That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.—1 John 1:3. ELLOWSHIP WITH GOD was one of the richest privileges of unfallen man. The Lord God walked in the garden and talked with Adam as a man talketh with his friend. So long as he was willing and obedient, Adam ate the fat of the land, and among the rich dainties and wines on the lees well refined, of which his soul was a partaker, we must number first and foremost, unbroken communion with God, his Father and his Friend. Sin, as it banished man from Eden, banished man from God, and from that time our face has been turned from the Most High, and his face has been turned from us;—we have hated God, and God has been angry with us every day. Christ came into the world to restore to us our lost patrimony. It was the great object of his wondrous sacrifice to put us into a position which should be equal and even superior to that which we occupied in Adam before the fall, and as he has already restored to us many things that we lost, so among the rest—fellowship with God. They who have by his grace believed, and have by the precious blood been washed, have peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord, they are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints and of the household of God, and they have access with boldness into this grace wherein we stand. So they who are in the kingdom, and under the dispensation of the second Adam, have restored to them in all its fullness that fellowship which was lost to them by the sin and disobedience of their first federal head. John was among the number of those who had enjoyed this privilege with Christ in his flesh. He had been Christs chosen companion, elect out of the elect to a choice and peculiar privilege. During the incarnation, he was one of the favored three who had enjoyed the closest intimacy with the Redeemer; he had seen Christ in his transfiguration, had witnessed the raising of the dead maid, had been with the Lord in the garden, and he had lingered with him even when the thrust was given after death, and the blood and water flowed from his pierced heart. John had the nearest, the dearest, the closest fellowship with Christ in the flesh. As he had laid his head upon Christs bosom, so had he laid all his thoughts and all the emotions of his mind upon the hearts love and divine affection of his Lord and Master but Christ was gone; it was no more possible to hear his voice, to see him with eyes, or to handle him with hands, yet John had not lost his fellowship, though he knew him no more after the flesh, yet he knew him after a nobler sort. Nor was his fellowship less real, less close, less sweet, or less divine, than it had been when he had walked and talked with him, and had been privileged to eat and drink with him at that last sacred feast. John says, Truly our fellowship is—not was—is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And now, my brethren and sisters in the common faith of our Lord Jesus, this morning I trust that many of us can say, Our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. Did the apostle John need to say, Truly—as much as though some doubted or denied it? We, too, have sometimes an occasion to make as solemn an affirmation as he has done. There are certain sectaries who exalt the form of their church government into a sine qua non of piety, and they say of us that it is impossible that we should have a fellowship with Christ, because we follow not after them. Because we reject not the ministry which God has appointed, to take up with some newly-devised scheme, by which everyone is to instruct his brother, forsooth therefore we have not the fellowship which is reserved for their sect and party. We have been led, when they have spoken very bitterly, to question ourselves; but after deep searchings of heart, in reply to them we can say, Brethren, whether you be right, or we be right in the matter of church discipline or organization, yet we can assure you that truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And ofttimes the doctrinalist—the man who thinks more of the doctrine of Christ than of the person of Christ, and who couples therewith the conceit that he himself must be right, and all others wrong,—because we may not be able to endorse all the heights of his doctrine, or, on the other hand, may not be able to join with him in his legal statements—says, O these people! there are many of them, but they can have no fellowship with God, because they do not sound our Shibboleth, they do not join with us in every separate dogma which we teach, and therefore the Lord is not with them. Ah, but we can say to them, Brethren, we are content to leave these doctrinal disputes to the Great Arbiter of right and wrong; we have formed our opinion of Scripture; we hope, as in the sight of God, and as before the Most High, we can say, we have not shunned to declare the whole counsel of God. But whether this be so or not, we protest to you, Truly, yes, truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And perhaps the experimentalist—the man who attaches undue importance to his own particular form of experience—may cry out that the minister has not had the same experience of human depravity as himself; he may condemn us utterly because we do not give prominence to a certain favourite but unhealthy standard of spiritual conviction. Well, we can say to him, We have preached what we do know, we have testified what we have seen, and if we cannot go to all the heights, and depths, and lengths, and breadths, as yet, we hope to grow; but we can say, even should you doubt our declaration, Truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. This brings me immediately and directly to the text. You will perceive that there is suggested by the text, a quiet investigation, leading to a most solemn affirmation. Truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And then there is, secondly, in the former part of the text, a most affectionate desire, leading to appropriate action. Our desire is, that you may have fellowship with us, and, therefore, that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you. I. First, then, let us in all quietude and stillness of heart, talk this matter over with one another, and see if it be not so, that we have had, and do have real FELLOWSHIP WITH THE FATHER, AND WITH HIS SON JESUS CHRIST. Now, brethren, we have had fellowship with the FATHER. In order to have fellowship with any man, there must be a concord of heart. Can two walk together unless they be agreed? At the very bottom of fellowship there must be a likeness; we must have like wishes, like desires; we must have espoused like ends, and our spirits must be welded together in the intention to effect like purposes. Now, I think we can avow, this morning, in the first place, that we do feel a sweet concord with God in his eternal purposes. I read the Book of God, and I find that he hath ordained Christ to be the Head of his Church, and that he hath chosen unto himself a number that no man can number. I find it revealed in the Word of God that he is a God of distinguishing and discriminating grace; that he will have mercy on whom he will have mercy, and will have compassion on whom he will have compassion, that he will bring many sons unto glory, to the praise of the glory of his grace wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved. Brethren, cannot you and I say, as in the sight of a heart-searching God, we have full accord with God in his purposes? Why, we love them, we delight in them, the decrees of God are satisfactory to us. If it were possible for us to alter the roll in which his divine intentions are written, we would not do it, we feel that whatever he has ordained must be right, and as for his ordination of his people unto eternal life, and his loving them above all people that be on the face of the earth, why this is one of the richest joys that we know. The doctrine of election is a sweet cordial to the child of God. I can cry, My Father, thou art King, thou hast chosen the base things of this world, and things that are not, to bring to nought the things out are; and in this I have fellowship with thee, for I can exclaim, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemeth good in thy sight. Again, we have fellowship with God in the object for which the purpose was first formed, namely, his own glory. Ah, the deeds of the Most High tend to manifest his majesty and glorify his Godhead. O brethren, do not we sympathise with God in this object? Give glory unto him, give glory unto him, O all creatures that his hand hath made! The highest aspiration of our spirit, when it is most enlarged, and most inflamed is, that he in all things may he glorified. He knows, for he can read the heart, that oftentimes, when we have ourselves been bowed down, and we have been made as the very dust of the earth, we have said, This is still my comfort, that he is exalted, that he still reigneth, and doeth as he wills arming the armies of heaven, and among the people of this lower world. Do you not desire his glory as he desires it? He has purposed to stain the pride of all human boasting, and to make the world know that Jehovah is God, and that beside him there is none else do not you also desire the same, and do you not daily pray, Let him be magnified from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof; let all creatures call him blessed, let all that have breath, praise, laud, and magnify his name? In this, then—in his purpose, and in the object of his purpose, we have fellowship with the Father. And now, have we not fellowship with him in the plan by which he effects that purpose? It pleased him, that in the fullness of time, he should send forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. He laid one foundation, and one only, and he said concerning it, that other foundation shall no man lay but that which is laid. God has chosen the stone which the builders refused, that it might be made the headstone of the corner: this is the Lords doing, and cannot we say, It is wondrous in our eyes? As he is unto God the chief corner stone, elect, precious, so unto you that believe He is precious. Looking at all the plan from the beginning to the end, do you not agree in it? Does it not strike you as being the wisest, the most gracious, the most glorious scheme that could have been devised? And as from its first fountain in predestination, onward to the ocean of glory, you traverse the ever-flowing stream, do you not say of it in all matchless course, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his abundant mercy hath chosen us in him from before the foundation of the world, and who having, chosen us, will glorify us and bring us to himself at the last? Yes, there is not a single word that we would alter, there is not a line in this divine scheme that we would wish to change. If it approves itself to him, it certainly approves itself to us, if he chose it as the plan of divine operation, we adore his choice, we reverence both the wisdom and the love which planned and carried out the design. And yet more I think we may add, we have fellowship with God in the most prominent characteristics of that plan. Throughout the whole way of salvation, you have seen displayed the justice and the mercy of God, each with undimmed lustre. You have seen his grace in forgiving the sinner, but you have seen his holiness in avenging sin upon the substitute. You have seen his truthfulness acting in two ways, his truth in threatening,—by no means sparing the guilty, his truth in the promise,—passing by transgression, iniquity, and sin. Throughout the whole Divine plan of salvation, there is not a single blot upon any of the attributes of the Most High. Holy! holy! holy! Lord God of Sabbath, is still the son of angels, even when they see sinners who were once the vilest of the vile, brought to share their joys, and sing their songs. And, brethren, do not you and I feel we have fellowship with God in this? Would you have him unjust that you might be saved? I think you would say, Never! never! not even for my sake let him be unjust. Would you have him unloving to others, that he might make you his favourite? No! and there is no trace of anything like this. You would not have him retract his threatening, for then you might fear that he would forget his promise. I am sure, as you look upon the character of God, as he manifests it in the face of Jesus Christ, your soul is filled with ineffable and delightful adoration; you can sing unto him, Great art thou, O God, thy mercy endureth for ever, and taking up the words of David, you can say, I will sing of mercy, and of judgment; unto thee, O God, will I sing! In the purpose, then, in the object of that purpose, in the plan by which the purpose is achieved, and in the characteristics of that plan, the believer in Christ has fellowship or sweet concord with the Father. But to proceed a step further: we have a most divine and precious communion with the Father in the objects of his love. When two persons love the same thing, their affection becomes a tie between them. The two may love each other, but when in the course of providence, children are brought into the house, their children become another bond between their parents, each of them mutually giving their hearts to their little ones, feel that their hearts are yet more fully given the one to the other. Now, there is a tie between God the Father and our souls, for did not he say, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased? And cannot you and I add, Yes, he is our beloved Savior, in whom we are well pleased? Is it not written, It pleased the Father to bruise him? And do we not feel that ye have found a divine pleasure and satisfaction in looking into his wounds, his agonies, and his death? And has not Father determined to glorify his Son Jesus? And is not the fondest thought of our heart that we may help to glorify him here on earth, and may spread his glories even in heaven, by telling to the angels, and principalities, and powers, the height and depth of his lovingkindness? Does the Father love the Son?—even so do we love him, not to the same infinite extent, for we are finite beings, yet with sincerity, even as the Father loves Jesus, so sincerely do we love him—
Posted on: Fri, 21 Mar 2014 09:03:49 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015