Communion

From: Christian Treasury: Volume 3

Exodus 25:22 • 11 min. read • grade level: 7

“There I will meet with thee, and I

will commune with thee." Ex. 25:22²²And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel. (Exodus 25:22).

The point especially to be noticed in this scripture is communion. Enoch had walked with God, and others had believed God, but here God is showing how He can meet man, and have to do with him in a way suitable to His own infinitely holy nature. He had talked to Adam in the garden. He had made Himself known to Abram as the Almighty and had come near to him so as not to hide from him the things that He would do.

When He called the children of Israel out of Egypt, He revealed Himself to them as Jehovah. He sheltered them from destruction by the blood of the lamb, brought them through the Red Sea of death and judgment, and thus perfectly delivered them from their enemies, whom they saw dead upon the seashore.

Delivered, Separated and Redeemed

In this way God had a people (through the flesh) separated unto Himself by election, by blood, and redeemed by power so that He could now dwell among them. We read, therefore, in this chapter, "Let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them." (v. 8.) Again, when the priests were consecrated, the Lord said, "This shall he a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the Lord, where I will meet you, to speak there unto thee. And there I will meet with the children of Israel.... And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God." And again, "I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be My people." (Ex. 29:42-45: Lev. 26:12¹²And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people. (Leviticus 26:12).)

Thus Israel is chosen, separated from every other people, redeemed, and blessed with the Lord in their midst. And now we read of His meeting with Moses and with the children of Israel. Communion then flows out of established relationships founded on redemption accomplished, and through God's dwelling with His people by His Spirit. All this is clearly set forth in this typical people which God brought out of Egypt, most of whom fell in the wilderness because of their unbelief.

With us, all these blessings are of eternal value. By one offering we are "perfected forever." The redemption obtained for us is "eternal." We are blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. We are children of God and have received the Holy Spirit to abide with us and in us forever.

God Desired Communion

We are, therefore, "called unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus." In the verses we have referred to, we find the Lord teaching what His mind is as to communion.

He desired communion with His people—"There I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee." He also teaches on what ground He can meet them.

It was not long before these precious words were communicated to Moses, that mount Sinai had been altogether in a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Then the people were commanded to keep off and not to come near. There was thunder and lightning, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud, and so terrible was the sight that Moses said, "I exceedingly fear and quake." Bounds were set about the mountain so that the people might not break through. It was said, "Whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: there shall not a hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live." Ex. 19:12, 13¹²And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: ¹³There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount. (Exodus 19:12‑13). But why all of this? Because the Lord came down upon mount Sinai and demanded righteousness from man in the way of works. He gave a law proper to man as a child of Adam on earth. Holy, just, and good as it was, it was the ministration of death because it was the ministration of righteousness. It demanded righteousness from man to God on the principle of works. Such was the law.But how different are the words written soon after—"There I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee."

The Way of Grace

It is because God, knowing what was in man, that he would be un-subject and a lawbreaker, was here setting forth what was in His heart toward him, for though on the principle of law or works, man must always be at a distance from God. Yet His own wise and gracious heart could devise the way whereby men on earth and Himself could not only meet together, but have communion. An altar of burnt offering was at the door of the tabernacle. All our blessings are founded on the sacrifice of Christ. These are some of the beginnings of the unfoldings of Scripture as to the way of grace.

Law, then, is not grace. They stand in widest contrast with each other. The principles of grace and works are never commingled in Scripture for justification in the sight of God. So we read: "If by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work." Rom. 11:6⁶And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work. (Romans 11:6).

The symbol of the mercy seat was the intimation that God would come out in grace, and that even to lawbreakers. This we know has since been freely done, for God has made the way of approach to Himself in the person and work of His own Son, both according to His own holiness and the need of the sinner. The Son of God has come; He has declared the Father. It is well to observe that the ark was the first vessel of the tabernacle which God commanded to be made, and the place assigned to it was inside the veil. It therefore sets forth Christ in heaven.

The two qualities of material of which the ark was composed, shittim wood and gold, set forth Christ as the perfect man, and also truly God.

Wood and Gold

Being made flesh and dwelling among us. He nevertheless was the eternal Son—God and Man in one person. In this ark, or chest, were put the tables of testimony on which the Ten Commandments were written.

The whole was covered by a lid of pure gold, pure gold meaning divine righteousness. Out of the ends of this lid, or mercy seat, were beaten cherubim made to overshadow the mercy seat and to look toward each other and to the mercy seat.

All this clearly sets forth that "grace reigns through righteousness." It foreshadows the precious fact that though man was a sinner, and thus justly exposed to the wrath of God, yet Jesus had glorified God concerning the law. He fulfilled the law as well as bearing its curse by His death on the cross to redeem those who had broken it. Moreover, He magnified the law and made it honorable and could truly say, "Thy law is within My heart." With Him not one jot or tittle of the law failed. He was obedient in all things. His meat and drink were to do the will of Him that sent Him, and to finish His work. This He did perfectly. He could therefore say at the close, "I have glorified Thee on the earth: I have finished the work which Thou gavest Me to do." John 17:4⁴I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. (John 17:4).

The believer who has been under the law is thus redeemed from the curse of the law. Having died to it in Jesus his Substitute, he is brought to know God in Christ as the giver of both grace and glory. Like the apostle, he can now say, "I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God." It is precious to know that Jesus the Son of God, now in the heavens, is the One who has glorified God as to the Law of Moses and is the true mercy seat. Thus we see Jesus. It is now a fact that an incarnate Savior, Law-fulfiller, and Curse-bearer, crucified, risen, ascended and glorified is known in the presence of God. A Man raised from among the dead, and gone into heaven itself by His own blood, is now seen there.

We See Jesus

"We see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor." Heb. 2:9⁹But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. (Hebrews 2:9). What a wonder of divine grace that God should thus devise a way whereby His banished ones might return in perfect consistency with His own holy and righteous demands. It was the Lord who said, "There I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel." Ex. 25:22²²And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel. (Exodus 25:22).

By communion we understand fellowship, or joint participation. Communion and fellowship arc generally the same word in the original. Communion, as we have said, must flow out of established peace and relationship, and its measure must be according to the character in which God is known. We do not read of communion with God in the epistles, because God is now revealed as Father, "The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him." Every believer now is born of God and knows the Father. The Holy Spirit has come down and has been given as the Spirit of adoption.

Every Believer Knows the Father

"Because ye are sons. God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father." Gal. 4:6⁶And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. (Galatians 4:6). Thus it is that "our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ." 1 John 1:3³That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. (1 John 1:3).

The Holy Spirit is the power of this fellowship, hence we read of "the communion of the Holy Ghost." Now in our measure, we can enter into the Father's love, counsels, delight and rest in regard to the Son and to all His children. We can also enter into the Son's love, delight and rest concerning the Father, and concerning every member of His body. Into this new order of things we have been introduced through grace, and by the fellowship of the Spirit. It is most wonderful to contemplate, and yet we can easily see that nothing less could suit the Father. Nothing less could be suited to the infinite worth of the eternal redemption accomplished by the Son, and nothing less could be wrought in us as children of God by the indwelling Spirit. It is no wonder that the apostle added, "And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full." As we have before observed, it is the peace made, the relationships established, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit which give character to the communion from which true service flows. Peace, communion, and service are therefore the divine order. What rest, joy, and power for service and testimony are connected with the realization of this present order of fellowship! It is most important that our souls really enter into it, so that we may be consciously before God our Father inside the rent veil.

Peace Communion Service

Jesus our life and righteousness is there, where perfect peace and perfect love are unchangeably known. The blood ever speaks of our title to be there. There we worship the Father, rejoicing in Christ Jesus without a cloud and without a fear, having no confidence in the flesh. There we are ever learning divine goodness, and increasingly delighting in the Father who loves us as He loved His Son, and delighting in the Son of God who also loves us and gave Himself for us. Such are some of the blessings of present fellowship with the Father and with the Son.