Category: Uncategorized

[R5652 : page 87]

THE IMPORTANCE OF SELF-CONTROL

“He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city which is broken down and without walls.”—Proverbs 25:28.

THE word “spirit” is used in a variety of ways. We speak of a horse as having a fiery spirit or as having no spirit. We speak of the angels as being spirits. We sometimes speak of the spirit of life. We also speak of the spirit of the human mind—that is evidently the thought that is here presented. The words of the text [Prov. 25:28] are equivalent to saying, He that hath no rule over his own mind, his thoughts, is like a city that is broken down.

What would a broken-down city be like? In olden times, when civilization had not reached the degree to which it has now attained, there was but little police [or policing] protection, and [external] marauders were numerous. Those who were disposed to get their living by stealing had excellent opportunities. It was necessary that cities be surrounded by walls as a protection against enemies. Any city with broken-down walls would have great reason to fear such marauders. It would invite attack and be certain to meet with disaster some time.

[A]The wise man has here likened such a city to a broken down human will. The will is to be continually on guard over the mind and to allow nothing to enter there except through the regular gates—Conscience and Judgment. These gates are to be watched so closely that they may admit only such thoughts as would be non-injurious [both to ourselves and others], profitable, wise—in harmony with the Word of God. Every human being should have a will and should keep it in good repair [or condition], should see to it that it does not get broken down; otherwise shipwreck of character will follow.

By the will is not meant merely a wish. There is a decided difference between a wish and a will. Some wish that they possessed a million dollars [or lakhs of rupees], but they have not the will even to try to get it. Some have a wish to get up at a certain hour in the morning; but the wish does not get them up, because the will is broken down. They say to themselves, “Oh, a little more sleep, a little more slumber, a little more folding of the hands in sleep!” [Prov. 6:10] They have no control of themselves. They may think they will gain this control by setting an alarm clock. By and by the alarm clock does no good; they do not hear it at all.

CONTROL IN SMALL THINGS GAGE OF CHARACTER

Whoever allows his will to become broken down as to the time he will arise in the morning has a more or less weak will in all matters. We should make reasonable regulations for our time of rising and of retiring. Having used our best judgment as to what should be done, we should see that it is done. Unless the doing of this should be found harmful to ourselves or to someone else, it should be carried out.

It is important to carry out the dictates of our best judgment so that the will may be strong, so that the individual may not be a vacillating character. The same principle applies to our choice of food. Some will say, “I know that this dish does not agree with me; but it comes to the table, and it seems to agree with others. I cannot eat it without subsequent discomfort; but I like it. I wish it would not come to the table!” So he partakes of it and suffers the consequences. He has the desire for the food, but not the will to resist taking it. The proper course for each one is to see to it that he does not eat what he knows is injurious to him, whatever others may be able to do or may choose to do.

Indecision and lack of character in little things affect all the greater things in life. The person who gets up irregularly is apt to be irregular in business. The person who cannot determine what he should eat is likely to be subject to caprice [or changing behaviour], to be weak in all his decisions. Such a one will be likely to let some salesman influence him as to what he will buy. Some are too largely subject to the control of others.

A FIRM WILL—NOT OBSTINACY—ESSENTIAL

An old adage has it that “A wise man sometimes changes his mind—a fool never.” Ruling our own spirit does not mean that we are to go to extremes and say, “Well, I said I wouldn’t; and I won’t!” There may be good reasons for changing our mind, and then it would be our proper course to make that change. God is seeking for the class of people who properly rule their own minds. If they learn to rule their minds before they come into the family of God, it will be that much the better for them. But at any rate, the only way they can get into the Kingdom will be by developing character.

The Bible tells us particularly what things are of the flesh, and what are of the Holy Spirit, the holy mind, of God; what things, therefore, constitute the holy disposition we should have. It tells us that we should put away anger, malice, hatred, bitterness, wrath, anger, strife [Eph. 4:31; Col. 3:8; Gal. 5:19-21]; and that we should put on meekness, gentleness, patience, long-suffering, brotherly-kindness, love [Col. 3:12-14; Gal. 5:22-23]. These lessons must be learned. We cannot say that the flesh will ever be brought under complete [or perfect] control; but the will must be there, and as much control of the flesh as is possible by Divine help should be added day by day.

The Lord is seeking people of strong will, strong character. Therefore there must be a positive turning to the Lord and a definite covenant with Him at the first, or else we are not acceptable to the Father. Then after we come into His family we find that some things that we thought all right are all wrong and must be corrected; and in proportion as we have in our past life ruled our own minds, controlled our fleshly appetites and impulses, in that proportion we shall make slow or rapid progress in the new way. How much of consecrated time may we use for business, for pleasure, or in one way or another? How much of consecrated money shall we spend on ourselves? All this is to be regulated by our Covenant with God. We must seek first the interests of the Lord and His Kingdom. These must be first in all our arrangements, and earthly things must be secondary. Hence the importance of fixed character, a will prompt and unflinching for God.

====================

Good subject.

1. The wise man has here likened such a city to a broken down human will. – More aptly likened to human will that is unable to control or rule oneself.

[R5840: page 29]

THE VALUE OF MODERATION

“Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”—Philippians 4:5.

QUESTION. —The Apostle Paul says, “Let your moderation be known unto all men.” [Phil. 4:5] What is the particular thought here in the word “moderation,” and what is the connection between these words and the sentence, “The Lord is at hand,” which follows?

Answer. —The Spirit of the Lord is said to be a spirit of wisdom, a spirit of justice, a spirit of love, a spirit of a sound mind. Whoever, therefore, receives the Spirit of the Lord, in proportion as he receives it, has these qualities of mind and heart. At the beginning of a Christian’s experience, the measure of this moderation, or reasonableness, or gentleness, is of course, comparatively small. But he gradually gets a greater appreciation of the value of this quality. His ideas become more reasonable as he becomes sanctified by the Spirit. He will have more and more of the spirit of a sound mind, of gentleness, meekness, and will become more and more prepared for the Kingdom soon to be established.

This attitude of mind comes in large measure as a result of knowledge. As he comes to know more about God and His plans, more about the origin of sin in the world, how it came about and how its penalty has passed upon all men by a process of heredity, the true disciple of Christ feels more of the spirit of moderation and acts with more consideration and charity toward others than if men were perfect. As we realize that these imperfections vary in number and in degree in different persons, so in our dealings we must be moderate toward all, wise in our dealings with all, patient toward all, having the spirit of justice, of reasonableness, of mercy.

This injunction of the Apostle does not refer to the exercise of this quality toward the Church only, but toward all men. Properly, of course, this moderation would begin at home, and would be more particularly manifest in good works in the Church, as in opposition to the evil sentiment—anger, malice, evil-surmising, hatred, strife—works of the flesh and of the Devil. But the spirit of moderation should not be confined to the home, but should be manifested toward all with whom we have intercourse or dealings. It was said of the Apostles that people “took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus and learned of Him.” [Similar Acts 4:13b] We should so live before all, both the brethren and the world, that they would thus take knowledge of us. We should see to it that our conduct is a credit to the great and noble Cause with which we are identified.

The connection between letting our moderation be known and the statement, “The Lord is at hand,” seems to be that the Lord’s people are to have in mind their expectation based upon the promises of God’s Word, that Messiah’s Kingdom is shortly to be established, and that this should help them in living an exemplary life. Whether the passage should be considered from the viewpoint that the Church of the Apostles’ time were living in the latter part of the great seven-thousand-year week, and that the great Sabbath was at hand, when the Lord was about to come and set up His Kingdom and set things straight in the world, and that hence they could well be patient and considerate, or whether it should be from the viewpoint of time—that the Lord’s children should exercise the grace of moderation because they had little time left in which to manifest it—we do not know. At any rate, knowing that the opposition of sin will not last very much longer, we may have the greater patience and exercise this patience with the greater ease when we have this thought before our minds.

The Apostle gives a similar thought when he says that the tribulations which the Lord’s people undergo are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in them. [Rom. 8:18] This should make us very moderate, very forbearing, under circumstances which would make others very rude, very angry, very immoderate. We can be very gentle, not only because of our knowledge of the nearness of the Kingdom, but also because of our knowledge of the weaknesses of others, which cause them to impinge upon our rights.

==========

Good subject.

[R4854 : page 218]

PROVIDING FOR ONE’S NATURAL HOUSEHOLD

“If any provide not for his own, and especially those of his own house (margin, kindred), he hath denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”—1 Tim. 5:8.

THIS PASSAGE may be properly paraphrased thus: He who provides not for those dependent upon him, especially those of his own household, hath denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

[A]This relates primarily to a Christian husband and his duty toward his wife and his children. If the husband should cease to provide for the wife, cease to cherish her and, on the contrary, should desert her, either in heart, in affection, or actually, it would imply that he had seriously departed from the Lord, from the guidance of the Spirit, and from “The wisdom that cometh from above, which is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits.” [Jas. 3:17]

Under these circumstances we could not consider such an one approved of the Lord as an “overcomer,” [Rev. 3:21] until after reformation. Then, too, every parent owes it to his child to give him more of a start in life than merely the imperfect, dying little body born into the world. Having brought children into the world, it becomes the duty of parents to see to their reasonable establishment in it. This includes not only the dispensing of food and raiment during childhood and youth, but also the provision of intellectual and moral instructions, to which we have more than once referred; and all this means laying up, aside from personal consumption, in the interest of the children.

Seeing the uncertainties of life, it would not be an unreasonable application of the Scriptural injunction for the parent to have something laid up for the necessities of his family in the event of his death before they had reached maturity. It is not our thought that the Apostle meant that parents should seek to lay up fortunes for their children to quarrel over and be injured by. The child fairly well born and who receives a reasonable education and guidance to maturity is well off and has a rich legacy in himself; and the parent who has made such provision for his children has every reason to feel that he has been ruled in the matter by a sound mind, the Holy Spirit, the disposition approved by the Lord, even though he leave no property to his family, or not more than a shelter or home. Such a man has discharged his stewardship; and such children will be sure in the end to appreciate his faithfulness.

We should manifest an interest in those related to us by ties of blood more than in mankind in general. If the Spirit of the Lord leads us to be kind and gracious toward humanity in general, it would imply that our sentiments toward our relatives should be specially considered by us and be, to the extent of our opportunities, helpful. Nevertheless, it would not be wise, according to our judgment, nor in harmony with the instructions of the Scriptures, nor in accord with the examples which they set before us of our Lord’s conduct and the conduct of the Apostles, for us to extend a very special fellowship to our earthly relatives; or to receive them and treat them better than, or even as well as, we would treat the household of faith.

We here make an exception of such close relationships as would have a demand upon us in accord with the Apostle’s words, “He that provideth not for his own,…hath denied the faith.” In general—outside of the exceptions above—we are to apply the Apostle’s words, “As we have opportunity let us do good unto all men, especially unto those who are of the household of faith.” (Gal. 6:10.) Next to the household of faith should come our more distant relatives.

Of course, from the standpoint of the New Creation, the new relationship, the members of the Body of Christ would be members of our own household, and their temporalities would be in some measure our responsibility. We are, however, living in a time not the same as that in which our Lord lived; now, there are public charities; for this reason this passage would not apply with the same force as when the Apostle spoke these words. One would be making proper provisions, sometimes, when he paid his share of the taxes toward the general weal; and it might, perhaps, be necessary to avail himself of a share in those benefits, either on his own account later, or on account of some of his own friends—members of his family.

BUILDING ONE ANOTHER UP IN THE HOLY FAITH

Christ is the Head of His own household. He does not intend that His people shall be unnecessarily burdensome to each other, but each should feel a responsibility in respect to others and gladly lend a helping hand to strengthen, encourage and bless, “building each other up in the most holy faith.” [Jude 1:20] It evidently was the intention of our Lord to draw together His followers as a new family, a new household, the “household of faith.” [Gal. 6:10] Hence, we find the repeated injunction and encouragement for mutual fellowship, mutual helpfulness and regular association, with the promise that where two or three meet in the Lord’s name He will be specially present with them to grant a blessing [Matt. 18:20]; and that His people should not forget the assembling of themselves together. [Heb. 10:25]

Returning to our text [1 Tim. 5:8] we note that the Apostle says that one neglecting his obligations to his own family would be denying the faith. The faith that we profess is not merely a faith in certain things that we are getting, but it affects also matters of propriety, our character, all of life’s affairs in general. We profess to love God more than others love Him. We profess to love our neighbor as ourselves. We profess to take this as our standard. If a man’s responsibility to his neighbor is that he love him as himself, then this would bear in with double force as to his own family. If one is derelict there, he is misrepresenting the doctrines of Christ which he professes. To live contrary to the doctrines one professes would be to deny his faith. And so one who would live in violation of these recognized standards of life would be living below the world instead of above the world.

As for denying the faith, the thought is that there would be a lack of love, of sympathy, regarding the interests of the ones neglected and, therefore, a denying of the faith to that extent. What a perfect example of unselfishness we have in our Master, who, when in the greatest of trouble and anguish, was thinking sympathetically of others! We notice His provision for the welfare of His mother, whom He consigned to the care of the loving John, thus showing our Lord’s approval of the noble characteristics displayed by John in pressing near to his Master in this trying hour! [John 19:26-27]

====================

• This relates primarily to a Christian husband and his duty toward his wife and his children. – This may indicate a Christian son or grandson, and his duty towards his mother or grandmother.

[R4188 : page 182]

“WALK AS CHILDREN OF LIGHT”

—EPHESIANS 5:6-21.—JUNE 28 [1908].—

Golden Text:—”Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be ye filled with the Spirit.”—v. 18. [Eph. 5:18]

AS implied by the selection of the Golden Text [Eph. 5:18], the International Sunday-School Study styles this a Temperance Lesson. We shall not, however, treat it particularly from that standpoint, as we do not consider that such was the apostolic thought, except in the sense that temperance and abstinence from evil in any form are the inculcations of holy Scripture for all who have named the name of Christ. Thus the [above] Golden Text properly sets before us that there is one spirit of the world and another spirit of the Lord; one a spirit of error, the other the spirit of truth. We are no longer to walk in darkness as others—in sin, in rioting, in drunkenness, in debauchery of various kinds; the Christian course is the very reverse of this, for he has turned his back on all these experiences and is walking in the light of the lamp, toward the things that are perfect, toward the things set before him in the divine Word and plan. Instead of needing alcoholic spirits for his refreshment he has the Spirit of the Lord, the holy Spirit, which exhilarates; it overcomes the spirit of gloom and fear, it does for him much more than alcoholic spirits could do for the natural man in the way of blotting out unpleasant memories and bringing in happiness.

THE SEVEN WAYS OF THIS EPISTLE

The Epistle to the Ephesians is one of the grandest books of the Bible. Deeply spiritual it appeals thoroughly only to the consecrated. Its central thought is the New Creation; that the justified by a consecration of their justified humanity, when accepted of the Lord, are begotten of the holy Spirit to be New Creatures in Christ. For such, old things have passed away [2 Cor. 5:17b]—earthly hopes, earthly aims and ambitions; their earthly rights have been surrendered, and instead of them, heavenly prospects have been received by faith and are waited for, with the expectation that they will be received in the First Resurrection. The first part of the book of Ephesians relates to the theory, the philosophy of the change from human to spiritual, from humanity to membership in the New Creation; the last chapters of the book point out to us the effect of this change, not only upon the sentiments of the New Creature, the new will, but also the effect of the change upon the mortal body, which the new mind is supposed thereafter to hold in check, to govern, to control with more and more decision and ability as it grows stronger in the Lord and in the power of his might. The New Creature is to keep the old creature, the body, under; to keep it dead, buried. Our lesson relates particularly to this phase of the subject—the New Creature’s battle and victory and its preservation, which is dependent upon the maintenance of its rule over the flesh.

The opening words of our lesson (v. 6), “Let no man deceive you with vain words, for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience,” [Eph. 5:6] should not be understood to signify that God’s wrath comes because of vain words. The things which bring the wrath are mentioned in the preceding verses (3-5) [Eph. 5:3-5], fornication, uncleanness, covetousness, filthiness, foolish talking, ribaldry; for, as the Apostle explains, those in whom these characteristics are dominant, or those in whom the characteristics are sympathized with, can have no inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words on this subject, telling you that such things are natural, proper, excusable. They have indeed become second nature to many of the fallen race, but if any who have become New Creatures in Christ love the unclean things, sympathize with them, desire them, or jest about them, they are far from the condition which is becoming to saints. Such a mental attitude on their part would imply that they had either never been begotten of the Spirit of holiness or else they were returning again like a sow that was washed to wallow in the mire. [2 Pet. 2:22] These things are characteristic of the children of disobedience, but not characteristic of the children of obedience. The Apostle [Paul] says elsewhere, Such were ye; but now ye are washed, but ye are justified, but ye are sanctified through the Lord Jesus Christ. (I Cor. 6:11.) In our lesson he exhorts, “Be ye not, therefore, partakers with them,” [Eph. 5:7] with the children of disobedience; for ye were once in darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord.

“WALK AS CHILDREN OF LIGHT” [Eph. 5:8b]

He proceeds to show how the children of light should walk, saying, [in Eph. 5:9] The fruit of the Spirit, wherever it is found, is goodness and righteousness and truth—therefore, the holy Spirit never prompts to badness, unrighteousness, untruthfulness. And whoever has received the holy Spirit, whoever has been begotten of the Lord as his child, will want to prove, to demonstrate, to ascertain thoroughly what is acceptable unto the Lord; what the Lord will be pleased with, not merely what would not merit severe punishment from the Lord, not merely what the Lord would wink at and not take serious offence from, but far beyond all this! Whoever properly has the spirit of a son must desire to know the Father’s will and delight to do it, and that will is in all purity, goodness, righteousness, truth, honesty. The influence of this determination of the New Creature to please God, to do his will, will signify that his life, that his heart and so far as possible every act and word of his will be in accord with goodness, in accord with the principles of righteousness which God represents—in accord with truth.

“HAVE NO FELLOWSHIP WITH THE UNFRUITFUL WORKS OF DARKNESS, BUT RATHER REPROVE THEM” [Eph. 5:11]

We are responsible not only for what we ourselves may do and think as New Creatures, but our responsibility goes out beyond ourselves to the brethren, to all who in any sense of the word come under our influence. Obscene jesting certainly is to receive no encouragement, to provoke no laughter, but rather to call forth a gentle, loving rebuke. Brother, Sister, let us set our affections on things above [Col. 3:1]—let us walk in the light, let us think of and discuss whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good repute. [Phil. 4:8] Let us put away from our conversation and from our thoughts everything that would be defiling and ensnaring to ourselves or to others. Failure to reprove is a measurable endorsement of the wrong. A word in season—how good it is, how helpful! But it is equally important that the word of reproof be wisely and lovingly given, otherwise it may do harm where we intended good; as the Scriptures say, “Speak the truth in love.” [Eph. 4:15]

“THINGS WHICH ARE DONE IN SECRET” [Eph. 5:12]

“It is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret” [Eph. 5:12]—that are done in the dark. The Apostle’s intimation is that the whole world lieth in darkness, and in the wicked one and in sin [1 John 5:19b], and that the Lord’s people of the New Creation have accepted his leadership in the opposite direction; that they are children of the light and should walk accordingly in the light, and that they should lift up the light of truth [Eph. 5:8]; that they should allow the holy Spirit to shine forth for the reproving of the world, for the reproving of darkness, and for the setting up of a standard of righteousness in harmony with the Lord’s example.

The Apostle here reminds us of the prophetic statement, “Awake thou that sleepest and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” [Eph. 5:14] This should be our attitude toward all who are still unregenerated. The world lieth in the wicked one, in sin, in darkness. Instead of having fellowship with them in the works of darkness, instead of sharing in their foul jesting, we are rather to reprove them and to direct them according to the above Scripture, to awake from their stupor, from their sleep, to recognize conditions from their true standpoint, and that, getting awake, they should realize that they are sinners; that the wage of sin is death, and that the tendency of sin is downward—and that they should rise from the dead, should separate themselves from the world, not only so far as their conduct is concerned, but so far as their conversation and their sympathies are concerned, that all these should be turned toward the Lord, toward the truth, toward the light. It is to those who thus separate themselves from the world and its spirit that the Lord has promised to give light, a little and a little more and a little more, for the path of the justified, the path of those following in the footsteps of Jesus, will shine more and more until the perfect day. [Prov. 4:18]

THE SEVEN WALKS

The Christian’s walk of course means his course of conduct, including thoughts and words and acts. The Apostle indicates very clearly what this work or course of the Christian should be, outlining it in seven different ways.

(1) The New Creature should walk not according to the course of this world, not according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit which now worketh in the children of disobedience. (Eph. 2:3.) This is the walk of the world, the walk of evil-doers, the walk of the children of wrath; it is the very opposite of the walk of the children of the light.

(2) The New Creation should walk in good works—”For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ unto good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them.”—Eph. 2:10.

(3) The New Creation should “walk worthy of the vocation wherewith they are called.” (Eph. 4:1.) Their vocation is the very highest of all; they are the representatives of the Lord and Master; they bear his name, and should seek in everything to glorify it and never to dishonor it. What we do, what we say, what we think—in fact, even general appearance and deportment, and where we are seen, all reflect more or less upon the great King, whose ambassadors we are. Our vocation is that of servants of God, and no earthly avocation should be permitted in any degree to hinder or abridge the influence or the service which we have undertaken as children of God, as joint-heirs with Jesus Christ our Lord, prospective members of his Bride class, his Kingdom class.

(4) The New Creation are to “walk not as other Gentiles walk.” (Eph. 4:17.) We are not merely to refrain from the sins and gross immoralities of the natural man, but we are to allow this principle or spirit to pervade all of life’s interests. We are to refrain from following foolish, worldly fashions, from being influenced by a worldly spirit; we are to have the Spirit of the Lord, the spirit of a sound mind to direct us in our joys, in our sorrows, in our wedding celebrations, in our funeral services—in fact, whatsoever we do we are to do to the glory of God and are not to be influenced by the spirit of the world, but contrariwise are to set a proper example for the world in all matters—in gentleness, kindness, patience, faithfulness to the Lord and to duty. The walk of the world is on the broad road; the walk of the Church is on the narrow path. As we progress in Christian experience, we find this path getting farther and farther away from the broad road which the world is traveling, and whoever tries to keep pace with the world will in many respects be apt to find himself leaving the narrow path or otherwise disadvantaging himself as a New Creature.

(5) The New Creation is to “walk in love.” (Eph. 5:2.) Their words, their deeds, everything with which they are connected, is to be governed by this law of the New Creation—love. “Love is the fulfilling of the Law.” [Rom. 13:10b] “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another, as I have loved you.” [John 13:34] In compliance with this law of love and our Lord’s glorious example, the Apostle [John] says we ought to so love one another as to be willing to lay down our lives for the brethren. [1 John 3:16] We should be ready to lay down a few months, a few years; we should be ready at any time we can find an opportunity of service for a brother, especially along the lines of his spiritual or higher interests as a New Creature. This spirit of love is to control our conduct with all; we are to love our neighbors and seek to do them good, to serve their interests. “Love worketh no ill to his neighbor,” [Rom. 13:10a] would not take advantage of his neighbor to cheat him, to injure him in any manner. Love would not prompt its possessor to speak evil of his neighbor, but would lead to a remembrance of the Scriptural injunction, “Speak evil of no man.” [Titus 3:2] Love would do this from principle, because it is right; but more than this, Love ultimately takes such an interest that the brother exercising it does not wish to do anything that would be harmful to another’s interests, to his welfare, but rather to do something to his honor and blessing. Love, progressing as we walk in it, ultimately brings us to that blessed condition where we can love our enemies and be glad of the privilege of doing good to those who despitefully use us and persecute us. [Matt. 5:44b]

(6) The New Creation are also instructed to walk as children of light [Eph. 5:8]; their course in life is always to be with respect to the things that are just, pure, loving, noble, kind, the things that are in harmony with the divine character and Word, the things that prove to be of greatest blessing to neighbors and to friends. As children of the light every day and year will see progress; their light will be shining more and more clearly and accomplishing the greatest good; they will not be ashamed of it, but will set it on a candlestick, where it may give light to all in the house, to every member of the household of faith. “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”—Matt. 5:16.

(7) The New Creation should “walk circumspectly.” (Eph. 5:15.) This word circumspectly signifies to look carefully all around at every step. The Christian cannot be a careless liver, and as he looks around him and realizes the various pitfalls and snares, not only will he seek to make straight paths for his feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way, but additionally he will seek divine aid and counsel and guidance that he make no mistakes, that every step in life’s pathway will be such as will have divine approval and glorify God in his body and spirit which are God’s. [Heb. 12:13; 1 Cor. 6:20] This circumspection of our walk as New Creatures is the more necessary because our Adversary, the devil, is specially on the alert to ensnare us; and our tests are permitted to be the severer as we come nearer the goal of character. We should walk circumspectly also because we profess to be of the New Creation, begotten of the holy Spirit and not of the world, but separate from it; and because our lights so shining more or less reprove the world. Therefore the world, instead of sympathizing with us, hate us, and watch either to see what fault can be found with our walk, or to stumble and trip us, sometimes from malicious impulse and sometimes from sympathetic reasons; as the Apostle Peter, when speaking to our Lord, said, Far be it from thee, Lord, to thus sacrifice thyself and die. [Matt. 16:22] To walk circumspectly is to take note of these various hindrances and stumbling stones and pitfalls; to hearken to the instructions of the Lord’s Word and to the leadings of the holy Spirit; and thus to walk carefully; and in so doing to develop the characters which are most pleasing to our Lord and Head. The Apostle [Paul] says this circumspection is necessary in order to our walking “not as unwise but as wise.” [Eph. 5:15] There is a wisdom of the world which is foolishness with God, and there is a wisdom with God which is foolishness to the world. [1 Cor. 3:19] The wisdom of God is to be ours, and we are to exemplify it in all the affairs of life. Hence the faithful, the New Creatures in Christ, should be the most exemplary, the most wonderful people in the whole world, the wisest in the management of their affairs, the wisest in the government of their children, the wisest in their eating, drinking and dressing. Not that the world will always approve, but that the end will justify the course which the Lord’s Word directs, and which the wise of the New Creation, walking circumspectly, will take.

“REDEEMING THE TIME” [Eph. 5:16]

This signifies buying back the time, as though the time were already mortgaged. And this is so; the cares of this life, its necessities, the customs of the world, our fallen tendencies, all would absorb every hour of life in the things pertaining to this life, whereas as New Creatures our new hopes and aims and efforts are properly centered upon things above, the heavenly, the King’s matters. Where may we obtain the necessary time wherewith to study and to refresh ourselves in rehearsing the blessings, the promises and favors which are ours as New Creatures? And where may we obtain the time for telling these good tidings to others? If we allow the spirit of the world to direct us we shall have no time for any of these things and shall fail, but as wise and not as foolish children of the Lord, we will see and appreciate the greater importance of the heavenly things, and be ready to sacrifice our earthly interests and customs and ambitions in favor of the heavenly. Thus we may redeem or buy back the time that we had previously spent for worldly things, that we may henceforth spend such time in the interest of ourselves and others of the New Creation and in the service of our Lord and Master, to whom we have consecrated our all, which we find to be so little over and above the things necessary to provide honestly for the life that now is.

“WHEREFORE BE YE NOT FOOLS, BUT UNDERSTAND WHAT THE WILL OF THE LORD IS” [Eph. 5:17]

How many of the Lord’s people are fools! How many allow the spirit of the world so to enter in as to hinder them from appreciating the real wisdom and the proper course, the proper walk in life! It is time for us to cease this foolishness of trying to do everything just as the world does it and to be everything that the world will approve! It is time for us to determine that by the grace of God we will be popular with our Father in heaven, whether or not it makes us unpopular with everybody else in the world! It will be sweeter far eventually to hear his voice saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord,” [Matt. 25:21] than to have the well done of the world and its applause, and to come short of the glorious blessing to which we have been called!

“INSTEAD PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING” [Similar Phil. 4:6]

Instead of intoxication with the spirit of the world and its ambitions, its craze for money and for show and outward adornment, we are to be so filled with the Spirit of the Lord, that our chiefest joy, our chiefest blessing, will be in giving thanks to the Lord for his goodness, in maintaining a fellowship of heart with him and then additionally having fellowship one with another, with those who are in the truth, in the Lord. We are to speak one to another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, thus making melody in our hearts to the Lord. The Lord’s people are not to be morose, sullen, unhappy, always in tears. This is not the will of God concerning them; they are on the contrary to be continually rejoicing, full of gladness, the basis for this to be their faith in the Word of God, which they all continually eat and are nourished by, together with their fellowship with the Lord, which will continually be a ground for praise and thanksgiving; and additionally, their fellowship with one another, which will be more sweet than any earthly or selfish fellowship; more precious than any sensual relationship, the exhilaration of the new mind continually growing stronger and more God-like, and seeking to build up one another in the most holy faith and character-likeness of our Redeemer. The Apostle says that we are to give to God, even the Father, thanks always for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ [Eph. 5:20]; thanks for the trials, thanks for the clouds as well as for the blessings and the sunshine; thanks for matters that seem to be adversities, knowing that God is able to make all things work together for good to them and has promised to do so, and that the entire matter of needs and welfare are in the hands of our Redeemer, who is too wise to err and too loving to be unkind, and who will not suffer us to be tempted above that we are able. Well then may we rejoice!

We are exhorted also to submit ourselves one to another in the reverence of the Lord [Eph. 5:21], not to be dictatorial, not to be too self-assertive, not to be anxious that our will should be done on earth or in heaven, but rather desirous that the will of the Lord should thus be done, and that we may be looking to note his leadings and providences in and through others as well as through ourselves, and especially to note the instructions in his Word.

====================

Good subject.

[R5396 : page 44]

“WHERE YOUR TREASURE IS”

—MARCH 1 [1914].—LUKE 12:13-34.—

“Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”—V.34. [Luke 12:34]

JESUS was surrounded by a multitude of Jews, one of whom, recognizing Him as influential, requested that He admonish his brother to give him a share of the family inheritance. [Luke 12:13] Jesus declined, saying that He was not a judge or a divider. It would be well if the followers of Jesus would follow their Master in this, as well as in other matters. [Luke 12:14] Too many are disposed to be busybodies in other men’s matters, and overlook the fact that their commission of the Lord is to preach the Gospel.

Society has provided certain rules, laws and regulations—”the powers that be are ordained of God.” [Rom. 13:1b] Whatever these laws will not accord us we should let drop. We should be content with such things as we have and such things as Divine providence insures us. [Phil. 4:11] As Jesus had another work to do, so have His followers. That other work is the preparation for the glorious Messianic Kingdom. The riches which it promises us so far transcend all earthly riches as to make them appear, as St. Paul declared, loss and dross, not worthy to be compared with the blessed things our Lord promises. [Phil. 3:8]

Jesus backed up His refusal to intervene with a caution against covetousness. [Luke 12:15] [A]This implies that the estate properly belonged to the brother, and that the one who addressed Jesus desired more than his legal rights. He was coveting that which legally belonged to another. Jesus would have him, and us all, see that the abundance of earthly possessions, wealth, is not the sum of life. A man may be miserable while rolling in wealth, or he may be happy in comparative poverty. The basis of happiness is measured by the soul’s relationship to God and hope in Him.

The Jews were a typical people—Natural Israel, in comparison to Spiritual Israel of this Gospel Age. [B]God’s promise to Natural Israel was that if they would keep the Law, they would inherit the Promise made to Abraham, and be used by God as His Kingdom to bless the world. Their difficulty was that, being sinners like the remainder of men, they were unable to keep the Divine requirements, hence were not qualified to be used of God as His Kingdom for scattering His blessings to the nations. Nevertheless, the hope of the Kingdom was the thing ever uppermost in their minds, sought for by all of them.

Jesus came into the world to give Himself a “Ransom for all” (1 Timothy 2:6), and to begin the work of calling and drawing “Israelites indeed,” [Similar John 1:47] to constitute His associates in the Messianic Kingdom. He could, and did, keep the Law perfectly, and additionally, laid down His life sacrificially for Adam and his race. This sacrifice permitted Him to make good for the unintentional shortcomings of all “Israelites indeed,” in whom was no hypocrisy. While they could not keep the Law and thus obtain the Kingdom, they could by accepting Christ have the righteousness of the Law imputed to them, and thus be acceptable with God. Hence Jesus’ preaching was wholly along the lines of the Kingdom to the people who had for centuries been striving to approve themselves to God as worthy to constitute that Kingdom. The first opportunity for membership in the Kingdom class was granted to the Jewish people; and only in proportion as they rejected the favor did it pass beyond them to the Gentiles. As St. Paul said to some, “It was necessary that the Gospel should first be preached to you; but seeing ye reject the grace of God,…lo, we turn to the Gentiles.” (Acts 13:46.) In view of these facts, we see that the teachings of Jesus were not addressed to the world, but to people who claimed to have separated themselves from the world, and to be seeking or desiring to attain a joint-heirship in the Messianic Kingdom.

Indeed, the entire teaching of the New Testament is to such persons. These alone have the hearing ear; and we are instructed that “He that hath an ear, let him hear.” [Rev. 3:22a] Again, we are instructed that the Gospel of the Kingdom is to be preached to the meek, the humble, the broken-hearted; for only these are in any sense of the word prepared to receive the Message. All others are blind and deaf to the Gospel of the Kingdom. All who do not now hear or see will have their eyes and ears opened by and by, during Messiah’s Reign, because He tasted death for every man. But such will fail entirely as respects the glorious High Calling of this Gospel Age—the Kingdom.

“SOUL, TAKE THINE EASE” [Luke 12:19]

Our Lord gave a parable illustrating the comparative foolishness of all earthly ambitions. This does not mean that earthly ambitions are the worst things; but rather that they are poor in comparison to the one great possibility, the Kingdom. It is a pearl of great value, to obtain which all other pearls—all other valuables, all other ambitions, and all other hopes—are to be set aside, and counted as dross.

The parable tells of a rich farmer who, instead of using his riches in doing good, was miserly—taking pleasure in accumulations. He built greater barns and storehouses, and consoled himself with the thought that he had plenty and more than enough, and could thenceforth take his ease. The parable points out that ere long he died. [Luke 12:16-20] We query, What advantage did the man really have through his accumulation of great wealth, which he failed to use? He left it for others to quarrel over, and possibly to be more or less injured by. He was a foolish rich man. Instead of leaving his wealth thus, he should have enjoyed himself in spending it wisely for the good of others and to the glory of God. Thus he would have been rich toward God. But on the other hand, he was an illustration of those who are not rich toward God; for he laid up his treasure for self.

Many read into this parable things that it does not contain. They infer that the rich man went to eternal torment, but nothing in the Lord’s words so intimates. The expression, “this night shall thy soul be required of thee,” [Luke 12:20] signifies this night you lose your life—you die in poverty. Earthly riches will be of no account to you in the future if you have not laid up spiritual riches in the heart, in the mind and in good works, which would make you rich in the future.

That rich man, instead of being benefited by the riches which he accumulated, will in the future life be disadvantaged. He might have used his riches sacrificially, or he might have consecrated his entire life to God through Christ and then faithfully laid down time, talent, opportunities, wealth. Thus he would in the same proportion have been laying up treasures in Heaven, so that in the resurrection he would have been received of the Lord as a faithful follower, to share His glory, honor and immortality—to be a member of His [reigning] Kingdom class, whose commission it will be for a thousand years to scatter the Divine blessings secured by the death of Jesus to all of Adam’s race.

That rich man, having missed his opportunities, will nevertheless come forth during Christ’s Millennial Kingdom; for we read that all that are in their graves shall hear His voice and come forth. [John 5:28] But instead of coming forth approved, to a share in the First Resurrection, he will come forth disapproved of God, and his resurrection opportunities will be those described as the Resurrection of Judgment. (John 5:29, R.V.) He will come forth to shame and contempt, which will continue until he shall, under the judgments of that time, learn his lesson and form a better character; or, refusing so to do, he will be cut off in the Second Death.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM [Matt. 6:33]

We are not to understand the good Teacher to mean that we are to look amongst the kingdoms of earth hoping to find one of them His Kingdom. On the contrary, He informs us that His Kingdom is future. “My Kingdom is not of this world”—this order of things. (John 18:36.) For His Kingdom, God’s Kingdom, we pray, “Thy Kingdom come.” [Matt. 6:10] We hope, we wait, we prepare, for that Kingdom. We are to seek it in the sense of seeking to do those things which will make us “meet for the inheritance of the saints in light.” [Col. 1:12] We are to lay up treasures in Heaven. We are to use our pounds and our talents so wisely that at the Second Coming of the Savior, when He calls first for His servants and reckons with them, we may not only be amongst His servants, but hear His “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joys of thy Lord” [Matt. 25:21]—the Kingdom joys—[C]”Have thou dominion over two cities” or “five cities.”

There is one definite procedure for those who would be heirs of the Kingdom. (1) They must recognize themselves as sinners, unworthy of Divine notice. (2) They must recognize Jesus as “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” [John 1:29] (3) They should realize that while His sacrifice is the basis for the ultimate cleansing of the world, the reconciliation of all the willing and obedient to God, nevertheless that work has not yet begun. That work is to be accomplished by Him during the thousand years of His Kingdom Reign. (4) They are to hear the Lord’s Message declaring that He is now seeking the members of the Kingdom class, and that the way to membership is a narrow way. “Whosoever will be My disciple, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me, and where I am there shall My disciple be.” [Similar Matt 16:24; John 12:26] They are to realize that the testing of this class is through much tribulation; that God is calling for not only saints, but those whose saintship will endure fiery trials, testings, in respect to their love for God and for the brethren, and in respect to their loyalty, even unto death.

From the time of making their full consecration to be the Lord’s servants, faithful unto death in the service of righteousness, they will regard that Heavenly Kingdom as the great treasure beyond all comparison of value. They will seek it daily, hourly. Their hearts will be there—with the treasure. It will be the theme of their thoughts by day and of their meditations by night. Earthly occupations will still be necessary to them, in order to provide things needful and honest; but no earthly prize will have any value in comparison to the Heavenly prize, in their estimation. Such will be the successful heirs of the Kingdom which God hath promised to those that love Him more than they love houses or lands, parents or children or self.

===============

Good subject.

• This implies that the estate properly belonged to the brother, and that the one who addressed Jesus desired more than his legal rights. He was coveting that which legally belonged to another. – We can take this on a suggestive note, since there is no scriptural proof. It could be the other way also. See Luke 12:21 where Jesus ends the parable with the general statement.
• God’s promise to Natural Israel was that if they would keep the Law, they would inherit the Promise made to Abraham, and be used by God as His Kingdom to bless the world.- Though there is no direct statement, we could infer that by keeping the Law Covenant (which was not possible to be done by a fallen human and hence in a hypothetical way), the Natural Israel will inherit all the blessing of the Law Covenant along with Eternal Life and thus rule the world, implying blessing the mankind.
• “Have thou dominion over two cities” or “five cities.” – This text is not directly available in the scriptures, but this is a inference from the Parable of 10 Minas. See Luke 19:11-27.

[R2516: page 214]

“UNTO THE PURE ALL THINGS ARE PURE.” [Tit. 1:15a]

“Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unfaithful nothing is pure; but both their mind and conscience are defiled: they profess to have known God, but by their works they renounce him, being abominable and disobedient, and to every good work worthless.”—Tit. 1:15,16.

[See February 10^th Manna:

“சுத்தமுள்ளவர்களுக்குச்‌ சகலமும்‌ சுத்தமாயிருக்கும்‌; ஆனால்‌ அசுத்தமுள்ளவர்கள்‌ மற்றும்‌ உண்மையில்லாதவர்கள்‌ யாரோ அவர்களுக்கு ஒன்றும்‌ சுத்தமாமிராது; அவர்களது மனதும்‌ மற்றும்‌ மனசாட்சியும்‌ அசுத்தம்‌ அடைந்துள்ளது. அவர்கள்‌ தேவனை அறிந்திருக்கறோமென்று அறிக்கைபண்ணுகறொர்கள்‌, ஆனால்‌ அவர்களுடைய கிரியையினால்‌ அவரை அவர்கள்‌ மறுதலிக்கிறார்கள்‌; அவர்கள்‌ அருவருக்கப்படத்தக்கவர்களும்‌, கிழ்ப்படியாதவர்களும்‌, எந்த நற்கிரியையுஞ்செய்ய ஆகாதவர்களுமாயிருக்கிறார்கள்‌.” தீத்து 1:15-16 (டயக்லாட்‌ மொழிபெயர்ப்பு)]

NOT SINNERS, not the worldly, are thus spoken of by the Apostle [Paul], but those who have enjoyed the truth, and who have enjoyed at least the first step in heart-purification, namely, justification; and whose hearts have become defiled through a failure to maintain in them the law of love as the ruling principle. Instead of being filled with love, selfishness, with its defilement, has been received back as the ruling principle of the heart. Such have the spirit of the world, and sometimes exercise it with a much greater degree of animosity [or hatred] than the world exhibits. They are especially ready, as the Apostle intimates, to impugn the conduct and motives of others: being selfish themselves, they attribute selfishness to everyone else: being impure themselves, they attribute impurity to others: having lost the spirit of love which thinketh no evil, their hearts rapidly fill up with selfish, envious, uncharitable, ungodly, unkind sentiments, toward those who are true, sincere and noble.

We have known such to go even to the extreme of impugning the motives of the great Jehovah and our Lord Jesus Christ. [A]Unable to think of love and benevolence as motives for conduct, and accustomed in their own hearts to think merely of selfishness and personal aggrandizement as motives, they view the divine course from this standpoint, and esteem that God was moved by pride to recover man from sin and death, or by vanity, to show what he could do. They claim that our Lord Jesus was moved by selfish motives, of self-gratification, honor, increase of power, in becoming our Redeemer. They think of the loyalty of the angels from a selfish standpoint, as in hope of advancement, or in fear of punishment. Who can bring a clean thought out of an unclean heart? Who can expect benevolence, generous feelings, sentiments or words, except hypocritically, from a heart in which selfishness has the control? Who would expect generous considerations in a mind full of envy and self-seeking?

The Apostle [Paul] suggests of such that not only their minds become corrupted, but also their conscience; so that they will do evil, speak evil, think evil, and yet their consciences do not reprove them; because their consciences and minds work in harmony, and, as the Scriptures declare, they become blinded, self-deceived. What a terrible condition this is, and how careful all of the Lord’s people should be, not only to have pure hearts, pure minds, but also to keep their consciences very tender, in close accord with the word of the Lord. This condition can only be maintained by judging ourselves, and that strictly and frequently, by the standard which God has given us, his law of Love.

[B]“I want the first approach to feel
Of pride or fond desire;
To catch the wandering of my will,
And quench the kindling fire.”

As the Apostle points out, those whose minds become impure, poisoned by ambition or pride or selfishness, the spirit of evil, profess to have known God they are apt to profess as loudly as ever, sometimes, indeed, becoming boastful of how much they know of God, and of his Word, and of how wise they are as respects its interpretation. Not by boasting or professions, therefore, can we always judge who are of the pure minds and of good consciences, and in full harmony with the Lord. Rather by their fruits we shall know them, as the Master said [Matt. 7:20]—by their works, as the Apostle here points out. [Tit. 1:16a] If any profess to know God, and yet by their works renounce him, we are fully justified in questioning whether or not they may not be self-deceived, whether or not their consciences, as well as their minds, may not have become defiled.

To renounce the Lord in our works, does not necessarily mean a resort to murder, robbery, licentiousness, etc. [but it may mean rather the same in spirit.] It means rather, in the beginning at least, that from the hitherto good fountain of a cleansed or renewed heart or will, from which issued purity, truth, sweetness, kindness, encouragement and refreshment for all who drank of its waters, in the home and family and neighborhood and amongst the Lord’s people, would issue instead bitter waters, producing bitter feelings, watering and nourishing roots of bitterness, stirring up malice, envy, hatred, strife, etc. No wonder the Apostle says of such that they are abominable [and that spirit is abominable]! All who have the spirit of the Lord must abominate the spirit of evil, however surprised and grieved they may be to find it issuing from one who previously gave forth sweetness, love, kindness, good works.

As the Master declared, if the professedly sweet fountain sends forth bitter waters, we may know that there is something wrong, something defiling, in the fountain, and are not to deceive ourselves respecting its waters, and to partake of its bitterness. [Similar Matt. 7:15-20]

Commenting along the same line the Apostle James declares, “If any man among you seemeth to be religious and bridleth not his tongue, that man’s religion is vain.” [Jas. 1:26] Because the tongue is the index of the heart, because “out of the fullness of the heart the mouth speaketh,” [Luke 6:45b] therefore the unbridled tongue speaking selfishly, enviously, bitterly, boastfully, slanderously, proves that the heart from whose fullness these overflow is unsanctified, unholy, grievously lacking of the spirit of Christ, — hence, whatever religion it may have attained is thus far vain, as that heart is not saved nor in a salvable condition. No wonder the Apostle comments in our text, that such are “disobedient:” [Tit. 1:16b] only by disobedience to the law of the New Covenant, Love, could anyone reach such a condition of heart and conscience defilement, after he had been purified through faith in the precious blood, and consecrated to the Lord.

The final statement of our text is that such a one, having lost the spirit of the truth, and having obtained instead a spirit of bitterness, rancor, evil, having a poisoned or defiled mind and conscience, is “to every good work worthless.” [Tit. 1:16b] No matter what work such a one might undertake to do, it would surely be spoiled, because the spirit of evil, the spirit of pride, the spirit of selfishness, the spirit of malice and envy, are so violently in opposition to every feature of righteousness and goodness and truth and love, that there can be no peace, no cooperation between them. And this reminds us of our Lord’s words, to the effect that those who are his people and who have his spirit, are “the salt of the earth,” [Matt. 5:13] — preservative, so long as they have this spirit; but, as he suggests, if the salt lose its saltness — if the Christian lose those peculiar features of the spirit of Christ which constitute him different from the world, separate from the world, and a salting or preservative quality in the world — if he should lose these, what? — he would be worthless as bad salt, “to every good work worthless.”—Tit. 1:16.

What course should be pursued by those who find themselves possessed of impure minds, — minds inclined to surmise evil rather than good, envious minds, selfish, resentful, bitter, unforgiving, minds which love only those that love and flatter them? Is there any hope for these? Would God not utterly reject such?

God is very pitiful; and it was while all were thus “in the very gall of bitterness and bonds of iniquity” [Acts. 8:23] that he provided for our redemption. There is hope for all such who see their defilement and who desire to be cleansed.

[C]“His blood can make the foulest clean;
His blood avails for me.”

But true repentance means both contrition and reformation: and for help in the latter we must go to the Great Physician who alone can cure such moral sickness; and of whom it is written, “Who health all thy diseases.” [Psa. 103:3] All of his sanctified ones, it is safe to say, were at one time more or less diseased thus, and proportionately “worthless” [Tit. 1:16b] for his service. [D]True, it is worse for those who were once cleansed, if they “like the sow return to the wallowing in the mire” [2 Pet. 2:22] of sin, — but still there is hope, if the Good Physician’s medicine be taken persistently the same as at first. The danger is that the conscience, becoming defiled, will so pervert the judgment that bitterness is esteemed to be sweetness, and envy and malice to be justice and duty, and the “mire” of sin to be beauty of holiness. Then only is the case practically a hopeless one.

SOME OF THE GOOD PHYSICIAN’S ANTIDOTES FOR HEART IMPURITY.

The Good Physician has pointed out antidotes for soul-poisoning, — medicines which if properly taken according to directions will sweeten the bitter heart. Instead of envy it will produce love; instead of malice and hatred and strife, love and concord; instead of evil-speaking and backbiting and scandal-mongering it will produce the love which thinketh no evil and which worketh no ill to his neighbor [Rom. 13:10a]; which suffereth long and is kind, which vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, which never faileth [1 Cor. 13:4-5] and which is the spirit of the Lord and the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus. [Rom. 8:2] Let us all take these medicines, for they are good not only for the violently sick, but for the convalescing [recovering] and the well. The following are some of the prescriptions: —

(1) “He that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he (the Lord) is pure.”—1 John 3:3.

[E]The hope mentioned is that we have been adopted as sons of God, with the promise that if faithful we shall be like him and see him as he is and share his glory [or rather divine nature]. [1 John 3:2] As our minds and hearts expand with this hope and we begin to measure its lengths and breadths, its heights and depths, it surely does set before us the Heavenly Father’s love and the Redeemer’s love in rainbow colors and we more and more love the Father and the Son because they first loved us. The divine form of love becomes more and more our ideal; and as we seek to reciprocate it and to copy it, the cleansing and purifying of our hearts follows: for looking into the perfect law of liberty — Love — we become more and more ashamed of all the meanness and selfishness which the fall brought to us. And, once seen in their true light as works of the flesh and of the devil, all anger, malice, wrath, envy, strife, evil-speaking, evil-surmising, backbiting and slander become more and more repulsive to us. And finally when we see that such as to any degree sympathize with these evil qualities are unfit for the Kingdom and to every good work worthless, we flee from these evils of the soul as from deadly contagion. Our hearts (wills, intentions) become pure at once and we set a guard not only upon our lips but also upon our thoughts—that the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts may be acceptable to the Lord. [Psa. 19:14]

(2) “Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works.”—Titus 2:14.

We might theorize much and very correctly upon how and when and by whom we were redeemed; but this all would avail little if we forgot why we were redeemed. The redemption was not merely a redemption from the power of the grave; — it was chiefly “from all iniquity.” And the Lord is not merely seeking a peculiar people, but specially a people peculiarly cleansed, purified. This medicine will surely serve to purge us from iniquity if we are anxious to make our calling and election sure.

(3) “Pursue righteousness, fidelity, love, peace, with all who call upon the Lord with a pure heart.”—2 Tim. 2:22.

We not only need to start right, but also to pursue a right course. We may not follow unrighteousness even for a moment; whatever it may cost, justice and righteousness must be followed. But here a difficulty arises with some: they do not know how to judge righteous judgment. They are too apt to judge according to rumor or appearances, or to accept the judgment of scribes and Pharisees, as did the multitude which cried, “Crucify him! His blood be upon us and upon our children.” [Luke 23:21a; Matt. 27:25] Had they followed righteousness they would have seen the Lord’s character in his good works as well as in his wonderful words of life: they would have seen that so far from being a blasphemer he was “holy, harmless, separate from sinners:” [Heb 7:26a] they would have seen that his accusers were moved by envy and hatred.

And it is just as necessary as ever to follow the Lord’s injunction, “Judge righteous judgment,” [John 7:24] and whoever neglects it brings down “blood” upon his own head and becomes a sharer in the penalty due to false accusers. For as the Lord was treated so will his “brethren” be treated. And the purer our hearts the less will they be affected by slanders and backbitings and evil-speakings, and the more will we realize that those who have bitter hearts from which arise bitter words are impure fountains in which is the gall of bitterness and not the sweetness of love.

[F]Next comes fidelity, that is, faithfulness. [G]The Lord declares his own fidelity or faithfulness and declares himself a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. [Prov. 18:24] And even the worldly recognize fidelity as a grace: and by such it is often given first place; for many would commit theft or perjury [lie] through fidelity to a friend. But notice that God’s Word puts righteousness first. [2 Tim. 2:22] Fidelity, love and peace can only be exercised in harmony with righteousness; but unrighteousness not being proven against a brother, our fidelity and love and peace toward him must continue, and indeed must increase in proportion as envy and slander and all the fiery darts of the Wicked One assail him “without a cause.” [Matt. 5:22a] This valuable prescription will help to keep our hearts free from the poison and bitterness of roots of bitterness which the Adversary keeps busily planting.

Justice is purity of heart, — freedom from injustice.

Righteousness is purity of heart, — freedom from unrighteousness.

Love is purity of heart, — freedom from selfishness.

(4) “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the spirit (the spirit of the truth) unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart, fervently.”—1 Pet. 1:22.

This medicine is for those who have used the other prescriptions and gotten clean. It points out that the purity came not merely through hearing the truth, nor through believing the truth, but through obeying it. And not merely a formal obedience in outward ceremony and custom and polished manner, but through obedience to the spirit of the truth — its real import. All this brought you to the point where the love of the “brethren” of Christ was unfeigned, genuine. At first you treated all with courtesy, or at least without impoliteness; but many of them you did not like, much less did you love them: they were poor, or shabby, or ignorant, or peculiar. But obeying the spirit of the truth you recognized that all who trust in the precious blood and are consecrated to the dear Redeemer and seeking to follow his leadings are “brethren,” regardless of race or color or education or poverty or homeliness. You reached the point where your heart is so free from envy and pride and selfishness, and so full of the spirit of the Master, that you can honestly say, I love all the “brethren” with a love that is sincere and not at all feigned.

Now having gotten thus far along in the good way, the Lord through the Apostle [Peter] tells us what next — that we may preserve our hearts pure, — “See that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently (intensely).” Ah, yes, the pure heart must not be forgotten, else it might be but a step from pure love into a snare of the Adversary, carnal love. But the pure love is not to be cold and indifferent: it is to be so warm and so strong that we would be willing to “lay down our lives for the brethren.”—1 John 3:16.

With such a love as this burning as incense to God upon the altar of our hearts there will be no room there for any selfish, envious thoughts or words or deeds. Oh how blessed would all the gatherings of the “brethren” be, if such a spirit pervaded all of them! Can we doubt that, if it held sway in one-half [50%] or one-third [33%] or even one-fourth [25%], it would speedily exercise a gracious influence upon all — for righteousness and fidelity and love and peace, and against envy, strife, malice, slanders and backbitings?

Let all the “brethren” more and more take these medicines which tend to sanctify and prepare us for the Master’s service, here and hereafter.

====================

Difficult to deliver subject. Needs mature audience.

• Unable to think of love and benevolence as motives for conduct, and accustomed in their own hearts to think merely of selfishness and personal aggrandizement as motives, they view the divine course from this standpoint, and esteem that God was moved by pride to recover man from sin and death, or by vanity, to show what he could do. They claim that our Lord Jesus was moved by selfish motives, of self-gratification, honor, increase of power, in becoming our Redeemer. They think of the loyalty of the angels from a selfish standpoint, as in hope of advancement, or in fear of punishment – These statements can be taken as a suggestion. The author may have faced similar viewpoints and hence presented them there.
• I want the first approach to feel – This text is taken from the hymn “A Tender Conscience”. Refer https://hymnary.org/text/i_want_a_principle_within.
• His blood can make the foulest clean – This text is taken from the hymn “O for a Thousand Tongues”. Refer https://hymnary.org/text/o_for_a_thousand_tongues_to_sing_my.
• True, it is worse for those who were once cleansed, if they “like the sow return to the wallowing in the mire” [2 Pet. 2:22] of sin, — but still there is hope, if the Good Physician’s medicine be taken persistently the same as at first. – In context Peter speaks of them that would not be able to return back.
• The hope mentioned is that we have been adopted as sons of God, with the promise that if faithful we shall be like him and see him as he is and share his glory.  – The hope is mentioned in the second part “if faithful… glory”. Since we are already sons of God, we need not hope for this. Further, we may not be able to share the glory of God, rather we are called to share in his divine nature.
• Next comes fidelity, that is, faithfulness. – In context of the verse, this seems to be faith and not fidelity.
• The Lord declares his own fidelity or faithfulness and declares himself a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. [Prov. 18:24] – In context these verses are by Solomon who provides his counsel to the listeners. Hence the author’s view can be taken on a suggestive note.

[R5802 : page 344]

THE MINISTRY OF SORROW

“Out of the depths have I cried unto Thee, O Lord!” “When He giveth quietness, who then can make trouble?”—Psalm 130:1; Job 34:29[In Tamil Job 34:30b].

THE life of every human being has its lights and shadows, its heights of joy and its depths of sorrow. These make up a large part of the warp and the woof of experience; and the web of character which flows from the active loom of life, will be fine and beautiful or coarse and homely, according to the skill and carefulness with which the individual weaves into it the threads of experience. In every life, in the present reign of sin and evil the somber[or sad] shades predominate; and to such an extent is this true that the Word of God aptly describes the human family in their present condition as a groaning creation. “The whole creation groaneth and travaileth together until now,” says the Apostle[Paul]. The children of God are no exception to this universal rule; [A]we also “groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, the deliverance of our Body”—our company, the Body of Christ.—Romans 8:22,23.

But while we are waiting for our deliverance, the daily experiences of life have a most important mission to us, and the manner in which we receive them should be a matter of deepest concern; for according to the use we make of them, each day’s prosperity or its adversity and trial bear to us a blessing or a curse. Those experiences which we are accustomed to regard as prosperous often have in them subtle dangers. If wealth increases or friends multiply or a large measure of earthly joy comes to us, how almost imperceptibly the heart finds its satisfaction in the things of earth! But when the keen edge of sorrow and disappointment is felt, when riches or health fail, when friends forsake, and enemies take up a reproach against us, the natural tendency is to despondency and despair.

Just here is a very important part of the great warfare of the Christian’s life. He must fight the tendencies of his old nature and must confidently claim and expect the victory, in the strength of the great Captain of his salvation. He[the Christian] must not yield to the alluring influences of favorable outward conditions, neither must he sink beneath the weight of trials and adversity. He must not permit any experience in life, however hard and painful, to sour and harden him or make him bitter, morose or unloving. Nor may he allow pride or love of show, or self-righteousness, to feed upon the temporal blessings which the Lord in His loving providence has given him to prove his faithfulness as a steward.

DEPTHS OF SORROW LEAD TO HEIGHTS OF JOY

Sorrow and griefs may, and perhaps often will, come in like a flood, but the Lord will be our Stay and Strength in every experience which He permits.[Psa. 37:39] The soul that has never known the discipline of sorrow and trouble has never yet learned the joy and preciousness of the Lord’s love and helpfulness. It is in seasons of overwhelming sorrow and grief, when we draw near to the Lord, that He draws especially near to us.[Similar Jas. 4:8] So the Psalmist found it, when in his deep affliction he cried to God, saying, “Out of the depths have I cried unto Thee, O Lord! Lord, hear my voice; let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications!” (Vs. 1,2.)[Psa. 130:1,2] Feeling his own weaknesses and shortcomings, longing for full deliverance from every imperfection, and prophesying of the bountiful provisions of the Divine Plan of Salvation through Christ[or Messiah], he adds, “If Thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities (imputing them to us), O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared (reverenced).”—Vs. 3,4.[Psa. 130:3,4]

How precious are such assurances when the soul is painfully conscious of its infirmities, of its utter inability to fully measure up to the perfect law of righteousness! How blessed it is to know that when our hearts are loyal and true, our God does not mark against us the unavoidable blemishes of our earthen vessel! If we come daily to Him for cleansing, through the merits of our Redeemer, our failures are not imputed to us, but freely forgiven and washed away. The perfect righteousness of our Savior is our glorious dress, arrayed in which we may come to God with humble boldness, courage—even into the presence of the great Jehovah, [B]the King of kings and Lord of lords.

If thus God ignores the infirmities of our flesh, and fully receives us and communes with us as His dear children, we should so regard one another, considering not and charging not against one another the infirmities of the flesh, which each humbly confesses, and which they, like us, are earnestly endeavoring to overcome by the grace of God, to the best of their ability. To each one of the Lord’s true children the words of the Apostle[Paul] apply: “If God be for us, who can be against us?…Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s Elect? Shall that God that justifieth? Who is he that condemneth? Shall Christ that died?” (Romans 8:31,33,34—Diaglott.) The case is different, however, when the infirmities of the flesh are cultivated, indulged in without proper effort to correct them, and are justified, in order that the faults may be continued. Then, indeed, they are charged against us, and if we do not speedily “judge ourselves,” and take decisive measures to correct them, the Lord will Himself judge and chasten us.—1 Cor. 11:31,32.

In the midst of the cares, perplexities and difficulties that come to the children of the Lord, we are to trust Him fully, and to possess our souls in peace and patience![Similar Luke 21:19] We are to wait patiently for the Lord to outwork the issues of our experiences in His own good way. How necessary is the patient waiting on the Lord! The Psalmist says, “I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in His Word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning.” (Psalm 130:5,6.) In every experience of sorrow and distress, and when the strain of the jarring discords and the stinging vexations, and wounds that make the heart bleed, threaten to overwhelm the spirit, let the child of God remember that [C]”He knows, and loves, and cares,” and that His ministering angel is ever near us, and that no trial will be permitted to be too severe. The dear Master is standing by the crucible, and the furnace heat will never be permitted to grow so intense that the precious gold of our characters shall be destroyed, or even injured. Ah, no! If by His grace the experiences may not work for our good, they will be turned aside. He loves us too well to permit any needless sorrow, any needless suffering.

THE REWARD OF PATIENT WAITING

“Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. And He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday. Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.” (Psalm 37:5-7.) We must not be disappointed and allow our faith to falter when the test of patient endurance is applied, while the outward peace and quietness which we crave tarry long. Our Father has not forgotten us when the answer to our prayers seems to be delayed. Outward peace and calm are not always the conditions best suited to our needs as New Creatures; and we would not desire conditions in which the precious fruits of the Spirit would not grow and develop in us. Therefore, “Think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which shall try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you, but rejoice.” (1 Peter 4:12,13.) He who numbers the very hairs of our heads is never indifferent to the sufferings and needs of His weakest and humblest child. Oh, how sweet is the realization of such loving, abiding care! “When He giveth quietness, who then can make trouble?”[Job 34:30a]

The saints have indeed in every sorrow and grief a blessed consolation of which the world is wholly in ignorance. None but the true child of God can know it. What is this consolation? Oh, you who have never enlisted under the banner of the Cross, who have never put yourselves wholly into the hands of the Lord to be moulded and fashioned into His glorious likeness, who have never made an earnest effort to stem the tide of the tendencies of your own fallen nature, who have never contended earnestly for Truth and righteousness in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation[Phil. 2:15a], what can you know of the sweets of this Divine consolation? It is the precious balm of Gilead for wounded spirits on the battle-field of life, it is the stimulating, refreshing draught for fainting souls, hard pressed by the relentless foe. It is the soothing caress of a loving hand upon the fevered brow of the noble contender for Truth and godliness. It is the gentle whisper of hope and love and courage when heart and flesh are almost failing. This is Divine consolation, the only consolation that has in it any virtue of healing or refreshment. It is reserved alone for those noble souls who are faithfully bearing the burden and heat of the day in the service of the King of kings; while those who listlessly drift with the current of the world and the downward tendencies of the carnal nature can never have an intimation of its sweetness.

How loving and tender is our God, and how wise and strong! His promises have never failed those who have put their trust in Him. We may feel that our efforts to be good and to do good are very unproductive, that the opposition from without and within is very strong. But it is when we are weak, when we realize our own helplessness and incompetency, that we may be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. It is then that we may realize that His strength is made perfect in our weakness. The fact that we are weak and lame does not separate us from the love and power of our God, while we are striving to do His will; for “He knoweth our frame, He remembereth that we are dust.”[Psa. 103:14] Then let us more and more lay hold of this strength of the Lord, that we may courageously pursue our course in the narrow way of difficulty and trial. Precious indeed to the saint of God is the ministry of pain and sorrow!

“YE HAVE SEEN THE PATIENCE OF JOB”[Similar Jas. 5:11]

The saints of every Age have learned the blessing of afflictions and sorrows. The Psalmist David says, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn Thy statutes”; and again, “Before I was afflicted, I went astray; but now have I kept Thy Word.” (Psalm 119:67,71.) God’s faithful servant Job suffered almost overwhelming troubles, but the Lord brought him out into a large place when his testings had accomplished their designed effect. He was proven and strengthened by his sore experiences. Few if any of us could suffer more. He suffered the loss of all his property, then of all his children, whom he loved, then of the love and loyalty of his wife; and finally, he was smitten with sore disease—boils, from head to foot.[Job 1; 2] To crown all, three of his friends came to see him on hearing of his great trials; and instead of being true comforters, they added to his sorrows by insisting that his own sins must have been the cause of all these disasters; that his experiences must surely be punishments from the Lord because of unfaithfulness on his part. Surely poor Job was afflicted![Job 2:11-13; Job 4:7-9]

But did he lose his faith in God? Hear him: “The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the Name of the Lord!” (Job 1:21.) “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him.” (Job 13:15.) Job was indeed much cast down, but he maintained his integrity of character and his faith in the Lord through all. He did not charge God with injustice, and God did not desert His faithful servant. He reproved his accusers and required them to offer sacrifice, and instructed Job to pray for them, that their trespasses might be overlooked.[Job 42:7-10] In the end he was blessed more abundantly than ever before.[Job 42:12-17] God made him a great type of the human family, of the troubles of their fallen condition and of their final restoration to all that was lost in Adam, with the blessings of added experiences to make them wise. How faithful is the Lord in all His dealings! Truly His children should never doubt His love; for

[D]”Faith can firmly trust Him,
Come what may.”

PRECIOUSNESS OF INTIMATE FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD

It is when continued trust in the Lord and His many responsive providences in our lives have ripened into precious personal acquaintance and intimacy that we learn to delight in Him. Yes, it is when heart answers to heart, when pleading prayer brings recognized answers of peace, when the Divine love and care have been clearly seen in the guidance of our way, that we can recognize the abiding presence with us of the Father and the Son. Then, however dark may be our way, however severe may be the storm that rages about us, the thought of Divine protection is ever with us, so that as the children of the Lord we are never in despair; though cast down, we are not destroyed; though persecuted, we are never forsaken.[2 Cor. 4:9] We know our Father’s hand is ever at the helm, that His love and care are sure and unfailing.

Those who have come into real heart sympathy with God have learned to see Him as the Fountain of all goodness and Truth and blessing. [E]To them He is the One altogether lovely.[Songs 5:16] His Law is their delight. His friendship and love are their very life. When the heart has become thus centered in God, it is the most natural impulse to commit its way unto Him. These can truly sing with the poet:

[F]”So on I go, not knowing,
I would not if I might;
I’d rather walk in the dark with God
Than go alone in the light;
I’d rather walk by faith with Him
Than go alone by sight.”

Surely these have the desires of their heart, and no good thing shall be withheld from them.[Psa. 84:11b] Their fervent prayers avail much, and in the Lord’s good time their righteousness, however much it may now be misunderstood, misrepresented and evil-spoken of, shall be brought forth as the light—clear, cloudless and widely manifest; and their judgment, the justice and righteousness of their course and of their hearts, shall be brought forth as the noonday.[Psalm 37:6-7] Even while we remain here as aliens and foreigners in the enemy’s land, we shall be fed, nourished, temporally and spiritually, and shall rejoice and be glad in the “house of our pilgrimage.”[Psa. 119:54] Precious indeed are the promises of God; and to the praise of His abounding grace, His saints of the past and of the present all bear ample testimony to their fulfilment.

[G]”Who need faint while such a river
Ever flows their thirst to assuage?—
Grace, which like the Lord, the Giver,
Never fails from Age to Age!”

====================

Good subject.

• we also “groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, the deliverance of our Body”—our company, the Body of Christ.—Romans 8:22,23 – In context of the verse, Paul is speaking about the actual spiritual glorious body which we will receive in our chief resurrection.
• the King of kings and Lord of lord – In scriptures, this  title is usually given to the glorified Lord Jesus. Read Rev. 17:14; 19:16. Similar titles for Jehovah supported by scriptures are “Lord of hosts”, “God of Gods”, “Lord of Lords”. May we suggest an alternate title here such as the one mentioned by the Babylonian King in Dan. 2:47 – “God of gods and King of lords”.
• “He knows, and loves, and cares,” – This text is taken from the Hymn “He Knows, He Cares, He Loves”. Refer https://hymnary.org/text/my_father_knows_just_what_i_need
• “Faith can firmly trust Him, Come what may.” – This text is taken from the hymn “I Left It All With Jesus”. Refer https://hymnary.org/text/i_left_it_all_with_jesus_long_ago
• To them He is the One altogether lovely – The verse in reference is Songs 5:16 and “one altogether lovely” more aptly represents Christ to the Church, rather than God.
• So on I go, not knowing – The song is taken from the hymn “I know not what awaits me” last sonnet. Refer https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/nt/711.
• Who need faint while such a river – this text is taken from the hymn “Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken”. Refer https://hymnary.org/text/glorious_things_of_thee_are_spoken.

[R2877 : page 294]

“FINALLY, BE ALL OF ONE MIND.”

—————

“Finally, be all of one mind (harmonious—in accord), having compassion one of another; love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous; not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing; but contrariwise blessing, knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.”—1 Pet. 3:8,9.

HARMONY does not mean alike-ness [in every respect]. Rather it signifies unity with diversity: and this is the meaning of the Greek word [homophron] translated “of one mind” in our text [1 Pet. 3:8]. The Lord’s will respecting his people does not contemplate exact sameness, wholly ignoring individual characteristics and peculiarities; on the contrary, a diversity with harmony is more desirable than a sameness; as, for instance, it is the harmonious union of the seven colors that constitutes the beauty of the rainbow. So also in music: one strikes a chord on the piano or the organ and the result is harmony, oneness, union—the variety of the notes gives a melody which could not be obtained from any one of them, or from a sameness of equal volume. This is the thought the Apostle’s words give us in respect to God’s people; they are of various natural temperaments and dispositions and peculiarities, and the divine alchemy [science or experiment] by which the human is transmuted into the spiritual, the old mind into the new mind, does not wholly destroy, and is not intended to destroy, the elements of character and disposition; but is intended to take from each one its dross and imperfection and discordancy, and thus to permit all eventually to unite in and develop into a harmonious whole.

The Lord does not expect, however, that this condition of complete harmony, will be attained by his people the instant of their consecration. On the contrary, as the Apostle indicates in our text [1 Pet. 3:8a], this attainment of harmony is the result, the glorious consummation,—rather than the beginning of the work of grace in the Lord’s people: he says, “finally,” not primarily, we are to be all of one mind—harmonious. It requires long years, generally, in the school of Christ, for his disciples to so grow in grace and in knowledge and in love,—ere they reach the glorious condition expressed in our text, even “finally.”

The Apostle Paul intimates that we are to continue so to grow in grace and in knowledge, and in love, as to attain in heart, in will, the stature of a perfect man in Christ. [Eph. 4:13; In Tamil Eph. 4:11] The “babe” in Christ has not the stature of a “man,” and requires first the milk of the Word, and subsequently the “strong meat,” that it may grow thereby, and finally attain to the ideal condition represented in our text [1 Pet. 3:8],—a condition of harmony with the Lord and with each other, which indicates that the work of grace has well progressed—that the mark of perfect love has been well attained in the heart, even though it be not possible still to fully express it in every word and act of life.

A)The Apostle Paul describes this transformation of life, this growth, saying, “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind;” [Rom. 12:2] but while it requires only a short time to give this instruction, and does not require long to agree to follow the instruction, it does require patient perseverance in well-doing to comply with the instructions;—to fully attain to the transformed conditions even in our hearts—so that we will aright, however difficult it may be for us to always do right. And here arises a difficulty: many do not clearly see just what are the requirements, and hence go through life in a maze, in perplexity, in doubt, in fear, lacking the rest and peace and blessing which should come from a proper understanding and a consistent endeavor.

No doubt all have been struck with the fact that those who manifest the deepest interest in the divine plan are not always the most smooth and most agreeable people in the world: frequently they are so combative as to be continually distressing both themselves and their friends by their unwisdom or their disposition to wrangling and contention. The very quality which the Apostle [Peter] mentions in this text as like-mindedness or harmony is peculiarly lacking, naturally, in the disposition of the majority of those who become deeply interested in present truth. And some have been inclined hastily to condemn the doctrines and to say, This is not the peaceable spirit of Christ. Where the spirit of Christ is there should be love and harmony. So says the Apostle: “Finally, be ye all of one mind.” [1 Pet. 3:8a] And this should be borne in mind as being the final result of discipline and instruction in the school of Christ; by our attainment of this disposition to harmony (while at the same time loyal and courageous for the truth), we may safely gauge our growth in grace, knowledge and love.

We want to suggest an explanation as to why it is that so many of the Lord’s people are combatively disposed. A wrangling and contentious disposition is the result of large combativeness—misdirected—unwisely exercised. Combativeness itself is not a bad quality. On the contrary, it is a good quality,—a quality actually indispensable to the attainment of the prize set before us in the Gospel. Those who lack combativeness, lack backbone; lack the ability to walk an upright life, under present conditions; they are like a boat on the river which has neither oars nor wheel nor screw-propeller. They can do nothing but float with the current, for they lack the apparatus necessary to stem it. There are many goody-goody people who lack firmness, lack character, lack combativeness, and who could not think of anything else than floating with the popular current; and these frequently are mistaken for “saints” when they are nothing of the kind. B)They are not even of the kind of material that the Lord takes to make “saints” out of. They are unfit for his purposes under the present call of this Gospel age; for all who are called now to be of the elect Church are called to be “overcomers;” called to be victors; called to stem the popular tide; called to fight a good fight of faith and obedience; and such as are totally lacking in firmness, in combativeness, in character, cannot possibly comply with these conditions, and are not in the race.

So then, if any of those who have grasped the truth, and who have been grasped and drawn by the truth to consecration to the Lord, have at times felt the perversity of their natural dispositions—their combativeness, contentiousness and wrangling disposition, and felt discouraged on this account, let them thank God and take courage. Let them realize that this very disposition constitutes one qualification for enlistment and service under the Captain of our salvation;—although such a service will mean the bringing of this contrary disposition into accord with the spirit of love, which, in the end, will mean that the wrangling [disputing] disposition will be subdued, and the combativeness be properly turned to good account in another direction.

But while taking all the encouragement we can from the thought that the Lord is wishing and is seeking and calling out a fighting class of “conquerors,” who could not be conquerors unless there were something to conquer, and who could not conquer unless they possessed something of the conquering or combative disposition, let us nevertheless, promptly take ourselves in hand, realizing that the good quality of combativeness has in every instance been misdirected, and that from the moment we enlist as soldiers of the Cross of Christ our combativeness is to be turned into new channels. [1] We are to learn, first of all, that our combativeness is not to be exercised toward the Lord, that we should resist his will; but that, on the contrary, we are to make a full surrender to him of our thoughts and words and conduct. [2] We are to remember that combativeness is not to be used toward the brethren; for to fight against the brethren is to fight against God, against the truth, against the fellow-members of our own brigade. Instead of fighting against the brethren, we are to love them, and to fight for them, even as we are to fight for the Lord and for the truth. [3] We are to remember, too, that our combativeness is not to be exercised against our friends, our neighbors, or the world in general. No; all of these have plenty to contend against without having our opposition. On the contrary, they need our sympathy, they need our help, they need our encouragement, they need whatever we can render them in the way of uplift.

FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT OF FAITH.—1 TIM. 6:12.

—————

How, then, and against what shall we exercise our combativeness, that it may be well directed to the Lord’s pleasement and in the service of his cause? We answer, that our combativeness is to be turned against sin, and that its first exercise must begin with ourselves: the battle with self is the greatest battle, and we have the Lord’s Word [through the wiseman] for it that he that “ruleth his spirit (his own mind, will) is better than he that taketh a city,” [Pro. 16:32b] because he has to that extent learned to exercise the combativeness of a true character in the right direction, in self-control. It is after we have had considerable experience in battling with sin and selfishness in ourselves, in casting the beam out of our own eyes, in subduing anger, malice, hatred and strife in our own hearts and flesh—it is then, and by means of this severe battle and experience, that we will be prepared to assist the brethren, and to assist our neighbors in their difficulties—to help them to overcome their besetments and weaknesses.

Whoever starts out by fighting even the sins of others before he has made a vigorous campaign against his own weaknesses and errors, is making a mistake. He needs humility and sympathy to assist the others to fight their battles, and this he cannot gain without first battling with himself and learning to appreciate how strong is the foe to be contended with, and how thoroughly entrenched is sin and selfishness in all the avenues of the flesh. He even needs to be worsted in some of his battles with self in order to have a clear appreciation of his own inability to overcome and to force him to go to the throne of the heavenly grace to obtain mercy and find grace to help. He needs this because, as the Apostle [Paul] says, it is when we are weak that we are strong; and when we are strong in our self-confidence, and therefore neglect to go to the Lord, then we are weak and liable to make failure in the battle, and to be overcome by the enemy—Sin.—Heb. 4:16; 2 Cor. 12:10.

All those who have had any experience in the matter, and who have learned how and where to direct their combative energies, find that there is full scope for the exercise of every particle of combativeness he possesses. (1) In himself, continually; as the Apostle expressed it, “I keep my body under, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway” (1 Cor. 9:27). O, how much of energy and how much persistency in fighting the good fight of faith, and of loyalty to the Lord, is needful in the conquering of self—”bringing every thought (and so far as possible, every word and act) into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5). Plenty of room here for combativeness; plenty of room for all the contention and wrangling we want;—contention with sin and self-will, wrangling with the will of the flesh and opposing it at every step—mortifying it, killing its affections and desires. No wonder the Apostle speaks of these present experiences as a fight; no wonder he tells us that we must be prepared to endure hardness as a good soldier of the Lord Jesus Christ. [1 Tim. 6:12; 2 Tim. 2:3]

(2) As soon as the victory over self has been gained, and as soon as the new mind has put a garrison in every quarter of the conquered body, to guard it from rising in insurrection, to hold it in subjection to the King of kings and Lord of lords—forthwith all the remaining energies that can be spared from self-control will find ample opportunity for usefulness in battling for the Lord, battling for the brethren, battling for the truth, battling against error, battling against all the wiles of the devil, “for we are not ignorant of his devices,” [2 Cor. 2:11b] as the Apostle declares.

(3) As the eyes of our understanding get opened, wider and wider, we see the great conflict that is progressing throughout the world between righteousness and sin, between our Lord and the god of this world and his blinded representatives, who ignorantly think that they are doing God service and are often found fighting against the truth and against the true soldiers of the Cross, their brethren, even as in the case of Paul. We remember how he, as Saul of Tarsus, persecuted the Church, mistakenly misusing his combativeness in a wrong way. We remember how the Lord called to him in the way, “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” [Acts. 9:4]—Why are you fighting against God, opposing the truth and his cause? In Paul’s case we see how that as soon as the eyes of his understanding were opened he became a most valiant soldier of the cross, hesitating not to lay down his life in the service of the Lord and the brethren, who once he had ignorantly opposed.

It was the same combativeness which made Paul a violent persecutor that subsequently made him the most valiant of the apostles in the defence of the truth. And so it was also with others of the apostles. Those who had the largest amount of combativeness naturally, when it was turned into the proper channels, became thereby the strongest and most valiant for the truth. Peter, for instance, full of combativeness, and at first seriously impeded by it, ready in defence of the Lord to smite off the ear of the high priest’s servant, was very valiant subsequently in the use of his talents to the Lord’s praise. [John 18:10] James and John, two others specially favored and recognized of the Lord, and specially used in the service of the truth, were of combative dispositions, so much so that they were known as the “sons of thunder;” [Mark 3:17] and it was these two who were so incensed at the Samaritans who refused to receive our Lord into their city, and who were so full of love and zeal for the Master that they inquired, “Lord, wilt thou that we call down fire from heaven to consume these men and their city?” [Luke 9:54] They had the combativeness, they had the courage, they had the zeal; but they had not yet learned how to direct it, and so the Master intimated, when he said, “Ye know not what spirit ye are of. The Son of Man came not to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” [Luke 9:55,56] By and by, when they were anointed with the holy spirit at Pentecost, and had learned gradually what spirit they were of (what spirit the Master was of, and what spirit they must be of as his disciples), they understood better how their combativeness and zeal were to be used. And hence we find them loyal soldiers of the cross, shunning not danger, enduring hardness as good soldiers of the Lord Jesus, even unto death.

It was this natural combativeness consecrated to God, and rightly directed through the spirit, that led Peter and one of the others, when threatened, and charged straitly by the Sanhedrin that they should preach no more in the name of Jesus, to courageously withstand this illegal restraint upon their liberties and rights as Jews, under the Law, and to be obedient to the voice of the heavenly call, and to declare, “Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20). C)The Lord knew whom he was choosing for his apostles, and we see clearly that weak, vacillating, nerveless men would not have served the cause as did these whom Jesus chose. D)And it is but reasonable that we conclude that the Lord similarly throughout this age, is seeking for and choosing strong characters, those who dare to do right; who dare to incur the frown of the world and its slights and sneers, its scoffs and its jeers, its persecution because of fidelity to the Lord and to the brethren. This is overcoming;—and to whatever extent any realize that they are deficient in these qualities let them cultivate this combativeness in this proper direction—to combat weakness, combat sin, combat subserviency to those things which are contrary to the Lord and his Word.

FAITH AND THE MESSAGES ALSO ESSENTIAL.

—————

But combativeness alone would not be sufficient. It needs proportionate faith, in order to use the combativeness aright. Hence we hear our Lord’s word [through the  Apostle], “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even your faith.” [1 John 5:4] Faith in the Lord must be the power that will move his people and energize them. Not faith in creeds, nor faith in men, nor faith in ourselves, but faith in the Lord and in his exceeding great and precious promises. As the steamboat wheels represent its combativeness, by which it battles against and pushes the water, and thus is enabled to go upstream, so its steam-power, through the engine, represents faith, which must be behind the combativeness, to exercise the combativeness—to lead us to endure hardness, to direct us in fighting the good fight and to hope for the rewards to be attained.

Similarly the fuel and the boiler generating the steam represent the Word and providences of God, which produce in us the cause, the power of the faith which energizes us in stemming the current. The exceeding great and precious promises of the divine Word were given to us as the basis of faith,—as the fuel to produce the power in us to will and to do God’s good pleasure (Phil. 2:13). And hence these gracious promises must not be neglected; they must be continually used and must continue in us to energize us. And the energy must be applied, and we must progress proportionately against the course of this world, if we would attain to the glorious conditions to which we have been called.

While we should ever remember (lest otherwise we should be discouraged), that the attainment of a control of our own spirits, our own minds, and the bringing of these into full accord, full harmony, with the Lord and, so far as possible, into accord with all of the Lord’s people who are in accord with him, is to be “finally,” nevertheless we are not to delay our endeavor to reach that final and grand development to which the Apostle exhorts us in our text [1 Pet. 3:8]. We are to have it continually before us as the standard, the ideal, the aim, and although we may fail time and again, if we are rightly exercised in the matter we will be stronger as the result of every failure; for each failure will show us more clearly than we discerned previously the weak points of our characters, naturally resulting from the fall. And if each weak point be carefully noted and guarded against as respects the future we will come by and by, by the grace of God and under the direction of our great Teacher, by his Word and example, and providential leadings, to that subdued condition, that harmonized condition, which would accord to the expression of the text. And to such, looking back, even the failures which subsequently recognized led to greater fortification against the wiles of the Adversary and the weaknesses of the flesh, may be seen to have been overruled by the Lord for our blessing according to his promise that all things shall work together for good to them that love him.

As we finally, in larger and larger measure, attain to harmony—to the subduing of our natural dispositions toward contention, gradually getting these combative tendencies into accord with the Lord and his Word and his Spirit, and into accord with those who are his, our fellow-soldiers in this battle for the right, our condition will be what the Apostle here describes; viz., we will have compassion one of another. We will expect to see and will see “the brethren” striving for the mastery over self and we will be sympathetic, compassionate; so that if they err through weakness of the flesh, we will be glad to restore such in the spirit of meekness, remembering ourselves also lest we should be tempted (Gal. 6:1). We will love them as brethren ought to love—heartily, thoroughly—such a love and such a sympathy, such a compassion, as would lead us to do everything within our power for their assistance;—especially along the lines of spiritual assistance, in the conquering of sin, and in growth in grace and knowledge and love;—but, nevertheless, also in temporal matters as we have opportunity, as may be possible to us.

This compassion and brotherly love amongst the spiritual brethren, even as respects temporal matters, cannot surely be less than it would be amongst natural brethren. Indeed, inasmuch as the spiritual relationship is the higher, the nobler, the grander of the two, without detracting anything from the love and affection and obligations toward the fleshly brotherhood, it would imply that the spiritual would appeal to us still more strongly, so that we would do all for a brother in Christ in a temporal way that we would do for any earthly brother—and more abundantly. The Apostle sets this standard, saying, that we are to “do good unto all men as we have opportunity, especially to the household of faith.” [Gal. 6:10]

This of course does not mean that we are to be negligent of those of our own immediate households and our special responsibilities to these; but it does mean that aside from these, the spiritual brethren should have the first place in our hearts and in our sympathies and in our love, and in all that this would imply in the way of sharing with them both the spiritual and the temporal good things which we enjoy, according to their necessities. Those who have reached this condition of heart-harmony with the Lord and with his gracious plan will have had such an experience in attaining to this position themselves that it will make them pitiful of others,—sympathetic in the difficulties and trials of others; and it will make them “courteous,” polite, “gentle toward all.”

In a word, according to the Scriptural standard, the elect Church of Christ should be the most polished, the most refined, the most polite, the most generous, the most kind, of all the people in the world;—and should be all these in the most absolute sense; not in the mere sense of an outward form and appearance of kindness, gentleness, etc., so common in the world; but a gentleness, a kindness, proceeding from the heart, proceeding from an appreciation of the Lord’s spirit and the spirit of the truth, the spirit of love, and the spirit of justice, also. It is a great matter that we learn to be thoroughly just, and in all of our affairs to do unto others as we would wish them to do unto us,—that we accord them the same liberties that we ourselves would wish to enjoy. Truly, the law of God is a wonderful law, and truly the people who are taught of the Lord and trained in harmony with the divine will, must be a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

Combative people will always (while in the flesh) feel a disposition to retaliate; but those who have learned of the Lord the lesson of self-control, and who have developed meekness and brotherly-kindness and pity, will thereby be prepared to fulfil the demands of our text,—to not render evil for evil, or railing for railing. And looking to the Lord as the pattern they will see how it was with him, that “When he was reviled he reviled not again.” [1 Pet. 2:23] Not because his enemies had found in him something that could properly and justly be reviled and evil spoken of;—nor because his enemies were so nearly perfect that he could find nothing in them to revile and speak evil of; but because he was so full of submission to the divine will that he was enabled to take the scoffs and railings of the people, and to bear these humbly and patiently, and to remember that even hereunto he was called, that he should endure patiently and learn the lessons, and prove himself faithful, and develop and demonstrate his true character, and feel and manifest his pity for the people, in their blindness and ignorance, and his love for them.

And so it must be with us as we grow in our Lord’s character-likeness. We also will be less disposed to rail at those who rail, and to revile those who revile us. We also will be ready to suffer the loss of all things, and to do so with cheerfulness; yea, even to rejoice in the trials and difficulties of this present time, knowing, as the Apostle [Paul] declares, that these are working out for us a far more exceeding and an eternal weight of glory. E)We note here the harmony between Peter’s statement of this matter and our Lord’s statement of it: “Bless them that curse you; bless and curse not” (Phil. 3:8; 2 Cor. 4:17; Matt. 5:44; Rom. 12:14). So the Apostle [Peter] says we should rather render blessing [1 Pet. 3:9]. If we have not yet attained to this high standard which is at the end of the race, the mark of perfect love, where we love our enemies and are ready and willing and anxious to bless them, to help them, to desire their uplifting out of darkness and degradation, and to wish and do all that we can in harmony with this, the divine plan, let us not be discouraged; but let us press onward, that as soon as possible we may reach this point, which is the mark of perfected character. For, as the Apostle says, “even hereunto we were called, that we might inherit a blessing.” [1 Pet. 3:9]

THE BLESSED INHERITANCE FOR WHICH WE ARE BEING PREPARED.

—————

We were called to be the Royal Priesthood, under Jesus, the Royal High Priest of our profession. We are instructed in the Scriptures that this royal priesthood is to be God’s agency during the Millennial age for bringing blessing to the world of mankind, and “hereunto we were called” that we might be fitted for this priesthood. The Apostle tells us that in the preparation of our Lord Jesus and his testing as to fitness for the position of high priest, it was necessary that he should be tempted, tried, and caused to suffer, in order that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest when the time should come to exercise the authority and power of his office. Similarly it is necessary that all who would be of this Royal Priesthood should have such experiences now as would develop in them also these principles of truth, righteousness—such experiences as would lead them to love righteousness and to hate iniquity—such experiences in battling with self and in gaining control (at least so far as the mind, the will is concerned), as would constitute them victors and develop in them these graces of the spirit mentioned by the Apostle [Peter], brotherly kindness, pitifulness, compassion. All these qualities will be requisite in dealing with the world during the Millennial age. They will be merciful and faithful high priests, because they will know how to sympathize with the poor world in its fallen condition, and how to make allowances for them in their various efforts toward regaining the standard of perfection then to be established through restitution processes.

We will be kings as well as priests then. As kings, we will be endued with power to control the world. This will be a further proper use of combativeness; but we are not fitted and prepared to so control the world in the present time; and therefore the Lord directs his people to wait, and long for, and pray for his Kingdom to come, and his will to be done;—to be enforced with heavenly power and authority. These “very elect” kings and priests will be fully qualified to exercise their power in moderation, for then they will have the new bodies in perfect accord with the new minds;—the new minds which are now being developed, disciplined and brought to that standard of perfect love, which is full of pity, compassion, brotherly kindness and harmony. How necessary, dear brethren, that we learn these lessons, if we would be prepared to be used in the glorious service of the Kingdom so shortly to be established.

====================

Good subject.

1. The Apostle Paul describes this transformation of life, this growth, saying, “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind;” [Rom. 12:2] – In the context of the verse, Paul speaks about the transforming from the worldly / earthly nature (mind) to a spiritual / heavenly nature (mind).
2. They are not even of the kind of material that the Lord takes to make “saints” out of. – It is pertinent to note that the Lord does not take or select people based on their characters. The invitation or high calling is based on their predestined status. However, receiving the call the individual is expected to grow and reflect the characteristics expected out of the “saint” class.
3. The Lord knew whom he was choosing for his apostles, and we see clearly that weak, vacillating, nerveless men would not have served the cause as did these whom Jesus chose. – This text would be in direct contradiction to 1 Cor. 1:27, where the Apostle Paul states that God chose the “weak things of the world”. The correct thought is that God does not chose or select based on any characteristics, but the call is based on their predestined status.
4. And it is but reasonable that we conclude that the Lord similarly throughout this age, is seeking for and choosing strong characters, those who dare to do right; who dare to incur the frown of the world and its slights and sneers, its scoffs and its jeers, its persecution because of fidelity to the Lord and to the brethren – Same as above.
5. We note here the harmony between Peter’s statement of this matter and our Lord’s statement of it: “Bless them that curse you; bless and curse not” – Here the statement mentioned is that of Paul’s and not of Peter’s or our Lord’s.

[R4994 : page 98]

LOVE OF THE BRETHREN A CRUCIAL TEST

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity.”—Psa. 133:1.

PSALM 133 is evidently prophetic and seems to refer to the brethren in “the Church, which is the Body of Christ.” [Similar Col. 1:18] This thought is implied in the second verse, which says, “It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard, that went down to the skirts of his garments,” [Psa. 133:2] which is a picture of the Holy Spirit running down over the Body of Christ, the Church.

The Psalm seems to be specially applicable to our day, although it has always been a pleasant sight to see brethren dwelling together in unity. In times of persecution there would be greater unity, because there would be fewer likely to attach themselves to the Church; outside persecutions would be likely to deter all but the truly consecrated. Such persecutions all would be likely to feel, and only those who had common interest and common cause would be drawn together.

But as persecution would cease and as more would come into the Church, who were not so zealous, the opportunities for differences would seem to increase. Although today there is much opposition to the children of light, there is, apparently, little persecution. The Truth has attracted a number, some of whom, probably, are not all that they should be. In fact, none of them are what they desire to be—copies of God’s dear Son; but each and all should be striving to attain to the standard.

CAUSES OF FRICTION INCREASING

It might at first seem strange that there would be any friction between these favored children of God. One would suppose that their hearts would be so filled with the Holy Spirit that there would be no room for the weeds of hatred, envy, strife, jealousy, and that these would be crowded out by the fruits of the Spirit. Perhaps such was the condition when we first made our consecration; and there was no room for these works of the flesh. But it seems that the causes of friction are increasing rather than diminishing. It is proper, therefore, that we should note the source of the difficulty and thus be enabled to ward off the danger and to be peacemakers amongst the brethren. “Ye that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak.” (Rom. 15:1.) If this standard be the measure, there are not so many strong as we might have hoped; therefore, it behooves each of us to become strong and helpful to the weak brethren in the Church.

One thing to be considered is that there is more opportunity for friction amongst those who are spirit-begotten New Creatures than there is amongst the world, as a whole; that is to say, a company of people in the nominal Church would find it easier to live together in unity and peace than would a company of people more thoroughly enlightened, energized by the Truth. This statement might seem strange at first but becomes more apparent as we examine. In the nominal Church religion is more a matter of form. With nominal Christians it is customary to dress up and attend meetings, to sit quietly and then to return home. Pleasant things are noticed, as, for instance, the sunshine, the flowers, the bonnets. Thus the day passes. But with those more enlightened there is a greater activity of mind, of thought. We, too, love the flowers, and all things provided for us by our Heavenly Father. We discuss these—and there is much opportunity for discussion; for as no two persons look exactly alike, so no two persons think exactly alike.

Some of the Lord’s people boast that they do their own thinking. But the wisest course is for us to do our own believing. Some subjects are matters of inference and not of knowledge. We are taught of God. He tells us thus and so in His Word, and, if we accept these propositions as they come from the Lord, we can do so without too much discussion. It is pleasant, of course, for us to philosophize on the teachings of God’s Word; it is our privilege to believe that which the Lord has stated to us. But whatever philosophizing we do should be kept in restraint and in harmony with the Divine statement. And when we remember that while we are philosophizing each other one is philosophizing also, we see where comes in the doctrinal difficulty.

These different doctrinal matters are drawn from the Scriptures. But as soon as we begin to reason about the things not written, there is danger of conflict. Whoever sticks most closely to the Word of God will thereby not only do himself good, but will also be able to avoid controversy with other brethren and their philosophies. We presume that the Lord would not be averse to our having certain reflections along certain lines. We are, nevertheless, to remember that if we have a thought and present it to the brethren, and it does not seem logical to them, we are not to force it upon them, nor are they to force their views upon us. The difficulty seems to be that there is a tendency in such matters to fight each thought to the finish, to want everybody to agree with us, whereas the proper way is to be content and let the matter rest.

Each brother has a right to his own opinion. We have no right to make our own views tests. The things that are tests are the things given us in the Scriptures; as, for instance, it is a test with us and as to our standing with the brethren that we should believe that Jesus Christ is the Anointed One and the Savior of the world; that we are to be joint-heirs with Him and share in His inheritance; that we are bought with a price; that we are to have share with our Lord in the sufferings of this present time and in the glories to follow.

Such plain Scriptural statements are to be the ground of our belief, and not any fanciful interpretations put on them by some others. Some see the more general outlines; some see the details and fail to see the general outline. While those who possess the different casts of mind are to be neither blamed nor praised, yet they must grasp the thought that we are to be willing to suffer for the Truth—in our loyalty to God, to the brethren and to the Truth in general.

THE TRUTH ATTRACTS STRONG CHARACTERS

We are to remember that these brethren who find it so difficult to dwell together in unity have this difficulty in part because of their real intrinsic worth, or character. There are some people whose characters are like putty; there are others in whom you can make a momentary dent, as in a rubber ball; still others are like diamonds. The class that are diamond-like have attained a firmness of texture, of character. If we put a number of balls of putty, a number of rubber balls and a number of diamonds into a pan and shake them well, the diamonds will scratch everything with which they come in contact, because they are so hard. The Lord is not looking for the rubber ball class now nor for the putty class. In due time the Lord will deal with all classes—the people who are of the putty kind and the people who are of the rubber ball kind. But we know that the Truth is appealing now only to the jewel class, the diamond class.

When learning that there is danger of stumbling each other, wounding each other, the knowledge should give us wisdom. We should be appreciative of the fact that these brethren have real characters, and that they are not of the putty kind. Even their differences show character. We should try to appreciate the fact and so to exercise ourselves as not to irritate them. We are to counsel them, and to remember that they, as New Creatures, are just as desirous of pleasing the Lord as we are. We must, therefore, have patience with each other. There is one text in the New Testament which declares, “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren.” (I John 3:14.) The intimation is that some of the brethren would be hard to love, and that, unless we had passed from death unto life, we would be unable to love them.

The Truth seems to take hold on the stronger characters rather than on the weaker ones. The former have in their flesh more of the firmness, grittiness and combativeness than have many others, who are too pliable and “wishy-washy” to be acceptable to the Lord as members of the “little flock” of overcomers. Thus we see that the very quality which makes us acceptable to the Lord and which is one qualification of the overcoming position, is a serious disadvantage in some respects, when a number of these come together as a Church.

Even a diamond surrounded by mud would cut nothing, would scratch nothing; but place a dozen diamonds together, and the more you get rid of the mud element the more gritting, scouring and cutting there is likely to be. So it is with the Lord’s jewels—the more they come together, the more they get wakened up, the more opportunities there will be for friction, and the greater necessity there will be that all be thoroughly imbedded in and covered with the Holy Spirit, which, like oil, is smooth and unctuous and tends to prevent friction.

=============

Good subject.

[R1656: page 155]

THE TEST OF ENDURANCE.

“Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.”—1 Kings 20:11.

THE test of endurance is certainly one of the severest tests of faithfulness to which the elect Church, the body of Christ, is subjected. It is the test which gauges and registers the strength of every other virtue and grace, and no soldier of the cross will be crowned with the laurels of victory who has not stood this test. The Christian life is a warfare, and the above words of one of the kings of Israel to a boastful enemy of the Lord’s people are applicable, not only to every new recruit in the Lord’s army, but similarly to all who have not yet finished the good fight of faith.

The first gush of enthusiasm in the Lord’s service, much as we may and do appreciate it, may be but the hasty production of the shallow soil of a heart which immediately receives the truth with gladness, but having no root in itself, endures but for a time; and afterward, when affliction and persecution ariseth, immediately they are offended. (Mark 4:16,17.) [A]Such characters cannot stand the fiery tests of this evil day, whereof it is written—”The fire (of that day) shall try every man’s work, of what sort it is.”—1 Cor. 3:13.

Therefore, says the Apostle Peter, “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange thing happened unto you.” [1 Pet. 4:12] All of the elect Church must be so tried; and blessed is he that shall endure unto the end. [Matt. 24:13] The sure word of prophecy points to severe conflicts and great trials in the closing scenes of the Church’s history. Elijah, a type of the body of Christ, finished his earthly career and went up by a whirlwind in a chariot of fire [2 Kings 2:11]—strong symbols of storms and great afflictions. John [the baptist], another type of the Church, was cast into prison and then beheaded [Matt. 14:10]. [B]And we are forewarned of the great necessity of the whole armor of God, if we would stand in this evil day [Eph. 6:13]. —M. DAWN, VOL. II., Chap. 8.

It therefore behooves everyone who aspires to the prize of our high calling to brace himself for the severer conflicts and trials of faith and patience that may suddenly and without a moments warning be sprung upon him. In the battle of this day, as in all other battles, the effort of the enemy is to surprise and suddenly attack and overwhelm the Lord’s people; and the only preparation, therefore, that can be made for such emergencies is constant vigilance and prayer and the putting on of the whole armor of God [Eph. 6:11]—the truth and the spirit of the truth.

“In your patience possess ye your souls.” [Luke 21:19 HCSB & JW Use Endurance instead of Patience] No other grace will be more needed than this in the fiery ordeals of this evil day; for without great patience no man can endure to the end. All along the Christian’s pathway, ever and anon, he comes to a new crisis: perhaps they are often seemingly of trivial importance, yet he realizes that they may be turning points in his Christian course. Who has not realized them? There comes a temptation to weariness in well-doing [Compare 2 Thess. 3:13; Gal. 6:9a], together with the suggestion of an easier way; or there springs up a little root of pride or ambition, with suggestions of ways and means for feeding and gratifying it. Then there comes, by and by, the decisive moment when you must choose this course or that; and lo, you have reached a crisis!

Which way will you turn? Most likely you will turn in the direction to which the sentiments you have cultivated have been tending, whether that be the right way or the wrong way. If it be the wrong way, most likely you will be unable to discern it clearly; for your long cultivated sentiments will sway your judgment. “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof is the way of death.” (Prov. 14:12.) How necessary, therefore, is prayer, that in every crisis we may pass the test successfully. Nor can we safely delay to watch and pray until the crisis is upon us; but such should be our constant attitude.

The life of a soldier ever on the alert and on duty is by no means an easy life; nor do the Scriptures warrant any such expectation. On the contrary, they say, “Endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ;” [2 Tim. 2:3] “Fight the good fight of faith,” [1 Tim. 6:12] etc. And yet many Christian people seem to have the very opposite idea. Their ideal Christian life is one without a breeze or a storm: it must be one continuous calm. Such a life was indeed more possible in former days than now, though the world, the flesh and the devil always have opposed themselves, and always had to be resisted by every loyal soldier of the cross. But now the opposition is daily becoming more and more intense; for Satan realizes that his time is short, and he is determined by any and every means to exert his power against the consummation of the Lord’s plan for the exaltation of the Church.

Consequently, we have had within this harvest period many and severe storms of opposition, and still there are doubtless more severe trials to follow. But those who, with overcoming faith, outride them all—who patiently endure, who cultivate the spirit of Christ with its fruits and graces, and who valiantly fight the good fight of faith, rather than withdraw from the field, such will be the overcomers to whom the laurels of victory will be given when the crowning day has come. [2 Tim. 4:7-8]

====================

Good subject.

• Such characters cannot stand the fiery tests of this evil day, whereof it is written—”The fire (of that day) shall try every man’s work, of what sort it is.”—1 Cor. 3:13. – Here the unscripted thought of CTR is that the “evil day” is the present day, especially after 1874. Hence he relates the “evil day” with the fire of the “that day”. However, in context we see that Paul writes about the evil day to the Corinthians and it was an evil day for them as well at that time. We can suggest that in a way, the entire 6000 years was an evil day and later towards the end, the intensity of the “evil day” increased in the gospel age, and still later during the seventh stage of the church (1874 onwards), the intensity increases further.
• And we are forewarned of the great necessity of the whole armor of God, if we would stand in this evil day [Eph. 6:13]. – Again, similar to the above, CTR suggests that the necessity of the armor of God during “this evil day” even more than that the earlier times. However, Paul writes about the armor to the Ephesians and hence it was a necessity during their times as well.