A SECOND COMMITTAL
G. D. Pfingst
I was impressed by our brother mentioning in his prayer the solemnity of occasions such as this. I believe that the very solemn occasion of which we have read has been referred to as the second covenant that God made with His people of old. We all have been under responsibility; we cannot say that we were under covenant in the same sense as God’s earthly people, but we have made vows in putting our hands to the Supper, involving faithfulness to the Lord. Much has come in to divert us, so that possibly a second committal is needed.
We do well to remind ourselves of the solemnity of the things to which we have committed ourselves. It is the day of grace and we are not under law, nor do we seek to put anyone else under law. We know the One who has kept the law and made it honourable; the One who took our place on Calvary’s cross and bore our sins in His body on the tree; things have been fulfilled in Him, but nevertheless we are responsible to be faithful.
What a wonderful day of grace it is! What could not be kept by man under law can be kept by those who now walk according to Spirit. There is the side of responsibility in maintaining the testimony, but there is the power, in the Spirit, to fulfil that responsibility. But we may need to enter into a second committal to be more faithful than we have been in the past. One would seek to encourage us in that way. I know how I have failed in the past; many times I was careless, but God would just pull us up, as it were, and have us take stock as to where we stand, and how much we recognise the authority we are under.
We are told that when Mr. Darby came out of the organised church he went through deep exercise and pressure, feeling the responsibility of being obedient to the authority of God’s word. And we have the authority of God’s word. Moses, in the verses we have read, represents that authority; he stands up with the people. There is the authority of God’s word today. If we maintain fresh links with the Lord and recognise the authority of God’s word, what blessing there is for us: His word will lead us according to 2 Timothy 2, which is the path for us at the present time. The church, as such, has lost its authority—we are in a day of breakdown, but the authoritative side continues in the acceptance of the word of God. We must not disregard it. 2 Timothy 2 supposes that there will always be those that call on the Lord out of a pure heart, and we can speak of those that are “here with us this day”. It is a matter of being with the Lord in things, of course, but we can thank God that there are those with whom we can work out the truth. The Lord would not have us walk alone.
How can we encourage persons to be with us? We do not want to make much of ourselves; we do not assume any position; we do not want to be presumptuous in any way, but brethren who have part in this second committal should be aware of their responsibility to support the testimony. We do not want to force any one; we are not establishing attendance officers, but we do want to see our brethren at the meetings. Seeing the brethren should stimulate mutual encouragement. Moses spoke of “him that standeth here with us this day”. With such, the covenant is to be made so that we shall not be turned aside to other things.
There is a danger of that at the present time. The enemy is using the world and its allurements to attract the Lord’s people. It has been said that he is not too much concerned about those who already are in the world, because he has such under his influence. But the world and its attractions are presented in their various phases to attract persons at every stage of spiritual life. We hardly realise the tremendous power the enemy wields at the present time, seeking to get into every area of our responsible history to divert and overwhelm us. But let us not be overwhelmed. These things are written so that we might freshly commit ourselves to the testimony. We need not be overwhelmed in any way, but rather be balanced as we adhere to this wonderful covenant that is made here this day with all the people.
This is the point I desire to make, dear brethren. I cannot say much about these things, for I feel how shallow I am, but the Scripture has its own weight and authority, and we can get help just in reading it. Let us therefore be concerned about this reference to a second committal and, with those that stand here this day devote ourselves in a fresh way to the support of the testimony. It is a time to stand—“Having accomplished all things, to stand”, Ephesians 6: 13. The goal and the prize of the calling on high of God in Christ Jesus are just before us. Let us be ready and watching, that we be not ashamed at His coming. One would just seek to encourage each one here so that, in spite of hardships, in spite of pressures, in spite of all that has come upon us, we may stand—“stand before Jehovah”.
Then Moses referred to “him that is not here with us this day.” To apply this practically, I would ask, Are there any that are not here with us this day? We would like to see them. Our meetings have been arranged so that most of our brethren in the city can attend without being overburdened or oppressed; therefore, we would like to see them with us “this day”. But note that the covenant was made with him that was not present, too. So that though persons may not be here with us on this occasion, the covenant is made with them; they must not excuse themselves.
I would like to encourage every one to be with the saints in current matters. Being with the Lord is essential; you must have your personal links with the Lord or you will founder, but you also need active links with the brethren—with those who call upon the Lord out of a pure heart. It is wonderful that there can be a second committal. If we have
drifted, or in any way have gotten into byways, there is this second opportunity to make fresh committals to be with the brethren in support of current exercises and to contribute to assembly life, and be preserved from what is defiling and damaging in the world. Let us, therefore, stand firmly with the saints, for His name’s sake.
Word at meeting for ministry, Brooklyn, N.Y.
9 October 1973