“I know whom I have believed.” Let this expression of the apostle sink deep into our hearts as the great antidote to fear and despair. There is no need to fear nor to despair because of the apparent desolation we see in the assemblies. The church is Christ's. He gave Himself for it. Not one of His members shall be lost, but all shall be with Him to share the church's glory in the day of full redemption. Therefore, we need not fear what will be the ultimate result, because we, like Paul, know whom we have believed. We could not know the Lord Jesus otherwise than by faith. But faith in active exercise brings us near to Him and keeps us near to Him, and also gives us to know that He is near to us. We can say we did believe on Him, and we do believe on Him, and we will, through grace, go on believing Him until faith is no longer necessary.
“I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day.” Paul's confidence was in the power of Him in whom he trusted, the Lord of glory who was able to keep that which he had committed to Him. It was in his view simply a question of matching powers—the power of God and the power of evil. It was impossible to doubt what would be the ultimate issue.
WITHSTANDING THE POWER OF THE BEASTS
And this exercise is often needed in the history of faith. We find an example of this courage of faith, for instance, in the case of those three Hebrew captives in Babylon in the time of the decline almost to extinction of the great system of national religion. The nation of Israel which Jehovah had called out especially to be His witnesses in the world had miserably failed, and had forsaken the true God for idols. Where was Jehovah's beautiful house of Zion at that time? Where was it? In ruins, and its chosen worshippers were captives to the first great Gentile empire of Daniel's vision of the beasts.
And with these Hebrew youths, it was a question of comparing the power of the proud emperor with the power of their God who had allowed them to be carried into exile. With a view to political unity, Nebuchadnezzar set up the image in the plain of Dura, and instructed all the subjects of his vast empire to bow down and worship one thing and the same thing. The law of Moses, where was it? It was apparently under the heel of Nebuchadnezzar. Therefore, common sense said to Shadrach and his friends, “Come, bow down and worship; you cannot resist the power of this all conquering emperor. Submit to his decree, bow down and worship.” But they stood upright; they would not bow down and worship the golden image. Was it mere stubbornness? was it mere obstinacy? Not at all. It was a calm and solemn conviction that although the temple was gone, and Jerusalem was in captivity, Jehovah was still the God of His people, and they would be true to Him in the hour of seeming defeat, for they knew Him and were convinced that He was able to save them. Before them was the furnace of fire, and there was the inflexible will of the emperor. But they in faith looked above to Jehovah, and stood fast. They trusted in God, and they were not disappointed. Who ever trusted in God and was disappointed? “Whosoever believeth in Him shall not be ashamed.”
And so these men were cast into the fiery furnace, because they refused to bow down and worship the image. But the emperor saw the three men walking in the fire unhurt, with One whose form was like the Son of God. Shadrach and his friends acted with this calm immutable confidence because they were persuaded that God was able to keep that which they had committed unto Him.
Was this not illustrated again in the days of the second empire, as we also learn from the same book of Daniel? The imperial decree went forth from Darius that there should no longer be prayer made on the earth to God in heaven. If anything were to be asked, let it be asked of the all-powerful emperor on his throne, but under penalty of death there was to be no prayer to another. Such was the decree of this emperor on the advice of his nobles. The power of the world against a believer in the unseen God had thus arrayed itself in open conflict against Daniel. The question for him was, should he for thirty days effect a compromise with his piety, because the prohibition was but for thirty days; and after all it might be argued that prayer is a private communication between oneself and God, and means might be found of escaping the threatened punishment by praying to Jehovah in secret. But Daniel's heart was brave and true, and he scorned such subterfuge.
He knew his God, and he was able to look up from Darius to the God of heaven, and because he looked up he did not fail to bow his knees and to keep his windows open towards Jerusalem. He was not afraid of the vengeance of the Medo-Persian law, because he served God and not man. He was persuaded that his God was able to keep him, nor was he disappointed. He was brought safely out of the den of lions. “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”
And here again is the power of the fourth Gentile empire persecuting the servant of God. Paul was exposed to an outbreak of the fury of Caesar at any moment. Any moment he might be summoned to lay down his life for his Master. Paul during his imprisonment at Rome had written to Philippi of his desire that he might have fellowship in the sufferings of Christ. And his desire was granted, for he had to meet the same world-power as his Master.
Dear friends, we must count on this factor in our lives, that owing to our discipleship of Christ we have a relentless foe in the world, who uses against us the vast resources of his power. The prince of this world is against Christ and His followers. In its opposition to us the Worldly power may take many forms, but it is for you and for me to meet it unflinchingly in any and in all its forms. To be victors we need, however, to be clear about one thing. Are we persuaded that He is able to carry us through every crisis? This may seem to us very easy and sure when we are in the meetings, but when we are actually face to face with the activities and distractions of life, how is our courage then? Let us at all times carry with us the assurance that He is able to deliver us, and that, as He is for us, who can be against us? To be calm and serene in the hour of peril will be the test of our faith. Let not confidence in God be a mere notion that we cherish at a time like this and then go away to our homes and forget to maintain it. Faith and assurance must be put into constant practice.
CHURCH AFFAIRS COMMITTED TO THE LORD
I think, however, that the apostle has in view something further than his own personal security and blessing when he speaks of the ability of Christ to keep that which he has committed to Him. What was it that he had committed? The Corinthians first gave their own selves to the Lord. Well, Paul had committed everything no doubt. We too ought to give our own selves to the Lord. We ought not to give less, we cannot give more.
But Paul had also committed to the Lord the affairs of the church. This was his special business, so to speak. The Lord Himself had set the apostle first in the church. He had made him the foundation of the church and entrusted him with the unfolding of that mystery. He had given him the gospel of the grace of God to preach. He had committed great things to the apostle of the uncircumcision, but Paul was not deluded by his own heart into believing that he was sufficient for these things. Paul had the humility to feel that the apostolic ministry was the Lord's work and service after all. He could undertake this labor or that, but it was the Lord who was directing his labors.
As we find from his Epistle to the great metropolis, Paul particularly wished to preach at Rome, but he was not allowed to do so in the way he expected. Perhaps no man living had a greater desire to preach the gospel than he, but at Rome he had to remain silent, while others preached the word of life. He had to do what may be good for us all to do sometimes—to be quiet and to rejoice that other persons are actively employed. The apostle had to do this.
Here he speaks to Timothy of what he as an apostle had committed to the Lord. I think that the words as they are here recorded comprehend this fact among others—that the apostle of his Master had given back to Him the care of the church, his apostolic responsibility, the work that he had received direct from the Lord of glory, saying, as it were, to Him, “O Lord, I cannot serve any longer, Thou hast put me here. Thou hast confined me in prison, but preaching and teaching is Thy work, carry it on, O Lord. The church is Thine; the sheep are Thine; care for them; guard them; feed them; lead them carry them forward.” This was surely implied when the apostle wrote “I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” For the apostle committed to Him all things without exception.
This spirit should also be true of ourselves. We perhaps feel sometimes the heavy responsibility that the Lord has laid upon us in respect of what He has given us to do. We do our best, but we often feel that there is no sufficient response to our earnestness and effort. What is our practice then? Ought we not to take to our hearts the words of the apostle, to cast our care upon the Lord, and to assure ourselves that He is able to keep that deposit which we have committed to Him?
And if you read at your leisure the great prayer of the Lord recorded in the seventeenth of John you will find that the blessed Master did the same thing. He was about to leave this world, but He thought of His disciples whom He was leaving behind in a hostile scene, and what did He do? He committed them to His Father. “Thine they were and thou gavest them me. Of those that thou gavest me have I lost none, except the son of perdition. All mine are thine, and thine are mine, and I am glorified in them.” He was about to depart out of this world, but He first committed His followers to His Father. His Father had committed them to Him, and He committed them to His Father. What did this action display? What but that perfect union and communion between the Father and the Son which is the pattern of that between the servant and his Master.
(continued)
(To be continued)