Jottings

by J. Miller | Category: Jottings | May 1953

It is said of the Lord as the Servant of Jehovah, the Shoot that would come forth out of the stock of Jesse,

"And righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and faithfulness

the girdle of His reins" (Isaiah it 5).

This means that His seat of strength, as set forth in the loins, the Lord girded with the doing of what was right, and His reins, which means all His activities, for so is the use of the word reins here, were girded with faithfulness. There was never the least deviation from the path of faithfulness to His Father's will in His thoughts, words, ways and works. He was "faithful amidst unfaithfulness." Think of the unfaithfulness of His times. The priests, headed by the Sadducean high priest Annas, and his son-in-law Caiaphas, had wholly gone aside after base gain and had turned the temple into a market place of buying and selling, and later into a den of robbers. The Sadducees had given up all thought of a future life and had become a sect of covetous worldlings, and, like the horseleach, extorted all they could out of the penurious rock of the common people's poverty.

The Pharisees were no better, though they did believe in a future life and sought to maintain an outward show of conformity to the law on its ceremonial side. They too were lovers of money, and taught the youth of their time their "Corban" ideas of giving all to God and to forget about their responsibility to their fathers and mothers. Their zeal for God was of a superficial sort and their righteousness formal and barren of all good.

The Herodians, the political party, were interested in Herod's and Caesar's place and portion in their land to the exclusion of those of the God of Israel.

To the Herodians He said, "Render therefore unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's" (Matthew 22.21). Fewer words, a more correct assessment of the matter about which He was asked, and a more powerful rebuke, could not have been spoken. No wonder they marvelled, and left Him, and went their way.

To the Sadducees, who though they disbelieved in a future state were always apparently interested in proving to themselves and others that there was none, He said, " Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God" (Matthew 22.29). He showed to them that the dead were raised from the place of the Bush (Exodus 2.), in that statement of Jehovah, "I am the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob," and said, " God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." Here too there was great astonishment at His teaching, for with a few words He destroyed the high tower of safety of worldly sinners, that there is no resurrection or day of judgement. Many, alas, follow the way of the Sadducees still!

Then to the Pharisees, who were apparently exercised about God's commandments, and who came and asked Him about the great commandment of the law, He said that the first was, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God," and the second, "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself" (Matthew 22.87, 39).

How truly the Spirit of the Loan rested upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Loan ! How faithful He was to the written word of God ! Faithfulness means firmness, steadiness there was no vacillation in the Lord, or His utterances, hence faithfulness in another sense implies security. We all know that we can never feel sure with an unfaithful, vacillating man, you can neither depend on what he says nor does; but when you know you have got a faithful man who will stand to what he believes to be true at whatever cost, it begets in you a sense of security. Such indeed is the Lord in all His ways. As He was faithful on earth so is He now in heaven, a faithful and merciful Priest, and a faithful Son who is appointed over God's house, who is the Antitype of both Aaron and Moses, as we have it set forth in Hebrews chapters 2. and 3.; for though in heaven He is still the Servant of Jehovah.

David when he stood with Saul's spear in his hand, and with Saul's words ringing in his ears in condemnation of his own behaviour: "I have sinned . I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly," uttered a profound truth

"The Lord shall render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness" (1 Samuel 26.21, 28).

Righteousness is to be and to do right. We could not be right by doing anything that was right ourselves, for there is, of all the sons of men, none righteous, no, one. Hence God had to provide a righteousness in Christ for us, which has been given to us upon the ground of our faith in Him; this is the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. We are now righteous by faith. Following justification by faith it is our responsibility to do what is right. Hence we have the word in 1 John 3.7.

"My little children, let no man lead you astray: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous."

This does not describe the measure of righteousness, but the manner of it. God's righteousness is like the mountains of God (Psalm 36.6), it is very high (Psalm 71. 19). God is righteous because He ever acts in righteousness, and we are to be righteous in the same way. As righteous men and women it is our responsibility to do righteously, this is the teaching of Scripture and of grace in our hearts, we should "live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world" (age) (Titus 2.12).

Coupled with righteousness is faithfulness. Faithfulness is firmness, hence steadiness. Faithful men are not in great supply now, and I think never were in any age. Solomon said,

"Most men will proclaim every one his own kindness:

But a faithful man who can find?" (Proverbs 20.6).

Most in Solomon's day proclaimed their own feast of trumpets, but there were not many who in obscurity held on faithfully in their lonely vigil of doing faithfully God's will. Is it not so still?

We hear David in his day saying,

"Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth;

For the faithful fail from among the children of men" (Psalm 12. 1). So that even in such a day of revival as that of David the faithful were few. The word " faithful " is used first in Scripture of Moses, of whom God said,

"He is faithful in all Mine house" (Numbers 12.5), a true type of the Lord who was yet to come (Hebrews 3.2, 5). Though Moses was a meek man he was not a weak man. He was firm in his adherence to what the Lord commanded him. No human mind was allowed to be projected into the making of the tabernacle or any of the vessels thereof and he delivered the word " as the Loan commanded Moses." He almost, if not altogether, spoke in the third person of the Lord speaking to Moses and did not use the personal pronoun "Me."

Paul says, "It is required of stewards, that a man be found faithful" (1 Corinthians 4.2). The fitness and force of the apostle's word are seen at once when we remember that a steward is one who handles the things of another. Paul was one of God's stewards and there was none more faithful than he. Timothy too was faithful. Paul called him, "my beloved and faithful child in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 4.17). Tychicus is called, "the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord" (Ephesians 6.21). Epaphras is described as "Our beloved fellowservant, who is a faithful minister of Christ" (Colossians 1.7). Faithful Tychicus is again mentioned in Colossians 4.7, and Onesimus is called "the faithful and beloved brother" (verse 9). Peter calls Silvanus, an early fellow-worker with Paul, "our (the R.V.M.) faithful brother." And the Lord calls Antipas, "My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you" (Revelation 2.13). These and many other faithful ones were of that glorious band of men, and women too, who formed the backbone of divine testimony in the early days, such as remained firm in their allegiance to their Lord, loyal disciples who followed on through thick and thin, in evil and good report, and neither were turned aside by the praises nor frowns of men. It was anticipated by Paul that such faithful men would continue even though they were few, for he said,

"The things which thou hast heard from me among many witnesses the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also (2 Timothy 2.2).

J. Miller | May 1953
Jottings