“Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions? If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds’ tents.” (Sol. 1:7,87Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions? 8If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds' tents. (Song of Solomon 1:7‑8))
The language of the earthly bride in this passage is free from all obscurity. She has Himself, the object of her heart’s delight, and she converses with Him. But because He is known to her, and is the joy and delight of her heart, the One whom her soul loveth, she covets to learn what she can only learn from Himself, the place of His habitual resort; for there would she abide with Him. This is fitting and beautiful; for it is the quality of true affection to seek out the environment of its object, the scene in which it moves, and responsive love delights to answer to so clear an evidence of the affection it has inspired. Hence we find the two disciples, who had been attracted to the person of the Lord by the overflowing appreciation of Him by the Baptist, when he exclaimed “Behold the Lamb of God,” being asked by the Lord, “What seek ye?” with unaffected simplicity made answer, “Master, where abidest thou?” the beauty of which is only excelled by His equally simple reply, “Come and see. They came then and saw where He abode, and they abode with Him that day.” Surely it was the quintessence of the Christianity that should be according to God; the divine drama rehearsed. For there is (1) Himself, known in His sacrificial character as God’s Lamb; (2) He is followed; and (3) dwelt with where He dwells. His work, His person, and His place all ours. If I have, through grace, a valid claim to one, I have equally so to all. The title and the estate go together. The more then I value Himself, the more I seek to be where He is; and if that be in its full character denied me for a time, yet I cannot be denied an interest in the scene where He abides, nor be prevented in spirit abiding with Him; for I have an undeniable title, in the plenitude of His grace, to His own portion forever.
It would be easy to trace this principle through Scripture. The innocent man had his Eden; lawless man, a cursed earth. The typically redeemed nation, a land flowing with milk and with honey; the really redeemed of Old Testament times had heaven. And the Church has the prepared place in the Father’s house,—in a word, “Where I am.” The Lord not only taught this to His beloved disciples in distinct terms, but He fortified and comforted their hearts with it, in view of His being about to leave them. “If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be.” Again, “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” And finally, in that wonderful John 17., “Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.” The deep significance of this is most precious, and for us is full of joy. As He said, “If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father.” We have not to wait for Him to take His place; He fills that place already. “Being by the right hand of God exalted,” as the glorified Man in the presence of God, He but waits now the word of the Father to come forth and fetch His beloved saints to where He Himself is. The greater result of His divine work is already wrought-this taking His place as man in the scene which His own presence fills and illuminates. The lesser result only is what remains-the bringing us there also, which is but the complement of that glorious act of divinely surpassing power which the God of our Lord Jesus Christ wrought “when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come.” (Eph. 1:20,2120Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, 21Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: (Ephesians 1:20‑21)) The very fact that He as Son of man has passed through death anti resurrection, and now occupies a place in the. Father’s house as our “forerunner,” assures that place to us, according to the counsel of His will who has predestinated that He and we shall be glorified together. The deep significance of this is most precious, being full association with Himself in His own acquired place, both now and eternally. Nor are we left till the day of glory for an apprehension of what such blessedness will be. Its present enjoyment in character and quality, though by no means in its adequate degree, is assured to us in the words, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Accordingly, we have when so gathered the “where I am” made good to us even now, in a way incomparably blessed for saints while on earth. This side the glory no scene can rival the blessedness to us, and the unique joy to Him, of the gathering together of Himself and His saints; and at such a time the Spirit of God loves to conduct our hearts right onward’ to that still fairer scene, and that still happier occasion, when we shall walk with Him in white, and when the “ where I am “ shall be peopled with His blood-washed ones, His companions in unfading glory, Himself in their midst in His many-phased beauty and supremacy, the center and the spring of their exceeding joy forever.
May our hearts, under His exquisite touch, be moved by the Spirit of God to cherish and to cultivate a joyous and hallowing anticipation of the approaching blessedness of His unclouded presence, which is “fullness of joy.”
W. H.
THE consequence of Christ’s priesthood is that He makes us priests. He has entered in once into the holy place. That relates to Himself; and He makes us children with the Father and priests to God. He has, of course, the preeminence. The moment the least thought of a priesthood comes in between us and God, the truth of Christianity is gone. There is only now the priesthood of all believers. We are priests by virtue of the competency to enter the holiest of all. There is as much liberty for us to enter into the holiest as Christ Himself. To deny the priesthood of all believers is to say that all saints cannot enter into the holiest by virtue of that blood.
A GOOD deal has been said and written, especially in poetry, about the need of our being empty vessels, ready for the use of the Master. The thought is, that our being kept empty is the qualification for immediate use, that when in that condition the Lord can take us up, fill us, and send us forth on any service to which He calls. Is this a scriptural thought?
We will consider, first of all, the scriptures in which the term vessels or vessel is found. In 2 Cor. 4 the apostle says, “We have this treasure in earthen vessels.” (v. 7:) There is little doubt that this passage contains an allusion to Gideon and his men. We read that “he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers.” (Judg. 7:1616And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet in every man's hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers. (Judges 7:16)) The pitchers had been empty, it will be observed, but Gideon put the lights-the brands or torches -inside. This will help us to understand the meaning of the treasure in the earthen vessels of which St. Paul speaks. It is evidently, from the context, the knowledge of the glory of God, that glory which, displayed in the face of the glorified Christ, God had caused to shine in our hearts. But this once received, by the operation of sovereign power and grace (for it was the God who had commanded the light to shine out of darkness who hath shined in our hearts), does not come and go, but remains as an abiding possession. The condition of its display is another thing, involving the constantly bearing about in the body the dying of Jesus (v. 10); but the treasure remains in the vessel.
In 2 Tim. 2 The term vessels is also found. “In a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and earth; and some to honor, and some to dishonor. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the Master’s use, prepared unto every good work.” (vv. 20, 21) The question here, as will be readily seen, is not of empty or full vessels, but entirely one of association, To be a vessel ready to the Master’s hand, “a man “must be in separation from the vessels of dishonor, thus affirming the principle of defilement through our associations and consequent disqualification for service. Only as purged from the vessels of dishonor can one become a vessel unto honor, one which the Master will delight to take up and employ. But passing on to the next chapter, we learn that if the man of God is to be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works, he must be well instructed from the Scriptures. (See vv. 14-17) With this agrees the exhortation in Colossians-” Let the word’ of Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another,” &c. In other words, the vessel must be filled, and not there and then for the immediate service, but it must be in that state habitually; the word must dwell in the vessel, and then it will flow out in teaching as the Master may require.
If we now refer to the truth involved more generally, the same result will be obtained. When our Lord was speaking to the woman of Samaria, He said, “Whosoever shall drink of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well “(fountain) “of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John 4:1414But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. (John 4:14)) Here again the water once received-a symbol doubtless of life in the power of the Holy Ghost-remains as a permanent possession, hence if we turn to John 7 we discover that the water is not only received, but that it also flows out: “He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” (v. 38) The vessel is thus filled, and filled in the first place for its own eternal satisfaction, and then it overflows in blessing to others. It is freely conceded that there must be the constant reception, but even so the vessel is never to be empty. Nay, the well or fountain is within, because it is connected with the gift of the indwelling Spirit; for John expressly says, “This spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive.” (v. 39) Possessing therefore the Holy Ghost, the normal state of the believer is to be filled even to overflowing with His power-power of life-so that “rivers of living water “might flow out for the refreshment and blessing of those around. There could not, in this view of the case, be an empty vessel, and it is equally clear that to be prepared for service is to be full to overflowing. Even more might be said. Living in the power of the Holy Ghost, as so possessed, these streams of living water would ever be flowing forth as from a perennial fountain. On the other hand, if these streams should, through the grieving of the Holy Spirit of God, not be flowing out, and the vessel in a sense become empty, such an one would not, it is needless to say, be in a condition for the Master’s use.
If we now refer to another class of scriptures the same conclusion will be reached. Two will suffice.
“Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning,” &c. (Luke 12:3535Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; (Luke 12:35)) “Among whom ye shine as lights in the world.” (Phil. 2:1515That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; (Philippians 2:15)) Now the “lights” in these and other scriptures always signify Christ-Christ as shining out, in the power of the Holy Ghost, through the life of the believer. When in this scene Christ was the light of the world; and, in His absence, believers occupy this same place; but they only answer to it in so far as Christ is practically expressed in their walk and ways. There is therefore a correspondency between these scriptures and that already considered, which tells us that “we have this treasure in earthen vessels.” For Christ must be possessed before He can be expressed; the light must be within before it can shine forth in the midst of the darkness by which we are surrounded. An empty vessel would thus be one without Christ, and it is not the way of our Lord to take up such, and kindle the light, and send him forth to shine in special missions of service. No; the more the vessel is filled with Christ-and the condition of being filled is to be constantly occupied with beholding the glory that radiates from His unveiled face at the right hand of God-the brighter will be the illumination that will stream forth, and the more distinctly will it be ready to the Master’s hand for disposal at His will. It was the foolish virgins, and not the wise, who had the empty vessels; they had no oil in them, significant of the fact that they were not born again, and consequently had not the indwelling Spirit. The wise had failed in not trimming their lamps; but inasmuch as their vessels were not empty they were aroused in time to meet the Bridegroom, and went by His grace in with Him to the marriage. The others-the foolish virgins with the empty vessels-were shut out forever.
The question may then be put, Is it possible for the Christian to be an empty vessel? One of two things will always follow. Either he will be filled with Christ, or with himself and the things which center in himself. Thus, if not filled with Christ, he is always in danger. It was so with the Jewish nation. The unclean spirit of idolatry had gone out, but finding no rest, in the language of our blessed Lord, the unclean spirit saith, “I will return to my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.” (Matt. 12:43-4543When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. 44Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. 45Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation. (Matthew 12:43‑45)) If now that nation had received Christ, He would have filled up the void, and they would have been secure from this awful intrusion of wicked spirits. In like manner, unless the believer is filled with Christ, he is ever exposed to be occupied and possessed with what is opposed to Christ. An empty vessel he should not, and indeed cannot, be.
It is quite true that, if the Lord sends any of His own on special service, everything-power, wisdom, grace, and the message, if this be the kind of service-must all be received from Him. Nothing of our own, nothing that springs from self, can be used for Him but the point is, that the believer will not be in a condition to be employed unless he is already filled. And the more filled he is, the more Christ practically possesses his soul, the more consciously dependent he will be, and the more certain therefore, when the privilege of any service is conferred, to look up to receive all he needs for it from the Lord. So in the primitive church, it was when they were all filled with the Holy Ghost that they spake the word of God with boldness. (See Acts 4:3131And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:31); also ii. 4, &c) It is therefore, we again repeat, not empty, but filled vessels, that the Lord requires for His sovereign disposal in service.
E. D.