From Notes of an Address.
I should like to read three scriptures; one from the 1st of, Matthew, one from the 18th of Matthew, and one from the 28th of Matthew.
Matthew 1:21-23; 18:15-20; 28:1621And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. (Matthew 1:21‑23)
15Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. 16But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. 17And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. 18Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:15‑20)
16Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. (Matthew 28:16) to the end. The “world” here should be, as most of us know, translated by the term “age.” While I have it on my heart to say just a little to believers tonight, I trust enough may be said concerning God’s glad tidings to meet the need of any here that are out of Christ. First, let us notice the 20th verse of the 18th chapter.
“For where two or three are gathered together to My name, there am I in the midst of them.”
Now, this text is exceedingly familiar to almost all in this room. We have quoted it a great many times; we have sought to subscribe to it, though conscious of being flecked with many defacings, conscious of very much weakness and very much failure; but it contains God’s principles of gathering, and I trust we may see somewhat in it that shall reach our consciences anew, and touch our hearts afresh.
Now, that little text, if broken up into parts, contains seven distinct thoughts. “For where” —that’s the divine place; “Two or three” that’s the divine testimony; “Are gathered” —that’s divine separation; “Together” —that’s divine oneness; “To My name” —that’s divine authority; “There am I” —that’s divine presence; “In the midst of them” —that’s the divine center. How precious! Now, it is of all necessity, if we are going to be agreeable to Him, to know just where the Lord would have us be, in this world, I mean as to the assembly, our church relation in this world. Now we know that question is commonly considered, allowing the widest latitude for human choice; but when we come to Scripture, we find we are not left with discretional power. We find God has chosen for us, has distinctly defined His mind, and we are responsible and under obligations to answer to that mind as revealed in Scripture—in His Word.
First, as to where, let us notice a little in the 28th of Matthew, for that scripture contains a principle which holds good until this present moment. (10th verse.) “Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid; go tell My brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see Me. Now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city, and showed the chief priests all the things that were done. And when they were assembled with the elders, and had taken counsel, they gave large money unto the soldiers, saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole Him away while we slept. . .. Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, unto a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.” What we have from the 11th to the 15th verses, is a kind of parenthesis, and in the 16th verse you have the thought resumed. “And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.” The point I am after in this passage is this, that when we are gathered according to God’s mind, we conform to His appointment, and do not choose for ourselves. It is the principle that is in it. Jesus said to them, “There shall ye see Me.” They answered to His appointment, and found Him as good as His word; and when gathered there, He was in their midst. There is immense principle in that, and as we were saying a moment ago, sometimes during union meetings, souls are converted, souls are saved, and then they are told to select the church of their choice; to go, in other words, where they please. But you see Jesus has appointed a place, Jesus has named a place, and if we are to have His presence, we are to conform to His wishes, His desires, His will, His appointment.
Let us notice still another scripture as to where. Take, for example, the 13th of Hebrews, 12th verse. “Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.” Now this is most important in connection with the thought of where. If in the earlier scripture we find that we are to meet the Lord according to His appointment, here we find Him outside of something, and that something is called “the camp.” Well, we all know what the camp was in that day, but What answers to it now? Why, the whole system of things religious, that places man in the flesh in outward relationship with God. Where is Jesus as to that? He is outside of it, and I am called upon as a believer to go forth unto Him, bearing His reproach.
We can’t dwell at length on any of these scriptures. Indeed, the line of truth will be simply suggestive, and you may look these questions up at your own liberty, but that, to me, is the most important. It is a system of things which characteristically stands connected with this world. Whereas the believer has no continuing city here, indeed, is a stranger and pilgrim. It would not be hard to fix the application of such a text as this, unless we were seeking to evade the edge of it; and that is true, you know, as a rule with us, that where scripture is difficult of application, difficult of understanding for us, it is because our duty and our desire part company. That is when we have our difficulty, and you will have it so almost every time. But, what characterized the assembly of God at the beginning, as it came fresh from His hand? What characterized it in anticipation, if you please, when the table of the Lord was first spread? Is it something connected with this world as the camp? No; let us see. Look please at Luke 22:99And they said unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare? (Luke 22:9), “And they said unto Him, Where wilt Thou that we prepare? And He said unto them, Behold when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you, bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he entereth in. And ye shall say unto the good man of the house, The Master saith unto thee, Where is the guest chamber, where I shall eat the passover with My disciples? And he shall show you a large upper room furnished; there make ready.” Now you see that is consistent with the position of the Christian in this world, who is told that here he has no continuing city, in contrast with that which is called the camp, which is a parcel of the world’s system, and which is an established thing in this scene. What have you here? The brethren gathered by His appointment in a guest chamber. Not the temple, but the guest chamber. That is a remarkable thought. What is a guest chamber? Just a room where one might tarry for a night. Just the opposite of something fixed and sure, and of an abiding character in this world. Just the opposite, and you have the same thought, I believe, in the first chapter of Acts, haven’t you? You remember the scripture, 12th verse. “Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a Sabbath day’s journey. And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room.” So the place, the where, is not only outside, it is not only characterized by being transient, but it is out of the world. It is in an upper room. It is in an out-of-the-world place, an out-of-the-world position, and indeed; if you carry out the thought, in going on to the 10th of Hebrews, in heart and spirit, it is within the veil, it is within the holiest of all. Blessed fact. So you see as to the where, as to the place, it stands detached from this world and attached to heaven; and all that characterized it here speaks of what is transient, or what is not abiding; of what is outside and above it all. But, perhaps, that is as much as we should say as to where.
“Two or three.” “Where two or three.” There is something very blessed in that, and do we really understand the secret of this blessed text? “Two or three.” You see, with all their blessing on the day of Pentecost, they never could have known the specific application of this scripture as we may know it. It is just as though the Lord Jesus anticipated all the ruin that has come in; just as though He had seen how the church would be wrecked, divided and subdivided, and that there would be just a little handful that would be willing to turn aside from the mass to gather to His name alone. Blessed fact. You see, you couldn’t have an assembly composed of less than two. If there were just one, that would not be an assembly. But He puts it at the lowest plurality, and says if there are just two that are willing to abide by these principles, “There am I in the midst of them.” Marvelous truth. Blessed fact.
You see it shouldn’t be a question of numbers that would affect us. We never could arrive at the truth in that way. It either is the truth, or it is not. Numbers cut no figure whatever.
But you know, and I know, too, as a matter of fact, that never did the wrong stand stronger, and never lay the right so weak. That’s a fact, and you know it. You know, I repeat it, that never did the wrong stand stronger, and never lay the right so weak, but God’s truth is just the same. The principles that govern the assembly are just the same, and what we are exhorted to do as God’s children, is to go on with that which was from the beginning. It may not have the appearance of up-to-dateness, it may look a little like a back number, if you are going to think of it in a human way, but God’s truth needs no date. If it were the truth two thousand years ago, it is the truth tonight, and will be the truth eternally. Yes, it will, and God give us, through His own precious grace, in this day of weakness, in this day of feebleness, in this day of littleness, not to despise this day of small things. We may not have the appearance of an army with banners, but we can at least be leaving the wilderness, “Leaning upon our Beloved.” (Songs of Solomon 8:5.) We may be seen leaving the wilderness, owning our weakness, owning our littleness, owning our feebleness, owning our failure, and as we were saying a moment ago, we shall be flecked with many defacings, but the truth of God abides. It is one thing to start out by subscribing to what is unscriptural; it is another thing to subscribe to what is scriptural, and fail in accomplishing your endeavor.
Let us notice a little further, “Two or three.” You know scripture says, “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.” That is another way to look at the “two or three.” Not only that it would require this many to form the assembly of the very smallest character, but also, if you have just two, you have the witness number, and if you have three you have the full witness number; so let us not be discouraged since it is a day of small things, knowing that we have the Lord. I say we, and when I saw we, Whom do I mean? Any who through grace, with bowed heads, broken hearts and chastened spirits, are willing to own no name but His. But now a little farther. “For where two or three are gathered together ... ” Now to be gathered, supposes separation; and that is just what is true of God’s people according to God’s thought.
If you take Israel of old, what was said of them in the 20th of Leviticus? “I have severed you from other people,” and now what is said of us? Us, I mean all the children of God. “I have chosen you out of the world.” If there were in our hearts a state which answered to this, you would find something of what you have in character in the 4th of Acts. “And being let go, they went to their own company.” The line of distinction and separation between our souls and this world would be distinct, would be plain, would be clear. But is It? You know full well to the contrary. Distend of our being gathered, I speak of the church of God now at large, including all the systems of man, you have all sorts of mixtures, from the most devoted saints to the boldest infidels, all under the name of Christ. That is not being gathered; that is not according to God’s principle of separation. It is not according to God’s principle of unity, for God’s principle of unity is separation from evil, and not the toleration of it. It is good for us to learn that.
(To be continued)