TIMOTHY MISSION FUND

During the month of April gifts totalling $51.00 were received for our Timothy Mission Fund, which we gratefully acknowledge. The balance at the close of the month was $75.90. May the Lord bless givers and gifts. Below is an acknowledgment from the mission committee of our churches in the Netherlands for our recent gift in support of Rev. Kuijt.

Gifts for the Timothy Mission Fund should be sent in care of Mr. Tom Stryd, P.O. Box 2182, Kalamazoo, Michigan 49003.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF A GIFT

Dear friends of the Timothy Mission Fund,

Our hearty thanks for the check of $100. which we received from you. May the Lord bless this gift and make it subservient to the extension of His kingdom amidst the blind heathendom.

Again many thanks. Our hearty greetings to you, and in all things be commended unto God.

Sincerely,

GIFTS RECEIVED FOR MISSIONS IN APRIL 1973

CLASSIS EAST SOURCE AMOUNT

Friend in Clifton Gift 100.00

CLASSIS MIDWEST

Friend in G.R. Gift 10.00

In G.R. Ch. Col. Gift 10.00

Friend in So. Holland Gift 5.00

Friend in Michigan Gift 230.00

In G.R. Ch. Col. Gift 19.00

In G.R. Ch. Col. Gift 100.00

CLASSIS WEST

Friend in Hawarden Gift 10.00

Total $484.00

Dear Friends,

Herewith we want to thank you all for your kind gifts to the mission. May the Lord bless you all and your gifts. The mission work is by the blessing of the Lord being carried on and spreading out. Rev. Huisman of the Netherlands has given himself to be a missionary and is working already in a new field in South Africa. Rev. Kuijt is busy making a place for visitors at Sentani. Rev. Vergunst and Rev. Rijksen are visiting the mission field by Rev. Kuijt and the other mission workers there. Nigeria is a busy place with the clinic and the orphanage and Sunday School Classes. May the Lord bless all the endeavours. Meta Elshout hopes to go to Edmonton this fall for mid-wifery training, and then if all is well she will be ready to go to the mission field. Harold and Fran Popovich hope to be coming home on furlough this fall. Rev. Kuijt hopes to come to this country again this fall. Rev. Elshout will take care of arranging his trip through the States and Canada. He will try to visit all our congregations this time. Rev. Elshout will let all the consistories know when he can come the Lord willing. The Mission Committee had their meeting on April 16 which was a peaceful and progressive meeting through the goodness of the Lord at Rock Valley, Iowa, with all members present. As many times people ask who are on the Mission Committee we would like to give you a list of them. Rev. Van Zweden, (President), Rev. Elshout (Secretary), Rev. Kieboom, former elder Dick Spaans, elder Peter Hoogedoorn, elder Bert Harskamp, elder Bill Van Voorst. We hope we have given you a little information about the mission activities. May the Lord remember us all in His condescending mercy and that it may be given our prayer what we read in Romans 10:1, “Brethren my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved.”

American General Mission Fund

Netherland Reformed Congregations

of America and Canada

John Spaans, Treasurer

Plankinton Box 106 RR1 South Dakota 57368

THE BETHLEHEM MISSION HOME

For the past 18 years certain members of the Grand Rapids congregation have been doing mission work in Baldwin, Michigan, which is about 75 miles from Grand Rapids. Most of the work has been done by a few faithful ladies. Each Tuesday afternoon they conduct a Bible-class for children, with occasionally an evening meeting for adults and children or an afternoon fellowship meeting. Their work also consists of home and shut-in visitations, and distributing Bibles, good tracts and good booklets.

In Baldwin they operate a small mission store, where the people can purchase the things they need at a very small cost. Wherever special needs arise, they also provide free clothing and food. Since many of these people have large families, it is possible for them to clothe themselves and their children at a small cost. Usually once a month the ladies have a sale-day, and, due to the generous support of some mission friends, the little store is each time well-stocked with nice clean clothing and useful household articles.

The mission operates as a faith-mission. Time and time again it has humbled the ladies to see the goodness of the Lord in undertaking for them in so many ways. The three women who are presently doing this work are not so young anymore and they realize that, as time marches on, they are also climbing in years. It is their desire that this work might be carried on by some younger, serious-minded people, although it is difficult for them to give it up after 18 years of hard and long hours of work, with its ups and downs through joys and disappointments.

The Mission Board received a letter from these women requesting help, and it was the decision of the Board to do whatever is possible in order to continue this mission work in Baldwin. Is there among you who read this a couple who would like to work in this type of mission work? If so, please contact me or Mrs. Jane Roodvoets, president of the Bethlehem Mission Home, Box 357, Baldwin, Michigan 49304. It would be very sad if this mission work would be discontinued because of the lack of workers.

May the Lord incline the hearts of some to give themselves as these women have done for so many years.

Rev. A. Elshout, clerk

General Mission Fund Committee

112 Pratt Road

Kalamazoo, Michigan 49001

NOTES OUT OF THE CATECHISM CLASSES OF REV. J. FRAANJE

Using The Catechism Book

Specimens Of Divine Truths

by

Rev. A. Hellenbroek

Of Adam’s Fall Lesson 13 — part 3

The covering that Adam had made for himself could not at all fulfill the requirements, so the Lord made a robe for him; not of leaves that perish, but of skins, which signifies that it would require shed (sacrificial) blood. An animal must be killed in order to obtain a skin.

It also signified that Adam could not clothe himself with the righteousness of Christ. God’s Word is very emphatic in this: “Unto Adam and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins and clothed them.”

He would not have put the coat of skins over Adam’s leaves, no; God unclothed Adam of his own covering and then clothed him again.

Boys and girls, that will also be necessary for each of us. Have you ever thought about what it means to stand naked before God?

Imagine that tomorrow at 12 o’clock noon, when the streets are crowded with people, you, being naked, were placed in the public square across from the cathedral so that children and adults would see you. Wouldn’t you feel terribly ashamed? I think you would want to hide yourself beneath the pavement. This is merely in consideration of peopleseeing you.

By nature we all now stand naked, in Adam, before a holy God.

Each one of us have taken off the coat of virtue that God had given us.

Do you understand now why we must be clothed?

Answer: Because of sin. It was not necessary in Paradise. Only after sin came was it necessary to clothe our bodies. It is not an honor that we wear clothes. Contrariwise, it is a great shame. We would not have been ashamed of the nakedness of our bodies, if we had not lost the image of God. Everything would have remained holy and without sin.

O. if only more thought were given to the dreadful reason why we wear clothes! Would we still desire to display ourselves with these clothes?

I think that then the simplest kind of material would satisfy because even the fact that we wear clothes testifies that we are separated from God and have sinned against Him.

On the other hand, it is a favor of common grace that we may have covering for our bodies. We have lost all right to any sustenance because we have sinned.

Have you ever given thought to this in respect to our clothes too? In one respect it is a shame to wear clothes and in another a privilege.

Owing to our fall we all wear the cloak of sin, but through the merits of Christ everyone is also covered with common (or universal) grace.

Always remember, boys & girls, that you are clothed this way.

A young lady once asked me, “Pastor, what kind of clothes should I wear?” I replied, “Clothe yourself in such a way that you are not a laughing stock to the world nor an offence to God’s people. Thus, plain, modest, and yet not ridiculous.”

But, though we wear clothing for our bodies in addition to the cloak of common grace, would they be sufficient covering before the face of God?

No, they cannot possibly be, because they cannot endure beyond death, for then they will be taken away from us. If we do not possess the cloak of Christ’s righteousness at that time we shall stand naked before our Maker.

What can we conclude from this? Listen attentively to these four things:

1. In the state of innocence we were clothed with the holy image of God.

2. We lost that image through the fall and became clothed with a covering of sin and shame.

3. However, our lives are also covered with the cloak of common grace since the fall.

4. We must be clothed with the righteousness of Christ in order to be able to stand before God. The cloak of common grace does not extend beyond death. It will no longer be effectual and it will cease irrevocably.

It is necessary, therefore, that you truly accept the fact that you stand naked before God because of willful disobedience. Even if you never could admit this during your young lifetime, you will surely find it so when you come to die.

The Lord Jesus said to the Jews, that men in the day of judgment shall say to the mountains, “Fall on us” and to the hills, “Cover us.” Luke 23:30.

But, children, mountains or hills will not be able to cover your naked soul!

Then it will be fully revealed how great our sins and disobediences were.

May you learn to fear sin as well as to fear its results. By nature all men fear the results of sin.

Last week I stood by the death bed of an old man. He had such dreadful fear. One had to feel sorry for him. His wife and children stood round about his bed crying. He could hardly speak anymore. He searched around with large hollow eyes and in an almost unintelligible voice asked me to say a prayer. I asked him before proceeding, “For what should I pray?”

What do you think the man’s answer was? He could hardly talk because he lay dying, but haltingly he said, “ To — become — well, that — I need not die, but — live.”

Poor man. He had never once accepted the fact that death comes as the result of sin. Now the result of sin was present, but he did not want to face it. His desire was to live and continue in sin.

But the precious time of conversion was past for that man. He died a short time later.

We all stood round about him. There was nothing more the doctor or the minister could do; his wife and children were unable to do anything for him. He had to bear the penalty of sin all alone. He had to appear before God — and now naked, without a covering for his poor guilty soul.

Do you see now that the devil was certainly a har when he said, “Ye shall not surely die?”

Tell me truthfully now, you see or hear of people dying all around you everyday and you know that the judgment day is coming when we must stand before Jesus, but, do you really believe that that day is coming?

I can plainly see that you do not actually believe it, for you live as though it will never come to pass.

Perhaps in your thoughts you say, “I wish that you would stop talking about that matter. It is repeated every week and it is so depressing to listen to your talk about death and eternity.”

But one day you will have to deal with the matter even though it is depressing.

I hope and wish that you do not die as that man did. If you do, your conscience will be opened as you have never experienced it before. And in spite of your desire that we should not discuss such things now, you will certainly have to acknowledge, “Our pastor talked to us about these matters. Now it has become a dreadful reality!”

A great number of people, nowadays, think that these matters should not be discussed, especially not with children. They say that it detracts from their happiness.

But the Lord said to the prophet, “If you do not speak to them of it, I shall require their blood from thy hand.” Death is no myth and death and hell after death even less. Do you think there is only a heaven and no damnation? God’s infallible word speaks of both.

O, boys and girls, if you should die without being clothed with the righteousness of Christ, you will certainly enter the place of torment because death is an unceasing punishment for disobedience.

There will not be one drop of water for relief, nor one drop of love, nor one drop of mercy! Nor will there be mercy for one another but, instead, eternal hatred, terrible envy and despair, cursing and slandering. Every sin committed in thought, word and deed from birth until your death shall burn on your open consciences like big fiery words and the wrath of God will kindle a fire that can never be quenched.

The Lord’s own words in speaking of the unconverted are, “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment but the righteous into life eternal.”

May you personally accept your “fall in Adam” and become the guilty one before God through His work in your heart.

You are still in the day of grace. You can still be reconciled with God through Christ. May He bestow that upon you before it is too late.

So be it.

THE SAME OBSERVATIONS

I

By the goodness of God we experienced very much love and friendship, during our stay of eleven years in Rotterdam — South, and also had very much unity with several of God’s servants and children. There are still a few of them left in the land of the living, but most of them have been delivered and carried by the angels as Lazarus into Abraham’s bosom. Also many ministers who once have stayed under our roof, are now above all strife, and are eternally exalting a Triune God, and that without sin.

Sometimes we were together till far into the night and could speak from heart to heart about the ways of the Lord. It has happened, that I went to Westersingel yet at 11 o’clock at night, where the minister and his family from the Boezemsingel were living at that time, and would not get home until late at night, yea, even sometimes towards morning. Sometimes my wife would say “This is not time to go visiting anymore,” but it happened. My thoughts still go back many times to those conversations that we had then with each other about spiritual life. Truly we must say where is the grace of former times? And then also the many hours, that we were privileged to spend with the late Rev. Van Oordt, who so often stayed with us, as also other ministers, who are no more.

I won’t do it; but it would be quite easy to name various streets in North, South, East, and West of Rotterdam where we often came in contact with children of God. Some of them that are still living are able to recall this.

There also was a friend in the Zionstreet who often was in our company, with whom we had very close ties, and who was a living member of the Holy Catholic Christian Church. We were often together at funerals when children of God were being brought to the grave. This friend was often invited to officiate at funerals, for the Lord had not only given rich grace to him, but also gifts to edify.

In those days Boezemsingel and South never had prayer day and thank-giving-day on the same day. That was done so that those people would have an opportunity to come together on both days. In those days many of God’s people were looking forward to those days, and the Lord often showed His favor. Once on a prayer day when many of God’s people were in our house from far and near, our friend spoke with such opening, that there lay a luster upon his face, and with such a wonderful liberty. This also happened sometimes between noon and evening services when we were together on prayer-day or thankgiving day in Poortugaal. These are unforgettable times. The Lord was so condescending and good, that He Himself came in our midst. Oh yes, when we people are together, and the dear presence of the Lord is absent, then there is death in the pot. But in the light of the Kings countenance is peace and gladness through the Holy Spirit. Then man falls away and then it becomes true:

How good and pleasant is the sight
When brethren make it their delight
To dwell in blest accord;
Such love is like anointing oil.

Then something from heaven comes down to earth and into our hearts. Israel had a Marah on their desert journey, but they also encamped at Elim, where there were twelve wells of water and three score and ten palm trees. God’s people learn to know something of hell, but neither do they remain strangers of heaven. I will not enlarge further upon this now although I would gladly do so, because when that life comes back again and all those memories become lively, then it is a pleasure to speak or write about them. But on the other hand grief fills my heart, when I think about our rising generation, who in general know nothing about those gatherings anymore. Then I often think: Shall that ever come back again in the church of God? The Lord is Almighty, but it is all so terribly forfeited, and therefore there is more fear that God will leave us, than expectation that He will ever return again with His dear presence.

I had something else in my mind, and that in pursuance of a letter, that I received recently from a dear old friend, with whom and with his wife by the goodness of God we have had a close friendship, for more than forty years. That friend out of the Zion-street (some of the readers will know whom I mean) once had to officiate at a funeral at a certain place where several of God’s people were together. This friend received much opening to speak, and although I was not there that day, I knew if it started to flow for him, then he was as the householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old. Matth. 13:52.

Gr.R.

EXCERPTS FROM “ALMOST A CHRISTIAN”

A man may be convinced of his sin and may go far in opposing his sin and yet be but almost a Christian; for conviction may be rational as well as spiritual; it may be from natural conscience enlightened by the Word, without the effectual work of the Spirit applying sin to the heart. Convictions may be worn out; they many times go off and end not in sound conversion. Many take conviction of sin to be conversion from sin; and so sit down and rest in their convictions. Now then, if convictions may be from only natural conscience, if they may be worn out or may be mistaken and rested in for conversion, then a man may have conviction of sin and be but almost a Christian.

A man may mourn from sin and yet be but almost a Christian. So did Saul; so did Esau for the loss of his birthright (which was his sin). But doth not Christ pronounce them blessed that mourn? Sure then if a man mourn for sin, he is in a good condition? Salvation is joined with sorrow. True, but all mourning for sin must flow from spiritual conviction upon the soul; they have not the right sense of the evil and vileness of sin. True mourning for sin is more for the evil that is in sin, than the evil that comes by sin; more because it dishonors God and wounds Christ and grieves the Spirit and makes the soul unlike God, than because it damns the soul. Now there are many that mourn for sin, not so much for the evil that is in it, as tor the evil that it brings with it. There is mourning for sin in hell; you read of weeping and wailing there (Matt. 13:42; Rev. 18:15). The damned are weeping and mourning to eternity; there is all sorrow, no comfort. As in heaven there is peace without trouble, so in hell there is trouble without peace, mourning without joy, weeping and wailing incessantly; but it is for the evil they feel by sin, and not for the evil that is in sin. So that a man may mourn for sin and yet be but almost a Christian. It may grieve him that he is defiled and polluted by sin.

A man may make a large confession of sin to God, to others, and yet be but almost a Christian. How ingenuously doth Saul confess his sin to David: “I have sinned; thou art more righteous than I! Behold I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly.” So Judas makes a full confession: “I have sinned in betraying innocent blood.” Yet Saul and Judas were both rejected of God. So that a man may confess sin and yet be but almost a Christian. But is not confession of sin a character of a child of God? “If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” (I John 1:9) There are some who confess their sins and perish. Many confess their sins out of custom, not out of conscience. Many will confess sin, but it is only in extremity. Pharoah confessed his sin but it was when judgment compelled him: “I have sinned against God” (said He), but it was when eight plagues were upon him. Many confess their sins, but with no intent to forsake sin; they confess the sins they have committed, but do not leave the sins they have confessed. Now then, if a man may confess sin merely out of custom, confess lesser sins but conceal greater; if he may confess sin in general but with no intent to forsake sin, then surely a man may confess sin and be but almost a Christian … Open sins may be deserted but secret sins may be retained. A man may forsake sin, but not as sin; for he that forsakes sin as sin, he forsakes all sin. It is impossible for man to forsake sin as sin, unless that he forsakes all that he knows to be sin. Sin may be left and yet loved; a man may forsake the life of sin, and yet retain the love of sin; now though leaving sin makes him almost a Christian, yet loving sin shows he is but almost a Christian. It is less evil to do sin and not love it, than to love sin and not do it. To do sin may only argue weakness of grace, but to love sin argues strength of lust. “What I hate, that do I.” (Rom. 7:15) Sin is bad in any part of man, but sin in the affection is worse than sin in the conversation, being the fruit of choice and unregeneracy. All sin may be chained, and yet the heart not be changed; so the nature of the sinner is the same as ever. A dog chained up is still a dog still, as much as if he was let loose to devour. A sinner may lay the weapons of sin out of his hand, and yet the enmity against God still remain in his heart. Restraining grace holds in the sinner, but it is renewing grace that changes the nature. Many are held in by restraining grace from being open sinners, that are not renewed by grace and made true believers. Now then, if a man may forsake open sins and retain secret sins, if he may forsake sin but not as sin, if he may let one sin go and hold another faster, if sin may be left and yet loved; finally, if all sin may be chained and yet the heart not changed, then a man may forsake sin and yet be but almost a Christian.

NATHANAEL THE MAIM WHO HAD HIS QUESTIONS ANSWERED

Part II

THE ANSWER TO NATHANAEL’S QUESTIONS

Nathanael’s question gave the Lord Jesus the opportunity to reveal Himself to him. ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you’ (v. 48). This was the first answer this honest inquirer received. He had come with a problem: How could the Messiah come from Nazareth? Now, in response to his earnest seeking, God was beginning to give him some answers; and the answers came through the revelation of the Person of His Son. Nathanael well knew that no ordinary gaze could have seen him beneath the cool, comforting shade of a fig tree. Yet while he was having his devotions and meditating upon the marvels of God’s Word, the omnipresent eye of the Son of God had seen him.

In this connection it is well for us to take stock and remember that when we are alone where no human eyes are watching, when we are enjoying the privacy of our ‘leafy bower’ far removed from human investigation, our Lord continues to watch us, evaluate our motives, and measure the real man by the thoughts and intents of the heart. Campbell Morgan tells how one day he was travelling in Northfield with D. L. Moody, when quite suddenly Moody asked the learned divine, ‘What is character?’ Rather than give an explanation and realising that the evangelist had something in mind, Dr. Morgan said, ‘Well, what is it?’ To this Moody replied, ‘Character is what a man is in the dark’. Yes, character is what a man is in the dark, when the curtains are drawn and no one is in the room, when the mask is off and the man is seen for what he really is. Then God measures us, not by what we are like when we are on our best behaviour, but by what we are when we are alone with ourselves and our real motives become apparent.

Nathanael had been concealed from view, and yet the Lord had seen him. This revelation of Christ’s person and deity completely convinced Nathanael that He was the Messiah. He came to trust in Christ personally without having his first question answered. As an Israelite whose heart was open to the Word of God, his response was immediate. ‘Rabbi,’ he said, Thou art the Son of God; Thou art the King of Israel.’ Now no zealous Jew would lightly take the name of God upon his lips, nor would he ever give to anyone a title which was reserved specifically for the Messiah. The fact that Nathanael called the Lord Jesus the ‘Son of God’ and the ‘King of Israel’ — both Messianic titles — indicates to what extent he was able to comprehend the revelation which God was giving him.

There is another factor embodied in this incident which does not appear upon the surface, for it is implied rather than stated. This is the fact that wherever the Messiah is recognised for what He is, the Son of God and the King of Israel, He is immediately accorded full submission, devotion, and loyalty. Nathanael saw in the Man before him the One who fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies and who had come as the Messiah of Israel, and his submission to His authority was immediate.

NATHANAEL’S UNASKED QUESTION, AND THE ANSWER

To the person who has an open mind and who is willing to investigate the facts, God gives the blessing of added revelation. In answer to Nathanael’s question, ‘How do You know me?’ our Lord gave an answer which completely met his need and banished from his mind all doubt about the birthplace and parentage of the Lord Jesus. Following Nathanael’s confession, Jesus said to him, ‘ “Because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these”. And He said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened (literally, ‘made to stand open’) and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man”.’ This was the answer to Nathanael’s unasked question.

While under the fig tree, lost in contemplation, it seems as if he had been meditating upon the significance of Jacob’s experience at Bethel and the relevancy of Jacob’s vision for his own time (v. 51). Jacob, you will remember, was fleeing from his brother, Esau, after having deceived his father, Isaac, into giving him the inheritance of the firstborn. After journeying all day, Jacob reached a place called Luz; and with darkness having already fallen, he lay down upon the ground to sleep, using a stone for a pillow. While asleep Jacob dreamed that a ladder extended from earth to heaven and that the angels of God were ascending and descending upon the ladder.

Jacob’s vision forms the background to the new revelation the Master was about to give His disciple. The ladder is now personalised. It becomes a symbol for the Lord Jesus Christ who is able to bridge the gap between heaven and earth in His own person and through whom communication between heaven and earth is realised and maintained. Through the mediation of the Son, heaven is made to stand open, and access into the presence of God becomes both permanent and continuous. The Lord Jesus is the channel by which our prayers ascend to the throne of God; and He is the means whereby the messengers of God are sent to bring back heaven’s answers.

We wish that more had been told us of Nathanael. What has been written has been recorded for our admonition and learning. He was a man who, when he first heard of Jesus, entertained grave doubts concerning Him. In his initial contact with the Master many of his questions were answered, the asked and the unasked. He, however, came to trust Christ without having all his questions answered straight away.The Lord merely revealed Himself to Nathanael and that was sufficient. He was completely satisfied.

When he asked the Lord Jesus, ‘How do You know me?’ the Master showed that He knew him through His omnipresence. He knew where Nathanael had been and what he had been doing. This revealed to Nathanael the person of Christ and was the first answer he received to any of his questions. The second answer he received was to an unasked question. He had a matter pressing upon his heart which concerned the application of a portion of the Word of God to his situation. This was an unasked question but one which the Lord Jesus answered. By doing so the Master revealed His omniscience. He gave Nathanael the answer he had been searching for and explained the significance of Jacob’s dream, showing at the same time that He was the fulfilment of that which the ladder signified.

THE ANSWER TO NATHANAEL’S FIRST QUESTION

THE ANSWER TO NATHANAEL’S FIRST QUESTION

Some questions are only answered through close, sustained fellowship with Christ. When Nathanael first heard of Jesus of Nazareth he exclaimed: ‘Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?’ This was his unanswered question. But was it unanswered? It seems inconceivable that as Nathanael fellowshipped with the Lord Jesus throughout His three years of ministry the Master could have failed to expound the Old Testament teaching concerning Himself, the true place of His birth, and how Joseph happened to be His foster-father. I am inclined to think allof Nathanael’s questions were answered, though not all at once, and from this early start he went on to learn more of what it meant to be a follower of the Nazarene.

We all have questions for which we crave answers. Teenagers are faced with questions about the use of drugs, amusements, morality, popularity, and the ever-present pressures to conform. What should they do? Where can they go for help? Adults are also perplexed by problems which are peculiar to the rearing of children in this day and age, how to stretch their income to meet growing needs of their families, and how to live consistently for Christ and still try to be successful in business.

To us Nathanael stands out as an example of a man who had his questions answered. If we would have Christ answer our questions and supply the solution to the problems which vex us, we need to be of the same disposition as Nathanael. We need zealously to study the Word, have our own regular times for quiet prayer and fellowship with the Lord, and live up to the light God gives us. When faced with some problem or when doubts and difficulties beset us, we should be ready to investigate the facts with an open heart and mind and be ready to respond in obedience when God entrusts us with some new facet of truth from His inspired Word.

Ail our questions will not be answered at once, but the more we fellowship with the Lord and the closer we walk with Him, the more we understand His Word and apply it to our lives, the more will we be led into the truth of His person and find the solution to our problems and the answer to our questions through our study of the Scriptures.

NABOTH’S VINEYARD

Some Expository Thoughts on I Kings 21:1–14

ALASDAIR B. GORDON

Our passage is a revealing one since it gives us much detail of the characters involved. A king and one of his subjects have a talk on a matter of business which leads the queen to plan the subject’s death. A simple account perhaps, but full of spiritual meat.

Now, we are told that Naboth owned a vineyard ‘hard by the palace of Ahab’. This means, in fact, that Naboth’s vineyard was virtually next door to the royal palace. We need not imagine that the king objected to having Naboth as a neighbour — it was simply that he wanted to have the vineyard to himself. He was like a spoiled child who, when he saw something that appealed to him, could only say ‘I want it’. But let us be fair to Ahab where fairness is due — originally he only wanted to have this vineyard so that he could turn it into a vegetable garden to serve the needs of the palace. The fact that it was so near made it even more attractive. So, he explained this to Naboth and promised that, if he would hand over the vineyard, then, in exchange he would be given a better vineyard or, if he preferred, its cash value. On the surface the whole thing seems so very reasonable. Naboth had this bit of ground which the king could use so well — is Naboth’s attitude not a bit churlish? The clue to this really lies in the view that the Israelites took of their own private property inherited from their forefathers. To them their property was not just a thing that they owned and sold at will; rather, it was part of their religious heritage, part of the land of promise which the Lord had given them and which would be handed down from father to son from generation to generation. The God-fearing Israelite would not sell his land or exchange it for another piece, no matter how attractive the terms of the offer might seem. Their inheritance was given by God and, as such, could not be alienated. As the invaluable Matthew Henry puts it: ‘Canaan was in a peculiar manner God’s land; the Israelites were His tenants; and this was one of the conditions of their leases, that they should not alienate any part of that which fell to their lot, unless in case of extreme necessity, and then only till the year of Jubilee, Lev. 25:28.’

There is a very interesting illustration of this point in the book of the prophet Jeremiah. Jerusalem was about to be overthrown by the Chaldeans when the prophet heard that a plot of ground in his native village of Anathoth which belonged to Hanameel, a relative of his, had come up for sale. Jeremiah had the right of inheritance and redemption, and as such he was religiously obliged to buy it to save it going out of the family (Jer. 32:6-fin.). Now it would seem very foolish to buy land just at the time when the city was about to be overrun by the enemy, but Jeremiah did buy it and publicly — almost ostentatiously — he took possession of the title-deed to the land and had it placed in a sealed jar for preservation. This was a sign — a sign that no matter how dark things appeared, the Lord still had a purpose for His people and the day would come when once again they would be able to work and inherit their own land (verse 43), which was part of the promise of God. It was for such reasons that Naboth was so emphatic when he declined to sell his vineyard even to such an important person as the king. ‘The Lord forbid,’ he said, ‘that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.’ Of course, Ahab was an Israelite, and as such he knew that Naboth was right. He made no attempt to argue — all he did was to go into his house vexed and sullen, and lay down on his bed with his face to the wall and refused to eat any food. He was angry because his plan for the vegetable garden had been thwarted and there was nothing, it seemed, that he could do about it. Naboth was quite within his rights — indeed, his attitude in the circumstances was the correct one — so all that Ahab could do was sulk about it.

The story might well have ended there; Ahab no doubt would have got over his chagrin and no more might have been heard of the matter. However, at this point in the drama there enters the formidable figure of Jezebel. She was not an Israelite by birth; she came from the Phoenicians — a brilliant pagan race — and Jezebel had inherited this brilliance and along with it all the ruthlessness associated with an oriental despot. To her, the religious traditions of Israel, with its firm belief in the one true and living God, was a thing to be stamped out at all costs and replaced by the Baal gods of her own country — and she certainly did not spare herself in the effort. It was a pity that her efforts were not directed towards the truth; had Divine Providence made Jezebel an ally of Elijah instead of an adversary, they would have been a formidable force in the Lord’s cause! But, as it was, Elijah and Jezebel were to be sworn enemies. In fact Elijah prophesied that the dogs would eat Jezebel within the bounds of Jezreel, and in due time this came to pass. There was no happy ending for Jezebel.

As we have seen, the point that Jezebel could not see was that for Naboth this piece of ground was not just any bit of property, not just some kind of good investment, but part and parcel of his faith and religious life. To sell this vineyard would be, in fact, a subtle way of selling out his own faith and the faith of his forefathers; such a thing could not even be considered. Sometimes we can be caught in a situation like this; we can be given what seems to be an attractive offer to sell out for something else, or offered some kind of exchange. It is only too easy to sell out in favour of something which at a very superficial level may seem the same or even better; perhaps this is why so many people have sold out on the spiritual values of the eternal Gospel in favour of some so-called ‘modern’ theology or in favour of a purely secular type of social concern or involvement. It is very tempting for many who are not mature in the faith to forget that Christianity is, in a good sense, exclusive. It is the claim of the Christian Gospel that it — and it alone — gives the solution not only to the problems of the individual, but to the history of the whole world. Christians would not want to deny the importance of social action and witness, but, of course, ultimately even our bravest and finest works come under the judgment of God, before Whom we are all unworthy servants. We do not justify ourselves to God, but rather we come empty-handed, clinging only to the C ross of Christ and pleading His eternal Sacrifice. As the Apostle Peter said, … there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved’ (Acts 4:12). We have as Christians, the most precious of all heritages, but this does not mean that as a result we are content to pull up the drawbridge and sit in an ivory tower; it does not mean that we can just sit back and be content with a mere status quoas if that were all that mattered. We must remember that being called a ‘Christian’ is a costly thing and that if we call ourselves such, then we must be ready for all the consequences. It is surely tragic that the church is so often shy of claiming its rightful exclusiveness. Just recently it was reported that a meeting had taken place in Geneva of representatives of the Moslem and Christian faiths for dialogue on ‘the common historical roots of the two faiths’ and ‘the need for each faith to exercise self-criticism and to listen to the questions and misunderstandings of the other’. The chairman of these meetings was, believe it or not, an official of the World Council of Churches — although many of us might have little difficulty in believing it!! How far are some people prepared to go for the sake of compromise? This is surely the final irony — that people who still call themselves Christians and claim to be ‘led by the Spirit’ should be prepared to sell themselves so cheaply is quite incredible. But it is also devilishly subtle, since many folk are likely to be led astray as a result. No doubt many of the seeming alternatives to the Biblical Gospel must seem to some people to be what they would be pleased to call ‘enlightened’ or ‘moving with the times’, but in fact this is not moving with the times but being moved by the times and by the political motives and pseudo-pious talk of people who should certainly know better.

With these thoughts let us try to sum up our attitudes to our own religious heritage as Christians who wish to hold fast to the truths of Scripture. Like Naboth, we have received our heritage only through the grace of God. We have been chosen to be heirs of what we do most sincerely believe and know to be the only faith that is true — and with it we have received the greatest traditions and noblest aspirations made known, by the grace of God, to man. We did not create our heritage, for it was given by God, and through His grace it has been nurtured, protected, improved and passed on to us. But, like Naboth, we are expected to look after, protect and defend this precious heritage and not to trade it in for anything else, no matter how pleasing or attractive it might appear at the purely superficial level. Again, like Naboth, although we keep it and guard it, yet we do not do so out of motives of greed or of selfishness. It is our hope that we will pass on this heritage to others in the best possible state that we can. The Gospel must not be passed on and presented as something which is worn-out or shabby or second-rate. It must always be passed on as something living, as truth unchanging which is grounded in Holy Scripture and sets forth Christ as its incarnate, crucified and risen Lord. It is in this sense that we can talk about the Gospel being exclusive — not as something which is just for ourselves but as treasure of which we are called to be stewards and evangelists. Oh that we might all take this to our hearts …

‘My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust my sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ Name.
On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.’

LIFT UP YOUR HEADS

Many in this modern world are confident in false beliefs, in untrue valuations, in hopes based on wishful thinking, in self-importance fed by vanity. He who is not on the laughing side has his mouth filled with laughter, while he who has reason to rejoice goes on his way with heavy heart.

The confidence of the cheerful sinner usually stems from his belief that his way is most pleasant and rewarding. He is confident that his valuation is correct, for men do not rejoice in what appears to be poor.

And so one of the weapons Satan uses most successfully against the gospel is to make it appear of little value, and in the use of this weapon he has the help of Christians who refer to the gospel as ‘simple,’ a word nowhere used in the Scriptures concerning it. The apostle Paul refers to the gospel as ‘the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory’ (1 Corinthians 2:7, 8). He also says that ‘if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them’ (2 Corinthians 4:4, 5).

In his Fountain of Life,John Flavel says, ‘The study of Jesus Christ is the most noble subject that ever a soul spent itself upon; those that rack and torture their brains upon other studies, like children, weary themselves at a low game; the eagle plays at the sun itself. The angels study this doctrine, and stoop down to look into this deep abyss. What are the truths discovered in Christ, but the very secrets that from eternity lay hid in the bosom of God? God’s heart is opened to men in Christ; this makes the gospel such a glorious dispensation, because Christ is so gloriously revealed therein, and the studying of Christ in the gospel stamps such a heavenly glory upon the contemplating soul.’

If the gospel of Christ is so glorious, as indeed it is, the believer should certainly rejoice in his own interest in it. Upheld by the truth of Christ, he may meet and defeat the darts of error aimed at his faith and walk. To the suggestion that so many in the world cannot be wrong, he may refer to the truth expressed by the apostle John that ‘we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness’ (1 John 5:19). Let us then hold firmly to the truth that faith is light, that unbelief is darkness, that faith is wisdom and that unbelief is ignorance.

Our ground of rejoicing is also strengthened by considering the foundations of our faith and by making sure that our personal faith is built upon them. If it is not, though the foundations be firm and immovable, we have as yet no vital interest in them. Of what practical use is the doctrine of effectual calling to one who has not experienced its blessing for himself? Of what personal use is the doctrine of the new birth if we do not know what it means to be born of God? It is essential to have this standing before God before we can rejoice with personal confidence in the glorious gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The spiritual minds of those who are born of God are upheld by the truth of God, and the more spiritual our minds are the more receptive they will be to it. The Word of God is full of that in which we may rejoice. The psalmist, indeed, found more sweetness in the law and in the judgments of God than many now do in the gospel. With great joy he exclaims, ‘The law of Thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver’ (Psalm 119:72), and ‘The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb’ (Psalm 19:9,10).

The minds of those who are rich in temporal things are upheld by the thought of their riches and with the temporal happiness they bring. How much more, then, should the believer rejoice in the thought of the riches that are his in Christ Jesus, and in the eternal glory they are an earnest of.

It would be strange indeed for an heir of a great inheritance to be so indifferent to it that he rarely gave it so much as a thought. Yet many who profess to be heirs of the kingdom of God live as if there were no such kingdom. They turn readily enough to the works of the world’s writers, but that which is written in the interest of the kingdom of God is dry and uninteresting to them. Such need to ponder the words of the Lord Jesus when He said, ‘Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also’ (Matthew 6:21). If we have found the pearl of great price, He will have the chief place in our thoughts and affections.

The attributes of the Lord Jesus are like the mountains round about Jerusalem. They are like a strong tower or a mighty rock in a weary land. God has revealed them to His people that they might be to them a source of strength and comfort in every circumstance. What lifting up of heart and mind there is for the child of God as he considers that the Lord Jesus is unchangeable in His purposes! Our faith and love fluctuates from day to day, but, says the Lord, ‘I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed’ (Malachi 3:6). The believer may well become disconsolate as he views the scene in the church and in the world. But when iniquity abounds on every hand, he may rejoice in the glorious fact that God is infinitely holy in all His ways and works. The way of wisdom and lifting up of heart and mind is to see the holy hand of God in every detail of our lives and in all the affairs of men.

The riches of truth and grace are so great that it is impossible to rejoice in them all at one time. And so it must be here a little, there a little, Une upon line, precept upon precept. There is enough in one text of scripture to lift the believer up into heavenly places where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God when that text comes in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Then, ‘Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of glory’ (Psalm 24:7 to 10).

THROUGH BACA’S VALE

“For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” J Timothy 2.5

No sooner has living faith embraced the Person of Jesus (and that is the first object which faith lays hold of), then it embraces him as the divinely-appointed Mediator. And how sweet and suitable is such a Mediator to a poor, sinful, crawling reptile, a wretch defiled, morning, noon, and night, with everything foul and filthy, who has broken the law of God a million times, and cannot keep it a single moment! “How can I,” argues the soul, “so full of sin and depravity, how can I approach with acceptance the great, glorious, and holy Jehovah? I cannot, I dare not!” But when it sees, by the eye of faith, a divinely-appointed Mediator, a glorious Intercessor, a great High Priest over the house of God: One that has shed his blood to put away sin; One who has righteousness to justify, and has a fulness of grace and glory to give to the poor, needy, and naked: as faith sees, as hope embraces, as love enjoys this, there is a coming to God through this divine Mediator; as the Apostle saith, “Through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.” “Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” Our only access to God is through the Mediator whom he hath appointed. All your prayers, tears, sighs, and groans; all your religious thoughts, acts, and words are worthless, utterly worthless, unless perfumed by the intercession of the only-begotten Son of God. See to this point; and I would, in all affection, charge it upon your conscience, that you look well how you approach the Father. Do you approach him through the Son of his love? Is there a solemn feeling in your heart, when you draw near to the throne, that you approach only through Jesus? Is there a believing reception of his atoning blood into your conscience as the only sacrifice that purges away sin, and of his justifying righteousness as the only robe of acceptance before God? See to it well, examine your conscience well upon the matter, for it is vital ground. See that you approach the Father through the Son of his love, and through him alone; for depend upon it, if you approach in any other way, you are but a presumptuous professor; there is no holy fire burning on the altar of your soul; nor will any answer come down but through this divinely-appointed way.

Sickness has never seized on our bodies, if sin had not first seized on our souls. —Charnock

The world is a tender mother to her children, but a stepmother to strangers. —Charnock

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