The divine message of spiritual truth is paramount to all other interests that concern each living soul. It is the word of life. Jesus said, “ The words that I have spoken unto you are spirit, and are life.” The whole burden of His discourse to the Jews in the sixth chapter of John was spirit (not mere flesh), and life in its highest sense. This was true of all our Lord’s teaching. Peter said, “To whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.” The apostles would stay with Him on whom they had believed — “ the Holy One of God” — and in whom they had found such satisfaction of soul. When the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors and brought the apostles out, he said, “ Go ye and stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this Life.” This beautiful Life in the Risen One was to be the burden of all their preaching.
So inseparable is this life from Christ Himself that He is called the “Word of Life.” John was speaking of the personal, incarnate word when he said, “That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled concerning the Word of life.” This is a great contrast indeed from the experience of the wisest heathen, feeling and groping with the hands if haply he might find God. How different this is from the lifeless formalism and wretched tradition of the Jewish elders of the apostolic day! Who is not able to sense here a spiritual warmth and affection in contrast with the legalistic, heartless, and cold doctrinal teaching of our time? Christ Himself was the embodiment of the message represented fully in all His sayings, doings, and sufferings. He Himself is the source, object, and center of His people’s joy.
The conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch is a convincing example of life in the word. Sitting in his chariot as he was returning from Jerusalem where he had been to worship, the eunuch was reading the prophet Isaiah. “ Now the passage of the scripture which he was reading was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before his shearer is dumb, So he openeth not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: His generation who shall declare? For his life is taken from the earth.” Philip, beginning from this scripture, preached unto him Jesus.
The eunuch’s question, “Of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other?” clearly shows that he had not the least idea of any connection between this prediction and the facts concerning the suffering and death of Jesus and the continually increasing party that were acknowledging Him to be the Messiah. Philip showed Him to be the glorious One of whom this wonderful prediction was made — how Jesus came to earth, being born of a virgin and anointed by God, how He healed the sick, raised the dead, preached the kingdom of God, and finally fulfilled this very prophecy by dying on Calvary’s tree, where He bore our iniquities. Philip then rehearsed how Christ was buried; how He came forth from the grave; and how, according to appointment, He met His disciples on a mountain in Galilee, there commissioning them to preach the gospel to every creature, baptizing those who believed into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
A close study of this conversion in the eighth chapter of Acts will disclose that Philip had told the whole story, and that “this scripture’’ which the eunuch had been reading had its divine and proper fulfillment in the sufferings and death of Jesus. The imperishable seed, the “Word of Life,” which contains the life principle, the germ (because the Spirit of God accompanies it, John 6:63), was received into the heart of the listener. We are told (Acts 8:36, 38), “As they went on the way, they came unto a certain water and the eunuch saith, Behold, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down into the water both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.” By means of the word, he had received the “incorruptible seed,” and so he becomes “born again” (John 3:3-5), “born of water and the Spirit.” Paul wrote (Gal. 3:26, 27), “For ye are all sons of God, through faith, in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ did put on Christ.” All who are in Christ are new creatures (Rom. 6:5-11): “The old things are passed away; behold, they are become new” (II Cor. 5:17). The Spirit of God, like a mighty tide, pours himself into the darkened and confused soul, bringing light and a full, deep rapture of the divine life. The eunuch went on his way rejoicing. There was the joy of peace with God through the blood of the Cross, the joy of a purged conscience, which every child of God understands from his own experience.
This is not social reformation. No human refinement of the carnal mind can make it spiritual. There must be the renewing and transforming power of the Spirit of God. Mere human nature, however beautiful, cultured, or sincere, can never rise above itself or produce anything better than itself. Spiritual life must exist before there can be godliness. Hence, godliness cannot exist without this spiritual life. All that we need for nurture of spiritual life and for the development of godliness has been given to us in our knowledge of Christ. Peter, writing to “ them that have obtained a like precious faith with us in the righteousness of our God and the Saviour Jesus Christ,” said in his salutation: “ Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue.” We see here that this knowledge is the channel of grace, the ground of peace, the means of salvation, and the instrument of all blessings.
Believers have a union in life, not a legal arrangement, and have one life with Christ, as truly as the. head and the members of the body have one life. It is because of this fact our Lord made the promise (John 15:7), “ It ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” He dwells in us through His word; and through the believing reception of His word, He comes in to us.
The power in us alone limits our spiritual strength. The message of the; gospel is the most potent force known. It is a flaming fire in the hearts of men. What experience can compare with that of preaching the good news of Christ Jesus our Lord? Let the preacher steep himself in the gospel; he proclaims a message of such urgency that without it souls must die. (-Missionary Messenger, September 1947)
-F. S. Spaulding was the first Administrator of Maple Manor