PORTION OF SCRIPTURE—Romans iv.
There is one man set before us in this chapter as the man who had faith in God. The one thing which marks him more than any other is his faith. The man lived nearly 4,000 years ago, and yet he is still a vivid personality; he lives on in our thoughts and memories as the man who trusted God. His name is still reverenced all over the world, even among people of different religions, as "The Friend of God."
"The God of Glory appeared to Abraham," and from that moment Abraham's faith fastens on what God is. The attractive power of Jehovah drew him from his home, his relations and his country, and with every fresh revelation of God, Abraham's faith grasped more of God and clung to Him with a firmer hold. God's word was all he had to go by; whatever God said was enough for him; whatever God told him to do, he did it, because, totrust Godmeans to obey Him. He had God with him at every step.
If ever there was a clear-sighted man, that man was Abraham, for trust in God enlightens our understanding. He was a man with a far sight. He saw what no other man then living saw. He saw that the day was coming when God would send His Son to be the Saviour of the world. How do we know this? Because Christ said, "Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." [Footnote: St. John viii. 56.] He saw far on into the future, farther than any other man then living. He saw the golden City, the holy City, "whose builder and maker is God." [Footnote: Heb, xi. 10.] Yes, the eye of faith not only sees God, it sees also what "God has prepared for those who love Him."
God was very real to that man. Abraham trusted God because he knew Him personally. Faith is the act of the soul which looks wholly away fromself, whether it be righteous self or sinful self, and looks to God only, in complete submission and confidence.
It was because Abraham trusted Him that God stamped the man as His friend—Abraham My friend. On and on through all these hundreds of years he has been called "the Friend of God." In the book of Chronicles, in Isaiah and in the Epistle of James it is mentioned again, "He was called the Friend of God."
What is friendship? It is two hearts trusting in each other. Abrahamtrusted God, and God trusted Abraham. God put such confidence in him thatHe let him know that He was going to destroy the cities of the plain.The LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do?"[Footnote: Gen. xviii. 17.]
Mutual trust is at the root of all friendship. Where there is a lack of mutual confidence in the home life or in commercial life it spells ruin. The great question for each one in life is, What is my relation to God? Is it trusting God, or is it doubting God?
"Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness."[Footnote: Rom. iv. 3.] What is righteousness? It means to be right withGod, and the moment we trust God's Word we are made righteous, and webecome righteous.
We read in Acts that after their first missionary tour. Paul and Barnabas reported in detail all that God had done, and how He had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. [Footnote: Acts xiv. 27.] So faith is the gate of life by which the Gentiles were entering in.
Here was a new fact proving that faith was the gate of the Lord into which the righteous should enter; [Footnote: Ps. cxviii. 20.] righteousbecausebelieving. Faith is the door by which God comes into our hearts. Faith is only the door, nothing in itself, but it is called "precious faith" because of all the life and joy and riches of grace and glory which it lets in.
Abraham is not only presented to us in the Word of God as the Friend of God, but also as a pattern for all believers, and we are told to take him as our model, "to walk in his steps," to trust God and to find in God's wondrous friendship all that he found. God has been teaching us ever since, through the simplicity of the faith of this man. The most remarkable point in his faith is this, he grasped as no one else had done that God is God because He can quicken the dead. [Footnote: Rom. iv. 17.] He can give life to the dead because He Himself is the Source of life. He calls "those things which are not as though they were" because He is the Creator of all things. This applies not only to the body but to the soul. Your confidence in God began when your soul, which was "dead in sin," was quickened into a new life. When we ourselves have experienced this quickening it gives us such faith in praying for those we love, knowing that God alone can quicken dead souls.
Abraham was "strong in faith"; even when God promised him a son, although it seemed impossible, "he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief," being "fully persuaded" that God was able to do it. To be "strong in faith" is to feel our utter helplessness and to rely on God's power only; to be "strong in faith" is to grasp God's promise and not to let anything make us doubt it.
We have an illustration of this strong faith in the case of the first missionary who went out to China a hundred years ago. The captain of the ship in which he sailed was an atheist, and one day he said to him with a sneer, "You don't suppose, do you, that you are going to convert those Chinese?" "No," said the missionary, "but I believeGodis going to do it." Did God fail him? No. His faith was rewarded, and at the present time there are a quarter of a million Chinese believers who meet in fellowship at the Lord's Table.
What is faith? It is the link between me and God. The link between my emptiness and God's fulness. The link between me, the sinner and Jesus, the Saviour. Is there this link between you and God? Is the link on? Faith is the spiritual link, the one and only means by which a man can have dealings with God, realise God and walk with God. It is a living link between God and the soul, a living union. The word "faith" comes from an old word which means tobind. When I say "IbelieveGod," it means that "I am His and He is mine for ever and for ever." It is trusting in His love, not a mere cold belief in His power. It is grasping His promises, because they are precious promises. It is the whole heart and mind going out and up to God. David says: "Unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul; O my God, I trust in Thee," [Footnote: Ps. xxv, 1, 2, 5] This brings perfect rest. "Thou art the God of my salvation, on Thee do I wait all the day." Do we make it a habit to be constantly referring to God about everything? We learn first, thatGodis, and then our faith feeds uponwhatGod is. His faithfulness and His lovingkindness are seen in all His dealings with us.
Faith has to do with unseen realities, for faith is the evidence, or proof of things not seen; [Footnote: Heb. xi. 1.] it makes them as real as if we could see them, and brings them near.
So we may say faith is like the telegraph wire which connects two places however far apart they may be.
We had an illustration of this not long ago. Our Queen Mary was in her sitting-room in Buckingham Palace. A hospital was to be opened in Canada 4,000 miles off, and she was asked to perform the ceremony. When the signal was given that all was ready, the Queen pressed a little ivory button and in two seconds the door of the hospital, which was held by an electric wire, opened, and in fifteen seconds the signal was flashed back that the hospital was open. So in about half a minute the signal went there and back over a space of 8,000 miles. How wonderful! and yet greater spiritual wonders are happening every day and many times in the day, if only we have faith in God and let Him work in us and through us.
I will give you another illustration how the simple touch of faith links us with God's power. A few years ago some rocks blocked the entrance into the river St. Lawrence, so that the ships could not go up the river to Quebec. It was decided that the mass of solid rock must be removed. How was it done? In the presence of a large crowd a little child stepped forward and touched an electric button and the whole mass of rock was blown up by dynamite and the passage cleared.
Faith has done great wonders in times past, and it can still do wonders, if only we make use of God's Almighty power. But the rule is, "According to your faith so be it unto you."
I will give you an illustration. When I want light in my room I touch the electric button and the room is filled with light. The moment I press the button I expect the light will come, and I am surprised if it fails. Why? Touching the electric button is like the touch of faith; it brings us into contact with the source of light. Faith brings me into contact with God Himself, for He is the source of life and light. God has ordained that faith shall be a power as real and as uniform in its working as light or heat or electricity. Everything about them is a mystery which we do not fully understand, but all the same they are real to us and we use them. Although we do not understand them, yet we prove again and again that they supply us with new life and energy simply by a touch. Even a child can touch. Faith places all God's fulness at our disposal, but it is only according to our faith that we receive it.
I know a poor woman who went through a time of great anxiety about her little girl who was ill. One day a Christian friend called to see her and she told her all about her trouble. When she had finished the friend said to her very tenderly, "You have forgotten one little word of five letters." "What is it? Do tell me," she exclaimed, looking puzzled. Then the friend, pointing on her five fingers, said slowly,f-a-i-t-h. The dark cloud cleared away and she was able to look up into God's face again and to trust Him.
So when Christ says, "Have faith in God," it is a command to hold fast to God. It means trust God about everything, great and small; nothing is too small. Trust Him to save you, and to keep you. Trust Him in every difficulty and in every duty.
"Little faith will bring your souls to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to your souls."
When Christ said to Peter and the others, "Have faith in God," He said it very earnestly and with a ring of deep conviction in His voice. He knew in Himself what dependence on God means in the earthly life. Day by day He showed what it is to have simple trust in God. When He said, "Have faith in God," He said it very solemnly, because He was speaking on behalf of His Father.
He had come to reveal Him, so He says, "I do nothing of Myself, but as My Father hath taught Me I speak these things." He had already said, "He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life," and now He adds, "Have faith in God." Yes, He claims our confidence, our full confidence, not a half-hearted trust.
Our Lord saw men seeking other objects of trust, so He says, "Take hold ofGod, hold fast to God, have faith in God and never let it go."
The world's great need is faith in God. God's own character demands it. The Scriptures make Him known and reveal Him as altogether trustworthy, such an One as invites our entire confidence. To have faith in God means leaning on Him, letting Him bear the whole weight. There is a great difference between believing and committing. Many say they believe, but they are not willing to commit themselves to Him.
A few years ago there was a man named Blondin who performed wonderful feats at the Crystal Palace. Once he walked on a tight rope stretched across the centre of the Palace at a height of 150 feet. Another time a rope was stretched at a great height over a shipbuilder's yard, and he not only walked steadily across, but he carried a man on his back. A large crowd gazed at him in wonder and awe, and great was their relief when both Blondin and his burden reached the ground in safety.
Among the eager upturned faces in the crowd there was a lad about eleven years of age. When Blondin came down he went up to the lad and said to him, "You saw me carry that big man across, do you believe I could take you?" "Of course you could," replied the boy; "why, he was a big man, and I am only a little chap." "Well, then, jump up, my lad," said Blondin, and he stooped down for the boy to climb up on his back. But although the boy said he believed Blondin was able to carry him across, he was not willing to trust himself, and so, just saying, "No, thank you," he was off like a shot and ran as fast as he could till he was lost in the crowd. Though he said he believed, when it came to the point he did not commit himself, and that is all the difference, between believinginChrist and believingonHim.
Faith in God means really committing ourselves into His hands and rolling our burdens on Him.
If we withhold our confidence it shows that we do not really believe that God is what the Bible says He is. The reason there is so much unrest and ungodliness is because we have lost sight of God. It is not because the Bible is out of date as some say, or that the Gospel has lost its power; it is still as ever, "the power of God unto salvation," but we are limiting God.
It is just the same now as in olden times when the children of Israel limited the Holy One of Israel, and we read how this lack of confidence grieved God all through those forty years in the wilderness. Yea, they spake against God, they said, "Can God furnish a table in the wilderness; can God give bread also; can He provide flesh for His people?" [Footnote: Ps. lxxviii. 19, 20.] Unbelief asks, "Can He?" Faith says, "He can." Dear friends, let me ask you to stop and ask yourself, Where do you put that little word "can"? Are you constantly thinking to yourself, Can God? or are you saying in your heart and meaning it too, "God can"! We limit God's power to save, by asking,CanGod? The hindrance is the same as in olden times when Jeremiah felt that because of the unbelief of the people "the Lord was as a mighty man that cannot save." [Footnote: Jer. xiv; 9.]
You have prayed many years perhaps for the conversion of some one near and dear to you, but are you limiting God because you doubt His power to do it? A poor man who gave way to drink said sadly, "I have broken the pledge again and again"; then pointing to his pledge card he said, "But now I have written a text on it, Isaiah xli. 13: 'For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not, I will help thee.'" Then looking up he said simply, "Maybe, Him and me will do it together."
Is it victory over temptation you long for? Look up to Him and say, "I can't, but God can." Is it grace you need for some special trial? Say, "God is able to make all grace abound towards me, for He tells us in His Word that He is able to do 'exceeding abundantly above all we ask or think according to the power that is working in us.'" [Footnote: Eph. iii. 20.] The world's great sin is not trusting God. "Thus said the LORD, Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm and whose heart departeth from the Lord." [Footnote: Jer. xvii. 5.] Yet in times of difficulty or danger how apt we are to lean on the arm of flesh.
During the present European war I was much impressed by the words of one of our soldiers who writes from the front: "After all that is being done there still remains one supreme necessity without which neither arms or munitions can be decisive, namely, the spiritual outlook of the whole nation. When I returned home after ten months in Flanders, I was amazed at the lack of spirituality of the people as a whole. The simple faith and dependence upon God which characterised our country in her past struggles seem lost to sight. 'They trusted in Thee and Thou didst deliver them' implied no disregard for military efficiency; it was the real and vital accompaniment to armed force. Can it be that the hellishness of battle, the wearing down of the spirit induced by trench warfare, moments of utter loneliness which every soldier has to bear, strike right at the soul and enable him to realise the nearness of the spiritual world? 'Prayer is the foundation of all grace' were the words of a dying soldier who had deliberately returned to the area of poisonous gas and had brought back the machine gun on his shoulders. Some of us have realised what individual prayer at home has done for us, but we should all like to feel that the whole nation is also testing the value of spiritual power."
We read in God's Word that "The children of Judah prevailed, because they relied upon the Lord God"; [Footnote: 2 Chron. xiii. 18.] and when King Asa was defeated the prophet said to him, "Because thou hast relied on the King of Syria, and not relied on the Lord thy God, therefore is the host of the King of Syria escaped out of thine hand." [Footnote: 2 Chron. xvi. 7.]
To have faith in God we must put God first in everything. He must be first when we awake in the morning. How blessed it is to be able to feel, "When I awake I am still with Thee." A working man said to me once, "I make myself happy in God the first thing in the morning." David says, "In the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee and will look up." [Footnote: Ps. v. 3.] "When I awake I am still with Thee." [Footnote: Ps. cxxxix. 18.]
"In my morning prayer," said a Christian man, "instead of thinking of my own needs first, I like to think of the fulness there is in Christ for me." Let us resolve to put "Godfirst," even if we have only time for one text of Scripture. "Godfirst," even if it is only a minute or two for prayer. A Christian said once, "I must see the face of God before I see the face of man." The manna was gathered early every morning. Another said, "Unless I meet with God first, I cannot meet the difficulties of the day in a prepared spirit." If you put "God first," you will find this will make all the difference as to how you do your work and how you deal with others. "Little is much if God is in it."
To have faith in God is to trust Himonly. David says, "My soul, wait thou only upon God, for my expectation is from Him." [Footnote: Ps. lxii. 5.] Is it so with you? If so, what for, and for how much? First find out from His Word that God is able and willing to do what you need; then trust Him to do it. "Trust in Him at all times" it says again in that beautiful Psalm. [Footnote: Ps. lxii. 8.]
"I have been looking into my Bible," said a working man, "and I find a great many men trusted God, and whatever they trusted God for, they always got it; He never failed them, and it is the same now."
You have all heard of Florence Nightingale and her life of devotion in nursing the sick. She was asked to tell the secret of her earnest Christian life, and after a pause she said, "I have kept nothing back from God." Faith in God is unreserved confidence, telling Him all and keeping nothing back. But before we can do this as a daily habit we must definitely commit ourselves and all we have into God's hands.
It says in Isaiah xliv. 5, "One shall say, I am the Lord's." I have a mark in my Bible which I made many years ago by the side of these words. I put the date and then I wrote these words: "He gave Himself for me and I give myself to Him. He takes me and I take Him." Ever since then it has been my delight to tell others how simple it all is. It is the sinner taking the Saviour and the Saviour taking the sinner.
Are you asking, What must I do? First believe what God says about you inHis Word. He says, that you are guilty, lost, ruined. Then He presentsChrist to us as the Saviour and calls on us to believe what He says aboutHim. "He that believeth not God hath made him a liar because he hath notbelieved the record that God gave of His Son. And this is the record thatGod hath given to us eternal life and this life is in His Son." [Footnote:I John v. 10, 11.]
"Have faith in God." Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God, and "faith is the gift of God." And the wonder of it all is that God says to the weak ones like poor Jacob, "I have chosen thee and not cast thee away," and He never will, for "God keeps all His failures," not like man who throws his failures on one side as worthless.
Oh! to trust Him then more fully,Just to simply trust.
Then instead of "limiting the Holy One of Israel" we shall be singing at the top of our voices, "The LORD hath done great things for us whereof we are glad." [Footnote: Ps. cxxvi. 3.] So then let us "trust in the Lord for ever, for in the Lord Jehovah is Everlasting Strength." [Footnote: Isa. xxvi. 4.]
PORTION OF SCRIPTURE—Ephesians v. 22-33.
"Christ also loved the Church and gave Himself for it." [Footnote: Eph. v. 25.] Two precious truths shine out in these words. Heloved, Hegave. He not only gave Himself for the Church when He died on the Cross, but He is still sanctifying and cleansing it, and by and by when He comes again "He will present it unto Himself a glorious Church." [Footnote: Eph. v. 27.]
So we have the history of the Church in the past, in the present, and in the future. We look back to the past and we see Christ giving Himself, that is, laying down His life on the Cross; but we must also look far, far back into the past Eternity to find out another precious truth. (Perhaps you have never thought about it.) It is, that the Church was in God's thoughts from the very beginning! The Son of God was in the bosom of the Father "in the beginning"; and it was then—before the world was created, that God chose us in Him and gave us to Him. [Footnote: Eph. i. 4.] Now we see why "Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for it."
What is the Church? The word "Church" means "called out," so the Church embraces all who have been "called out" during the present age to form the "Body of Christ." In the Old Testament we find that the Jews were God's chosen people, [Footnote: Exod. vi. 7.] so they had all the privileges, but in later times, the Jews rejected the Gospel of the grace of God, and then God graciously visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people to be called by His Name. [Footnote: Acts xv. 14.]
When did this special "calling out" begin? Nearly 1900 years ago on the Day of Pentecost, and it has been going on ever since, and when the number of "the called-out ones" has been completed, then "The Lord Himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." [Footnote: I Thess. iv. 16, 17.]
Each of those three words, "chosen," "called out," and "caught up," leads us on to something more. We were chosen in Him to be holy; [Footnote: Eph. i. 4.] we are called out to be the Body of Christ now, and by and by we shall be caught up to meet the Bridegroom and to be with Him for ever. If you are a child of God, you can say with holy wonder, "God has done all this for me."
The Church was formed out of a little company of 120 men and women who were gathered together praying in the Upper Room at Jerusalem. [Footnote: Acts i. 14, 15.] Suddenly they heard a wonderful sound and saw a heavenly vision, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost; and before the day was over that little company increased to the number of 3,000 souls. How many does it number now? No one knows, but it is a "multitude which no man can number." [Footnote: Rev. vii. 9.] Some are already in glory, some are still on earth, but it matters not where they are, they belong to the "whole family" of God "in heaven and in earth." [Footnote: Eph. iii. 15.]
On the Day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out, His special work was to create a new thing—it was then that the Church of God was formed into one Body by the Holy Spirit, "For, as the body is one and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ." [Footnote: I Cor. xii. 12, 27.] "Now ye are the Body of Christ and members in particular," that is, individually, for every saved soul is a member.
The Church is a living body united to Jesus Christ, for He is the living Head of the Body. He needs His Church just as much as His Church needs Him. It is the Holy Spirit who unites us to the risen and glorified Christ Who is the Head, and then He unites us to one another in Him. It is alivingunion, because we pass through death into the resurrection life of Christ, for by "One Spirit we are all baptized into One Body, and we have all been made to drink into that One Spirit." [Footnote: I Cor. xii. 13.] The Holy Ghost sustains the life of the Church. In Him we live and move and have our being. As the bird lives in the air, as the flower lives in the sunshine, so we live in the Spirit, and when we drink in His fulness there is growth and fruitfulness.
Have we ever felt this need of drinking into that One Spirit? Everything connected with the true Church of Christ must be spiritual, it is this which is being lost sight of in the present day, and it is the reason why there is so little power and so few conversions.
Have you ever tried to understand why the Church is called "the Body of Christ"? Think first about your own body. It is the only part of your real self that can be seen. I cannot see your heart or your thoughts, but I know what your thoughts are by your words, and what you feel by the look of joy or sorrow in your face, and by the way you go about.
It is by your body that your real personality is made known to others; what you really are would never be seen unless your body made it known. In the same way the Church is the Body in order to make Christ known in the world. He is hidden from our view, He is unseen, but He manifests Himself and shines out through us, and He sends us to carry His messages and to do His Will.
This was the earnest desire of the Apostle Paul when he said that he was willing that the old self should be taken away so that "thelifealso of Jesus might be made manifest in our body." [Footnote: 2 Cor. iv. 10, 11.]
This is what the Church is here on earth for, to make the unseen Christ known. Just as every drop of water reflects the light, so every member of the Church, however weak and small, can reflect His love.
Is His compassion for sinners beaming in your eye? Is His purity seen in your daily life? Do you judge things from His standpoint?
I remember when some one was telling me why she loved a Christian worker whom we both knew, she added, "I love her for what I see of Christ in her."
Think of Christ exalted in Heaven far above all things, and remember He is there not for Himself, but foryou. "He is Head over all things to His Body, the Church." [Footnote: Eph. i. 22, 23.]
It is wonderful to think of this union with Christ, that we are His Body and He is the Head; but there is another wonder quite as great, it is that He is the Bridegroom and the Church is the Bride. When we speak of the Church as the Body of Christ, it is a living union,lifeis the one thought brought out; when we speak of Christ as the Bridegroom it islovewhich is the chief point. It brings out the affection, tenderness and nearness of the Bridegroom. "So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies, He that loveth His wife loveth Himself." [Footnote: Eph. v. 28-30.]
We have nothing so wonderful in the Old Testament. Think of the depths out of which we have come, and the heights to which we are raised. "He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill to set them among princes and to make them inherit the throne of glory." [Footnote: 1 Sam. ii. 8.] Think of the sinner lifted out of all his bondage and ruin to be the Bride of the Lamb! There is nothing higher that God can give than this. This will be our glorious position by and by when the Bridegroom comes to take us to our Heavenly Home, for His parting words were, "I will come again and receive you unto Myself." [Footnote: St. John xiv. 3.]
There will be three great surprises on the day that He comes again. These surprises have been kept secret, but on that day the glorious secrets will all be made known.
The first surprise will be when we shall see all the saints who have died in Christ called back from the unseen world and clothed with their new, glorified bodies. What a joyful meeting it will be.
The next surprise will be that we who are still living on earth when Christ comes will be changed, we shall not die, we shall escape from the hand of death. "It is appointed unto men once to die," but "Christ was once offered to bear the sin of many," [Footnote: Heb. ix. 27, 28.] and when He comes the saints who are living will be changed "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye." [Footnote: 1 Cor. xv. 52.] You know how long it takes for you to shut your eye and open it—it will not take longer than that for the change to be made. Three great changes will take place—ourbodieswill be changed, no more sin, or pain, or weariness; ourmindswill be changed. "We shallknow" then what we cannot know now, we shall see all as God sees it, we shall know the love of Christ and we shall love Him as He deserves to be loved, and best of all "we shall be like Him for we shall see Him as He is."
The third surprise will be that ourcircumstanceswill also be changed; we shall be no longer on the earth, for as soon as the great change takes place we shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. He will then look into our life work, and He will say to His faithful ones who have been true-hearted and loyal: "Well done, good and faithful servant." [Footnote: St. Matt. xxv. 21.] Then the heavens will resound with the Hallelujah chorus, "Let us be glad and rejoice and give honour to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb is come and His wife hath made herself ready." [Footnote: Rev. xix. 7.]
But the glory will be only then beginning, it will be "glory upon glory." Remember there are two stages in Christ's Coming; He will comeforHis saints, and then He will come down to earthwithHis saints. As it is written: "Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints." [Footnote: Jude 14.] "When Christ, who is our Life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory." [Footnote: Col. iii. 4.] We shall comewithHim when He comes to reign on the earth.
But there is something still grander than the glorious position of having a place with Him on His throne. We look on and on into the Eternity that is coming (and it is a wonderful outlook) and what do we find? It is that we are wanted for the ages to come to show forth, and to be living personal illustrations "of the riches of God's grace." It is not only that we shall be saved and glorified, but that God will use us personally to show forth all His love. The grace of God is the love which flowed down to us in our great need, when we were dead in sins, slaves to sin and Satan and deserving nothing but God's wrath.
It is we ourselves who are wanted for the ages to come for "the praise of His glory." The expression "the richesof God's grace" [Footnote: Eph. i. 7.] meets our personal need, but there is something else that will shine forth, it is called "the gloryof God's grace." [Footnote: Eph. i. 6.] All that God prepares for us is worthy of His greatness and power. The inheritance which He has in store and the beautiful Home above will be worthy of God Himself, all that is in it and around it surpassing everything that we can imagine in its glory and beauty will be worthy of God Himself. It is only as our eyes are spiritually enlightened that we can get a glimpse of "the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints." [Footnote: Eph. i. 18.]
The words of this old hymn describe what it will be like—
"I go on my way rejoicing,Though weary the wilderness road—I go on my way rejoicingIn hope of the glory of God.
"Then no more in the earthen vesselThe treasure of God shall be,But in full and unclouded beauty,O Lord, wilt Thou shine through me.
"All, all in Thy new creationThe glory of God shall see;And the lamp for that light eternalThe Bride of the Lamb shall be.
"A golden lamp in the heavens,That all may see and adoreThe Lamb who was slain and who liveth,Who liveth for evermore.
"So I go on my way rejoicingThat the heavens and earth shall seeHis grace, and His glory and beauty,In the depth of His love to me."
Our mission throughout eternity is to make known the love and wisdom of God that He may not only be all, but in all. He is in us now, but we want Him to be in all, and it will be through us that God will let the whole universe be so filled with the glorious knowledge of His love and wisdom that these words will at last be fulfilled—"God … all and in all." [Footnote: I Cor. xv. 28.]
We are passing through wars and convulsions and revolutions hitherto unknown, but a glorious future is awaiting us, and one thing is certain, that nothing can "separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." [Footnote: Rom. viii. 39.] That is our security.
It is also certain that it is not in the power of the devil to destroy the Church of God, for we are wanted in the ages to come. It is the Church which is to be the glory of Christ to all Eternity.
We are also wantednowin a very special way. Men's hearts are failing them for fear, they need strong, calm, prayerful helpers in this time of perplexity. Who can speak a word of cheer and encouragement? Who can point them to the Rock of Ages which cannot be moved? Who can inspire them with faith and hope? Only the one who has himself made God his Refuge. It is in times of trouble that the worldly man turns for help and sympathy to the believer. It is through us that God would work out His purpose of grace and love to the world.
A young man who had met with a bitter disappointment went to an aged Christian and poured out his trouble. After hearing his sad story, his friend said in a calm, tender voice, "God knows all about it, there is no such thing as chance in the world." "What is there then?" asked the young man eagerly. "There islove, Eternallove," was the answer.
The reason why the believer is kept in perfect peace is because he looks beyond all the tumult of battle, the bitter strife and terrible bloodshed to the time when God will gather together all things in Christ, for He is to be Head over all.
Never for a moment shall that love cease to bless us and shield us. Whatever may happen to our bodies nothing can touch the eternal life within.
Do you feel anxious to know whether you will have a share in the glory? I will tell you how you may know. You remember Christian had a roll given him by Evangelist which he was to give in at the Celestial Gate. When you first come to Jesus as a poor sinner the Holy Spirit gives you four precious words written as it were in a roll for you to hide in your heart until the moment when Jesus comes and you are caught up to meet Him in the air. Take your Bible and you will find there four precious words which God has written for you to rest upon, and which will never fail you.
1. REDEEMED. [Footnote: Pet. i. 18, 19] "Bought with a price," and the price was the life-blood of God's dear Son, so we belong to the Church of Christ which He has "purchased with His own blood." [Footnote: Acts xx. 28]
2. SEALED. [Footnote: Eph. i. 13] The Seal is God's mark upon us showing to men and angels and devils that we are His "purchased possession"; that we belong to Him, spirit, soul and body absolutely, and for ever, for God's solid foundation stands unmoved, bearing this inscription, "The Lord knoweth them that are His." [Footnote: 2 Tim. ii. 19]
A Christian doctor who had been in the Crimean War and in China, was very particular when going on a journey to have all his luggage "labelled and ready." In his last illness he turned to a friend and said with a smile, "I am labelled and ready"! and then he gave this beautiful testimony: "There is only one thing that makes me quite ready and quite sure of Heaven, it is that my sins are forgiven by trusting in the Blood of Jesus. Nothing that we can do can save us, it is what He did. He alone can give us peace with God."
3. KEPT. [Footnote: 1 Pet. i. 5] A young Christian told a friend that he was afraid as to whether he would be able to live the life. The friend looked at him, and said, with a ringing voice of assurance, "He is able to keep you from falling." [Footnote: Jude 24] He then saw that he was no longer in his own keeping, but inGod'skeeping, and that the keeping would be up to the last moment, and be so complete that he would be handed over without the smallest defect to stand in "the presence of His glory with exceeding joy."
4. GLORIFIED. [Footnote: Rom. viii. 30] This is the last and grandest of the four precious words which God has given to strengthen our hearts, and it is the crown of all. What shall we say? No words can express what it will be, it will surpass our highest expectations. But we know that it will be fulness of life, fulness of joy, fulness of love, and all our deepest longings satisfied, all our highest hopes fulfilled, and it will be for ever and for ever!
Let us hold fast God's sure word of promise, "The Lord will give grace and glory." [Footnote: Ps. lxxxiv. 11] Let us lift up our hearts in praise and thanksgiving to Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, UNTO HIM IS THE GLORY IN THE CHURCH, THROUGHOUT ALL AGES, TO ALL ETERNITY, WORLD WITHOUT END. AMEN. [Footnote: Eph. iii. 20, 21]
PORTION OF SCRIPTURE—St. Matthew xxi. 1-17, andRevelation xi. 15-18.
Now, therefore, why speak ye not a word of bringing the King back? [Footnote: 2 Sam. xix. 10] This question was asked a long time ago. You remember how David was driven from his throne. His son Absalom rebelled against him and he had to leave the country; but Absalom is now dead, the rebellion is at an end, and still David is an exile. At last some of the people talk it over together and inquire of one another, "Why say ye not a word, or why are ye silent about bringing back the King?" So they sent word to the King and Judah went to meet him.
I was reminded of this Old Testament story when a correspondent wrote in the spring of this year as follows: "I have spent two days in what is left of Belgium, and I find that the dream of the Belgians is to see the King ride back into Brussels. Men and women, old and young, talk and plan and have visions of the time when the King comes Home."
It is touching to think how these people, in spite of all their misfortunes, still love their brave King and cling to the hope of having him once more among them in his rightful place on the throne and then their ruined towns and homes will be restored.
It makes me think of another King, our Lord Jesus, who entered the City of Jerusalem amidst the cheers and acclamations of a large crowd, and how the words came true: "Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold thy King cometh unto thee." [Footnote: St. Matt. xxi. 5] And now they cry, "Hosanna"—He is come, He is come! and the children's voices ring out with praise. But this proclaiming Him as King aroused the enmity of some of the rulers and they stirred up the people against Him. Here was the opportunity, the golden opportunity, for accepting or rejecting the Son of God. They had listened to His teaching, they brought their sick to Him for healing, they appreciated the benefits of His ministry, but they refused to submit to His authority, so they were determined to silence His Voice. Sin shows itself in the rebellion of thewillagainst God, and so they lost the opportunity, and instead of accepting Him, they crucified their King.
The words are still true: "Behold, thy King cometh," He comes to set up the Kingdom of God in our hearts, so the opportunity is given to you now to accept Him as your King.
We listen to the good news about peace and forgiveness, but are we willing to make Jesus King in our hearts? Here is the great test, it is here that the opposition of man'swillbegins to show itself, because if He is to be our Lord and Master He claims all we are and all we have. He must be Lord ofallor He is not Lord at all; nothing less will do. There is no real union with Him by faith until we say in our hearts, "My Lord, and my God." [Footnote: St. John xx. 28.] It is impossible to accept Christ as our Saviour without also yielding to Him as King, and proclaiming Him as King.
A young friend of mine has these three simple words, "Make Jesus King," in a frame hanging on the wall of her room. She told me they were the means of leading her to decide for Christ.
Nothing but the power of the Holy Spirit can enable us to yield to Him as our Lord and Master. "No man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost." [Footnote: 1 Cor. xii. 3.] This is the central fact—"JESUS IS LORD." "For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that He might be Lord both of the dead and living." [Footnote: Rom. xiv. 9]
It is the Holy Spirit who first reveals Christ to your heart and enables you to say, "Thou art my Lord," [Footnote: Ps. xvi. 2] and then He gives you grace to love and obey Him as your Master. So, whether you look backward to the moment when your sins were all blotted out, "He is Lord"; or whether you look at your present life with all its shortcomings, "He is Lord"; or whether you look forward to the end, waiting for His Coming,He is Lord. "Can you say truly—
"He cleansed my heart from all its sin,What a wonderful Saviour!And now He reigns and rules within,What a wonderful Saviour!"
We have seen our Lord proclaimed King at Jerusalem and accepting the title. Although rejected and crucified, His every word and action was kingly up to the last moment of His earthly life. He spoke openly of His Kingdom to Pilate, for when Pilate asked Him, "Art Thou a King then?" [Footnote: St. John xviii. 37] He answered, "I am." The purple robe, the crown of thorns, the sceptre, though offered in mockery, were all kingly, for the superscription over the Cross, THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS, [Footnote: St. Matt. xxvii. 37] was true. The Cross was the way to the Throne. "I beheld, and lo in the midst of the Throne stood a Lamb, as it had been slain." [Footnote: Rev. v. 6]
In that dark, dark hour of Christ's agony on the Cross, there was only one man who recognised Christ as King, and that was the dying thief. It was a very real cry that broke from his lips in his utter need—"Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy Kingdom." [Footnote: St. Luke xxiii. 42] It was wonderful faith. Can you think of any other as wonderful? He recognised Christ as King—not a dying King leaving His throne—but a victorious King about to enter His Kingdom. The penitent thief saw even more than this, he saw that it was a Kingdom of souls rescued from sin's bondage and slavery; not a Kingdom of the great ones of earth, but for outcasts such as he was, so he cried, "Take me as I am and give me a place in the Kingdom."
But the answer to the cry was as wonderful as the cry itself—"To-day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise." When the King said "With Me," He meant, "I am passing from darkness into Everlasting Light. Come with Me. I have broken the chains of sin, I am setting the prisoners free. Come with Me." From that moment the penitent thief was identified with Christ in His death and in His Risen Life. Is this true of you?
When earth rejected the King, not only was Heaven opened to receive Him, but a triumphant reception awaited Him. Heaven resounded with the joyful chorus of the angelic hosts—"Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in"! [Footnote: Ps. xxiv. 7.]
So for nineteen hundred years the heavens have received Him, but once again the everlasting doors will open, and the Son of Man will come in "the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." [Footnote: St. Matt. xxiv. 30.]
What has been going on during all these years? Kingdoms and world powers have risen up one after another, but all have failed to give what the world really needs, "A King to reign in righteousness." [Footnote: Isa. xxxii. 1.] God is still saying, "Why do the heathen rage and the people imagine a vain thing?" [Footnote: Ps. ii. 1.] But in spite of man's rebellion and forgetfulness of God, God's purpose will stand firm, "Yet have I set My King upon My holy hill of Zion." [Footnote: Ps. ii. 6.] God's purpose is to have all power placed in the hands of One Man, and that is Christ. What will be the final winding up of Earth's suffering and struggles? The veil will be drawn aside and
"The Glory of the LORD will be revealed." [Footnote: Isa. xl. 5.]
It is the glory of the Personal Presence of the Son of God. When? Where?How? will the glory be seen.
Look back into the Garden of Eden. God gave man control over all, but he listened to another voice and then he lost control. The question was raised, "Who was to rule, Satan or God?"
By and by another veil will be drawn aside and we shall see how the unseen powers of darkness have been at work behind all the wars and sin and rebellion of this poor world. "An enemy hath done this." [Footnote: St. Matt. xiii. 28.] It is the devil who blinds the eyes, hardens the hearts, and deadens the conscience of mankind. But we must not lose heart or think that Satan is getting the upper hand. The Word of God enables us not only to trace some of his plots and schemes, but it shows uswhyGod has been so long silent andwhenGod intends to break that silence. [Footnote: See Ps. 1] The victory is sure, but whose victory? The Victory of the Son of God.
But first the Jews must return to their own land, and then "the kings of the earth and of the whole world" will be gathered to the battle of the great Day of God Almighty. All these nations will fight against the Jews at Jerusalem in the place called Armageddon. It is really a desperate attempt of the devil who is sending forth these nations to make war with the Lamb. Jerusalem will be taken, and when the enemy is rejoicing over the victory and the destruction of the Jews seems certain, then suddenly they see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, [Footnote: St. Matt. xxiv. 30] "the armies" which are "in Heaven" following Him. [Footnote: Rev. xix. 14]
Then shall the Lord go forth and fight against those nations, and His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, [Footnote: Zech. xiv. 3, 4] and "every eye shall see Him." [Footnote: Rev. i. 7] The armies of the enemy will be destroyed and God's people will be delivered. In this marvellous way the Lamb shall overcome, for "He is Lord of lords and King of kings and they that are with Him are called, and chosen, and faithful." [Footnote: Rev. xvii. 14]
It will not only be the deliverance of the Jews from their enemies, but the wonder of that great day will be that at last their eyes will be opened to see Him as the Messiah, so they will be converted and restored. The Lord says, "I will pour upon them the spirit of grace and of supplication and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced." [Footnote: Zech. xii. 10.]
What an overwhelming sight! The same Jesus whom they despised and rejected is come down from heaven to deliver them, but they only think of Him as the One whom they have pierced. The glory which meets their eye at that moment is the glory of the love and compassion of the Crucified One. The result of looking is mourning. They get such a view of their sin against His love that they are filled with godly sorrow. When the eye of faith is turned to Jesus then the tears flow. Oh, how perfectly will all Satan's evil influence in man's heart be destroyed in the presence of Jesus.
"In that Day we have seen what has taken place at the beginning of that day, and now before it closes a fountain will be opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness." [Footnote: Zech. xiii. 1.] With the opening of that fountain there is grace given touseit, for God says, "I will pour upon them the spirit of grace." Many see the fountain now who never use it!
Precious fountain, of all things most precious to poor sinners such as you and me. No one but God's dear Son, and nothing but His atoning death on Calvary, could open that fountain. The fountain is still flowing—has it cleansed you?
Then the Kingdom of God is set up on earth. Who can tell the good news so well as these restored and converted ones?
The question is sometimes asked, Has the Gospel lost its power? Is Christianity a failure? No. The Gospel will yet be preached throughout the whole world. Who will be the preachers? Converted Jews, [Footnote: Isa. lxi. 6] "a mighty angel, [Footnote: Rev. xiv. 6] and glorified saints, for they shall be priests of God." [Footnote: Rev. xx. 6]
What will be the result of their preaching? There will be a world-wide revival. "The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." [Footnote: Hab. ii. 14]
When Christ comes to us now, it is to rule in the hearts of His people, butthenHe will reign over a believing world without opposition, for Satan will be bound and Christ will take the Kingdom which is His by redemption, and His glory will be seen on Mount Zion. "Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined." [Footnote: Ps. 1. 2]
And the seventh angel sounded and there were great voices in heaven saying: "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ and He shall reign for ever and ever." [Footnote: Rev. xi. 15]
After reigning on earth for a thousand years there will be the Judgment of "the Great White Throne," [Footnote: Rev. xx. 11-15] when all those who had no part in the first resurrection will be raised, and all whose names are not "written in the Book of Life" will be "cast into the lake of fire."
"This is the second death."
Has your name been entered in the Book of Life?
One more glorious Vision of the Kingdom is unfolded before us, and the glory grows brighter and brighter, for it is "THE EVERLASTING KINGDOM."
"I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea…. And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold I make all things new…." [Footnote: Rev. xxi. 1, 5] "And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His face and His name shall be in their foreheads.
"And there shall be no night there: and they need no candle, neither light of the sun, for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever." [Footnote: Rev. xxii. 3-5] How wonderful that God should promise us an abundant entrance into His Everlasting Kingdom. [Footnote: 2 Pet. i. 11] What does an abundant entrance mean? It means that we shall not, as it were, just creep into heaven by a side door, but that we shall have a grand welcome from the glorified ones there and from the Lord Himself, all the doors, as it were, being thrown wide open to receive us. Are we preparing for it? A mother who was dying called her little daughter who was ten years old to her bedside and said tenderly, "I want you to learn this little prayer, 'O God, prepare me for all Thou art preparing for me.'" And the prayer was answered, for that little girl was Frances Ridley Havergal, who lived a consecrated life, and passed away singing about the Lord whom she loved.
I must give you some words spoken by that holy man Samuel Rutherford who was persecuted and put into prison for Christ's sake. "I wonder many times," he said, "that ever a child of God should have a sad heart considering what the Lord is preparing for him. When we get Home above and enter into possession of our Brother's fair Kingdom, it will be like one step from prison to glory." These words came true, for soon after this he received notice to appear before his judges in court, but before the day of the trial came he died. So it was literally one step for him from prison to glory. His own account of it is given in the following lines——
"They've summoned me before them,Thither I may not come;My King says, Come up hither,My Lord says, Welcome Home."
What will it all be like? No words of ours can describe it, but GodHimself tells us what He will be to us and what He will do for us in theEternal Kingdom.
"And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle ofGod is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be Hispeople, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God." [Footnote:Rev. xxi. 3-4]
"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away."
The Crown of it all is that "God Himself shall be with them and be their God." [Footnote: 1 Cor. xv. 28] All creatures will say, "God is everything to me," for GOD will be "All in All."'
We have traced out some of the wonderful truths which God has revealed to us about Himself. "This is Life Eternal that they might know Thee, the only True God and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent." [Footnote: St. John xvii. 3]
Apart from God, all is death and ruin for ever; toknowGod, totrustGod, toloveGod is Eternal Life.
The great question is, What is God to me? Can you say—"O GOD, THOU ART MYGOD"?