The Word of Truth
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
Natural Flesh vs. Depravity
Dear Brother,
“God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” (1 John 3:20) I marvel at just how much greater He is than the best our heart can be and can do. He knows what He can do for us, what is best for us, and how to help us to understand His will for us.
“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” (Psalm 139:14) I take great courage from this last statement of David. God is able to make us know “right well” the fearfulness and wonderfulness of our makeup and the marvelousness of the works of God. We are a confusion to ourselves quite often, but this confusion is cleared in “the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith” (Romans 1:16-17) in the gospel of Christ, the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. Truly He is greater than our heart and knoweth all things. See also 2 Corinthians 2:10 and Philippians 3:15.
When we are unsaved and in rebellion against God, our entire self (body and soul) is in a state of war against our Creator. When we surrender ourselves to God by His assistance, we abandon the war against Him and are at peace with God, and we stop the sinning business. We want to please Him and do what is right. As we endeavor to carry out our implanted motive to love Him and do what is right, we become aware of a need within us to be purified in the motives of our heart. Our love for our Lord is not completely pure, and He shows us what to do about our newly-discovered problem. When we have been led by the Holy Ghost to the cleansing fountain again for the washing away of this different kind of sin and the work is done, we find that the motives of our heart are now pure, but now we become aware of a new kind of battle yet again. This is the other kind of life that all possess who live in the flesh, for man is twofold (body and spirit) and the natural flesh has its own life and desires.
When we were unsaved, the desires of the soul were in harmony with the natural desires (lusts) of the flesh, and we fulfilled them naturally. When we are first pardoned, cleansed of our transgressions, and justified by the blood of Jesus, then we want to do what is right, and we resist the body and the little-by-little discovered treachery of something in the soul that is (still) in sympathy with the body’s wants. When we are purified from that inherited disposition, then the entire soul is all out for God, but the body remains corruptible and earthly.
“But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (1 Corinthians 9:27) This is the testimony of Brother Paul, and it is the testimony of our Lord, as well, when He was in the body. The Master says that “the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak,” (Matthew 26:41) but He kept His body under while down here in the flesh. The body of Jesus hungered for the things that all bodies desire (food, rest, relaxation, learning, sexual needs, etc.), but He controlled it. All was subjected to the law of God. The body was kept under. Its desires were not changed; they were subjected.
The entire scheme of things is brought out in Philippians 3. In verses 3-7, Paul speaks of his life in sin away from God. He describes it as “trusting in the flesh.” He describes his religious efforts while trusting in the flesh at that time, but in verse 7, he speaks of a great change. The old life was “gain to me [and] loss for Christ,” but the new life is loss of the old life and gain to Christ. In verses 8-11, he describes the completeness of full salvation as his current status. He is all out for Jesus. But he has hope of something better yet than his sanctified experience. What is it? “The resurrection of the dead.” (Philippians 3:11) What happens then? “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” (1 Corinthians 15:53) “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.” (1 Corinthians 15:50) At the resurrection, this body is changed. Yes, this vile body (in the sense that it has a life of its own that is not according to the life of God written in the soul) will be changed (Philippians 3:21).
We see then that there is a change for the believer beyond the justification and sanctification of the soul. It is the change of his vile body. The Lord Jesus has already had this change in His body. It took place at His resurrection. His body died down here, but it was resurrected in power. The corruptible has been made incorruptible. There is now no battle to keep it under in the Lord Jesus. The glorified body is in complete harmony with the purity of the heart after the resurrection. And of this resurrection (change of the body), our Lord is the first fruits. So Paul states, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14) We see then that Paul regarded the resurrection as “the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” And he pressed toward that mark by keeping his body under and in subjection to the clarity of vision of his saved and sanctified soul. When he attained that mark for the prize, his conflict with his body would cease, and all his being would be in harmony with itself and with God. Then he goes on to state, “Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.” (Philippians 3:15-16) The wording is very instructive. He was already “perfect” in soul. Others were too. “As many as be perfect.” And, in the battle over the natural flesh (the body) to keep clear and live the life of an overcomer, he speaks of God’s assistance: “God shall reveal even this unto you.” What is revealed? “If in anything ye be otherwise minded.” Anything that the body would think or desire in the mind that is contrary to the light of God in the soul. Yea, “casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5)
There is a perfection to be lived and used right now, even the perfection of motive in the human heart, and there is a perfection (of the body) to come at the resurrection.
This framework of understanding provides a foundation to answer your questions.
How do we keep the body under?
Many times, things just crop up in my mind and before I catch myself and stop the thing going on, I have already gone some ways thinking the thoughts.
Reply:
I will paraphrase. “I am riding my horse in the direction I want to go, but he has his own mind about things. While I am distracted, he manifests his own separate life from mine by (1) eating grass by the road instead of traveling as I directed; (2) actually starting to turn around and head where he wants to go.” Now you can see that you are in control, but it may take a moment or longer for you to realize that your control is challenged, and that you must exert yourself to stay in control.
Now here is the question. Did the motive of your own human self on the horse become the same as the horse’s motive? No. You just realized that his had deviated from yours. What is in your mind? It is shown by what you do when you realize it. The horse represents our body. It has its own life. It will not be changed until the resurrection. But we are riding on our horse, not the other way around, and the wonderful grace and mercy of God has transformed our souls and assists us so that we can be overcomers over our body. It is not wrong for the horse to be a horse. But he cannot be allowed to do as he wishes to do. It is not wrong for the body to be the body. It simply cannot be allowed to reign.
The prospect of income naturally brings with it the prospect of how to use it. Here is an example from Highways and Hedges about the experience of some who were trusting the Lord:
One morning, looking over the incoming mail, they found a check for one thousand dollars. The amount was so unusual that they read the figures over and over to make sure they did not make a mistake. But the check was genuine, and the two American girls who had come to India on the return from her trip home were joyful and at once began to plan several much-needed improvements.
But the missionary stopped their planning. She said to them, “God does not send money to a mission field just for nothing. There is a special need for this amount, or it would never have been sent. We dare not spend one dollar of it until God speaks. We will lay it aside until we hear definitely from God as to its use.”
[Grace G. Henry; Highways and Hedges, “Broader Visions and Greater Faith”]
The story goes on to tell that a great hurricane swept over the mission soon afterwards, and the money was needed for the repairs, almost to the penny. But I want to draw your attention to the ascendancy of the soul over the natural imagination of the body. You wrote, “So these days, I find myself praying, even though I know the Bible teaches some things, until the Lord ‘illuminates’ the scripture in my heart to such an extent that I am sure He wills me to do the action of love.” Compare the words of the missionary: “We dare not spend one dollar of it until God speaks.” Both of you were waiting for guidance.
The natural mind will presume to understand how to do. It will look logical and compelling. I expect that the seven that served tables in Acts 6 had very great need to be filled with the Holy Ghost. Their actions and lack of actions with the needy caused murmuring among those who were not filled with the Holy Ghost. And to these others looking on, who were not filled with the Holy Ghost, Stephen and the other brethren seemed arbitrary and unworthy of esteem. Just as Jesus appeared to most around Him (Isaiah 53). You had better keep waiting and praying until the Lord illuminates you, dear brother. Trust Him to direct when to give and to direct you when not to give.
Now as to “why would the Holy Ghost [not] just take over and keep the thoughts running for the glory of God,” we choose again the sweet will of God each time that the trial is permitted. It is an “if need be” that God designs to do us good. It is a choosing beyond the lips. It is respect for and delight in our free-will choice of Him that restrains the Holy Ghost from just taking over, yet leaves perfect room for Him to interfere if we are outmatched or overwhelmed. Brother, it is measured out! We can make it all the way to heaven and live right because God measures it out.
At this point, a crucial question arises. What is the difference between the natural self-life of man and the inherited depravity? The difficulty of distinguishing the two can be seen when looking at two different kinds of individuals. Consider a man who is naturally of a restrained, careful nature compared with his opposite—an easily excitable, mercurial, and highly-strung man. To consider to a further degree the complications that exist in such a comparison, let us think of the second person as a woman, while the first is a man. The one common factor is this: the natural temperament can be subjected to the law of God, whereas the depravity cannot be. “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” (Romans 8:7) You will notice that the following verse refers to this condition (cannot be subject) as being “in the flesh.” If this referred to the natural flesh, no one (including Jesus, when He was in the flesh) pleases the Lord while living in this world, but the next verse tells the saints at Rome, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.” (Romans 8:9) Since they were still in the body, it is evident that there is a condition while in the (natural) flesh where we are not in the flesh (carnality, depravity, inherited sin).
It is plain that depravity camouflages itself as a natural trait. It is extremely difficult to detect the difference between an unsanctified man and a sanctified man who is having difficulty bringing his body into subjection until one gets a look at the hidden motives of the heart. One is experiencing imperfection in the motives of the soul, while the other has a perfect love for God and His ways, but is laboring to be an overcomer. Here is the same comparison with a foregone conclusion: Jesus, praying in the garden of Gethsemane. “Let this cup pass from me.” (Matthew 26:39) “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41) Is this the prayer of a person troubled by a lack of consecration? An unwillingness to suffer to carry out the will of God? No, absolutely not. Why the struggle? Our Lord’s love is perfect. He tells us: “The [natural] flesh is weak.” But His heart is pure, and He perseveres and overcomes. It does not come easily, although He is perfect in spirit. The struggle is not evidence that something is wrong in His heart. So, again, why the struggle? Because at that time, the Lord Jesus was in the same position as Paul. “Not as though I had already attained [unto the resurrection of the dead], either were already perfect.” (Philippians 3:12) After the resurrection, we find no evidence of struggle with the flesh, for the flesh was perfected. In other words, Jesus, with a perfect heart, conquered an imperfect body, to carry out the will of God; and this is an accurate and informative picture of what it means to live saved and sanctified, just as our Lord did. Yes, to say over and over in different battles, against the strong desire of the natural, “Not my will, but thine, be done.” (Luke 22:42) And to continue in this victorious way of life until our vile body is changed, even as our Lord’s body was changed.
“Well,” you might say, “what if I don’t detect the difference between the flesh (depravity) and the flesh (natural)? How can I know whether I am sanctified in heart or having horrendous battles with my natural?” Answer: “And if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.” (Philippians 3:15) That is our only hope. This is too much for us, otherwise. God has obligated Himself to reveal even this to you and to me. How does He do it? “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12) Please note that this is the Word of God in the hands of the Spirit of God. You will not get this result by trying and prying on your own. But the Spirit of God is capable of portraying sin as sin, both actual sin and inherited sin. And He is just as capable of portraying weakness as weakness, fleshly imperfection in the natural life of the body for what it is. Furthermore, the same precious Comforter is quite capable of bringing the justified man to the point of recognizing carnality in himself, leading him to the consecration necessary to have faith in the cleansing blood of Christ, and actually purifying his soul. And this same Comforter is just as capable of helping the man stay pure in heart and overcome his natural flesh over and over again, until it may be said that this man, by the power of God, reigns in this life.
We see then that Romans 12:2 applies in both ways. It applies to the transforming of the soul when a person is wholly sanctified. And it applies in the process of living a life from a pure heart, which produces a steadily growing transformation of a life in which the soul dominates the body. The renewing of your mind applies to both, as well. In a justified (pardoned, forgiven) life, the implanted nature of Christ wars with the depravity of the soul. It becomes clear to the believer that something is wrong, fundamentally wrong in him, even while he knows that God has put in him a strong desire to love things that are right and to always do what is right. There is something within that is not in agreement with the implanted nature of Christ. He is of two minds (James 1:8), and in his consequent instability, has to labor hard to keep a clear conscience. It is much harder to live right than it should be. He gets grace from God to live free from condemnation (the renewing of his mind), and this proves what is good, acceptable, and perfect, the will of God for a righteous man; but the renewal does not work as efficiently as it should because something in him is against his desire to live right. How faithful is the Spirit of God to reveal this to us! How He endeavors to lead each child of God, step by step, through the wilderness to the land of promise. There are battles to fight there, too. There is a constant renewal of this same mind (the very mind of Christ given to us) to win those battles with the natural flesh and attacks from without. Romans 12:3 is the standard of a sanctified life, and it is the standard lifted by the Holy Ghost before the eyes of the justified. God has an experience for you like Brother Paul had, who wrote, “For I say, through the grace given unto me.” That grace enabled him to not think of himself more highly than he ought to think. What precious victory is this! Here is the practical result of the wonderful workings of the Spirit of God. It produces a measure of faith that is superior to that obtainable in justification (precious as that is), and the end result is that the saved and sanctified person thinks soberly—realistically. This is of infinite value in the battle to control and subjugate the body. It will cause you to wait on the Lord. It will teach you to distrust your own thinking. It will destroy the basis of fleshly assumption and presumption. You will be transformed from a man on his own to a man under the leading and control of the Holy Ghost. And all this will be accomplished without making you into a puppet. You will walk with the Lord as a free-will agent under control because you choose to love Him voluntarily. And in this the Lord takes great delight. Such a man’s life “prove[s] what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Romans 12:2) Such a man lives as Jesus did while He was in the body. He follows in His steps.
How is this transforming to be done?
Reply:
By the eradication of carnality in the soul. “By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Hebrews 10:10) Then: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God.” (Galatians 2:20) The first answer is a transformation “once for all” that lays the foundation for a life of transformation as the natural flesh is held in subjection and become steadily more subjugated as the mind is steadily and increasingly renewed. “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16) Here is a picture of “the abundant grace” (2 Corinthians 4:15) life in action. It produces a steadily-increasing spiritual vision (2 Corinthians 4:18; 5:1-8). “Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident.” (2 Corinthians 5:5-6) Praise God! The pure in heart see God. They know “all things work together for good.” (Romans 8:28)
“Welcome the storms, my hope is abounding;
Let the waves come, my anchor is sure;
Fixed in the Rock on which I am standing,
How can I fall when all is secure?”*
What is our personal part in this transformation?
Reply:
But Thou art making me, I thank Thee, Sire.
What Thou hast done and doest Thou know’st well,
And I will help Thee: gently in Thy fire
I will lie burning; on Thy potter’s-wheel
I will whirl patient, though my brain should reel;
Thy grace shall be enough the grief to quell,
And growing strength perfect through weakness dire.I have not knowledge, wisdom, insight, thought,
Nor understanding, fit to justify
Thee in Thy work, O Perfect. Thou hast brought
Me up to this—and, lo! what Thou hast wrought,
I cannot comprehend. But I can cry—
“O enemy, the Maker hath not done;
One day thou shalt behold, and from the sight wilt run.”* * *
Thou workest perfectly. And if it seem
Some things are not so well, ’tis but because
They are too loving-deep, too lofty-wise,
For me, poor child, to understand their laws:
My highest wisdom half is but a dream;
My love runs helpless like a falling stream:
Thy good embraces ill, and lo! its illness dies![George MacDonald; The Diary of an Old Soul, “October”]
It is our privilege to cooperate with the Spirit of God, to let Him have His way.
“I can see far down the mountain,
Where I wandered weary years,
Often hindered in my journey
By the ghosts of doubts and fears;
Broken vows and disappointments
Thickly sprinkled all the way,
But the Spirit led, unerring,
To the land I hold today.”*
How different should I be in my feelings from other people after this transformation?
Reply:
The overall effect is that one sees the need of God in the human heart as never before. A great turning away from human gifts and abilities. A great burden that all would enter in rest and cease from their own labors as the Lord has caused you to cease from yours. The pure in heart see God and our great need of Him as never before. Man at his best is only vanity (Psalm 39:5). He has not the ability to direct his steps (Jeremiah 10:23). “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.” (Philippians 3:3)
I also feel burdened to address a certain aspect of walking with the Lord that you did not ask about. That is what happens when a sanctified person loses ground or goes backward. The picture is perfectly portrayed in the experience of Eve, at a time when she had never known sin, had a pure heart, and walked and talked with God each day.
Eve had a human body with a life of its own. This scripture was true of her: “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope.” (Romans 8:20) Both she and Adam had bodies; therefore they could be and were tempted. The source of temptation appealed to Eve through the natural life of the body, and it spoke of wisdom, nutrition, and eye-appeal. We are not told how long the temptation ran its course, nor the details of how Eve struggled with it. We are not told of whether she asked God about this matter, received light, but went on over it; or whether she simply chose to abide without His counsel. One thing is certain: if she had asked Him about this matter, God would have helped her. Eve did not have to sin. But we are told that she sinned. So did Adam. And in the heart of each, when they sinned, something horrible happened. They died to God, instantly. Just as dreadfully and solemnly as people die physically; so they did spiritually. A great barrier stood between them and God. The purity of heart was gone. Not only was there transgression—their transgression—but the very moral nature of the soul was warped and twisted by the acquired sin, and a sentence, a curse of death lived within them, in their very souls. It was inescapable in their offspring. The very enticement of wisdom that had drawn her from God, with hopes of her own devising for her future little ones, was revealed to be a horrible heritage. She and her husband would pass on a defiled, depraved nature (“the nature of wrath”) to each of their offspring. It was a sentence of death.
And thus we see that actual sin wrecks the moral nature of a human heart, if that moral nature is pure and holy. Just as a Styrofoam object shrivels and warps when it is touched by the fire, so the moral nature of man becomes perverted when it rebels against God. When the little boy thought that the ice cream was for his sister, he said, “Not so much, Grandma, not so much!” But when told that it was for him, he replied, “My, my, such a little bit!” His sense of rightness was all distorted in favor of self. And a person who has been washed and purified so that he is like the Master (1 John 3:3) is once again defiled, perverted, and distorted in the moral nature of his soul if he rebels again against God. To sin again is to need to be forgiven of the transgression and the stain of it and also to be purified again of the depraved nature.
But what if the pure in heart does not go back to sin? What if he manages to avoid transgression, but his love has grown colder to the extent that he is lukewarm and he uses his liberty as an occasion to give the (natural) flesh too much room in his life? He is in great danger of actual sin, of course. He has gone back on his consecration, perhaps without fully realizing it. This almost-dead condition is described in the Bible. “A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.” (Matthew 12:20) Although bruised, the reed is not dead; although not flaming, the smoking flax has not lost all that it had; there is still smoke. God gives it some time for recovery. “And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.” (Luke 13:8-9) If the person did not rebel; if their repentance was not of rebellion, but that simply their blessing “leaked” away, then the moral texture of the soul may be untouched, and the Spirit of God will not lead them to start all over again from the beginning. Only God knows the heart well enough to say what all happened in there, and He does know, and He is faithful. If you claim more than you actually have, the fruit will prove you wrong. If you claim to still have a pure heart, your claim will be validated or invalidated by the fruit of your life.
A great deal of confusion and accusation is experienced by careful and conscientious people who believe that listening to the voice of the body and giving room to the desires of the natural flesh mean a betrayal of their consecration. In other words, to be human and relax as a human, is thought to be sin, or at least as not as consecrated as one should be. But to be a human being is not sin, nor is it true spirituality to live with our humanity so suppressed that we can scarcely be human. We find that Jesus sought a little leisure to eat (Mark 6:31). We find such commandments as these, “Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 9:9) “Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.” (1 Corinthians 7:5)
God does not sanctify us to make us super-human or unhuman. He sanctifies us to live sanctified human lives. “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.” (Galatians 5:13) This is very plain. I have liberty to be a saved, sanctified human being, but there is reason to be careful. If I allow the body to master the soul, I will use my liberty as an occasion to the flesh. This will bring leanness to my soul. The veil of the (natural) flesh will be thicker. My spiritual vision will be hindered. It can even bring me to sin (rebellion). Then I will have to start over, repent, and do the first works.
The Word and The Spirit
Do we just “mechanically” obey the Scriptures?
In the past, we have just been going on the preaching missions as a team. Mostly we felt we were obeying Matthew 28:19-20: “Go ye….” But these days, I personally have slowed down and pray until I am very sure the Lord wants me to go. My question is, shouldn’t we just obey the scriptures—just mechanically—and leave the rest to the Lord? Is it wrong to pray and wait on the Lord until one is sure He intends for us to do the thing? Please, do not treat this question lightly as it seems to be the greatest cause of many problems here.
Reply:
In Mark 16:15 we read, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” In Acts 16:7 we read, “After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.” This pretty well answers the thought of just mechanically obeying the scriptures. That idea is built on the thought that Jesus is happy with us just being busy for Him, and that pinpoint direction is not necessary. But this assumption is not borne out by the scripture record.
There are two witnesses, the Word of God and the Spirit of God. The voices of both are absolutely vital to a successful Christian life. Successful, in this case, would be a life that pleases God. The Spirit to interpret the Word, both in direction and in timing. The Word to interpret the Spirit, so as to avoid mere zealousness and enthusiasm engendered by emotional excitement. In Zechariah 4, we read of these two witnesses as living olive trees, connected by golden pipes to a golden candlestick. Oil from the two trees flows continually into the candlestick, enabling it to burn and give light. The candlestick represents the church of God, and also each member of the church. The light of regeneration burning in our hearts, individually and collectively, is caused by the inflow of the living Word of God and the living Spirit of God. Now, if I get too much of the Word and not enough of the Spirit, I will become a religious fanatic, ritualistically and mechanically grinding through the commandments of the Word of God as interpreted by my own mind and the spirit that influences me. On the other hand, if I get too much of the Spirit of God and not enough of the Word, I will become a religious zealot, ignoring clear commandments in favor of strong feelings and “leadings.” One person I knew under the influence of this latter condition stated that “we shouldn’t pay much attention to what the Word of God says; it was how the ‘Spirit’ led that mattered.” This is obviously terribly lopsided. But God knows how to balance the inflow of the Word and the Spirit into the heart of every person.
It is a bad mistake to pray to be “illuminated” about things that I already understand, such as whether or not I should steal. I don’t need light from God on this point; I already have it. My “quest” for light is really a wrestling of the scriptures at this point and opens me to a deception. One woman who went down this path began to be “convicted” that the scripture stating that “all things are yours” meant that she had a right to take what didn’t belong to her. It was a deception, of course.
But on other points, such as just where I am to labor in preaching the gospel, or where the Lord would have me give out His money as a good steward, I need specific direction very much to obey the Word of God. This is why the seven brethren who waited on tables for the widows in Acts 6 needed to be filled with the Holy Ghost. They did not just mechanically divide up what had come in. They prayed for specific guidance, not only in how much and to whom, but also who should be denied and why. I am certain that as they got it right, it fitted precisely with the working of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of all, both in the folks they helped and in the folks they did not help.
It is the will of God, generally speaking, that the gospel be preached everywhere. But the timing of each particular effort may vary considerably. At times, God doesn’t want the gospel preached to certain people in certain places. It just isn’t the right time. God wanted folks to believe in Jesus from the very beginning of human history (and even before the fall of man), but He waited until the fullness of time to send His Son into the world (Ephesians 1:10). “Is it wrong to pray and wait on the Lord until one is sure He intends for us to do the thing?” Hear the Word of God: “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)
There is something about this waiting on God that destroys fleshly confidence. I have sat through many meetings where a message from the Lord burned in my heart from the time I first arrived (and sometimes well before I arrived), while the Lord used other vessels and kept me waiting. Sometimes the burden was so great that it hardly seemed bearable to refrain from delivering the message on my heart. Occasionally I took a message home, but usually God opened a way for that message later in the meeting. Then I noticed something. The waiting had put something in the message and taken something out. It whittled it down. Less of my enthusiasm and more anointing. More humility. Eyes less on the people and more on God. For some years now, I preach weekly without this waiting for opportunity to deliver, but I find that the . . . waiting . . . to get to this point has put something in there that would not be there otherwise. I tell you, brother, God knows how. He knows how to strip us down; He knows how to load us up. We need our steps ordered (Psalm 37:23) by Him who knows what He is doing with us humans.
God knows when we should do something… and do something… and do something… over and over, until we feel we are mechanical. Sometimes we need that, especially if we are troubled with wild enthusiasms and are inclined to bursts of emotion and want to rush off on wild tangents.
We can only do the work of God as He supplies, and I am satisfied that He has designed that the poor are always with us. We can give all our goods to feed the poor without giving much spiritual benefit to them or us if we are not in God’s order. We can also suffer great spiritual loss if we do not give all our goods to feed the poor if that is the will of God for us (Luke 18:22-25). Here is the reconciling point: “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” (Ephesians 5:17) We must pray and wait until we understand what the will of the Lord is. “As we have therefore opportunity [as interpreted by the Spirit of God], let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” (Galatians 6:10) What may look like an opportunity to us may not be God’s opportunity for us.
Church Government
How should services be ordered?
It is now my understanding that we were ministering wrongly in the past. Our services would have a person to guard the pulpit. It was usually the “chairman” or “the Pastor” in charge of the congregation, or a song leader or someone. We just would not let the pulpit be occupied by anybody without the sanction of the one chairing the congregational meeting.
But I still need more explanations as to how a congregational meeting should be handled. When the saints get in, do they just sit and wait for whoever is led of God to get to the pulpit? Is there any room for the pastor as such to lead the services? Is there anyone to stand and call a song leader to come up to the rostrum? Or for testimonies, or for special songs or for prayer time?
Reply:
The great issue here is not precisely how the services are conducted, whether anyone leads the songs or who it is that does so, or who the pastor is and precisely how he conducts himself. The issue is where the trust is placed of the children of God that are assembled. The entire concept of things in sectism is based on an absent Christ. It then follows that men must do the best they can to please Him in His absence. But here, in this scripture, is something else: “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20) To those who live by faith in the ever-present, invisible presence of Jesus, it is as natural as breathing to come to services looking at and trusting in Him who is not seen.
Now this is the indispensable foundation for an acceptable (to God) meeting of God’s little children. And in this effort, the weak faith of some should be bolstered by the strong faith by others in the present, invisible Head. We beg the Lord to manifest His presence in our services, especially to all of us who walk with Him. We confess our inability to feed ourselves. We openly admit that we are but rough, ugly, earthly vessels, and that only God can put in anything worthwhile or profitable. We beg Him not to leave us to our own efforts, even efforts of our own in His name. We might say that the saints just get in and trust God, and the nature of their trust is manifest in calling on Him and in any exercising (testimonies, preaching, praying, singing, exhortations) in His name being done as an oracle of God. No room is given in our own minds and hearts for any exercising outside of this. We are only interested in what is of God as the invisible Head does allow. Thus, the focus is on Him, and any other focus stands out as something different.
Our prayers are answered. God graciously visits us as a group, and He is recognizable because of those who walk with Him (and thus recognize Him) individually. When any participation is made by any who are not known to the group, the immediate question in the mind of those who do know each other is, “What does the Head think?” Or as it is more commonly phrased in my mind, “Is this right? Does it proceed from a life taught of God?” Sometimes the answer to this question is “no,” and the matter is suffered as the saints reach out in faith to God to discern how Jesus feels in terms of forbearing or resistance. Quite often it is borne. But I have this confidence in the saints here that they would obey God to the extent of leaving the room or singing someone down or openly questioning or praying in contradistinction to respond to the thing that is not of God if the Lord so led. They would do this if the ministry was present or if they were not.
But the great question is, “What does Jesus think? What does Jesus want us to do?” Here, again, we want, with all our heart, to understand and do what the will of God is. We are not guided by custom or just human courtesy. We must know the will of our Leader. We must do it. We want Him to be pleased.
“Is there any room for the pastor as such to lead the services?” If the pastor is called of God to pastor that work, he/she has a place, given of God. A brother called the young ministers of a congregation together. “The morning service is my time,” he said (he was speaking generally; there can be exceptions), “but for the evening service, I want you to look to God and pray about who should deliver the message. I don’t want to see any running for the pulpit. Pray that the Lord will have His way.” This congregation was very spiritually-minded and the blessing of the Lord rested upon it in a very definite way.
Without knowing all this, I visited this place as a young minister. I was on my way to the Northwest with a car full of tracts and this congregation was in the first major city on my way. I arrived in town in the evening during the week and put out some tracts in local shopping centers, etc., finally making my way to the pastor’s home. We ate supper together. Then he looked at me in a peculiar way. I know now that it was the Spirit of God talking to Him. He said, “Let’s have meeting tonight.” It was about 8:00 or 8:30 in the evening. He began to call around, and they in turn called others. I went to a room to pray. The Lord gave me a message.
Sometime after 9:00, we assembled at the chapel for services. I had never been there before. The chapel was huge. The people poured in. The brother told me that because of the lateness of the hour and the suddenness of the thing, many were not able to come, but it looked like a multitude to me. A great anointing rested on the singing. At preaching time, a great liberty rested on me. An altar service followed. People got saved. The whole thing was incredibly uplifting. I went on my way the next day so encouraged and blessed. I don’t doubt that was the experience of many there, as well. The reason for all this, of course, was Jesus was there in that assembly. He was expected; He was honored and held in reverence. As soon as the pastor understood what He wanted, then he acted. That was the way that the pastor did all the time.
If we get this inside adjustment that sees Him present and looks to Him in everything, then all else will fall into place. With some saints, the inside adjustment has already taken place in how they live their lives, so all they need is a little pointing to Jesus, and this freedom in meeting is simply an extension of their lives. Others do not understand that the focus is on Jesus in their individual lives, so they need help there before they can trust Him as they should in services. Some are much hindered and need to die to themselves and a general disposition to see and depend on something other than God. Those who are dead to self and alive to God need to earnestly contend for the faith delivered to the saints, praying that the others will catch fire, looking the problem squarely in the face, and relying on the ever-present Lord to lead in the battle. God forbid that we settle for anything else than what Jesus has bought and paid for!