Contents

ASSEMBLY TESTIMONY BIBLE CLASS
by J. Riddle

A DECLARATION OF THOSE THINGS
by D. Williamson

GLIMPSES OF CHRIST
by D. Strahan

MEN WHO KNEW GOD
by J.A. Davidson

GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN 1CORINTHIANS
by K. Wilkins

THE HANDMAID CHARACTER OF RUTH, HANNAH, ABIGAIL AND MARY
by I. Steele

WAYS THAT THE WORD OF GOD HELPS US REGARDING SIN
by the late W. Gustafson

COMFORT FOR CHRISTIANS IN A CHANGING WORLD
by R. Reynolds

GOOD TIDINGS FROM HEAVEN

QUOTES

“Knowledge puffeth up” — 1Cor 8.1

“Promises of God” — 2Cor 1.20

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Assembly Testimony Bible Class

by J. Riddle

THE FIRST BOOK OF PSALMS

No.63: PSALM 36 (Part 1)

The Psalm is headed “To the chief musician, A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord”. The description of David in this way is only found here and at the head of Psalm 18. J.M. Flanigan notes that there are “fifty-five Psalms which are committed to the care and charge of the Chief Musician”¹, of which Psalm 4 is the first. Habakkuk’s prayer is assigned to “the chief singer [the same word as ‘chief musician’] on my stringed instruments” Hab.3.19. Some commentators substitute ‘choirmaster’ for “chief musician”. Gesenius defines the meaning as ‘to lead in music’², and notes that some authorities have ‘to the precentor’. With a little imagination we can almost hear David saying to his director of music, ‘Put this in your portfolio – get the choir to sing it next week’!

¹ Flanigan, J. “What the Bible Teaches – Psalms”. John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock.
² Gesenius, H.F.W. “Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon”. Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

As A.F. Kirkpatrick points out, “This Psalm presents two contrasted pictures: one of the godless principles and conduct of the man who has made deliberate choice of evil; the other of the universal and inexhaustible lovingkindness of God. From the prevailing wickedness around him, to which he is in danger of falling a victim, v.11, the Psalmist turns for relief and comfort to contemplate the goodness of God.”³ God is a master jeweller. He displays His brightest gems against a dark background!

³ Kirkpatrick, A.F. “The Book of Psalms”. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

The Psalm commences, vv.1,2, and concludes, vv.11,12, with the “wicked” and their “iniquity”. Of the wicked it is said, “There is no fear of God before their eyes” v.1. The intervening verses describe the blessings of those who “put their trust under the shadow of Thy wings” v.7. The Psalm may therefore be divided in the following threefold way:

• The transgression of the wicked, vv.1-4
• The blessings of the Godly, vv.5-9
• The supplication of the Psalmist, vv.10-12

We will consider the opening six verses in this paper.

THE TRANSGRESSION OF THE WICKED – vv.1-4

The opening section of the Psalm emphasises two aspects of human wickedness: first, their wickedness Godward, v.1, and second, their wickedness selfward, vv.2-4.

Their Wickedness Godward – v.1

“The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, ‘That there is no fear of God before his eyes.’” Some commentators prefer to follow the Septuagint (LXX) and other ancient versions here, which read, “The transgression of the wicked saith in his heart”. Compare Ps.14.1: “The fool hath said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” In this case, it means that “sin is … a ‘lying spirit’ within the lawless heart, persuading it that there is no need to be in terror of God’s judgments”⁴. But this rendering requires emending the original text. As Derek Kidner points out, these particular translators “may have been emending a text they found difficult”⁵, and it is worth saying that we should exercise great caution when people, however scholarly, alter the original text of Scripture to make it more understandable.

⁴ Clarke, A.G. “Analytical Studies in the Psalms”. John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock.

⁵ Kidner, D. “Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Psalms 1-72”. Inter-Varsity Press, Leicester.

The words “The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart” or “The transgression of the wicked uttereth within my heart” (J.N.D., with this marginal note on “uttereth”: “As an oracle: see ‘saith’ Gen.22.16”), therefore mean that “the action of the wicked speaks to the psalmist as surely as a Divine message”⁴. That message follows: “There is no fear of God before his eyes”. It can therefore be paraphrased thus: “His transgression tells me in my heart that he has no fear of God”.¹ It should be noted that the “fear” (pachad) signifies dread rather than the reverential fear conveyed by the word yirah, which is used, for example, in Prov.1.7: “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge”.

¹ Flanigan, J. “What the Bible Teaches – Psalms”. John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock.

⁴ Clarke, A.G. “Analytical Studies in the Psalms”. John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock.

The words “there is no fear of God before his eyes” are quoted in Rom.3.18, and mark the end of a passage which describes the total depravity of man in thought, word and action. The section, Rom.3.10-18, begins with “There is none righteous, no, not one”, and ends with “There is no fear of God before their eyes”.

Their Wickedness Selfward – vv.2-4

“For he flattereth himself in his own eyes” v.2. When the fear of God is absent, self-esteem is unchecked. If a man does not honour God, it is more than likely that he will honour himself. In the words of C.H. Spurgeon, “He had not God before his eyes in holy awe, therefore he puts himself there in unholy admiration. He who makes little of God makes much of himself.”⁶ Believers cry, “Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy name give glory, for Thy mercy, and for Thy truth’s sake” Ps.115.1. The words “For he flattereth himself in his own eyes, until his iniquity be found to be hateful”, or “For he flattereth himself in his own eyes, that his iniquity shall not be found out and be hated” (R.V.), mean, according to A.F. Kirkpatrick, that he flatters himself that his iniquity will not be “dragged to light in order to be punished, and exposed in its true hatefulness”. Kirkpatrick continues: “The word ‘find out’ is frequently used of detection with a view to punishment”.³ See, for example, 1Kgs.1.52.

³ Kirkpatrick, A.F. “The Book of Psalms”. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

⁶ Spurgeon, C.H. “The Treasury of David.”

These verses, vv.2-4, could be summarised by the words “I am carnal, sold under sin” Rom.7.14. They paint a most comprehensive picture. Thought, word and deed are all embraced, and proclaim with loud voice that the wicked man is ruined by sin.

His Words

“The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit: he hath left off to be wise, and to do good” v.3. He speaks evil with his lips. It has been pointed out that the word “iniquity” here (aven) differs from its occurrence in v.2 (avon), where it signifies the depravity and perverseness of the sinner. According to Strong’s Concordance, the word in v.3 is “from an unused root perhaps meaning properly, to pant (hence, to exert oneself, usually in vain)”, and suggests that “this ungodly man labours strenuously and mischievously in sin and in deceit”¹.

¹ Flanigan, J. “What the Bible Teaches – Psalms”. John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock.

Believers are to exhibit totally different qualities in their speech. See, for example, Col.4.6: “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.” Not ‘sometimes with grace’, or ‘occasionally with grace’, or even ‘nearly always with grace’, but “alway with grace”! “Seasoned with salt” emphasises the purifying and antiseptic qualities that should mark our speech. Hence, “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers” Eph.4.29. “Corrupt communication” includes “foolish talking” and “jesting”, which are “not convenient”, as opposed to “giving of thanks” Eph.5.4. Quite obviously, “seasoned with salt” includes honesty and integrity of speech: “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another” Eph.4.25.

The words “he hath left off to be wise, and to do good”, recall Rom.1.21,22: “When they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools”. Compare Jer.4.22: “For My people is foolish, they have not known Me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.”

His Thoughts

“He deviseth mischief [aven, translated ‘iniquity’ in v.3] upon his bed” v.4.  So this “mischief” is “not necessarily rash or impetuous, but calculated and studied”¹. As Harold St. John observes, “Night is time for self-judgment” [‘Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still’ Ps.4.4], and fellowship with God [‘My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise Thee with joyful lips: when I remember Thee upon my bed, and meditate on Thee in the night watches’] Ps.63.5,6].”⁷ But the man here falls into the category described in an earlier Psalm: “The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts” Ps.10.4, or “all his thoughts are, There is no God!” (J.N.D.).

¹ Flanigan, J. “What the Bible Teaches – Psalms”. John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock.

⁷ St. John, H. “The Collected Writings of Harold St. John”. Gospel Tract Publications, Glasgow.

His Actions

“He setteth himself in a way that is not good” v.4. Harold St. John suggests that the word “way” means that he “carries it out systematically”⁷. Beyond question, this is nothing less than a deliberate policy.

The Lord’s people should have a deliberate policy to do good. The “house of Stephanas … addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints” 1Cor.16.15. The word “addicted” (a good ‘addiction’ here) means ‘set’ or ‘appointed’. So they had ‘set or appointed themselves to the ministry of the saints’. This was something quite deliberate, not obedience to a command, or a sudden whim, but pursuit of a determined policy. As J. Hunter expresses it, “This was their business in life, their service for Christ, rendered of their own accord, willingly and voluntarily, with the sole aim of benefiting others.”⁸ It was to the “ministry [‘service’] of the saints”. There is no suggestion here that the “house of Stephanas” were great preachers; rather, “whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be the servant of all” Mk.10.44.

⁸ Hunter, J. “What the Bible Teaches – 1Corinthians”. John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock

The wicked “abhorreth not evil” Ps.36.4. The word “abhor” means to ‘despise’, ‘reject’, ‘loathe’ (Young’s Concordance). Believers are to “abhor that which is evil” and to “cleave to that which is good” Rom.12.9. In the New Testament, the word “abhor” comes from a root meaning ‘to hate’. The Lord Jesus “loved righteousness, and hated iniquity” Heb.1.9.

THE BLESSINGS OF THE GODLY – vv.5-9

In these verses, the Psalmist turns his eyes away from the selfishness and evil of men, vv.1-4, to contemplate the purity and grace of God. He has been dwelling on the intensely repugnant features which are true of ruined man, and the grim moral darkness which the indwelling principle of sin has produced, and continues to produce. He now contrasts this with the magnificence of the glory of God. The earthly picture gives way to the heavenly. In the former there was everything to cause grave anxiety and alarm. In the latter is everything to quieten the anxious heart and lift the individual from the surrounding darkness to behold the majesty and grace of the Lord.

This section of the Psalm may be divided as follows: firstly, the attributes of the Lord, vv.5,6, over which we could write, ‘Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow’, and secondly, the blessings of the Lord, vv.7-9.

The Attributes of the Lord – vv.5,6

“Thy mercy [chesed, often rendered ‘lovingkindness’, as in vv.7,10], O Lord, is in the heavens; and Thy faithfulness [emunah] reacheth unto the clouds. Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; Thy judgments are a great deep: O Lord, Thou preservest man and beast.” This expresses the transcendence of God’s attributes. The phrases “in the heavens” and “unto the clouds” denote that His mercy and faithfulness are available for all to behold. They are obvious and cannot be concealed. They also emphasise that His mercy and faithfulness cannot be measured. The fact that God has not intervened in judgment on the guilt described in vv.1-4 discloses His mercy and faithfulness. Jeremiah combines the two beautifully: “It is of the Lord’s mercies [chesed] that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness [emunah]” Lam.3.22,23.

The language of the Psalm here recalls the words of Zophar the Naamathite: “Canst thou by searching find out God? Canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? Deeper than hell; what canst thou know? The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea” Job 11.7-9.

There is something awesome about “the heavens”, “the clouds”, “the great mountains” and the “great deep”, and while the words “Thou preservest man and beast” almost seem an anticlimax, they show us that, with all His greatness and majesty, the Lord cares for His creation.

His Mercy

“Thy mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens.” As noted above, the word rendered “mercy” (chesed) is often translated “lovingkindness”. As also noted above, the words strongly suggest that the Lord’s mercy, or lovingkindness, is as vast as the heavens. Or it could mean that the very heavens declare His mercy.

His Faithfulness

“Thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds.” This could mean that His faithfulness is as boundless as the clouds, or that it is so evident that none can mistake it. Believers today can say, “God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord” 1Cor.1.9.

His Righteousness

“Thy righteousness is like the great mountains”, literally, ‘mountains of God [El]’ (J.N.D. margin). Compare Ps.68.15: “The hill of God is as the hill of Bashan; a high hill as the hill of Bashan.” The righteousness of God is inflexibly and uncompromisingly stable. It is the same from age to age, and is not subject to the slightest change. This is an awesome thought. We are concerned with an intensely holy God. He is “light, and in Him is no darkness at all” 1Jn.1.5. How amazing, therefore, to read, “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ, unto all and upon all them that believe” Rom.3.21,22.

His Judgments

“Thy judgments are a great deep.” Unfathomable wisdom stamps all His ways. The words “Thy judgments are a great deep” are eloquently expanded in Rom.11.33: “O the depths of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out!” Whilst Paul is reflecting here upon the way in which Israel will be blessed, it is equally true of all God’s activities. We do not always understand His dealings in our own lives and in the lives of others, but we are persuaded that He is always in control and that “His way is perfect” Ps.18.30.

But such a mighty God takes an interest in His creation: “Lord, Thou preservest man and beast”. This extends to minute details. He takes an interest in sparrows, and in the hairs of our head, Matt.10.29,30! The Lord Jesus upholds “all things by the word of His power” Heb.1.3, and “by Him all things consist” Col.1.17. Belshazzar was censured by Daniel because he failed to remember that “the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified” Dan.5.23.

To be continued (D.V.) 

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“A declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us” Luke 1.1

by Dennis Williamson (N. Ireland)

Paper 17

“THE PILLAR AND GROUND OF THE TRUTH” 1Timothy 3.15

In this article, we will consider 1Tim.3.15, under five areas:

How we behave:	The House of God – Responsibility
Whom we acknowledge:	The Living God – Vitality
What we display:	The Pillar – Testimony
Where we stand:	The Ground – Stability
Why we obey:	The Truth – Reality

The preciousness to God of the local assembly and its distinctiveness are features that mark apostolic doctrine. In writing to Timothy, Paul stresses that, this being the case, we should seek a proper understanding of the vital part these features play in our relationship to the assembly.

As with all God’s truth, it is to be expected that only the spiritual believer will be able to comprehend the meaning of what God has revealed in this area. Certainly the ungodly person cannot apprehend spiritual truth, 1Cor.2.14-16. In the Scriptures the writing and the teaching are linked with the character and quality of the teacher. To teach truth not obeyed by oneself will reflect negatively on the testimony, hence the exhortation to proper behaviour in this context. It is most important that we observe the words of the apostle in the next chapter: “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” 1Tim.4.16.

In this passage the local assembly is called “house of God”, the absence of the article underlining both the character and the responsibility of the company. The facts, the formation, the features, the function, and the focus of the gathering are all foundational to the proper behaviour expected by God. It is His house! For example, if someone was to enter your house, change the order, begin to alter some established norms authorised by you, give your family different methods for the operation of the household, which were strange to you, and take full authority relative to the governance of the same, would this be acceptable? Of course not! Why should this be accepted in God’s house? The Bible alone must be our guide in these matters. Exposure then to the Word of God and its teaching must ever be the basis for our conviction, practice and commitment. Extraneous teaching is at times given greater value than the Word itself; hence confusion sets in! This is not in any way to disparage the help of God-given teachers, who have a vital role, as Timothy and others have had, all of whom will be teaching God’s truth. Facts must be our building blocks, and not the theories espoused by rationalism and ritualism. By facts we mean those founded upon the unerring Word of God.

RESPONSIBILITY – “how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God”

[‘how one ought to conduct oneself’ (J.N.D.)]

It is accepted that Timothy had enormous responsibility laid upon him at Ephesus. The background is gleaned by the use of the word “some” in the Epistle. Against this background Paul charged Timothy to advance sound doctrine. Things were not running totally smoothly at Ephesus, in spite of truth received from Paul. Note the following references: “charge some that they teach no other doctrine” 1.3; “from which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling” 1.6; “holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck” 1.19; “in the latter times some shall depart from the faith” 4.1; “For some are already turned aside after Satan” 5.15; “Some men’s sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after” 5.24; “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” 6.10; “which some professing have erred concerning the faith” 6.21.

Because of these conditions there was a need for Scriptural and spiritual intervention so that there might be adjustment to the mind of God. Is the need in our day any different? Granted the problems may be different but this only accentuates the current need for the application of “sound doctrine” in our day as well. It is to be feared that because of Satanic influence and pressure to conform to human ideas, professed assemblies have substituted the Word of God with the doctrines of men, and seeking to uphold these, rather than to uphold the truth of God, has impacted upon proper behaviour in the house of God.

VITALITY – “which is the church of the living God”

The deadness and coldness of mere religious observances and tradition publicly militate against the enjoyment of what is real and spiritual. Paul says the local assembly is that of the living God. He is not talking of mere physical energy, or intellectual stimulae, or even emotional expression. All these can be experienced where needed, but in the local gatherings it is spiritual life that dominates. Firstly this is predicated upon the new life each believer has from God as His child. Following this is the cultivation of that life and its growth. Where the life of God is, there is a desire to satisfy this from the Word of God. Only in this way can we function in keeping with the mind of God in His assembly. Living things, spiritual things, things in keeping with the life of God in us, are then focused upon, causing the company to realise what is vital in God’s house. This helps to mould and motivate the company with the enjoyment and energy of the Holy Spirit for the benefit and blessing of all.

A mixture of the natural with the spiritual is often attempted as an acceptable compromise in the assembly, but this is doomed to fail. This may keep numbers for a time but it will not produce godliness. Knowledge of ourselves is sufficient to prove this. Natural life is pleased with natural things and this can have a relative enjoyment for any or all of God’s creatures. However, spiritual life is the purview only of the child of God and, by the same token, can only be enjoyed by him or her. What dignity then the phrase “the church of the living God” guarantees to the assembly! It reminds us that it is a living organism, not a mere human organisation, and that it is distinguished from all that is not of God. Just as believers pulsate with Divine life, so does the assembly, making it unique, as the “church of the living God”, distinct from all that is only natural.

TESTIMONY – “the pillar”

One of the reasons for a pillar or monument is that of display. Sometimes a pillar is erected in honour of something or someone or to remind people of some particular occasion. The house of God is a place where the truth of God is displayed. Not just on the notice board outside a building, though this is favourable if it is displaying the truth of God. There is much more than this in the metaphor Paul uses. This, I feel, is speaking to us of the unique value of what we have already said above: the assembly is “the house of God … the church of the living God”; this is in essence what is now being conveyed in “the pillar”. By the very existence of the assembly functioning according to the mind of God, this unique building of God is displaying to all what He has done in grace to establish this glorious monument of truth of the lives He has redeemed by the blood of His own Son. This truth is for all, and so we have a stewardship to discharge it as it has been received. By realising this, it helps us understand that we do not own the assembly (see for example, Titus 1.7, where an overseer is referred to as a “steward of God”), but we are responsible to God, Who is its Owner, to do things according to His character and desires. As we think of this “pillar”, it behoves us to look again at the assembly, and compare its practices and teachings with the Scriptures, to be sure that we are promoting what is of God and not just of ourselves. Does all that we do contribute to the honour and glory of God? What a display we would be making if this were really true in testimony!

When a pillar is raised there is usually a citation or explanation attached as to its reason for being there. The message conveyed is normally held in remembrance by observers. What a wonderful display if others would, when looking from without, get this message: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory” 1Tim.3.16. Greater still if we were to display such truth as we gather in His name. We all are aware of the adage ‘Actions speak louder than words.’ How God-glorifying if we did not even need to speak anything, 1Thess.1.8,9, but displayed by our lives how we ought to behave ourselves in the house of God. The apostle wrote to the Corinthians, “Ye are our epistle … known and read of all men” 2Cor.3.2. Let us uphold the truth of God, unvarnished and untarnished, in our personal and collective testimony.

STABILITY – “the … ground”

The word used here means the support, buttress or stay. When used as the stay in relation to the pillar, as here, it has the thought of steadfastness, strength and support. This highlights the steadfastness of the assembly in giving constant and permanent support to the pillar. Any weakness or movement in the stay will affect the structure; hence the need for soundness and stability produced by constantly adhering to and advancing the truth of God. In Matthew chapter 7, the Lord Jesus reminds us of a building and its foundation. The true foundation is the doctrine: “whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them” v.24; “the people were astonished at His doctrine: for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes” vv.28,29. Is it not a firm fact then that a foundation of good doctrine grants stability? Ideas, theories and philosophies of men are all warned against in the Word of God. In Acts 20.29-31, Paul cautions the elders from Ephesus: “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.” What wholesome truth had been given to these Ephesian believers, and thence to us! The Word of God is a stabilising factor for the assembly.

REALITY – “of the truth”

Behaviour in the house obviously means that the standards of the house are gratefully upheld; that discipline is practised where needed; that proper order is maintained by a purposeful acknowledgement of the presence of God; that the living God is rightfully owned; that His Son is honoured and obeyed; that all current public gifts are free to operate by the power of the Holy Spirit in the assembly; that all the truth of God is fully and expressly owned; and that the supremacy of the Lord Jesus is paramount.

When this passage speaks of “the truth” it means the whole embodiment of the revealed mind of God in His Word.

Today we are going back in practice to Pilate’s old question, “What is truth?” Jn.18.38. Current thinking in the world around us talks about ‘relative truth’, ‘your truth’, ‘my truth’, etc. All this used of Satan to undermine the unerring truth of God in the infallible Word of God. The truth, unchanged and unchanging, is what was fully displayed here on earth by the Lord Jesus Christ, Who could unapologetically say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me” Jn.14.6.

It is the privilege and the honour of believers from all over the world to commit to uphold, practically and collectively, the absolute truth of these words which we have been considering: “that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself [or ‘one might know how one ought to behave oneself’] in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” 1Tim.3.15.

To be continued (D.V.)

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GLIMPSES OF CHRIST

by D. Strahan

Paper 10

The Rock (Part 2)

The previous article in this series considered Christ as the Rock and what this means for each individual believer. In this paper the Lord is considered in a much wider aspect as the Rock: specifically, what He is to the Church and also to the nation of Israel.

FOUNDED UPON THE ROCK – WHAT HE IS TO THE CHURCH

It was while the Lord was in “the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, ‘Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?’” Matt.16.13. The city of Caesarea Philippi was renowned for pagan worship, with numerous shrines and temples dedicated to the false god Pan. There was also a large cave that overlooked the city, which was believed to be the gateway to the underworld. It was in this pagan place that Peter boldly declared, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” Matt.16.16. What a wonderful declaration of the Deity of Christ in such an idolatrous place!

In His response the Lord said, “That thou art Peter [petros], and upon this rock [petra] I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” Matt.16.18. Many readers will know that this verse has been the subject of much theological debate. Its words are emblazoned in letters of gold over six feet high around the base of the dome in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The Roman Catholic Church claims Peter himself is the rock upon which the Church is built. From this passage it also claims ongoing authority for the papacy.

However, two different words are used by the Lord and they are fundamental in correctly interpreting the passage. Peter is the word petros (a stone, masculine noun); rock is the word petra (rock, feminine noun). Two distinct words. The change in the word would have been unnecessary if the Lord had meant Peter would be the foundation of the Church. A stone is not a rock but a piece of rock. Every builder knows that it is impossible to build upon a stone (a part of a rock) but it is possible to build upon rock.

Even Augustine in his day expounded the passage as follows: “Thou art Petros, and on this Petra which thou hast confessed, saying, ‘Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God’, will I build My Church: that is to say, on Myself. I will build thee on Myself, not Myself on thee.”¹ Truly “other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ” 1Cor.3.11.

¹ Augustine of Hippo. “Sermons on Selected Lessons of the New Testament, Sermon XXVI.” 

He is the Planner

This was to be the Lord’s own work for He said, “I will build” Matt.16.18. Not Peter, not to any of the apostles would this work be entrusted. Not even to Paul. The Lord would reveal truths concerning the Church to His own: “By revelation He made known unto me the mystery” said Paul, Eph.3.3. The Lord could and would work through others to accomplish His purpose but He is the architect and master builder of the Church.

He is the Possessor

The Lord called it “My church”. The possessive pronoun, “My”, indicates ownership. It is His peculiar treasure. The Church belongs to Him. The Lord spoke of it as a unique entity, distinct from the nation of Israel.

He is the Protector

Perhaps with the cave that many locals believed to be the gateway to the underworld within view, the Lord said, “The gates of hell shall not prevail against it” Matt.16.18. In Bible times city gates represented places of power and authority. The power of Satan and of his forces cannot overthrow Divine purpose seen in the building of the Church. A gate also indicates the point of entry, showing too that even death itself cannot prevail against it. Thousands of martyrs are evidence of the assailing of the “gates of hell”. However, as Tertullian, of the second century, concluded, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church”. Just as Christ defeated Satan, for “through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil” Heb.2.14, the attempts of the enemy to overthrow and vanquish the Church are doomed to failure.

The reason for this is that the Church is built upon “this rock [petra]” Matt.16.18, and with the Church established upon such a stable foundation no force can ever overcome it.

The Church’s one foundation

Is Jesus Christ her Lord:

She is His new creation

By water and the Word;

From heaven He came and sought her

To be His holy Bride;

With His own blood He bought her,

And for her life He died.

      (Samuel John Stone)

FALLING OVER THE ROCK – WHAT HE IS TO ISRAEL

Paul, writing to the Romans, at the end of the first of three chapters dealing with the nation of Israel, wrote, “Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone; as it is written, ‘Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed.’” Rom.9.32,33. Peter, in his First Epistle, writes, “And ‘a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence,’ even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed” 1Pet.2.8. The words are taken from the Prophecy of Isaiah: “And He shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken” Isa.8.14,15.

The Lord is described as a “stone of stumbling”. This is different imagery to what the Lord is to the Church. The picture moves from the house to the highway. Not now the rock upon which one builds but the rock on the road over which men stumble. For those who reject Him, as Israel had done, He becomes a stumbling block since they fall due to unbelief. Christ was not the cause of their stumbling but rather the object of it. The nation did not receive Him. The unbelieving Jews stumbled at the poverty of His earthly family: “‘Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? …’ And they were offended in Him” Matt.13.55,57; the source of His power: “But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, ‘This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.’” Matt.12.24; the company He kept: “This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them” Lk.15.2; and in many other ways. Rather than becoming their refuge to Whom they fled for safety, they stumbled over Him.

He is also a “rock of offence”. The root meaning of the word “offence” in 1Pet.2.8 is the movable stick or trigger that springs a trap for an unsuspecting animal. The figure is used to describe that which is the cause of ruin. The rejection of Christ is the cause of the ruin of men.

Finally, Peter adds, “whereunto also they were appointed” 1Pet.2.8. This does not mean that God causes unbelief but that He has foreordained the outcome, the consequences, for all those who reject Christ. Christ is either the Rock of Ages in Whom men place their trust and find refuge or they are disobedient to the Word, the preaching of Christ crucified, and they stumble. Still the nation stumbles over Christ and will until He comes in great glory and they repent and “they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for his only son” Zech.12.10.

To be continued (D.V.)

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MEN WHO KNEW GOD

by J. Alan Davidson (N. Ireland)

Paper 4

Noah (Part 2)

“Noah walked with God” Genesis 6.9

In Paper 3 we considered three features that characterised “the days of Noah”:

• The will of God was defied.
• The work of God was corrupted.
• The warnings from God were in vain.

We will now conclude our consideration of Noah.

THE WRATH OF GOD WAS IMMINENT.

“But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” Matt.24.37.

“The longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah” 1Pet.3.20.

The days of Noah are mentioned by four New Testament writers: Matthew, Luke, Peter and the writer to the Hebrews. The first reference in the New Testament is by the Lord Himself. It is interesting that He did not mention the wickedness but the carelessness and wilful ignorance of the people: “For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” Matt.24.38,39. Life went on as normal, buying and selling, planting and building. The people planned on staying. Noah was building an ark; he was leaving.

The mass of the people today are marked by complete denial of the claims of God, a total lack of repentance and no discernment of the times. Their chief interests are pleasure, sport, hospitality, social enjoyment and entertainment, in spite of God’s warnings of imminent events. In Revelation the masses of earth are described as ‘earth dwellers’; they do not just live on earth but they are characteristically ‘earth dwellers’, living as though this materialistic, fleshly life will continue forever, wilfully ignorant of impending doom. Even the Rapture of the Church, when we shall go in and the door shall be shut, will not alter the attitude of the world at large, as they live only for time and earth.

Today, before the Rapture, the only explanation for why we, who are alive and remain, are here on earth is God’s longsuffering. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” 2Pet.3.9. Noah preached for one hundred years. “He condemned the world” Heb.11.7. He prepared the ark, “wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water” 1Pet.3.20. It was of the mercy of God toward Noah that when the great deep was broken up and the windows of heaven were opened, his three sons were safe in the ark. The triumphs of the gospel of Christ reached the descendants of Ham, Shem and Japheth in Acts chapters 8, 9 and 10. The Ethiopian, Saul of Tarsus and Cornelius identified with Christ in the waters of baptism.

WHAT DID NOAH DO?

“But [lovely word] Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” Gen.6.8.

How did Noah react to those “days”? How did Noah live? What did he do? What should we as believers do in these “last days” 2Tim.3.1?

God is not looking for great men. God is seeking men and women who have learned to lean upon a great God. Like ourselves, the story of Noah began with “grace”. “Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound” Rom.5.20. “By grace are ye saved through faith” Eph.2.8. We can identify with the words as we sing “Amazing Grace”.

“These are the generations of Noah” Gen.6.9. In his own day and generation, among his fellow men, Noah, by his life and testimony, “condemned the world” Heb.11.7. He was separated, different, a contrast to the world. The Lord said concerning His own, “The world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” Jn.17.14.

“Noah was a just man” Gen.6.9. Noah is the first man in the Bible to bear this noble title, “just” (‘righteous’). He “became heir of the righteousness which is by faith” Heb.11.7. With faith in his heart and righteousness in his life amid abounding wickedness, he preached righteousness loudly by his deeds.

“And perfect [‘unblemished’] in his generations” Gen.6.9. He was perfect amid wickedness, unblemished amid abhorrent evil, blameless though surrounded by violence. Amid sneers, mockery and ridicule, Noah obeyed God. He built a ship so vast, without rudder, without sail, designed to float, constructed on dry land, and as yet it had never rained. Animals, male and female, small and large, fierce and tame, were to live in peace inside the ark, while humans outside murdered each other.

“And Noah walked with God” Gen.6.9. In holy separation from the evils of his day, he conducted himself with habitual communion with God. To walk with God is the secret of blessing. To walk with God we must know the will, Word and ways of God. “Walk worthy” Eph.4.1; “walk not as other Gentiles walk” Eph.4.17; “walk in love” Eph.5.2; “walk as children of light” Eph.5.8; “walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise” Eph.5.15. Faith will triumph, unbelief will perish. With anguish, the antediluvians saw the ark rise above the billows. The preacher of righteousness opened his window heavenward upon the mountains of Ararat, to receive the dove; “in her mouth was an olive leaf plucked off” Gen.8.11.

Noah was a faithful preacher, a careful builder, a family man, a spiritual man knowing (before Leviticus chapter 11 was written) the difference between clean and unclean animals. Noah was a priestly man, the first man we read about specifically who built an altar, spontaneously, without any recorded command.

“He planted a vineyard: and he drank of the wine, and was drunken” Gen.9.20,21. Noah, after a long life of saintly eminence, presents a sad occasion, as he lies in drunkenness. Beneath his habitual outward piety, lay a fallen Adamic nature, a lesson to us all. Like Adam, he partook of the fruit of a tree, in Noah’s case, the vine. The result, as with his foreparent, was the shame of nakedness. Adam’s sin brought in the curse upon the whole human family. Noah’s sin brought a curse upon one third of his family. Few believers reach heaven without some storm of failure and reproach. The failures of great men are faithfully recorded in Scripture, to teach us our vulnerability to the world, the flesh and the devil.

There was only One Who lived on this earth Who was absolutely perfect. He passed through the deep waters for us at Calvary. “Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of Thy waterspouts: all Thy waves and Thy billows are gone over Me” Ps.42.7. He took our place to provide for us a shelter and salvation from the storms of God’s wrath against our sin. He has passed through and out of the deep waters of death, through death’s dark angry billows, up to the throne of God. He is the Guarantor of the covenant: “I do set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between Me and the earth” Gen.9.13. Soon, we shall see Him on that rainbow-circled throne, Rev.4.3. “The days of the Son of man” Lk.17.26, will be when He is in control of the earth. His name is called “Jesus Christ the righteous” 1Jn.2.1.

To be continued (D.V.)

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GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN 1CORINTHIANS CHAPTERS 12 TO 14

by Ken Wilkins (England)

Paper 4

1CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 12 (continued)

Details of Gifts within Group 2 (continued) – v.10

The Working of Miracles

These were miracles that did not relate to healing, but they were works of power, as our Lord Jesus feeding the five thousand, found in all four Gospels: Matthew chapter 14; Mark chapter 6; Luke chapter 9; John chapter 6; and His feeding the four thousand, Matthew chapter 15; Mark chapter 8; both these miracles were a foretaste of the abundance of harvest in the Millennial reign of the Lord Jesus. Other such works of power include our Lord Jesus walking on the sea of Galilee, Matthew chapter 14; Mark chapter 6; John chapter 6; and when He stilled the storm, Matthew chapter 8; Mark chapter 4; Luke chapter 8; both these miracles prove His creatorial power: “The sea is His, and He made it” Ps.95.5; “Thy way is in the sea” Ps.77.19.

In every miracle the Lord Jesus Christ did He declared His Deity, as the Son of God. Witness was also borne as to the credentials of the apostles, under His Divine authority, at the beginning of their public ministry. Therefore works of power are seen in the earlier part of the Book of Acts, and for that reason we see Peter given God’s authority for calling down His governmental judgment on Ananias and Sapphira for lying to the Holy Ghost, Acts chapter 5; the miraculous release of the apostles from prison, Acts chapter 5; Peter’s miraculous release from prison in answer to prayer requests for him at a prayer meeting, Acts chapter 12; the great earthquake resulting in the miraculous loosing of Paul and Silas’ bands, and the jailor and his family being brought to repentance and faith in Christ, Acts chapter 16. Yet there is no spectacular release-from-prison miracle performed by the time we get to Paul’s case in Acts chapter 23, when miracles of this kind were in the process of being phased out. This deliverance was circumstantial: Paul’s sister’s son told the authorities of the Jews’ plan to kill Paul, resulting in his life being protected by the military, at the third hour of the night, Acts 23.16-23.

Prophecy

We have seen that the gifts of “the word of wisdom” and “the word of knowledge” were direct communications by revelation from God. The gift of prophecy is directly linked to these gifts. Through these means the gift of prophecy operated: the word of knowledge the prophet received, he publicly declared as prophecy to the local church. All the truth declared by the prophet was in harmony with what we now have in New Testament Scripture. Basically, what the New Testament prophet communicated to the local churches in those early days by direct revelation is what the teacher in the local church now teaches from the complete written Word of God. We shall see more of these processes when we come to chapter 13. People who claim to have the gift of prophecy today, claiming direct revelations from God, are denying that Scripture is now complete, are guilty of adding to it, and deny the all-sufficiency of the Scriptures as our only authority. Thereby they downgrade the Scriptures: a grievous sin, shattering the confidence of many professing Christians in the written Word of God. The last warning word of judgment in Scripture is against those who add to it, or take away from it, Rev.22.18,19. There is a necessary place, of course, for teaching on future events today, which is sometimes referred to as ‘prophetic teaching’. That is given by a man in the local church who has the gift of teaching, and all the teaching he gives is from the written Word of God alone. He is not exercising the gift of prophecy.

Sometimes we may have encountered people who have cited certain Scriptures in isolation, putting them forward as a case for the gift of prophecy still operating today, such as the Scripture “Despise not prophesyings” 1Thess.5.20, but we need to understand that 1Thessalonians was written in the very early days of the Church age. The Newberry Bible margin dates it at AD 54, even earlier than 1Corinthians, so prophecy was still in use then, because the New Testament Scriptures were incomplete; in fact few, if any, of them had been written by that time. Also, the very next verse, 1Thess.5.21, states, “Prove [dokimazo] all things”. By consulting Wigram’s Concordance we find that the same Greek word is used in 1Jn.4.1: “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try [dokimazo] the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” So, when the gift of prophecy was operating the prophecy had to be proved, tested. Read 1Cor.14.29-33 to see how thoroughly the proving was done. We intend to consider those verses in a later paper, verse by verse, when dealing with chapter 14. However, suffice it for now to state that when prophecies were proved genuine, in the days when there was the gift of prophecy, they were the spoken word of God through the lips of the prophet, and were to be obeyed, not despised or set at nought.

Discerning of Spirits

This was a very necessary gift in the days when the spectacular gifts, which we have considered, and will yet consider, were operative. Furthermore, there was Israel’s altar, where Jews still practised their religion, denying the Deity of Christ, and there was also pagan idolatry, referred to as “the table of devils [‘demons’]”, all of which are mentioned in 1Cor.10.18-21. We remember, as we have seen earlier, that Satanic power is also capable of performing the spectacular, and thereby it deceives people. In the days when the New Testament was incomplete, some of the warnings against evil powers had not yet been written down, so God would reveal, directly to the discerners of spirits in the local church, any who had come in who were influenced by evil spirits. Now that the New Testament Scriptures are complete we can discern these evil people by putting them to the test of Scripture, so we do not need the temporary gift of “discerning of spirits” today. The complete New Testament is sufficient and available to us now. We find Scriptures to test them in 1Jn.4.1-6: “try the spirits” means to prove them by testing them, not experimenting with them, of course; how dangerous that would be! The test for them is, first, “What think ye of Christ?” (see also Matt.22.42). This would include His Deity and His holy manhood; and, second, apostolic teaching: is what they believe according to New Testament teaching given by inspiration of God to the apostles? The early verses of 1Timothy chapter 4 also address these all-important ‘testing’ issues. These are examples of New Testament Scripture to which we turn to “try the spirits, whether they are of God” 1Jn.4.1.

We begin consideration of each gift within Group 3 in the next paper.

To be continued (D.V.)

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The Handmaid Character of Ruth, Hannah, Abigail and Mary

by Ian Steele (Scotland)

Paper 1

It is lovely to consider the Scriptural portrayal of Godly women walking and working within the God-given sphere appointed to them, with no spirit of rebellion and no desire to usurp the place of the man, but adorned with the grace of a meek and quiet spirit. In this study we are considering four such women who take the character of a handmaid and are a lesson to us all of the positive contribution that women can make to the testimony of God.

In the passages we will consider there are two different Hebrew words used for “handmaid” and in Luke chapter 1 a separate Greek word is used to describe Mary. The Hebrew words amah and shiphchah are both used in the same passages and seem interchangeable, while the word in Lk.1.28 is doule, a female slave or servant. The women each adopt the term and apply it to themselves as a term of humility and respect as they find themselves in the presence of Jehovah (Hannah), Boaz (Ruth), David (Abigail), or the angel Gabriel (Mary).

In this study we are going to focus on the salient characteristics of Ruth, Hannah, Abigail and Mary the mother of our Lord, as follows:

• The Appreciation of Ruth in Ruth chapter 2
• The Intercession of Hannah in 1Samuel chapter 1
• The Mediation of Abigail in 1Samuel chapter 25
• The Submission of Mary in Luke chapter 1

RUTH AND HER APPRECIATION – Ruth chapter 2

Her Appreciation That She Was a Foreigner

In verse 13 of Ruth chapter 2 she speaks of herself: “though I be not like unto one of thine handmaidens”. How could Ruth forget her recent arrival from Moab and her earlier words: “seeing I am a stranger” 2.10? This confirms that the conscious reality that she was different was at the forefront of her mind.

We can identify with this as we reflect upon the words of Paul in Eph.2.12: “Ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world”. We Gentiles had no claim to such things but v.13 says, “Now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.” What thankfulness there ought to be in our hearts that we, like Ruth, have been brought near.

Her Appreciation of the Field

In Ruth 2.2 she asks Naomi, “Let me now go to the field”. I feel there is a progression here in Ruth’s experience. She had separated herself from Moab with its idolatry, family ties, wickedness and ease. Then she had committed herself to the God of Israel and to His people. Next she had arrived at Bethlehem, picturing a newly-converted sinner brought near through God’s grace. I ask you now: Is that enough, or is there more that God has in store for the new believer? Well, praise His name, there is the field of Boaz for Ruth and we may compare this with the local assembly for believers today. Acts 2.42 is God’s intention for all who have trusted in Christ: “And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.” Dear believer, are you baptised and have you been received into the fellowship of a local assembly? Notice the salient features of the field we are considering. Associated with the field to which Ruth went there was an owner, an overseer, an order and an occupation for all, and so there is in the local assembly as well:

God is the Owner of the assembly. It is His cultivated field, 1Cor.3.9, and the Spirit of God presides over the company as the Divine Overseer. I fear that today the presiding presence of the Spirit of God is not appreciated as it ought to be. We are instructed, in 1Thess.5.19, “Quench not the Spirit”, and happy will that assembly be when the leading of the Spirit is responded to in gracious participation.

There is Divine order in the assembly. Paul instructs us in 1Cor.14.40: “Let all things be done decently and in order.” The assembly is not ours to order as we see fit. We must adhere to the truth of Holy Scripture in relation to the gatherings of the believers to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Spirit gives gifts to all to profit in the work of the local assembly, whether young men, fathers, young women, or older women, Titus 2.1-6. Have we been baptised yet and with conviction taken our place in a local assembly of God’s people? In the assembly, there is occupation for each one. Are we involved in the work there, functioning with the particular gift that God has sovereignly given to us? May God give us an appreciation of the field as Ruth had.

Her Appreciation of the Full Reward

In Ruth 2.12 Boaz says to Ruth, “The Lord recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.”

She was resting by faith under the wings of Jehovah and could count on His keeping protection. She could also expect a suitable reward for her labour from the Lord of the harvest. Likewise we too are assured that we are “kept by the power of God through faith” and that there is “an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you” 1Pet.1.4,5. In Rev.22.12 the Lord promises, “Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” It is undoubtedly true that there are ample compensations abundantly given at the present time to those who are faithful in the service of God. These may be more spiritual than material in their character but we surely know the riches of His mercy in our experience each and every day of our lives. However, the Lord is imminently coming and will bring rewards to be distributed at the judgment seat consequent upon our life’s work being righteously assessed by Him.

Her Appreciation of the Favour of Boaz

In Ruth 2.13, Ruth requests, “Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord”. Boaz knew about the sorrow of her bereavement in the loss of her husband. He was aware too of the support she had given to Naomi and how strange things must have been for the Moabitish damsel recently come to Bethlehem. Undoubtedly He cared about Ruth. Dear believer in bereavement today, the sorrows of death compassed your Saviour and He came to heal the broken-hearted. Those of you with the burden of caring for and supporting family and finding the demands of the way hard, remember He gives more grace when the burdens grow greater and sends more strength when the labours increase. Young person determined to spend long hours in the Word of God and prayer and refusing to be drawn into the social round of the world and its frivolity, remember it is better to seek Him Whom your soul loveth, and when you find Him, like the bride, make sure you do not let Him go, S of S.3.4. Boaz comforted her and spoke “friendly unto”, or ‘to the heart of’, his handmaid. Isa.50.4 tells us of Christ that “the Lord God hath given Me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary”. Listen for His words and wait upon Him if you are weary and want to know His strength.

Her Appreciation of the Food Provided

In Ruth 2.14,15 there was a variety of food for her to eat. There was bread to dip in the vinegar, parched corn that Boaz himself reached to her and handfuls of purpose dropped by the young men. God gave His people in the wilderness “bread from heaven” Ex.16.4, in the manna but they came to “loathe this light bread” Num.21.5. Some today feed their souls on worldly entertainment, sport and pleasures and have no desire for the Bread of God. We need to read about Christ in the Gospels on a regular basis to feed upon Him as the living Bread that came down from heaven, Jn.6.51.

The parched corn is corn that has been through the fire and speaks of His suffering for us at Calvary. When did we last sit down under the shadow of the cross and have fresh spiritual impressions made of the One Who endured the fires of Divine wrath for us?

Handfuls of purpose are left for Ruth by the young men. How refreshing it is when young men bring their handful of what they have gleaned personally of the Lord Jesus. What benefit there is spiritually to the rest of the saints when young men are exercised to offer their handful to God. So we receive food from others, we glean for ourselves and the risen Christ Himself reaches out to provide us with just what we need to sustain us in our daily diet.

Her Appreciation of Fellowship in Service with Likeminded Believers

In Ruth 2.23 we are told that “she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz”. It is good when we can company with believers who have a like interest in the things of God. Boaz told Ruth in v.8, “Go not to glean in another field”. The world’s field would set out its attractions but the believers have not to set their affections on things on the earth, Col.3.2. James tells us friendship with the world is enmity with God, Jms.4.4. The bride in the Song chapter 1 will not be satisfied with other flocks for “Why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?” S of S.1.7. Only being in the field where Boaz is will satisfy the loyal heart. Ruth is also told by Boaz to “abide here fast by my maidens” Ruth 2.8, indicating the need to keep close and not allow distance to come in. Do not be like Peter who followed afar off and resultantly denied his Lord at the world’s fire!

Finally Ruth is told, “Go thou after them” 2.9. It is good when we can follow the example of others. Paul instructed the Philippians, “Be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so, as ye have us for an ensample” Phil.3.17. In an age when the celebrities of the world are followed by the masses in their decadent lifestyles let us follow those who follow Christ and let our eye be on the field where they do reap!

However, good as it is to have fellowship with likeminded believers in following Christ, the test of walking a solitary path may come to us. The ultimate challenge is given by the Lord Himself in Lk.9.23: “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” This is a path of utmost devotion, personal denial and daily sacrifice! “It is the way the Master went; should not the servant tread it still?”

To be continued (D.V.)

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Ways That The Word Of God Helps Us Regarding Sin

by the late Walter Gustafson (USA)

SHOWS US AND CONVICTS US OF SIN

We should all pray the Psalmist’s prayer in Ps.139.23,24: “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do” Heb.4.12,13.

One of the things for which the Word of God is “profitable” is “reproof” 2Tim.3.16, that is, it shows us what is wrong in our lives. In Jms.1.22-27, James also shows us another problem that can be in our lives: “For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was” vv.23,24. It is surprising that hardly any commentator draws attention to it being illustrated by a man. Women usually spend more time before a mirror. If a woman sees something that is not right, she hardly ever leaves the mirror before she makes it right! It is good to be reminded that God’s Word has absolutes, like ‘black’ or ‘white’, not ‘grey’. It clearly distinguishes between what is truth and what is error!

CLEANSES US FROM SIN’S DEFILEMENT

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to Thy word” Ps.119.9. Obeying this verse will help keep us clean in a sinful world. We all need to have our ‘feet washed’ in order to please Him. Notice particularly that the washing of the feet in the upper room was especially in view of remembering Him in the taking of the bread and drinking of the cup! Even though all who are born again have had the “washing of regeneration” Titus 3.5, we need to have our ‘feet washed’. (Judas was merely a false professor and not real, so the Lord said, “Ye are clean, but not all” Jn.13.10. Other Gospels seem to indicate that Judas left the upper room before the institution of the Lord’s Supper.)

Psalm 19 is a miniature of Psalm 119. “Who can understand his errors? Cleanse Thou me from secret faults” Ps.19.12. A missionary was talking to a convert who was complaining that God’s Word did not stay with him. The missionary asked him to fill a basket with water. The native tried repeatedly but the water ran out, so he came back with the basket empty. The missionary asked him if he could see any difference in the basket. “Yes”, he said, “the basket is a lot cleaner”. The missionary told him that the water of God’s Word can cleanse us even it does not seem to stay in our memory.

KEEPS US FROM SIN

Ps.119.111 reads, “Thy testimonies have I taken as a heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart.” Ps.37.31 says, “The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.” That is similar to Ps.119.11: “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee.” John Bunyan put this in the front of his Bible: “This book will keep me from sin, or sin will keep me from this book.” Both observations are true.

The best illustration I know of that truth is a story the late Clay Fite told of his own experience. One day he went down into a Philadelphia subway station at rush hour. The fare at the time was only about twenty cents; but he had nothing smaller than a ten-dollar bill. When he handed the ten-dollar bill to the woman at the turnstile, she became very upset with him! There were dozens of people behind him wanting to go through but she locked the turnstile, so he could not back up. Then she berated Mr. Fite for being so stupid as to come down into the subway at rush hour with nothing less than a ten-dollar bill. The longer she spoke, the more embarrassed Mr. Fite felt! When she had thoroughly humiliated him, she gave him the change and let him go through.

Mr. Fite was hurt. He began to think of what he could say to her when he returned. But before he got back, the Word of God came back to his memory: “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, ‘“Vengeance is Mine; I will repay,” saith the Lord.’” Rom.12.19. That woman never knew how thankful she should be that the Word of God kept him from telling her off. I am pretty sure that he could have done a good job of it, after she had done such a thorough job of humiliating him!

KEEPS US FROM THE WORLD

In Ps.28.1 David prays, “Be not silent unto me: lest, if Thou be silent to me; I become like them that go down into the pit.” Every child of God can be grateful that we will never go down into the pit! But we can become like those that go down into the pit if we do not hear God speaking to us. There are many other verses in Scripture that encourage us not to become like the world, for example Jn.17.12,14,16,17; Rom.12.2. David is emphatic in Ps.28.1: “Unto Thee will I cry, O Lord my Rock …” He knew that the nations had their idols of wood and stone, of gold and silver, but none of them was real or alive!

KEEPS US FROM BEING DEFEATED BY THE DEVIL

Paul writes in Eph.6.11, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil”, and similarly, “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” v.13.

In Matthew chapter 4 the Lord Jesus did not enter into a dialogue with the devil. He just quoted the Word of God. That was enough for Him and it should be enough for us. (But we need to read and learn the Word of God to be able to use it, when we need it!) The devil was defeated in the first temptation by the Word of God, Matt.4.4; Deut.8.3. In his second temptation (Matthew has the chronological order of the three temptations), the devil quoted Ps.91.11,12, but he left out part of it. I do not believe that the devil had a bad memory. I think he purposely left out the phrase “to keep Thee in all Thy ways” because he wanted to get Christ out of God’s ways. But the Lord Jesus answered him, “It is written again, ‘Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.’’’ Matt.4.7, quoted again from Deuteronomy, this time from Deut.6.16.

David writes in Ps.17.4, “… By the word of Thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.” In 1Jn.2.14 we read, “I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.” How did they overcome the wicked one? They did it by the Word of God abiding in them.

KEEPS US FROM BEING OFFENDED (OR STUMBLED)

“Great peace have they which love Thy law: and nothing shall offend them” Ps.119.165. Some of us have more sensitive temperaments than others. But for all of us, the more we delight in the Word of God, the less easily offended we are. The late preacher Herb Harris used to speak of some as being ‘up the miff tree’. Delight in the Word of God will keep us from getting up the ‘miff tree’! “Then saith Jesus unto him, ‘Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, ‘Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.’” Matt.4.10; Deut.6.13; 10.20.

FOR SEPARATION

In Gal.6.14 we read, “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” No child of God should ever shun the offence of the cross, but neither should we be unnecessarily offensive.

James writes, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” Jms.4.4. This verse shows us that we should be separate from all world systems. It is not that we are to be separate from all non-Christians; we can be in contact with people, while still separating from their systems.

FOR ASSEMBLY GATHERING

We read in Heb.13.12,13, “Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach.” A recently-converted young woman said to her friend who could not understand the great change that had come over her, “Just one letter of the alphabet makes all the difference between us now. You love the world, but I love the Word”! After his salvation John Newton said, “I make it a rule of Christian duty never to go to a place where there is not room for my Master as well as myself.”

Without question, the “camp” in Hebrews chapter 13 is Judaism. But if God wanted His people to come out of what He himself had instituted for Israel, then no less strongly does He want His own today to come out of everything that is a mixture of Christianity, paganism and Judaism! Surely, He wants His people to come out and to stay out! While there are many born-again believers among them, the people can never make those systems or practices correct. The Word of God must be our only guide.

To say that that is old-fashioned and not suitable for modern society is to say that God did not know what things would be like in our day. Surely, we believe in the God of eternity, to whom neither the future nor the past is a mystery!

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Comfort for Christians in a Changing World

by Roy Reynolds (N. Ireland)

“… and wished for the day” Acts 27.29

The night has been dark and dreary and many a way-worn saint is longing for the dawning of that bright and blessed day without clouds. It will be an eternal day and will never give way to night; no shadows will ever dim its brilliance, and sighing, sorrow and sin will be banished forever. John R. Clements wrote a hymn about “the land of fadeless day”.

The storms that so often drove the menacing clouds across our sky will never disturb the celestial calm of that balmy day and all the fears that lurked in the darkness of the night will be dispelled eternally.

Glad songs of gratitude will fill the unsullied air and never again will the sobbing of the afflicted, the weeping of the bereaved or the groaning of the oppressed be heard. Nevermore will we turn with broken hearts from a grave where the remains of a loved one have been respectfully placed. The tears and trials that belonged to the night will be over forever, replaced by the songs of the redeemed and the unending joy of the inhabitants of that “better country” Heb.11.16. Well might we wish for that day to dawn!

There is coming a day when no heartaches shall come,

No more clouds in the sky, no more tears to dim the eye;

All is peace for evermore on that happy golden shore,

What a day, glorious day that will be!

 

“Truly this was the Son of God” Matthew 27.54

The Stranger of Galilee Who trod these barren scenes had come from the realms of effulgent glory, where no sin can ever enter. He held a place of unique honour in His Father’s home, adored by heaven’s hosts, but He chose to come to the poverty and pollution of earth to rescue guilty, perishing sinners. Even before His birth, it was made clear to His prospective mother that He would be no ordinary person: “He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest” Lk.1.32.

When He was here His Father declared, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” Matt.3.17, thereby vindicating the Saviour’s claim to be the Son of God and demonstrating unrestrained approval of His only begotten Son. Every word He spoke, every act He performed, every thought He conceived, every step He took, all reinforced that eternal, frictionless relationship with His Father that continued without fracture during His holy pilgrimage down here.

Not only in life but in death those who observed His exodus with focused interest could arrive at no other conclusion, and publicly and confidently exclaimed, “Truly this was the Son of God” Matt.27.54.

Thou art the Everlasting Word, the Father’s only Son,

God manifestly seen and heard, and heaven’s belovèd One.

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Good Tidings from Heaven

The Writing on the Wall

The air was filled with raucous laughter and the king’s heart was merry as he prepared to enjoy the lavish feast and licentious fun of the night ahead. He appeared to have no conscience about the sinful practices in which he was engaged and relished the challenge of defying God by profane use of the sacred vessels that had been taken from the Temple in Jerusalem. He did not fear God and would not allow anything or anyone to mar the enjoyment of this occasion he had anticipated so eagerly.

But suddenly, in one dreadful, heart-stopping moment, everything changed. Belshazzar, King of the Chaldeans, saw the fingers of a man’s hand writing a message on the wall, in the glow from the candlestick. Somehow he knew that this was an inscription of doom and even though he could not decode the message or understand its terrifying meaning, he thad no doubt that it was intended for him alone. The colour drained from his face, his knees smote one against the other and the merriment was over abruptly as his memory scanned a wasted, sinful life and squandered years. Hoping against hope, his terror drove him to his magicians to discover the meaning of those four words still so clearly visible on the wall: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN, but no one could interpret the message. At length he was advised to send for Daniel, the prophet of God, and in due course he learned of his fate but, alas, it was too late to remedy the situation; he had gone too far, he had defied God once too often and now he must face the inescapable consequences of his sins.

Dear friend, you will read this true story in the Bible in Daniel chapter 5, which records “in that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain” Daniel 5.30. If you are not yet saved, please take warning from this solemn incident in history. You cannot sin with impunity; you cannot defy God and escape the consequences; you cannot trifle with your soul’s salvation without increasing the risk of eternal punishment. Do you live as though there was no God? Have you been deluded into thinking that you can live as you please and enjoy sin and somehow be in Heaven when that careless, Christless life is over? My friend, you need mercy and you need it now. Your sins are obnoxious to God and His holy standards cannot and will not be compromised.

How then will the problem be resolved? How can God pardon the sinner righteously? How can He justify (declare righteous) the ungodly? In great compassion, God provided a Substitute to bear the punishment due to our sins: His only Son, Jesus Christ. Upon the cross at Calvary He poured out the judgment upon that sinless Person, as if He had been guilty of committing those sins. “For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” 2Corinthians 5.21. “Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree … by whose stripes ye were healed” 1Peter 2.24.

Find refuge in Christ from the eternal judgment of God and, guilty though you are, obtain gracious pardon by trusting Him Who bore the sinner’s doom. Do not wait any longer lest, like Belshazzar, you discover that it is too late and instead of pardon there is inescapable punishment, for “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” Hebrews 9.27.

Unless in the day of His grace, sinner, you trust in the Christ Who has died,

Who suffered for sin in your place, sinner, on Calvary’s tree crucified.

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QUOTES

“We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up” 1Cor.8.1

“Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom” Jms.3.13.

Knowledge is proud that she knows so much; wisdom is humble that she knows no more.

             William Cowper

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“For all the promises of God in Him are yea, and in Him Amen, unto the glory of God by us” 2Cor.1.20

God never made a promise that was too good to be true.

         D.L. Moody