BEAUTY FOR ASHES PART V

THE GARDEN OF GOD

George H. Warnock

 

C O N T E N T S

Chapter 1: Come into My Garden

Chapter 2: Winter .. Asleep in the Snow

Chapter 3: Spring .. Awakening in New Life

Chapter 4: Summer .. Warm and Beautiful

Chapter 5: Autumn .. Bringing in the Sheaves

Chapter 6: The Gardener Waits for the Fruit

Chapter 7: The Wheat and the Tares

Chapter 8: Victory .. and Tragedy

Chapter 9: In Pursuit of One Thing

 

"Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh" (Jas 5:7,8).

First Printing: June 1996 (Printed in Columbia, S.A.)

 

CHAPTER 1

COME INTO MY GARDEN

"Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits" (Song 4:16).

"I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse" (Song 5:1).

"The whole earth is full of his glory", said the prophet; and in this age of clamor and bustle, when a thousand conflicting voices would invade our hearts and minds to distract us or distort our vision, it would do us all good to draw aside to hear a word from the book of nature... God’s creation. But always, of course, in the context of the Bible, the book of New Creation. For the Bible teaches us that "the field" in which the seed of New Creation life is planted, is the world which is now under the curse. "The field is the world", Jesus said (Matt. 13:38). How wonderful to know that the old creation has become the seed plot of the New Creation, and God is the Creator of both; recognizing, of course, that the old creation has become subject to futility by reason of man’s Fall. And so right here in the midst of the old creation God is able to speak to us out from that environment. Jesus said to us, "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow..." (Matt 6:28). And again, "I am the vine, ye are the branches..." (Jn 15:5) . Through these natural things God would point us to reality, to the New Creation... and through them unfold to us something glorious from the Spirit of Truth. It is only after the natural instrument has served its purpose in the will of God that God removes it. Therefore He has removed the serpent of brass, and the ark of the covenant, and the golden candlestick... and every other form of ritual, type, and shadow that belongs to a past order. But the written Word of God remains with us; and so does the book of old creation. So must they remain until the full glory and purpose for which they were given is manifested, and the New Creation shines forth in all its brilliance as the very expression of the thought and heart of God. Some would speak of the written Word as though it were something final and complete in itself. But not so. I am confident our present canon of 66 books is what God intended, But in reality the Word of God goes far beyond the scriptures; and the written Word is not fulfilled in God’s intention until it has been written in the hearts and minds of God’s people. God said, "This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts" (Heb. 8:10). God’s Word has been written in nature, and it has been written on paper... but its ultimate fulfillment comes when it is written in "flesh". And so we read, "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth" (Jn 1:14).

But we must understand that the purpose of His incarnation in flesh was not final in itself either. For after having "finished the work" that the Father gave Him to do on earth, He ascended into the heavens to engage in a "more excellent ministry" from the throne of God. He ministers the same Spirit of Truth that He walked in when He was here... but now He is ministering out from the true Sanctuary in Heaven, to His own who are in the earth, as "the Mediator of a better covenant" (Heb 8:6). In consequence of this ministry from the throne, His redeemed in the earth are to become His very own living epistles, "known and read of all men: …manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God" (2 Cor. 3:2,3). We have been very anxious to get the world to read our Bible--and rightly so. I believe God intends that all people should have His Word written in their own language. It was the printing of the Bible in the language of the people that caused the light of the gospel to shine forth in the world about us, throughout the history of the Church... and especially in the tumultuous period of the Reformation. But the fact remains, and grows more glaring year after year, that we are faced with an impossible task if we conclude that the distribution of more Bibles and more Christian literature is God’s answer to a perishing world. The world does read the Church... they always enjoy reading the Church--and sad to say they are often greatly disillusioned with what they read, and what they see. And not until the Church has become "the epistle of Christ" are the nations going to hear and see the Christ of the Bible. We may train and equip and organize and finance the workers of God, but it is only the reflection of His glory in His people that will change the hearts of men.

What Is God Looking For?

If we know what God is looking for, and what He is waiting for, we would scrap all those theories and dates about the coming of the Lord. If we know for sure that our Lord Jesus is on the throne of glory, interceding for His people to bring them into the fulness of God’s intention... then we would be more concerned that His intention be realized than in speculating about when He is coming back. What is He waiting for? And what is He coming back for? And what is He doing about it right now? He is waiting for a family of sons and daughters in His image and likeness. He is preparing an army who will overcome "by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony" (Rev 12:11) He is building a habitation for Himself, a building made up of "living stones", a temple "not made with hands". He has found "a pearl of great price" a pearl that is formed from a mere grain of sand, but transformed into a gem, by marvelous grace. For it is the Spirit of God who takes the virtues of the living Christ and manifests them in His Church to bring about this precious gem. He is cleansing for Himself a Church, "a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing..." And how? "With the washing of water by the word" (Eph 5:26). He looks for a Holy Bride, and John saw her in prophetic vision coming down out of heaven, and "prepared as a bride adorned for her husband" (Rev 21:2; see 2 Cor 11:2). He looks for fruit from the Vine that was planted in the earth; for Jesus said, "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit" (Jn 15:5). For God is not only Architect, Builder, and Artificer... He is also Bridegroom, and Gardener. And so He tells us, "I am waiting for the precious fruit of the earth." He is not waiting around for the clock to strike the midnight hour. He is waiting for something that will be the fulfillment of His heart’s desire, His holy Church, His spotless Bride, His Pearl of great price, His precious Fruit. And while he is waiting for that, He is diligently preparing His people for "the praise of His glory". And because He patiently waits for that, He admonishes us... "Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh" (Jas 5:8)

Concerning Times and Seasons

In this writing we are going to emphasize the Gardener aspect of His appearing. All evangelical Christians are assured that this is harvest time. And so we are going to speak about God’s Garden particularly as we see it in harvest time. He wants us to understand clearly what He is after when He comes into His Garden in harvest time. If He visits His Garden in winter He doesn’t expect to see much in the way of life. Nevertheless He does encourage us to walk in faithfulness... in season, and out of season. He would encourage us to have hope. He would remind us that winter is a promise of spring and new life. When He comes in spring time, the waters begin to flow and we rejoice in the sense of His blessing. God delights in blessing His people. It’s spring time! The long dreary days of winter are past, and the expectation of new life is present everywhere. When He comes in summer, there is heat and dryness; but mingled here and there He gives showers of blessing, and lots of sunshine; for He knows this is what we need for our maturing. But when He comes in harvest time He looks for one thing, and one thing only. He looks for "the precious fruit of. the earth". And because I am assured this is harvest time, I believe God wants to emphasize what He is looking for in the time of harvest lest we become discouraged or perplexed because of our dryness. He knows all about that because it was He that caused it.

He caused it! And why? Because He wants to bring forth good fruit in His Garden. And though we recognize there are different seasons we experience in our personal lives, we believe it is now harvest time historically as far as the corporate body of Christ is concerned. And so as we continue to praise Him for every season of refreshing He brings in our walk with Him, we must never forget God’s intention in each and every season. No matter what season we are in right now, we must remember that God’s intention is to bring forth a harvest that will satisfy the desire of His own heart. There is a lot of confusion among God’s people these days, as to what God may or may not be doing at this time. We hear questions like this: "Is this thing of God? Is this blessing from God?" But let us become more acquainted with the heart of God, and we will discover what He is after... And then, if our hearts and minds are in tune with His heart and mind, questions like these will matter little or nothing. Of course He is blessing His people; but let us be so tuned in with Him that no matter how greatly He blesses us, our response to that blessing is simply this:

"Thank you Lord for Thy blessings; but may I not fall short of the greatest blessing of all, to grow in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, that I might become a ‘vessel unto honour’. For I know if I fail to become the gold and silver Thou art looking for, all the blessings showered upon me will have been in vain. Guard my heart lest Thy blessings blind my eyes to Thy desire and intention in my life, that I might come forth in Thy image and likeness."

Truly the prophet tells us, "Thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not" (Isa. 58:11), But if it is harvest time, then let us know for sure that the Gardener is looking for one thing in this great hour, and that is fruit... fruit that is nothing less than the reproduction of His own character and nature in the hearts of His people. Anything less than this cannot delight the heart of the Gardener who planted the incorruptible seed of truth within His people, and is waiting patiently for that seed, through His own care and watchfulness, to bring forth "after its kind". It is the law of the old creation, and it is the law of the New Creation... the seed must bring forth "after its kind". Let us never forget that the Seed is Christ and God cannot be satisfied with a harvest that does not eventually bring forth the character and quality and nature of Christ in His people.

The Invisible Things of God

"For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead" (Rom. 1:20).

What a tremendous thing is this! That in everything God made we have an expression of some particular aspect of God’s glory and wisdom--so man might see and hear and come to know God. And until the hearts of men became totally darkened through willful sin and disobedience; what God created became God’s Word to them. It was the only Bible men had in those early beginnings. The apostle tells us how man lost this capacity to know God: "When they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened" (Rom. 1:21). This started man on his long road to apostasy, from which he has never recovered. Instead of worshipping God, they began to worship the things He had created. Instead of thanking Him for the beautiful things He had given, they began to worship those beautiful things. They made much of the gifts He had given, but dishonored the Giver. And this is just as evident in so-called Christian nations as it is among the heathen. When anything that God made comes between man and his Creator, it is idolatry. Materialism is idolatry. Humanism is idolatry. Adulating some great gift or some gifted minister that God set in the Church to edify the body of Christ, is idolatry. God has created good things for man, and continues to give him wonderful gifts and blessings, that through these things he might discover God, and come to know Him better. "Hear ye Him" is the voice of scripture, as well as the voice of nature. What He made had its origin in the realm of the invisible, but it is not to be venerated as God. "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear" (Heb. 11:2). God did not create the universe out of nothing. He drew from the invisible realm--attributes, qualities, areas of wisdom and knowledge, that are inherent in Himself. Christ is in reality that Word, the Logos... the One through whom God made all things (Jn 1:3; Heb 1:2). He is the ultimate expression of the heart and mind of God. Some boldly say, "The Bible is God’s final revelation to men, and there is no revelation apart from the Word". This is true if we recognize that the writers of scripture point to the Word Himself, the Logos, as the One who came into the world as the Ultimate Word of God. The scriptures were written by inspiration of the Spirit and can only be understood with the mind of the Spirit. And so the apostle Paul said, "…which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual" (1 Cor. 2:13). I understand the thought is, "…combining spiritual things with spiritual". Paul was given the spirit of wisdom and revelation so that he was able to reach out in realms of the Spirit, and bring forth spiritual truths to those who had received a spiritual mind by new birth. We are utterly dependent upon the Holy Spirit for anything we receive from God, by way of knowing and understanding truth. And as our eyes are anointed with the eye-salve of the Spirit, and our ears are opened to hear His voice, only then do we hear the voice of Truth. Only then do we understand the "mysteries" of God. We see the whole earth to be filled with His glory (Isa. 6:3); for all things were created to be a praise and glory to God who created them.

Creation’s Song of Praise

The prophet Isaiah was caught away in the Spirit and said, "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory" (Isa 6:3). And the Psalmist calls upon all creation to show forth the excellencies of their Creator--

"Praise ye him, all his angels:

Praise ye him, all his hosts.

Praise ye him, sun and moon:

Praise him, all ye stars of light.

Praise him, ye heavens of heavens,

And ye waters that be above the heavens.

Let them praise the name of the LORD:

For he commanded, and they were created.

He hath also established them for ever and ever:

He hath made a decree which shall not pass.

Praise the LORD from the earth,

Ye dragons, and all deeps:

Fire, and hail; snow and vapour;

Stormy wind fulfilling his word:

Mountains, and all hills;

Fruitful trees, and all cedars:

Beasts, and all cattle;

Creeping things, and flying fowl:

Kings of the earth, and all people;

Princes, and all judges of the earth:

Both young men, and maidens;

Old men, and children:

Let them praise the name of the LORD:

For his name alone is excellent;

His glory is above the earth and heaven" (Ps. 148:1-13).

We do not have to look far in this passage to see what God considers to be true praise. How can all created things praise Him? How can even inanimate things or impersonal things praise Him? Only as each creature in his own place and calling gives expression to that aspect of glory that God endowed him with in creation: the sun by shining; the moon by reflecting the glory of the sun; the stars by adorning the evening sky and giving direction and guidance to man; the fire by consuming; the wind by blowing; the tree by waving its leaves, and bringing forth its fruit for man, or in providing lumber for his home; the birds by singing; or the judge by executing justice in the earth; the young men and maidens, old men and children... each by exalting the Lord in word and in deed, in songs of praise--and much more than that--in their whole manner of life. We were created to manifest and show forth the living God in the earth, and if we are not doing that, we are not praising God. Praise in too many cases has become a ritual the people go through for a few moments as they gather together in church--only to leave the place of assembly to go about their own selfish interests the rest of the week.

True praise is simply that manner of life one lives in unison with his Lord, as he fulfills his God-ordained purpose for living. He is not emulating the other, or desiring the place occupied by another--but simply giving expression to the created life and calling that God gives to every man. And so is fulfilled the prophesy of Isaiah, "The people that shall be created shall praise the LORD" (Ps 102:18).

According to the nature and character of the New Creation life God has given us, so let us live "to the praise of the glory of his grace" (Eph 1:6,12). Some are so intent upon emulating the ways of others that they fail to fulfill the specific purpose that God has in mind for them. The chirp of the sparrow is just as pleasing to God as the honk of the Canada goose, because it is fulfilling the purpose for which God created it. The robin or the lark would be entirely out of their element if they attempted to bark like the dog, or honk like the goose. He is humble who abides faithfully in his calling before the Lord, and proud if he attempts to portray himself as something other than God created him to be. The peacock has a name for being proud, when he spreads his feathers for all to admire. If he had knowledge enough to know what people are thinking, he would wonder why they consider he is proud for having such gorgeous feathers. He sees nothing special about himself. There is no vainglory, no pride, no desire to emulate the eagle or the crane or the swallow... no attempt whatever to be a little prettier or a little more gorgeous than the way God made him. He simply spreads his feathers, and gives glory to the God who created him. But a proud-hearted man looks on and surmises: "See how proud he is!".

God Must Reveal Himself

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was made flesh, and dwelt (pitched His tent) among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth" (Jn 1:1,14). Because He is God, He must make Himself known, He must reveal Himself. He is essentially Life, inherent Life, and Life must show itself to be alive. That Life is Light. Light must shine forth, for light is self-revealing. The Name of God speaks of all that He is in the nature of His being; but the Word speaks of this same God declared and spoken forth. And so we read, "For thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name" (Ps 138:2). Why is the Word above His Name? Because God is more glorious in the expression of His being, than He is in secluding Himself from His creation. What is a word, but the declaration and unfolding of that which is in your heart and mind? Words fail us many times, because of our inadequacy to say clearly what we mean. But in Christ the Logos, the Word, the expression of God’s heart and being was so complete that the Word was Himself God, shining forth in the face of Jesus Christ:

"The LORD possessed me in the beginning of his way,

Before his works of old.

I was set up (anointed) from everlasting,

From the beginning, or ever the earth was.

When there were no depths, I was brought forth;

When there were no fountains abounding with water.

Before the mountains were settled,

Before the hills was I set forth:

While as yet he had not made the earth,

Nor the fields, nor the highest part

Of the dust of the world.

When he prepared the heavens, I was there;

When he set a compass upon the face of the depth;

When he established the clouds above;

When he strengthened the fountains of the deep:

When he gave to the sea his decree,

That the waters should not pass his commandment:

When he appointed the foundations of the earth:

Then I was by him, as one brought up with him:

And I was daily his delight,

Rejoicing always before him;

Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth;

And my delights were with the sons of men" (Prov 8:22-31).

He was there, the Logos, the Word of the eternal God... yearning for expression, for manifestation, for the unfolding of the Father’s heart. He was there in every phase of the creative work of God. "All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made" (Jn 1:3). He was the Divine Artificer, seemingly separate from God because He proceeded from Him to live with men… but He was the Word of the Father in flesh. And so fully and completely did He reveal the Father that there was nothing lacking of the character and nature of God in our Lord Jesus when He walked here in the earth.

Old Creation .. the Seed Plot of the New

We have emphasized that God must fully reveal Himself to His creation, because of who He is. It was with purpose and design, therefore, that God did not annihilate the old creation and then begin to create a new one. He needed both creations... the one that fell into futility, and the one that He would raise to life and glory. The old creation became the fertile soil in which He would drop the seed which would bring forth the new. The old was to become the womb, out of which a New Creation would be born, And the old creation is even now in the bondage of corruption and decay, and travailing in birth-pangs, yearning for the deliverance that shall come with "the manifestation of the sons of God" (See Rom. 8:19-21).

We may be inclined to look upon the outflow of God’s love in Redemption merely as the divine remedy for the Fall. True, it is all of that, and we must for ever praise Him for His glorious Redemption. But it is much more than a remedy. For the plan of Redemption preceded the creation of man, and the fall of man. God had an "eternal purpose" concerning His chosen ones, even "before the foundation of the world" (Rom 16:25; Eph 1:4; see ch 3:11). And in the Book of Revelation we see the Lamb as One "slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev.13:8). God saw fit to use the old creation, and fallen man in particular, as the vessel through whom He would reveal the fulness and completeness of His glory. How shall we know the fulness of light, if we have not known the darkness? How shall we know the greatness of God’s longsuffering and patience, except he restrains Himself in painful forbearance during the reign of evil? How shall we know the infinite depths of His love, except through the revelation of the Cross, where God lavished His mercy and compassion on rebels such as you and me? God needed His infinite plan of Redemption for the full display of His own unsearchable attributes.

However, we had better not try to figure these things out with our natural mind. By faith we understand the mysteries of God... not because He gives the wisdom to reason it all out, but because we know there is a rest in God when we believe what He has spoken. And so the apostle tells us, "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God..." (Heb. 11:3). He goes on to tell us that the things we see were made from the realm of the invisible and leaves it at that. With this kind of "faith understanding", if we may call it that, we "understand" what our greatest scientists cannot understand. They are spending billions of dollars in the hope of making this discovery: How did the universe come into being? We know how; because God has given us a faculty that is beyond that possessed by any of earth’s great intellectuals--the faculty of faith. Where our minds can go no further, we can stop right there--and faith becomes the reason we understand. "And God said, Let there be light: and there was light" (Gen 1:3). Blessed are we if we can learn to stop right there, especially when we realize we are dealing with eternal things--and find true rest and joy in believing what God has spoken.

We know that God allowed the old creation to sink into futility, in expectation of redemption (See Rom. 8:19-21). He causes the Light to shine out of the darkness. Out of the depths of sin and depravity, the righteousness and holiness of God shine forth in amazing grace. In a world of hatred and rebellion against God, He shows forth mercy and compassion and love beyond all the confines of sin and darkness. In man’s age-long and persistent rebellion against his Creator, God is showing forth the depths of His patience and longsuffering in a way He could never have done before the fall of man (Rom. 9:22,23).

But let us beware lest in recognizing these principles we fall into the trap of calling evil good, and good evil. Lest we say that God cannot judge evil, because He designed that man should fall in order that He might redeem him. And lest we say that God made Satan just as he is now, in order to show forth His own glory. All such surmisings are not only vain, but they malign God; and the apostle tells us that those who say such things fall under God’s righteous judgments. (See Rom. 3:5-8). (Note: We have said more about The Origin of Evil in the writing, Who are You?).

Redemption, God’s Masterpiece

In the heart of the artist or musician or artificer--someone with special creative talents--there is always that inherent desire to bring forth their masterpiece. They try and try again, but remain unsatisfied. There is always that nagging sense of failure... "I haven’t done it yet... I’m not satisfied. I cannot rest till I have done my very best... and this is not it!" And yet no matter how many times they try, they generally end up with the feeling, "It could have been better... I must try again".

Now God is the infinite Artist, and Builder, and Architect of all things. Unlike "masters" here in the earth He doesn’t try, and try, and try again; but often it seems that way. And the evolutionist would like us to imagine that’s the way it is. We might get the impression that God tried to make a perfect man when He made Adam... and failed. That He tried to bring forth a holy nation in Israel... and failed. That He tried to establish Aaron in a holy priesthood... and failed. That He tried to set up a powerful kingdom in David, or Solomon... and failed. But it was not that way. Rather He was demonstrating over and over again the futility of man, and the inability of man to maintain order and beauty in a fallen creation. But underlying all this was the scarlet thread of Redemption, while He waited in great patience and longsuffering for the day when He Himself would come on the scene, and bring forth the ultimate Masterpiece of His creative hands.

And so we have the story of Redemption. It is there that God poured everything He had into the creative work of His hands, and found rest and delight in a people whom He created for His glory, For the apostle Paul tells us that "We are His workmanship" (Eph 2:10). To bring about our Redemption, God poured everything He had, everything He is... into the redemption of His people. So in reality "We are His Masterpiece!" It cost God everything He had... even His only Begotten Son. And we will never fully appreciate the glory of Redemption until we understand that it was God Most High who clothed Himself in flesh, and submitted Himself to the hatred and scoffing of His rebellious creatures for their redemption and transformation! And that it was in this great creative work that He found complete fulfillment and could stand back and say, "It is finished". He made this declaration, first from the Cross, and will declare it yet again from His exalted throne in the heavens (Jn 17:4; 19:30; Rev.l0:7). For what He accomplished at the Cross must yet be consummated in a people made complete in Christ, and conformed to His image. The old creation could manifest but the limited rays of His glory. It took the New Creation for God to manifest the full shining Light of His glory, And the redeemed ones of Adam’s race are yet to be revealed to the highest of His celestial creatures, as His ultimate and perfect Masterpiece. No wonder we are told that the angels desire to peer into these things that pertain to our salvation! (1 Pet 1:12). And so in redemption:..

We behold God in His infinite depths, as well as God in His infinite heights.

We see Him stooping to lowest realms of darkness, to raise a people into the highest realms of light.

We see the glory of His condescension, as well as the glory of His ascension.

We see the glory of His weakness, as well as the glory of His power.

We see the glory of His emptiness, as well as the glory of His fulness.

We see the glory of His humility, as well as the glory of His exaltation.

We see Him stopping in His steps, to hear the cry of a blind Bartimaeus,

And we see Him riding majestically in the heavens, as the One who has conquered over all the forces of evil.

We see Him riding into Jerusalem on the foal of an ass,

And we see Him ascending in clouds, with power and great glory.

We see a bleeding Lamb, slain for our redemption.

And we see the same Lamb, high and lifted up on the throne of Glory, with angels and cherubim falling down before Him, and the redeemed of the earth crying out..

"Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation" (Rev 5:9)

And it is in and through this strange combination of the weakness of man and the majesty of God Most High, that He is seen as the Master Workman of the New Creation. In a way that no artist or musician has ever been able to do, God has invested everything He has, everything He is, in the people whom He has redeemed for His glory. He can do no more for us--other than to open our eyes and ears and hearts to receive and to perceive the fulness of His salvation. This is a great work, indeed; and for this we continue to cry out, and hope for, and expect. Then will He be fully satisfied. Then will He "rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing" (Zeph 3:17)

But let us not think for a moment, having come into this fulness of glory, that we have come to the end. In this life, when we come to the end of a matter, or to the end of life... we face deterioration and decay. But in New Creation life--how could we ever exhaust the riches of Him who is infinite and eternal? Even now as partakers of Eternal Life there is to be an expansion of His glory within us, and this must go on throughout eternal ages. Here in this brief period of our lives that we call "time" we can only pause for a moment, and faintly discern a new galaxy of truth and revelation far beyond the limits of our present spiritual constellation. But as surely as we find ourselves caught up unto God and into His eternal purpose, the realms of eternity become more and more real to us. So we must continue to abide in Him, now and all our days, as we anticipate the glory that is yet to be revealed. For how can we know, except in the most incomplete and fragmentary way... what God means when He declares to us "That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus" (Eph 2:7)? Nor do we say these things to encourage more research in those areas, for it is certain they will remain obscure to us until we become one with Him in His love. Rather, our hope is that He would bring us to greater humility and worship before Him, for knowledge can very easily blind our eyes to the more excellent way, and nurture pride in our hearts.

"Lord cause us to know Thee more and more, and to see Thee as Thou art... as we linger in this brief realm of time for but a moment. Yes, we want to know more about those eternal realms of glory... but help us to understand we will only achieve our goal as we come to know Thee better. Purge our hearts from thoughts of greatness, and cause us to learn patience and humility, and to walk in love here in a world of hatred and malice. For knowledge puffeth up, but love buildeth up. Grant that with all patience and longsuffering we may come to a place of maturity in this life, rather than seeking to pry open the flowers of grace that Thou hast promised for the ages to come. For as surely as we do that... we may indeed smell a little of its fragrance, but we will never see the glory of the flower in full bloom."

 

CHAPTER 2

WINTER .. ASLEEP IN THE SNOW

"While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease" (Gen 8:22).

This was God’s covenant with Noah when he and his family came out of the ark. So God has ordained our seasons. In the next few chapters I want to talk about each of the seasons in turn... our emphasis being on harvest time, and what our Gardener is looking for in the day of harvest. And although there are many places in the earth where only two seasons are recognized (some places perhaps only one)... up here where we live in the far North, we expect four seasons. Officially our winters are supposed to start about the third week of December, and spring is supposed to follow about the third week of March. But winter is one visitor who will generally make his appearance before the due date in December, and he seems to linger around much longer than his scheduled departure date in March. He may leave for a brief time when he is reminded "spring time" has come. But generally he will drop back several times in the next couple of months before he leaves the country... just to say "hello... and good bye". But we know God has ordained the seasons wherever we may be living on this planet; and He has made us hardy enough to survive the worst of winters. Not denying, of course, that many of our people will migrate to the deep South as December approaches. "Snowbirds" is what they are called by those who live in those warm climates. But come spring, and our "Snowbirds" are back again to enjoy our beautiful summers here in the far north. And so we will consider the seasons as four, …winter, spring, summer, and autumn… and in that order, for Jesus said, "the harvest is the end of the world".

Come into my garden when the snow is piled high, and underneath everything is frozen and lifeless. All you can see is a picture of death and coldness. There is no sign of life and nothing to delight the eye. All lays silent and bare beneath a blanket of snow. If anything ever grew there, no one would ever detect it now. It seems so tragic. What could have happened?

Of course we are quite familiar with the seasons, and we know it is just not the time for growth; and we are content to let nature take its course. But not so in the spiritual realm. We must never tolerate any negative thoughts of coldness and barrenness. In spite of the temperature or the snow or the season--we insist on sowing some seed, or reaping a harvest, or looking to the Lord for showers of blessing. I know we must be "always ready" to do the will of God. But Jesus said, "My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready" (Jn 7:6). Disciplined sons are not ‘always ready’ to do whatever they think has to be done. But they do stand ready to obey the voice of their Lord and Master at all times. They move in God’s Spirit... not in their own.

In God’s purpose there are seasons and times for opposite things. And God would have us know that the things that are contrary to us, even these things become part of God’s plan, who knows how "to work all things together for good, to them that love God". Paul experienced these workings, and therefore could testify "that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel" (Phil 1:12). He found himself "approved" as a minister of God, "By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; as sorrowful yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things" (2 Cor 6:7-10). He knew there were opposite seasons in life, and that as he was faithful "in season, and out of season"... God would be glorified in his life and ministry.

Let us not blame every uncomfortable situation on the Devil. It is God who sends the winter… for He ordained all the seasons. Or is it God who sends the south wind, and Satan who sends the north wind? No,--it is God! "Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden..." (Song 4:16). Is it God who sends the rain, and the Devil who sends the snow? No, it is God!

"He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth:

His word runneth very swiftly.

He giveth snow like wool:

He scattereth the hoar frost like ashes.

He casteth forth his ice like morsels:

Who can stand before his cold?" (Ps 147:15-17)

It is God who "sends" it, and He wants us to know it is part of the cycle He ordained for the good of man. He wants us to know that under the cloak of snow and ice there is a promise of hope. Hope for the next season of spring! There can be no real spring if there is no real winter. They only enjoy real spring who have lived through the long dreary days and nights of our northern winters. Those who live in temperate climates the year round know little or nothing of the snow and the ice and the frost and the blizzards of the wintry north.

You cannot manufacture the true joy of the Lord. The joy of the Lord is born out of sorrow, and barrenness, and suffering. You do not send for the birds when the winter is over and gone; they just appear when the right season comes around. We enjoy hearing the chirp of the robin when the snow is still on the ground, and the days are cool. We know that spring time is not far away.

It is the "joy of the Lord" that comes with every measure of the Cross He places upon our shoulder. It is not our joy, but His... and ours as we become identified with Him in His sufferings... believing where we cannot see, and hoping in endurance for the fulfillment of the promise when all seems contrary to it. It is the joy that comes after the sacrificial life is poured out at His feet, and its fragrance fills the whole house where He is sitting. To that sacrifice of a broken and contrite spirit, He Himself takes the pure anointing oil containing all the, fragrance of myrrh and sweet cinnamon and sweet calamus and cassia and pours it on His people. But this holy oil also contained ingredients of bitterness (Ex 30:23-33). For He is the great High Priest, who has been "anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows"; and He shares that anointing with them, as they come into union with Him. It is His joy and gladness... and ours as we abide in Him and share His sufferings.

Joy .. Even in Winter

"Praise the LORD from the earth... Fire, and hail; snow and vapor; stormy wind fulfilling his word" (Ps. 148:7,8)

The weeping sisters said, "Lord, if thou hadst been here my brother had not died". But Jesus had already told His disciples that it was for the glory of God that He would not be there. Stormy wind fulfilling His word!

"Why are you sad-faced, and so dejected and disheartened?" said the Stranger to the disciples who were on the way to Emmaus. "O haven’t you heard?" they replied. "Heard what?". "About Jesus of Nazareth the great Prophet, who did so many wonderful things. We were sure He was the Messiah, but they crucified Him three days ago. There are rumors He is alive again, but it’s hard for us to believe it!" Stormy wind fulfilling His word!

Mary Magdalene stood at the sepulchre of Jesus weeping, and her eyes were so filled with tears she could not discern the face of the One she loved standing by her side. Stormy wind fulfilling His word!

Hear Jacob’s sad lament: "Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and now ye will take Benjamin away all these things are against me!" If only he knew! All these things were actually working together for his good, and for the glory of God who had taken Joseph from the prison to set him above princes. Stormy wind fulfilling His word!

"Call me not Naomi, call me Mara…" said Naomi to her friends and relatives in Israel, when she had returned from the land of Moab: "For the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me." Little did she realize that God was working out in her life the secret of His own will, and preparing the way for the birth of David, and of David’s Son and Lord in centuries to come! Stormy wind fulfilling His word!

 

CHAPTER 3

SPRING .. AWAKENING IN NEW LIFE

"He sendeth out his word and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow" (Ps 147:18).

Winter is not a tragedy... it is a promise of the coming hour of spring. The sorrows of His beloved ones are transformed by His love and grace into the joys of triumph. It is the purpose of God and our recognition of it that turns the tragedy into a promise, a dark cloud into a ray of hope. I said "our recognition of it" not our understanding of it. For faith is available in every hour of need to by-pass our understanding, and to impart the joy and assurance which a full and complete knowledge of the situation could not bring. "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28). Notice again, it is "according to His purpose". And the purpose of winter is to prepare the earth for spring. The snow and the ice are piled high on the hills and mountains so that in the hour of spring there may be a mighty flow of water to bless the land. There are "treasures of the snow" (Job 38:22). And the earth will discover it in the time of spring... as the snow melts and the rivers are filled with water, and flow through the land.

But what makes the difference between winter and spring time? What makes the difference between the north wind and the south wind? Just the cycle of God’s purpose. The sun is just as brilliant in winter as it is in summer. It is the season that accounts for the different climate. We feel the cold of the north wind; but when it completes the cycle it becomes the south wind. Coming from the north it is blighting, freezing, crippling, devastating. The green fields are frozen to desolation... the rivers and streams are stopped in their courses... nature seems to come to a complete standstill. Give it time, and when the north wind has fulfilled its purpose, God will send the south wind. It will break up the ice which covered the earth and the waters, and melt the snow which it had previously brought. Come spring time, and "He sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow..." (Ps. 147:18).

We may be inclined to envy those who seem to have a consistent, unhindered, positive walk with the Lord, --those who seem to have experienced little of devastation and frustration. But something is often lacking. You may not sense that outflow of gentleness and mercy and patience and longsuffering. Those who have known struggles and perplexities and barrenness and defeat and wintry seasons are the ones who discover peculiar and abundant joy when the winds begin to blow from the south. These are the ones who find it easy to melt in His presence in the wonderful hour of spring, and to flow together in the mighty river of God. The Church may appear to be very impressive and mighty, but how cold and lifeless! The snow and the ice heaped up on the mountains present a beautiful, scenic picture but each snow-capped mountain peak continues to maintain its own denominational status, and each little snow-flake its own selfish identity. God is going to cause a melting, and a flowing together... until every little snow-flake and every little crystal of ice loses its identity in the mighty River of God. Then it will be "full of water", as the Psalmist said... to bless the land through which it flows. There can be no real unity apart from that vital union with Christ by the Holy Spirit... as God causes His people to melt under the gaze of the Sun of Righteousness, lose their identity as members of this church or that... and flow together in the River of God. We are not talking about "all the churches" flowing together in some kind of ecumenical union, organized and controlled by men who are building something for their own glory. But rather of those members of the body of Christ, who are washed in His blood and born of His Spirit.

The Bursting of Spring

Come into my Garden when spring bursts upon us. No longer is there any lamentation over the cold it suffered. No longer any condemnation upon others for having caused such a hard, cold winter. Nor do we even feel sorry for ourselves any more... but sorry only that we misunderstood God for the hours of winter’s blight. Now we can affirm with the apostle, "Tribulation worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us" (Rom. 5:3-5). Now we can say with the broken heart of Joseph, "therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life" (Gen 45:5). Now we can say with Job, "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes" (Job 42:5,6). Before his trial he had a certain knowledge of God... a theological concept of God, but all this passes away in the manifestation of His presence. It was not easy to see the sun as you lay there under the snow, frozen and cold, unmoved and unresponsive. But it was there all along, shining as brilliantly as ever, and just as hot as ever. The same word of God that brought the winter likewise brought the hour of spring. The same word that came to Joseph in dreams and revelations, likewise brought him into Egypt, and tested him in fetters of brass... and later released him to bring life and blessing to Egypt and Canaan and other nations who had experienced the famine. "Until the time that his word came (came to pass), the word of the LORD tried him" (Ps 105:19). God does not love us any less when we lie frozen in the ground, nor any more when we begin to sprout and germinate in the warmth of spring. It’s just that we feel His love more in spring time. But both conditions are necessary for the outworking of His own special purposes. The test of true love is not how good it feels. It is rather--Are we walking in obedience to the Lord? "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me" (Jn 14:21). This is the thermometer that proves our love... are we doing what He wants us to do? Are we keeping His words... words that come from the heart of the Father? (Jn 14:23,24)

Man’s Home is a Garden

The first man Adam was placed in a garden. All that was in it came forth from the Word, the Logos. Everything was "very good", and Adam was required to dress it, and keep it (Gen 2:15). So in the New Creation, God plants His people in a Garden. The River of Life flows through the midst of it, out from the throne of God. On the banks of the river there grows the Tree of Life, bearing all manner of fruit; "and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations" (Rev 22:2). It is a heavenly realm we are looking at... but it is a heavenly realm here on earth. Are we not going to live in Heaven? Of course! But the New Heavens and the New Earth are very much together… and the light and glory of Heaven will radiate throughout the earth. We will have free access to both realms. We may scarcely be able to distinguish the one from the other... the one is so immersed in the other. And we will experience "days of heaven upon the earth" far beyond anything Moses contemplated when he spoke of the land of Canaan (Deut 11:21). "There is no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain" (Rev 21:4). It is because there is a Tree of Life in the Garden... and men will no longer be barred from eating its fruit. There will be no more sorrow, nor crying, nor pain... because the leaves of the Tree are "for the healing of the nations". In the beginning the first man chose to eat from the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil"... and was barred from the Tree of Life. Now man eats of the Tree of life ., for his health and life. And though we see only "through a glass darkly" in these things let us understand that God is working in the heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven now, those qualities of life and grace that will cause them to be very much "at home" in the Garden of God. The riches of grace in Christ Jesus and the blessing of His Spirit are available to us now... as we partake of "the powers of the world to come" (Heb. 6:5). Let us not fear that we are imposing on God’s grace when He introduces us into these realms of the Spirit that belong to the next age. Surely it is but the smallest fragment that we will ever know and experience in this life. Let us therefore be thankful for every good and perfect gift that He bestows upon us now... out from those realms of eternal life. And let us continue to pray: "Thy Kingdom come; thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven".

David saw the River and the City in prophetic vision, and sang: "There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High" (Ps 46:4). Jesus may have been referring to this, or to what Joel said about a "fountain" flowing out of God’s House... when He stood on the last day of the Feast "and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink, He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water" (Jn 7:37,38; see Joel 3:18).

Truth is that River of Life. Let us never get the notion that truth is some musty, age-worn system of creed and dogma which theologians have hammered out from the Bible, and argued over through the centuries. Or something to be avoided by spiritual people lest it bring strife and confusion and contention. The truth does just the opposite. O yes, it will cause contention among the contentious and the disobedient. But God’s living truth will unite and edify the saints, and strengthen those who embrace it. It will be the Urim and Thummim in our breastplate of righteousness, illuminating our pathway wherever we go, guiding us aright in paths of darkness, and clearly indicating God’s will for us in every moment of doubt and every parting of the ways.

"Let not mercy and truth forsake thee:

Bind them about thy neck;

Write them upon the table of thine heart:

So shalt thou find favour and good understanding

In the sight of God and man...

I have taught thee in the way of wisdom;

I have led thee in right paths.

When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened;

And when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

Take fast hold of instruction;

Let her not go: keep her;

For she is thy life" (Prov 3:3,4; 4:11-13)

Truth will make you beautiful… with the beauty of the Lord, with the beauty of holiness. Strange is it not, how we like the artificial so much, when God wants to clothe us with reality. I know the artificial can look very beautiful, by man’s ingenious hands. But it is totally false... totally dead. (Just a few days ago it was my duty to water our plants, as my wife was away. I even watered a couple of artificial plants that were there with the real ones. I didn’t know the difference--till a couple of days later. They looked so real!). There are many of God’s people who do not know the difference. They go about the task of making artificial praise, and artificial worship, and carry on with artificial programs and artificial music in the House of God. Generally it looks so beautiful! But may the living Truth be a garland of grace about our neck, and a beautiful ornament upon our head. Let the Truth be our food and drink; for it is sweet as honey from the honeycomb... as water out of the rock. It is bread to him that is hungry, healing to those who are sick... yea, health to those who embrace her. She will impart strength in the place of weakness, replace folly with wisdom, and give understanding and good discretion in the place of bewilderment and confusion. But you must embrace her... you must long for her more than any earthly treasure. You must acknowledge her beyond any concept of right and wrong that you have devised out of your own heart. "Let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life" (Prov 4:13). You do not become the judge of truth, just because you have come to know the Bible, or have experienced some wonderful blessings from God. Rather you must approach the truth

Not to judge, but to be judged;

Not to confirm your way of life, but to change it;

Not to exonerate your actions, but to lay them

bare before the Judge of all the earth.

Then the truth will flow, and flow, and flow... and unfold, and unfold, and unfold; and you will hear the voice of truth wherever you go and whatever you are doing. As the truth cleanses you and purifies you, so the glory of the Lord shall become that much more brilliant. Your eyes will become illumined to see and behold wonderful things in the invisible realm. The pure in heart will see God. Your ears will become keen to hear sounds and voices of truth that you never knew were there. You will see Him in every rising of the sun, in the stars of the night, in the rainbow of the clouds. You will hear Him in every song of the bird.

But far beyond any of this--you will see Him in your brother and sister in a way you never thought was possible as you walk together in the fellowship of the Spirit and in the light which He sheds across your pathway.

We know we have all fallen short of this high ideal... but let it be our constant prayer and desire. For it is the desire of our Lord who redeemed us. He will not rest until He has found for Himself an abiding place in His people. He will not be satisfied until He comes into His Garden, and partakes of its precious fruit.

Preparation of the Soil

As we come to know the Lord a little more we look back and stand amazed how He led us and prepared our way, even before we knew Him or sought Him. Looking back later in life we realize there were so many accidental or incidental things that happened that the Lord ordained as a necessary preparation for the grace that He would reveal in the days to come. Many things that just happened often prove to have been providential. When our hearts turn to Him, only God in His grace and mercy knows how to take our mistakes and wanderings of the past and cause these to become stepping stones to glory. Suffering there must be for every act of disobedience and waywardness; but when He turns our hearts wholly unto Him, we discover that He has been preparing and disciplining His sons that He might have a fruitful Garden for His own delight.

Turning over the sod may seem to be a useless and aimless sort of thing. But the Gardener must do it if the soil is to receive the seed and the rain to cause it to germinate. Just why did this have to happen to me? I do not know, but I do know that the soil of the heart must be broken. Only the broken and contrite heart can receive the seed of truth that will germinate and take root and flourish. O yes, I might receive the truth with a fleeting joy when it comes to my unbroken heart. Jesus warns us that the stony soil actually receives the word with joy! But it is only for a season. When the tests of life come that kind of joy soon withers away... oftentimes leaving the heart barren and dry. We have every reason to question just how much real good is accomplished in a lot of our church programs these days. There may be plenty of "blessing", and lots of artificial "joy", but we are not talking about that. Is God penetrating the hearts of His people? Are we satisfied with the pleasure of feeling good, and all the time caring less whether the Lord removes the bitterness, the hard feelings against God and our brother, and all those workings of the carnal mind?

Come, let us break up our fallow ground: "for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you" (Hos 10:12). Come, let us break the alabaster box at the feet of Jesus. Let us submit ourselves under His mighty hand, for He is the great Gardener who longs to plant a seed within us that will reproduce His very own image and nature and character. We want to be like Jesus. But we are just the earth, just the dirt of the old creation. How could we ever be like Him? Only as we receive the Seed of life within our little earth, and allow Him to reproduce Himself in all His glorious likeness. And then, out from the dirt that we are, new life springs forth from His creative hand. Paul said, "but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day" (2 Cor 4:16).

Spring Time .. The Sower goes Forth

"Behold, a sower went forth to sow…" (Matt 13:3)

God’s heritage is both Garden and Building, and much is written in the Word concerning both of these aspects of God’s work in his people. "Ye are God’s husbandry (Garden), ye are God’s building" (1 Cor 3:9). God is building a Temple for His glory; and it seems the ministry has generally emphasized the "building program" of God, rather than the "planting" of the good seed, and the fruit that comes out of it. We need to see both sides of the picture. If what we are doing is not by the anointing and guidance of His Spirit, we labour in vain. "For we are labourers together with God"… not "for God" (vs 9). We must never lose sight of the fact that only in abiding union with Christ are we going to bring forth the "good fruit" that He is looking for. And any kind of building we construct, if it is not according to the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus... it will go up in smoke on Judgment Day as "wood, hay, stubble" (vs 13). In all we do, we must know that no man is anything except what God makes him to be by sovereign grace. We are still inclined to prefer one plant in God’s Garden over another, one ministry over another; and it is all totally carnal. God sees no man as anything in His sight... except what He makes him to be by His own redemptive grace and mercy:

"I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase" (1 Cor 3:6,7).

And so the "sower" goes forth with his basket of seed, weeping as he goes. The ground does not always look that good… but He knows the Seed is good, and he hopes and trusts that most of it will fall into good soil, and spring up unto life eternal. He has this confidence, that if God gave him the seed to sow then the Gardener will make sure that the ground is prepared. Oh yes, He knows that some of it may be lost if the heart is "by the wayside". It’s just too close to the road, and. the birds soon find it and devour it. And in the field itself there will be rocky patches... making for quick germination and growth; but having no depth of soil it soon withers away. And other parts of it will have its share of "thorns", which we hope and pray the Gardener will eradicate, as He deals with those who are deceived with riches, and cumbered with the cares of life, But He has promised there will be "good" soil for the "good" seed, and that there will be a "good" harvest: "Some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty" (Matt 13:23).

With this confidence we are sustained as we go forth with our basket of seed, knowing that "He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him" (Ps 126:6).

The Seed is Scattered

The seed is not all planted together in a heap it is scattered. I know the good seed is the Word of God; but the good seed is also called "the children of the kingdom" (Matt 13:38). So let us not fear the scattering of "the children of the kingdom". O yes, for a season the grain is stored in the granary. And of course, we like this kind of unity: when multitudes of God’s people are all together in one place. But it is only for a season. God’s purpose for the seed is to scatter it, that it might reproduce its kind in the earth. Of course our Gardener has a wonderful design and purpose in all this... regardless how much we like this "togetherness". His plants are "the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified" (Isa 61:3). His Garden is beautiful according to His own design. He is not looking for a jungle, but for a fruitful Garden... every plant and tree and shrub in its place; yet with enough space between them that He will be able to deal with each plant according to the design of His heart.

But this is far from the modern concepts of Church growth. We must try to get all the people together, in one building if possible, in the name of unity. Plant the seed in bunches... and the more you can plant in one spot the better. But even as an amateur gardener I have discovered it is best to space the seed in a way that each plant will have room to grow. Sure, I want unity... but I want to leave room for individual growth. Sometimes I have inadvertently spilled too many carrot seeds in one place. I could leave it this way, and let them grow where they are. And when they burst forth above the ground I might say to myself, O what wonderful unity! But as they try to grow I will have nothing but a mess of twisted, gnarled, deformed, stringy, sickly carrots.

"The unity of the Spirit" has nothing to do with bunching God’s people together. Yes, there is a purpose in our gathering together in His Name; and we are not to neglect that. And God does ordain large gatherings on occasion, for special purposes. But God’s desire for His people is that they might have fellowship one with another. And what fellowship do you have sitting in a congregation of hundreds of people, looking at the backs of those in front of you?

O, I know, there’s a minute or two when you turn around and shake their hands, and wish them the Lord’s best. But then... every one is supposed to settle down to the general routine of a well organized meeting.

The early church met very often in the homes of the believers. They would gather with their cares and problems... to be helped, or to help one another. Nowadays the "home church" concept is considered to be radical and new. So what if the home is crowded out? Other homes are made available… and the Church grows united and strong, and multiplied, until the whole city is saturated with the Gospel of Christ, and the Church is edified. I know this sounds very idealistic. And I know, it doesn’t work... if it’s just a concept we are trying to make happen. People have to be hungry, open, and willing to show much grace and patience and love and God, I believe, wants to bring us to that. And if we are not willing to come to that, then let men continue to build their own kingdoms. This does work real well... from a human standpoint. But God alone will judge in the Day of Harvest how much "good fruit" comes out of it.

Our purpose in gathering is not to conform ourselves one to another. It is rather that we might be "conformed to the image of His Son". So in what God calls "the unity of the Spirit" there is a great degree of variance in God’s design for each one of us, as "members in particular" in the body of Christ. Each member of the body, each plant in God’s Garden... must find its own roots in Christ, and discover for himself his distinct calling and placement in God.

It was no tragic thing that happened when God "scattered" the saints in the early Church through persecution. God was behind it all. They had been taught the ways of the Lord. They no doubt had a lot of problems connected with community living, thousands of them being crowded together in the homes of the believers. But they loved one another, and they must have had tremendous fellowship as they walked in the fear of God, and gathered together in the little home churches scattered throughout the city. But it was only for a season. They had matured into "good seed", and Jesus said "He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom" (Matt 13:38). The Sower wanted this precious seed to be reproduced in the earth; so He scattered them far and wide. "Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word" (Acts 8:4).

I recall reading about the Church in China when it was subdued under communism. The people were taken from their homes and forced to live in communes that were organized by the government. But God, in all of man’s arrangements, knows how to put everything together for His own glory. By His own design He purposed to have "good seed" in these communes. It wasn’t long before there were other "good seeds" born into the Kingdom in these government-controlled communes. But if and when too many people were converted to Christ, the authorities ordered them to be "scattered" far and wide into other communes, so as to extinguish their faith, or at least stop them from propagating it. But this was exactly what the Sower wanted to do. They were "good seed", and God wanted this "good seed" to be sown in other parts of that great country. God wants to fill the whole world with "the good seed" of the Kingdom; and He knows how to use even "the wrath of man" to fulfill His purposes!

God may gather His people together in crowds for a certain time, for a certain purpose. But let us be sure of this. If. "good seed" is forming in His people, in due course God is going to do some scattering.

The Seed begins to Germinate

"The sower soweth the word" (Mk. 4:14)

"He saith not, and to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ" (Gal 3:16).

The Christian life is not an imitation of Christ, it is rather Christ reproducing Himself in the hearts of men. There must be new birth and an ongoing unfolding of new creation life: "Not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God which liveth and abideth for ever" (1 Pet 1:23). As humans we are quick to put the stamp of finality on anything God does, failing to realize that God is Life, and whatever proceeds from Him must be unfolding and progressive in its outworking. Certainly there are instantaneous experiences in our walk with the Lord, and in these we rejoice. But God desires a continual unfolding in our lives "from glory unto glory". So that in all subsequent experiences that spring from our new life in Christ, there must be a strengthening and a deepening of our relationship with Him. Any experience that does not bring about this deepening of relationship with Him has fallen short of God’s intention. There has been a lot of controversy over doctrines of first blessing, second blessing, and third blessing. But the doctrine of moving on with God into new realms of grace and glory, day by day and year by year, is not generally understood as God’s plan for His people. And so we have the "getting" and "losing" type of Christian... always getting and losing the blessing, instead of recognizing they are now "blessed... with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Eph 1:3). On the other hand, many who know this to be their heritage .are content to stop there with the knowledge of it. But God’s provisions of grace are intended to bring us into greater and still greater dimensions of the knowledge of the Lord. It is not enough just to become that good seed, that good kernel, that good bulb--no matter how holy we think we are. There must be a rending asunder, a breaking forth into new life, For He made us the kind of seed we are that when planted in His Garden we might come forth in new life, according to His own intention and design. He made us as we are, not so we would remain as we are, but that we might become what He wants us to become. "Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit" (Jn 12:24). God is looking for the increase and unfolding of the new life that is there. Planted in good ground that good seed will begin to crack and break open. And when this happens we are overwhelmed with a sense of weakness and frustration. You were getting it all together, and now what’s happening? God wants us to discover a new center and source of being... even in Him. He wants the old shell to fall away, to give place to the new life into which we were born. We keep insisting that God take away the old nature. "Draw it out of me Lord,--take away that old nature, those old desires." But His desire is to become so great, so big within us, that we simply break apart, and the old life falls away because it can’t abide with the new. And then those very difficult commandments of the New Covenant, suddenly become the operation of the Spirit of Life within us. We strive to "put of f the old man" and to "put on the new". But the "old man" was crucified with Jesus on the Cross; and we must take up our cross and follow Him if we are going to experience new life. Christ alone is pure and holy and undefiled. The old life was crucified at Calvary, and God wants the new life to grow and grow until there is no longer any place for the old. The old must simply disintegrate and fall away.

"Did you finally get through?" "O yes," says the little sprout as it pushes its head through the ground. I prayed through". I believe there is a very great need for prevailing prayer. But let us be assured that every new experience in God is the beginning of a new time of God’s dealings with us. And this must continue until we are conformed to the image of His Son. The new life is visible in the sprouting of the seed, but there is still a long way to go. When the Gardener walks into His Garden He is pleased to see new growth. But He is looking for something more… and He will wait for it.

Sunshine and Rain

"In that day sing ye unto her, A vineyard of red wine. I the LORD do keep it; I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day" (Isa 27:2,3).

I am not at all discouraged because I fail to notice any fruit growing on my trees or shrubs in spring time. But I must give them proper care. I will water them because they need it, not because I can discern any fruit on the vine. God is blessing His people abundantly all over the land. God loves to bless His people. But all the time He is blessing He is hoping and longing for "the firstripe fruit" (Mic 7:1). God wants us to understand this. He doesn’t bless us because we are so spiritual; but His hope is that in blessing us He might make us spiritual. His hope is that by showering us with good things, He might bring us to repentance (Rom 2:4). The Gardener knows just how much those weak plants can stand... so if it gets real hot, He will bless them more than usual. Not because they are so spiritual... but because they are tender and weak, and need it. He is glad to do it because He wants a garden that is strong and healthy. Perhaps at times some of them feel a little superior because they get more rain than others. Perhaps their prayers are answered more readily... they know how to get things from God. They’ve got a lot of faith. I feel a bit concerned at times when I hear some one boasting how God always hears and answers their prayers. If they really love God, and if God has special love for them, I know the time will come when their prayers may not be answered so readily... at least not right at the time of asking, or in the way they expected. God will not allow any of the plants in His Garden to boast about how strong their prayers are, or how strong is their faith. He knows how to humble them in His sight, lest in blessing them too much they begin to assume they are more spiritual than the other plants growing by their side. Some plants are more deeply rooted than others, and because of this they don’t seem to need a blessing every day. Their roots go down far enough to get the moisture far below the surface. Some plants know that they are blessed "with all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies in Christ." Others don’t seem to know this, so they like to feel the rain falling on their head every day. But in either case, both are entirely dependent upon the Lord for their constant source of supply.

The Gardener knows just what we need, and He supplies accordingly. Like Boaz, He will leave "handfuls of purpose" for those who are in need. All these tokens of His love are very precious to us. But God’s purpose is that one day Boaz will marry his begging hand-maid, and make her to be joint-heir with him in all that he has. Yes, "He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes" (1 Sam 2:8). "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt 5:3). I understand the word "poor" in this place, and in many others, means "a beggar, a pauper"... one who is totally dependent on what another might dole out to him. Jesus was that way. For he walked in total dependence upon the Father in His whole way of life and ministry. He took this position when He came to earth to redeem us, and to show us the Way of Life. It was for our sakes "he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich" (2 Cor 8:9)--"Rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom" (Jas 2:5). God make us to be spiritual "paupers"... totally at the mercy of our Heavenly Father. For His mercies are great!

The Gardener blesses His Garden with purpose in mind. He gives a "measure" to every man according as He sees fit (Rom. 12:3; 1 Cor. 12:11). The measure is not according to the desire of the one who receives, but according to the plan and purpose of the One who gives, And that plan is consistent with His election and fore-ordination, that in the ultimate we might come forth "as trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified" (Isa. 61:3). What should it matter to me whether He gives me one gift, or nine: because whatever He gives is not mine to possess, but mine to give away. And if He gives more, then He will require more. We will be judged on that day--not according to the gift He gave... whether it was little or much… but for our faithfulness in ministering the same to others, as "good stewards of the manifold grace of God" (1 Pet 4:10). In whatever ministry or gift He gives, God’s purpose is that we pour it forth unto others, as He may lead and direct by His anointing. It is not mine to waste on myself, but for the beautifying of the whole Garden. So what is the difference? And what is all this striving about getting gifts and blessings? It indicates a complete ignorance of God’s purpose in His people. He gives His blessings to whom He chooses, when and how He wills, that these blessings might flow in His Garden, causing it to grow unto maturity, even unto "a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13). "That ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Pet 1:8).

"Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was weary" (Ps. 68:9). His Garden needs the rain because of the drought, and the heat of the sun. Not merely to protect the plant from the sun, but to enable the plant to receive the life and virtue of the sun. His plants are famishing, and they cry out for rain! But the Gardener has His own motives. He is "looking for the precious fruit" to come forth in due season. And it is in hope of this that He sends the Early and the Latter Rain upon His people: the Early Rain to cause the seed to sprout and grow… and the Latter Rain, just before the Harvest, to bring forth the fruit that the Gardener has been waiting for. God will be faithful to send the Rain... because He must have a fruitful field. He must have "precious fruit" for His own pleasure.

Flourishing in Times of Famine

But there are others, just as needy, who dwell in dry places... and yet seem to be flourishing and fruitful even in times of famine. Why? And why are they not travelling the world in order to find God? Because they have found their roots deep in Him... and they walk with Him, and know Him, and rejoice in His rest and in His love... even in times of drought and famine:

"His delight is in the law of the LORD;

And in his law doth he meditate day and night.

And he shall be like a tree

Planted by the rivers of water,

That bringeth forth his fruit in his season;

His leaf also shall not wither;

And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper" (Ps 1:2,3)

Let us dig deep, beloved! For there is a famine coming on the land! And I think it has already started. "Not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD" (Amos 8:11), But in that day God will have a "fruitful bough" in Egypt (in the world, but not of it) .. and this Joseph people will have bread to share with a world in need, and with the famishing people of God:

"Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall. The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hand were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob" (Gen. 49:22-24).

A true disciple of the Lord Jesus is not a survivalist. God’s agenda for a disciple is not to survive, but to lay down his life. He wants to bless us simply and only to make us a blessing. And this requires that we become "prisoners of the Lord" that others may go free... that we might be broken as bread, that others might eat... and poured out as wine, that others might drink and be blessed. For this is what the Love of God is all about; and it is this "pouring forth" that nurtures the true "joy of the Lord"... the joy of seeing many sons brought to glory.

The Weeding Process

"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud... so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth" (Isa 55:10,11). God never intended that the rain that He sends upon His Garden should be consumed by weeds and thorns and briers. His desire is that His plants absorb the rain into their innermost being... causing them to grow in grace, produce leaves and flowers, and finally bring forth fruit for His glory.

The fruit of our lives is the ultimate proof of the soundness of our doctrine. We must have good doctrine, But the ultimate of good doctrine is the fruit of the Spirit coming forth in the lives of His people. Good doctrine is not a stagnant pool of rules or theological concepts. Good doctrine is pregnant with life, and brings forth life. There is no place in Christian growth for stagnation, where one feels "Finally I’ve found it..." First there is the planting of a good seed, then there is a sprout, then a bud, then the blooming of the flower… and finally the fruit. And God alone will decide in harvest time, whether you have borne good fruit. All along the way there is a growing process, and much blessing upon the plant, but if it doesn’t come to the full intention of the Gardener, all that blessing has been for nought.

"For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God. But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned" (Heb 6:7,8).

The very same rain that strengthens and nourishes the plant and causes it to flourish, will strengthen and nourish the thorns and briers and cause them to flourish. God knows this, and He cautions us about the weeds. If we are drinking God’s rain let us be sure we are seeking Him to know how to eradicate the thorns and briers; because these will grow alongside your corn and tomatoes if you will let them. And they will flourish with the same rain that waters the corn. When I built our home it was a part-time project, as I was working full time at my job. So I did not have the time to pull out the thistles that started to flourish in the back yard. Not many seasons went by till my Canada thistles were growing six feet tall; and when I started a garden some years later it took another couple of years to get the weeds under control. What caused all this? Well, those seeds were already there. The soil had been worked over during construction and this added to the problem. But it was the precious rain from heaven that caused them to flourish. Jesus warned us about the danger of "thorns" in our garden, which He describes as "the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, (which) choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful" (Matt 13:22).

Let us understand what God is showing us. Even His good rain will cause thorns and briers to grow in your heart, if not eradicated. God’s blessing upon our lives will nurture pride, bitterness, strife, conceit, high-mindedness, covetousness... and all kinds of hurtful lusts, if we are not watchful. I didn’t say God’s blessing would cause it--I said His blessing would nurture it. And all the while you may be rejoicing in the great things God is doing in your life and ministry. You and I had better understand that with every blessing He gives, the Gardener is seeking to reveal the "thoughts and intents of the heart". Paul admonishes us to look diligently "lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled" (Heb. 12:15).

"Lord, help us to understand that the further we go on with Thee, the greater is our responsibility.

That the more we receive of Thee, the more dost Thou expect to receive from us,

That the greater our capacity for truth and revelation, the greater likewise will be our capacity for pride and deception.

That when the unclean spirit moves out, and the owner sweeps his house clean and beautifies it--the evil spirit may, come back with seven others more vile than he. If we do not ask the Lord earnestly to come and inhabit our house--the Enemy will attempt a comeback, and the house will become seven-fold more evil than it was before. (See Matt 12:43-45).

That unless Thou dost become our habitation, our center and source of life, the more will we be filled with our own ways, And consequently the greater will be our own delusion.

But may we always find grace to lose our lives, lay down our gifts, our blessings, our all--that we may find true blessing and joy in the Fountain-head of Truth, even in Thee alone."

Rooted and Grounded in Him

Our Gardener desires that our roots be firmly grounded in Him, which means that we are to become totally dependent upon Him. We will only bear good fruit, much fruit, more fruit--as we sink our roots deep in the soil of His love and truth. "And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward" (Isa 37:31). This relates to what the apostle Paul said, "That ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge" (Eph 3:17-19). So often I get the feeling that God’s people hear and read these tremendous things in God’s word--and sort of pass them off with a shrug: "Yes, that’s wonderful, isn’t it?" But they go on their way pursuing religious programs, and magnifying the blessings in their midst, as if these were the ultimate issues of life. I think it is true in our day, as it was said of Ephraim through the prophet, "I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing. They sacrifice flesh for the sacrifices... but the LORD accepteth them not..." Then he adds, "Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth temples" (Hos 8:12-14). They were very diligent in the religious ritual, which God didn’t even want; and in doing all these things they forgot their Maker, and built temples!

These great and precious truths concerning a people coming into the exhaustless riches of Christ are considered to be far-out strange things. And they go their way offering sacrifices and building temples "for the glory of God". And yet in and through it all God is searching, yearning… for the sacrifices of "a broken and a contrite heart". He is longing for a habitation in the hearts of His people. We must never despise the blessings, but He wants all these to give way to an "abiding" realm in Christ. While we do our part by walking in obedience, all the while He is faithfully doing His part... in weeding, and thinning, and transplanting, and cultivating, and turning over the sod. He is faithfully exposing all our potential enemies to the rays of the Sun of Righteousness, so that they might wither away in His presence. Many a weed, many a thorn and brier has been removed entirely from your life and mine without us even knowing it, because of His faithfulness. But let there be no self-confidence in any of us, for in our flesh there "dwelleth no good thing". Let there be no glorying in spiritual attainment--in gifts, in ministries, in mighty operations of God... for such glorying has nurtured roots of pride and arrogance in many, and smothered them with leaves of self-righteousness.

God’s Inheritance in His People

"Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance…" (Ex 15:17).

It is by no means a comfortable feeling to be torn up from the roots, and planted in a brand new environment. It may seem a little cruel on the part of the Gardener, but He will take great care. When this happens, we can wilt quite easily. But as some one has pointed out, God will leave a bit of the old dirt there on the roots, till the plant is able to take root in the new soil. We may have felt quite comfortable in our little church, in our home fellowship, in our denomination, in our world of religious activity. And I don’t think we should despise "the sincere milk of the word" that God fed us with in former days... nor assume that we are more mature than we really are. For the Bible tells us: "Despise not thy mother when she is old" (Prov 23:22). But neither are we supposed to be tied to our dear mother’s apron strings the rest of our lives. God had planned from the beginning to plant us "in the mountain of His inheritance". It was never His intention that we should take firm root, and flourish, and die in Egypt... nor yet in the wilderness not even in Elim, refreshing as it was for a season; "where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees" (Ex 15:27). It seems strange that God’s people who are generally ready to expand their horizons for temporal gain in business or education, so often seem to have no vision for progress and enlargement beyond their circle of religious activity, no yearning to explore "the deep things of God". It is considered to be too far-out... one of those strange things. God never brought us where we are now, to leave us here the rest of our days, going through the routine of religious services. His intention is to plant us in the mountain of His inheritance "in the place, O LORD, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established" (Ex 15:17). You mean He wants to plant us in His own home, in His own inheritance, in His own Garden? Exactly. A Garden to beautify His own inheritance? A Garden that will provide fruit to satisfy His own hunger? Yes, He longs for that. But He is not hungering for sacrifice and offering, nor for the beasts of the field, as Israel thought. Not for ceremony and ritual. Not for the temples men are building for His glory. Not for our natural resources and wealth. He has no delight in any of these things. What then is He hungering for? He wants to come in and sit at our table, and eat with us.

Standing at the Door of Laodicea

I see our Lord still standing there, outside the door of the Laodicean Church, knocking and hoping that someone would let Him in. There on the inside there is plenty of joy, good music, and lots of action. There are programs for everybody, ministrations for every good cause, but not much for Him. There is good preaching, nice choir singing, wonderful orchestras, and the beat of the drums and cymbals to keep every one in the proper mood. There is beautiful worship with all the frills of banners and ribbons. Lots of color... gold and purple and silver. There is jubilation among the young people... and passive forbearance on the part of the old. There are even prophetic utterances from time to time, generally reminding them how much the Lord loves them and how God is using them for His glory. But generally no one listens too much, because they have heard all that before.

But while all this is going on the Holy One of Israel stands outside the door, knocking, and asking if He might come in. He is outside, because they crowded Him out... with many strange things that grieved His heart. Or He may simply have just walked out when He realized nobody wanted to hear what He had to say. He had no right to dictate the order of worship and ministry, or to lead the people by waters still, or in pastures green... because the order of the meeting had already been arranged. He came to be Lord in their hearts, and Lord in their gatherings… and He will not serve at the altar as long as antichrist sits on the throne of their hearts. He will be Lord in their midst, or He will take His place quietly outside the door.

But He will continue to knock. He will continue to cry out to those who are hungry and thirsty, asking if He might come in. Too long has He been the Great Benefactor, the Santa Claus of every selfish heart crying out for blessings, and healings, and prosperity. Sure, they want everything God has for them. They want healing and blessing and prosperity. They want His enabling wisdom to operate a successful business. They need His help to increase their church attendance, enlarge their Sunday Schools, finance the building of their temples, enlarge their missionary programs, or their TV programs. They want Him to put His stamp of approval upon their wonderful projects.

But He wants to be the Lord in their midst, as surely as He is in Heaven... and not just the silent listener to every conversation. So we see Him outside the door, because He was crowded out; and we hear Him calling:

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me" (Rev 3:20).

"I want to have supper with you," He says. We think we are the needy ones, not He. What can I give Him, that He would want to have supper at my house? First of all, we must know what He wants to eat. Jesus said He found something to eat when the disciples went away into the city to buy food. Did some one give Him food while they were away? "Yes," He said, "I have meat to eat that ye know not of... My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work" (Jn 4:32,34). But where did He get this food? From a poor devastated woman from Samaria, who came to Jacob’s well to draw water. And in giving to her the water of life and the bread of life, He Himself was fed by her. Jesus was not out there in some kind of religious activity to promote His Messianic ministry in the earth. His agenda was very simple: "Lo I come to do thy will O God"... and this became his daily bread. Therefore His hunger was satisfied when others would eat of the bread that He gave them. His thirst was quenched, when He was able to pour into their lives the living waters.

But how can this be? We will only understand this when we learn the truth of what He taught: "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35). God is Love. That is His very nature, to love... and therefore to give. He gave His Son at Calvary, because He is love. God was greatly "blessed" in giving His Son, because "Love" is only satisfied when others are helped and blessed. How we rejoice in a God who loved so much, that He gave!

But now He gives Himself again by His Spirit, that He might indwell us through and through… and that we might find our habitation in Him. And we draw back. We spurn His giving, and call it heresy. O yes, we want to receive His great salvation... His healing, His gifts and blessings. We want to see His mighty workings in the earth. But He wants a people who will receive Him into their lives as Lord. He wants to possess us, and fill every area of our being. And we draw back. We think we are being wholehearted and open before the Lord when we pray, "Yes, Lord, I want everything You have for me". But God says, "Child of Mine, I want everything you have for Me. I want to give you Myself... not just things that you may enjoy. And I can only give you all of Me, when you give Me all of you."

"God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him" (1 Jn 4:16). God is greatly dishonoured when we desire everything He has for us, but hesitate to give Him everything we have for Him. He wants us to present ourselves at His altar, as a "living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God" (Rom 12:1).

Jesus said, "Abide in me, and I in you". I fear I have only waded through the shallows of this. I have never been able to fathom the depths of this beautiful statement. So simple... so plain... so clear. But so measureless... so boundless... so exhaustless. You mean He wants to make His home in me? And He wants me to make my home in God? It is as simple as that. Yet so far beyond our comprehension. Abiding with Him in the place of God’s Inheritance. And where is His inheritance? In the hearts of those who love Him, and desire to obey Him and walk with Him. For this is the true measure of our love: "If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him" (Jn 14:23). He wants to transplant us, out and away from the barren and empty wastes of our wilderness, and into the Garden of His own inheritance.

The Pruning Process

"Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth (pruneth) it, that it may bring forth more fruit" (Jn 15:2).

When God takes His pruning knife in hand and begins to strip the unnecessary twigs and branches from His chosen ones, the result of it all appears to be total devastation. We are always happy, of course, when He cuts away something we know is harmful to our well being... some carnal habit or worldly desire that we know is hindering the joy of Christian living. Or even some religious enterprise that we thought was for His glory... but which turned out to be empty and void and unsatisfying. But generally our Gardener will cut much deeper than we expected. I am not the judge as to how much of your work for God was carnal to begin with. But God will often dissolve certain religious activities even if it was right for a season. And the reason we are troubled about it is because we do not understand what God considers to be vital for bearing good fruit. We must come to the renewed mind, and love Him more, before we will understand what is well pleasing in His sight. With the carnal mind we are quick to presume that if the church is thriving and the crowds are straining the facilities... God wants us to expand in order to keep up with it. He may allow you to do that, but His desire may be that you separate it into smaller groups... that He might discover more and better fruit in harvest time. The apple tree and the pear, and the peach... are much more beautiful before the pruning, than they are after. But the fruit farmer is looking only for the fruit; and the beautiful tree in his eyes is the tree that has been trimmed down in a way that will cause it to produce more and better fruit in harvest time.

Are we afraid to ask the Lord to prune us down to the shape and size that He has in mind? Or will we continue to go our own way, hoping some how that He might spare the knife because of our achievements, or because of our ambition to be successful in the work of the Master? Once we catch sight of the "more excellent way" we will sincerely ask Him to strip away every little twig and branch, every carnal desire, every bit of highmindedness and selfish ambition... if so be He might come and make His habitation in His inheritance that He has redeemed for His own pleasure. We need much pruning in our lives, to bring us to the place where we sincerely, and out from hearts of love and gratitude, are desirous of one thing, and one thing only... that God alone might be glorified in all that we are doing.

CHAPTER 4

SUMMER .. WARM AND BEAUTIFUL

"The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away" (Song 2:13).

This is the most beautiful time of the year. You could scarcely long for anything better. Every plant, every flower, every shrub flourishing in its place, spreading forth their leaves and branches, buds bursting into bloom and displaying such an array of beauty and such a riot of color that the pure in heart can only say, "O God how great Thou art". Jesus said, "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow" (Matt 6:28). But it was in the context of saying God wanted a people who would simply abide in Him and let the heavenly Father be their life, and bring forth the beauty that He has in mind. Solomon built a gorgeous temple, and brought forth many wonderful works, through the wisdom and understanding God had given Him. But in this passage the Lord is reminding us, in the secret language of the parable, that God is more glorified in the life He puts within us, than He is in the works that we perform by His enabling power and wisdom. It amazes me how God’s people will lavish money upon projects in the Church to beautify the choir or the orchestra, or the drama team... with ribbons and banners and other kinds of tinsel... and think it relates in any way to what God calls "the beauty of Holiness".

New Garments for the Old

Surely we can see in the lily what God means by the beauty that surpasses the glory of Solomon. How did it acquire such gorgeous raiment? What did it do to weave such exquisite garments for itself? Really, it was not its working at all, but the work of the heavenly Father. He planted the seed in the earth, and watered it when it needed water, then sent the sunshine to warm the soil and cause it to spring forth and bud. It was His working all the way through. And it was by the law of natural life. How much more beautiful then is the Life that is hid with Christ in God, that springs forth from the soil of our hearts, and finds itself in God’s Garden, dressed in garments of grace and beauty! How dare we insult God by bringing trash into His holy Temple, in an attempt to imitate the worship of His temple, and call it ‘worshipping God in the beauty of holiness’? But He with consuming "eyes of fire" looks upon us to see if there is a humble heart. He listens when one of His beloved priests, knowing his unworthiness, cries unto God--"Lord, take away these filthy garments, and clothe me with change of raiment. Lord remove from my head the carnal mind, and put a fair mitre on my brow, that I might think as you think, and know how to walk in the more excellent way. Anoint my eyes to see and my ears to hear beautiful things proceeding out of your heart and mind. Beautify Thy servant with garments of the new man, and renew my mind after the image of Him that created me, till I come forth in Thy image and likeness. Clothe my inner man with bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering. And above all these things, show me how to put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness" (See Zech 3:3-5; Col. 3:10-14).

What has the lily done, or the rose, or the daffodil--or the myriads of other gorgeous flowers that grow in your garden... what have they done to produce such wonderful raiment? Nothing really... it just submits itself to the spirit of life within. It is the imparted life of God that causes the seed or the bulb to break open, take root downward, and push its way upward. It is simply by the operation of life that it unfolds itself in the atmosphere and draws moisture from the ground in which it is rooted, and the virtues of the sun that shines upon it. Then suddenly it breaks forth into a garment of unspeakable glory.

It is the life that causes it to happen. It is a bursting forth of new life, out from the old shell. It is actually this new life that shatters the shell of former bondage, because the old cannot contain the new. That old garment has served its purpose and must now make way for a new garment, the garment of New Creation life, which is secretly being woven in the skillful hands of the Weaver. It is not seen as yet by the eyes of men, because we are woven in the secret looms of God. David meditated on this when he said, "My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth" (Ps 139:15). The word "curious" in this passage is the same word that is used for the intricate workmanship of fine needlework of the embroiderer, as the men and women in Israel, filled with the wisdom of God, prepared the beautiful garments of the priesthood... garments which God said were "for glory and for beauty" (Ex 28:39,40; 35:25-35).

Let us not fear when we see the old garments of the world... or the old wineskins and patterns of Church life, starting to crumble and disintegrate. Let us rather ask the Lord to take away the scales from our eyes that we might see the beauty of the Life of Jesus bursting forth in His redeemed. All nations must yet see the glory of the Lamb, and the beauty of His handiwork, revealed in the sons of the Kingdom. "For the Gentiles (the nations) shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name" (Isa 62:2).

A New Law of Life

We reverse God’s order so readily. We say we’ve got to eat to live, But Jesus tells us: the life is more important than the food. The life comes first; then because of the life we are able to gather the food that sustains the life. "Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns: yet your heavenly Father feedeth them" (Matt 6:26). Jesus is not encouraging laziness, but He is encouraging trust and confidence in the heavenly Father. There’s nothing lazy about the birds of the air that come into my garden. Up where we live, we may have 18 hours of daylight during our short summers, and the birds are up and around early in the morning before I am, and I often hear them still chirping after I have gone to bed. How can they do that? Because of that tremendous law of the spirit of life that God put within them when he created them. Is not "the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus" much greater, much higher, much more powerful than the spirit of life in a plant or animal? Especially as we consider that the natural law of life is in the process of decay and death? We, as well as all lesser creatures, are subject to the law of death the moment we are born. The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus is the Law of the New Creation, that makes free from the old law of sin and death. We must seek Him earnestly that He might activate once again in His Church, the glorious functioning of the Law of the Spirit of Life, in Christ Jesus.

The Struggle to Emerge in New Life

We speak much of the rest that remains for the people of God. And rightly so. But right in the same context we read these words: "Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief (or d