"Ye are the children of the Lord your God; ye shall not cut
yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead; for
thou art a holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen
thee to be a peculiar people unto Himself, above all the nations that
are upon the earth." (Ver. 1. 2.)
The opening clause of this chapter sets before us the basis of all the
privileges and responsibilities of the Israel of God. It is a familiar
thought amongst us that we must be in a relationship before we can
know the affections or discharge the duties which belong to it. This
is a plain and undeniable truth. If a man were not a father, no amount
of argument or explanation could make him understand the feelings or
affections of a father's heart; but the very moment he enters upon the
relationship, he knows all about them.
Thus it is as to every relationship and position, and thus it is in
the things of God. We cannot understand the affections or the duties
of a child of God until we are on the ground. We must be Christians
before we can perform Christian duties. Even when we are Christians,
it is only by the gracious aid of the Holy Ghost that we can walk as
such; but clearly, if we are not on Christian ground, we can know
nothing of Christian affections or Christian duties. This is so
obvious that argument is needless.
Now, most evidently, it is God's prerogative to declare how His
children ought to conduct themselves, and it is their high privilege
and holy responsibility to seek, in all things, to meet His gracious
approval. "Ye _are_ the children of the Lord your God: ye shall not
cut yourselves." They were not their own; they belonged to Him, and
therefore they had no right to cut themselves or disfigure their faces
for the dead. Nature, in its pride and self-will, might say, Why may
we not do like other people? What harm can there be in cutting
ourselves, or making a baldness between our eyes? It is only an
expression of grief, an affectionate tribute to our loved departed
ones. Surely there can be nothing morally wrong in such a suited
expression of sorrow.
To all this there was one simple but conclusive answer--"Ye are the
children of the Lord your God." This fact altered every thing. The
poor ignorant and uncircumcised Gentiles around them might cut and
disfigure themselves, inasmuch as they knew not God, and were not in
relationship to Him; but as for Israel, they were on the high and holy
ground of nearness to God, and this one fact was to give tone and
character to all their habits. They were not called upon to adopt or
refrain from any particular habit or custom _in order to be_ the
children of God. This would be, as we say, beginning at the wrong end;
but _being_ His children, they were to act as such.
"Thou _art_ a holy people unto the Lord thy God." He does not say, Ye
_ought to be_ a holy people. How could they ever make themselves a
holy people, or a peculiar people, unto Jehovah? Utterly impossible.
If they were not His people, no efforts of theirs could ever make them
such. But God, in His sovereign grace, in pursuance of His covenant
with their fathers, had _made_ them His children, _made_ them a
peculiar people above all the nations that were upon the earth. Here
was the solid foundation of Israel's moral edifice. All their habits
and customs, all their doings and ways, their food and their clothing,
what they did and what they did not do--all was to flow out of the one
grand fact, with which they had no more to do than with their natural
birth, namely, that they actually were the children of God, the people
of His choice, the people of His own special possession.
Now, we cannot but acknowledge it to be a privilege of the very
highest order to have the Lord so near to us, and so interested in all
our habits and ways. To mere nature, no doubt--to one who does not
know the Lord--is not in relationship to Him, the very idea of His
holy presence, or of nearness to Him, would be simply intolerable: but
to every true believer--every one who really loves God, it is a most
delightful thought to have Him near us, and to know that He interests
Himself in all the most minute details of our personal history and
most private life; that He takes cognizance of what we eat and what we
wear; that He looks after us by day and by night, sleeping and waking,
at home and abroad; in short, that His interest in and care for us go
far beyond those of the most tender, loving mother for her babe.
All this is perfectly wonderful; and surely, if we only realized it
more fully, we should live a very different sort of life, and have a
very different tale to tell. What a holy privilege--what a precious
reality, to know that our loving Lord is about our path by day, and
about our bed by night; that His eye rests upon us when we are
dressing in the morning, when we sit down to our meals, when we go
about our business, and in all our intercourse from morning till
night! May the sense of this be a living and abiding power in the
heart of every child of God on the face of the earth.
From verse 3 to 20, we have the law as to clean and unclean beasts,
fishes, and fowls. The leading principles as to all these have already
come under our notice in the eleventh chapter of Leviticus;[14] but
there is a very important difference between the two scriptures. The
instructions in Leviticus are given primarily to Moses and Aaron; in
Deuteronomy, they are given directly to the people. This is perfectly
characteristic of the two books. Leviticus may be specially termed,
The priest's guide-book. In Deuteronomy, the priests are almost
entirely in the back-ground, and the people are prominent. This is
strikingly apparent all through the book, so that there is not the
slightest foundation for the idea that Deuteronomy merely repeats
Leviticus. Nothing can be further from the truth. Each book has its
own peculiar province, its own design, its own work. The devout
student sees and owns this with deep delight. Infidels are willfully
blind, and can see nothing.
[14] As we have given in our "Notes on the Book of Leviticus," chapter
xi., what we believe to be the scriptural import of verses 4-20 of our
chapter, we must refer the reader to what is there advanced.
In verse 21 of our chapter, the marked distinction between the Israel
of God and the stranger is strikingly presented.--"Ye shall not eat
of any thing that dieth of itself; _thou shalt give it unto the
stranger_ that is in thy gates, that _he may eat it_; or thou mayest
sell it unto an alien; for thou art a holy people unto the Lord thy
God." The grand fact of Israel's relationship to Jehovah marked them
off from all the nations under the sun. It was not that they were, in
themselves, a whit better or holier than others; but Jehovah was holy,
and they were His people. "Be ye holy, for I am holy."
Worldly people often think that Christians are very pharisaic in
separating themselves from other people, and refusing to take part in
the pleasures and amusements of the world; but they do not really
understand the question. The fact is, for a Christian to participate
in the vanities and follies of a sinful world would be, to use a
typical phrase, like an Israelite eating that which had died of
itself. The Christian, thank God, has gotten something better to feed
upon than the poor dead things of this world. He has the Living Bread
that came down from heaven--the true Manna; and not only so, but he
eats of "the old corn of the land of Canaan," type of the risen and
glorified Man in the heavens. Of these most precious things the poor
unconverted worldling knows absolutely nothing, and hence he must feed
upon what the world has to offer him. It is not a question of the
right or the wrong of things looked at in themselves. No one could
possibly have known aught about the wrong of eating of any thing that
had died of itself if God's word had not settled it.
This is the all-important point for us. We cannot expect the world to
see or feel with us as to matters of right and wrong. It is our
business to look at things from a divine stand-point. Many things may
be quite consistent for a worldly man to do which a Christian could
not touch at all, simply because he is a Christian. The question which
the true believer has to ask as to every thing which comes before him
is simply, Can I do this to the glory of God? can I connect the name
of Christ with it? If not, he must not touch it.
In a word, the Christian's standard and test for every thing is
Christ. This makes it all so simple. Instead of asking, Is such a
thing consistent with _our_ profession, _our_ principles, _our_
character, or _our_ reputation? we have to ask, Is it consistent with
Christ? This makes all the difference. Whatever is unworthy of Christ
is unworthy of a Christian. If this be thoroughly understood and laid
hold of, it will furnish a great practical rule which may be applied
to a thousand details. If the heart be true to Christ,--if we walk
according to the instincts of the divine nature, as strengthened by
the ministry of the Holy Ghost, and guided by the authority of holy
Scripture, we shall not be much troubled with questions of right or
wrong in our daily life.
Before proceeding to quote for the reader the lovely paragraph which
closes our chapter, we would very briefly call his attention to the
last clause of verse 21.--"Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his
mother's milk." The fact that this commandment is given three times,
in various connections, is sufficient to mark it as one of special
interest and practical importance. The question is, What does it mean?
what are we to learn from it? We believe it teaches very plainly that
the Lord's people must carefully avoid every thing contrary to nature.
Now, it was manifestly contrary to nature that what was intended for a
creature's nourishment should be used to seethe it.
We find, all through the Word of God, great prominence given to what
is according to nature--what is comely. "Does not even nature itself
teach you?" says the inspired apostle to the assembly at Corinth.
There are certain feelings and instincts implanted in nature by the
Creator which must never be outraged. We may set it down as a fixed
principle, an axiom in Christian ethics, that no action can possibly
be of God that offers violence to the sensibilities proper to nature.
The Spirit of God may, and often does, lead us beyond and above
nature, but never against it.
We shall now turn to the closing verses of our chapter, in which we
shall find some uncommonly fine practical instruction. "Thou shalt
truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth
forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the Lord thy God, in the
place which He shall choose to place His name there, the tithe of thy
corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds
and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy God
always. And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able
to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the Lord thy
God shall choose to set His name there, when the Lord thy God hath
blessed thee; then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the
money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy
God shall choose; and thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy
soul lusteth after--for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong
drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth; and thou shalt eat there
before the Lord thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine
household, and the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not
forsake him, for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee. At the end
of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase
the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates. And the Levite
(because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee), and the stranger,
and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall
come, and shall eat and be satisfied, that the Lord thy God may bless
thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest." (Ver. 22-29.)
This is a deeply interesting and most important passage, setting
before us, with special simplicity, the _basis_, the _centre_, and
_practical features_ of Israel's national and domestic religion. The
grand foundation of Israel's worship was laid in the fact that both
they themselves and their land belonged to Jehovah. The land was His,
and they held as tenants under Him. To this precious truth they were
called, periodically, to bear testimony by faithfully tithing their
land: "Thou shalt _truly_ tithe all the increase of thy seed that thy
field bringeth forth year by year." They were to own, in this
practical way, the proprietorship of Jehovah, and never lose sight of
it: they were to own no other landlord but the Lord their God. All
they were and all they had belonged to Him. This was the solid
ground-work of their national worship--their national religion.
And then as to the centre, it is set forth with equal clearness. They
were to gather to the place where Jehovah recorded His name. Precious
privilege for all who truly loved that glorious name! We see in this
passage, as also in many other portions of the Word of God, what
importance He attached to the periodical gatherings of His people
around Himself. Blessed be His name, He delighted to see His beloved
people assembled in His presence, happy in Him and in one another;
rejoicing together in their common portion, and feeding in sweet and
loving fellowship on the fruit of Jehovah's land. "Thou shalt eat
before the Lord thy God, _in the place which He shall choose_, to
place His name there, the tithe of thy corn, ... _that thou mayest
learn to fear the Lord thy God always_."
There was, there could be, no other place like that, in the judgment
of every faithful Israelite, every true lover of Jehovah. All such
would delight to flock to the hallowed spot where that beloved and
revered name was recorded. It might seem strange and unaccountable to
those who knew not the God of Israel, and cared nothing about Him, to
see the people traveling--many of them--a long distance from their
homes, and carrying their tithes to one particular spot. They might
feel disposed to call in question the needs-be for such a custom. Why
not eat at home? they might say. But the simple fact is, such persons
knew nothing whatever about the matter, and were wholly incapable of
entering into the preciousness of it. To the Israel of God, there was
the one grand moral reason for journeying to the appointed place, and
that reason was found in the glorious motto, _Jehovah Shammah_--"The
Lord is there." If an Israelite had willfully determined to stay at
home, or to go to some place of his own choosing, he would neither
have met Jehovah there nor his brethren, and hence he would have eaten
alone. Such a course would have incurred the judgment of God; it would
have been an abomination. There was but one centre, and that was not
of man's choosing, but of God's. The godless Jeroboam, for his own
selfish, political ends, presumed to interfere with the divine order,
and set up his calves at Bethel and Dan; but the worship offered there
was offered to demons and not to God. It was a daring act of
wickedness, which brought down upon him and upon his house the
righteous judgment of God; and we see, in Israel's after history, that
"Jeroboam the son of Nebat" is used as the terrible model of iniquity
for all the wicked kings.
But all the faithful in Israel were sure to be found at the one divine
centre, and no where else. You would not find such making all sorts of
excuses for staying at home; neither would you find them running
hither and thither to places of their own or other people's choosing;
no, you would find them gathered to Jehovah Shammah, and there alone.
Was this narrowness and bigotry? Nay; it was the fear and love of God.
If Jehovah had appointed a place where He would meet His people,
assuredly His people should meet Him there.
And not only had He appointed a place, but, in His abounding goodness,
He devised a means of making that place as convenient as possible for
His worshiping people. Thus we read, "And if the way be too long for
thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if _the place_ be too
far from thee _which the Lord thy God shall choose to set His name
there_, when the Lord thy God hath blessed thee; then thou shalt turn
it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto
the place which the Lord thy God shall choose: ... and _thou shalt eat
there before the Lord thy God_, and thou shalt rejoice, thou and thy
household."
This is perfectly beautiful. The Lord, in His tender care and
considerate love, took account of every thing. He would not leave a
single difficulty in the way of His beloved people, in the matter of
their assembling around Himself. He had His own special joy in seeing
His redeemed people happy in His presence, and all who loved His name
would delight to meet the loving desire of His heart by being found
at the divinely appointed centre.
If any Israelite were found neglecting the blessed occasion of
assembling with his brethren at the divinely chosen place and time, it
would have simply proved that he had no heart for God or for His
people, or, what was worse, that he was willfully absent. He might
reason as he pleased about his being happy at home, happy elsewhere;
it was a false happiness, inasmuch as it was happiness found in the
path of disobedience, the path of willful neglect of the divine
appointment.
All this is full of most valuable instruction for the Church of God
now. It is the will of God now, no less than of old, that His people
should assemble in His presence, on divinely appointed ground, and to
a divinely appointed centre. This, we presume, will hardly be called
in question by any one having a spark of divine light in his soul. The
instincts of the divine nature, the leadings of the Holy Ghost, and
the teachings of holy Scripture do all most unquestionably lead the
Lord's people to assemble themselves together for worship, communion,
and edification. However dispensations may differ, there are certain
great principles and leading characteristics which always hold good,
and the assembling of ourselves together is most assuredly one of
these. Whether under the old economy or under the new, the assembling
of the Lord's people is a divine institution.
Now, this being so, it is not a question of _our_ happiness, one way
or the other; though we may be perfectly sure that all true Christians
will be happy in being found in their divinely appointed place. There
is ever deep joy and blessing in the assembly of God's people. It is
impossible for us to find ourselves together in the Lord's presence
and not be truly happy. It is simply heaven upon earth for the Lord's
dear people--those who love His name, love His person, love one
another, to be together around His table, around Himself. What can
exceed the blessedness of being allowed to break bread together in
remembrance of our beloved and adorable Lord, to show forth His death
until He come; to raise, in holy concert, our anthems of praise to God
and the Lamb; to edify, exhort, and comfort one another, according to
the gift and grace bestowed upon us by the risen and glorified Head of
the Church; to pour out our hearts, in sweet fellowship, in prayer,
supplication, intercession, and giving of thanks for all men, for
kings and all in authority, for the whole household of faith--the
Church of God--the body of Christ, for the Lord's work and workmen all
over the earth?
Where, we would ask with all possible confidence, is there a true
Christian, in a right state of soul, who would not delight in all
this, and say, from the very depths of his heart, that there is
nothing this side the glory to be compared with it?
But, we repeat, our happiness is not the question; it is less than
secondary. We are to be ruled, in this as in all beside, by the will
of God as revealed in His holy Word. The question for us is simply
this: Is it according to the mind of God that His people should
assemble themselves together for worship and mutual edification? If
this be so, woe be to all who willfully refuse, or indolently neglect
to do so, on any ground whatsoever; they not only suffer serious loss
in their own souls, but they are offering dishonor to God, grieving
His Spirit, and doing injury to the assembly of His people.
These are very weighty consequences, and they demand the serious
attention of all the Lord's people. It must be obvious to the reader
that it is according to the revealed will of God that His people
should assemble themselves together, in His presence. The inspired
apostle exhorts us, in the tenth chapter of his epistle to the
Hebrews, not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. There is
special value, interest, and importance attaching to the assembly. The
truth as to this begins to dawn upon us in the opening pages of the
New Testament. Thus, in Matthew xviii. 20, we read the words of our
blessed Lord--"Where _two or three are gathered together_ in My name,
_there am_ I in the midst of them." Here we have the divine centre.
"_My name._" This answers to "The place which the Lord thy God shall
choose to place His name there," so constantly named and so strongly
insisted upon in the book of Deuteronomy. It was absolutely essential
that Israel should gather at that one place. It was not a matter as to
which people might choose for themselves. Human choice was absolutely
and rigidly excluded. It was "_The_ place which the Lord thy God
shall choose," and no other. This we have seen distinctly. It is so
plain that we have only to say, "How readest thou?"
Nor is it otherwise with the Church of God. It is not human choice, or
human judgment, or human opinion, or human reason, or human any thing.
It is absolutely and entirely divine. The _ground_ of our gathering is
divine, for it is accomplished redemption; the _centre_ around which
we are gathered is divine, for it is the Name of Jesus; the _power_ by
which we are gathered is divine, for it is the Holy Ghost; and the
_authority_ for our gathering is divine, for it is the Word of God.
All this is as clear as it is precious, and all we need is the
simplicity of faith to take it in and act upon it. If we begin to
reason about it, we shall be sure to get into darkness; and if we
listen to human opinions, we shall be plunged in hopeless perplexity
between the conflicting claims of christendom's sects and parties. Our
only refuge, our only resource, our only strength, our only comfort,
our only authority, is the precious Word of God. Take away that, and
we have absolutely nothing; give us that, and we want no more.
This is what makes it all so real and so solid for our souls. Yes,
reader; and so consolatory and tranquilizing too. The truth as to our
assembly is as clear and as simple and as unquestionable as the truth
in reference to our salvation. It is the privilege of all Christians
to be as sure that they are gathered on God's ground, around God's
centre, by God's power, and on God's authority, as that they are
within the blessed circle of God's salvation.
And then, if we be asked, How can we be certain of being around God's
centre? we reply, Simply by the Word of God. How could Israel of old
be sure as to God's chosen place for their assembly? By His express
commandment. Were they at any loss for guidance? Surely not. His word
was as clear and as distinct as to their place of worship as it was in
reference to every thing else. It left not the slightest ground for
uncertainty. It was so plainly set before them that for any one to
raise a question could only be regarded as willful ignorance or
positive disobedience.
Now, the question is, Are Christians worse off than Israel in
reference to the great subject of their place of worship, the centre
and ground of their assembly? Are they left in doubt and uncertainty?
Is it an open question? Is it a matter as to which every man is left
to do what is right in his own eyes? Has God given us no positive,
definite instruction on a question so intensely interesting and so
vitally important? Could we imagine for a moment that the One who
graciously condescended to instruct His people of old in matters which
we, in our fancied wisdom, would deem unworthy of notice, would leave
His Church now without any definite guidance as to the ground, centre,
and characteristic features of our worship? Utterly impossible! Every
spiritual mind must reject, with decision and energy, any such idea.
No, beloved Christian reader; you know it would not be like our
gracious God to deal thus with His heavenly people. True, there is no
such thing now as a particular place to which all Christians are to
betake themselves periodically for worship. There _was_ such a place
for God's earthly people, and there _will be_ such a place for
restored Israel and for all nations by and by. "It shall come to pass
in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be
established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above
the hills; and _all nations_ shall flow unto it. And many people shall
go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to
the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways, and
we will walk in His paths; for _out of Zion_ shall go forth the law,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." (Is. ii.) And again, "It
shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations
which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to
worship the King, the Lord of Hosts, and to keep the feast of
tabernacles. And it shall be that whoso will not come up of _all the
families of the earth unto Jerusalem_ to worship the King, the Lord of
Hosts, even upon them shall be no rain." (Zech. xiv. 16, 17.)
Here are two passages culled, one from the first, and the other from
the last but one of the divinely inspired prophets, both pointing
forward to the glorious time when Jerusalem shall be God's centre for
Israel and for all nations. And we may assert, with all possible
confidence, that the reader will find all the prophets, with one
consent, in full harmony with Isaiah and Zechariah on this profoundly
interesting subject. To apply such passages to the Church, or to
heaven, is to do violence to the clearest and grandest utterances that
ever fell on human ears; it is to confound things heavenly and
earthly, and to give a flat contradiction to the divinely harmonious
voices of prophets and apostles.
It is needless to multiply quotations. All Scripture goes to prove
that Jerusalem was, and will yet be, God's earthly centre for His
people, and for all nations; but _just now_--that is to say, from the
day of Pentecost, when God the Holy Ghost came down to form the Church
of God, the body of Christ, until the moment when our Lord Jesus
Christ shall come to take His people away out of this world--there is
no place, no city, no sacred locality, no earthly centre, for the
Lord's people. To talk to Christians about holy places, or consecrated
ground, is as thoroughly foreign to them (at least, it ought to be) as
it would have been to talk to a Jew about having his place of worship
in heaven. The idea is wholly out of place, wholly out of character.
If the reader will turn for a moment to the fourth chapter of John, he
will find, in our Lord's marvelous discourse with the woman of Sychar,
the most blessed teaching on this subject. "The woman saith unto Him,
'Sir, I perceive that Thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshiped in
this mountain, and ye say that in Jerusalem is the place where men
ought to worship.' Jesus saith unto her, 'Woman, believe Me; the hour
cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain nor yet at Jerusalem
worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what; we know what we
worship, for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now
is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in
truth, for the Father _seeketh_ such to worship Him. God is a spirit,
and they that worship Him _must_ worship Him in spirit and in truth.'"
(Ver. 19-24.)
This passage entirely sets aside the thought of any special place of
worship now. There really is no such thing. "_The Most High dwelleth
not in temples made with hands_; as saith the prophet, 'Heaven is My
throne, and earth is My footstool: what house will ye build Me?' saith
the Lord, 'or what is the place of My rest? Hath not My hand made all
these things?'" (Acts vii. 48-50.) And again, "God that made the
world, and all things therein, seeing that He is Lord of heaven and
earth, _dwelleth not in temples made with hands; neither is worshiped
with men's hands_, as though He needed any thing, seeing He giveth to
all life and breath and all things." (Acts xvii. 24, 25.)
The teaching of the New Testament, from beginning to end, is clear and
decided as to the subject of worship; and the Christian reader is
solemnly bound to give heed to that teaching, and to seek to
understand, and submit his whole moral being to its authority. There
has ever been, from the very earliest ages of the Church's history, a
strong and fatal tendency to return to Judaism, not only on the
subject of righteousness, but also on that of worship. Christians have
not only been put under the law for life and righteousness, but also
under the Levitical ritual for the order and character of their
worship. We have dealt with the former of these in chapters iv. and v.
of these "Notes," but the latter is hardly less serious in its effect
upon the whole tone and character of Christian life and conduct.
We have to bear in mind that Satan's great object is, to cast the
Church of God down from her excellency, in reference to her standing,
her walk, and her worship. No sooner was the Church set up on the day
of Pentecost than he commenced his corrupting and undermining process,
and for eighteen long centuries he has carried it on with diabolical
persistency. In the face of these plain passages quoted above, in
reference to the character of worship which the Father is now seeking,
and as to the fact that God does not dwell in temples made with hands,
we have seen, in all ages, the strong tendency to return to the
condition of things under the Mosaic economy. Hence the desire for
great buildings, imposing rituals, sacerdotal orders, choral services,
all of which are in direct opposition to the mind of Christ and to the
plainest teachings of the New Testament. The professing church has
entirely departed from the spirit and authority of the Lord in all
these things; and yet, strange and sad to say, these very things are
continually appealed to as proofs of the wonderful progress of
Christianity. We are told by some of our public teachers and guides
that the blessed apostle Paul had little idea of the grandeur to which
the Church was to attain; but if he could only see one of our
venerable cathedrals, with its lofty aisles and painted windows, and
listen to the peals of the organ and the voices of the choristers, he
would see what an advance had been made upon the upper room at
Jerusalem!
Ah! reader, be assured, it is all a most thorough delusion. It is true
indeed, the Church has made progress, but it is in the wrong
direction; it is not upward, but downward. It is away from Christ,
away from the Father, away from the Spirit, away from the Word.
We should like to ask the reader this one question: If the apostle
Paul were to come to London for next Lord's day, where could he find
what he found in Troas eighteen hundred years ago, as recorded in Acts
xx. 7? Where could he find a company of disciples gathered simply by
the Holy Ghost, to the Name of Jesus, to break bread in remembrance of
Him, and to show forth His death till He come? Such was the divine
order then, and such must be the divine order now. We cannot for a
moment believe that the apostle would accept any thing else. He would
look for the divine thing; he would have that or nothing. Now, where
could he find it? where could he go and find the table of his Lord, as
appointed by Himself the same night in which He was betrayed?
Mark, reader, we are bound to believe that the apostle Paul would
insist upon having the table and the supper of his Lord as he had
received them direct from Himself in the glory, and given them by the
Spirit in the tenth and eleventh chapters of his epistle to the
Corinthians--an epistle addressed to "all that in every place call on
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both theirs and ours." We cannot
believe that he would teach God's order in the first century and
accept man's disorder in the nineteenth. Man has no right to tamper
with a divine institution. He has no more authority to alter a single
jot or tittle connected with the Lord's supper than Israel had to
interfere with the order of the passover.
Now, we repeat the question, and earnestly entreat the reader to
ponder and answer it in the divine presence and in the light of
Scripture,--Where could the apostle find this in London, or any where
else in christendom, on next Lord's day? Where could he go and take
his seat at the table of his Lord, in the midst of a company of
disciples gathered simply on the _ground_ of the one body, to the one
_centre_--the Name of Jesus, by the _power_ of the Holy Ghost, and on
the _authority_ of the Word of God? Where could he find a sphere in
which he could exercise his gifts without human authority,
appointment, or ordination? We ask these questions in order to
exercise the heart and conscience of the reader. We are fully
convinced that there are places here and there where Paul could find
these things carried out, though in weakness and failure, and we
believe the Christian reader is solemnly responsible to find them out.
Alas! alas! they are few and far between, compared with the mass of
Christians meeting otherwise.
We may perhaps be told that if people knew that it was the apostle
Paul, they would willingly allow him to minister. But then he would
neither seek nor accept their permission, inasmuch as he tells us
plainly, in the first chapter of Galatians, that his ministry was "not
of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who
raised Him from the dead."
And not only so, but we may rest assured that the blessed apostle
would insist upon having the Lord's table spread upon the divine
ground of the one body, and he could only consent to eat the Lord's
supper according to its divine order as laid down in the New
Testament. He could not accept for a moment any thing but the divine
reality. He would say, Either that or nothing. He could not admit any
human interference with a divine institution; neither could he accept
any new ground of gathering, or any new principle of organization. He
would repeat his own inspired statements--"There is _one body_ and one
Spirit," and, "We being many, are one bread--_one body_, for we are
all partakers of that one bread." These words apply to "all that in
every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord," and they hold
good in all ages of the Church's existence on earth.
The reader must be very clear and distinct as to this. God's
principle of gathering and unity must on no account be surrendered.
The moment men begin to organize--to form societies, churches, or
associations, they act in direct opposition to the Word of God, the
mind of Christ, and the present action of the Holy Ghost. Man might as
well set about to form a world as to form a church. It is entirely a
divine work. The Holy Ghost came down on the day of Pentecost to form
_the_ Church of God--_the_ body of Christ, and this is the only
Church--the only body that Scripture recognizes; all else is contrary
to God, even though it may be sanctioned and defended by thousands of
true Christians.
Let not the reader misunderstand us. We are not speaking of salvation,
of eternal life, or of divine righteousness, but of the true ground of
gathering, the divine principle on which the Lord's table should be
spread and the Lord's supper celebrated. Thousands of the Lord's
beloved people have lived and died in the communion of the church of
Rome; but the church of Rome is not the Church of God, but a horrible
apostasy; and the sacrifice of the mass is not the Lord's supper, but
a marred, mutilated, and miserable invention of the devil. If the
question in the mind of the reader be merely what amount of error he
can sanction without forfeiting his soul's salvation, it is useless to
proceed with the grand and important subject before us.
But where is the heart that loves Christ that could be content to take
such miserably low ground as this? What would have been thought of an
Israelite of old who could content himself with being a child of
Abraham, and could enjoy his vine and his fig-tree, his flocks and his
herds, but never think of going to worship at the place where Jehovah
had recorded His name? Where was the faithful Jew who did not love
that sacred spot? "Lord, I have loved the habitation of Thine house,
and the place where Thine honor dwelleth."
And when, by reason of Israel's sin, the national polity was broken
up, and the people were in captivity, we hear the true-hearted exiles
amongst them pouring forth their lament in the following touching and
eloquent strain, "By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down; yea,
_we wept when we remembered Zion_. We hanged our harps upon the
willows in the midst thereof. For there they that carried us away
captive required of us a song, and they that wasted us required of us
mirth, saying, 'Sing us one of the songs of Zion.' How shall we sing
the Lord's song in a strange land? If I forget thee, O Jerusalem
[God's centre for His earthly people], let my right hand forget her
cunning. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof
of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy." (Ps.
cxxxvii.)
And again, in the sixth chapter of Daniel, we find that beloved exile
opening his window three times a day, and praying toward Jerusalem,
although he knew that the lions' den was the penalty. But why insist
upon praying toward Jerusalem? Was it a piece of Jewish superstition?
Nay, it was a magnificent display of divine principle; it was an
unfurling of the divine standard amid the depressing and humiliating
consequences of Israel's folly and sin. True, Jerusalem was in ruins;
but God's thoughts respecting Jerusalem were not in ruins. It was His
centre for His earthly people. "Jerusalem is builded as a city that is
compact together, whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord,
unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the name of the
Lord. For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house
of David. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; they shall prosper that
love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy
palaces. _For my brethren and companions' sakes_, I will now say,
Peace be within thee. _Because of the house of the Lord our God_ I
will seek thy good." (Ps. cxxii.)
Jerusalem was the centre for Israel's twelve tribes in days gone by,
and it will be so in the future. To apply the above and similar
passages to the Church of God here or hereafter--on earth or in
heaven, is simply turning things upside down, confounding things
essentially different, and thus doing an incalculable amount of damage
both to Scripture and the souls of men. We must not allow ourselves to
take such unwarrantable liberties with the Word of God.
Jerusalem was and will be God's earthly centre; but now, the Church of
God should own no centre but the glorious and infinitely precious Name
of Jesus. "Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there
am I in the midst of them." Precious centre! To this alone the New
Testament points, to this alone the Holy Ghost gathers. It matters not
where we are gathered--in Jerusalem or Rome, London, Paris, or Canton.
It is not _where_, but _how_.
But be it remembered, it must be a divinely real thing. It is of no
possible use to profess to be gathered in, or to, the blessed Name of
Jesus, if we are not really so. The apostle's word as to faith may
apply with equal force to the question of our centre of
gathering.--"What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man _say_" he
is gathered to the Name of Jesus? God deals in moral realities; and
while it is perfectly clear that a man who desires to be true to
Christ cannot possibly consent to own any other centre or any other
ground of gathering but His Name, yet it is quite possible--alas!
alas! how very possible--for people to profess to be on that blessed
and holy ground, while their spirit and conduct, their habits and
ways, their whole course and character, go to prove that they are not
in the power of their profession.
The apostle said to the Corinthians that he would "know, not the
speech, but the power." A weighty word, most surely, and much needed
at all times, but specially needed in reference to the important
subject now before us. We would lovingly, yet most solemnly, press
upon the conscience of the Christian reader his responsibility to
consider this matter in the holy retirement of the Lord's presence,
and in the light of the New Testament. Let him not set it aside on
the plea of its not being essential. It is in the very highest degree
essential, inasmuch as it concerns the Lord's glory and the
maintenance of His truth. This is the only standard by which to decide
what is essential and what is not. Was it essential for Israel to
gather at the divinely appointed centre? Was it left an open question?
Might every man choose a centre for himself? Let the answer be weighed
in the light of Deuteronomy xiv. It was absolutely essential that the
Israel of God should assemble around the centre of the God of Israel.
This is unquestionable. Woe be to the man who presumed to turn his
back on the place where Jehovah had set His Name. He would very
speedily have been taught his mistake. And if this was true for God's
earthly people, is it not equally true for the Church and the
individual Christian? Assuredly it is. We are bound, by the very
highest and most sacred obligations, to refuse every _ground_ of
gathering but the one body, every _centre_ of gathering but the Name
of Jesus, every _power_ of gathering but the Holy Ghost, every
_authority_ of gathering but the Word of God. May all the Lord's
beloved people every where be led to consider these things, in the
fear and love of His holy name.
We shall now close this section by quoting the last paragraph of our
chapter, in which we shall find some valuable practical teaching.
"At the end of three years, thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of
thine increase the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates;
and the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,)
and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within
thy gates, _shall come_, and _shall eat_ and _be satisfied;_ that the
Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou
doest."
Here we have a lovely home-scene, a most touching display of the
divine character, a beautiful outshining of the grace and kindness of
the God of Israel. It does the heart good to breathe the fragrant air
of such a passage as this. It stands in vivid and striking contrast
with the cold selfishness of the scene around us. God would teach His
people to think of and care for all who were in need. The tithe
belonged to Him, but He would give them the rare and exquisite
privilege of devoting it to the blessed object of making hearts glad.
There is peculiar sweetness in the words, "shall come"--"shall
eat"--"and be satisfied." So like our own ever-gracious God! He
delights to meet the need of all. He opens His hand, and satisfies the
desire of every living thing. And not only so, but it is His joy to
make His people the channel through which the grace, the kindness, and
the sympathy of His heart may flow forth to all. How precious is this!
What a privilege to be God's almoners--the dispensers of His
bounty--the exponents of His goodness! Would that we entered more
fully into the deep blessedness of all this! May we breathe more the
atmosphere of the divine presence, and then we shall more faithfully
reflect the divine character.
As the deeply interesting and practical subject presented in verses 28
and 29 will come before us in another connection in our study of
chapter xxvi, we shall not dwell further upon it here.