The
Heavenly Calling and the Church.
The
heavenly calling has been known from the beginning. The earth having been, in
every age, a scene of Divine disappointment, (to speak after the way of men,)
and the elect being therefore strangers and sufferers in it, the heavens have
been disclosed to them as their place of rest and inheritance. Abraham desired
a heavenly country. Enoch had been already translated there. Moses lost the
land of promise, but got the Pisgah of God. David confessed that he and all his
fathers had been strangers with God in the earth. Elijah among the Prophets in
the latter days of the. Old Testament, as Enoch among the Patriarchs in its
earlier days, was taken to heaven. And thus, the heavenly calling was had in
constant remembrance, and kept in view. And all the elect, in these Old
Testament times, whether Patriarchal, Mosaic, or Prophetic, have, I doubt not,
a part in the heavenly places. The Lord calls them all "children of
resurrection" — and by that He teaches us that they will be called to
their inheritance by resurrection from the dead, when they will not, as He
further teaches, marry and give in marriage, as though they were children of
the earth.
In the
Divine reasoning of the Epistle to the Galatians, they are alluded to, and considered
as standing in sonship and heirship, with the elect now gathering.
So, in the
Hebrews, they are considered as perfected and sharers of the heavenly
calling, with us of this day.
But the
Epistle to the Ephesians never takes them up to associate them with the saints
now gathering in the body of Christ.
These
distinctions are very significant, and they lead us to the conclusion that the
Old Testament saints enjoy the heavenly calling, or heavenly places as their
home and their inheritance, though kept apart from the Church, the body of
Christ, and the Bride of Christ. I may say this concerning them.
But
leaving these times of the Old Testament, times of Patriarchs and Prophets, and
having entered the New, we reach in due season the day of Pentecost. The Holy
Ghost is then on earth, upon the glorification of the Son of Man in heaven; and
we find Him doing a work of "exceeding riches of grace," and which is
to be to "the praise of the glory of God" in the ages to come. He is
baptizing the election now gathering, into one body; a body of which Christ is
the Head; a body which is also called "the fulness of Him that filleth all
in all." And the whole, Head and body together, is called by an eminent,
wondrous title, Christ." (1 Cor. 12: 12) — All this is peculiar indeed.
Of course
this election, thus forming the body or fulness of Christ, will, with the Old
Testament saints, have their place and inheritance in heaven. But while they
thus share the heavenly calling with their Old Testament brethren, those
brethren will not be in the body of Christ with them. When the Kingdom in its
glorious form comes to be displayed, when "the world to come" is
reached, Old Testament saints will have "a name" there, and be, as it
were, principalities and powers in heavenly-places; but the election now
gathering, and baptized into one body, will then be "the fulness" of
Him who sits above those principalities and powers and names, of Him who
"filleth all in all."
I am
suggesting and submitting my judgment on these truths.
And then —
as I would go on to say — when all these have been translated to meet the Lord
in the air — when Old and New Testament saints together, as alike
"children of the resurrection," have taken their place in the
heavens, as thus ordained to be theirs from the beginning — then the action of
the Apocalypse, from Revelation 4, begins. In the course of that action, some
saints of God will die as martyrs; and such also will be taken to heaven, and
there occupy their places as certain dignities and thrones, "a noble
army," or "a goodly fellowship," as we may say; but they will
not be a part of the body of Christ with the election now gathering.
Those
saints of God who survive the great judicial process of the Book of the
Apocalypse, will form the seed or firstfruits of the earthly people. Their
calling is not heavenly. They have no part in the heavenly places. They begin
to fill and furnish the millennial earth; and to them as a firstfruits will be
gathered a harvest, till the face of the whole earth be fruitful
Jerusalem,
the land of Israel, the people of Israel, and the nations all the world over,
constituting a scene of power and of government, and a sanctuary for the
service of the God of heaven and earth, who will then be displaying his
Kingdom-glories.
And this
Kingdom is the subject of notice in the scriptures of the Old Testament,
together with the judgments which introduce it, and the glories which give it
its character. But the calling out of a body for Him who is the Head of that
Kingdom, is not the subject of those scriptures. It is called, in an eminent
sense, "the mystery," and is declared to have been "hid in God
from the foundation of the world," and only now revealed to the prophets
of the New Testament, Paul the Apostle of the Gentiles being made the great
vessel and depositary of it, its special witness and publisher.
There
have, however, been glances at it from the very beginning; the Divine mind
letting out hints of the secret it carried, now and again, as we ourselves are
wont to do with some favourite thought of which we cannot or dare not speak
particularly, times and seasons forbidding it. Is not this so? Is not this so
with us, and do we not delight in seeing it thus with God and His secret? In
spite of such forbiddings, in the face of such restraints, however respected
they may be, and rightly so, the secret will at times break bounds, and cross
the field of our vision in a type or in a story, leaving the eye of many a
gazer unable to make out what it is or what it means.
Such glimpses
of this brilliant secret I would now look at for a moment or two, having
already travelled from the beginning to the end of Scripture, as "with all
saints," noticing the destiny of the Old Testament saints, of the election
now gathering under the Holy Ghost, and of the Apocalyptic saints, whether they
die in the course of it, or outlive the action of that awful season.
I believe,
then, that "the mystery," the Church, the Bride of the Lamb, begins
to tell itself out in the first Woman. She was taken, as we know, from the side
of Adam, when he was cast into a deep sleep; and she was then formed by the
Lord God for Adam; and finally set at his side to be his help-meet, and in a
sense and measure, his co-ordinate companion.
All this
tells us of the Bride of Christ. (Eph. 5) The same mystery, in different phases
of it, is to be read in the stories of other women in the book of Genesis, as
in Rebecca, in Rachel, and in Asenath. And so, in the Book of Exodus, in
Zipporah the Gentile Bride of Moses.
It is very
easy to read something of the Church in each of these. Ephesians 5 has surely
encouraged us, and led us in the way, and given us a sample of the manner in
which we are to read these types.[1]
I cannot
doubt that the Gleaner in Leviticus 23, is also a like mysterious or typical
person. She is introduced in the interval of the story of Israel and of the
earth, or, between the Feast of Pentecost and the Feast of Trumpets. For a
parenthesis of about three months in the Jewish ecclesiastical year, we lose
sight of everything but this Gleaner. She is but a poor Stranger. She has
entered the fields of the lords of the soil, not to covet or usurp, but as a
Stranger to come in, and as a Stranger to go out, satisfied, as it were, with
"food and raiment," which is the Stranger's fare, and the Christian's
or the Church's contentment. (Deut. 10: 18; 1 Tim. 6: 8)
I say not,
that Ruth may not be a like figure with the Gleaner of Leviticus 23, for she
enters the scene also in an interval that breaks the story of Israel; as between
their utter moral ruin at the close of Judges, and their revival at the opening
of 1 Samuel.[2] But I grant
that we may, the rather, see in Ruth the Remnant of the latter day coming in on
the Gentile terms of sovereign grace, according to Romans 11: 31.
But such
Old, Testament types are but faint indeed. The mystery of the Church is
specially disclosed in the Epistle to the Ephesians. It is there spoken of
under two titles, which are exclusively its own. It is "the body of
Christ," and "the bride of Christ.
One has
strikingly said, "It is not in the heavens above, nor in the earth
beneath, nor in angels themselves, bright witnesses as they are of creative
power, that the character and ways of God will be manifested in the ages to
come: it is in the now, redeemed creation in Christ, in the Church and by the
Church, that God's manifold wisdom will be made known. In the Church, brightest
emanation of the Divine mind, masterpiece of God's handiwork, every perfection
of light and glory and beauty shall be displayed; otherwise she would be
unworthy of her high destiny as the Bride. The depths and heights of the grace
and love and power of God will never be known to the heavenly hosts, till they
behold the Church, chosen from Adam's ruined and apostate race, not only
brought into the closest and sweetest intimacy of sonship to God, but exalted
to the highest dignity in heaven, a partaker of the ineffable glory of her
risen Head."
Surely
these words are good for the use of edifying. — But further. In unfolding grace
and glory in this Epistle to the Ephesians, (which Epistle I would now consider
somewhat particularly,) we may observe that there is a peculiar accumulation of
language, as I may express it, as though the Writer (the Spirit) were conscious
of what a theme of peculiar weight and dignity he was treating. We read of
"the glory of grace," of "the riches of grace," of
"the exceeding riches of grace," of "the praise of His
glory," and of "the praise of the glory of His grace." This is
the style in which the magnificent secrets of this Epistle are brought out to
view. The casket is according to the treasure.
And the
sight given of the ascended Lord is in the same style presented to us. It has
been observed by another, that St. Mark tells us, that our Lord was carried up
into heaven. The Epistle to the Hebrews tells us that He was carried up through
the heavens. But this Epistle tells us, that He ascended up far above
all heavens. (Mark 16: 19; Heb. 4: 14; Eph. 4: 10.) What a varied, wondrous
account of Him! But the Ephesian account is the most magnificent — for it gives
the Son of Man the very place which is given to God Himself in Deuteronomy 10:
14.
And this
accumulation of language, of which I have spoken, is preserved in the second
chapter, where the Spirit comes to look at the objects of this high calling,
and not, as before, at the character of the calling itself. He takes knowledge
of us sinners in two conditions, dead and alienated; dead as in
ourselves, alienated as from God — and then he sees us as translated into the
opposite conditions of life and nearness. But He accumulates
language, in treating of these things, as He had done before. Terms are
multiplied, descriptions are repeated elaborately, that all these conditions in
which we are presented, and each of them separately, may be apprehended with
great emphasis by our souls. The death-estate in which we lay by nature was
awfully complete; the life-estate into which we are now brought, is thoroughly,
eternally perfect. Our condition of distance from God, in which grace found us,
is described to have been such that nothing could pass beyond it — our present
condition of nearness to Him is such as the Son Himself alone could have
enjoyed, so to say, before us.
But
further. The characteristic of the Church's blessing is this — that they are in
Christ. Earlier saints, as we have seen, will be heavenly in their destiny;
but the Church's calling is heavenly, in and with Christ.
The word
"in" abounds there in a remarkable manner — and it is always in "Christ."
In the course of the wondrous disclosures there made, we learn that having been
quickened together with Him, we are now seated in heavenly places in
Him.
Being thus
ascended, we are also taught that, there on high, we are blest with all
blessings in Him.
And again
— we are accepted in Him, the Beloved — made the objects of
personal love, as well as blessed with all spiritual blessings.
And again
— in Him God has abounded towards us in all wisdom and knowledge, making
known to us His thoughts and good pleasure touching ages to come; giving us the
place of friends.
Thus is it
with us now. — But this same scripture looks forward and backward, and
shows us the interest we had "in Christ" before the world was, and
what we are to have "in Him" when the world has run its course. Ere
the world was, we learn that we were "chosen" in Him, and
"predestinated" unto the adoption of children. And when the world
shall be over, and dispensations have finished the display of themselves, and
closed their wondrous story, we learn that we shall be "heirs" in Him
and with Him of that great new system, "the world to come," in which
all things shall be gathered together under Him as their Head.
This is a
great theme indeed — our eternal portion in Christ, our standing in Him, with
the counsels that purposed it ere the world was, the high condition and
prerogatives in which it now puts us, and the portion which it will convey to
us in the ages to come. And all this excellent estate is ours, simply because
we now believe or trust in Him.
But that
which had been thus "chosen in Christ" from before the foundation of
the world, was "hid in God" till revealed by the Spirit to New
Testament prophets. And the revelation of it completed the Word of God. (Col.
1: 25.) It was the closing, crowning disclosure, made specially through St.
Paul the Apostle of the Gentiles. The Church is called into the highest place
of dignity, and the revelation of it is in the last, the latest place in the
communications of God. Yes. The Church has been revealed the last. The
Gentile Apostleship has brought it forth. Though chosen in Christ before the
world, and Lid in God for ages and from ages, it now stands revealed, the crown
of all His purposes, as it is the last of all His communications.
I ask, Is
this strange? Must this be a surprise, or are we prepared for it? Has
Scripture, has God Himself in His Word, prepared us for such a thing as this,
such a method as this?
I believe
He has. We get other like things, things kindred with this, in Scripture.
The Woman was the
last creature revealed or brought out in the work of creation. Adam was at
home, in his estate, and in his dominions, ere he got the Woman. All the
provisions of the Garden were his. He had been crowned the lord of all he
surveyed. He had named all cattle, beasts of the field, and fowl of the air. He
was in his dominions, as well as at home, and in his estate. But the Woman was
not yet. She comes forth the last — but the crown of his joy and the perfection
of his condition. (Gen. 2)
So with Jerusalem
in Canaan, as with the Woman in Eden.
The land
itself had been subdued and divided. The sword of Joshua and the lot of Eleazer
had done this, centuries before. But Jerusalem was still a stronghold of the
Jebusite. It was still the possession of the Gentile. The Judges had ruled in
their several day, and Saul had reigned. But Jerusalem was as nothing all that
time, unvalued, unrevealed. At the last, David reduced it to the hands of
Israel; and he beautified it and furnished it. It became the throne and the
sanctuary, the great centre of attraction, the object of note in all Scripture,
whose beauty and dignity is an exhaustless theme. The Spirit in Scripture
celebrates it again and again; Israel, in the days of their nation, had their
delights there, keeping feast-days and holy-days in her; and our scriptural
thoughts are still full of her. She is the gem, the pearl, the queen, the
object, in the land and in the story of Israel. — The last again is the
chiefest. The Jerusalem of Canaan is as the Woman of Eden.
And so
again with the Golden City of Rev. 21.
The
judgments which were to clear the Inheritance and to take out of the kingdom
all that offended, have been executed. The victory of the white-horsed Rider
and His army has been won. The reign of the thousand years has been set (Rev.
19, Rev. 20) But as yet the Bride has remained unrevealed. But now at the last,
in the very close of the Book, as we take leave of the unspeakably precious
oracles of God, it is the Woman we see, the Woman again of Genesis 2, the
Jerusalem again of the land of Israel — only, it is the heavenly Woman, and not
the Eden-Woman, the heavenly and not the earthly Jerusalem. She now, the Lamb's
Wife, stands revealed, the chiefest in Divine workmanship, the latest in Divine
revelation.
Is there
not, then, I ask again, kindredness in all these things? May we not be prepared
to find that excellent thing which was chosen in Christ before the foundation
of the world, to remain hid in God for ages, and brought out only as the
revelation of all secrets was about to be completed, and the Word of God to be
filled up?
Surely
there has been a rich and wondrous unfolding of the secrets of the bosom!
Home-secrets are made known, as well as kingdom-glories. We are to
stand by and see the way of God again.
When
Israel had got beyond the fear and the sword of the Destroying Angel, and,
under the conduct of the Cloud, had reached the neighbourhood of the Red Sea,
they were commanded to stand still and see the salvation of God. (Ex. 14) They
did so — and that salvation displayed itself in vast and wondrous forms of
grace and power which till then had been hidden. They had already known
redemption by blood. The first-born had been already delivered, and the
judgment of God was now left behind. It had spent itself, and they were safe.
But, the Glory in the Cloud, the rod of Moses, the Angel that waited in the
camp, all had now to disclose some rare and wondrous virtues which as yet, up
to that moment, had not been told. The Angel changed His place and came between
the camp of Israel and the host of Egypt, to keep the one apart from the other
all the night. The rod of Moses commanded the waters of the Sea to stand up as
an heap. The Glory looked out from the Cloud and troubled the Egyptian army.
Strange, mysterious powers, new and surpassing revelations of grace! Israel is
safe and quiet and triumphant, and have only to go forward, and sing the song
of victory and deliverance, of present service in the sanctuary, and of coming
glories in the kingdom.
So here,
in the Epistle to the Ephesians, the sinner has been already rescued by the
blood of Jesus. Sins are forgiven — and the saints, thus beyond judgment, are
summoned to listen, till the high calling of the Church in Christ Jesus under
the exceeding riches of the grace of God, like the salvation of God at the Red
Sea, discloses itself in their hearing. They have but to listen. If they talk
of responsibility, this is it; to listen, to accept, to be happy and thankful,
because all this is what it is, and the God of all grace is to them what He is.
And the Apostle, who teaches them these rich and marvellous secrets, only prays
for them, that as they listen, they may have hearts to understand.
His
prayers for them, whether in the first or third chapter, give us other samples
of that accumulation of language, of which I have already spoken, and which is
so expressive of the consciousness of having to deal with themes and thoughts
of very peculiar weight and dignity.
As we get
in on the fourth chapter, we come into company with something wonderful in its
way, like that which we have seen already.
The
captivity of man under the hand of the old Serpent, in Genesis 3, was complete.
Satan's lie was accepted, man became a sinner, separate from God, and lost:
Eden was forfeited, the ground put under a curse, the man and the woman under
penalties, and Satan as a liar and a wanderer went about on the face of the
earth.
This
earliest story of man's captivity is glanced at in Ephesians 4 — as by
contrast. The Captor himself with all his host are now made captives, (a
captive multitude,) and by man's Deliverer led in triumph, or made a show of
openly, as another kindred Scripture speaks. (Col. 2) But this Deliverer has
proved Himself not only mighty after this manner, but glorious. He fills all
things. He has both descended and ascended — has been in the lower parts of the
earth, the grave, the very stronghold of the Captor; and is now far above all
heavens. And such an One, this Deliverer, mighty and glorious, has taken it
upon Him to write the history or secure the fortunes of Satan's old captive.
And it is wonderful, as we further read in this chapter. Having wrought the
deliverance in the lower parts of the earth, He has now in the highest places,
far above all heavens, received gifts for the former victims of the Serpent;
and has dispensed them; and through them has endowed them with the richest
portions and highest dignities. These endowments have brought the ancient
captive of the great enemy to perfection; made him, in a divine, spiritual
sense, independent; given him security against the wiles of the deceiver; and
set his resources within himself, through the Holy Ghost given to him.
(See ver. 8-16.)
It may
surprise us at first to find such a thing as this — the ruins of man in Genesis
3 thus confronted by the recovery of man in Ephesians 4 — the gain and triumph
of the old Serpent there, answered and annulled by his shame and overthrow
here. But so it is. And surprise may cease, when we remember that the Epistle
to the Ephesians, as we have seen, is the most marvellous exhibition of the
results of redemption, which Scripture presents to us. We may, therefore,
expect to find Genesis 3 confronted in such an Epistle. It is the special
writing on the Church which is "the Body of Christ" and "the
Bride of Christ" — the first of these titles telling us that she is set in
the very highest place of honour; the second of them telling us that she
is set also in the dearest and most intimate place of personal affection
and, relationship. She is made, moreover, to the creation of God, to
principalities and powers in heavenly places, the great witness, the only
adequate witness, of grace, glory, and wisdom; of the exceeding riches of
grace, of the praise of glory, and of the manifold resources and secrets of
wisdom. She is this — and the revelation of her, again we may remember, has
completed or filled out and up to its full measure, the Word of God.
It has
been observed by another, that the calling of God of old was either of individuals,
that they might walk with God; or of a nation, (as that of Israel),
that they might observe the statutes and do the laws of God their King. But
now, the calling of God is into a body. But though this is so, the
individuality of the saint is still contemplated; and the Epistle to the
Ephesians keeps this in view, addressing us emphatically in our personal,
individual places, in Ephesians 5.
This is
suited, seasonable truth, at the close of this wondrous Epistle. And surely we
ought to know our personal standing, our own individual perfection, ere we
occupy ourselves with the calling of the Church or the Body. Accordingly, in
another place, the Apostle lets the saints know, that he would speak of such
wisdom, the wisdom of these Divine mysteries, only among them that were
perfect. (1 Cor. 2: 6.) And so here, in Ephesians we are individually chosen,
predestinated, forgiven, accepted, instructed, sealed, (according to Eph. 1);
and then, we are prayed for, that we may have that spirit of wisdom and
revelation which capacitates us to learn our Church-calling, the strength that
is leading us, and the glory that we are to reach: "The Church corporately
is composed of individual believers; and while viewed in its corporate
character, it has relations to Christ which the believer individually has not —
for no believer is the Body of Christ or the Bride of Christ — yet, it is in
the affections and conscience of the individual believer, that the relations of
the Church to Christ are to be recognized and have their effect."
Surely
this is so. Individual saints are first perfected, under the given Spirit, and
then the Body is edified — as we have in Eph. 4: 12. The precepts, which we
find from Eph. 4: 17 to Eph. 6: 9, address us individually; but the Church-state
is assumed or contemplated here and there throughout.
And here,
let me say, as to precepts, that the calling itself, the grace in which we
stand, might direct us, without precepts. This thought is sanctioned by such
passages as Titus 2: 11, 12, and 2 Peter 3: 11, 14. The saints in Genesis act
without law or precept. Their calling suggested their duties. "How can I
do this great wickedness," said one of them, "and sin against
God?" The grace in which New Testament saints stand might do the same.
Still they are called to listen to precepts — as here in this portion of the
Epistle to the Ephesians. But the precepts strikingly honour the doctrines.
They commonly either refer to, or tacitly assume, the doctrines; and thus, as I
may say, they present themselves as so many expressions of the moral virtue
which lies hid in the doctrine.
And
further. They let us know, that holiness must have a dispensational character.
It is not simply moral virtue, such as conscience would suggest: it is not
legal righteousness, such as the law might demand: nor is it what John Baptist
would have prescribed. It is Christian. The holiness, or the due character, of
a saint, is to derive itself out of the Christian calling. It finds its springs
and sanctions in Christian truth. It measures itself by that Word which now
addresses itself to us, and which delineates our dispensational place and
peculiarity. It is the sanctification of the truth, the washing of water
by the Word, that is looked for. It is this which gives definite
character to the morals which God accepts, and which the Spirit works. And this
is what is very much neglected or passed by, but which, to be in the light as
God is in the light, must be heeded.
But there
is still another thing in this Epistle. There is conflict or wrestling. We see
the walk of a saint in Eph. 5, his fight in Eph. 6. His walk lies
through the chequered paths of life, the circumstances and relations which make
up human history. His fight is with "the wiles of the devil," or with
"spiritual wickedness in heavenly places."
These
wicked spirits come forth from heavenly places — and they come with lies and
deceivableness of infinite variety. 2 Chr. 18 is a direct witness of this.
There, a spirit is seen to come forth from heaven with a lie in his mouth; or
with a lie which he puts into the mouth of one of Ahab's false prophets. And
that he leads Ahab to the fatal battle of Ramoth-gilead.
The
Serpent, at the beginning, entered the garden as a liar, and with one of his
"wiles" ruined the man. (Gen. 3) Satan, with another of them, tempted
David to number the people, and led him to a terrible day of retribution. (1
Chr. 21) This same character of a deceiver is recognized in Rev. 12: 9, Rev.
20: 8. And signs and lying wonders and all deceivableness of unrighteousness
are spoken of as the working of Satan in 2 Thess. 2: 9-10.
Thus we
have wicked spirits in heavenly places exercising "wiles" here in the
midst of us.
These
wiles, these lies of "the rulers of the darkness of this world," may
be multitudinous; such as, infidel suggestions, perversions of truth,
devotional human superstitions, confounding of things which dispensationally
differ, false calculations touching the world's progress, and the like. How
solemn the thought! But how well to be told of these wiles, and thus to be put
in preparation for them. Distinct instances of these wiles are again noticed in
2 Cor. 2: 11, 2 Cor. 11: 3; 2 Tim. 2: 26.
It is with
these wiles we have to wrestle. In other characters, (as when he is a liar or a
persecutor,) we may have to fall under the enemy. For our fight is not with
flesh and blood, as was that of a Joshua or a David. God sent them forth to
such conflict, having put armour upon them that was suited to meet flesh and
blood. But it is in no wise so now. Not one piece of our armour would do for
the battle at Ai, or for the day of the valley of Elah. Our enemies are not the
Amorites or the Philistines. It is armour fitted to meet the corrupter of the
truth, him who ceaseth not to pervert the right ways of the Lord. (Acts. 13:
10) It is, the girdle of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of
the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the
sword of the Spirit.[3]
The whole
age through which we are passing is regarded as "a war," with
occasional fights or "evil days" — and therefore the Apostle says to
us, "That ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done
all, to stand."
These
"wiles," too, may become "fiery darts." That is; these lies
and deceivings which at all times are abroad, may now and again, in some shape
or another, be levelled directly and personally at ourselves.
And it is
striking to observe what this one Epistle teaches us about these evil
principalities and powers. It tells us, that they are Christ's captives, the
saint's enemies, with whom he has to wrestle, and the rulers of the
world's darkness. (Eph. 4: 8; Eph. 6: 11, 12.)[4]
But here I
might add, (though our Epistle does not suggest it) that the present ruler of
the darkness of this world is doomed to take a solemn journey by-and-by. He is
to be cast out of heaven where he now is, and act on the earth only. He is
then, in season, to be taken from the earth and put into the bottomless pit. He
is. then, as taken out of the pit, to be given over to the lake of fire, or his
eternal doom. (See Luke 10: 18; Rev. 12, Rev. 20)
And this,
I may further add, is the very contrary or opposite journey of that of the
Lord. The Lord came from the grave as a Conqueror. He had been "death of
death and hell's destruction." He returned to the earth, tarrying there
for forty days, giving pledges and promises touching His future kingdom here.
And then, He ascended to the highest heavens, receiving all power, and sending
down the Holy Ghost to dwell in His saints, and prepare them for Himself in the
day of exceeding glory, when He shall be displayed as filling all things —
according to this same Epistle.
Here we
end, save the very conclusion, which has, however, a character in it that I
must notice.
The Apostle
speaks of himself as "an ambassador in bonds." What another witness
was he, then, at that moment, of the character of the world which he had just
recognized as under the rule of the powers of darkness! God's ambassador was
put in prison by the world into which He had sent him! Does one nation treat
the representative of another in this way? Is not the person of an ambassador
sacred?
But, man's prisoner is God's
freeman; and in the care of thoughtful love, from his prison-house he will send
messages of sympathy and comfort and encouragement to his loved brethren
hundreds of miles away from him beyond the seas.
J. G. B.
[1] One has noticed, that the language of Ephesians 5 is
in the style of the delight of Adam when he received the Woman whom God had prepared
for him. See Gen. 2: 23, Eph. v. 30.
[2] The Church, as we know, enters the scene just when these Gleaners do, in a time when a break in the story of Israel has been experienced.