As we consider this expression used by Peter, we are reminded that behind the outward appearance by which each of us is known to one another, there lies a hidden counterpart that is only fully known to God. We become familiar with form, physique and apparel, accompanied by word, look and action, and by these our assessments and expectations of one another are influenced. But the Lord looks on the heart, that inner realm of thought, intent and desire, hopes and fears within each one of us, and His assessment is based on what He sees there. The hidden man of the heart is the real man in the sight of God.

An example of this is given to us in l Samuel 16. Samuel was sent to anoint one of the sons of Jesse to be king. When Samuel looked on Eliab the eldest, apparently a tall, handsome man, he said, "Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him". But the Lord said, ‘Look not on his countenance or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart". At last, David the youngest was called. He also was attractive to look on, but the Lord said, ‘Arise and anoint him, for this is he". Soon a testing time came which revealed the inner realities. Goliath the giant had defied the armies of Israel and they were all greatly afraid. When David came into the camp it became evident that he had faith in God which made him both humble and courageous. The same test showed Eliab to be fearful, and filled with undeserved anger and contempt toward David.

The most important matter in each of our lives is the state and attitude of our hearts in the sight of God. Solomon warns us in Proverbs 4:23, "Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life". The course and outcome of life are determined by the character of the hidden man of the heart. This is demonstrated by the contrast in the lives of King Saul in the Old Testament, and Saul of Tarsus in the New. King Saul allowed the evils of disobedience, envy, anger and self-pity to govern his actions, and looking back in later life he said, "I have played the fool, I have erred exceedingly". He died in shame and defeat, and his crown was taken from him. On the other hand, Saul of Tarsus yielded to the claims of the Saviour, and, constrained by the love of Christ, his heart was filled with faith, love and loyalty toward the Lord, and love, humility and self-sacrifice to others. Looking back in later life he said, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge will give me at that day".

We dare not trust in our own hearts (Prov.28:26), for "the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked" (Jer. 17:9), but it is our responsibility to prepare our hearts. It was said of the men who refused to go into the land of Canaan under Moses that they were "a generation that set not their heart aright" (Ps.78:8). Of king Rehoboam it is written, "He did evil, because he prepared not his heart to seek the Lord" (2 Chron.12:14), whereas of Ezra’s success it is written," For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord and to do it" (Ezra 7:10). The Lord is willing to help us in this preparation of heart if we are humble, as the psalmist said, "Lord, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble; Thou wilt prepare their heart" (Ps.10:17).

The Scriptures have been given to help us in this as well, for we read in Hebrews 4:12, "For the word of God is living and powerful...and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart". The word ‘discerner’ translates a Greek word from which we get our word ‘critic’, and we know that when works of art and literature are produced they are usually evaluated by competent critics. So it is with the Word of God as we allow it to flow through our minds. On the one hand we read, "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness (or, wanton lawlessness), an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness; all these evil things come from within and defile the man" (Mark 7:21-23). On the other hand in Phil.4:8 we read, "Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any praise, think on these things". In the light of these scriptures we are able to reject what is defiling and embrace what is worthy.

Sometimes, in our complacency and self-confidence there can lie hidden in our hearts evil tendencies of which we are completely unaware, and it is wholesome for us to pray as the Psalmist did, "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" (Ps.139:23,24).

The Lord often uses the difficult and costly experiences in our lives to show these hidden things to us, as Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 8:2, "And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thy heart". Peter had no idea of the fear and disloyalty that would rise in his heart under the pressure he would face in the hostile environment of the High priest’s house. But the test was allowed, not for his condemnation, but that he might learn to cease from self-confidence, and put his trust in the Lord. Peter’s letters show that he learned that lesson well.

Our Lord Jesus Christ is the only Man who could be tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin. Because He is the Holy One of God and there is no sin in Him, it was not possible that any temptation could arouse an unworthy response in His heart, but He knows by experience the pressures we face, and He is able to be touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He knows that our hearts are often troubled by fears from within and without. But He said, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you...Let not your heart be troubled neither let it be afraid" (John 14:27). Let us grasp the wonderful promise in Philippians 4:6,7. "Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus".

- R.M. Goatley.

Both Timothy and Titus were Paul’s children in the faith He calls Timothy his genuine child (l Tim.l:2), and uses similar terms about Titus (Titus 1:4). It was Paul who led them both out into the work of the Lord and naturally he was interested in the development of spiritual gift in these, his fellow-helpers in the work of the Gospel.

In the case of Timothy there are three interesting statements concerning his gift (I Tim.4:14; 2Tim.I:6). In the first passage Timothy is told, "Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery", and in the second he is exhorted to "stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands". Apparently there is something apostolic and miraculous here. Firstly, the prophetic gift was an exercise which recognised that Timothy was a vessel chosen of the Lord. Secondly, Paul states that a gift was conferred by the laying on of his hands; and thirdly, the elderhood identified themselves with it, with the laying on of their hands. Then he is told not to neglect it, but to stir it up, to blow it into a flame.

In those early days of the church’s history, the gift of prophecy was still in existence, and through this agency Timothy was pointed out as one fitted by God for a specific task. In accordance with this, the elderhood symbolically concurred with it with the laying on of their hands. This was the church’s response to the declared mind of God.

The fact that Paul uses the preposition "through" or "by" in the laying on of his hands on Timothy, is taken in some circles as authority for the ceremony of "ordination", and that a spiritual gift can be conveyed in that way. But the burden of proof lies with those that make the claim, namely that they have the early gift of prophecy, and that they have the apostolic authority and power of Paul the apostle. C.H. Spurgeon described the modern practice as "laying empty hands on empty heads"!

But does God not confer spiritual gifts on His church today?

He certainly does! This is one of the great prerogatives of the risen and glorified Head of the church, our Lord Jesus Christ (Eph.4:7- 13). He gave apostles and prophets in the early foundation days of the church, and today He still confers the gifts of the evangelist, pastor and teacher. It would seem that the gift conferred on Timothy was a combination of all three. Paul tells him in 2 Tim.4:5, "Do the work of an evangelist". He was also an ideal pastor-teacher in the work he was doing at Ephesus.

This was a temporary task. He was definitely not the bishop nor the pastor of Ephesus, but was sent that he might charge some that they teach no other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies. When he had completed his task, he was to return to the apostle (2Tim.4:9). The same was true of the mission of Titus in Crete (Titus 3:12).

The exhortation not to neglect the gift but to fan it into a flame shows the necessity for a lifelong development of any gift that has been conferred. This can only be done by constant study of the Word and by continual exercise of the gift. "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2Tim.2: 15).

On the one hand there is the divine bestowal of the gift, but on the other hand there must be the diligent, consistent, hard work on the part of the recipient to develop it. As it is in the physical realm, where certain organs or functions of the body which are not exercised tend to atrophy, so it is in the spiritual. The fire which once burned brightly and gave light and heat is liable to die down, and needs the oxygen and energy of the Holy Spirit to flame up again.

How great is the need today for gifted men to carry on the work of God! The true gift of the evangelist to pioneer and preach the Gospel on virgin soil is becoming very rare. The ram’s horn of judgment and the silver trumpet of redemption are not being sounded as they should be. They are often substituted by little homilies on current events and the great truths of sin and repentance and the glorious remedy in the cross of Christ are scarcely mentioned.

Where can we go and what can we do to find and develop these gifts today? Primarily we are dependent on the risen Head of the church to confer these gifts. But it is the responsibility of gifted individuals to stir up their gift, and the responsibility of older believers to encourage them, as Paul did.

Paul gives us a clue in his instructions to Timothy as to the future of the ministry of the Word in the assemblies of the Lord’s people, "The things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also" (2Tim.2:2). This is the true apostolic succession. We should be constantly on the lookout for younger, gracious, godly men; and where gift is in evidence, to encourage them to exercise and develop it, and at the same time to give themselves to the careful, accurate and consecutive study of the Word of God.

- T.E. Wilson. Courtesy "Counsel"

In the history of Jacob we learn where this place may be found. Esau was a thorough man of the world, utterly indifferent to the things of God. Jacob, on the other hand, did value the blessing of God, even though he tried to obtain it by crooked means. "Perfect" in the sense of "pious or quiet" he may have been, but there was evidently a lack on his part of childlike confidence in God. To say this, is not to vilify the patriarch, but to use the history God has given, as a needed warning, for in Jacob we may see reflected unsuspected features in ourselves.

Instead of generously offering some of his pottage to Esau in his extremity, it looks as though Jacob had been watching for just such an opportunity of acquiring what Esau had been despising (Gen.25:29-34). It has the appearance of a very subtle move on Jacob’s part, and knowing that Esau would soon repent of such a bargain, for the compensation was so utterly inadequate, he binds the seller with an oath. Esau certainly stands condemned, but even natural conscience brands Jacob’s action as unbrotherly, to say the least.

All Four Actors are Seen Doing Wrong in Gen.27. Isaac is seeking to frustrate the Divine purpose of ch 25:23 by bestowing the family blessing on his own choice. Esau is trying to regain the birthright he had sold. Rebekah is doing her best to checkmate her husband, and, thinking that the Divine intent is in danger of being frustrated, is ready to dc’ evil that good may come. Jacob, though fearful of being found out, becomes a party in gross deception, telling lie upon lie to keep it up. Nothing is said in chapter 28 by way of disapproval of Jacob’s behaviour, any more than in chapter 25, of his way of dealing with his brother. But silence can be ominous at times, and he soon entered as a fugitive upon a path of discipline where he had to learn that his sin would find him out. In his kinsman, the grasping Laban of Chapter 29, Jacob meets his match, proving that "whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap".

There were, indeed, excellencies in Jacob. With all his faults, he set a pious value on the birthright blessing. There was about him a quiet force of character, an indomitable tenacity of purpose, a capacity for warm affection, and a sensitivity to spiritual influences. But these excellent traits must not blind us to his self-seeking craft. As one has said, "We may be perfectly clear upon this, that nothing is of God that is not holy; nothing right that is not righteous; nothing ratified by the Just One which in itself is unjust; nothing has the Divine sanction that outrages truth and compassion". This testimony is true, but the marvellous thing is, that while God brings Jacob’s character completely to light, at the same time He shows His Divine purpose to be unchangeable.

When God asked him his name in chapter 32:27. he said "Jacob". Only his name needed to be mentioned to reveal, in one word, all that he was. God seeks a full confession, and when we give our names we reveal our character and acknowledge everything He knows about us. He comes to each of us in the same way, and the first stage to blessing is to acknowledge what we are. We have to stand alone, as it were in His presence, realising that our names are synonyms for our foolishness, our self-will, our unrighteousness, our unbelief, our disobedience. There I see myself as my hollowest friend, my deadliest foe. But there too, I see God as my Saviour, my Friend, the One whose eye is always on me in my waywardness, and who longs for my simple, childlike embrace of faith.

The chief obstacle then, to Jacob’s blessing all along, was not Esau, but himself. It was when he abandoned all dependence on his own ability that God blessed him there (ch.32:29). He must receive the blessing from God’s own hand on the ground of sovereign grace, and only there can he receive it. There alone is the place of blessing.

It took Jacob a lifetime to learn the Divine sovereignty, but he learned it in the end, and in Hebrews 11:21 we read, he "worshipped". No doubt the other patriarchs worshipped, but of Jacob alone, in this chapter, is this fact recorded. "Few and evil" his days had been, but he ends them with the consciousness in his soul of such Divine wealth and blessing that he can take the place of spiritual superiority in the presence of earth’s greatest potentate of that time (Ch.47:7). As for himself, at last by simple faith, he so embraced all the promises and the inheritance, that self was forgotten and he worshipped. There is nothing like the remembrance of what God has done for us in Christ, to call forth true worship from our hearts. The overwhelming sense of Divine favour always humbles us, but it is when the soul is truly bowed before Him that we really worship. There may be no words at all, but the very silence may be an echo of the internal depth of calmness, when the noisy efforts of the human heart give place to the love and glory of redemption.

With all Joseph’s sagacity and blamelessness, his blind father saw more clearly in some things than he did. In the blessing Jacob bestows on his grandsons, he manifests the benefits of the chastening he had endured, and his experience of God’s grace (ch.28:12-20). He had learned that "no flesh shall glory in His presence", and "The last shall be first and the first last". The Lord is still teaching these things to His people today.

-Abridged W.R. Lewis.

Rarely do decisions that I make in my lifetime affect me, and me alone. We must always think of others when we make our choices. How will the things I say and do affect my friends and family? We may not appreciate it at times, but we are constantly watched by others. The Bible says that Enoch walked with God after the birth of Methuselah. It was as though he realised that now he has a son who would watch and follow the things that he did and the way he did them. Therefore it was essential that he set a good example.

- Choice Gleanings.

THE ONLY PERFECT MAN

It is refreshing to turn away from mere mortals and their doings, and contemplate the only perfect man that ever trod the earth. By comparison with Him, all the great ones of the earth, Dictators, Conquerors etc. - are as wasps buzzing about in the universe of God.

All these, at whose frown millions have trembled, will yet be constrained to bow the knee to The Man of God’s Pleasure. His fame will abide forever. Their’s will not. His doings will have eternal results, and that of the happiest character. Their’s will cease to be remembered when the earth passes away in which they have been wrought.

Jesus of Nazareth was a man in very deed. He ate, drank, toiled and slept. He was no recluse. He maintained contact with men and women, and with children also, in all the ordinary things of life. Yet, paradoxical as it may seem, He was entirely separate from the whole order of things around Him. No sinful thought ever presented itself to His mind; no evil deed was ever done by His hand; and no unsavoury word ever passed His lips. In all these respects a great moral gulf separated Him from all the people round about Him. He was essentially God’s holy One. His observers were constrained to say, "He bath done all things well" (Mark 7:37). The police who were sent to arrest Him returned without Him, saying, "Never man spake like this Man" (John 7:46).

It is deplorable that such a Person did not appeal to the hearts of His contemporaries. Only a limited number valued Him, and they served Him with adoration. Had He been a mere prophet or preacher their attitude towards Him would have been idolatry.

But He is Truly God. Taught by the Holy Spirit, the disciples recognised their God in the lowly Man that walked among them. Thomas exclaimed with holy enthusiasm, "My Lord and my God", (John 20:28). John says more fully, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us" (John 1:1,14).

Amazing fact! Mystery beyond all creature comprehension! God has been on earth in human flesh and blood. It was no mere theophany, such as the appearing to Abraham in Genesis 18, or to Samson’s parents in Judges 13. It was a full life lived among men. We think of the sacred babe in the manger in Bethlehem: of the Lad in the Galilean cottage; and of the Man out among the masses teaching day by day.

The Manifestation of God was Perfect. All that God is - all His Divine excellencies - were expressed in His person and ways, and the homeliness and the tenderness of it is charming. Behold our God sitting familiarly at men’s supper tables; behold Him filling mothers with delight by taking their babes into His arms; behold Him weeping with those who were in bitter grief! Is our God really like this? Yes, a thousand times yes! Then surely He is worth knowing!

Calvary’s Cross Is the most profound mystery of all the ages. It was a murder. Let none dispute it. God will yet call the world to account for this appalling crime. But it was also a willing sacrifice on the part of the Holy Sufferer in order that men might be saved. The deity of Christ and His atoning sacrifice are the foundations of Christianity. Reject either of these, and nothing remains but an ethical system which leads nowhere. The holy example of the Perfect Man, and His wonderful teaching may possibly command our admiration, but salvation is not found along that line. A really careful examination of the life and utterances of the Lord Jesus can only produce in our souls a sense of our utter unfitness for God’s presence. If that Man suits God, then we do not suit Him at all!

But when we behold that Man, upon whom death had no claim, going willingly into death and exposing Himself to Divine judgement for sins of which others were guilty - when we learn that this was purposed back in the eternal ages - we discover the perfect love and wisdom of the Creator who longs to be gracious to the erring ones, but not at the expense of righteousness.

The glory of the man Christ Jesus will fill the New Creation forever. His present seat is wonderful beyond all our power of understanding. God has "set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion" (Eph.l:20,2 I), and that seat will be His eternally. This is God’s full answer to His meekness and faithfulness in the presence of men’s hatred and scorn.

- W.W. Fereday.

BEAUTY FOR ASHES
Isaiah 61:3.

In a time of deep dejection
Jesus journeyed by
Saw my heart was dull and empty
Gently asked me "Why?"

Then I told Him all the story
Of my bitter woe
How my hopes and joy had perished
Many years ago.

And the tears were softly dropping
As I told Him all,
Yet He did not chide my weeping,
Though He saw them fall.

But when I had told the story,
Lovingly He came,
Filled, Himself, the vacant chambers,
Blessed be His Name!

Now no more my heart is vacant,
Nevermore can be;
Filled with Jesus, "Jesus only",
For Eternity!

- Anon

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Please address Wholesome Words correspondence to:

R.M. Goatley,
P.O. Box 353
Taree, N.S.W. 2430, Australia.