“ALWAYS WITH THE LORD”
P.
This is a wonderful word with which, in accordance with the stimulation of the apostle, we should encourage and comfort one another. We understand it, I think, usually in the sense that we shall be eternally happy and blessed in the presence of our beloved Lord.
‘Safety—where no foe approaches;
Rest—where toil shall be no more;
Joy—whereon no grief encroaches;
Peace—where strife shall all be o’er’. (Hymn 206)
“God ... shall wipe away every tear … death shall not exist any more, nor grief, nor cry, nor distress shall exist any more”, Revelation 21: 3, 4. Yes, thanks and praise be to God, we shall enjoy this; we are fully entitled to look forward in happy expectation to this wonderful release and to the final freedom from all the vexations, necessities and wants of our wilderness path down here.
Yet I would point out that there is another side to this glorious prospect. That we should be “always with the Lord” does not only mean a precious expectation for us but—and much more still—also for our Lord. He has promised to be with us “all the days, until the completion of the age” (Matthew 28: 20), and also that the blessed Comforter will remain with us “for ever”, John 14: 16. These precious promises will be perfectly fulfilled through the never-failing faithfulness of divine Persons—our beloved Lord Jesus remains with us for ever, and also His Spirit. Yet how is it with us? Our Lord as “the second man”, “the last Adam” should not remain alone, any more than “the first man”, but should have a companion suitable to Himself who should be with Him, and His heart longs for her—‘Love will not be alone’ (Hymn 180). He finds assuredly even now amongst His loved ones, who are privileged to assemble in His name, something of that which His loving heart will eternally delight in and enjoy.
But is it only in the coming ‘for ever’ that we in this sense are “with the Lord”? How thing’s come in between in our daily lives; how our thoughts become detached from Him and often fix themselves on trifling and unworthy things! I often think of what a beloved brother said in a reading some years ago, ‘Our Lord should not be alone, but I must admit that, if it depended on me, He would be very often alone!’ Oh how often is it so in my case! Yet how different it will be when He takes us to Himself! Not merely no more pain and no more distress, however blessed this will indeed be, but also no more temptations around us, none of the many and varied things which we have here below that often hinder us from enjoying “always with the Lord”. What will it be for Him!
No more to grieve Thy heart
By failure sore,
But join Thee where Thou art,
The journey o’er.
O Lord, what joy will fill
Thy heart of love
To have Thine own with Thee
In heav’n above! (Hymn 236)
Oh may our hearts be comforted by this side of our blessed hope and be encouraged by it so that even now we not only rejoice in His always being with us, but seek earnestly in the present time that He may enjoy our company more and that even now we may be more “with the Lord”.
From ‘ Neues und Altes’, 2/83