Canada.
Truth is eternal, and love lasts forever; both are in the precious Savior; let us hold them fast by grace. In these last days all gets more and more enlightened as the dawn of day appears; I can say that the truth of eternal things has a reality which it never had before. Christ becomes more and more everything. The things which perish have only an appearance. We have always to fight, but that which is unseen is eternal, and is ours by grace. May Christ dwell in our hearts by faith!
The objection made to the use of 1 Cor. 7:1414For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy. (1 Corinthians 7:14) has no force. Amongst the Jews, if they married a Gentile woman, or vice versa, the Jew was not unholy, but he had profaned himself; the children were unholy, and he had to send away both the woman and children. The husband did not cease to be a Jew, although a profane Jew; but his children were unholy, and from that time could not even be profaned, for that which is already unholy cannot be profaned.
Now, grace having come in, it was the obverse which took place. The unbelieving husband did not cease to be unbelieving, but he was relatively sanctified (not holy); then the child was holy, not inwardly in his soul, but he had a right to the privileges which belonged to the people of God upon the earth, privileges of which the child of a mixed marriage amongst the Jews was deprived, because he was profane. He was not more a sinner than another, but he was excluded from the center, where were found the blessings granted by God to His people, and they were great ones, as the apostle said.
We are in these last days, and evidently God acts in grace to take His people out of the evil, and the judgments; but there must be more devotedness, more separation. May God act in His goodness! There is still much more to be done in calling souls, and in establishing them in the truth, that they may not be carried away by every wind of doctrine. There is so much unbelief, and the human mind is so active, that souls are exposed to dangers of all kinds. God keeps them, and His own are, after all, always in safety; only the snare is no longer formalism, but the rejection of all, or the substitution of opinions for divine truth. I always think that it is a fine moment for him who is decided. One must be an out-and-out Christian, and accept the foolishness of God as wiser than men, and the weakness of God as stronger than men. A humble walk, in entire dependence on God, in looking-at Jesus Christ, is singularly blessed, in these days; and the rest will soon come.
I do not know what thing we have to do down here mere important than better to know God, and to serve Him; but what I look for, above all among the brethren, is devotedness. I do not doubt that their place is just the witness of God, not after any wisdom in us, but by the sovereign goodness of God, and by more or less knowledge of Him. But the witness is not complete if there is not devotedness. It is not that I regard doctrine as of no importance. The more I advance, the more I see that in evangelicalism unity is lost, that it never had but resists the doctrine of Paul, not only as to the church (which has been clear for a long time), but even as to our entire position as Christians. I am daily more explicit in my witness on this subject, when the occasion requires it. It may be useful to argue, but I believe that clearness of testimony is useful, so as to render the testimony without fear. The times are too serious; only one must know what we are doing, and what is the question in reality. But the controversy with respect to righteousness, and thus with respect to the law, has manifested the thing.
Are we in the first or Second Adam? Excepting the useful and searching Epistle of James [which has another and practical bearing] among the writings of the New Testament, only those of Paul treat of justification. John is occupied with the principle which is included in it, but not under this form. No doubt he includes the doctrine as that of the Spirit, but to be risen with Christ, and thus presented before God, is Paul's doctrine. Only if we are occupied with this doctrine, we must watch that the divine character should be fully developed-in our own spirit and in our own faith, I mean to say. That is what Paul does fully, in the manner, doubtless, which is peculiar to him: that is to say, in that line of truth in which he was guided by the Holy Spirit. And it is marvelous to see the manner in which it is outside the law, and, being outside the law, these legalists are contemptible, as far as their doctrine is concerned. We are to be the followers of God, Christ being our model, and to let the divine life in us be seen by a complete sacrifice of ourselves, and that towards God, so that the principle may be perfect. I have been occupied with that lately, and I think of sending an article on this subject to.... I believe God has lately been helping the brethren in their publications, and it is a mercy on His part. But we have to render a much more extensive testimony than we do. The workmen must have faith for all that they do. Often the complaints and questions as to the state of the brethren arise in a great measure from a lack of faith among those who express them. However, I fear the world for them. Sometimes bold assertions take place: here the evil is least; but devotedness, separation from the world, absence of conformity to the world, that is what I look for...The Lord is ever the same, so is it with man morally.
September 11Th, 1841.
Justification is one point, and two things uniting with it: firstly, that the blood has washed us from our sins, and that is, perhaps, justification, properly speaking. But in fact one can add to it our acceptance in the Beloved. If any man practices justice, he is just, as Jesus Christ is just; for to practice justice flows from the life of Christ in us; but by this life we are united to Christ in us; we enjoy His righteousness before God, being rendered accepted in the Beloved. The resurrection is the pivot of it, being the proof of atonement; it introduces Christ, according to the power of this eternal life (in which we participate) in the presence of God. It is around the person of Christ, looked on as risen, on which all the troths which are found in the word turn. The union of the church with Him is the complement of them. Resurrection leaves behind it in the tomb all that could condemn us, introduces the Lord into this new world, of which He is the perfection, the Chief, and the glory: now we are united to Him.
October 7th, 1841.
... I do not exactly like this expression: “Christ has obtained justification from God,” because it presents God as unwilling, and even opposed to the thing, whilst it is the, will and the heart of God, who has prepared us the sacrifice, and all. It is true that the justice of God required the atonement and the sacrifice of Christ. It is, however, He whose love has provided for all our wants in that respect. Also it is He who justifies. (Compare Zech. 3) The Epistle to the Hebrews speaks rather of our acceptance under the form of our presentation to Him, of sanctification in the outward sense. “That he might sanctify the people by his blood.” Also He has perfected them; they can keep in His presence as being in Him, according to the perfection of the sanctuary, without blame, without spot. Justification is the idea of a tribunal, of a judge, so to speak. The Epistle to the Hebrews speaks of the sanctuary, and of presenting us there. The foundation is always the same: only we can look at it in different ways, and each one gives us more light on the perfection of the work of Christ, and on the effects of this work, which we enjoy.
1 Peter 1:1919But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: (1 Peter 1:19) speaks rather in the sense of redemption, ransomed from the hands of the enemy. The obedience of Christ during His life tended towards the perfection of the sacrifice-it was not expiatory, but perfectly agreeable. It was a question of the acceptance of His person, as necessary to His work, but this obedience was not expiatory. If the grain of wheat had not fallen to the ground, it would have remained alone; but His complete obedience rendered Him perfectly agreeable to God, as also He was. (See Phil. 2) Under the form of justification, it is the Epistle to the Romans which treats most expressly the subject of our acceptance. What I wished to say in making use of the expression, “Christ has obtained justification,” will be understood in comparing the way in which this epistle explains itself. (Chap. 3: 24.) “Having been freely justified by his grace, by the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.” You see the way in which it is presented, as flowing from the free gift of God. This is important for the state of the soul, and that grace should be clearly understood.
January, 1842.
To apprehend the position of the law well is a difficult thing, because we must be fully led by the Holy Ghost, in order not to be ourselves in some way under the law, as to our feelings at least. One must have well apprehended the power of the work, and of the resurrection of Jesus; without that one would be without the law, if one were not under the law. We are by no means under the law. Grace does not recognize any participation of the law in our hearts; but how so if we recognize the law as good? Because Christ exhausted it in His death. He was under the law until His death, and in His death, but evidently He is not so now. He can use the law to judge those who have been under the law, but we are united to Him. As Adam was only head of the old family after his fall, so Christ is only Head of the new family as risen from the dead. He places them in His own position as a risen man; they begin with Christ there. They recognize the power of the law, but it has put to death Jesus-there where it has lost all its power and its dominion over the soul. We belong to Another. We can use the law, if there is need of it against the unjust, because, having the divine nature, we can handle the law, and it cannot inflict that mortal wound on the divine nature from which it has gone out. We can show where man is, if he is under the law, to make the perfection of redemption come out by that. That is what the apostle does in Romans and Galatians, to make one understand that we are no longer under the law; because we are dead with Christ. By the law we are dead to the law, we are crucified with Christ. A Gentile was never truly under the law. In becoming a Christian he takes Christ at a point where He has done with the law, but having received the Spirit of Christ, he has no more need of the law to discern the perfection of redemption; he has intelligence to understand the things accomplished in the history of Messiah-His perfect work. But the thing is far from being clear in the minds of Christians, for in fact most of them have made a law out of Christianity, and have put themselves under the law.
They must come out of that to enjoy peace, but to them the discussion about what the law is, is a very important and opportune thing because of that; besides, the human heart puts itself so naturally under the law, that it is very important that each soul should be well enlightened on. this point. The law, let us always remember, reveals to us nothing of God, except that the law implies a judge. It gives us the measure of our responsibility, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, and thy neighbor.” There is the law. One can say that the gospel gives us new motives for accomplishing the law, but these motives are drawn from a fact which gives Christ over our hearts all the right to which the law could pretend, and puts an end by death to the power of this latter, for we are dead and risen with Christ. We shall do and avoid many things which are found in the law, and the summary which has been given to us remains the principle, or the fruit, of the life of Christ in us. It is accomplished in all that flows from this life, but we are by no means under the law, for we are one with Christ, and Christ is not under the law. The law not only condemns the conduct, but the men. The law does not only say, “Cursed is everything,” but “cursed is every one that persevereth not.” Thus one must be under the curse if one is under the law. But it is because we are not under the law that we can employ it if it is needed. The Jews wished to employ it against the adulterous woman, but they were under the law in the flash. Their law pierced their hearts to death and condemnation. Christ used it, or at least left it its efficacy, because that, although He was born under the law, it could not reach Him for condemnation, the life of God in Him being perfect. United to Him in resurrection, we can use it, because we are beyond its reach by the death and resurrection of Christ, enjoying His life in our souls. That is why one is always more or less under the law until one has understood the resurrection of Christ; and also, every time that the flesh obscures the power of our redemption, I hope you will be able to understand these few remarks.
As to the Epistle to the Philippians, it offers another very interesting feature-the desolation and personal experience of the apostle. He views the church as deprived of his care; and he himself is oppressed for the moment by the power of Satan. Thus he enters, in a very touching and powerful manner, into all that which concerns the struggle of the church, and into all that which is important for it during the period of its loneliness; also he offers the graces which would prevent it from falling into the miseries which arose in consequence of the absence of the apostle. Hence the great use of this epistle for the present time. They began to preach Christ with a spirit of dissension, and not to be of one mind, to murmur. He shows what the riches and graces of Christ consist in, particularly necessary for such a state, alas! much ripened since then. Why should I say, alas? for all that will turn for salvation, and show that the coming of Jesus is nearer.
September, 1871.
Dear Brother,
That which constitutes the difficulty of the first chapter of the Epistle of John, and even of all the epistle, is that the doctrine is there presented in an abstract manner. But on the whole I think that the thought of the Spirit is this: God is no longer hidden; we have fellowship with Him in the full revelation of His grace-with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. Under the law God did not come forth; man did not go into His presence. Now the Father has revealed Himself in the Son, and has given us a life in which we enjoy fellowship with Him. But then it is with God Himself-no longer a veil, and God is light; it is perfectly pure, and reveals all. Now that there is no more veil, and that God has revealed Himself, one must walk in the light, as He is in the light. But in this position one is perfectly cleansed by the blood of Jesus; then we enjoy fellowship one with another. It is this full revelation of God which is the essence to Christianity: fullness of grace introducing us into communion, and the Father known in the Son; but it is with God, if the thing is true, and God is light.