Wholesome Words for Spiritual Guidance

By nature, the human heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately (or incurably) wicked, and only God can accurately assess its true condition (Jer.17:9,10). When He looked into the hearts of men in the days of Noah He saw that every imagination (or desire and purpose) of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually (Gen.6:5). The result of this was that the earth was corrupt and filled with violence (v.11), and God brought in the flood upon the world of the ungodly.

It is impossible to over-estimate the importance of keeping our thoughts under control. Paul speaks of "bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" (2Cor.10:5). Solomon said, "Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life" (Prov.4:2 3). We need the help of the Lord in this, so let us consider the following:

1. Let us open up our thoughts to the Lord. David is our example in this as he prays in Psalm 139:23,24, "Search me, 0 God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting". Again in Psalm 38:9 he says, "Lord, all my desire is before Thee". The Lord will surely answer such prayers.

2. The Lord will use the Scriptures to search our thoughts.

3. Because these thoughts are defiling we need His cleansing.

When such thoughts arise in our hearts we must not harbour them, but turn from them to the Lord, confessing them to Him, and He has promised to forgive and cleanse us from all that is evil. Because our heavenly Father wants believers to enjoy their place in His family as sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty, Paul says in 2Cor.7:1, "Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God". If we recognise and dismiss evil thoughts before they come out in word or deed, we will be spared the bitter harvest of regret and loss.

4. "If thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth"

(Prov.30:32). This is surely sound advice of which the psalmist Asaph gives us a good example in Psalm 73. He knew of men who were proud, lawless and violent, who spoke haughtily against God and man, and yet they seemed to prosper. They had more than heart could wish, and even faced death without a qualm, yet he, who feared God, was passing through a time of sore trial and discouragement to which he could see no end. As a result, his heart became flooded with thoughts of envy and unbelief, and he felt he was loosing his footing in the pathway of faith. But we cannot help but admire the restraint he expresses in verse 15 as he thinks of all the children of God. Lest they too should be discouraged, he keeps his thoughts to himself until he had taken them to the Lord and had his perspective adjusted and his faith revived through communion with Him. Now he can look back and speak of them and show how unworthy they were. How tragically different is the case of Ananias and Sapphira the husband and wife in Acts 5. They were living in amazing times. Gad was working mightily through the apostles, and great grace was upon all the disciples. Those who had land sold it, brought the proceeds to the apostles, and distribution was made so that none were in poverty. Ananias and Sapphira, too, sold their land. But the thought arose in his heart that they could keep back part of the price for themselves, presenting the remainder to the apostles, as though it were the total price, If only he had instantly dismissed the thought as dishonest, but he cherished it to the point where he suggested it to his wife. She too, could have rejected it, but she entertained it in her heart and agreed to it. What began as a seed thought in his heart had now developed into a mutual resolve between them.

As a Prophet. We recall how Joseph had early dreams about his own future greatness and then lived to see those dreams come true. We remember, too, how he interpreted the dreams of two fellow-prisoners in the Egyptian jail, and with amazing accuracy foretold that one would soon be hanged and the other reinstated in the king’s service. Then before Pharoah, he was able with divine insight to peer 14 years into the future, speaking with such conviction and persuasion that the king promptly made him governor over all the land.

It must have given Joseph great satisfaction in his closing years to look back on the guiding hand of God in his life and to relate his varied experiences for the benefit and inspiration of his offspring. We read that, "Joseph saw Ephraim’s children of the third generation: the children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were brought up upon Joseph’s knees" (50:3). Can we not picture those children hanging on every word as Joseph rehearsed all the details of fulfilled prophecy in his own life, and stressed the faithfulness of God to his forbears as well? He would have left them in no doubt about God’s promises of even greater blessings to come.

In connection with Joseph’s early dreams, we should notice that though the general message of the dreams was clear, Joseph himself had no idea at the time, of all they entailed. Similarly, the Old Testament prophets often received messages of great accuracy from the Lord and faithfully delivered those messages to their contemporaries, or recorded them for the benefit of future generations, without being able to understand fully all that their words implied. It is in this connection that Peter once wrote: "Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently...searching what...the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow" (l Peter 1:10,11).

Coming now to Genesis 50, where we learn about the death of, first Jacob, and then Joseph, we cannot help noticing what a lavish funeral the father had, as compared with the son, who had done so much for so many others. Perhaps it was just another case of men who have seen an entire nation through some emergency being quickly forgotten after the danger is over. But might there not be another reason? Is it not possible that even before Joseph died the attitude of the Egyptians to the family of Jacob as a whole was changing, and the stage was already being set for the enslavement of the Israelites as recorded in Exodus? If that is so, it only emphasizes the unwavering faith of Joseph in the promises of God as he farewelled the family. "I die", he said, meaning that his end was near and they soon would be without him. But then, in the same breath, he added, "God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob" (50:24). How this promise, this prophecy must have strengthened the heart of many a weary worker in the brickkilns of Egypt in later years! As for himself, Joseph asked for no further favours from Egypt, but he did make the family swear that they would take his embalmed body with them when they departed from Egypt for Canaan. That dying wish was duly honoured, as we learn from Exodus 13:19, and then in Joshua 24:32.

As a Type. Some Bible students have listed over 100 ways in which we may see precious foreshadowings of our blessed Lord in the life and character of Joseph. In broad outline, he appears as a man who came out of obscurity, endured much suffering for no fault of his own, and then rose to great fame and authority, using that authority for the good and blessing of others. Right throughout his life it is difficult to find anything but good in the actions and words of Joseph, just as Christ could say, "which of you convinceth Me of sin?"

More specifically, we trace Joseph’s history step by step, beginning with the special bond that existed between him and his father, reminding us of how the Lord Jesus was so clearly called the "only begotten Son", which meant that He was the Son of God in a sense that none other could ever be. And just as Joseph was able to foretell his own future greatness, so Christ spoke openly of the distinctive glories which would one day be His. Then we think of Joseph working humbly as a slave in Egypt, and compare that with the Saviour’s work on earth as a bondsman in the service of both God and men. It was Joseph’s own brethren who hated him and plotted to kill him, and similarly it was the Lord’s fellow-Jews who hated Him and eventually engineered His death. Then in both cases, their very rejection by men only led to their further elevation by God. When Egypt was in the grip of famine the whole nation had to depend on Joseph for its very survival, and on a much wider scale, Christ is now rightly called "the Saviour of the world".

See, too, how Joseph’s guilty brothers only came to know who he really was when they were faced with starvation; likewise in a future day the Jews as a people will only come to recognize Jesus of Nazareth as their true Messiah when they are faced with utter extinction by their foes. And when at last Joseph made himself known to his brethren, he was not alone in his glory, for he had a Gentile bride by his side; similarly, God is now calling out from among the Gentile nations a bride for His Son, even the church of the present age, the church for whom He died and who will one day share His throne.

But when we compare the Lord Jesus with even the greatest of men we find as many contrasts as similarities. He towers supreme above all others, even those who resembled Him most. Joseph gave of his service for others, but not his life, as Christ did. And Joseph’s closing years were spent in quiet retirement with his family, thinking mainly about his own people, the Jews. Against that, Christ’s heart goes out in love and mercy to all nations, as He sits enthroned in heaven in the power of an endless life.

In order to trust God with a faith that is reasonable, we must know what God has said. We must know something of His character. "They that know Thy Name". That is, they that have been brought to know something of God in His attributes of love and mercy and truth. What they know of Him convinces them that He will not reject the soul that comes near, and casts itself in all its weakness and sinfulness at His feet.

"The Name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe" (Prov.18:l0).

1. The House of God. This is a term which occurs frequently throughout the Scriptures. The first reference to it is in Genesis 28:17. After Jacob’s dream of the ladder set up and reaching from earth to heaven, and the divine confirmation of the covenant made with Abraham and Isaac, he says, "How dreadful is this place! This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. He called this sacred spot "Bethel" meaning "the house of God". There he raised his pillar, and it was to Bethel that he returned after his twenty years of discipline in PadanAram. We believe that this is the passage that Paul has in mind; he mentions the house, the pillar, and the angels in I Timothy 3:15,16.

The house of God is where God dwells. In the old Testament He dwelt among His people in the tabernacle. The overshadowing Shekinah cloud of glory was the visible evidence of the presence of God among His people. Moses was the servant in this house Heb.3:1-5). It was built according to divine instructions and followed a divine pattern. Such also was the case with the temple built by Solomon centuries later. But the house of God today is the local church (I Cor.3:16,17). Over this house Christ is both the Son and Head, Master of the house.

2. The Church of the Living God. The expression "the church of the living God" is reminiscent of Matthew 16:16-18. Peter’s confession was, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God". Then he was given the tremendous revelation of the Church, the ‘ecclesia’. Granted that in Matthew 16 the reference goes far beyond the local church, but in Matthew 18 where the church is mentioned twice, it obviously refers to the local church (18:17). But some may say that local churches were not in existence when our Lord spoke. Like the institution of the Lord’s Supper recorded in Matthew 2d:26-30, the instructions were given in anticipation of the Church age commencing at Pentecost. If the question be asked, "What is a local church?" the simplest answer would be by one definition given by the Lord Himself in the context where He first mentions it. He said, "For where two or three are gathered together in My Name, there am I in the midst of them" Matthew. 18:20).

The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles generally described the foundation and features of these local churches. They often met in private homes, carried out the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and had a recognised eldership. In their worship and service they gave room for the exercise of the priesthood of all believers and the use of divinely given gifts. As colonies of heaven, they used every opportunity to spread the Gospel where they lived (Phil.1:27).

Paul uses the word "church" three times in l Timothy. In ch.3:5, we are taught that one of the functions of an elder is to take care of the church of God. In ch.3:15, we learn that the instructions Paul has written to Timothy are related to behaviour in the house of God, which is the church of the living God. In ch.5:16, Paul speaks of the responsibility of the believers to care for widows in their own families (practical godliness), so that the church could devote its resources to the widows who had no one to provide for them. It is clear that in each case he is referring to the local gathering of believers. It has been suggested that "the house of God" emphasises what we have been brought into, while "the church of God" also indicates that we have been called out from the world to gather to His Name.

3. The Pillar. This is an obvious reference to Jacob’s pillar. The stone on which he had rested his weary head as a pillow, he finally raised as a pillar. Four times in his life, of which this is the first occasion, he did this. Sometimes he poured oil upon the pillar. It was a testimony to God’s grace and faithfulness. The local church is a pillar of the truth. It is both a golden lampstand (Rev.1:20), and a pillar of testimony.

4. The Ground of the Truth. Here we have the base of the pillar.

The word "ground" here translates the Greek word "hedraioma" which means "a stay, support, or buttress". A pillar often has three parts: the base, the column, and the capital on the top. On the base there is sometimes an inscription, and inside a receptacle where documents are placed for posterity. The church is not only the testimony of the truth, but it is also the stay, support, and depository of the truth.

For senseless pride and Godless greed
That shame us in the busy mart,
For conduct that belies our creed,
For faithless and divided heart,
O spare Thy erring children, Lord,
And speak to us Thy pardoning word.

For coward lips that would not speak
When silence was a shameless wrong,
For thoughtless word that drove the weak
To think that right was with the strong,
Have mercy on Thy saints, 0 Lord,
And grant to us Thy pardoning word.

For cautious age, for hasty youth,
For well set sails to catch the breeze,
For fear that dared not face the truth,
But welcomed base and traitorous ease,
For thousand sins, have mercy, Lord,
And speak to us Thy pardoning word.

For all that oft Thy Spirit grieved,
The petty faults of every day,
For shunning light we each received
To show the path where duty lay,
For passions that denied Thy word,
Have mercy on Thy saints, 0 Lord.

And while we humbly kneel to pray,
Confessing sins and wrongs we’ve done,
Grant us the grace anew to say,
For love of Thy enthroned Son,
"We’ll walk more closely to Thy word,
For all Thy mercies, Sovereign Lord".

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