The Word of God: How Do You Read It?

1914 122 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." In vain would men pretend to the knowledge of God apart from the Scriptures. They have tried long and hard to attain to it by their own means, science, philosophy, etc., but only to end with this confession of their ignorance, "To the unknown God." Such was the boasted wisdom of the Greeks nothing indeed to be proud of. God can only be known by the revelation of Himself, and a revelation of Himself He has given nowhere but in the Scriptures. He has given, in creation, visible proofs of His eternal power and divinity; but these proofs, if sufficient to condemn the fool who hath said in his heart, "There is no God," do not reveal Him in His nature and character. The Scriptures only, because God-breathed, can do that. Therein alone is God manifested in His holiness, righteousness and love. "God is light" and "God is love" is what we learn and see both in His written Word and in the incarnate Word, our Lord Jesus Christ, "the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person," or, as it may be translated, "the resplendence of His glory and the imprint of His substance."

"No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him." The Son's personal testimony is added to the Scriptures of the Old Testament and in those of the New to make God known. If man chooses to dishonour the Son by questioning His veracity, or to dishonour God by questioning the truth of His written word, he may do so at his own cost. One thing is certain, viz., that by cleaving to his own conception of God, and of His Christ and of His word, he will never get out of darkness — inner darkness now, outer darkness later, if he persists in his present unbelief. "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."

Faith does not question what is God-breathed. It receives it in an honest heart, without reservation or suspicion. It sets to its seal that God is true. This is doing no more than what men usually do as regards the word of their fellows. Is God less worthy of confidence than they? Is it not in the interest of man that He has spoken? "For God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed; then He openeth the ears of men and sealeth their instruction, that He may withdraw man from his purpose, and hide pride from man. He keepeth back his soul from the pit, and his life from perishing by the sword. He is chastened also with pain upon his bed, and the multitude of his bones with strong pain: so that his life abhorreth bread and his soul dainty meat. His flesh is consumed away, that it cannot be seen, and his bones that were not seen stick out. Yea, his soul draweth near unto the grave, and his life to the destroyers. If there be a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to show unto man his uprightness: then He is gracious unto him, and saith, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom. His flesh shall be fresher than a child's: he shall return to the days of his youth: he shall pray unto God, and He will be favourable unto him: and he shall see His face with joy: for He will render unto man his righteousness. He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profiteth me not; He will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light. Lo, all these things worketh God oftentimes with man, to bring back his soul from the pit, to be enlightened with the light of the living." Truly the God who brings man, through trials, to feel his own sin and ruin, in order that He may tell him that He has found a ransom, and that on his honest confession He is ready to deliver his soul from going into the pit and even establish him in His favour, such a God deserves to be believed, especially when He shows us in the cross of His Son, what our redemption has cost Him. Now, by the very acceptance of His word a man is born again born of water and of the Spirit — and the new life thus gotten has to be fed with the substance that produced it. From its very nature it can take no other food, and its development will be in proportion to the food it takes.

After nourishment, or jointly with it, will come education. Spiritual knowledge will or should go on a par with spiritual growth. "Doctrine" will come in here for profit. Doctrine consists in rightly dividing the word of truth." Failing this, a terrible mess may be made with Scripture. The amalgamation of law and grace, for instance, will lead to what is called Adventism one of the modern counterfeits of Christianity. To "rightly divide the word of truth" requires spiritual discernment, and this is given to the believer by the Holy Ghost. "He will guide you into all truth," as the Lord promised. Thus guided, and all preconception or tradition being swept aside, we discern between the several dispensations, between the earthly calling of Israel and the heavenly calling of the church.

The Old Testament is specifically for Israel, the New Testament specifically for the Christian. But it would be a fatal mistake to fancy that for Christians there is nothing to profit by in the Old Testament. If diligent, they will find on every page of it food, stay, comfort, warnings, exhortations, etc., and, when the light of the New Testament is brought to bear upon it, truth of the highest importance, especially in the way of types. When the apostle says, "Whatsoever things were written aforetime, were written for our learning, that through patience and comfort of the scriptures we might have hope," he evidently refers to the scriptures of the Old Testament.

Food is as varied as possible in God's word, and this is an essential condition for a healthy state of soul. Indeed, the same principle applies to the body. No one could live long upon even the best meat prepared in one uniform way. There must be milk for the babes, and solid food for full grown men, even milk for men when, spiritually speaking, they are out of health, as were the Corinthians and the Hebrews. Nay more: of all the varieties of food contained in the scriptures there is not one sort of which the Christian can say, 'I do not require it.' How delighted, when, in reading the Old Testament, he finds out that the mind of God is continually occupied with Christ, as the types show and the prophets declare! How greatly helped by the warnings resulting from the history of the ancient people How comforted, when under trial, by the pious breathings of the Psalms! All the instructions, the warnings, the consolations, the promises, he is entitled to profit by.

And if we come to the New. Testament, is there one single page that we could or would dispense with? There is great variety of food therein also. Take the Gospels: would you do with the first three of them, called The Synoptic, and set aside the Fourth? Or would you say that the Fourth is enough for you? If you leave out one of them, you suppress a part of Christ, as far as manifestation goes. If I love my Saviour and Lord, I shall want to find His Messiahship — Emmanuel, God with us — as displayed in Matthew; His service as seen in Mark; His grace as unfolded in Luke; His deity united to His perfect humanity — the Word made flesh — as witnessed to in John. I shall want to be near Him and learn of Him throughout each of them. And thus near and thus taught, I shall exclaim, "He is altogether lovely." Away with the slanderers who dare to find fault with either His words or deeds, or with the inspired testimony of those who companied with Him when He was down here and who could say, "That which we have seen and heard, declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full."

Again, take the Epistles. Are they not largely varied also, and all the more profitable by reason of their variety? Thus it is that they meet the various states of soul, and conditions of walk, of those to whom they are addressed, and they are addressed now to all Christians. We could not set aside a single one of them without serious damage to our own souls. We cannot do without Galatians any more than without Ephesians. Galatians will preserve us from falling into the legalism of the present day, and Ephesians will teach us the full measure of the heavenly calling. God's truth is constituted after the same pattern as the mystic body of Christ. There is not one single part of it of which we can say, "I have no need of thee."

During their sojourn in the wilderness the children of Israel had only manna to feed upon. We Christians are far more privileged. We have manna in the Gospels — Christ the bread come down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof and not die, — and the old corn of the land — Christ risen and glorified — in the Epistles. And the soul is in a healthy state only as it feeds on both, or rather on Him come down to die and on Him gone up in the power of an endless life. We enjoy Him inexpressibly in His path of obedience unto death here below, and on the principle of faith we enjoy by anticipation the heavenly blessings He has opened up for us.

But besides this we need instruction and direction for our daily walk, and this we have in the Scriptures as well as doctrine. Jehovah, through Moses, said to the children of Israel, "And these words which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart, and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up; and thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes, and thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates." It was not only that they might be read by such as happened to pass by, but that in the light of them these might see a life concordant therewith. It is what the world expects from the Christian, and rightly so. Where the eye is single, the body is full of light. Let it not be said, in truth, of any of those who profess to know Christ and to keep His word, "They say, and do not."

We shall find ample "instruction in righteousness" in our Lord's sublime discourse on the Mount. Who will pretend that the Christian is above and beyond it? It is good for us to enjoy our heavenly portion, but even this may become a snare if it lead us to forget that we are called, as long as we are left down here, to be practically, and in all reality, righteous. All our ways should be in accordance with the word of God. We need, not only instructions and directions, but even commandments. It is in John's Gospel, where on the very first page we are brought into the relationship of sons, or rather of children, that the Lord speaks most of commandments. Granted that they are in keeping with the relationship; but the higher the relationship, the more strictly is obedience enjoined. Our blessed Lord Himself is the pattern of perfect obedience. Has He not said, "I have not spoken of (or, from) myself, but the Father which sent me, He gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak, and I know that His commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak." The very words that He was commanded by His Father to speak to His disciples became commandments from the Father to them. "If ye love me, keep my commandments," saith He, and again, "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me, and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him." Again, "If a man love me he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." Again, "If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in His love."

If one asks, Where am I to find them? we reply, Not on a list, but in whatever the Lord spoke and taught. This will oblige us to follow closely in His steps, but it is precisely what God expects from His children. "Hereby do we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whosoever keepeth His word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him. He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked. Beloved, no new commandment write I unto you, but an old commandment, which ye had from the beginning: the old commandment is the word which ye heard. Again, a new commandment write I unto you, which thing is true in Him and in you: because the darkness is passing away, and the true light already shineth."

Oh, for more relish for that word of God, for a fuller appreciation of its inestimable value! Shall we not say with Jeremiah, "Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by Thy name, O Jehovah God of hosts"? P.C.