Q. — “A correspondent would be glad to know how far the doctrine of the “Perseverance of the Saints unto the obtaining of eternal life” is borne out by the passage, “He who hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of redemption,” or Jesus Christ.
A. —The passage (Phil. 1:6) shows the perfect confidence there was in the Apostle’s heart, that God who had begun a good work in them, that is, the spirit of devotedness to the interests of the Gospel (vs. 5) as all other precious fruits which he saw in the Philippians, would continue it until the day of Jesus Christ. His confidence was sure, because it was God Himself who wrought in them, both to will and to do, of His good pleasure (c. 2:12) And these fruits which he had seen were the proof of the existence of the eternal life which God had implanted in their souls. Just as there cannot be the fruits of righteousness, till the righteousness is possessed (c. 1:11); or the fruits of the Spirit, till the Spirit is within; (Gal. 5:22) and “By their fruits ye shall know them.” In all these cases it is merely the happy natural outflow of that which the Christian possesses; and is to the Glory of God. Hence, dear friend, I don’t like the expression, “Unto the obtaining of Eternal life.” We never find the obtaining of it a future thing in Scripture. To be sure the full unhindered enjoyment of it—reigning in life; “and its full fruition is always, as we well know, a future thing; but its possession always a present thing to the believer. It may be clouded and hindered, but it is there. He has obtained it as he has obtained forgiveness of his sins, by faith in the death and blood-shedding of Christ.
Life and Propitiation come to us through the death of Christ (see 1 John 4:9,10). When we hear His words and believe on the Father who sent Him, we have eternal life (see John 5:24;17:3). We are born again by His word, applied to our consciences by the Holy Spirit. “Of His own will begat he us with the word” (James 1:18). “Being born again... by the word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). We have thus a life in our own souls which as sinners we never possessed, we were dead in sins; Christ came into the place of death for sin. In His death he put away sin, and bore the sins of many (Heb. 9:26-28). God raised Him up from the dead, and has, by the same power, quickened, or given life to us, together with Christ thus risen, “having forgiven us all trespasses (read carefully Eph. 1:19-23;2:5,6; and Col. 2:13); leaving them behind us as it were, in the grave of Christ, and thus bring us into a new place in resurrection before Himself. And so Christ risen from the dead, and gone up to heaven, is our life, which is thus “Hid with Christ in God” (Col. 3:1-4); and is—blessed be God—as secure as He! We have still the old nature (we had nothing else once) to treat as an enemy, to mortify, and subdue; but our life is secured forever. Hence, dear friend, it is not a question with us now of obtaining life; but of possessing Christ, who is our life, and thus safe in God’s own hand. Because I live, ye shall live also.” (John 14:19) The fruits will be seen somehow, wherever there is life in the soul; still the fruits are not to be an object to occupy us. Let others see them—and let us be occupied with Him, who is our life-risen, victorious over death, sin-bearing, judgment, everything: and its object and measure. If so occupied we will have but few doubts of the final issue—rather treating them as they deserve, as of the enemy. Faith, keeping the door of our hearts, will admit of no such intruders there.
Q. — “An humble believer,” Glasgow; asks, What is the teaching of Prov. 1:26? Does that passage mean that God will rejoice over the punishment of the wicked’? Does “Wisdom” in the context, mean the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit? &c., &c.
A. —In the passage it is “Wisdom “who speaks crying in the streets to the simple, the scorner, and the fool, to turn at her reproof, and to love not their own ways; and that Wisdom’s spirit would he given them, and Wisdom’s words made known to them. (The fear of the Lord was the beginning of wisdom, v. 7) When they would therefore be reaping the fruits of the folly they had sown, under the retributive government of God in the world, in their fear and calamity they would call upon Wisdom to guide them, but they would not be heard—it would then be too late to learn Wisdom’s ways. Wisdom would then laugh at them as it were (it is a figure of speech), for what they were suffering; having set at naught, Wisdom’s counsels and reproof, when she cried to them to learn her ways.
The Book of Proverbs refers to the government of God here below on the principle that, “Whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap” (Gal. 6:7). This is true of saint or sinner. Grace saves the vilest, but the government of God is over all. It is on the principle that if a man squanders his money, or his time, or his health; he will reap the fruit of his ways in the loss of these things, &c. The grace of God in Salvation never sets aside these principles of His dealings with men; nor does this marvelous grace alter the fact that every man reaps the fruits of his ways under God’s government. A true Christian may do something for want of discretion, and want of hearkening to Wisdom’s words, which he may have to repent of all his days.
As to your question, who is it who speaks? It is plain from 1 Cor. 1:24. That Christ is the “Wisdom of God;” and that He is made unto us wisdom, v. 30. (Read Prov. 8:22-35, and compare with John 1:1,2) Christ’s word, that is, the expression of Himself, is to dwell in us richly in all wisdom. The Christian, too, is exhorted to walk in wisdom toward them that are without-the world redeeming the time (Col. 3:16;4. 5).
It is plain that Prov. 1:20-23, is not a Gospel invitation at all. Hence the danger of using Scripture out of its true place and connection. The passage does not teach that God will laugh at the punishment of the wicked, and the rejector of Christ, as you have heard. The divinely taught mind shrinks from such an idea.