We who are the children of God
can well remember the first days of our being brought to know Him through that
blessed One whose very Name filled our hearts with rapturous delight. How
relieving and how sweet to the soul to confess that Name before men; how
marvelous to realize that His blood was shed for me, that His sacrifice for me
was a sweet smelling savor to God, and because of it nothing could separate me
from "the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 8:39).
With fond remembrance we recall the sparkling freshness and joy of heart that
issued forth in adoration for our Lord when, like the leaves of the trees
stirred gently by the wind, our very being seemed alive with praise to Him.
But in so reflecting, not a few
of us have sorrowed as we see that those affections have grown cold with time;
the ardor of delight that once was there seems lost forever, and we wonder why,
despite our efforts, it cannot be regained. Here many stumble and are led
astray.
A Wrong Thought
Some have claimed that to answer
the question, it requires a wonderful and mysterious experience that they call
"sanctification." By this they profess to attain a higher level than
Christians who are not (as they say) "sanctified." However, the
honest inquirer into Scripture will find that we are not sanctified by an experience,
but by the truth, the Word of God (John l7:17). Moreover, when we look for,
and find, some experience that stirs us to excitement, we may be stimulated for
a time, but always drop back again into a still deeper dissatisfaction, the
same effect that is left through drinking too much wine. In Scripture, joy is
typified by wine; it may exhilarate, but I do not, could not, feed on it:that
would leave me a total wreck
True Joy Found Only in the
Lord
Is the Christian, then, denied
joy? Indeed he is not, for true spiritual joy is of God, and is both
exceedingly precious and important. But let me ask, What gave you the joy at
conversion? Was it through thinking of that joy? "Certainly not," you
will answer, "it resulted from the knowledge of the Lord Jesus as my own
Saviour, and of His very near presence always with me. I was feeding on real
substantial food, and rejoiced in doing so."
Yet think, have you so greatly
treasured that joy as to lose sight of the need of feeding? Depending largely
on the joy, have you forgotten how dependent you are on the Lord? Surely this
is the true answer to the coldness and lack of growth in more than a few cases.
The eye is on self, and on what is going on within, instead of being fixed
steadily on the One who only can give real gladness of heart.
Christ, not Joy, Feeds the
Soul and Satisfies
I believe the condition of soul
that many of us have experienced is aptly described in Psa. 107:4,5:"They
wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in.
Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them." These were the children
of Israel, some time after singing the glorious song of deliverance from their
enemies by crossing over the Red Sea (Exodus 15). There was a longing not
satisfied, a desire not filled; the joy that had been theirs before could not
sustain them now. What then? "Then they cried unto the Lord in their
trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses. And He led them forth
by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. Oh that men would
praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children
of men! For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with
goodness" (verses 6-9). Let this sink deeply, dear reader, into your heart
and mine; joy does not satisfy, does not feed the soul, but our Lord does. Nor
could it be otherwise, for has He not said, "I am the living bread which
came down from heaven" John 6:51)?
The Scripture the Only Source
Now, where did I first learn of
Christ? What gave me my first taste of the bread of sweetness? Only Scripture;
without that I would be in darkness still. How, then, can I neglect that
precious Book and expect my thoughts to be of Christ? Impossible! And yet how
many try to keep their joy while ignoring the only place from which true
spiritual joy can come.
“The Bible is difficult to
understand," someone is bound to say, "and I seem to get so little
from it." We well rejoice to know that the most profound students of
Scripture have marveled at its depths of wisdom and its beauty of perfection.
So, although our first impulse is to wish we knew it all, we are steadied by
the thought that there is food here for many years to come, and too much at
once will give indigestion. You would not think of refusing a meal simply
because you were denied a year’s supply of food at once! Take one meal at a
time from the Word of God and be sure you digest it well.
Little by Little … Steadily
Learning
Once a start has been made in
searching the Scriptures, Satan will employ many means of discouraging you.
Perhaps it will seem difficult and wearisome, and doubt arise as to whether
there will be any fruit from it at all. This is a "trial of faith,"
and faith is simply implicit trust in God. Then ask yourself this question:
"Is God not able to carry me through this test?" and go to God about
it. Then remember that faith acts! "The hand of the diligent maketh
rich." "He who gathereth by labor shall increase." ‘In all labor
there is profit." ‘It is the glory of God to conceal a thing; but honor of
kings is to search out a matter" (Prov. 10:4; 13:11; 14:23; 25:2).
"Let us not be weary in well doing; for in due season we shall reap, if we
faint not" (Gal. 6:9). With time and diligence, you will learn little by
little, and each lesson will be truly learned in the heart. Moreover, when the
heart has learned something for itself, a joy will result much calmer and
deeper than was known before. But guard against relying on that joy. Go on
steadily, learning more of Christ:only thus is the soul kept fresh and alive.
Read with Reverence, Seek to
Learn of Christ in Both the Old and New Testaments
If you have real joy in reading,
always remember never to open that precious Book except in a spirit of
reverence and lowliness. And then in every word you read, listen to the voice
of "The High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity" as speaking
directly to your soul.
Further, do not go to the
Scriptures with a selfish motive—not merely to get something for yourself—but
with Christ as the Object of your heart. This is the only key that will open them
to you. When walking with the two on the way to Emmaus, the Lord Jesus
"expounded unto them in a all the Scriptures the things concerning
Himself’ (Luke 24:27).How sweet their consequent testimony:"Did not our
heart burn within us while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to
us the Scriptures?" Nothing can preserve the beauty and freshness of the
Word to the soul like a mind alert to find something of Christ everywhere.
In the New Testament we may read
directly of His walk, His ways, and His teachings in the Gospels. And we find
in the Epistles doctrine concerning His Person, His work, His glory, or His
interests on earth in the gospel going to the unsaved, and in His body, which
is the Church.
The Old Testament we shall find
abounding with types of Christ in His various characteristics:as Son of God,
Son of Man, Prophet, Priest, King, Servant, Shepherd, the Lamb of God, and
others. Also types of His birth, spotless life, suffering on earth, rejection
by men, substitution for the sinner, bearing God’s judgment, voluntary
"obedience unto death," resurrection, exaltation, coming for His
saints, coming in judgment, and reigning over the earth are to be found. In the
Psalms and the Prophets He is supremely preeminent. Everywhere it is so. Let us
then be the more earnest in finding this precious "hid treasure,"
ever keeping in remembrance that if Christ is really the Object, the heart will
lack nothing. Then truly we may say, "His joys our deepest joys
afford," and with the Prophet Jeremiah, ‘Thy words were found, and I did
eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart"
(Jer. 15:16).
(Used by permission of the
author.)
FRAGMENT "Rejoice in the
Lord always" (Phil. 4:4). Christians should not be a glum lot. When we groan
and complain about the weather, our health, the inflation rate, the lack of
jobs, the present government, and world conditions, the world is not impressed.
Unbelievers are looking for hope, not doom. Does not Christ’s presence with
you, God’s people around you, and eternal glory ahead of you, give you joy? The
Apostle Paul says, "Rejoice!" D.L.
Norbie
FRAGMENT
Rejoice, rejoice, O soul, be glad
And sing the Master’s praise;
Let not your countenance be sad,
For pleasant are His ways. C.
Buck