Part 3 (1/2)
And this work of Himself as our Priest, the merciful and faithful High Priest and our Advocate goes on up yonder uninterruptedly. In Isaiah we find a word which speaks of Him, ”He shall not fail nor be discouraged.”
Well may we apply this to His present work as Priest and Advocate of His own. As Priest He will never fail. He will never fail in being about His own, in keeping them and sustaining them, in sending them help from the sanctuary in time of need. As Advocate He will not be discouraged. The same old failures in our lives, which humble us and break us down, but He continues in this service in behalf of His poor sinning people. Some Christians do not believe in the fundamental doctrine of the Gospel, that a child of G.o.d in possession of eternal life can never be lost.
They think it depends on their walk and service. If one of His own could ever be lost again, if even the weakest, the most imperfect could be s.n.a.t.c.hed out of His hands, His present work would be a failure as well as His finished work on the cross. But read the great high-priestly prayer He left for us in John xvii. There He prays the Father, who heareth Him always, that His own may be kept.
His Work for the Church.
Another aspect of His present work is what He does for His church. We can but briefly indicate what this means.
He is in glory the Head of the church. The church is His body, the fullness of Him, that filleth all in all.
Every believing sinner is a member in that body. The risen Lord Himself adds new members to that body. He puts each member into the body as it pleases Him. Each member is guided and directed by Himself. He supplies this body with gifts.
”And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
”For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.
”Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of G.o.d, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. iv:11-13).
Thus He builds up from the Glory His own body. Some day that body will be complete. Then we all come unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. That will be when we see Him as He is. Then His present work in behalf of His own, His coheirs, will be finished.
Brought home from this wilderness to the Father's house--safe home--there will be no need any longer for His power and love to sustain us. No more tears will then be shed, no more wounds of pain and sorrow to be soothed, no more help is needed for the time of need; all that is pa.s.sed. Nor does He then need to exercise His office as Advocate, for we are delivered forever from the presence of sin and sanctified wholly body, soul and spirit. Sinning is then an impossibility. What a happy, glorious day that will be!
III.
The Practical Results of His Present Work in the Christian's Life.
The fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is in Glory occupied with us should lead us into a holy life which glorifies Him. That loving eye is never withdrawn from us. If we were to remember this constantly, what a power this would be in our lives! How many things would remain undone, how many words unspoken, and how many other things done, if we were constantly conscious of that eye which is upon us individually. He represents us before G.o.d, and we are to represent Him before men. A Christian is called to manifest Christ to be His representative. And such a life, which is unto His praise and Glory, is made possible through His blessed intercessory work and His presence in heaven. A true Christian life depends much on this heart occupation with the Person and work of Christ. As His presence up yonder and His service for us is a reality to our hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit, we shall walk worthy of the Lord, and His blessed work for us will constantly be felt in our lives here on earth. What a joy it is then, as we reckon only with Him, who knows us, to serve Him, to depend on Him. And how we should shun anything which grieves Him.
Encouragement for Prayer.
These blessed facts of the Lord's loving interest in us and our life in this present evil age, surrounded by dangers and evils of all kinds, will be a great encouragement to us in our prayer life. We can go and tell Him all about that which troubles us. If He is interested in everything which happens to us, down to the smallest matter, then we can go to him in prayer and tell Him about it. Some Christians teach that we should not do this, but leave it all in His hands without praying for it, satisfied that His will be done. But this is contrary to Scripture, for it says that in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving we are to make our requests known (Phil. iv:6). He delights to have us tell Him, and like John's disciples we can go to Him and tell Him. His ear is always open. If in His service we become tired and weary, we can tell Him, for He was tired on account of the way. If hungry or without a resting place, He knows what that means, for He pa.s.sed through this. If lonely and our best services are misunderstood, or the fiery darts of the enemy are aimed against us, we can speak to Him about it. All this can be so very real to us if we but go on led by His spirit.
Deliverance from Worry.
It should make an end of all worry and anxiety. We may possess a divine carelessness. Be careful for nothing. Have no anxiety. Why should we worry or be anxious? Worry is the child of unbelief. Anxiety can never stay if the eyes of the heart behold the man in Glory and faith realizes that all is in the hands of One ”who doeth all things well.” Worry and anxiety accuse Him. Martha did that when she was enc.u.mbered with much service and then said to Him, ”Dost Thou not care?” Each time we give way to anxiety, we act as if He did not care. But He does; and He would have us rest in faith and commit all to Himself.
Sharing His Work.
In conclusion we must not forget that He permits us to have some share in this blessed work of His. While He prays for us, we can pray one for another, and for all the saints. He intercedes; we can intercede. He washes our feet, typical of the cleansing by the Word. We are to wash one another's feet. He carries our burdens, but the exhortation also is that we carry one another's burden. He forgives and restores. We are to forbear one another, and forgive one another, ”even as Christ forgave us” (Col. iii:13).
III.
HIS FUTURE WORK
The Lord Jesus Christ, who finished the work on earth the Father gave Him to do, who is now bodily present in the highest heaven, occupying the Father's throne and exercising His priesthood in behalf of His people, is also King. To Him belongeth a Kingdom and a kingly Glory. He has therefore a kingly work to do. While His past work was foretold by the Spirit of G.o.d and His priestly work foreshadowed in the Old Testament, His work as King and His glorious Kingdom to come are likewise the subjects of the Word of G.o.d.
Predicted by the Prophets.
His kingly work was announced by Gabriel to the Virgin. ”The Lord G.o.d shall give unto Him the throne of His father David and He shall reign over the house of David forever; and of His Kingdom there shall be no end” (Luke i:32, 33). According to this message He must occupy the throne of His father David, He must reign and possess a Kingdom. This is but heaven's confirmation of what G.o.d's prophets for many centuries had uttered in announcing the coming of the Messiah. The entire prophetic Word has its climax in the visions of the King and the Kingdom, He will receive on this earth. These visions of glory to come, for Him who was despised and rejected of men, are the glittering stars s.h.i.+ning throughout the dark night of the past and present age. They dazzle the eyes of faith. They inspire hope and courage. We quote a few Scriptures which relate to the Christ as King.
”Yet I have set my King upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the Lord has said unto Me, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the nations for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession”
(Ps. ii:6-8). ”It is He that will judge the world in righteousness” (Ps.
xi:7). ”All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the Lord, and all the kindreds of the nations shall wors.h.i.+p before Thee. For the Kingdom is the Lord's and He is the governor among the nations” (Ps.
xxii:27-28). ”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” (Ps. xxiv:9-10).