Notes on the book of Exodus Part 2

Hence we see how much in sympathy Moses was with the spirit and mind of Christ in reference to the people of G.o.d. He was in the midst of all the ease, the pomp, and dignity of Pharaoh's house, where "the pleasures of sin," and "the treasures of Egypt," lay scattered around him in richest profusion. All these things he might have enjoyed if he would. He could have lived and died in the midst of wealth and splendor; his entire path, from first to last, might, if he had chosen, have been enlightened by the suns.h.i.+ne of royal favor: but that would not have been "faith;" it would not have been Christlike. From his elevated position, he saw his brethren bowed down beneath their heavy burden, and faith led him to see that his place was to be _with_ them. Yes; with them, in all their reproach, their bondage, their degradation, and their sorrow. Had he been actuated by mere benevolence, philanthropy, or patriotism, he might have used his personal influence on behalf of his brethren. He might have succeeded in inducing Pharaoh to lighten their burden, and render their path somewhat smoother, by royal grants in their favor; but this would never do, never satisfy a heart that had a single pulsation in common with the heart of Christ. Such a heart Moses, by the grace of G.o.d, carried in his bosom; and, therefore, with all the energies and all the affections of that heart, he threw himself, body, soul, and spirit, into the very midst of his oppressed brethren. He "chose rather to suffer affliction _with_ the people of G.o.d." And, moreover, he did this by "faith."

Let my reader ponder this deeply. We must not be satisfied with wis.h.i.+ng well to, doing service for, or speaking kindly on behalf of, the people of G.o.d. We ought to be fully identified _with_ them, no matter how despised or reproached they may be. It is, in a measure, an agreeable thing to be a benevolent and generous spirit, to patronize Christianity; but it is a wholly different thing to be identified with Christians, or to suffer with Christ. A _patron_ is one thing, a _martyr_ is quite another. This distinction is apparent throughout the entire book of G.o.d. Obadiah took care of G.o.d's witnesses, but Elijah was a witness for G.o.d. Darius was so attached to Daniel that he lost a night's rest on his account, but Daniel spent that self-same night in the lion's den, as a witness for the truth of G.o.d. Nicodemus ventured to speak a word _for_ Christ, but a more matured disciples.h.i.+p would have led him to identify himself _with_ Christ.

These considerations are eminently practical. The Lord Jesus does not want patronage; He wants fellows.h.i.+p. The truth concerning Him is declared to us, not that we might patronize His cause on earth, but have fellows.h.i.+p with His Person in heaven. He identified Himself with us, at the heavy cost of all that love could give. He might have avoided this. He might have continued to enjoy His eternal place "in the bosom of the Father." But how, then, could that mighty tide of love, which was pent up in His heart, flow down to us guilty and h.e.l.l-deserving sinners? Between Him and us there could be no oneness, save on conditions which involved the surrender of everything on His part. But, blessed, throughout the everlasting ages, be His adorable name, that surrender was voluntarily made. "He gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify _unto Himself_ a peculiar people, zealous of good works." (t.i.tus ii. 14.) He would not enjoy His glory alone. His loving heart would gratify itself by a.s.sociating "many sons" with Him in that glory. "Father," He says, "I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be _with Me_ where I am; that they may behold My glory, which Thou hast given Me: for Thou lovedst Me before the foundation of the world." (John xvii. 24.) Such were the thoughts of Christ in reference to His people; and we can easily see how much in sympathy with these precious thoughts was the heart of Moses. He unquestionably partook largely of his Master's spirit; and he manifested that excellent spirit in freely sacrificing every personal consideration, and a.s.sociating himself, unreservedly, with the people of G.o.d.

The personal character and actings of this honored servant of G.o.d will come before us again in the next section of our book. We shall here briefly consider him as a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. That he was a type of Him is evident from the following pa.s.sage,--"The Lord thy G.o.d will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto Him ye shall hearken." (Deut. xviii. 15.) We are not, therefore, trafficking in human imagination in viewing Moses as a type; it is the plain teaching of Scripture, and in the closing verses of Exodus ii. we see this type in a double way: first, in the matter of his rejection by Israel; and secondly, in his union with a stranger in the land of Midian.

These points have already been, in some measure, developed in the history of Joseph, who, being cast out by his brethren according to the flesh, forms an alliance with an Egyptian bride. Here, as in the case of Moses, we see shadowed forth Christ's rejection by Israel, and His union with the Church, but in a different phase. In Joseph's case, we have the exhibition of positive enmity against his _person_: in Moses, it is the rejection of his _mission_. In Joseph's case, we read, "They hated _him_, and could not speak peaceably unto _him_."

(Gen. x.x.xvii. 4.) In the case of Moses, the word is,--"_Who made thee a prince and a judge over us?_" In short, the former was personally hated; the latter, officially refused.

So also in the mode in which the great mystery of the Church is exemplified in the history of those two Old Testament saints.

"Asenath" presents quite a different phase of the Church from that which we have in the person of "Zipporah." The former was united to Joseph in the time of his exaltation; the latter was the companion of Moses in the obscurity of his desert life. (Comp. Gen. xli. 41-45 with Exod. ii. 15; iii. 1.) True, both Joseph and Moses were, at the time of their union with a stranger, rejected by their brethren; yet the former was "governor over all the land of Egypt;" whereas the latter tended a few sheep at "the backside of the desert."

Whether, therefore, we contemplate Christ as manifested in glory, or as hidden from the world's gaze, the Church is intimately a.s.sociated with Him. And now, inasmuch as the world seeth Him not, neither can it take knowledge of that body which is wholly one with Him. "The world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not." (1 John iii. 1.) By and by, Christ will appear in His glory, and the Church _with_ Him. "When Christ our life shall appear, then shall ye also appear _with_ Him in glory." (Col. iii. 4.) And again, "The glory which Thou gavest Me I have given them; that they may be one, even as We are one: I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them as Thou hast loved Me." (John xvii. 22, 23.)[3]

[3] There are two distinct unities spoken of in John xvii. 21, 23. The first is that unity which the Church is responsible to have maintained, but in which she has utterly failed. The second is that unity which G.o.d will infallibly accomplish, and which He will manifest in glory. If the reader will turn to the pa.s.sage, he will at once see the difference, both as to character and result, of the two.

Such, then, is the Church's high and holy position. She is one with Him who is cast out by this world, but who occupies the throne of the Majesty in the heavens. The Lord Jesus made Himself responsible for her on the cross, in order that she might share with Him His present rejection and His future glory. Would that all who form a part of such a highly privileged body were more impressed with a sense of what becomes them as to course and character down here! a.s.suredly, there should be a fuller and clearer response, on the part of all the children of G.o.d, to that love wherewith He has loved them, to that salvation wherewith He has saved them, and to that dignity wherewith He has invested them. The walk of the Christian should ever be the natural result of realized privilege, and not the constrained result of legal vows and resolutions,--the proper fruit of a position known and enjoyed by faith, and not the fruit of one's own efforts to reach a position "by works of law." All true believers _are_ a part of the bride of Christ; hence, they owe Him those affections which become that relation. The relations.h.i.+p is not obtained because of the affections, but the affections flow out of the relations.h.i.+p.

So let it be, O Lord, with all Thy beloved and blood-bought people!

CHAPTER III.

We shall now resume the personal history of Moses, and contemplate him during that deeply interesting period of his career which he spent in retirement--a period including, as we should say, forty of his very best years--the prime of life. This is full of meaning. The Lord had graciously, wisely, and faithfully led His dear servant apart from the eyes and thoughts of men, in order that He might train him under His own immediate hand. Moses needed this. True, he had spent forty years in the house of Pharaoh; and, while his sojourn there was not without its influence and value, yet was it as nothing when compared with his sojourn in the desert. The former might be valuable; but the latter was indispensable.

Nothing can possibly make up for the lack of secret communion with G.o.d, or the training and discipline of His school. "All the wisdom of the Egyptians" would not have qualified Moses for his future path. He might have pursued a most brilliant course through the schools and colleges of Egypt. He might have come forth laden with literary honors--his intellect stored with learning, and his heart full of pride and self-sufficiency. He might have taken out his degree in the school of man, and yet have to learn his alphabet in the school of G.o.d. Mere human wisdom and learning, how valuable soever in themselves, can never const.i.tute any one a servant of G.o.d, nor equip him for any department of divine service. Such things may qualify unrenewed nature to figure before the world; but the man whom G.o.d will use must be endowed with widely-different qualifications--such qualifications as can alone be found in the deep and hallowed retirement of the Lord's presence.

All G.o.d's servants have been made to know and experience the truth of these statements. Moses at h.o.r.eb, Elijah at Cherith, Ezekiel at Chebar, Paul in Arabia, and John at Patmos, are all striking examples of the immense practical importance of being alone with G.o.d. And when we look at the Divine Servant, we find that the time He spent in private was nearly ten times as long as that which He spent in public.

He, though perfect in understanding and in will, spent nearly thirty years in the obscurity of a carpenter's house at Nazareth ere He made His appearance in public. And even when He had entered upon His public career, how oft did He retreat from the gaze of men, to enjoy the sweet and sacred retirement of the divine presence!

Now we may feel disposed to ask, How could the urgent demand for workmen ever be met if all need such protracted training, in secret, ere they come forth to their work? This is the Master's care--not ours. He can provide the workmen, and He can train them also. This is not man's work. G.o.d alone can provide and prepare a true minister. Nor is it a question with Him as to the length of time needful for the education of such an one. We know He could educate him in a moment, if it were His will to do so. One thing is evident, namely, that G.o.d has had all His servants very much alone with Himself, both before and after their entrance upon their public work; nor will any one ever get on without this. The absence of secret training and discipline will necessarily leave us barren, superficial, and theoretic. A man who ventures forth upon a public career ere he has duly weighed himself in the balances of the sanctuary, or measured himself in the presence of G.o.d, is like a s.h.i.+p putting out to sea without proper ballast: he will doubtless overset with the first stiff breeze. On the contrary, there is a depth, a solidity, and a steadiness flowing from our having pa.s.sed from form to form in the school of G.o.d, which are essential elements in the formation of the character of a true and effective servant of G.o.d.

Hence, therefore, when we find Moses, at the age of forty years, taken apart from all the dignity and splendor of a court, for the purpose of spending forty years in the obscurity of a desert, we are led to expect a remarkable course of service; nor are we disappointed. The man whom G.o.d educates is educated, and none other. It lies not within the range of man to prepare an instrument for the service of G.o.d. The hand of man could never mould "a vessel meet for the Master's use."

The One who is to use the vessel can alone prepare it; and we have before us a singularly beautiful sample of His mode of preparation.

"Now, Moses kept the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of G.o.d, even to h.o.r.eb." (Exod. iii. 1.) Here, then, we have a marvelous change of circ.u.mstances. In Genesis, chapter xlvi.

31, we read, "Every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians;" and yet Moses, who was "learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians," is transferred from the Egyptian court to the back of a mountain to tend a flock of sheep, and to be educated for the service of G.o.d.

a.s.suredly, this is not "the manner of man." This is not nature's line of things. Flesh and blood could not understand this. We should have thought that Moses' education was finished when he had become master of all Egypt's wisdom, and that, moreover, in immediate connection with the rare advantages which a court life affords. We should have expected to find in one so highly favored, not only a solid and varied education, but also such an exquisite polish as would fit him for any sphere of action to which he might be called. But then, to find such a man with such attainments, called away from such a position to mind sheep at the back of a mountain, is something entirely beyond the utmost stretch of human thought and feeling. It lays prostrate in the dust all man's pride and glory. It declares plainly that this world's appliances are of little value in the divine estimation; yea, they are as "dung and dross," not only in the eyes of the Lord, but also in the eyes of all those who have been taught in His school.

There is a very wide difference between human and divine education.

The former has for its end the refinement and exaltation of nature; the latter begins with withering it up and setting it aside. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of G.o.d; for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Cor. ii. 14.) Educate the "natural man" as much as you please, and you cannot make him a "spiritual man." "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." (John iii. 6.) If ever an educated "natural man"

might look for success in the service of G.o.d, Moses might have counted upon it; he was "grown," he was "learned," he was "mighty in word and deed," and yet he had to learn something at "the backside of the desert" which Egypt's schools could never have taught him. Paul learnt more in Arabia than ever he had learnt at the feet of Gamaliel.[4]

None can teach like G.o.d; and all who will learn _of_ Him must be alone _with_ Him.

[4] Let not my reader suppose for a moment that the design of the above remarks is to detract from the value of really useful information, or the proper culture of the mental powers. By no means.

If, for example, he is a parent, let him store his child's mind with useful knowledge; let him teach him everything which may, hereafter, turn to account in the Master's service: let him not burden him with aught which he would have to "lay aside" in running his Christian course, nor conduct him, for educational purposes, through a region from which it is well-nigh impossible to come forth with an unsoiled mind. You might just as well shut him up for ten years in a coal mine in order to qualify him for discussing the properties of light and shade, as cause him to wade through the mire of a heathen mythology in order to fit him for the interpretation of the oracles of G.o.d, or prepare him for feeding the flock of Christ.

"In the desert G.o.d will teach thee."

There it was that Moses learnt his sweetest, deepest, most influential and enduring lessons. Thither, too, must all repair who mean to be educated for the ministry.

Beloved reader, may you prove, in your own deep experience, the real meaning of "the backside of the desert"--that sacred spot where nature is laid in the dust, and G.o.d alone exalted. There it is that men and things, the world and self, present circ.u.mstances and their influences, are all valued at what they are really worth. There it is, and there alone, that you will find a divinely-adjusted balance in which to weigh all within and all around. There are no false colors, no borrowed plumes, no empty pretentions there. The enemy of your soul cannot gild the sand of that place. All is reality there. The heart that has found itself in the presence of G.o.d, at "the backside of the desert," has right thoughts about everything. It is raised far above the exciting influence of this world's schemes. The din and noise, the bustle and confusion of Egypt do not fall upon the ear in that distant place. The crash in the monetary and commercial world is not heard there; the sigh of ambition is not heaved there; this world's fading laurels do not tempt there; the thirst for gold is not felt there; the eye is never dimmed with l.u.s.t, nor the heart swollen with pride there; human applause does not elate, nor human censure depress there. In a word, everything is set aside save the stillness and light of the divine presence. G.o.d's voice alone is heard, His light enjoyed, His thoughts received. This is the place to which all must go to be educated for the ministry; and there all must remain if they would succeed in the ministry.

Would that all who come forward to serve in public knew more of what it is to breathe the atmosphere of this place. We should then have far less vapid attempts at ministry, but far more effective Christ-honoring service.

Let us now inquire what Moses saw and what he heard at "the backside of the desert." We shall find him learning lessons which lay far beyond the reach of Egypt's most gifted masters. It might appear, in the eyes of human reason, a strange loss of time for a man like Moses to spend forty years doing nothing save to keep a few sheep in the wilderness. But he was there with G.o.d, and the time that is thus spent is never lost. It is salutary for us to remember that there is something more than mere _doing_ necessary on the part of a true servant. A man who is always doing will be apt to do too much. Such an one would need to ponder over the deeply-practical words of the perfect Servant, "He wakeneth morning by morning, He wakeneth Mine ear to _hear_ as the learned." (Is. l. 4.) This is an indispensable part of the servant's business. The servant must frequently stand in his master's presence, in order that he may know what he has to do. The "ear" and the "tongue" are intimately connected, in more ways than one; but, in a spiritual or moral point of view, if my ear be closed and my tongue loose, I shall be sure to talk a great deal of folly.

"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift _to hear_, slow _to speak_." (James i. 19.) This seasonable admonition is based upon two facts, namely, that everything good comes from above, and that the heart is brimful of naughtiness, ready to flow over. Hence the need of keeping the ear open and the tongue quiet,--rare and admirable attainments!--attainments in which Moses made great proficiency at "the backside of the desert," and which all can acquire if only they are disposed to learn in that school.

"And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire, out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and behold the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, 'I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.'" (Chap.

iii. 2, 3.) This was truly "a great sight"--a bush burning, yet not burnt. The palace of Pharaoh could never have afforded such a sight.

But it was a gracious sight as well as a great sight, for therein was strikingly exhibited the condition of G.o.d's elect. They were in the furnace of Egypt; and Jehovah reveals Himself in a burning bush. But as the bush was not consumed, so neither were they, for G.o.d was there.

"The Lord of hosts is with us, the G.o.d of Jacob is our refuge." (Psalm xlvi.) Here is strength and security--victory and peace. G.o.d _with_ us, G.o.d _in_ us, and G.o.d _for_ us. This is ample provision for every exigence.

Nothing can be more interesting or instructive than the mode in which Jehovah was pleased to reveal Himself to Moses, as presented in the above quotation. He was about to furnish him with his commission to lead forth His people out of Egypt, that they might be His a.s.sembly--His dwelling-place, in the wilderness and in the land of Canaan; and the place from which He speaks is a burning bush. Apt, solemn, and beautiful symbol of Jehovah dwelling in the midst of His elect and redeemed congregation! "Our G.o.d is a consuming fire," not to consume _us_, but to consume all in us and about us which is contrary to His holiness, and, as such, subversive of our true and permanent happiness. "Thy testimonies are very sure; holiness becometh Thy house, O Lord, forever."

There are various instances, both in the Old and New Testaments, in which we find G.o.d displaying Himself as "a consuming fire." Look, for example, at the case of Nadab and Abihu, in Leviticus x. This was a deeply solemn occasion. G.o.d was dwelling in the midst of His people, and He would keep them in a condition worthy of Himself. He could not do otherwise. It would neither be for His glory nor for their profit were He to tolerate aught in them inconsistent with the purity of His presence. G.o.d's dwelling-place must be holy.

So, also, in Joshua vii. we have another striking proof, in the case of Achan, that Jehovah could not possibly sanction, by His presence, evil, in any shape or form, how covert soever that evil might be. He was "a consuming fire," and as such He should act, in reference to any attempt to defile that a.s.sembly in the midst of which He dwelt. To seek to connect G.o.d's presence with evil unjudged is the very highest character of wickedness.

Again, in Acts v, Ananias and Sapphira teach us the same solemn lesson. G.o.d the Holy Ghost was dwelling in the midst of the Church, not merely as an influence, but as a divine Person, in such a way as that one could lie to Him. The Church was, and is still, His dwelling-place; and He must rule and judge in the midst thereof. Men may walk in company with deceit, covetousness, and hypocrisy; but G.o.d cannot. If G.o.d is going to walk with us, we must judge our ways, or He will judge them for us. (See also 1 Cor. xi. 29-32.)

In all these cases, and many more which might be adduced, we see the force of that solemn word, "Holiness becometh Thy house, O Lord, forever." The moral effect of this will ever be similar to that produced in the case of Moses, as recorded in our chapter. "Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for _the place whereon thou standest is holy ground_." (Verse 5.) The place of G.o.d's presence is holy, and can only be trodden with unshod feet. G.o.d, dwelling in the midst of His people, imparts a character of holiness to their a.s.sembly, which is the basis of every holy affection and every holy activity. The character of the dwelling-place takes its stamp from the character of the Occupant.

The application of this to the Church, which is now the habitation of G.o.d, through the Spirit, is of the very utmost practical importance.

While it is blessedly true that G.o.d, by His Spirit, inhabits each individual member of the Church, thereby imparting a character of holiness to the individual; it is equally true that He dwells in the a.s.sembly, and hence the a.s.sembly must be holy. The centre round which the members are gathered is nothing less than the Person of a living, victorious, and glorified Christ. The energy by which they are gathered is nothing less than G.o.d the Holy Ghost; and the Lord G.o.d Almighty dwells in them and walks in them. (See Matt. xviii. 20; 1 Cor. vi. 19; iii. 16, 17; Eph. ii. 21, 22.) Such being the holy elevation belonging to G.o.d's dwelling-place, it is evident that nothing which is unholy, either in principle or practice, must be tolerated. Each one connected therewith should feel the weight and solemnity of that word, "The place whereon thou standest is holy ground." "If any man defile the temple of G.o.d, him shall G.o.d destroy."

(1 Cor. iii. 17.) Most weighty words these, for every member of G.o.d's a.s.sembly--for every stone in His holy temple! May we all learn to tread Jehovah's courts with unshod feet!

However, the visions of h.o.r.eb bear witness to the grace of the G.o.d of Israel as well as to His holiness. If G.o.d's holiness is infinite, His grace is infinite also; and while the manner in which He revealed Himself to Moses declared the former, the very fact of His revealing Himself at all evidenced the latter. He came down because He was gracious; but when come down, He should reveal Himself as holy.

"Moreover he said, 'I am the G.o.d of thy father, the G.o.d of Abraham, the G.o.d of Isaac, and the G.o.d of Jacob.' And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon G.o.d." (Verse 6.) The effect of the divine presence must ever be to make nature hide itself; and when we stand before G.o.d with unshod feet and covered head--_i.e._, in the att.i.tude of soul which those acts so aptly and beautifully express, we are prepared to hearken to the sweet accents of grace. When man takes his suited place, G.o.d can speak in the language of unmingled mercy.

"And the Lord said, 'I have surely seen the affliction of My people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.... Now, therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto Me; and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.'" (Ver. 7-9.) Here the absolute, free, unconditional grace of the G.o.d of Abraham, and the G.o.d of Abraham's seed, s.h.i.+nes forth in all its native brightness, unhindered by the "ifs" and "buts," the vows, resolutions, and conditions of man's legal spirit. G.o.d had come down to display Himself, in sovereign grace, to do the whole work of salvation, to accomplish His promise made to Abraham, and repeated to Isaac and Jacob. He had not come down to see if, indeed, the subjects of His promise were in such a condition as to _merit_ His salvation: it was sufficient for Him that they _needed_ it. Their oppressed state, their sorrows, their tears, their sighs, their heavy bondage, had all come in review before Him; for, blessed be His name, He counts His people's sighs, and puts their tears into His bottle. He was not attracted by their excellencies or their virtues. It was not on the ground of aught that was good in them, either seen or foreseen, that He was about to visit them, for He knew what was in them. In one word, we have the true ground of His gracious acting set before us in the words, "I am the G.o.d of Abraham," and "I have seen the affliction of My people."

These words reveal a great fundamental principle in the ways of G.o.d.

It is on the ground of what He is that He ever acts. "I AM," secures all for "MY PEOPLE." a.s.suredly, He was not going to leave _His_ people amid the brick-kilns of Egypt, and under the lash of Pharaoh's taskmasters. They were His people, and He would act toward them in a manner worthy of Himself. To be His people,--to be the favored objects of Jehovah's electing love--the subjects of His unconditional promise, settled everything. Nothing should hinder the public display of His relations.h.i.+p with those for whom His eternal purpose had secured the land of Canaan. He had come down to deliver them; and the combined power of earth and h.e.l.l could not hold them in captivity one hour beyond His appointed time. He might and did use Egypt as a school, and Pharaoh as a schoolmaster; but when the needed work was accomplished, both the school and the schoolmaster were set aside, and His people were brought forth with a high hand and an outstretched arm.

Such, then, was the double character of the revelation made to Moses at Mount h.o.r.eb. What he saw and what he heard combined the two elements of holiness and grace,--elements which, as we know, enter into and distinctly characterize all the ways and all the relations.h.i.+ps of the blessed G.o.d, and which should also mark the ways of all those who in any wise act for, or have fellows.h.i.+p with, Him.

Every true servant is sent forth from the immediate presence of G.o.d, with all its holiness and all its grace; and he is called to be holy and gracious--he is called to be the reflection of the grace and holiness of the divine character; and, in order that he may be so, he should not only start from the immediate presence of G.o.d at the first, but abide there, in spirit, habitually. This is the true secret of effectual service.

"Childlike, attend what Thou wilt say, Go forth and do it, while 'tis day, Yet never leave my sweet retreat."

The spiritual man alone can understand the meaning of the two things, "go forth and do," and, "yet never leave." In order to act _for_ G.o.d outside, I should be _with_ Him inside. I must be in the secret sanctuary of His presence, else I shall utterly fail.

Very many break down on this point. There is the greatest possible danger of getting out of the solemnity and calmness of the divine presence, amid the bustle of intercourse with men, and the excitement of active service. This is to be carefully guarded against. If we lose that hallowed tone of spirit which is expressed in "the unshod foot,"

our service will very speedily become vapid and unprofitable. If I allow my work to get between my heart and the Master, it will be little worth. We can only effectually serve Christ as we are enjoying Him. It is while the heart dwells upon His powerful attractions that the hands perform the most acceptable service to His name; nor is there any one who can minister Christ with unction, freshness, and power to others, if he be not feeding upon Christ, in the secret of his own soul. True, he may preach a sermon, deliver a lecture, utter prayers, write a book, and go through the entire routine of outward service, and yet not minister Christ. The man who will present Christ to others must be occupied with Christ for himself.