Down to Earth But Heavenly Minded

by H. J. Vine.

My Soul Waits upon God (1)

“Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:30-31).

The Lord Jesus knew well where to turn for help as He pressed forward in the path of faith. God was His confidence, as the will of God was His delight, and He ceased not to turn to Him. His own strength might be weakened in the way (Psalm 102:23), but He knew where to find the source of strength unfailing, and to that source He ever turned.

The redeemed soul has also learned to turn to God, and as he deepens in this, and knows what it is to truly wait upon God, to be still and silent before Him, he finds the true secret and spring of strength and steadfastness in the way of the will of God. He can say truly, I have heard this, strength belongs unto God (Psalm 62:11).

This is a time when we need very definitely to wait upon Him.

We pray; we have our regular seasons of prayer. This is necessary and right. But, we also need to wait upon God; especially at a moment like the present, with its personal and collective exercises. We need to take special time now to definitely wait upon God.

Great and grave issues are ahead; and to be right with God at the present, and also to be right in the future, it is essential for each one to have to do with Himself in reality. One cannot take the place of another in this. Each for himself must in faith and exercise get to God—to the everlasting God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; our God and Father through grace. How good it is to know that He welcomes us to draw near to Him!

When the face is set purposefully in this direction, difficulties usually arise at once. The world, the flesh and the devil oppose, for it is the way of the victor—the way of our Lord Jesus Christ. Even a saint of God may be the unconscious instrument to hinder. Some near and dear one may unwittingly interfere. Pressure of work may distract and clamour for the precious time set apart. But that is all the more reason why the firm purpose to wait definitely upon God should be adhered to. The work will be well and worthily done afterwards, and with much more grace and ease. Every true-hearted servant of Christ has proved this; therefore say unto thy soul, “Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord” (Psalm 27:14).

A well-known labourer in the work of the Lord was once told that a large amount of extra work awaited him. He answered, “I shall therefore need to take more time to wait upon God before attending to it!” There lay the secret of the success of this much used servant of the Lord. Strength, grace and wisdom, along with peace of mind by the Spirit, become ours experimentally as we wait upon God.

We speak, of course, of those who know redemption in Christ through His blood, and are sealed by the Holy Ghost, of those who know access to the Father through our Lord Jesus Christ. To such, mere book prayer could not suffice. They may be benefited by reading written prayers in the Bible and elsewhere; but their own hearts and souls must be before God in unhindered communion. Nor could book prayer be well-pleasing to God. He is our Father, and looks to hear the breathings of the heart of each one of His own, however simple. Even an earthly parent could not find pleasure in a child who could only ask or speak from a book. It would be unnatural, and painful; whereas the feeblest utterances direct from the youngest lips give pleasure to a parent. Immediate dealing with God is what the real soul must have.

The Apostle Paul bowed his knees before the Father on behalf of the saints at Ephesus. He asked that they might be strengthened (Ephesians 3:14-16). He had told them in chapter 1:3, that they were blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ; but they needed strength to enter into this, and to be for God’s glory here. We are blessed up there; but we need strength down here. We know where to find it. Strength belongeth unto God! What then is to be done? “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.” Pray? Yes: only we must WAIT UPON GOD!

In this restless age it is this waiting which many are missing. Even true believers will contrast “being practical” with it; just as if waiting upon God was not a most practical thing, as well as producing most practical results. Later in the letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle exhorts us to “prayer and supplication in the Spirit”; and adds, “watching unto this very thing” (6:18). In the Colossian letter, he exhorts to persevering prayer, adding, “watching in it with thanksgiving.” If we are to succeed in waiting on the Lord, there must be the watching unto it and the watching in it.

The second and more inward part of the book of Isaiah opens at chapter 49. Great and wonderful events are foreseen and foretold in it. Mighty and moving scenes are opened out for us. The Servant of the Lord is coming! The pleasure of the Lord is to prosper in His hand! The distracted nations and their kings shall be astonished! Jesus, the despised Nazarene, the shoot out of Jesse’s roots, brings justice and order, glory and blessing to the earth! The great God, the only God, the just God and a Saviour, brings all to pass through the suffering One; He is God’s personal Servant, and Israel is His national servant. He is personally the Son-Servant, and Israel is nationally the son-servant (compare Hosea 11:1; Matthew 2:15; and Romans 9:4, where read sonship for adoption). The first said, I have spent My strength for nought. The second became utterly weak both politically and numerically. How then shall glory and blessing come to the nations of the earth? The answer is found in Him to whom belongeth strength and wisdom; and the Servant says, My God shall be My strength; then He replies, I will preserve Thee to establish the earth (49:5, 8); and to depleted Israel He says, The smallest shall become a strong nation (60:22). Therefore the prophet can speak comfort to the heart of God’s people; only their mind must be changed, and their strength too. They must learn that all flesh is as grass, and turn alone to God for strength.

Have we learned that vain is the help of man? Oh, then, how blessed it is that God invites us to turn alone to Him! to Himself! to the everlasting God, who fainteth not, neither is weary! to Him who giveth power and strength to those that wait upon Him!

The word “wait” in Isaiah 40:31 has the thought of simply and singly looking to Him. It also embraces waiting for Him, and expecting from Him. It is a very full word. That accounts for it being variously translated. One word in English does not give the fullness of its meaning. It is upon God alone then we are to wait. We are to look to Him; to wait for Him; and to expect from Him only. In this exercise we deepen in the knowledge of that which is before the mind of God; and that displaces things which have been before our own minds that are not according to His. Who has been HIS counsellor? Who showed HIM the way of understanding? HE makes known to us HIS counsels, and directs our minds in the way of understanding, as we wait upon Him. His thoughts, not those that originate in our minds, are to abide! His strength, not ours, will prevail! and it is this which He would have us to possess. He says, The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it; and again, They that wait upon the Lord shall renew (change) their strength (40:5, 31). The word of our God shall stand for ever (verse 8). Let the eyes look up to the heavens—He created them, and all their starry host. Let them look abroad upon the earth beneath—He weighed the mountains; He meted out the dust of the land; and the waters of the sea; He measured in the hollow of His hand! They all manifest His eternal power and divinity. Even the nations, so prominent now by their strifes and ingenuity in destruction, are to Him as the small dust of a balance. “All nations before Him are as nothing,” and vanity! They are counted to Him less than a cypher (verse 17)! WAIT UPON HIM!

How He values those who do so, both old and young. They are spoken of as His flock in this very chapter, which describes the majesty and might of God so magnificently. He feeds them as a shepherd, and gathers the lambs with His arm, carrying them in His bosom; gently leading those that are with young. With what confidence then we may WAIT UPON HIM. His mind and strength are to be ours. We thus change our strength.

The youth who trusts merely in his own vigour faints and grows weary. The young man who seems so tireless in his natural energy shall fall. But those that wait upon God find strength unfailing. Nature fails, but God fails not. Weariness and fainting are unknown to Him; and it is He who gives strength to those that look to Him alone; so that they may rise above the distractions of this world; or better still, run through them without any weariness; or still better, walk in quietness with God in spite of them, and not faint (verse 31). There it is:—Waiting and its consequences;—mounting up, running and walking in new strength from God! Oh, may my soul know this change of strength in an increasing measure! Therefore will I say to my soul: “Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.”

The special character of our strengthening today is according to the riches of THE FATHER’S GLORY, so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith, and the wide reaches of glory in heaven and earth, of which He is the glorious Head and Centre, might be fully apprehended by us; and that we might know the love of Christ which passes knowledge. This is peculiar to the assembly, and is not found in the Old Testament. Nevertheless, the Father now known through the Son is the everlasting God of Isaiah 40:28. He is the Creator of the utmost bounds of the universe. He gives being, character and name to every family in the heavens and upon the earth. He is over all, and through all, and in us all. Let our souls wait upon Him. He is able to do far beyond what we ask or even think, according to His in working power. To Him be glory in the assembly in Christ Jesus for ever and ever.

“No” to the World, “Yes” to God

We who are converted to God are the Lord’s! We belong to Him! Come what may, we are His for time and eternity! When you are rooted and grounded in that, you can face a great deal that you naturally would shrink from. The word richly dwelling in your heart gives you courage beyond what you have naturally. I heard of two dear Christian lads converted in the country, who went to work in a large city, and both got into the same lodging. They had to occupy the same bedroom, and neither the one nor the other had said that he belonged to the Saviour. The question arose in the mind of each, Was the other going to kneel down? but the other was saying within himself, “I wish he would.” Neither had courage to do it; and so they went on, taking as long as possible to get their clothes off. At last one did kneel down. Down went the other at once, and when he got up he went and put his arms round his friend. He said, “I am so glad you did that.” Those two young men, by that simple act, were saved from perhaps living prayerless lives. You remember the story of Daniel who was carried off captive to Babylon by the military power of that day; he said, “There are two things I am in for. I am going to say ‘NO’ to the world, and I am going to PRAY to God.” Begin there! Get some moral backbone into you, and when the world comes along in various forms, and appeals to you, let that little word “No” be given to it. “No” to the world, but “Yes” to God. Daniel prospered above all the scholars and learned men, and knew things that the others did not. Not only was he instructed in the times then present, but he was able to look far ahead and to prophesy the destruction of the kingdoms of this world, and the appearing and kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Not Ashamed”

Various kinds of messengers have been used by God. Angels have brought His messages to men. But it is His way today to use sinners saved by grace. He enables them by His Holy Spirit to tell of forgiveness and salvation through His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Writing to a young servant of Christ, the Apostle to the Gentiles said himself that he was the chief of sinners; and that it was “a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” He also wrote, “I am not ashamed of the glad tidings; for it is God’s power to salvation, to everyone that believes.”

It is said in 1 John 4:14, “We have seen, and testify, that the Father has sent the Son as Saviour of the world” (New Translation) We are not told to preach ourselves, but the Son of God. He is the Saviour, and there is none other. There is no need to be ashamed of Him, though there may be good reason to be of others.

A young man was speaking earnestly at a meeting in the open air. An acquaintance afterwards said, “You ought to be ashamed of yourself, standing up there and preaching!” The reply was unanswerable, “I have good reason to be ashamed of myself, but I am not ashamed of my Saviour!”

“Preach Christ!” were the last words of an aged evangelist to another young preacher. The more simply this is done the better! Very illiterate men have been greatly used. It is written of certain haughty religious ritualists and rationalists of old, when they saw “the boldness of Peter and John, and perceiving that they were unlettered and uninstructed men, they wondered” (Acts 4:13, New Translation).

Leaving the ornate cathedral service one night, an educated young man was downcast, unsatisfied and unhappy. Quite near, an aged miner preached God’s way of salvation in the market place. As he passed, the young man listened. His anxious soul drank in the message. Soon after he was at a meeting, where others, who were saved by and separated to our Lord Jesus Christ, welcomed him; and he told how the glad tidings simply preached had brought liberty, peace and joy to his soul.

There are many troubled sinners today. What can help them? The plain gospel concerning God’s Son can! “Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other Name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” It was thus the apostles spake (Act 4:12). Who can improve on their inspired words?

“Ah, Lord, enlarge our scanty thought

To know the wonders Thou hast wrought;

Unloose our stammering tongues to tell

Thy love, immense, unsearchable.”

“Not Forsaking the Assembling of Ourselves Together”

The Lord is coming again! The midnight cry has gone forth after long ages of slumber! “BEHOLD THE BRIDEGROOM! GO FORTH TO MEET HIM” (Matthew 24). This was foretold in the Scriptures of Truth. And to it and to the glory of the coming One, the Spirit is bearing witness still, unto the churches (see Revelation 2:3) in an unmistakable way. And as the return of the Lord approaches those who are really His will be found assembling together, and encouraging one another in Him, their Lord and Leader.

The one perfect offering at the cross has fitted them to draw nigh to God. They have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. His blood having cleansed away all their sins, they are to be remembered no more; and, it is said, “Where there is remission of these, there is no more offering for sin.” The Lord Jesus, who made the one and perfect offering, is now seated at the right hand of God. Therefore they may boldly approach to God as worshippers, and gather together for mutual edification, in a way that becomes the holy presence of our God and Father.

Those who have believed to the saving of the soul will thus approve the reality of their faith and be preserved in the presence of the grave and subtle dangers which beset the closing moments of the present period. These dangers are specially indicated by the Spirit, in the two Scriptures which speak of our “assembling together” (Episunagōgē) (2 Thessalonians 2:1; and Hebrews 10:25). The coming of our Lord Jesus Christ is in view in both passages. The first speaks of “the complete collection” (as the word means literally), or gathering of the saints to the Lord Himself when He returns; the second speaks of “the complete collection” or gathering together of those who believe now, as the day of His coming draws near.

Is the reader one of those who will be gathered with all who are the Lord’s to our blessed Lord in the air, when He calls us to Himself by His assembling shout (1 Thessalonians 4:6)? And if so is the reader approving himself to be one by gathering with His own now as he awaits Christ’s coming? Hebrews 10:25 tells us that “the custom of some” is to forsake this present gathering; and the following verses indicate that such may be carried away with those who “sin wilfully,” by apostasy from the Son of God. For those who do so apostatise there “no longer remains any sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment.”

To forsake the assembling together of saints is a downgrade path! In the verses quoted its process is solemnly shown. First, there is neglect; then it becomes a “custom.” Sinning wilfully follows—that is apostasy. The unreality of such a one finally becomes evident; for, though he had once been sanctified by the blood, and had been where the gracious Spirit of God acted, now he esteems “the blood of the covenant, whereby he has been sanctified, common, and has insulted the Spirit of grace” (Hebrews 10:29). Judgment follows of necessity.

In view of the seriousness of this matter the question may be asked, What is this assembling together?

Meetings may be and are arranged by religious leaders, which certainly do not in any way answer to the scriptural order of an assembly of those who are forgiven, sanctified, and made purged worshippers, through the one and perfect sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. Such leaders may hold meetings to propound their views, right or wrong; but the assembling together of which our Scriptures speak takes no cognizance of these. At the very beginning, before “the faith once delivered to the saints” was falsified and corrupted, we are told in Acts 2:42, “They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.” In 1 Corinthians 11 to 14, the Spirit gives us, through Paul, further instruction as to assembling together. These Scriptures, which are specially said to be the commandments of the Lord, should be read, and considered well, so that we may have His thoughts in answer to our question. There is the assembling to eat the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of Himself: there is also the assembling together for prayer, and for edification. In Hebrews 10:25, the main thought is for encouragement, as it says

“ENCOURAGING ONE ANOTHER” (New Translation).

These assemblings together are enjoined in the Word of God. That is quite sufficient for those who are obedient to God, and obedience is more to Him than sacrifice. We have no authority to make meetings, or gatherings, such as we may think suitable, or to arrange to gather together only with those whom we think to be suitable persons. We are to assemble according to the Scriptures, and to do so with those who belong to our Lord Jesus Christ through His work of redemption. We are not left to pick and choose; or to please our own inclinations, but to be obedient to the Word. In that lies both our safety and happiness.

Christ is our bond. We are to assemble with those who own Him. They may not all be to our liking naturally; but it is said, “He is not ashamed to call them brethren” (Hebrews 2:11); and we are told to love one another. Indeed, He, the Lord of life and glory, Jesus, the Son of God, speaks of them as “My brethren.” They are called in Scripture, saints, the children of God, and the sons of God. They are members of Christ’s body, the assembly of which He is the glorified Head. With Him and with them our happy lot is cast, and with these we are to assemble as His coming again draws near.

Mark again, It is no question of arranging a meeting for a preacher or a teacher. There are evangelists and shepherd-teachers; and their labours are to be heartily supported; but what we are speaking of is the assembling together of the brethren themselves—the members of the body of Christ. There may be no teachers or preachers among them, but they themselves are “not to forsake” assembling together. Gifts may be raised up, or sent by the Lord amongst them; but they are to flock together as the sheep of God’s pasture. Jude, who desires that we should have the faith as it was once delivered to the saints (verse 3), says, “But ye, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, awaiting the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”

When our blessed Lord comes for us, and we are caught up in the clouds to meet Him in the air; when the great and glorious

“GATHERING TOGETHER TO HIM”

takes place, not one of His own will be absent from that assembly. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, He will present us all there, to be with Him and like Him for ever and ever. “He died for us that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.” Such is His love that He will have us all there, the complete collection of all who are His, for His own joy and satisfaction! But Hebrew 10 urges that we should be completely collected together now, as His coming draws nigh. It is not conceivable that a saint can truly rejoice in the former and be deliberately neglecting the latter.

Beyond the darkness of the world’s night our hearts see the harbinger of the coming glorious day JESUS, THE BRIGHT MORNING STAR!”

The Spirit and the bride say to Him, Come! and to others, who have an ear to hear, they say, Join with us and invite Him to come! and if there is a thirsty soul, to him they say, There is living water for thee. Come! Yea, what our own souls know and enjoy, flows, like the river of God, in divine abundance! Therefore, whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely (Revelation 22:17)! Such is the last beautiful picture of the assembly, the bride of Christ, given in the Bible. Surely there has been much assembling together, and all hearts have been filled with the love and loveliness of Jesus; the Spirit has captivated every one with the beauty of the Bridegroom; and in harmony with Himself, as one, they say to the blessed Lord, COME. How delightful to His ear will be such an invitation from the assembly He loved and gave Himself for. May we therefore, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together now, as the custom of some is—but encouraging one another in Him, who is soon coming to assemble us all together to Himself in the air—so richly enjoy the living abundance of heavenly blessing which is ours in Christ, that together we may truly sing in harmony divine,

“Spirit and Bride,

With longing voice say, Come;

Yea, Lord, Thy word from that bright home,

Is, Surely I will quickly come!

E’EN SO, LORD, COME.”

“One Flock, One Shepherd”

John 10:16

The Spirit of God used the apostle Paul to direct the attention of the saints to the vital aspect of Christ and the assembly under the eloquent figure of the Head and the body, and He also gave to us through John a vivid illustration of the same truth in the beautiful representation of the Shepherd and the flock.

There is one Head and one body; there is one Shepherd and one flock. The first being an essential unity subsisting in one vital organism, the second an essential oneness in life also, sheep being necessary for a shepherd even as a shepherd is necessary for a flock. It is striking to observe the apostle Paul himself indicated that the assembly and the flock are to be identified as one (Acts 20:28), when he warned the elders of Ephesus regarding similar perils to those we read of in the tenth chapter of John.

The body receives protection and direction from the Head, so also does the flock from the Shepherd.

It is therefore necessary for the members to hold fast the Head as we are told in Colossians 2, and for the sheep to follow the Shepherd. This being experimentally true of us we shall be preserved in Christ Jesus where Divine love is known, and be united together unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding to the full knowledge of the mystery of God, for this is contained in both the figures to which we have referred. Just as it is said in Ephesians that those who are called out from the Jews and out from the Gentiles become “one body” in Christ according to the truth of the mystery, so also it is said in John 10 that “other sheep” as well as those of the Jewish fold are called to form the “one flock.”

The Shepherd and His Sheep

Divine love has been shown towards us in the death of our Lord Jesus Christ, and Divine power is manifested in His resurrection. In these two relations He is spoken of first as “the good Shepherd” and secondly as “the great Shepherd.” In 1 John 3:16 it is said, “Hereby we have known love, because He has laid down His life for us”; and He Himself said, “I am the good Shepherd; the good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep” (John 10:11). Our sins necessitated that death if we were to be saved from perishing eternally, and elsewhere we are told that Divine love is commended towards us in that “while we were yet sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). His death was the great expression of the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There is, however, power as well as love energizing on our behalf, and both in accord with the righteousness and holiness of God, to bring to glorious fruition His eternal purpose in Christ Jesus. We read in Ephesians 1:19 of “the surpassing greatness of His power towards us who believe, according to the might of His strength in which He wrought in Christ in raising Him from among the dead.” That was the manifestation of Divine power, and in Hebrews 13:20 we are told that the great Shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus Christ, was brought again from among the dead by the God of peace in virtue of the blood of the eternal covenant, therefore the present care for us of our great and exalted Shepherd is based upon His atoning death at Calvary. The good Shepherd died to save us, the great Shepherd lives to care for us. Power is exercised on our behalf in love which has fully expressed itself in Christ Jesus, therefore He could assure us that no sheep of His can ever perish.

We have said that we have both protection and direction in the Shepherd, amidst the aboundings of evils and perils in Christendom today. Nothing but fatal callousness could make us entirely indifferent to them and to the provision of Divine love and power for us in Christ the great Shepherd of the sheep. Unless we feel the one we shall not appreciate the other. In any case the dangers exist, and God has not left us in ignorance concerning them. Let the one who carelessly wanders from the flock of God heed this word of the Holy Spirit before it be too late. “Your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”; also, “Men shall arise speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them.” Violence and deception are both at work.

It is true that the one who abides in Christ can say, “I will fear no evil,” but that is because he follows the Shepherd with the flock, and not that he is indifferent to what he does not fear. The Lord led Israel like a flock through the wilderness, but Amalek smote the hindmost of them. Our Lord Jesus Christ protects all His own today, but it must be remembered that a shepherd gathers the sheep together for this. They are a flock and they themselves flock together. That is in their very nature and it is proved in their so doing. We speak now of what is normal of course. This is specially true when the sheep have a sense of some peril at hand. A fox in a field is enough to cause them to run together; and, with the lambs inside the closed circle, they turn their faces to the foe. The wolf is used by the Lord in John 10 and by the apostle Paul in Acts 20 to illustrate the cruel nature of the men who trouble the flock of God today.

The danger from such is very real, they seize upon individuals wherever they can, and then proceed to scatter the sheep! The Shepherd cares for and gathers the sheep; the wolf troubles them and scatters them. The distinction may be easily observed by the feeblest lamb. Thieves are also spoken of so that we may be forewarned as to those who come for unrighteous gain. Such are ready to commit any act of deceit, violence or destruction to attain their selfish ends and to secure their ill-gotten spoils. The good Shepherd gives all for the sheep; these take all they can from them. He enriches them that they might be together in life and health; they enfeeble them. The hireling too is pointed out by the Lord as a cause of weakness; pay is pre-eminent in his thoughts; no Divine love has place in his heart; he does not truly care for the sheep, therefore he flees when danger appears. The good Shepherd dies for them, and as the great Shepherd He never leaves or forsakes them: the hireling flees at the sight of a foe and forsakes the flock he has no real love for, because he is no more and no less than an hireling.

In all this we learn the importance of simply trusting to the one Shepherd of the one flock. Protection is found in Him, and direction also. He not only preserves us, but He directs us to refreshing streams and nourishing pastures, where we can be built up together in our most holy faith and abide in the happy enjoyment of His unchanging love. Paul warned even elders of the danger of drawing away souls after themselves. The Lord directs us into the fields of Divine abundance, and care is needed lest any should turn the sheep from following Himself and from flocking together around Him.

Sheep Marks

There are certain marks by which the sheep of our Lord Jesus Christ can be distinguished. Religion is no guarantee that we are His, for those to whom He said, “Ye are not of My sheep,” were bigoted religionists, associated too with the place of Jehovah’s name. It was in the temple when Jesus walked in the porch of Solomon, that He told these cold professors of religion this. “It was winter” in more senses than one. They were celebrating a religious feast, and they surrounded Him, asking questions of unbelief, and He to Whom their whole Bible pointed said, “Ye are not of My sheep.” They were strangers to the faith which works by love. At heart they were unbelievers whatever their mental process of reasoning may have been.

In contrast to these the Son of God tells us what are the marks of His own sheep—“My sheep” as He calls them:

(1) They “hear My voice” (John 10:27). His Word in the Gospel has reached them in the power of the Spirit, and in this way His voice has livingly become known to them.

(2) “I know them.” There is nothing haphazard in this matter of eternal import. In view of the corruptions and imitations of the faith the real are comforted in 2 Timothy 2:19 with this same fact, “The Lord knows them that are His.”

(3) “They follow Me” He further says. This is encouraging for those who are perplexed by the rival claims of sects and parties and their leaders. The sheep of Christ simply follow the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, and He gives them what none other could give, as He says,

(4) “I give them eternal life.” We may be able to explain this gift in a very limited measure, but it is ours nevertheless and it is not simply life in eternal blessedness, for it involves also the knowledge of the Father and the Son.

(5) “They shall never perish.” Tried as they may be on their journey to the Father’s house, not one of the flock, however, can be lost, thank God, for Jesus said:

(6) “No one shall seize them out of My hand.” The thief may come, the wolf may scatter, the hireling may flee, but the Shepherd’s hand of omnipotence holds every one safely. Moreover,

(7) “No one can seize out of the hand of My Father.” In the Son’s hand we are perfectly safe, and in the Father’s hand we are equally so we are doubly safe, if it be necessary so to express it, for we belong to both the Father and the Son.

In addition to these seven marks, we are told in verse 4, The sheep follow Him because they know His voice. A contrast is given in the next verse, which those who waste their own and others time and energies in dealing with the vapourings and teachings of strangers, would do well to consider: “They will not follow a stranger, but will flee from him, because they know not the voice of strangers.” The importance of this should be thoroughly grasped. It may be said, Some have been known to follow evil teachers and leaders. But the Lord said His sheep do not follow them, and do not know them! On the other hand they flee from strangers. Those, therefore, who do follow them cannot be His sheep. We speak of course of what is characteristic, and not of some sudden impulse from which a true believer will be recovered. Rome educates its students as to what is considered error by that system, but Christ’s sheep “know not” the voices of strangers, and it is a serious mistake to try to make them know, and to be wise as to such. Rather should we encourage and edify each other in that which is good, till we all arrive at the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, the great Shepherd of the sheep.

It is true that He knows all, and that they know Him as well as His voice, nevertheless they may increase in the knowledge of Himself, and this should be furthered. Knowledge has a great place in the 10th chapter of John as being true of the sheep of His pasture. Jesus said, “I am the good Shepherd and I know those that are Mine, and am known of those that are Mine, as the Father knows Me and I know the Father, and I lay down My life for the sheep.” How blessed for the sheep to be gathered around the same glorious Object as that which fills the Father’s heart with ineffable pleasure! He is enough our minds and hearts to fill! When He spoke to those who were not of His sheep, and told them that none could pluck any of His own sheep out of His hand nor out of His Father’s hand, adding, “I and My Father are One,” they took up stones to cast at Him! It is the grace of God which gives His own a different Spirit, and draws them together around the One they rejected, for, as we said before, sheep flock together. This is one of the important marks which must not be forgotten. There is something wrong when a sheep is seen alone by itself in the field.

Fold or Flock?

How are the sheep of Christ held together? The question is one of momentous importance. It has been raised in various forms and terms for long centuries, and ecclesiastical conflicts have furiously raged in regard to it times without number. The question may have been put in a scholarly manner or in a simple upright fashion, and arguments may have been advanced with the display of erudition or in the forcefulness begotten by the sense of right against wrong; nevertheless, the matter to be settled is simply this, Are Christ’s sheep held together by ecclesiastical hurdles in an organized fold, or simply as a flock under the hand of the omnipotent Shepherd? Many subtle disputations may be advanced according to the tendencies and inclinations of those who enunciate them and the quality of their abilities to reason them out, for we are Divinely informed, “God made man upright”, but He has sought out many “abstruse reasonings” as the word “inventions” is better translated; and, seeing that this is so, the more trustfully we bow to God’s own Word regarding this important matter the safer shall we be; for true safety lies only in accepting what the Word of God says as to it. The arguments of the human mind with its varied bias—whether against or apparently for that which we are told in the Bible—have proved themselves to be untrustworthy, and in some cases their prejudicial dogmas have become hateful even to the most tolerant of men, and despicable to the most considerate.

Influenced probably by the idea that a fold was an absolute necessity for sheep the translators rendered John 10:16, “one fold, one Shepherd,” whereas it is now well known to be “one flock, one Shepherd.” The two ideas are quite different. The first makes the Shepherd insufficient for the flock; the second simply states His all-sufficiency. The wrong translation has always been an enormous stronghold of the Romish system, and it is still the plea of sectarian ecclesiastics where ignorance of the Word prevails. One said to a servant of Christ known to me, “You must have a fold.” “Very well,” answered my friend, “have your fold, and now read John 10:3, where we are told, the Lord Jesus Christ “calls His own sheep by name and leadeth them out”! What have you left in your fold after He does that?” Not one of His sheep! Doubtless the fold refers to the religious system of Judaism, but the principle of out-calling remains; the very word translated church, ecclesia, means that! Ever since the out-call of Abraham, God has acted in that way.

When the apostasy and corruptions of Christendom, foretold in Scripture, reach their organized fruition in Babylon the great, it is imperatively commanded by a voice out of heaven, “Come out of her, My people, that ye have not fellowship in her sins” (Revelation 18:4)! God’s people so addressed are doubtless Jews. They are properly “His people,” and the flock of God, the assembly, will have been previously translated from earth to heaven like Enoch of old. We speak, however, of the principle; and before that day, even now, we are instructed to separate from iniquity and vessels to dishonour, so as to flock together after the Lord Himself (even as we read in 2 Timothy 2) and “pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace, with those that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” Unless we had the Word of God for all this we should be in a fearful dilemma, but He has given us in the Bible all the guidance we need, and His grace is abundant, while the great Shepherd is sufficient for the flock without man-made folds. It was an earnest preacher, in whose name a large fold was made after his death, who himself said, “Let names and sects and parties fall, and Jesus Christ be all in all.” He is enough for the flock truly.

Faith is required to accept this, but what have we without faith? By faith we stand! Christ dwells in our hearts by faith! Without faith it is impossible to please Him! Folds suit those who walk by sight. They are pleasing to men who prefer lifeless forms to living energies, and to those who choose legal rules instead of the Spirit’s power. Even in the addresses to the seven assemblies in Revelation 2-3, those who have ears to hear are bidden to heed what is said to all seven, wherein are found self-pleasing, Christ exclusion, dead profession, worldliness, immorality, and satanic doctrines and practises. Faith and the Spirit’s enabling are necessary therefore to follow that which is according to God’s will when such iniquity abounds in Christendom. God, however, has foretold it all for the preservation and guidance of the flock of His pasture, so that they may still follow the Lord together without distraction.

Each one may still say to the Lord the great Shepherd of the sheep, “Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.” In spite of the evils we have named, they may still rejoice that their cup runs over, as they follow Him together. Nothing will ever force Him to give up those for whom He suffered, bled and died. None can pluck them from His hand or from the Father’s hand. Each one can look forward to the end of the journey with confidence and say, “I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.”

“Then shall we see His face

With all the saints above,

And sing for ever of His grace,

For ever of His love.”

One Flock

We pointed out that just as in the epistle to the Ephesians we have the truth of the mystery made known, that those whom God calls out from both Jews and Gentiles become one body in Christ, “joint heirs, and a joint body, and joint partakers of His promise in Christ Jesus by the Gospel” (Ephesians 3:6), so in John 10 we have the same truth made known in relation to the one flock, for we are told that our Lord Jesus Christ leads “His own sheep” out of the Jewish fold, and brings the “other sheep which are not of this fold,” but who hear His voice when He calls, and consequently there is one flock formed of both over which He is the one Shepherd. Each figure gives us the truth of the oneness of the saints in life and nature, the former, however, being a corporate oneness, whereas the latter is collective. Both, however, are vital, and remain true notwithstanding the failure which was foretold and which is so evident in Christendom.

Now although each figure involves oneness, and also as another has expressed it togetherness, nevertheless the idea of religious organization is foreign to both, for the body is an organism with all its members vitally united together, and a flock is made up of sheep who because of their very nature flock together. An organization may lose many of its members and yet remain intact, but this is not so with the body of Christ. A fold would still be a fold even if the sheep were outside of it and only goats remain within; the one flock of Christ is not a fold nor goats of His flock. Some say, “True there is one flock but there are many folds.” Yes, there are many folds, but there is no instruction given in the Bible for men to make them. The flock is the result of the work of God Himself. What would happen if man-made hurdles were thrown down? The sheep would flock together after the Lord alone.

Others say, “See how the sheep are scattered! Look at the divisions in Christianity! You must have a fold to hold them together!” Such reasoning is common enough amongst earnest and well-meaning men, but it is very bad reasoning all the same. Nor has the oft-tried remedy of the fold proved successful. It has turned out contrariwise: it has hurdled off sheep from sheep and helped forward the scattering. Moreover the scattering was foretold by the Lord in John 10, and in the same chapter He told us what was the only remedy—Himself, the Shepherd of the sheep. His voice is heard, He brings them together, He knows His own sheep, they know their Shepherd, His hand and the Father’s hand hold all safely, and one flock without a fold is divinely secure.

The Old Testament indicates the same thing. Ezekiel 34 speaks of the sheep of that day being scattered, but the Lord said, “I will deliver them out of all the places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. I will feed them. I will save My flock and they shall be no more a prey”, and “I will set up one Shepherd over them and He shall feed them” (verse 23). “Ye, My flock, the flock of My pasture are men, and I am your God, says the Lord God” (verse 31) There was no one shepherding them, for those that should have done so “fed themselves and fed not the flock.” Just as in our day, however, there were not only those who fed themselves, but those that scattered the flock abroad, and the Lord Himself alone could gather the sheep. In the history of Christendom this process of scattering has been in evidence from the days of the apostles, not that the Lord ever ceases to care for His flock; nevertheless ruthless men have fulfilled His words in this work of cruelty under the guise of zeal and religion. Nevertheless the “one flock” is always in the care of the Lord. He watches over them all and the feeblest is not overlooked by Him. The flock may suffer from direct enemies, self-seekers and false friends—this was foretold by the Lord—but in Him they have all that is necessary for them.

In Jeremiah 31, the chapter of the “new thing” and “the new covenant,” whilst not excusing the bad men who have scattered the sheep of Israel, the Lord shows that He has Himself been behind it all for good, and calls to the nations to see that they are not out of His care, saying, “He that scattered Israel will gather him, as a shepherd doth his flock. For the Lord has redeemed Israel and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he. Therefore shall they come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the Lord, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd; and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.” They shall “flow together!” Take the hurdles away! that is what the one flock will do! Let the scatterers cease their scattering! The sheep will flow together to the goodness of the Lord! The good Shepherd knows His own sheep and they know Him. Let the hindrances disappear, and the liberated sheep—the one flock as we have said—will happily flow together and flock around the One who gave His life for the sheep.

There is but one flock, and they bear the sheep marks we have spoken of. Even though the sheep be scattered there is still the one flock. They may be distressed and suffer, as we have seen, but they do not seek the hurt of others. It is not God’s mind, however, that the sheep should be separated from each other, but that they should be together. We see this in the truth of Christ and the assembly as well as in the Shepherd and the flock. We are to endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace, for there is one body and one Spirit. The sheep are to follow the Shepherd together, and it is natural for them to do so, because of their life and nature. Moreover, in view of the approaching day of the coming again of our Lord Jesus Christ we are exhorted not to forsake the “complete assembling” of ourselves together.

“I Know My Sheep”

We are writing that the saints of God may be encouraged to gather together according to the truth, that they may meet in assembly and know the Lord Himself in their midst. It is always possible, of course, that goats and hirelings and even a thief may be present, but the sheep have protection and direction in the great Shepherd. They look to Him. They follow Him. Moreover in Ezekiel 34, He says, “I will judge between cattle and cattle, and I will set up one Shepherd over them, and He shall feed them” (verse 22). This principle of the Lord judging His people is found all through the Bible. In Hebrews 10 from which we have already quoted, it is stated again in verse 30. The exercises through which we pass are to educate us to simply trust in Him.

Those who belong to the Father and the Son find rest in the knowledge of the omniscience of the great Shepherd. He knows His own sheep: He knows their names; He knows themselves. This truth is given for our comfort and direction also in 2 Timothy 2, as we have pointed out. There may be false doctrines taught, unrighteousness practised, and vessels of dishonour at hand, nevertheless “the Lord knows them that are His”; the foundation of God standeth sure. Therefore, in spite of others, the real are exhorted to follow that which is good “with those that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” The pure or sincere heart in calling on the Lord characterizes the true sheep, and it is the Lord Himself upon whom they together call. Therefore let such be found in assembly around Him according to the Word of God. We cannot correct other’s mistakes, but surely the sheep can follow their Shepherd together instead of being hurdled off from one another or led astray by biased men.

Nor must we be hindered when some turn away to the mire of the world, for Scripture supposes this. They may have been washed in the waters of religion, figuratively speaking, and remain still unclean in their nature. The sheep are clean animals, but some are not sheep, they are unclean. 2 Peter 2:22 speaks of such turning back like a dog to his own unclean vomit, or like a washed sow to her rolling in the mud. These things are foretold so that we should not be deterred from going on together after our Lord Jesus Christ, growing in grace and in the knowledge of Himself, and finding all we need and more in Him, ever remembering that He knows His own perfectly. The foreknowledge of God overlooked none of the sheep of Christ. They were “elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,” and, indeed, they were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4). So perfect is the Divine knowledge of the flock, we read, “Whom He has foreknown, He has also predestinated to he conformed to the image of His Son, so that He should be the Firstborn among many brethren.” That is the end in view, for from eternity to eternity they are known to Him. “But,” this Scripture reads on, “whom He has predestinated these He has also called.” The time arrived when the call of grace reached each one, and that in an effectual manner.

From this time a work of Divine grace and power in the sheep gives them a nature and capability to know the great Shepherd, the Son of God. He said, “I know My sheep and am known of Mine.” How blessed this is. They know His voice and they know Himself. One could say, The Son of God loved me and gave Himself for me. The good Shepherd gave His life for the sheep, and they know Him. They know not the voice of strangers, and they do not follow them, for they have the Lord Jesus Christ to follow. Twice in John 10 He says, “I am the good Shepherd”. First in connection with laying down His life, and then as to what He is in Himself (John 11:14). Outwardly in His work, and inwardly in Himself, He is good. The sheep have tasted indeed that the Lord is good, and they know Him.

The character of this knowledge or intimacy is also exceedingly blessed, for the Lord Jesus said, “I know My sheep and am known of those that are Mine,” “as the Father knows Me and I know the Father” (New Translation). How wonderful! Of course this does not state the measure of the intimacy which exists between the sheep and the Shepherd, for they could never reach to the same measure that exists between the Father and the Son, nevertheless it is true that the same character of intimacy is theirs with Him. Great indeed are the grace and power and love which brought this about and made it known to us. To know the Son of God, the great and good Shepherd of the flock as the Father knows Him and He knows the Father! Who could have imagined such exalted blessedness?—yet so it is!—the sheep of His flock know Him thus! We might have said with one of old, Such knowledge is too wonderful for me! but His grace and power and love have produced by God’s Word and Spirit a nature in the sheep divinely fitted for this marvellous privilege. The knowledge of God’s things and God’s Word has a great place in the Bible, and the word “know” often occurs in John 10, but what can compare with that of which we have spoken?

Lord Jesus Christ, what grace is this,

Which gives our hearts to know

The Fountain of eternal love

Whence living waters flow?

The Father’s well beloved Son,

Wellspring of grace divine,

Thou giv’st our hearts to know Thyself

And we are ever Thine.

In closing may we not challenge our hearts and ask, Do we respond to the grace and love which have made us one with all the saints of God? Do we meet often in assembly with our fellow-members of the body of which our Lord Jesus Christ is the glorious Head? Do we flock together with the sheep of God’s pasture? Do we seek to be completely assembled together as the day of Christ’s return draws nigh? In simple words, Do we walk according to the truth that there is one body? Do we gather in the truth that there is but one flock? Do we put into practise the truth of the mystery that all the saints are “fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and joint-partakers of His promise in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 3:6)?

This ends our reading for this session. Until next time, have a great day, and God bless.