CHAPTER 3 - 4: 11
CHAPTER 3 - 4: 11
FER I think we see that chapter 1 is Christ’s name, and it is a great thing to get hold of that; then in chapter 2 His identification with Israel from the outset, He goes down to Egypt that He might be called out of Egypt; and in the chapter before us we get a new departure in the ways of God. It is no longer recalling the people to law and prophets, but the kingdom of heaven is at hand. It is a great thing to apprehend this, because it enables us to see how the Lord identified Himself with it at the close of the chapter.
Ques Does it not emphasise what you are saying to see that the voice comes from the wilderness, setting aside all constituted things?
FER It is a voice, too, from the priestly tribe, John belonged to that, and yet, as you say, from the wilderness. Zacharias ministered in the temple; John, his son, preached in the wilderness, and Jordan was the place of his baptism. I suppose Jordan means death.
Ques Is there any significance in the baptism being in the river by which they entered the land?
FER They have to come on to completely new ground.
Ques Like what the Lord says, “Except ye be converted, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven”?
FER The same thing comes out here, “think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father”.
Ques In connection with baptism you always get some new thing or new start, do you not?
FER I think so; the great thought of baptism is dissociation from all you were connected with before.
[p. 39] Ques I suppose by means of John’s testimony the godly remnant was separated?
FER I think so. They were separated in view of the kingdom, but another point comes out — judgment was imminent, “the axe is laid unto the root of the trees”. It is always of great importance to seize the bearing of the moment, the mind of God at the particular crisis. At the present time I think it is “the Spirit and the bride say, Come”; so at that time it was most important to seize the bearing of the moment.
Rem That is, there is no blessing for man except through death.
FER It must be so, if death is upon man then through death blessing must come.
Rem It has always been true.
FER The principle stands good through Scripture. In the Old Testament if a man came to God he had to come with the acknowledgement that death was upon him. Naaman had to go down into Jordan, he had to drown every pretension, and he felt it to be such. Every pretension I have as a man must go.
Ques Why was the Lord baptised?
FER To fulfil righteousness. The people were baptised on the ground of repentance. There was no repentance in the Lord’s case.
Rem Fulfilling righteousness is the maintaining in the presence of evil what is right before God.
Rem He could not have identified Himself with the remnant apart from it.
FER No; but it was no baptism of repentance for Him, though He is identified with them.
Rem It has been said, Grace brought Him where sin brought us.
Ques Did He own the righteous claim of death?
FER He owned it with regard to Israel. Every one acquainted with Scripture must notice how the [p. 40] Lord identifies Himself with Israel and even with their sins in the Psalms.
Rem This is in keeping with Psalm 16.
FER Yes; but now we get a wonderful thing coming out, He is owned as God’s beloved Son.
Ques What is the force of the kingdom of the heavens?
FER It is the sway on earth of what God has established in heaven. I think the idea is taken from the sun, the sun was set to rule the day, the sun is in the heavens. The kingdom of heaven was not set up until the Lord was in heaven. There are two parts in Matthew: one goes on the ground that the Lord is down here, and the other, from chapter 16, that He is exalted. I mean that this is seen in the parables of the king’s son, etc., but not those in chapter 13, it has not come to that. He is the sower.
Rem There is a remarkable expression in Luke after the transfiguration, “when the time was come that he should be received up”.
FER That is a transitional part in Luke, in the next chapter Satan is seen to fall from heaven, and the disciples’ names are written there. In our scripture I think it is wonderful to see wherever these poor people take a right step they have a great accession of light. The Lord was identified with them, and you get the full revelation of God as known in the economy of grace, not exactly Father, Son, and Spirit, and yet it is the Father and the Son and the Spirit; you will call that refining a bit, but it is “to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him”. If you speak of Christ in eternity you would speak of Him as Son, not quite Son of God. That applies to Him as born into this world. He takes a place relatively lower, as become Man, and He is the Son of God, “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee”. “Son of the Father”
[p. 41] in 2 John, I think, refers to what was eternal. You cannot help seeing that in becoming Man He takes a place relatively lower; but then the moment He does that (Hebrews 1) He is constantly saluted as God. There is the most careful maintenance of His glory, His proper divine rights.
If people take a right step they get a great access of light. I do not think any one gets much until he does. You get light enough for the step, not much beyond until you have taken the step. People do not get much light about the church until they have left the systems of men. We are so accustomed to the terms of the revelation that we fail to see what an accession of light it must have been to them. I cannot conceive any more wonderful blessing for God to give to man than to make Himself known in what He is. I would give up everything else to keep that.
Rem There can be nothing greater in eternity.
FER You come next to that wonderful scene — the temptation. It is the Son of God tested.
Ques Son of God as born into the world?
FER Yes; it is after the baptism and the Spirit had descended upon Him that He is tempted. I do not think the saints meet the temptation of Satan until they have the Spirit. Typically I do not think Israel did. It was after the giving of the water that Amalek came. I do not think God allows you to be exposed to the temptation of Satan until you have the Spirit. He providentially shields you. Now this truth comes out you do not need forty years to prove the flesh. Israel had forty years of being tested and humbled, and they needed it; but now it is seen that the moment you walk in the Spirit you are superior to evil. Satan is defeated at the very outset, you do not need forty years to learn yourself.
Rem It is a great thing to see that we are to be in the power of the Spirit.
Rem At the first God did not lead Israel through [p. 42] the land of the Philistines lest they should be afraid and turn back.
FER But they were foolish enough afterwards to trust the flesh, and if we trust the flesh we might need forty years, but there is no need really.
Ques Is the result of the temptation that the strong man was bound?
FER Yes. To me it is wonderful how the Lord meets Satan.
Rem He takes the Lord up as Son of God, because He had just been owned as such.
FER Well, no, I do not think it was because of that, the devil always knew Him to be the Son of God; it is a curious thing that what men did not know the devils did. How they knew I could not tell; they are spiritual beings, and they knew.
Rem There was a testimony here.
FER Well, I do not think it was because of that, they knew Him in some way apart from that.
Rem But that distinguished Him, and I suppose these spiritual beings took note of it.
Ques Was He not announced as Son of God at His birth?
FER Yes; but all that is to faith, not to wicked spirits. I do not think they were affected by such.
Rem Angelic hosts proclaimed the glory of God at His birth.
FER Every part of the temptation is so wonderful to me, it all commends itself to me as so perfect; to begin with, you get One with all divine power at His disposal, and yet He will not use it to relieve Himself. Where could you conceive such a thing save in a divine Person, and to relieve Himself in what was perfectly right; it was perfectly right for man to want bread and to look for bread, but the Lord will not relieve Himself of hunger, because He will not take Himself out of the true place of man.
[p. 43] Rem Had He done so it would have been no pattern to us, it is all as man.
FER He would not do anything at the bidding of Satan. He does not expose Satan until the last, although, of course, He knew him from the first. It is a great thing to know that Satan has met his match in man, you thus get the path, and you get the great principles marked out in the Lord for us.
Ques In what way are we led into the wilderness?
FER The moment may come when a saint is exposed to peculiar assaults of the enemy. I think God allows a saint to be tested.
Rem But then God will never do that without He fortifies you first.
FER That is the beautiful thing here, you first get the light, and then you are tested; you never get a great accession of light but you find yourself tested afterwards. You would be inclined otherwise to ride the high horse, and you have to find your bearings. It is the greatest possible comfort that the path has been marked out for us, we are not called to tread a path that has not been marked out. You see what a man is to be under the eye of God. You really are morally what you glory in; if a man glories in evil, that is what he is, if he glories in Christ that is what he is morally.
Ques Do you think the great point is the lack of bread?
FER Yes; and to supply it people set to work and use human means. I am not left in the world for my own will, but for the will of God, and if so, I can count upon God for my bread. Christ was here for the will of God, and He will not use His power to alter His circumstances; the path of dependence is the only path for a man who is here for the will of God. Satan wants you to be here for your own will, and if you are here for your own will you are here for Satan’s will. The second temptation is putting [p. 44] God to the test; if you put God to the test, very likely He will not answer to it. God is not at my call. Finally, Satan exposes himself when he proposes himself as an object of homage, and gets rebuked: “Get thee hence, Satan”.
Rem The first temptations were what you call ‘wiles’.
Ques What do we get in the last temptation?
FER Satan will make a bold bid, it is wonderful how people are taken in by barefaced wantonness. He comes out boldly as Satan, he is under some restraint in the first two. Some who would stand the first well are taken in by the last.
Rem It is like the last desperate throw, he risks everything.
Ques Has “keep yourselves from idols” anything to do with it?
FER It is remarkable that you get that in the epistle that brings out Christian privilege in the highest development, where there is really the display of God morally in the saint, yet this warning against idolatry comes at the end.
Rem And now angels come and minister to the Lord.
FER He had to do with evil spirits, and now with good ones. Angels are guardians of the heavenly city, and they are in attendance upon Christ. In Gethsemane we get angels again. If a saint is faithful he gets some mark of providential favour. Angels are sent forth as ministers for those who are heirs of salvation. It is in contrast with helping Himself.
Ques What is the difference between the order here and in Luke?
FER They are, I suppose, in historical order in Matthew, in moral order in Luke; in Luke the first is the natural, and then the worldly. The words, “Get thee behind me, Satan”, ought not to be in Luke, it is a spurious passage there. It looks as it [p. 45] stands as though Satan did not go away when bidden.
Rem Does not this in Matthew correspond to the failures of Israel in the wilderness? First, they murmured for bread; then tempted the Lord at Massah; and lastly, threw Him off in the golden calf.
FER I think that is of importance here. The great point is the way in which all was taken up in connection with Israel.
Ques Does this correspond to “all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world”, 1 John 2?
FER Well, I should expect to find that more in Luke.