The Crisis of Being Renewed
"Ye have put off the old man with his doings, and have put on the new man, which is being renewed unto knowledge, after the image of Him That created him" (Colossians 3:9)
A word now regarding that phrase or clause which is, "being renewed after the image of Him That created him". This is something that has been taken up and is being carried on; and that relates to the occupation and the energy of the Holy Spirit. I am just going to be content with one thing in this whole matter of the Holy Spirit's work. You notice what it clearly says here, that the goal that the Holy Spirit has is this renewing work. Although He is not mentioned by name here, we know quite well that this renewing work is the work of the Holy Spirit; and the goal of the Holy Spirit's work is brought forward and made to stand over everything. It is all-governing. It is the end that is brought into view with the life of the believer and made the thing which rules throughout.
Now we are right, of course, in being occupied with the many things related to the end as we are concerned so largely with what is more elementary. That is, we are greatly concerned with the work of evangelization, which is bringing the gospel to the unsaved and bringing them to Christ. We are greatly concerned with the spread of the gospel, or what is so often referred to as the extension of the kingdom. This and many other matters like that are right and must be as a way to the end, as a means to the end, but perhaps there is a weakness often associated with that occupation, which is making these things the end in themselves.
And what is made very clear here is the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to this great end of being renewed unto the IMAGE of Him That created him. We must remember that the Apostle Paul is writing now at the end of his life, and this letter is set in the consummation of his ministry. His whole life and ministry and work is now being brought together in a consummate way. Here at the end he brings this activity and energy of the Holy Spirit, not here in relation to the entering into the Christian life and all that is associated with it, but in relation to the end of the Christian life, and he says in effect: it is the end that governs all.
It is not being saved in itself, and it is not the work of getting people saved in itself, however important and essential as that is, for nothing can be without it. Nevertheless, the thing that must be kept in mind is that this work of being saved and all that has to do with it is related to this great end: to secure conformity to the IMAGE of Him That created him.
Why are we saved? We rejoice in being saved, and praise the Lord that we are saved, and never cease to be grateful that He has saved us! We can never exaggerate the wonder of His grace in our salvation and in the Lord as our Saviour. But why are we saved? Well, it is not just to be saved, not just to leave it there, but it is the first step toward this full end. So why are we seeking that others should be saved and using our lives and our time and our strength that they should come to salvation? Is it just that they should be saved? Just that they should be saved and escape condemnation, or judgment, and hell and find heaven? No, the Apostle brings forward the end. In essence, he says, "No," our object in leading others to Christ must always have the full end governing, and every one is to be brought right into line with that end: the renewing after the IMAGE of Him.
Now you may thing that this is hardly a thing to say, that it is obvious, that it goes without saying, but it does not go without saying, because there are so many born-again people who are saved people and, yet, who are falling lamentably and unrightfully short of Christ's likeness. We know it in ourselves and we are not speaking only objectively of other people, but it is true that we meet so many Christians who are very glad that they are saved, and make no hesitation in saying that they are saved, but their transformation is lagging behind, and in many you meet so little of Christ.
Now what we are being told quite clearly is that this will not do in the end. It will be the end that judges our Christian life, and so it is the Holy Spirit's work, His interest, His concern, and His energy and activity, not only to bring people to the door and to get them inside the door, but to make them know that door is but the opening of a Way. It is not the door alone, but it is what lies beyond the door, and that is this renewal, this making "anew" after the IMAGE of Him That created him. The end governs: it is Christ ALL, and in ALL that He signifies and means and stands for. It is that vast ALL that He is. "Christ is ALL, and in ALL" is the last clause. It is Christ in that fullness, which is more than our initial salvation.
Christ Himself, when He was here, never failed to let people know that when they entered that door, or that straight and narrow way, they were in for trouble - they were in for much trouble. Now that may sound like a very terrible thing to say, especially to you young Christians who are not far inside the door, but be perfectly clear about it, the Lord Jesus never deceived anybody about this at all. He let people know that to "follow Him," as He put it at that time, involved them in difficulty and suffering and persecution and trial. This is a lifelong thing. There is a cost here, a great cost. And we shall discover that while there are the compensations, for there are undoubtedly compensations in this life, and the mighty compensations for eternity, this is a way which is not easy for the natural man by any means. This work of the Holy Spirit is drastic, exacting, and very trying to the flesh (the "old" man). Make no mistake about it; it will take all the energy that the Holy Spirit Himself has to accomplish this work. It really will. So the Lord Jesus has not left us in any doubt about this matter.
But note, and I am glad the Apostle Paul puts it like this, because it is so true to experience, it is the new man who is being renewed. Notice, first there was a precise and definite transaction, "Ye put off" and "ye put on," but now the work that is going on is not a single act of a single moment and a single day, but it is something that is going on in us. The new man is being renewed, and that process will go right on to the end. It will never stop until we will not allow it to go on any further, or until we put a period to it. This process will go right on to the end. It is something that is being done in us all the time. This changing over is not our position, which was the act, but it is our condition of being conformed to His IMAGE. That is the process.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 10
Friday, October 5, 2012
O God ... Thine Enemies # 3
Beloved, unless God sends you, as He sent Joseph, it is very dangerous to go down into the enemy's territory, for Egypt represents the realm where satan rules. And if God has not sent us, after we are on the enemy's ground, the enemy begins to stir our carnal man into action. When God sent Joseph into Egypt, it was to preserve "The Seed," not to corrupt it. We must keep in mind that while Joseph was in the enemy's territory, he was careful to walk before God, his life was controlled by the Holy Spirit, he did no let his natural or carnal man rule him.
Therefore, when Abraham came into Egypt, he selfishly became more afraid for the preservation of his own life than he was for Sarah's safety; and satan used Abraham's carnal, self-centered, man to lie and jeopardize "The Seed," for Sarah was placed in Pharaoh's harem. But remember, God is working all things after the counsel of His own Will; and in spite of the enemy using Abraham's flesh to thwart the purpose of God, God moved sovereignly to protect Sarah.
But satan does not give up easily; and when Abraham left Egypt, satan sent some of his own territory with Abraham - an "Egyptian" handmaid, named Hagar, accompanied them as they went up out of Egypt. The enemy must have suspected that Abraham's natural man would have a hard time waiting for God to complete His purpose. The enemy must have known, for he know our old man well, that both Abraham's and Sarah's natural reasoning, and their carnal fear and impatience of not having a seed, would be the ground the enemy needed to bring forth that which is born of the flesh.
The Word of God says that Abraham had been in the land of Canaan for 10 years, ten is the number of God's divine order. Thus, at this time, satan makes one of his most effectively moves to disrupt God's Divine order; the devil moves to bring forth that which is born of the flesh: "Ishmael." In the Book of Galatians, where the Holy Spirit reveals the true meaning behind Ishmael and Hagar, we believe that the Holy Spirit has Abraham in mind as He warns: "For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption: but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap Life Everlasting," God produced in and through him and Sarah that which Abraham could not produce himself, and Isaac the child of promise was born. Furthermore, Galatians 3:16 tells us of the eternal results of Abraham's walk in the Spirit: "And to thy Seed, Which is Christ." Yes, he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting - shall from the Spirit, as the Source, reap the harvest of Life eternal.
But, before the son of the Spirit was born, Abraham soweth to the flesh. When Abraham sowed to the flesh, when he walked according to his natural man's reasonings and his carnal man's instinctive self-centeredness, Abraham reaped corruption: from his evil nature as a source, he reaped corruption, decay, ruin, and death. "And Abram (Abraham) called his son's name ... Ishmael." Genesis 16:12 says that Ishmael was a "wild man," the Hebrew Interlinear says that he was a "wild ass;" and this means that he could never be tamed. The nature of his natural and carnal man would never submit to the dealings of the Lord.
Ishmael, the son of the flesh, persecuted Isaac, the son of the Spirit; and this is the significance of our war with the Ishmaelites. Galatians 4:28 and 29 explains this for us?
"Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise, children born by the power from on High," (Luke 24:49). But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now."
Ishmael was born after the flesh, and he and his descendants, the Ishmaelites, have taken shrewd counsel against the hidden ones, those "born from above." And the Ishmaelities, who represent that which is of the natural and carnal man, that which is born of the flesh, persecute and pursue with malignity that which is born of the Spirit: the wild Ishmaelite, behind whom we find satan's inspiration, mocks, scorns makes sport of, and takes pleasure in the suffering of those born and sourced from the Holy Spirit. But take courage brethren, the destiny of the Ishmaelites is corruption and death. The destiny of those born of the Spirit is Life Everlasting.
This consideration of "the Ishmaelites," and what they represent, the works of the natural and carnal man, that which is born of the flesh, will not be complete unless we consider them in the light of Christ's triumph on and in and through the Cross. When Christ was on the Cross, He took upon Himself the old man, which is all that is in man that would never submit to the dealings of God. And when Christ died and was buried, this old man, this natural and carnal man, was buried with Him. And when Christ was resurrected, He left the old man buried in the grave. He left all that was natural and carnal in the realm of death. The old man, the Adamic man, was not resurrected with Christ. Only a new creation, only the new man in Christ Jesus came out of that realm of death into resurrected, everlasting Life (Col. 2:3). And in Ephesians, chapters one and two, we are told that all who were chosen in Christ, such as Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Paul, John and us, and all the redeemed were resurrected in and with Christ. All these came out of that grave a NEW CREATION! This is why the dealings of the Cross are so important in our lives, only the Cross defeats the old man, only the Cross mortifies the deeds of the flesh. Christ says: f you would be My disciple, deny yourself, deny the old man, deny the natural and carnal man, and take up your cross. "The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God."
Therefore, when Abraham came into Egypt, he selfishly became more afraid for the preservation of his own life than he was for Sarah's safety; and satan used Abraham's carnal, self-centered, man to lie and jeopardize "The Seed," for Sarah was placed in Pharaoh's harem. But remember, God is working all things after the counsel of His own Will; and in spite of the enemy using Abraham's flesh to thwart the purpose of God, God moved sovereignly to protect Sarah.
But satan does not give up easily; and when Abraham left Egypt, satan sent some of his own territory with Abraham - an "Egyptian" handmaid, named Hagar, accompanied them as they went up out of Egypt. The enemy must have suspected that Abraham's natural man would have a hard time waiting for God to complete His purpose. The enemy must have known, for he know our old man well, that both Abraham's and Sarah's natural reasoning, and their carnal fear and impatience of not having a seed, would be the ground the enemy needed to bring forth that which is born of the flesh.
The Word of God says that Abraham had been in the land of Canaan for 10 years, ten is the number of God's divine order. Thus, at this time, satan makes one of his most effectively moves to disrupt God's Divine order; the devil moves to bring forth that which is born of the flesh: "Ishmael." In the Book of Galatians, where the Holy Spirit reveals the true meaning behind Ishmael and Hagar, we believe that the Holy Spirit has Abraham in mind as He warns: "For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption: but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap Life Everlasting," God produced in and through him and Sarah that which Abraham could not produce himself, and Isaac the child of promise was born. Furthermore, Galatians 3:16 tells us of the eternal results of Abraham's walk in the Spirit: "And to thy Seed, Which is Christ." Yes, he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting - shall from the Spirit, as the Source, reap the harvest of Life eternal.
But, before the son of the Spirit was born, Abraham soweth to the flesh. When Abraham sowed to the flesh, when he walked according to his natural man's reasonings and his carnal man's instinctive self-centeredness, Abraham reaped corruption: from his evil nature as a source, he reaped corruption, decay, ruin, and death. "And Abram (Abraham) called his son's name ... Ishmael." Genesis 16:12 says that Ishmael was a "wild man," the Hebrew Interlinear says that he was a "wild ass;" and this means that he could never be tamed. The nature of his natural and carnal man would never submit to the dealings of the Lord.
Ishmael, the son of the flesh, persecuted Isaac, the son of the Spirit; and this is the significance of our war with the Ishmaelites. Galatians 4:28 and 29 explains this for us?
"Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise, children born by the power from on High," (Luke 24:49). But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now."
Ishmael was born after the flesh, and he and his descendants, the Ishmaelites, have taken shrewd counsel against the hidden ones, those "born from above." And the Ishmaelities, who represent that which is of the natural and carnal man, that which is born of the flesh, persecute and pursue with malignity that which is born of the Spirit: the wild Ishmaelite, behind whom we find satan's inspiration, mocks, scorns makes sport of, and takes pleasure in the suffering of those born and sourced from the Holy Spirit. But take courage brethren, the destiny of the Ishmaelites is corruption and death. The destiny of those born of the Spirit is Life Everlasting.
This consideration of "the Ishmaelites," and what they represent, the works of the natural and carnal man, that which is born of the flesh, will not be complete unless we consider them in the light of Christ's triumph on and in and through the Cross. When Christ was on the Cross, He took upon Himself the old man, which is all that is in man that would never submit to the dealings of God. And when Christ died and was buried, this old man, this natural and carnal man, was buried with Him. And when Christ was resurrected, He left the old man buried in the grave. He left all that was natural and carnal in the realm of death. The old man, the Adamic man, was not resurrected with Christ. Only a new creation, only the new man in Christ Jesus came out of that realm of death into resurrected, everlasting Life (Col. 2:3). And in Ephesians, chapters one and two, we are told that all who were chosen in Christ, such as Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Paul, John and us, and all the redeemed were resurrected in and with Christ. All these came out of that grave a NEW CREATION! This is why the dealings of the Cross are so important in our lives, only the Cross defeats the old man, only the Cross mortifies the deeds of the flesh. Christ says: f you would be My disciple, deny yourself, deny the old man, deny the natural and carnal man, and take up your cross. "The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God."
"And they overcame him"
(that old serpent, called the devil and satan)
"because of the Blood of the Lamb"
(because of all that Christ accomplished
on and in and through His Cross"
"and because of the Word of their testimony;
and they did not love their life (soul) even to death"
(they willingly submitted to the dealings of the
Cross until they died).
"He that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit
reap Life Everlasting."
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 4)
The Priority of Prayer
"The Lord is far from the wicked, But He hears the prayer of the righteous" (Proverbs 15:29)
A few words offered up without much thought - that is what many Christians regard as their "prayer life". Only in times of desperation or great tragedy is any thought put into the words spoken to the God of the universe.
Prayer is so much more than that. It is when we communicate with God, sharing with Him our hearts as He shares His with us. And then we respond to what He says, walking in the direction that He desires for us to go.
Instead of being an afterthought to our busy days, prayer should be a constant. It should be the element of our lives that we establish and maintain with as much diligence as we do getting up in the morning.
Not only did Jesus spend a large portion of His teaching ministry talking about the importance of prayer, He also modeled a life of prayer, escaping often to the mountaintop to commune with God. In our desire to become more like Christ, we can imitate His actions as much as His words. And His actions speak much louder than words in this case.
Jesus realized it was imperative to maintain a constant relationship with His heavenly Father if He was going to obey Him. And He knew that no matter what happened, God would hear Him. "He hears the prayer of the righteous" (Proverbs 15:29).
Lord, I have been careless with my prayers. Help me to take more seriously these conversations with You, so that I can better understand Your will. Amen
~Charles Stanley~
A few words offered up without much thought - that is what many Christians regard as their "prayer life". Only in times of desperation or great tragedy is any thought put into the words spoken to the God of the universe.
Prayer is so much more than that. It is when we communicate with God, sharing with Him our hearts as He shares His with us. And then we respond to what He says, walking in the direction that He desires for us to go.
Instead of being an afterthought to our busy days, prayer should be a constant. It should be the element of our lives that we establish and maintain with as much diligence as we do getting up in the morning.
Not only did Jesus spend a large portion of His teaching ministry talking about the importance of prayer, He also modeled a life of prayer, escaping often to the mountaintop to commune with God. In our desire to become more like Christ, we can imitate His actions as much as His words. And His actions speak much louder than words in this case.
Jesus realized it was imperative to maintain a constant relationship with His heavenly Father if He was going to obey Him. And He knew that no matter what happened, God would hear Him. "He hears the prayer of the righteous" (Proverbs 15:29).
Lord, I have been careless with my prayers. Help me to take more seriously these conversations with You, so that I can better understand Your will. Amen
~Charles Stanley~
Thursday, October 4, 2012
God's Supreme Interest in Man # 8
You know we are tried, and the Lord allows us to be tried in all these realms. Sometimes the physical is the realm, the basis, of very definite testing and trying. It is the laying down of our physical life for God; as He, the Lord said, on another occasion, "He that saveth his life shall lose it. He that loseth it for My sake shall find it." And that often becomes a physical issue, a real physical issue. It has been that for for many people in recent days; and it becomes that for us, whether we will serve the interests of our bodes when spiritual interests are at stake or involved, or whether we will bring under the body and say, "Look here, you are not the master: you are the servant." Well, it is a realm of real testing. And, I think, our souls know this testing. It is much better in the realm of our souls. The whole matter of reputation and standing and favor and advancement in this world; "gaining the world," as the Lord put it, gaining the world, which means gaining its advantages, and gaining its favor, its smile, its pleasure. This is a temptation to young people especially, and to all Christians, but to young people particularly, whether or not they are going to compromise in order to really stand well with the world. And then there is testing in the spirit, the most acute form of temptation, in our spirit.
Now I have just pointed these things out. We cannot deal at any length with these things, but what I am saying is that here in this temptation of the Lord Jesus, you had an inclusiveness of all temptation of the Lord Jesus, you had an inclusiveness of all temptation in the whole man - spirit, soul, and body, or body, soul, and spirit; and in that comprehensive trial, the IMAGE triumphed and is really confirmed as the IMAGE.
Then we have the devil back again, and, oh, he is back through the closest of His disciples, the beloved Peter, because when He was speaking of His coming death, Peter said: "This shall never come to Thee, Lord, Save Thyself." Here we are back on the body level again. "Spare Yourself, do not put Yourself in the way of that." It came to Him in His soul, for He cried: "My soul, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." He poured out His soul. And, finally, from the Cross, His spirit: "My God." He was tried to the last degree as to God, His Father, the Love of His Father, the Faithfulness of His Father. The testing was pressed into the deepest and closest areas of His human life. It was like that all the way through, but the point is that He triumphed!
But note, what is the heart, the core of it all? Whether the trial is in the body or in the soul or in the spirit, this is the testing, the deepest ordeal. There is one thing in the heart of all, each and all - it is filial relationship with God. The attesting, the presenting was: "My Son in Whom I am well pleased." My Son. "All right," says the devil, "that is the point, the focus point, the focal point upon which I will concentrate." And what is the essence of true sonship? It is the filial relationship to the Father, a relationship of love to the Father.
And do not think of that word "suffering" in connection with Him as just being His physical sufferings on the Cross, His bodily sufferings. That is where many focus everything, on the Crucifix, the wounds, that side of things. No, no, His sufferings were in the realm of not serving His own interests in not even one way at all - in body, soul or spirit. And what it cost Him! What it cost Him so to do. There were His sufferings, and He was made perfect through suffering. And, then, having been made perfect through suffering, He is installed in heaven, instated in heaven, as THE MAN that satisfies God.
Stephen, in his last moments, and almost with his last breath said, "I see the Son of Man STANDING at the right hand of God." Here is the Son of Man installed as the Heavenly Pattern, the Heavenly Pattern to which the Holy Spirit will take up His work no so soon after this. There is a Greek word which is only used once in the New Testament, and it is used by the Lord Jesus Himself, "I have left you an example." This is the only time in the New Testament when that word "example" occurs. And it is like all other Greek words, a pictorial word. It has a picture behind it, and it is taken from the classroom, and the scholars. And we know something about it, where the master teacher sets a pattern to be copied, a writing, the "top line" we used to call it. I do not know so much about things in the school now, but I remember well how I plodded on to imitate that top line in writing, and how much hung upon my success in imitating. The Lord Jesus took this word as an example or pattern after the realm of the classroom the scholar, where the boy has been given a top line, has been given a pattern, an example to follow, copying the master's writing.
You do know the Word says much about "looking off unto Jesus," - "Beholding Him," but then that does not exhaust it, because I think that there is always some weakness. I have found it so at any rate - about this example idea. Ah, everyday to imitate Jesus, but what an awful mess we make of this Top Line. But there is more in the Greek word than that. The Master not only gave the Top Line Pattern, but He drew some grooves in the clay upon which the writing was being done, because at that time, the only means of writing in school cheap enough was clay tablets; and so the master would draw grooves, lines. Now that is very helpful, having some lines to work on so that you do not go crooked. But if there are grooves, so that if you tend to go out of the straight, the groove holds you. That is an extra. That is all in the Word and in the word here, "example". It means that not only has He become the PATTERN to which we are to b conformed, but the Holy Spirit has given us, in our own heart, the grooves, that when we do go out of the straight, the groove pulls us back again. Something that holds us to the straight, do you understand?
Now this is a very simple illustration, but that is the Word, the meaning of the Word "example." That He has been installed and instated as the PATTERN, and THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS COME TO KEEP US ON THE LINES OF THE PATTERN, TO KEEP US FROM DEVIATING. "Kept by the Power of God." If we go askew, we have something to pull us back again, to get us back onto the straight.
Now I must stop there, because that does introduce this activity and energy of the Holy Spirit in the matter of renewing after the IMAGE of Him That created him. We will take that up next, but let us again return to the point of all this, that is, the Lord has focused His attention upon us as human begins to recover the IMAGE of the one Perfect Man. And it is in us as people of whom He is concerned. He is concerned with us. As we so often say, "It matters to Him about us, or about you," focusing His attention not upon getting a perfect system, a New Testament order, but people, just people; and we will never have any kind of heavenly or New Testament order until He gets the kind of people that He wants. And He has got them, or He is getting them. Then everything else will follow, and we will have the right order.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 9 - "The Crisis of Being Renewed")
Now I have just pointed these things out. We cannot deal at any length with these things, but what I am saying is that here in this temptation of the Lord Jesus, you had an inclusiveness of all temptation of the Lord Jesus, you had an inclusiveness of all temptation in the whole man - spirit, soul, and body, or body, soul, and spirit; and in that comprehensive trial, the IMAGE triumphed and is really confirmed as the IMAGE.
Then we have the devil back again, and, oh, he is back through the closest of His disciples, the beloved Peter, because when He was speaking of His coming death, Peter said: "This shall never come to Thee, Lord, Save Thyself." Here we are back on the body level again. "Spare Yourself, do not put Yourself in the way of that." It came to Him in His soul, for He cried: "My soul, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." He poured out His soul. And, finally, from the Cross, His spirit: "My God." He was tried to the last degree as to God, His Father, the Love of His Father, the Faithfulness of His Father. The testing was pressed into the deepest and closest areas of His human life. It was like that all the way through, but the point is that He triumphed!
But note, what is the heart, the core of it all? Whether the trial is in the body or in the soul or in the spirit, this is the testing, the deepest ordeal. There is one thing in the heart of all, each and all - it is filial relationship with God. The attesting, the presenting was: "My Son in Whom I am well pleased." My Son. "All right," says the devil, "that is the point, the focus point, the focal point upon which I will concentrate." And what is the essence of true sonship? It is the filial relationship to the Father, a relationship of love to the Father.
And do not think of that word "suffering" in connection with Him as just being His physical sufferings on the Cross, His bodily sufferings. That is where many focus everything, on the Crucifix, the wounds, that side of things. No, no, His sufferings were in the realm of not serving His own interests in not even one way at all - in body, soul or spirit. And what it cost Him! What it cost Him so to do. There were His sufferings, and He was made perfect through suffering. And, then, having been made perfect through suffering, He is installed in heaven, instated in heaven, as THE MAN that satisfies God.
Stephen, in his last moments, and almost with his last breath said, "I see the Son of Man STANDING at the right hand of God." Here is the Son of Man installed as the Heavenly Pattern, the Heavenly Pattern to which the Holy Spirit will take up His work no so soon after this. There is a Greek word which is only used once in the New Testament, and it is used by the Lord Jesus Himself, "I have left you an example." This is the only time in the New Testament when that word "example" occurs. And it is like all other Greek words, a pictorial word. It has a picture behind it, and it is taken from the classroom, and the scholars. And we know something about it, where the master teacher sets a pattern to be copied, a writing, the "top line" we used to call it. I do not know so much about things in the school now, but I remember well how I plodded on to imitate that top line in writing, and how much hung upon my success in imitating. The Lord Jesus took this word as an example or pattern after the realm of the classroom the scholar, where the boy has been given a top line, has been given a pattern, an example to follow, copying the master's writing.
You do know the Word says much about "looking off unto Jesus," - "Beholding Him," but then that does not exhaust it, because I think that there is always some weakness. I have found it so at any rate - about this example idea. Ah, everyday to imitate Jesus, but what an awful mess we make of this Top Line. But there is more in the Greek word than that. The Master not only gave the Top Line Pattern, but He drew some grooves in the clay upon which the writing was being done, because at that time, the only means of writing in school cheap enough was clay tablets; and so the master would draw grooves, lines. Now that is very helpful, having some lines to work on so that you do not go crooked. But if there are grooves, so that if you tend to go out of the straight, the groove holds you. That is an extra. That is all in the Word and in the word here, "example". It means that not only has He become the PATTERN to which we are to b conformed, but the Holy Spirit has given us, in our own heart, the grooves, that when we do go out of the straight, the groove pulls us back again. Something that holds us to the straight, do you understand?
Now this is a very simple illustration, but that is the Word, the meaning of the Word "example." That He has been installed and instated as the PATTERN, and THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS COME TO KEEP US ON THE LINES OF THE PATTERN, TO KEEP US FROM DEVIATING. "Kept by the Power of God." If we go askew, we have something to pull us back again, to get us back onto the straight.
Now I must stop there, because that does introduce this activity and energy of the Holy Spirit in the matter of renewing after the IMAGE of Him That created him. We will take that up next, but let us again return to the point of all this, that is, the Lord has focused His attention upon us as human begins to recover the IMAGE of the one Perfect Man. And it is in us as people of whom He is concerned. He is concerned with us. As we so often say, "It matters to Him about us, or about you," focusing His attention not upon getting a perfect system, a New Testament order, but people, just people; and we will never have any kind of heavenly or New Testament order until He gets the kind of people that He wants. And He has got them, or He is getting them. Then everything else will follow, and we will have the right order.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 9 - "The Crisis of Being Renewed")
O God ... Thine Enemies # 2
We believe Edom, and the evil force of bitterness it represents, is placed first on this list of God's enemies because its malignant force lays the evil ground needed for the others to join together in their unholy confederation against God - for bitterness opens the door to a multitude of evils. We must look diligently, we must "exercise foresight and be on the watch [on behalf of one another] ... in order that no root of resentment (rancor, bitterness or hatred) shoot forth and cause trouble and bitter torment, and thereby many be defiled" (Hebrews 12:15). We must allow the chastening of the Lord, we must yield to the discipline of the Cross.
Dear ones, when we are in the midst of tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword, we must look diligently. We must exercise forethought, and be on the watch for ourselves and for others, lest any root of bitterness spring up and defile that which should have eternal results in the Lord. "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord ... for it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it - a harvest of fruit which consists in righteousness, [ that is, in conformity to God's will in purpose, thought and action, resulting in right living and right standing with God]" (Hebrews 12:5, 11). Yes, the discipline of the Cross defeats the malignant force of Edom!
O God ... for, lo, Thine enemies make a tumult: They are confederate against Thee" (Psalm 83)
(2) The Ishmaelites: The Ismaelites are the result of Abraham's effort in his natural and carnal man to produce "the seed" that God had promised him (Genesis 12:15). In the Word of God, Abraham is noted for his faith, for his absolute trust in his Lord: "For what saith the Scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness" (Romans 4:3). In James 2:23, "he was called the friend of God." And in 2 Chronicles 20:7, "Art not Thou our God, Who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before Thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham Thy friend for ever." And in Isaiah 41:8, with the most intimate of terms, Abraham is called God's friend by God Himself: "Abraham My friend." Thus, in Hebrews eleven, Abraham is found listed among that valiant and faithful throng of saints of whom the Holy Spirit says: "God is not ashamed to be called their God."
Nevertheless, as the Word accurately points out, Abraham was not perfect, only Christ is. Abraham had many faults, and his main problems were caused by his natural and carnal man. Abraham continually tried to help God out with his own natural thinking, energies, and plans Also, when the situation warranted it, Abraham allowed his carnal nature to control him; and his carnal, self-centered reasonings and actions were used by the enemy to try to thwart God's purpose (Genesis 12:16). The natural man and the carnal man are two aspects of our adamic nature, two aspects of our old man. Let us consider these two aspects.
The natural man is the soulish part of our old man, for the natural man is controlled by his own mind, his own will, his own emotions. The natural man is not controlled by the Holy Spirit. The natural man can be well-intentioned and well-meaning in the things of God. The natural man can be easily led into things that seem to be of God, but are not. The natural man usually bears traces of that which seems to be of God, but which are in reality traits of his own nature and character. The natural man may be kind, good, upright, honest, etc., in nature. He may have a strong conviction of what he considers to be good and evil, and of what he considers to be the truth. The natural man may be led by these seemingly good and reasonable things in his effort to please God. If we are going to effectively serve God, we must learn to recognize the workings of our natural man, for in 1 Corinthians 2:14 we are told: "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God ... neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." The natural man cannot, the spiritual man can!
Now, let us consider the carnal man. For those who are maturing in the Lord, the carnal nature of man is much easier to discern that the natural man; and this is because self-interest, self-centeredness, self-preeminence is always the underlying factor in the nature of a carnal man. While the natural man may have good intentions, the carnal man's intent and motives always have self at the center. Romans 8:6 and 7 says: "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal (self-centered) mind is enmity against God ..."
The enemy knows exactly how to appeal to our natural man, and he also knows what will stir up our carnal man. When Abraham obeyed God, and by faith went to the land of Canaan, the land promised to the children of the seed, he built an altar and there he worshiped God. Then, in reaction to God's purpose in Abraham, the enemy brought forth a famine designed either to destroy Abraham or to get Abraham to go down into Egypt, the devil's own territory. In the Old and New Testaments, 13 famines are recorded, and behind each one is the enemy's attempt to destroy the Seed, Which is Christ, and his attempt to destroy the fullness of Christ in God's people. In this instance, satan was out to destroy "The Seed," and he was out to destroy "the faith" of Abraham which was Abraham's portion that would be consummated in the fullness that is Christ. Shall "famine' that proceeds out from the depths of satan separate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus? NO! Abraham is to learn that in all these things we are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ.
So there was a grievous famine, an "exceedingly fierce" famine, in the land; and we are sure that satan used the concern of Abraham's natural man for his family to persuade him to go "down" into Egypt. Now during this perilous famine, we have no doubt that both Abraham's spiritual man and natural man were deeply concerned for his family and for the others with him; but the Word of God indicates that Abraham's natural and carnal men, the nature of the old man, prevailed. And how do we know this? We know this because, some 20 years later, Abraham did the same thing; and both times "The Seed" was endangered by his fleshly actions.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 3)
Dear ones, when we are in the midst of tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword, we must look diligently. We must exercise forethought, and be on the watch for ourselves and for others, lest any root of bitterness spring up and defile that which should have eternal results in the Lord. "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord ... for it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it - a harvest of fruit which consists in righteousness, [ that is, in conformity to God's will in purpose, thought and action, resulting in right living and right standing with God]" (Hebrews 12:5, 11). Yes, the discipline of the Cross defeats the malignant force of Edom!
O God ... for, lo, Thine enemies make a tumult: They are confederate against Thee" (Psalm 83)
(2) The Ishmaelites: The Ismaelites are the result of Abraham's effort in his natural and carnal man to produce "the seed" that God had promised him (Genesis 12:15). In the Word of God, Abraham is noted for his faith, for his absolute trust in his Lord: "For what saith the Scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness" (Romans 4:3). In James 2:23, "he was called the friend of God." And in 2 Chronicles 20:7, "Art not Thou our God, Who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before Thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham Thy friend for ever." And in Isaiah 41:8, with the most intimate of terms, Abraham is called God's friend by God Himself: "Abraham My friend." Thus, in Hebrews eleven, Abraham is found listed among that valiant and faithful throng of saints of whom the Holy Spirit says: "God is not ashamed to be called their God."
Nevertheless, as the Word accurately points out, Abraham was not perfect, only Christ is. Abraham had many faults, and his main problems were caused by his natural and carnal man. Abraham continually tried to help God out with his own natural thinking, energies, and plans Also, when the situation warranted it, Abraham allowed his carnal nature to control him; and his carnal, self-centered reasonings and actions were used by the enemy to try to thwart God's purpose (Genesis 12:16). The natural man and the carnal man are two aspects of our adamic nature, two aspects of our old man. Let us consider these two aspects.
The natural man is the soulish part of our old man, for the natural man is controlled by his own mind, his own will, his own emotions. The natural man is not controlled by the Holy Spirit. The natural man can be well-intentioned and well-meaning in the things of God. The natural man can be easily led into things that seem to be of God, but are not. The natural man usually bears traces of that which seems to be of God, but which are in reality traits of his own nature and character. The natural man may be kind, good, upright, honest, etc., in nature. He may have a strong conviction of what he considers to be good and evil, and of what he considers to be the truth. The natural man may be led by these seemingly good and reasonable things in his effort to please God. If we are going to effectively serve God, we must learn to recognize the workings of our natural man, for in 1 Corinthians 2:14 we are told: "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God ... neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." The natural man cannot, the spiritual man can!
Now, let us consider the carnal man. For those who are maturing in the Lord, the carnal nature of man is much easier to discern that the natural man; and this is because self-interest, self-centeredness, self-preeminence is always the underlying factor in the nature of a carnal man. While the natural man may have good intentions, the carnal man's intent and motives always have self at the center. Romans 8:6 and 7 says: "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal (self-centered) mind is enmity against God ..."
The enemy knows exactly how to appeal to our natural man, and he also knows what will stir up our carnal man. When Abraham obeyed God, and by faith went to the land of Canaan, the land promised to the children of the seed, he built an altar and there he worshiped God. Then, in reaction to God's purpose in Abraham, the enemy brought forth a famine designed either to destroy Abraham or to get Abraham to go down into Egypt, the devil's own territory. In the Old and New Testaments, 13 famines are recorded, and behind each one is the enemy's attempt to destroy the Seed, Which is Christ, and his attempt to destroy the fullness of Christ in God's people. In this instance, satan was out to destroy "The Seed," and he was out to destroy "the faith" of Abraham which was Abraham's portion that would be consummated in the fullness that is Christ. Shall "famine' that proceeds out from the depths of satan separate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus? NO! Abraham is to learn that in all these things we are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ.
So there was a grievous famine, an "exceedingly fierce" famine, in the land; and we are sure that satan used the concern of Abraham's natural man for his family to persuade him to go "down" into Egypt. Now during this perilous famine, we have no doubt that both Abraham's spiritual man and natural man were deeply concerned for his family and for the others with him; but the Word of God indicates that Abraham's natural and carnal men, the nature of the old man, prevailed. And how do we know this? We know this because, some 20 years later, Abraham did the same thing; and both times "The Seed" was endangered by his fleshly actions.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 3)
The Days of Heaven
The days of heaven are peaceful days,
Still as yon glassy sea;
So calm, so still in God, our days,
As the days of heaven would be.
The days of heaven are holy days,
From sin forever free;
So cleansed and kept our days, O Lord,
As the days of heaven would be.
The days of heaven are happy days.
Sorrow they never see;
So full of gladness all our days,
As the days of heaven would be.
The days of heaven are healthful days,
They feed on life's fair tree;
So feeding on Thy strength, O Christ,
Our days as heaven may be.
Walk with us, Lord, thro' all the days,
And let us walk with Thee;
Till as Thy will is done in heaven,
On earth so shall it be.
~A. B. Simpson~
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
"O God ... Thine Enemies ..."
[very enlightening article toward the middle and end. A must read!]
"O God ... Thine Enemies make a tumult; - They are Confederate Against Thee"
In Psalm 83, we again find these two numbers, 10 and 7, and they are referring to an evil 'confederation" of God's enemies. Psalm 83 tells us that 10 nations and cities have formed a confederation against God and His people; and it also informs us of 7 nations, and leaders, that God has triumphed over. Ten different enemies have formed a "confederation" against God. In the Word of God, there are places where some of these nations and cities have united against God and His people; but there is never a place or a time recorded when all TEN of these enemies have literally united together against God's people. Therefore, we need to find what is the underlying factor, and what is the spiritual significance, behind this evil confederation.
When the number ten is used in connection with satanic activity,, it is usually referring to the intensity, to the exceeding fierceness, of the spiritual warfare that is taking place either at the close of an age or in the transitional period that takes place at the close of one age and at the beginning of the next. For example: in the Book of Daniel, and in Revelation chapters 12-17, the numbers 10 and 7 are used of the enemy forces to emphasize the exceeding fierceness of the spiritual warfare that takes place at the end of each age and of the spiritual warfare that takes place as the final age is drawing to a close.
So, Psalm 83:1-8 warns that these 10 nations have taken crafty counsel against God's people. These 10 enemies, which represent the principalities and powers and dominions of satan, these 10 enemies are not "flesh and blood," but they are "the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world". They are "spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us (God and His people) in the heavenly warfare" (Ephesians 6:12). Thus, the Holy Spirit warns that these 10 nations, which are representative of satan and his evil forces, have made a confederation against God - they have "cut" and have solemnized an evil covenant against God (Hebrew Interlinear). These enemies of God are out to erase God's people from the face of the earth: "that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance." The enemies of God are out to stop all that God would bring forth in and through His people, all that which has eternal results in God's purpose in Christ.
The names of these 10 enemies, and the significance of their place in the Scripture, will describe the nature of this satanic warfare against God and His people. A warfare that will continue until the final second of the final battle of the ages.
(1) Edom: The Edomites are the descendants of Esau, and Esau and his descendants speak of the loss of birthright, blessing, and inheritance. Esau represents those who give up their inheritance in order to satisfy the flesh; the Holy Spirit solemnly states that "Esau despised his birthright" (Genesis 25:34). Furthermore, the nation of Edom would not let Israel pass through their land while Israel was on the way to the promised land, their inheritance (Numbers 20). Therefore, Edom represents the fleshly, carnal nature of man which stands in the way of the people of God attaining unto their inheritance.
In Hebrews twelve we find the final mention of Esau and of that which sprang forth, germinated and descended, from out of him. In this chapter the Holy Spirit reveals what is the underlying evil behind Edom, the enemy of God. Hebrews twelve is one f the pivotal chapters in the plan of God, for it deals with the preparation of the sons of God. It deals with the chastening, the schooling, of the sons of God. In Hebrews 13:22, we are told to "suffer the word of exhortation"; and Hebrews 12:5-7 gives us this word: "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord ... if ye endure chastening (the discipline of the Cross-life), God dealeth with you as with sons ..." The word "endure", used here, is explained in Hebrews 12:2, where it says that Christ "endured the Cross." Christ patiently endured the Cross, and He told us to deny ourselves and take up our cross. This is the fullest meaning of the word "chastening," to endure patiently the Cross, to deny ourselves and endure the discipline of the Cross-life.
Now Hebrews twelve also tells us that "all discipline (of the Cross) for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness" (Hebrews 12:11). And, beloved, this is where Esau got into trouble, he did not "patiently endure," he did not receive the discipline of the Cross. When Esau sold his birthright, "there was a famine in the land" which accounts for Esau despairing of life and, thereby, selling his birthright. Esau had not learned to "endure patiently" the discipline of the Lord, he had not submitted to the discipline of the Cross, he had not learned that nothing - not even famine - could separate him from the love of God: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?" NO! Esau did not become a more than conqueror in all these things; thus, he despised his birthright.
Because Esau was in distressful, tribulating circumstances, he despaired of life; he did not yield to the chastening, to the discipline, of the Lord through the Cross. Therefore, Esau did not yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness; he allowed the "root of bitterness" to germinate (spring up) in him (Hebrews 12:14-16). And this bitterness defiled many, for it defiled his descendants. And Esau's descendants, the Edomites, are found in "confederation" against God and God's people. The "root of bitterness" finds its origin in the depths of satan himself, for satan is the personification of malignant bitterness; with his whole evil being, he bitterly hates God and His Christ. That old serpent, called the devil and satan, bitterly hates God because God has purposed that everything in His Eternal Plan be of Christ, in Christ, through Christ, and unto Christ. And so, brothers and sisters, let us be always "looking diligently," lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble us (cause a tumult within us).
Bitterness usually begins to germinate when we despair of our lot in life; if we yield to this despair, then bitterness will spring up when times are hard and nothing seems to be working out. Edom, with all its malignant force of bitterness, will hit us hard in times of tribulation,distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril and sword. And, beloved, only the discipline of the Cross is strong enough to defeat bitterness.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 2)
*also posted in: theshepherdscorner.wordpress.com - another of my blog pages.
"O God ... Thine Enemies make a tumult; - They are Confederate Against Thee"
In Psalm 83, we again find these two numbers, 10 and 7, and they are referring to an evil 'confederation" of God's enemies. Psalm 83 tells us that 10 nations and cities have formed a confederation against God and His people; and it also informs us of 7 nations, and leaders, that God has triumphed over. Ten different enemies have formed a "confederation" against God. In the Word of God, there are places where some of these nations and cities have united against God and His people; but there is never a place or a time recorded when all TEN of these enemies have literally united together against God's people. Therefore, we need to find what is the underlying factor, and what is the spiritual significance, behind this evil confederation.
When the number ten is used in connection with satanic activity,, it is usually referring to the intensity, to the exceeding fierceness, of the spiritual warfare that is taking place either at the close of an age or in the transitional period that takes place at the close of one age and at the beginning of the next. For example: in the Book of Daniel, and in Revelation chapters 12-17, the numbers 10 and 7 are used of the enemy forces to emphasize the exceeding fierceness of the spiritual warfare that takes place at the end of each age and of the spiritual warfare that takes place as the final age is drawing to a close.
So, Psalm 83:1-8 warns that these 10 nations have taken crafty counsel against God's people. These 10 enemies, which represent the principalities and powers and dominions of satan, these 10 enemies are not "flesh and blood," but they are "the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world". They are "spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us (God and His people) in the heavenly warfare" (Ephesians 6:12). Thus, the Holy Spirit warns that these 10 nations, which are representative of satan and his evil forces, have made a confederation against God - they have "cut" and have solemnized an evil covenant against God (Hebrew Interlinear). These enemies of God are out to erase God's people from the face of the earth: "that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance." The enemies of God are out to stop all that God would bring forth in and through His people, all that which has eternal results in God's purpose in Christ.
The names of these 10 enemies, and the significance of their place in the Scripture, will describe the nature of this satanic warfare against God and His people. A warfare that will continue until the final second of the final battle of the ages.
(1) Edom: The Edomites are the descendants of Esau, and Esau and his descendants speak of the loss of birthright, blessing, and inheritance. Esau represents those who give up their inheritance in order to satisfy the flesh; the Holy Spirit solemnly states that "Esau despised his birthright" (Genesis 25:34). Furthermore, the nation of Edom would not let Israel pass through their land while Israel was on the way to the promised land, their inheritance (Numbers 20). Therefore, Edom represents the fleshly, carnal nature of man which stands in the way of the people of God attaining unto their inheritance.
In Hebrews twelve we find the final mention of Esau and of that which sprang forth, germinated and descended, from out of him. In this chapter the Holy Spirit reveals what is the underlying evil behind Edom, the enemy of God. Hebrews twelve is one f the pivotal chapters in the plan of God, for it deals with the preparation of the sons of God. It deals with the chastening, the schooling, of the sons of God. In Hebrews 13:22, we are told to "suffer the word of exhortation"; and Hebrews 12:5-7 gives us this word: "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord ... if ye endure chastening (the discipline of the Cross-life), God dealeth with you as with sons ..." The word "endure", used here, is explained in Hebrews 12:2, where it says that Christ "endured the Cross." Christ patiently endured the Cross, and He told us to deny ourselves and take up our cross. This is the fullest meaning of the word "chastening," to endure patiently the Cross, to deny ourselves and endure the discipline of the Cross-life.
Now Hebrews twelve also tells us that "all discipline (of the Cross) for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness" (Hebrews 12:11). And, beloved, this is where Esau got into trouble, he did not "patiently endure," he did not receive the discipline of the Cross. When Esau sold his birthright, "there was a famine in the land" which accounts for Esau despairing of life and, thereby, selling his birthright. Esau had not learned to "endure patiently" the discipline of the Lord, he had not submitted to the discipline of the Cross, he had not learned that nothing - not even famine - could separate him from the love of God: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?" NO! Esau did not become a more than conqueror in all these things; thus, he despised his birthright.
Because Esau was in distressful, tribulating circumstances, he despaired of life; he did not yield to the chastening, to the discipline, of the Lord through the Cross. Therefore, Esau did not yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness; he allowed the "root of bitterness" to germinate (spring up) in him (Hebrews 12:14-16). And this bitterness defiled many, for it defiled his descendants. And Esau's descendants, the Edomites, are found in "confederation" against God and God's people. The "root of bitterness" finds its origin in the depths of satan himself, for satan is the personification of malignant bitterness; with his whole evil being, he bitterly hates God and His Christ. That old serpent, called the devil and satan, bitterly hates God because God has purposed that everything in His Eternal Plan be of Christ, in Christ, through Christ, and unto Christ. And so, brothers and sisters, let us be always "looking diligently," lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble us (cause a tumult within us).
Bitterness usually begins to germinate when we despair of our lot in life; if we yield to this despair, then bitterness will spring up when times are hard and nothing seems to be working out. Edom, with all its malignant force of bitterness, will hit us hard in times of tribulation,distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril and sword. And, beloved, only the discipline of the Cross is strong enough to defeat bitterness.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 2)
*also posted in: theshepherdscorner.wordpress.com - another of my blog pages.
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