We now come to another very interesting inquiry. And again, as of them, so it is of us. If they were neither to come down from the enclosure of those exclusive walls, and mingle with the craftsmen, nor yet to shut themselves up, what were they to do? If we are not to come down from that blessed. place our God has restored to us the ground of the one body, and the sovereign guidance of the Holy Spirit – if we are not to compromise God’s blessed truth by a truce with the clergy, and what is of man in the movements of the act; and, on the other hand, if we are not to shut ourselves up – then what are we to do?
Nehemiah 8 is an answer to this inquiry. The people are gathered together as one man. And Ezra, the priest, brought the law before the congregation. O, what reading of the book before both men and women, and those that could understand; and what attention to the book! The book, God’s book. And Ezra opened the book. And now what blessing and worship! And what causing the people to understand the book “So they read the book, in the law of God, distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading” (Neh. 8:8).
This, my brethren, is the work of those separated to Christ, and this is what they have to do. Remember how little real regard there is in the camp for the Word of God. It must be far otherwise with them. They must be men of “the book.” They must open the book; read the book distinctly; make the people understand the book. It is God speaking to us. Then there will be lifting up of hands, and bowing of heads, and worshiping the Lord with faces to the ground. Yes, as the Tirshatha, which is the Holy Spirit, gives us understanding of the precious Word, there will be intelligent delight in the Lord; we joy in God.
But is it to be all for ourselves? O no. “Then he said, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord; neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Neh. 8:10). And all the people did so, because they had understood the words.
It is a great mistake merely to seek our own personal blessing and edification. It is spiritual selfishness. We must be personal; we must feed on all the sweet perfections of Christ, that which the fat of the burnt offering pointed to – the inmost thoughts and affections of our own precious Lord; the loveliness of His walk here below; and His present unchanging love. Does not the sweet perfume of His adorable person fill the heaven of heavens? O, let us drink the sweet; let us be full of Christ! And then our happy work is to send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared. O child of God, this is to be thy constant work, even to those who do not understand thee, yea, who slander thee, who misrepresent thee, and who speak all manner of evil of thee ignorantly. Do not return evil for evil, railing for railing, but contrariwise, seek the spiritual good of all; “send portions to the whole church of God. Remember how the Lord met the mad persecutor, Saul of Tarsus. And not a few in our day who were bitter opponents, have been taught of the Father to come out of the camp to the Lord Jesus Christ, the true center. Let what is pleasing to Him be pleasing to us. “For the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Now we will notice one striking effect of reading the book, and understanding the words that were declared unto them. On the second day gathering (Chapter 8:13-18), they found what was written concerning the feast of tabernacles – “That the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month.” “And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Joshua, the son of Nun, unto that day, had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness.” Is not this very remarkable? They were only a handful of people compared with Israel in the days of Solomon; yet this feast had never been so kept. This feast, Israel in booths, was a beautiful symbol of the people waiting for the millennial reign of their long-expected Messiah and Lord. And for a thousand years Israel had never so waited in booths, as this feeble remnant now waited with “very great gladness.”
It is no less remarkable that the church had never kept the feast of tabernacles since the days of Paul, until God has in these our days gathered a feeble remnant outside the camp to Christ. This was the attitude of the church in the early days of Paul: “Turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven,” (1 Thess. 1:9; 2:19; 3:13; 4:15-18). Read prayerfully these scriptures). Must we not confess that for eighteen centuries we look in vain in what is called church history to find the church in this tabernacle feast again? No doubt there was a little of it during the sad days of persecution. But no sooner did the world cease to persecute than the church immediately became worldly – in the world and of the world. And while the bridegroom tarried for so many centuries, the church slept.
(Continued from page 134).
(To be continued)