
Acts 2: 36-38; 3: 19-21; 4: 8-12; 11: 20-26
I would just like to say a few words about these early preachings. I would like to refer to chapter 2 of Acts because that is the first preaching, and there is a certain freshness and power about that preaching. I did not read the whole preaching; it is the longest of these preachings we have read about in these chapters. Peter goes over the whole history, the whole matter of the intervention of God in the Lord Jesus, how He was, it says, delivered up “by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye, by the hand of lawless men, have crucified and slain. Whom God has raised up”, Acts 2: 23, 24. The great subject of the first preaching was the resurrection of the Lord Jesus from among the dead. That was the great testimony rendered that called for faith on the part of souls. Now that is still the subject of the gospel, because the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ involves a work completed.
We read of the Lord Jesus in the gospels and it is very interesting to read about His movements; but all the gospels end with the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and His burial too. So the gospel goes out in the book of the Acts from the standpoint of the work undertaken by the Lord Jesus being completed, and His being highly exalted; showing God’s satisfaction. His complete pleasure in that finished work, and then proclaiming it, so that there can be the meeting of any need. If there is any need with men, women, or young people it can be answered in the Lord Jesus Christ raised from the dead. He is the One who undertook the sin question and who answered to God for the departure and lawlessness on the part of men. It is wonderful that the Lord Jesus should make Himself available as Saviour! In fact He made Himself answerable to God for the departure of mankind. He Himself was perfect, of course, a Man of another order, come from heaven, not one of Adam’s fallen race, but One who was in every way in accord with the will of God. But He took the sinner’s place, that is a tremendous transaction which only He could undertake. He took it vicariously on behalf of others. We were in the sinner’s place, we were all sinners, but He took the sinner’s place to establish on the ground of redemption a claim upon all. This great work was completed to God’s satisfaction, and gave Him a righteous basis to recover man to Himself. All has been accomplished by the Lord Jesus Christ at infinite cost to Himself. In fact, scripture tells us He was made sin. It is difficult to understand but that is what scripture says, “Him who knew not sin he has made sin for us, that we might become”—believers might become—“God’s righteousness in him”, 2 Cor 5: 21. I am not attempting to explain all that, but let the truth of it sink into our souls, the immensity of the work undertaken by our Lord Jesus Christ and accomplished for God’s satisfaction.
His resurrection and His present position are evidence of how God is satisfied with that work. That is the basis on which God will build His universe, the righteous basis has been secured through the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. These are great things to think about, the tremendous undertaking on the part of the Lord Jesus. As it says, “coming into the world he says ... thou hast prepared me a body”, Heb 10: 5. That was a body of flesh and blood in which He could suffer, in which He could die, to undertake the work of redemption, to satisfy God as to the whole matter of departure, and answer to God regarding the enemy’s work too; the enemy’s work was involved in the departure. So Peter begins by saying, “This Jesus”, the One who was here among men. He was speaking to persons who knew Him, he was speaking in Jerusalem where the Lord was crucified. That was a great public matter. Peter said, “This Jesus has God raised up, whereof all we are witnesses”. Then he says, “Let the whole house of Israel therefore know assuredly that God has made him, this Jesus”, this Jesus, the One whom they knew, the One whom they had seen, the One whom they had seen crucified, “God has made him, this Jesus whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. He is in a position of glory and exaltation and authority.
Now it says, “And having heard it they were pricked in heart”. That was a good thing; I suppose they were convicted. “They were pricked in heart, and said, to Peter and the other apostles, What shall we do, brethren?”. They virtually said, Is there any remedy? We can see how wrong we are, we are convicted as to the tremendous sin we have committed, is there any answer to it? “What shall we do, brethren?” And Peter says, There is an answer, an answer to that great sin of the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is God’s answer to it in the resurrection of Christ, and there is to be man’s answer in repentance. “Peter said to them, Repent”. First of all there was conviction, that is how we begin, we begin as being convicted sinners, and then the next step is we are to repent, take our true place of repentance before God as guilty sinners. There were three thousand converted, but each one had to have this personal experience with God, because repentance is towards God. He is the One whom we have offended, our offences and sins have been against God, and our repentance is towards God. How otherwise could a sinner approach God? He cannot approach God on his own righteousness because he has none, but he repents and approaches God on the righteousness of Another, and on the basis of the work accomplished and completed by Another. But repentance is a deep work, it is not a superficial thing, it is the work not only of our minds but of our hearts, our affections. The whole being of a man, woman, or young person is affected in repentance. It is not only being sorry for our sins, although it includes that, it includes a review of our history and viewing our state as God views it. “Repent”, that is the first word, “and be baptised”, well that would be committal to the death of Christ. A person who truly repents does not continue in his course of lawlessness. A person who repents is not happy in continuing a course of lawlessness, because he has reached something in his soul about his lawless course, and repentance involves a committal to the end of that. So if repentance is real, he is no longer happy in a course of lawlessness, but counts on the Lord’s help to be here for the will of God. That is in principle what baptism is, “Repent, and be baptised, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for remission of sins”.
I often refer to this, remission of sins. Now they found themselves guilty of one sin, and very often in a person with a sense of guilt, it would be one sin that is in the person’s mind. That was so here. But remission of sins is not only for that one sin. I may be convicted of one sin, but not only is God prepared to remit that sin. He would remit my whole course of sins. A sinner coming to God could never recount all his sins, they are so many; in a lifetime of so many years of lawlessness, he could never count all his sins, but maybe one sin might convict him, and God would say, I will remit all your sinful history. Is not that magnanimous on the part of God? How gracious God is! He is prepared to forgive all our sins. He was ready to forgive all the sins of those persons, not only the sin of the crucifixion of Christ, which actually Peter later mentions as a sin of ignorance, a sin of inadvertence, but he says, “for remission of sins”. It is a tremendous thing to have our sins remitted. It is forgiveness, but it is more than forgiveness. Forgiveness could be attitude, but remission means that the matter is finally and fully settled and will never rise again in our lifetime here, and never rise hereafter.
Then he says, “and ye will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”, that is what is available in the glad tidings, available for all men at the present time, “the gift of the Holy Spirit”. It was looked forward to in the Old Testament, but is available now because of the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ and His resurrection, and His exaltation. The Holy Spirit is available now as a gift and is offered in the glad tidings. Now this preaching was to the house of Israel, and is based on the great matter of the gift of the Holy Spirit. What aroused the interest of persons, what had brought them together to listen to the preaching, was the fact that the Holy Spirit had been given and there was evidence of it in persons, whom they had heard speaking in their own tongues the great things of God. There was evidence of the gift of the Holy Spirit, and that became the basis for the first preaching.
Now the second preaching, in Acts 3, was based on a lame man who was made to walk; that is, a witness here to the power of God in the glad tidings, one who had been carried daily at the gate of the temple and was made to walk. He was known to be a cripple, and there was evidence of the power of God’s kingdom in that he is made able to walk, and that became the basis for the second preaching. Peter says, “Repent therefore and be converted, for the blotting out of your sins, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and he may send Jesus Christ, who was foreordained for you ...”, that is an appeal to the nation of Israel that if the nation repented there could be times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord and He would send Jesus Christ. That was the outlook at that time, if the nation had repented, but the nation did not repent, and that gave God the liberty to extend the glad tidings further. The first gospel was to Jews. The assembly was formed by a remnant of the Jews, but God was justified in extending the glad tidings further because the favoured nation of Israel refused the glad tidings. God used that to extend the glad tidings further.
The third preaching I read of, in Acts 4, was preached to opposers. In the first three chapters of the Acts there is no opposition. There is testimony based, as I said, on the gift of the Holy Spirit, based on the man who was made to walk, evidence of the power of God, there was no opposition. In chapter 4 the opposition began, and what Peter stresses in this third preaching is this, “salvation is in none other”. He gives them an opportunity, but he says, There is no alternative. He says, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel, if we this day are called upon to answer as to the good deed done to the infirm man, how he has been healed, be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazaræan, whom ye have crucified, whom God has raised from among the dead, by him this man stands here before you sound in body”, and then he says, “And salvation is in none other”. He brings before that nation that there is no alternative. That is important in the glad tidings, there is no alternative. There is salvation in no other. If He is refused, there is no salvation, nothing left but judgment. How solemn that is. He says, “salvation is in none other, for neither is there another name under heaven which is given among men by which we must be saved”. There is no alternative but to accept God’s terms, accept the Saviour of His providing and His finished work; there is no alternative.
Now in chapter 11 you can see that certain history has elapsed which gives God the liberty for the word to go out to other nations. There were those who preached to Jews only (Acts 11: 19), but there were others who went into Antioch and preached to the Greeks also, preached to the nations. God is justified in extending His glad tidings, and so since then the gospel has been preached worldwide to all men. It is God’s thought that all men should be saved. Think of the outlook God has, God “desires that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth”, 1 Tim 2: 4. Not only does God desire that all men should be saved but He has made provision for all men, because of “the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all”. That is, there is God’s desire for all men and God’s provision for all men, so that the glad tidings come to Antioch here, and it says that these persons announced “the glad tidings of the Lord Jesus”. Think of that coming to Antioch, coming to a gentile city, “the glad tidings of the Lord Jesus”, what glad tidings that would be! It was the first time in that city the glad tidings of the Lord Jesus were preached, and then it says, “the Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord”. That is a fine word, “turned to the Lord”. We have the Thessalonians who “turned to God from idols”, 1 Thess 1: 9. Here they turned to the Lord, they found their outlook in the Lord, their resources in the Lord. How fine that is! It says, “a great number believed and turned to the Lord”, and they found in Him all the resource they needed, “And the report concerning them reached the ears of the assembly which was in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go through as far as Antioch—who, having arrived and seeing the grace of God, rejoiced, and exhorted all with purpose of heart to abide with the Lord”. That is, the preaching was of the Lord Jesus, and the Lord’s hand was with the preachers, and the converts turned to the Lord and Barnabas exhorted them with purpose of heart to abide with the Lord. It is a great thing to know the Lord, to be subject to the Lord, to come into the kingdom of God, and to come under the Lord’s authority and protection. That is what these persons did, and it says that “he was a good man and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith; and a large crowd of people were added to the Lord”. You see it is the Lord who is emphasised, the Lord Himself, the authority of the Lord, they come under a new authority, come under a new Master. That is an important step in a believer’s life. He may be convicted, and repent, and receive the remission of sins and the gift of the Spirit, and then come under the Lord’s authority. He is no longer lawless, but comes under the Lord’s authority. That is a very important matter, coming into the kingdom, coming under the authority of the Lord.
Now it says that Barnabas went away to Tarsus to seek out Saul and found him and brought him to Antioch, “And so it was with them that for a whole year they were gathered together in the assembly and taught a large crowd”. I want to come to this, the importance of teaching. First of all there is to be subjection to the Lord in the kingdom, and then divine teaching is required to provide instruction for believers. These were two servants, Barnabas and Saul, working together, both of the same mind, both advocating the same teaching. It says, “for a whole year”, which is a whole course of teaching. It is not an overnight matter. These believers must have committed themselves to this course of teaching, and I suppose week after week for a whole year, “so it was with them that for a whole year they were gathered together in the assembly and taught a large crowd”. Now a large crowd became an assembly, they became one under the teaching of Barnabas and Saul, these able teachers. It says, “and taught a large crowd: and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch”. There was something of testimony. It was what others called them, I suppose unbelievers called them Christians because they were different, they came under this teaching and they were different persons. The kingdom is important, involving subjection in mind to the Lord so that we take in divine teaching. These persons would all be taught the same way. It formed their way of thinking, and that forms assembly character, that is, we think the same way because we have been subject to the same Lord and subject to the same teaching. I just want to impress how important that is. So these persons were stable, having had a whole year’s course of instruction, and they were first called Christians in Antioch.
We read in Acts 13, “Now there were in Antioch, in the assembly which was there”. There was the formation of assembly character in these persons through divine teaching. The gospel has in mind that we should have remission of sins, the gift of the Spirit, and come under the Lord’s authority, then come under His teaching so that our minds are formed, how we think. We would be formed according to God, not in independent thinking but, as Paul writes to the Philippians, thinking the same thing, thinking one thing, see Phil 2: 2. That is the result of divine teaching. May the Lord encourage us, for His Name’s sake.
PLAINFIELD
14th November 1993
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