When Dr. E.K. Kane was searching
the Arctic regions for the lost Sir John Franklin party in 1853-55, one thing
was quite prominent in that expedition. They faced a great many trials,
temperatures at minus 30 to 75 degrees, the long dark night of the Arctic
winger, the lack of food and other necessities, the whole party stricken down
with scurvy, grim Death lurking continually around their brig. But in spite of all
these trials, they continued to make observations and sketches of the coast
line, to strike out by sledge and whaleboat for evidences of the missing party,
to take temperatures, and otherwise follow through on the work they had set out
to do.

This was the apostle Paul’s
experience in a better cause. "In all things approving ourselves as the
ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in
distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in watchings,
in fastings; by pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the
Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, by the Word of truth, by the power of God, by
the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honor and
dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; as
unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and
not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich;
as having nothing, and yet possessing all things" (2 Cor. 6:4-10).

(From Help and Food, Vol.
47.)

 

                 Characteristics of the Early

                 Church:The Priesthood of All

                           Believers

In Old Testament times Jehovah
established a priesthood in the nation of Israel. The work of the priest was
"to offer gifts and sacrifices" (Heb. 8:3), "first for his own
sins, and then for the people’s" (Heb. 7:27). Jehovah selected a special
family out of all the tribes and families of the nation to serve as priests on
behalf of the entire nation. Woe to anyone from outside the family of Aaron who
attempted to usurp the priesthood for himself (Num. 16,17).

The teaching of the New Testament
concerning priesthood represents quite a change from that of the Old Testament,
however. The priesthood of Aaron and his family has been replaced by the
priesthood of Christ and His body. The Israelite priesthood, under law, was
characterized by distance from God, while the Christian priesthood, under
grace, is characterized by nearness to God. Only the high priest could
go into the inner sanctum or "holiest of all" of the tabernacle—the
very presence of Jehovah. He could do this only once a year, and only with the
blood of a goat to make atonement for his own sins and those of the people
(Lev. 16:2,15-17,29,30; Heb. 9:1-10). But when Christ died, the veil of the temple
that blocked the way into the holiest "was torn in two from the top to the
bottom" (Matt. 27:51). For this reason, we are told that believers in
Christ have "boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by
a new and living way, which He has consecrated for us, through the veil, that
is to say, His flesh" (Heb. 10:19,20).

                  Who is Our High Priest Now?

It is the Lord Jesus Christ
Himself who is a "merciful and faithful High Priest" (Heb. 2:17). He
is our "great High Priest" who can "be touched with the feeling
of our infirmities … in all points tempted like as we are, yet without
sin" (Heb. 4:14,15). He is a "holy, harmles, undefiled" High
Priest who is "separate from sinners and made higher than the heavens …
set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens" (Heb.
7:26; 8:1). He is the One who offered one perfect sacrifice—Himself!—that fully
satisfied a holy God, in contrast to the repeated animal sacrifices offered by
the priests of Israel  (Heb. 7:27; 9:9,12,14; 10:11-14). The Book of Hebrews
clearly proves the superiority of the priesthood of Christ over that of Aaron.

                Who Are the Under-Priests Now?

If Christ is the High Priest, are
there under-priests as well? Yes indeed! But these are not confined to one
particular family or specially-appointed class of believers. Whenever the
Christian priesthood is mentioned it clearly has reference to all
believers, every member of the body of Christ:"You also, as living
stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood,… a royal
priesthood" (1 Pet. 2:5,9) To whom was the apostle Peter writing? 
"To the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia,
and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through
sanctification of the Spirit,… begotten … unto a living hope by the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Pet. 1:1‑3). This
epistle was not written to a special class of believers but to all
believers, including Christian servants (2:18), wives (3:1-6), husbands (3:7),
ministers of the Word (4:11), elders of the local assembly (5:1-4), and younger
believers (5:5). In the Book of Revelation, those whom Christ has made
"priests unto God" are the same ones whom He loved and washed from
their sins (1:5,6).

               What Does a Christian Priest Do?

What do we do when we enter into
the holiest and thus draw near to Christ (Heb. 10:19,20)? We surely do not come
near with the blood of a sacrifice as Aaron used to do on the great day
of atonement. Rather, we come "by the blood of Jesus" (10:19),
the blood of a far superior sacrifice shed at the cross of Calvary. And as we
draw near we "offer up spiritual sacrifices" (1 Pet. 2:5), "the
sacrifice of praise to God" (Heb. 13:15). Surely each believer in Christ
has the privilege of doing this in his/her own private meditations and
devotions. We can enjoy a nearness to God through Christ that was not possible
for the family of Aaron.

But notice that the drawing near
into the holiest is linked in Hebrews 10 with "not forsaking the
assembling of ourselves together." So there is also a collective aspect to
this—a drawing near to Christ in fellowship and company with other believers in
Christ. The highest possible expression of this drawing near to Christ in a
collective way is the observance of the Lord’s Supper. We gather together unto
the name of Christ, with Himself in our midst (Matt. 18:20), with Himself and
His atoning death the object of our meditations, praise, and worship (1 Cor.
11:24‑26), with Himself as our High Priest (Heb. 2:17; etc.), and Himself
as our Praise‑Leader (Psa. 22:22; 40:3; Heb. 2:12).

Many Christian denominations and
congregations today, while giving lip-service to the truth of the priesthood of
all believers, behave as if God’s order for the Church is the same as was His
order for the nation of Israel. They believe that persons specially appointed
as priests or clergymen are necessary to minister to the rest of the
congregation—the laity—and to represent them before God.

Does the New Testament speak of a
special class of believers with greater authority and privilege than the rest
to draw near to God with their praise and worship? Nowhere! In fact, to
establish such a class implies that other worshipers cannot directly approach
God with their gifts and sacrifices. They are kept at a distance while others
approach for them.

In 1 Corinthians 11 and 14 we find
instruction given to believers as to their conduct when they come together. In
chapter 11 the Corinthians were enjoined not to allow the holy observance of
the Lord’s Supper to be marred by divisions and class‑conscious cliques
among them (11:17‑34). In chapter 14 they were told, "When you come
together, every one of you has a psalm, has a doctrine, has a tongue,
has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done unto
edifying" (14:26). The apostle goes on to set upper limits on the number
of speakers and to order that the "women keep silence in the churches, for
it is not permitted unto them to speak" (14:27‑34). In all of the
instructions given as to the conduct of the believers when they come together
in gatherings of the local church or assembly, there is not the slightest hint
of a single person ordained or assigned to lead the assembly in its worship.
Rather, all indications point to many of the brothers participating in
such a meeting. And is this not in keeping with the truths we have already
noticed in Hebrews, 1 Peter, and Revelation that Christ is our High
Priest and Praise-Leader, and that all believers comprise the Christian
priesthood?

In case any of our readers has
never experienced it in person, let me try to paint a picture of an assembly of
Christian priests gathered with their High Priest to observe the Lord’s Supper.
As led by the Holy Spirit, several brothers may in turn give out specific hymns
to be sung by the congregation, and intermingled with these hymns may be
prayers of thanksgiving and praise (perhaps as simple as, "We thank Thee,
Lord, for dying on the cross for us; amen") and meditation on the
sufferings of Christ. One or two brothers, again as moved by the Holy Spirit,
may stand up and read passages of Scripture, with or without comment, that help
to focus the hearts of the congregation on the beauties and glories of the
person of Christ and on the agonies and sufferings of His death on the cross
for us. Sometime during this service a brother will be moved by the Holy Spirit
to get up and give thanks for the loaf of bread and the cup of wine, symbols of
the body and blood of Christ, and will pass the loaf and the cup to those who
are in fellowship, that is, identified with the assembly. The brother who does
this may pray with great eloquence or with stammering lips; may be 101 or 61 or
21 years old; may have been in fellowship for eight decades or eight weeks; may
be a millionaire or a pauper; may have a Ph.D. or be a third‑grade
dropout; may be red, yellow, black, or white. Where each one in the assembly is
humbly waiting on the Holy Spirit for guidance, this gathering of priests can
be a most wonderful, awesome experience of united, harmonious praise and
worship.

One may ask, "If any one is
allowed to participate, are not mistakes sometimes made?" Yes, to be sure.
Occasionally, hymns may be given out or prayers uttered or scriptures read that
have little or nothing to do with commemorating the sufferings and death of
Christ. Sometimes a brother may participate when not led by the Holy Spirit,
but rather, perhaps, by a sense of his own importance and for the purpose of
putting himself forward, or perhaps through a lack of understanding. But the
Lord knows all about our weaknesses and failures and bears with us and
overlooks a great deal in us. Would we, because of occasional weakness and
failure, give up a meeting where each male priest is free to participate, as
led by the Holy Spirit, for one where only one priest is given the privilege
and authority to speak, regardless of whether he is actually led by the Holy
Spirit?

                What About the Female Priests?

The picture we have just
painted—and which is acted out in thousands of local assemblies around the
world each Lord’s day—seems to include only the male priests, the brothers in
Christ. What about the female priests, the sisters in Christ? Do they have any
role to play other than as spectators?

Yes, they have a most vital role
to play! First of all, they have the privilege of drawing near, within the
holiest, in their private meditations and devotions. In this their privilege is
identical to that of the brothers. Second, in meetings of the assembly where
"it is not permitted unto them to speak" (1 Cor. 14:34), they often
provide a solid spiritual foundation for the meeting. I know (from my personal
experience) that there is a tendency for the brothers sometimes to be occupied
with what they should say so as to make the best impression on others, whereas
the sisters are free to give themselves to pure meditation upon the Lord
without worrying what others will think. And so, I suspect, the Lord may often
take much more pleasure in the inaudible praises of the sisters than the
audible ones of the brothers.

Several times I have had the
experience of a sister coming to me after a meeting and saying that a thought I
had expressed, or a scripture passage I had read, or a hymn I had given out was
exactly what was going through her mind at that very moment. Experiences like
this serve to solidify the bonds that unite the saints together in an assembly.
Also, in many cases a married brother will receive spiritual insights through
conversations with his wife during the week, and the Holy Spirit may lead him
to express such thoughts in a meeting of the assembly.

Some may ask why, if all
Christians are part of the priesthood, only the brothers are allowed by
God to engage in priestly activities in a public way. I don’t profess to know
the entire answer to that. The Lord will reveal it in the glory, I am certain.
But I believe it is related to the teachings of Scripture that "Adam was
first formed, then Eve" (1 Tim. 2:11‑13), "the head of the
woman is the man" (1 Cor. 11:3‑10), and "the husband is the
head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the Church" (Eph. 5:22‑24).
The sisters’ silence in the meeting may serve as a "mute testimony"
to the truth that Christ is Head of the Church, and thus the brothers as
representing Christ in this setting must be most careful that whatever they say
in the meeting does not come from themselves, for their own glory, but is truly
from Christ, truly "the oracles of God … that God in all things may be
glorified through Jesus Christ" (1 Pet. 4:11).

Some sisters in this era of the
"ERA" (Equal Rights Amendment) may tend to be resentful that God has
ordered them not to take a public part in the assembly meetings. They may
resent it that the brothers get all the glory and honor of the public place.
But this misses the whole point. Neither sisters nor brothers are to be seeking
personal honor and glory, either in this world nor in the one to come. It is God
who is to be glorified through Jesus Christ as we just noticed in the
previous paragraph, and as we find emphasized throughout the Scriptures (for
example, Josh. 7:19; 1 Chron. 16:10,24,27‑29; Psa. 22:23; 50:1; Mal. 2:2;
Matt. 6:13; Luke 2:14; Rom. 15:6,9; 1 Cor. 6:20; Rev. 1:6; 5:12,13; and
numerous of other references). Those who receive glory and honor for themselves
in this present life cannot expect further reward in the next life (Psa. 49:18‑20;
Matt. 6:1‑6). Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, may we earnestly
desire that all glory and honor and praise go up to God, and not seek
one iota of it for ourselves. I truly believe that when the rewards and crowns
are given out at the judgment seat of Christ, it will be the sisters who
worshiped and served the Lord quietly, in the private sphere given to them by
the Lord, who will carry away the most and best rewards.

                        Silent Priests

While the sisters are not
permitted by God to exercise their priesthood in public meetings of the
assembly, there are many brothers who fail to exercise their God‑given
rights and privileges in this regard. Why is this? For some it may be that they
just are not enjoying a close walk with the Lord; perhaps they are allowing
their job and hobbies and home improvement activities to crowd out their
"quiet time," time they should be spending daily reading the Word,
meditating on it, praying, and worshiping. If this is the case, their cup of
praise will not be "full and running over" on the Lord’s day. It is
what we gather through the week from the Word that will form our thoughts for
expression at the Lord’s Supper. Further, our preparation is greatly enhanced
by our being punctual, being seated at least a few minutes before the scheduled
time of the meeting (Luke 22:14).

For others, I believe, the reason
is self‑consciousness, which is a polite word for pride. Many are afraid
that if they speak up in the meeting they may stumble or stutter or say the
wrong thing or be rebuked by another. That certainly may happen. Join the
crowd! By remaining silent when the Lord, the Praise‑Leader, has given
you something to contribute, you may preserve your own self‑glory and
protect your self‑image from the slightest tarnish, but at the same time
you take away from God’s glory by failing to give Him the glory that He
deserves.

Has anyone ever thrown a birthday
party for you? I’m sure most of us can answer in the affirmative. When you open
your gifts, what do you say? Do you remain silent because you are afraid that
you might not be able to say "Thank you" with just the right
inflection, or with an appropriate degree of enthusiasm? Or do you say, "I
just don’t have a gift for saying ‘Thank you’"? I have never yet met a
person who wasn’t able to say a simple, "Thank you," when receiving a
gift. Why, then, is it so difficult to say aloud in a group of fellow‑believers
gathered around the Lord, "Thank You, Lord, for dying for us; amen"?

May the Lord encourage each male
priest to take advantage of his privilege of bringing glory and honor to God by
allowing the Holy Spirit to lead him to participate in the assembly praise and
prayer meetings. May the Lord encourage each of us, brothers and sisters alike,
to draw near to Him frequently, within the holiest, with our prayers, praises,
and meditations, "the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name."

 

"The cloud covered [the
tabernacle] by day, and the appearance of fire by night. And when the cloud was
taken up from the tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel journeyed; and in the place where the cloud abode, there the children of Israel pitched their tents" (Num. 9:16,17).

The wilderness is a journeying
place; and if there is the danger of journeying away from God, there is the
blessed and happy privilege of journeying with Him. The first step of the
children of Israel’s journey, even in Egypt, was taken under the guidance of
the pillar of cloud and fire. And in the present passage, when the tabernacle
was set up the cloud hovered over it, moving only when the people were to
journey.

How beautiful was this cloud in
contrast to their surroundings. In the day time the cloud shielded the people
from the heat as it came between them and the sun; at night the darkness
manifested the brightness of a presence whose reality and beauty were only
enhanced by the surrounding gloom. We have this blessed presence always with us
in the person of the Holy Spirit who abides with us forever. All through our
journey, until we take the last step of our pilgrimage, He is pledged to be
with us; we "are sealed unto the day of redemption" (Eph. 4:30). When
the attractiveness of the world around us shines bright, His holy witness may
seem a cloud by contrast, yet a cloud that affords most grateful shade from the
false glare of the world. If only we would notice the cloud and listen to the
warnings and checks of the blessed Spirit of God! But when the gloom of this
world settles in, when all else is dark, how brightly does the presence of God
shine, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Sorrow, pain, grief, and loss
are but the foil upon which the consolations of Him "who gives songs in
the night" (Job 35:10) shine out all the more brightly.

The holy presence was to be Israel’s guide all through the wilderness, and it is to be ours also. How simple it made
their journey! There was no need for anxious thought for the morrow, no
restless peering into the unknown future, still less any entreaty of a child of
the desert to "be to us instead of eyes" (Num. 10:31). We have the
guidance of One who "neither slumbers nor sleeps" (Psa. 121:4), to
whom "the darkness and the light are both alike" (Psa. 139:12), and
who has pledged, "My presence shall go with you, and I will give you
rest" (Exod. 33:14).

This is a blessed journey indeed,
where not one step is taken ahead of our blessed Guide, where we need never
leave the sweet secret of His holy presence. What a remedy for all anxiety, all
restless Martha-service, all hasty Peter-warfare. It does not occupy us with
the way, whether it be smooth or rough, whether easy or perilous. Rather, it
fixes our eye upon Christ, as reflected by the Holy Spirit, and we follow as He
leads. Our one, our only care is just to abide in His presence. Does that
presence beckon us onward? let us move forward without fear. Does it stand
still? let us learn our lesson of patience. If in our darkest hour of trial it
lifts and moves forward, it is for us simply to follow—to follow not for the
sake of mere progress, but simply to continue in communion with our blessed
Lord. If we fail to go on when He leads we lose our communion, just as we do if
we press on in undue or self-confident haste. May our gracious God teach us to
abide in His holy, blessed presence.

"And now, little children,
abide in Him" (1 John 2:28).

 

"Thou wilt show Me the path
of life; in Thy presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are
pleasures for evermore" (Psa. 16:11).

This life is a life lived in the
light of the glory to which it leads. Every path has a destined end. "The
path of life" leads into the presence of the Lord where there is fullness
of joy and pleasures for evermore. In all the opposition the Lord Jesus had to
meet—the contradiction of sinners, the insults and reproach from the religious
world, the ignorance and forsaking of His own—He endured in the light of the
glory before Him. As we read, "Who for the joy that was set before Him
endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of
the throne of God" (Heb. 12:2). The word to us is, "Consider Him who
endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself, lest you be wearied and
faint in your minds" (Heb. 12:3).

Alas! we often break down in the
presence of contradiction and insult. We grow weary and faint under the
pressure of a long, drawn-out trial because we lose sight of the glory at the
end of the road—the joy that is set before us. Instead of quietly enduring
insults and shame, too often we return evil for evil and railing for railing.
We may attempt to justify our strong words and our hasty acts, but the one test
is, would Jesus have acted as we did? Would Jesus have said what we did?

If then we would think and speak
and act as the Lord Jesus did when treading the path of life—if in any measure
we would experience the blessedness of the lovely life marked out by Christ—let
us tread the path "looking unto Jesus" in the glory, the end
of the path; and let us "consider" Jesus as He trod the
path of life. Then, it may be, the transforming power of the loveliness of
Christ will, even now, change us into His image "from glory to
glory."

Moreover, let us remember that the
grace that enabled the Lord to tread the path of life is available for us. From
His place in the glory He still serves us as our great High Priest to help,
sympathize, and sustain us as we seek to follow in His steps in the path of
life that He has marked out for us. Whatever we may have to meet, whatever we
may be called upon to endure—opposition, insults, or desertions—let us remember
the word, "Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus" (2
Tim. 2:1).

(From The Loveliness of Christ.)

 

He leads us on

By paths we did not know;

Upward He leads us, though our steps be slow,

Though often we faint and falter on the way,

Though storms and darkness oft obscure the day;

Yet when the clouds are gone,

We know He leads us on.

 

He leads us on

Through all the unquiet years;

Past all our dreamland hopes and doubts and fears

He guides our steps. Through all the tangled maze

Of sin, of sorrow, and o’er-clouded days;

We know His will is done,

And still He leads us on.

 

And He, at last—

After the weary strife,

After the restless fever men call life,

After the dreariness, the aching pain,

The wayward struggles that have proved in vain,

After our toils are past—

Will give us rest at last.

 

(From Help and Food, Vol.
7.)

 

Cromwell asked, "What is
history but God’s unfolding of Himself?" The psalmist would have readily
agreed because in the history of his people, he saw Jehovah unfolded as a God
of goodness, patience, and steadfast love.

Although we cannot name the
psalmist, we do know that he was a godly Jew who wrote while his people were in
captivity (verse 47). The Psalm is primarily a confession of national sin, but
it also intermingles accounts of God’s grace and goodness and contains elements
of praise and petition.

In his approach to God, the
psalmist begins with worship (verse 1); he enters the divine gates with
thanksgiving, and the sacred courts with praise. "Praise ye the
LORD," the translation of the Hebrew word "Hallelujah," is the
first and last note of the song. Ceaseless thanksgiving should arise to the
LORD, because He has been so good to every one of us. His mercy endures
forever—our continued survival is proof of that. If we received what we
deserve, we would be lost forever.

No human tongue will ever be able
to recount all the miraculous interventions of God on behalf of His people.
Eternity itself will not be long enough to praise Him adequately for all that
He is and all that He has done (verses 2,3).

Praise is followed by personal
petition (verses 4,5). Looking forward to the restoration of Israel and the glorious reign of the Messiah-King, the writer prays that he might share in
the blessedness of that day when God shows favor to His ransomed saints. He
longs to see Israel enjoying unbroken prosperity and rejoicing after its long
night of sorrow. He desires to share in the glory of God’s ancient earthly
people. His prayer is not dissimilar to that of the dying thief, "Lord,
remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom" (Luke 23:42).

The Psalm now turns to confession,
following much the same order as the Lord’s prayer of Matthew 6. Both begin
with worship, move on to petition ("Give us this day our daily
bread"), and then ask for forgiveness ("Forgive us our debts").
It is a mark of true spiritual maturity when a man confesses not only his own
sins but the sins of his people as well. How hard it is to say from the heart:
"We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done
wickedly" (verse 6). As we consider the sins of the Israelites, we must
not look down our spiritual noses at them. If anything, we are worse than they!
Let their backslidings remind us of our own and drive us to our knees in
repentance.

 1. Their ingratitude.
They did not fully appreciate the wonders God performed in Egypt to purchase their freedom (verse 7).

 2. Their forgetfulness.
Too quickly the memory of God’s innumerable mercies faded from their minds.

 

 3. Their rebellion.
When they came to the Red Sea, they complained that God had led them to die in
wilderness, and that it would have been better to have stayed in Egypt (Exod. 14:11,12).

But their sin did not quench the
Lord’s love. He found in their rebellion an opportunity to reveal Himself as
their Servant and Saviour. True to His name, He delivered them—and what a
gigantic exhibition of power it was! At the word of His rebuke, the waters of
the Red Sea parted, leaving a bone-dry causeway for the Jews to cross on. When
they were safely on the east side, free from the pursuing enemy, the waters
returned to their place, conveniently drowning the Egyptian hosts. When they
saw this marvelous converging of events, how could the Jews help believing Him
and singing His praise? (verses 8-12).

It was not long before another
cycle of sin began.

 4. Their short memory.
They soon forgot His miracles for them (verse 13).

 5. Their self-will.
They would not wait for His guidance.

 6. Their lust. They
abandoned self-control in their craving for food (verse 14; Num. 11:1-35).

 7. Their provocation.
They tested God.

This time, God gave them what they
wanted (namely, quail in superabundance), but sent a loathsome disease among
them (Num. 11:20). "He gave them their request, but sent leanness into
their soul" (verse 16). Their history teaches us to be careful to pray
always in the will of God because, as Matthew Henry said, "What is asked
in passion is often given in wrath."

 8. Their rejection of
God’s leadership. Dathan and Abiram, together with Korah and On, were
leaders of a rebellion against Moses and Aaron (verses 16-18; Num. 16:1-30).
They envied these two men of God. Also they wanted to intrude into the office
of the priesthood. In rebelling against God’s holy ones, that is, against men
who were set apart as God’s representatives, they were rebelling against God’s
rule. As a result, the earth opened up and swallowed the leaders and their families.
And fire burst forth to devour the 250 other men who offered incense to the
LORD (Num. 16:31-35).

 9. Their idolatry.
Before Moses had come down from Mount Sinai with the law of God, the people
made a golden calf and worshiped it (Exod. 32:4). They exchanged the glory of
God for the likeness of an ox that eats grass. Instead of acknowledging God as
their Saviour from Egypt, they gave all the honor to the lifeless calf. God
would have destroyed them in a moment if Moses had not interceded. Like a soldier
who covers a break in a wall with his body, so "Moses … stood before Him
in the breach to turn away [God’s] wrath" (verses 19-23).

 

10. Their faithlessness at
Kadesh Barnea (Num. 14:2,27,28). God had promised them the pleasant land, a
land that was ideal for location, climate, and resources. The promise contained
all that was necessary to enter and occupy the land. But they did not believe
His promise, and turned up their noses at the land. Instead of marching forward
in faith, they sulked in their tents. Therefore God raised His hand in an oath
to destroy that generation in the wilderness and to disperse their descendants
among the nations of the world (verses 24-27).

11. Their sinful worship of the
Baal of Peor. The men of Israel not only committed fornication with the
daughters of Moab, they also joined in sacrificing to the dead and in other
pagan ceremonies involved in the worship of the Baal of Peor (Num. 25:3-8). God
was so infuriated that He sent a plague to slay the people by the thousands.
When Phinehas saw an Israelite taking a heathen woman to his tent, he slew both
of them with his spear. This stopped the plague, but only after 24,000 had
died. This act was a positive proof of his righteousness, and was rewarded by a
covenant of peace (verses 28-31). The LORD said, "Behold, I give unto him
My covenant of peace; and he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the
covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and
made an atonement for the children of Israel" (Num. 25:12,13).

12. The sin of Moses (Num.
20:2-13). At the waters  of Meribah (strife), the people were blatantly
unbelieving. They accused Moses of leading them into the wilderness to die of
thirst. Instead of speaking to the rock, as God said, Moses struck it twice
with his rod. He also spoke rashly against the people for their rebellion. As a
result God decreed that he would be denied the privilege of leading the people
of Israel into the land of promise (verses 32,33).

The new environment of Canaan did not changed the nature of the Israelites, as seen by:

13. Their failure to
exterminate the pagan inhabitants. The debased Canaanites were a gangrenous
limb of the human race. After bearing with them for hundreds of years, God
decided that the only solution was amputation, and committed the surgery to Israel. But they failed to obey Him (verse 34; Judg. 1:27-36).

14. Their intermingling with
the heathen. By fraternizing and intermarrying with the pagans, Israel corrupted its own religion and morals (verse 35).

15. Their idolatry. Soon
the Jews were worshiping idols instead of the true and living God (verse 36).

16. Their human sacrifices.
Particularly revolting to the Lord was the sacrifice of their sons and
daughters to appease the demons (2 Ki. 3:27; 21:6; Ezek. 16:20,21). Sons and
daughters of God’s chosen people were sacrificed to the filthy idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with murder (verses 37-39).

 

"Offended with His
people," writes Barnes, "the LORD treated them as if they were an
abomination to Him." He turned them over to the Gentiles—the
Mesopotamians, the Midianites, the Philistines, the Moabites, and others. These
ungodly nations lorded it over the Jews, oppressing them and persecuting them. In
spite of this treatment, the people persisted in their sin and rebellion
against Jehovah. But whenever they turned to Him in repentance, He looked down
on them in mercy. Mindful of His covenant, He turned from judgment to display
His steadfast love. Even during the darkest hours of their captivity, the Lord
caused them to be pitied by their captors—a touching example of mercy
triumphing over judgment (verses 40-46).

The psalmist prays for the
regathering of his people, scattered throughout the nations of the world. This
will result in great thanks ascending to God’s holy name; His people will make
it their glory to praise Him (verse 47). The prayer anticipates the petitions
of the remnant of Israel in the future time of the Tribulation, prior to the
inauguration of Christ’s glorious kingdom.

With this rapturous note we come
to the end of the Psalm:"Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting" (verse 48). But in coming to the end we must
resist the temptation to put this Psalm in a dispensational pigeon-hole,
limiting its message to the wicked nation of Israel and failing to see our own
history reflected in it. In 1 Corinthians 10:11 we distinctly read:"Now
all these things happened unto them for examples; and they are written for our
admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come."

This Psalm warns us against ingratitude.
If Israel should have been grateful for redemption by power from Egypt, how much more grateful should we be for redemption by the blood of Christ from sin
and from Satan!

It warns us against forgetfulness.
How easily we forget the suffering and death of the Lord Jesus. How guilty we
are of "the curse of dry-eyed Christianity."

It warns us against complaining.
It becomes a way of life to complain about the weather, about our living
conditions, about minor inconveniences, and even about lumps in the gravy.

It warns us against self-will,
against putting our will above the will of God.

It warns us against criticizing
God’s leadership, whether governmental officials, elders in the assembly, or
parents in the home.

It warns us against idolatry—the
worship of money, home, cars, education, pleasure, or worldly success.

It warns us against disbelief
in the promises of God. This sin caused Israel to wander in the wilderness for
38 years and barred the guilty ones from entering the promised land.

It warns us against immorality.
The worship of the Baal of Peor involved gross sexual sin. God’s attitude
toward it is seen in the disaster which He visited upon the culprits.

It warns us against what might
seem to be "trivial" disobedience. Moses struck the rock
instead of speaking to it. That may not seem very serious to us, but no
disobedience is trivial.

 

It warns us against marrying
unbelievers. God is a God of separation. He hates to see the corruption of
His people through the formation of unequal yokes.

Finally, it warns us against the sacrifice
of our children. Too seldom do Christian parents hold the work of the Lord
before their children as a desirable way in which to spend their lives. Too
often our children are raised with the ambition to make a name for themselves
in business or the professions. We raise them for the world—and for hell.

(From  Believer’s Bible
Commentary, ©1992; used by permission of Thomas Nelson Publishers, Inc.,
Nashville, TN.)

                            
* * *

FRAGMENT  So immensely are our lives below the mark as
nominal Christians that we have next to no idea of the distance at which we
walk from God, and when the soul is turned to seek Him only, we discover with
amazement how many false props we have had, and how often we have been leaning
on the love and approbation of others and not upon a Father’s love alone.

                                                  
G.V. Wigram

                            
* * *

FRAGMENT  Are you walking in the light of the
affections of that Lord Jesus who loved you and washed you from our sins in His
own blood? Is that name of Jesus causing a vibration in your heart as you
walk along the
wilderness?                                       
G.V. Wigram

 

 

When all things seem against us,

And days are dark and drear,

And every outlook gloomy,

And naught hath power to cheer—

O, give us grace to say,

"Lord Jesus, have Thy
way."

 

When we—alas, how often!—

Must bear the penalty

Of our un-Christlike actions,

O, grant humility

And brokenness to say,

"Lord Jesus, have Thy
way."

 

But, ah! when we are wounded,

How quick to take our part,

And smite when we are smitten—

Alas! the pride of heart!—

That makes it hard to say,

"Lord Jesus, have Thy
way."

 

How many a needless sorrow,

How many a broken heart

Were spared, and many brethren

Had never need to part!

Had we been quick to say,

"Lord Jesus, have Thy
way."

 

Thy way is never sweet, Lord,

When ’tis against our will.

O, mold our wills to Thine, Lord

And bid our thoughts be
still.

Thus only can we say,

"Lord Jesus, have Thy
way."

 

How little, Lord, Thy meekness

And lowliness we show!

How little may the worldling

By us our Master know!

How often we display

Our own, and not Thy way.

 

Like Israel of old, Lord,

In spite of all Thy grace,

We sin against Thy goodness,

Forgetting Thy past ways;

Thy way thus thrust aside

Gives place to human pride.

 

When wilt Thou come and free us

From all our foolishness?

O, when shall we be like Thee,

Where Thou canst only bless,

And all our being say,

"We glory in Thy
way?"

 

(From Help and Food, Vol.
19.)

 

                            
* * *

FRAGMENT  "When Peter was come down out of the
ship, he walked on the water to go to Jesus" (Matt. 14:29). This walk has
no other foundation than, "Lord, if it be Thou," that is, Jesus
Himself. There is no support, no possibility of walking, if Christ be lost
sight of. J.N. Darby.

"Peter answered Him and said,
Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water. And He said, Come. And
when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the waters to go to
Jesus" (Matt. 14:28,29).

The individuality of the
path of the Christian is what I would press upon our
souls just now. How strikingly it is presented! We see a solitary man, amid
boisterous winds and waves, forsaking the protection of the boat and the
company of the other disciples, and inviting the word that bids him to such a
difficult path. We often speak of a walk of faith. It is well to look steadily
at such a picture as this and to ask ourselves, "Have I ever realized it
in my own experience? Is there anything in it that corresponds to the path as I
know it?"

It was a solitary path, but Peter
had before him as the end of his path the gracious and glorious presence of Him
who had called him; for sustaining power in his path he had the Lord’s word
which was a promise for every possible difficulty. Even though Peter might
leave the company of the others, every step on this road would make the
Presence before him more bright and lustrous.

Again I would press the
individuality of the path. As we look back upon the examples of faith that God
has given us in the Scriptures, how each one shines out from surrounding
darkness! There was Enoch in that walk with God that never knew death. There
was Noah with his family, sole survivors of a judgment-wrecked world. There was
Abraham whose life was a great contrast even to that of his nephew Lot. All of these stand out from the dark background as men not formed by their
circumstances. They were no mere natural outgrowth from their surroundings, but
plants of the Lord’s planting. They maintained themselves where no power but
His could avail to keep them. A walk with God means necessarily independence of
men, perhaps even of other believers. Such a walk will be marked by unfeigned
lowliness and absence of self- will.

How striking is the path of this
lone man, Peter! It is a path that terminates only in the presence of the Lord,
and on which every step in advance brings nearer to Him! Various as our paths
must be, it is this that alone gives them their common Christian character; it
is this that makes us pilgrims, or as the inspired Word presents it, racers.
Our goal is outside the world and our object is Christ in heaven. If it be not
so with us, then we are immeasurably below those like Abraham who by their
lives declared plainly that they sought a better country. For this reason God
was "not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared for them a
city (Heb. 11:14-16).

This path of faith is one in which
we may show, with Peter, not the greatness of our faith, but the littleness of
it. It will never really make much of us. Do we seek it? The glory of
Christ is what lies before and beckons us. If, for our weakness, there be
rebuke, it is only that of a perfect love. The Lord did not ask Peter,
"Why did you presume?" but "Why did you doubt?"
(Matt. 14:31).  And with that, He offered Peter the outstretched hand of human
sympathy and divine support. Dear fellow-Christian, is there not for all the
trials of the way an overabundant recompense?

Let us remember that it is to the
one who invites his Lord’s invitation to such a path that it really
opens. The "come" of Christ is an answer to him who says, "Lord,
if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water." The word
for the path is the answer alone to the heart for the path. And what to
Him is the joy of such desire so expressed? Let ours go forth, if any have not
yet, with such a cry:"Lord, if it be upon the waters I must come, and
that path it is which alone leads to Thee, then bid me come to Thee, blest,
gracious Master, even upon the water!"

(From Help and Food, Vol.
2.)

 

The world says, "If two
people love each other, then any display of affection between them is
proper." Does God approve of this attitude? Perhaps a study of the Virgin
Mary will help us understand God’s view of the proper relationship and behavior
for couples who are in love or engaged to be married.

From studying the marriage customs
of the time, most scholars believe Mary was still a teenager when Jesus was
born. She was evidently not only a girl of high moral standards, but also
enjoyed a close relationship with God. This is evidenced by her very
intelligent and God-honoring hymn of praise, the Magnificat:"My
soul does magnify the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour. For
He has regarded the low estate of His handmaiden, for, behold, from henceforth
all generations shall call me blessed. For He who is mighty has done to me
great things, and holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him from
generation to generation. He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered
the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from
their seats, and exalted those of low degree…. He has helped His servant
Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham,
and to his seed for ever" (Luke 1:46-55).

Mary could never have been chosen
as the mother of the Messiah if she had been influenced by the thinking that
characterizes the world today—and has even influenced many Christians—that if
two people are in love or engaged to be married, then any sort of physical
demonstration of their love is acceptable. God honored Mary’s purity and He
will honor all young men and women who wish to please Him by remaining virgins
before marriage, by helping them achieve truly happy marriages.

A truly happy marriage can only be
achieved when there is a oneness of spirit as well as a oneness of the
affections and of the body. Our spirit is that part of our being that is
capable of responding to God. It also includes the conscience and our ability
to make moral decisions. The truest intimacy and oneness of spirit occurs when
the spirits of both persons are drawn very close to God and thus they are drawn
close to one another. In the measure that the spirits of both persons are
subject to the Word of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, in that measure
there will be agreement and oneness between them.

Now the time to begin building
this spiritual unity is before marriage and even before engagement. A physical
relationship is only really meaningful as it expresses spiritual unity. A
Christian couple should not plan to marry until they have laid a good
foundation for marriage by developing a spiritual relationship and know that
they can help each grow closer to God as the years go by.

Premature entry into an intimate
physical relationship short circuits the development of a real spiritual
relationship in several ways. First, the intimacy is physically and emotionally
exciting and the couple loses interest in spiritual matters. Second, the fact
that their relationship is a secret between the two of them which they try to
conceal from others may make them feel a certain closeness and loyalty to each
other. They may mistake this closeness for real unity of spirit, but it will
fade away when marriage makes their relationship "respectable" and
there is no need to conceal it. They no longer will share a secret and they
will find they share little else of real meaning. Third, since they are not
pleasing God, they cannot become closer to Him while out of communion with Him.
Fourth, the feelings of guilt that their behavior may arouse will tend to
interfere with the development of real intimacy after marriage. God will bless
those couples who use dating and engagement periods for the development of
spiritual and emotional unity and save physical intimacy for marriage. They
will have not only spiritual intimacy but a truly joyous physical relationship
as well.

Marriage is a type of the union
between Christ and His Church. This "Church age" is actually the
Church’s engagement period; the marriage ceremony will not take place until
after the rapture (Rev. 19:7). The apostle Paul said of the Church at Corinth,
"I have espoused you to one husband that I may present you as a chaste
virgin to Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2). How beautiful and pleasing to God when a
Christian couple’s relationship with each other before and after marriage truly
typify the union of Christ and His Church.