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God's Sacred Secrets

By T Ernest Wilson

Mystery Doctrines of the New Testament

Gospel Folio Press
Colborne, On

Copyright© 1994 T. Ernest Wilson

Originally published in 1975 by Loizeaux Brothers, Inc. as Mystery Doctrines of the New Testament

To the memory of the great spiritual giants of the Nineteenth Century, who, under the guidance and illumination of the Holy Spirit, and rightly dividing the Word of Truth by observing dispensational distinctions, opened up the treasure house of God’s Word to succeeding generations, this volume is respectfully dedicated.

Introduction

Each generation of Christians, it has been stated, must discover the Word of God for itself. The truth is the same in every age, but it has to be applied to the varied circumstances and needs of each period of time. Isaac re-dug the wells which his father Abraham had excavated and called them by their old names (Gen. 26). The Philistines had filled them in. They needed to be cleaned out so that the refreshing water could spring up again. The modern Philistines are still busy choking the wells of truth. Luther, Calvin, Wesley, and John Nelson Darby were well-diggers. They rediscovered and applied the truth in the Word of God to the people of God in their day. We must do so in ours.

The object of these studies is to restate the great doctrines of the New Testament which are called “mysteries.” Other men have done this in the past. But there is a need to apply them to the special circumstances of these difficult and dangerous times which the New Testament calls “the last days.”

The word “mystery” is not found in the Old Testament, but the term “dark sayings” occurs three times (Ps. 49:4; 78:2; Prov. 1:6). The Greek word musterion (mystery) is used twenty-seven times in the AV of the New Testament (Matt. 13:11; Mk. 4:11; Lk. 8:10; Rom. 11:25; 16:25; 1 Cor. 2:7; 4:1; 13:2; 14:2; 15:51; Eph. 1:9; 3:3, 4, 9; 5:32; 6:19; Col. 1:26, 27 [twice]; 2:2; 4:3; 2 Thess. 2:7; 1 Tim. 3:9, 16; Rev. 1:20; 10:7; 17:5, 7). Note that out of these twenty-seven references, it is used by the Apostle Paul twenty-one times. Paul calls himself a steward “of the mysteries of God” (1 Cor. 4:1).

The word “mystery” in the New Testament does not mean something mysterious, but a matter which up to this point has been hidden in God and is now revealed. The word means a truth undiscoverable by human reason, but is now divinely disclosed. William Sunday comments: “Among the heathen, it is always a secret concealed, but with Paul, a secret revealed.” H. A. Ironside, writing on the subject, refers to the Eleusinian mysteries: teaching not given to the multitude, but imparted to a select company of initiates. As used in the New Testament, they are great truths which are the common property of all believers and not just a special class.

An examination of all the references in the New Testament to the mysteries would seem to indicate that there are at least fourteen, divided into four categories: doctrinal, dispensational, devotional, and diabolical. They cover all the main doctrines and themes of the teaching of the apostles.

In these studies, we propose to look at them in the following order:

Doctrinal

Dispensational

        Mystery of the Kingdom of Heaven (Matt. 13)

        Mystery of Israel’s Blindness (Rom. 11:25)

        Mystery of the Rapture of the Church (1 Cor. 15:51)

        Mystery of His Will (Eph. 1:9)

        Mystery of God (Rev. 10:7)

Devotional

Diabolical

Part One: Doctrinal
Chapter One: The Mystery of the Faith

Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience (1 Tim. 3:9).

In the pastoral epistles, Paul gives his final instructions to his young fellow-servants who will pick up the torch of testimony after he is gone. The key word of 1 Timothy is “the house of God.” In 2 Timothy, it is “the man of God.” In Titus, it is “the grace of God.” In all three Epistles he is very much concerned about the great basic doctrines of Christianity which he calls “the good deposit” (2 Tim. 1:14). It was a trust which had been committed to him by the Lord Himself, and now he was passing it on to his dear son in the faith.

In outlining the respective responsibilities and qualifications of the elder and the deacon (or servant) of the church, among other things he says that the deacon must hold the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.

In these final letters of Paul, the term “the faith” means, not only the confidence with which we receive the gospel message, and our trust in the Saviour which it reveals, but is a synonym for the message itself. It is not just the act of believing, but the doctrine believed. In Acts 6:7, we read that a great company of the priests were obedient unto the faith. In Acts 16:5, the churches were established in the faith. In Judo 3, we are exhorted to contend earnestly for the faith once for ail delivered unto the saints.

As well as the actual term, “the faith” Paul speaks of the truth, and the doctrine. Twelve times in these letters he mentions the truth. While we naturally speak of holding or keeping the faith, we usually speak of knowing the truth. The gospel is received into the heart; the truth is grasped by the mind. Of the eleven passages in the Pastorals which mention the truth, five are concerned with knowing it. In each case, it is the strong word epignosis (thorough knowledge) which is used. While the faith indicates that which is believed among God’s people, and the doctrine points to that which is taught, the truth is that which it is in itself, and in relation to God. In Paul’s later epistles, and especially in the Pastorals, a certain body of teaching had come to he the common belief (called the common faith in Titus 1:4) of the saints everywhere.

Definition of the Faith

In Paul’s great doctrinal Epistle to the Ephesians, the apostle in chapter 4:4-6 outlines the seven unities of Christianity. Among them is the “one faith.” What is it? Modern ecumenism avoids sharply defining the Christian faith through fear of introducing some disturbing element. But an undefined faith produces a dubious paradise with a weak and doubtful peace at any price, a heretics’ haven. The unity of the Spirit is based firmly on the unity of the faith. Modern efforts at organizational unity are based on compromise and a watered-down definition of the faith. There is a world of difference between organized uniformity and organic unity. One is man-made; the other is divine.

Luke defines the faith as “those things which are most surely believed among us” (Lk. 1:1). In Acts 2:42, it is called “the apostles’ doctrine.” John calls it “the doctrine of Christ” (2 John 9). The doctrine of Christ would embrace, not only the teaching given by Christ, but also the doctrines concerning His Person and work. These would certainly include the following truths: The deity of Christ, His humanity, His eternal sonship, His virgin birth, His impeccability, His vicarious death, His bodily resurrection. His ascension, His priesthood, and His second advent.

The apostles’ doctrine would include: the Holy Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, coequal and co-eternal; the plenary inspiration of the original autographs of Holy Scripture; the divine Person and work of the Holy Spirit; the eternal punishment of the lost; and the eternal bliss of the redeemed.

These great truths are basic and foundational, and could be defined as “the faith” of which the apostle speaks, and the good deposit which he commits to his son Timothy.

Departure from the Faith

The eleven passages in the pastorals where “the faith” is mentioned, are as follows:

It will be noticed that in more than half of these passages there is a solemn warning about departing from the faith. In each of them, a different word is used for this departure.

These are: made shipwreck, depart from (apostatize), deny, cast off, led astray, miss the mark. Some of these are pictorial words, especially the first and the last. They graphically portray a ship battered on the rocks, and an archer who misses the target. This idea of the archer is used three times (1 Tim. 1:6; 6:21; 2 Tim. 2:18).

In 1 Timothy 1:5, the apostle tells us that the end or aim of the charge is love out of a pure heart, and a good conscience, and faith unfeigned. This is the real mark or target at which to aim. However, some had not only missed the mark but were aiming at the wrong target. These were aiming at being teachers of the law, while those in chapter 6 wished to impress others with their possession of science or knowledge. Their aim was wrong. Then others had made complete shipwreck of the faith, having thrust from them a pure conscience, like a sailor throwing overboard his compass and navigational charts.

Paul uses the word apostasy in 1 Timothy 4:1. Describing the characteristics of the latter times, he says: “Some shall depart (apostatize) from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons.” Apostasy is reaching the point of no return. One may be recovered from backsliding like Peter, but for apostasy, there is nothing left but judgment. Peter was a backslider, but Judas Iscariot was an apostate. The apostate never had life. Enlightened—yes, but never regenerated. The apostasy is not only doctrinal and moral; it is satanic. We can expect an increasing upsurge of demon activity as the time draws near for the appearing of our great Cod and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Defense of the Faith

Paul’s great object in these final exhortations is that we should not only know the truth and teach the doctrine, but that we should guard and defend the faith. Jude adds his tes- timony in verse 3 of his epistle in these words: “It was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that you should earnestly contend for the faith once for all delivered unto the saints.” During his lifetime of service, Paul had to contend against legalism at Galatia, against antinomianism at Corinth, and against the beginning of Gnostic error at Colosse. These old heresies have had a resurrection in our day under new names, but basically they are the same. There is the promoting of salvation by the works of the law on the one hand. Then the opposite extreme is being purveyed: if we are saved by grace, then our conduct does not matter. It all develops into a final attack on the Person of our glorious Lord. Gnosticism gave the Saviour a place, but not the place and therefore not His place at all.

The believers’ resource is, first, love out of a pure heart—love for Christ and His people. Then there must be the maintenance of a good conscience—not the seared, cauterized, insensitive conscience of the apostate. Finally, the unfeigned, unhypocritical faith of a Lois, a Eunice, a Paul, and a Timothy is required—faith in the God who works all things after the counsel of His own will (Eph. 1:11).

We may well pray to be kept sound in the faith, to hold it in a pure conscience, to fight the good fight for it, and thus to be able to say at the last, like Paul, “I have kept the faith!”

Chapter 2: The Mystery of the Gospel

Now to Him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began (Rom. 16:25).

And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel (Eph. 6:19).

The mystery of the gospel is mentioned at the conclusion of two of the most important epistles in the New Testament, those to the Romans and to the Ephesians. Many commentators say that this mystery is the same as the mystery of Jew and Gentile in one body in the Church, expounded in Ephesians 3. Haldane takes the position that it refers to the gospel itself, as expounded in the Epistle to the Romans. A careful examination of the context in Romans 16:25-27 confirms this.

The word for gospel, euangellion, is used seventy-seven times in the New Testament: twelve times in the Gospels, twice in Acts, sixty-one times in Paul’s Epistles, once in 1 Peter, and once in the Revelation. The verb, to preach the gospel, or to evangelize, is used fifty-six times. Taking the noun and verb together, Paul speaks of the gospel eighty-six out of the one hundred and thirty-three times these words are used.

The word “gospel” means “good news” or “glad tidings.” While in every age God has good news for man, yet in each era of human history the terms and conditions may be different. It is the death of Christ on the cross and His resurrection that makes the difference. In other words, to get a clear picture of the gospel, we must recognize how God deals with men in each dispensation. Essentially, the gospel itself is the same in every age. The only way of salvation and approach to God is through the death of Christ and His precious blood shed on the cross. The Old Testament saints looked forward to it by faith; in the New Testament age we look back to it by faith. It is the foundation of salvation and the focal point of the ages.

Three Terms in the New Testament

      The Gospel of the Kingdom

And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come (Matt. 24:14).

This was the message preached by John the Baptist, the forerunner of the King (Isa. 40:3-5; Matt. 3:2). He emphasized three great truths: repentance—a change of mind and heart; redemption—he pointed to the Lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world; and retribution—he warned of the ax laid to the root of the tree, of the sifting fan, and of the unquenchable fire that would burn up the chaff.

This was all in view of the corning King and the kingdom. But the King was rejected and crucified. The gospel of the kingdom will be preached again, with renewed emphasis, by a Jewish remnant among all nations during the great tribula- tion. This again will be in view of the second coming of the King to set up His kingdom. The same message of repentance, redemption, and retribution will be preached with remarkable results (Matt. 24:14; Rev. 7:9-14).

      The Gospel of the Grace of God

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God (Acts 20:24).

This is the gospel for the present age of grace. Paul describes it in Acts 20:21, “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” In verse 25, he includes, “preaching the kingdom of God.” This is the gospel which he expounds in his Epistle to the Romans and which he defends in his Epistle to the Galatians. In 2 Corinthians 4:3-4 (RV), he calls it “the gospel of the glory of Christ,” and in 1 Timothy 1:11 (RV), it is “the gospel of the glory of the blessed God.”

      The Everlasting Gospel

And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people (Rev. 14:6).

The everlasting gospel is addressed to the earth dwellers immediately prior to the pouring out of the bowls of the wrath of God, in the latter part of the great tribulation. It calls on the nations to “Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” The emphasis here is on judgment. The fact that the word “everlasting” is used shows that the principles which it proclaims are above and beyond all dispensational considera- tions. In every era, the gospel received brings life; refused, it ends in judgment.

      The Mystery of the Gospel

Now to Him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began (Rom. 16:25).

In his great doxology at the end of the Epistle to the Romans, Paul speaks of “the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith.” He introduces the doxology with the words: “Now to Him that is of power to establish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ…” ft is obvious that the mystery is the gospel which he expounds in this great epistle. It is also quite clear that there is a vital link with the mystery of Ephesians 3, where the middle wall of partition is broken down, and where both Jew and Gentile tire made fellow-heirs and of the same body, and made partakers of His promise in Christ by the gospel. But it is equally clear that in Romans the emphasis is on the gospel, while in Ephesians it is on the Church. Both are mysteries which God has now revealed.

In 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, written in A.D. 59, Paul summarizes the gospel which he preached: “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which 1 preached unto you…For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” In his Epistle to the Romans, written in A.D. 60, he expounds it in detail. Three times he calls it “my gospel” (Rom. 2:16; 16:25; 2 Tim. 2:8). In Galatians 1:11-12, he tells us “that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.” In Romans, he uses four terms to describe it: the gospel of God (1:1); the gospel of His Son (1:9); the gospel of Christ (1:16); and the gospel of peace (10:15). The first reveals its Author, the second its subject, the third its power, the fourth its effect.

Now what is this gospel which Paul calls a mystery? The answer is to be found in the detailed exposition of this great doctrinal Epistle to the Romans. The Epistle is in three parts. Chapters 1-8 are doctrinal; chapters 9-11 are dispensational; and chapters 12-16 are devotional and practical.

The first part is in four sections as follows:

        Condemnation (chs. 1-3:23): Gentile and Jew guilty before God.

        Justification (chs. 3:24-5:21): by grace, through faith, without works.

        Sanctification (chs. 6-7): the question of indwelling sin.

        Glorification (ch. 8): Commences with no condemnation and ends with no separation.

The second section, chapters 9-11, deals with the question of the gospel in relation to the Jew, God’s ancient chosen people. If there is no difference between Jew and Gentile today, then has God cast them off nationally, and repudiated the Old Testament covenant promises given to Abraham and to David? The apostle shows that this is not so. The present era is a parenthesis in God’s purposes. When the fullness of the Gentiles has been brought in, then He will restore Israel again and fulfill His promises of blessing to them (11:13-36).

The third section, chapters 12-16, applies these great doctrines in a devotional and practical way. There are seven areas in which these are applied: the believer’s own life (12:1-2); the assembly (12:3-8); fellow believers (12:9-12); the unsaved (12:17-21); the political sphere (ch. 13); the weak brother (ch. 14); and ultimately the whole world (ch. 15). All this is in view of the judgment seat of Christ (14:10).

Ultradispensationalists and the followers of E.W. Bultinger have emphasized an imagined cleavage between the preaching of the gospel by the Apostle Peter and that preached by the Apostle Paul. To Peter was committed the gospel of the circumcision and to Paul that of the uncircumcision (Gal. 2:7-9). Actually, when one compares the sermon preached by Peter to a Jewish audience at Pentecost in Acts 2 with that preached to a Gentile audience in the house of Cornelius in Acts 10, one can sec immediately that in both cases the basic facts of the gospel—the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, the remission of sins through faith in His Name, and eternal judgment—were preached. The gospel is the same, but the approach to the Jew is different from that to the Gentile.

So it is with the preaching of Paul. His address in the synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia, recorded in Acts 13, is remarkably similar to Peter’s address at Pentecost. There is the same general outline, based on the Old Testament Scriptures. Then the declaration of the cross and the resurrection is followed by the offer of forgiveness and justification to those who believe. He concludes with the warning of despising and perishing. This is his message for the Jew in Acts 13. But in preaching to the Gentiles at Athens in Acts 17, he deals with pagan idolatry and the works of God in creation, concluding with a call to repentance, in view of the fact that God will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He has raised from the dead.

So it is incorrect to say that Peter preached a different gospel from that preached by Paul. It was the same gospel, but the stress is different when one is addressing a Jew or a Gentile. The same would be true today with a missionary preaching the gospel to a pagan African, or to a stone-age man in New Guinea, or to a self-righteous religionist who has been familiar with the Word of God all his life. The basic message would be the same, however it should be applied wisely according to the background of the individual.

But after all, the gospel is a mystery, and be it preached ever so simply to either Jew or Gentile, only the Spirit of God can reveal it to the mind and heart and will of the individual, and produce the great miracle of the new birth, bringing everlasting life through Christ the Lord.

Chapter 3 Jew & Gentile in One Body

For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, if ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given to youward: how that by revelation He made known unto me the mystery: (as I wrote afore in few words, whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ by the gospel: whereof 1 was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of His power.

Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: in whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him.

Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man: that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that toe ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen (Eph. 3:1-21),

It has been said that the central teaching in the ministry of the Apostle Paul is the mystery of the Church, which he unfolds in his Epistle to the Ephesians. Actually this statement needs to be narrowed down. In the New Testament, the word “Church” was first used by our Lord in Matthew 16:18, and again in Matthew 18:17, as something that lay in the future, and that He would be the builder of it. The birthday of the Church is described in Acts 2 on the day of Pentecost. We are told in verse 47 that the Lord added to the Church daily those that were being saved. Then in Acts 8:1, there was a great persecution of the Church and Saul (later Paul) made havoc of the Church. So the Church was in existence long before the conversion of Paul. But the great mystery which was revealed to him was the fact that the distinction between Jew and Gentile has been removed; both are brought into the Church on equal ground, and are made fellow members and fellow heirs and fellow partakers of God’s promise in Christ by the gospel. This is the doctrine which he reveals and expounds in Ephesians 3.

Before looking at the mystery in Ephesians 3, there are three misconceptions about the Church which should be understood for what they are.

First, the Church which is His body, which Paul expounds, is not found in the Old Testament. It is something entirely new, and revealed for the first time in this great mystery. It is true that there are types and illustrations of the Church. Paul speaks of Adam and Eve in Ephesians 5 as a type of Christ and His Church. The feast of Pentecost in Leviticus 23:15-22, with the offering of the two wave loaves baked with leaven, is definitely a picture of the Church of the present day. But the doctrine itself was hidden in God until revealed in the New Testament.

Secondly, there is a clear distinction between the hope of Israel and that of the Church. The promises and covenants made by Jehovah to Israel concerning the land and the kingdom were mainly of an earthly character, and will be literally fulfilled. But the hope of the Church is heavenly, and is entirely distinct from that of Israel. Christianity is not a sect, an offshoot, or a continuation of Israel or Judaism, but is a new body, with a new position and hope.

Thirdly, there is a definite distinction between the kingdom and the Church. The kingdom is wider than the Church. The difference between the kingdom of heaven and the Church is made clear in Matthew’s Gospel. He outlines the kingdom of heaven in the seven parables of chapter 13, and the Church in chapters 16 and 18. The kingdom existed before the Church commenced and will continue after it is completed. While the Church is in the kingdom, it is distinct from it.

The workman that need not be ashamed because he rightly divides the word of truth will keep these distinctions in mind, especially while we consider the mystery of Ephesians 3.

Paul uses three metaphors concerning the Church in his letter to the Ephesians. First, there is the building (2:2-22). This is the figure used by our Lord in Matthew 16:18, “I will build My church”; and by Peter in 1 Peter 2:4-8.

The second picture is that of the body and its head. Paul alone, among the writers of the New Testament, uses this figure of the Church. He refers to it nine times in his letter to the Ephesians.

The third metaphor is that of the bride, illustrated by the first bridegroom and bride, Adam and Eve, and applied by Paul to Christ and the Church in Ephesians 5:25-32. He calls this also a great mystery. But it is particularly to the great truth of the Head and the Body that the mystery of Ephesians 3 refers. The first mention in Ephesians 1:22-23 introduces the subject of the Body in relation to its glorified Head. Paul’s prayer at the end of the chapter cites seven glorious results of the resurrection and exaltation of Christ The last two state that all things have been put under His feet, and that He is given to be Head over all things to the Church, which is His Body, the fullness of Him that fills all in all.

When one considers the development in ecclesiastical circles of a clerical hierarchy with high-sounding titles, the great truth of the Headship of Christ to His Church cannot be overemphasized. In apostolic days, it was being undermined at Colosse by philosophy and vain deceit. Paul had to remind them that the remedy is in “holding the Head” and keeping Him in the preeminent place. In the human body, all thought and movement and growth is controlled by the head, and if through accident or disease this is interrupted or impaired, the body is a pathetic sight. How much more so in the spiritual realm!

In Ephesians 2:16, we first find the term “one body.” The chapter gives a wonderful description of the grace of God in the gospel, covering the three tenses of salvation—past, present, and future. Then it declares how Jew and Gentile are brought together at the foot of the cross, the middle wall of partition is broken down and removed, the enmity is taken away, and both are reconciled to God and to each other in the one Body, and through the work of our Lord Jesus Christ.

But it is in chapter 3 that we get the full blaze of light concerning this great mystery, God’s masterpiece of the present era. It is unveiled in a threefold way:

        i) the revelation of the mystery (vv. 1-5)

        ii) the exposition of the mystery (v. 6)

        iii) the fellowship of the mystery (vv. 7-11)

The Revelation of the Mystery

For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, if ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to youward: how that by revelation He made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit (Eph. 3:1-5).

In relation to the mystery, Paul is seen in a fivefold relationship:

        i) He is a prisoner, not of Rome or of Nero, but of Jesus Christ. Think of the precious treasure of written ministry which came out of prisons since then.

        ii) He is a steward of the mysteries of God (vv. 2-6).

        iii) He is a minister of the gospel (vv. 7-13). He preaches the unsearchable riches of Christ.

        iv) He is an intercessor (vv. 14-19). He bows his knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

        v) He is a worshipper (vv. 20-21). Note his doxology.

In verse 5, he declares that this mystery in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, but it is now revealed to His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; and again in verse 9 he tells us that from the beginning it was hidden in God. It is important to notice that Paul does not claim that it was given to him exclusively, but also to the holy apostles and prophets. This rules out completely the very prevalent notion that the Church is found in the Old Testament and that the body of Christ is a continuation of the church in the wilderness (Acts 7:38). The mystery now revealed teaches that it is an entirely new concept, up to this point hidden in the counsels of God,

The Exposition of the Mystery

That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ by the gospel (Eph. 3:6).

The Revised Version explains what the mystery is: “that the Gentiles are fellow-heirs, and fellow-members of the body, and fellow-partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” All this was very difficult for the Jew to accept or understand. For centuries he had been a super-segregationalist, proud of his racial and spiritual superiority. The Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans, and as for the goyim or Gentile dogs, to place themselves on the same level would be unthinkable. Yet this is what the new revelation declared.

The early missionaries in Matthew 10, commissioned and sent by the Lord, were told to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, not to go into the way of the Gentiles. Nor were they to enter into any city of the Samaritans (vv. 5-6). But today all that has been altered. In His last commission, our Lord gave the command to make disciples of all nations, and to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature (Matt. 28:19; Mk. 16:15). The expansion of the gospel message is outlined in Acts 1:8, “Ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” It must have been very hard for the apostles, steeped in Jewish tradition, to carry out these instructions.

Simon Peter, for instance, had to be given a vision, repeated three times, of the clean and unclean animals let down from heaven in a sheet. He was hungry, and he was commanded to rise, kill, and eat. But he remembered the taboos of Leviticus 20 concerning prohibited food, and replied: “I have never eaten anything common or unclean.” He was told that what God had cleansed he was not to call common or unclean. After the threefold repetition of the vision with its command and reply, the messengers from the Gentile Roman soldier, Cornelius, appeared at the door with the request to come and tell them words whereby they might be saved. Peter got the point!

Some time later, when Peter vacillated for fear of what the legalistic brethren in Jerusalem might say, he withdrew from the Gentiles. Paul had to take him to task for his inconsistency, and he had to learn the lesson over again (Gal. 2:11-14). Even a good man like Barnabas was influenced by Peter’s action. It is all so human and up-to-date. Human nature loves to put itself on a pedestal, a tendency which often manifests itself in social caste, or intellectual cliques, or racial pride. The Pharisaical spirit is still very much alive, but that should not be true in the body of Christ, “Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all” (Col. 3:11).

The Fellowship or Dispensation of the Mystery

And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord (Eph. 3:9-11).

Paul outlines three circles or companies to which this great mystery has been revealed. First, it was shown to the Lord’s holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit (v. 5). Paul himself was a member of this company (v. 3). He was the channel through which it was revealed, and was communicated by him to the leaders of the early Church.

Secondly, it was his responsibility to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery. That would reach out to the rank and file of the believers in the local churches.

Then thirdly, the wider sphere of angelic beings--the principalities and powers in the heavenlies—might know through the Church the manifold wisdom of God. Other passages tell us that the angels are vitally interested in Cod’s purposes in grace in the Church (1 Pet. 1:12; 1 Cor. 11:10). God is using the Church as an object lesson in demonstrating to these heavenly intelligences His manifold (variegated) wisdom and love.

It is instructive and highly important to notice how Paul develops the doctrine of the mystical body of Christ in his letter to the Ephesians. In the nine occurrences of the word, “body,” four main ideas in his teaching can be discerned.

First, there is sovereignty. In Ephesians 1:22-23, we are introduced to the Head of the Body. The final item of His exaltation in resurrection is that He “gave Him to be the head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fulness of Him (which] filleth all in all.” lust as in the physical body, the head controls the movement and growth of the body, so in the mystical Body, Christ must be sovereign Lord. The Church is the fullness or complement of the Head. As Eve was the helpmeet or counterpart of Adam, so is the relation of the Church to Christ. In the great mystery of the Body, He without her would not be complete.

In chapter 4, the unity of the body is emphasized. In verse 3, Paul mentions the unity of the Spirit and in verse 13, the unity of the faith. In verses 4-6, he outlines seven unities which are ideal examples of what unity really is: “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one Cod and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” The heart and center of this unity is the unity of the Tri- une God, and the other four—one body, one hope, one faith, and one baptism are based on it. The risen and glorified Christ has given gifts to promote this unity: the apostles and prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers (v. 11).

All of this leads to the maturity of the body: “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (4:13). This process, while taking place now in time, will have its full consummation only in eternity. Meanwhile, the gifts from the ascended Head are given for the perfecting of the saints, with a view to the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ (v. 12).

Finally, there is the glorious destiny of the body (5:23-33). Based on the great typical teaching, linked with the first marriage in Scripture—of Adam and Eve—we are told: “For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and He is the Saviour of the body” (v. 23). “For we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones” (v. 30). Just as Eve, being taken from Adam’s body was a part of his body, and at the same time was his bride, so the Church is both the body and the bride of Christ. Her destiny is to be presented to Himself, a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing (v. 27).

Chapter 4: The Mystery of the Bride

This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church (Eph. 5:32).

It has often been pointed out that human history, as recorded in the Bible, begins with a marriage in Genesis 2 and ends with a marriage in Revelation 19. In between, we find God’s great purpose in providing a bride for His Son. But the identity of the bride, the wife of the Lamb (Rev. 21:9), has been a matter of controversy. In this important question, it is well to examine the overall teaching of Scripture regarding the calling and position of both Israel and the Church. Confusion here can be fatal to balanced interpretation.

In the Old Testament, Israel is regarded as the bride and wife of Jehovah (Isa. 50:1; Jer. 3; Ezek. 16; Hos. 2; etc.). But that lovely relationship was marred by spiritual adultery in Israel’s being unfaithful to her Husband. She is now regarded as divorced and separated from her Husband (Isa. 50:1). But there will be a glorious future restoration to her Husband (Hos. 2:14-20). Psalm 45 speaks of the bridegroom and the queen by his side in millennial glory. However, by no stretch of imagination could it be said that an adulterous and di- vorced woman, although forgiven and reconciled, is a virgin bride! Paul, in addressing the Corinthians, says: “For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ” (2 Cor. 11:2).

In Ephesians 5:25-27, he says: “Christ…loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing: but that it should he holy and without blemish.” Language like this could not be used of Israel. She will be forgiven and restored as the repentant wife of Jehovah, but not as the chaste virgin bride of the Lamb.

The Bride in the Types

We are often warned against deducing doctrine from Old Testament types. We must not allow imagination to run riot. But both our Lord and His apostles used the types of the Old Testament as illustrations in their teaching. So we are in good company when we use them, too. When a type from the Old Testament is applied and expounded in the New Testament, we are on solid ground. Our Lord used the type of Adam and Eve in His teaching concerning marriage and divorce (Matt. 19:3-6), and Paul uses the same type in his teaching concerning Christ and the Church (Eph. 5:23-33). While many similar passages are not called types, yet it would seem legitimate to use them as illustrations of New Testament doctrine.

There are three lovely illustrations of the bride in Genesis:

        i) Eve in chapter 2—the product of the deep sleep of Adam, his opened side, and the presentation of the bride to the bridegroom. She is called a “helpmeet” or the counterpart of her husband. He without her would be incomplete. The Lord God called their name “Adam,” not the Adamses! They were one, both in name and in nature.

        ii) Rebekah in chapter 24—Isaac is undoubtedly a type of the Lord Jesus. The unnamed servant (probably Eleazer of Damascus), who was commissioned by the father Abraham to go to Mesopotamia to find a bride for his son, is a true picture of the Holy Spirit fulfilling His mission in the present age of grace. He found the bride at a well; he opened up the treasures belonging to Isaac in the house; he guided and escorted the espoused bride across the desert; and he presented the bride to the bridegroom in the field at eventide. If this is not a type, at least it is a delightful illustration of a fourfold ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Church today.

        iii) Asenath in chapter 41—Joseph, too, in his humiliation and exaltation is a perfect picture of our Lord’s sevenfold stoop to the death of the cross, and His subsequent sevenfold exaltation, outlined in doctrinal form in Philippians 2:5-11. Joseph, in his triumphal ascent from the prison house, was given a sevenfold reward: a ring and a robe; a golden chain and a chariot; a proclamation and a preeminent name. Then as the climax, he was presented with a Gentile bride to share his glory.

It does not take a vivid imagination to see in these three brides the work of the Holy Trinity: God the Father in chapter 2; God the Holy Spirit in chapter 24; and God the Son in chapter 41.

The Bride In the Teaching of the New Testament

In the parable of the husbandman and the vineyard (Matt. 21:33-44), and in the parable of the king who made a marriage for his son (Matt. 22:1-14), our Lord gives us a vivid dispensational picture of the rejection by Israel of His claims to be the Messiah. As a result of that rejection, their city was destroyed in A.D. 70, and the vineyard of testimony handed over to others to bring forth its fruit. This is obviously the Church of the present age, composed of Jew and Gentile in one body. Sub- sequent to the Lord’s rejection by Israel is the parable of the marriage of the king’s son. The message to come to the wedding goes out to the highways and byways of earth. John the Baptist, in referring to our Lord in John 3:29, said: “He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth Him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.” Apparently, he as the forerunner of the Messiah, and the last of the law and the prophets, did not regard himself as a part of the bride.

But the great doctrinal passage in this regard is Ephesians 5:25-33. The subject of Ephesians is the universal Church. Three figures are used to illustrate it; it is a body (1:23); it is a building (2:19-22); and it is a bride (5:31-32). The teaching in chapter 5 is based on the relationship between husband and wife. In the analogy, Christ is the head of the Church and the Saviour of the body. In this tender relationship, seven ministries are outlined which He performs for His bride; two in the past, four in the present, and one in the future.

In the past. He loved the Church and gave Himself for it. This reaches from eternity past, up to the cross.

In the present, He sanctifies, cleanses, nourishes, and cherishes it (v. 29). The word for “cleanses” is the same as the once-for-all bathing of John 13:10. “Nourish” is the same word as “nurture” in the bringing up of children in Ephesians 6:4. “Cherish” is the tender word used by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 2:7 (RV). “As…a nurse cherisheth her own children.”

In the future, Christ presents the Church to Himself. In Jude 24, the presentation is “before the presence of His glory.” In Colossians 1:22, the object of His death on the cross was “to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in His sight.” A comparison of the two passages in Genesis 2, concerning Adam and his bride, and Ephesians 5, concerning Christ and His Church, would show the close connection between the two.

The Bride in Triumph in the Book of Revelation

In the book of Revelation, the word “church” is used nineteen times in the first three chapters. It is not used again until the last chapter, where it only occurs once (22:16). This is very significant and gives an important clue to the interpretation of the book. The Church’s history on earth closes at the end of chapter 3. From this point on, she is seen in heaven, represented by the twenty-four elders, seated and crowned with victor’s crowns.

There are four women named in the book, each one with a typical significance:

        i) Jezebel (2:20). She introduced idolatry and immorality into the church at Thyatira.

        ii) The woman clothed with the sun, who gave birth to the Man child (ch. 12).

        iii) The harlot, Babylon the Great (ch. 17).

        iv) The bride (21:9).

There is a designed contrast between the last two women at the end of the book. The harlot is the immoral, over-decorated counterfeit; the bride is the chaste, pure wife of the Lamb, dressed in white. Associated with each one is a city. The home of the harlot is Babylon, that great city, which is become the habitation of demons, the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. Both the woman and the city are designated by the term, Babylon the Great. Both fall under the judgment of God. The home of the bride is the New Jerusalem, which comes down from God out of heaven. Both the woman and the city are called the bride, the Lamb’s wife (21:9-10; 22:17), so closely are they linked together.

The fact that she is called the Lamb’s wife shows that the marriage has already taken place. The marriage and the marriage supper of the Lamb is described in 19:7-9. Obviously it is a heavenly scene, as the coming of Christ in glory does not take place until verse 11. Both the marriage and the marriage supper take place in heaven.

The description opens with a fourfold Hallelujah Chorus as a wedding march. An eastern wedding is usually in three parts; first, the contract, corresponding to our engagement. The parties are often quite young, and if so, there could be a long waiting period. The young man pays a dowry and the couple are then regarded as legally married. The bride could be called a wife.

Secondly, when the time comes for the actual marriage, the bridegroom, accompanied by his friends, goes to the house of his bride, and escorts her to his home. This is the background to the parable of the virgins in Matthew 25.

Finally the marriage ceremony arrives, and the marriage supper to which the guests are invited, it was such a wedding feast that our Lord attended (Jn. 2:1-11) in Cana of Galilee.

All of this illustrates the relation of Christ to His Church. The contract is made when the soul accepts Him as Saviour and Lord. The price of redemption was paid in precious blood at the cross. The second phase has arrived when He comes for His bride at the rapture. The marriage itself takes place in heaven when the Church is complete, and He is united to His bride. The third phase is the wedding supper, attended by the invited guests.

The fact that John the Baptist calls himself “the friend of the bridegroom” might indicate that he and the glorified Old Testament saints, called “the spirits of just men made perfect” (He. 12:23), and possibly the tribulation martyrs, would be among the guests at the wedding.

The Bridegroom

With us, a wedding is preeminently the day of the bride. But here it is His day, the day of Christ. It is the marriage of the Lamb. With us, the groom is often forgotten, but not here. It is the consummation of His joy (Heb. 12:2). He shall be satisfied (Isa. 53:11) and anointed with the oil of gladness (Ps. 45:7; Heb. 1:8-9).

As the Bridegroom, He is the Lamb, indicating His sacrificial work. He is the King, pointing forward to His glorious reign. He is the Kinsman-Redeemer, who like Boaz has redeemed the inheritance.

The Bride

Like any wife-to-be, the bride has made herself ready (Rev. 19:7). Where and how? In a life of devoted worship and service. In practical sanctification through the contemplation of Christ in His Word. Then finally at the judgment seat of Christ, where rewards are graciously conferred. Her wedding gown is of fine linen, clean and white, which we are told is the righteousnesses (plural) of saints. This is granted to her; it is all of pure grace.

There is a difference between the garment of salvation, which are exchanged for the filthy rags of self-righteousness when we become Christians, and this wedding gown. The first is called “the righteousness of God” (Rom. 3:22).

      Jesus, Thy blood and righteousness,

      My beauty are, my glorious dress;

      Midst flaming worlds in these arrayed,

      With joy shall I lift up my head.

But the word in Revelation 19:8 is dikaimata, a plural word meaning righteous acts. It is not dikaiosunee—righteousness. The bride has nothing to do with the spotless robe of righteousness; but she has a lot to do with the pure and white wedding gown. The old English word for an unmarried woman was a “spinster,” that is, one who weaves or spins. It points to the warp and woof and the shuttle weaving a pat- tern in the loom of life, producing the glittering threads of Mary-like devotion, which will shine in the wedding gown of the bride. The word for “white” is not the usual word, but is often translated gorgeous, glittering, or shining.

The word “bride” is used three times in Revelation 21 and 22. The first two occurrences refer to the Holy City, the New Jerusalem coming down from Cod out of heaven. In 21:2, it is prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. In 21:9, John is told: “Come hither, 1 will show thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife.” In the detailed description of the city, the fact that the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are in the twelve foundations, and the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel are written on the twelve gates, is taken as proof that the bride must consist of the redeemed of every age, from both Israel and the Church. But if our three premises are true—that there is a distinct difference between the calling of Israel and the calling of the Church; that one is an earthly people and the other a heavenly; and that Israel is the formerly estranged but restored wife of Jehovah while the Church is the virgin bride and wife of the Lamb—then that cannot be so. Why then are both mentioned in the heavenly city, which is called the bride, the Lamb’s wife?

The following suggestions may be worth consideration. Every gate in the city is one pearl. The pearl is not an Old Testament figure. It is never mentioned in the Old Testament. (Job 28:18 should read “crystal.”) In Matthew 13:45, the merchantman seeking goodly pearls is our Lord. The pearl of great price, taken out of the sea of the nations, is the Church, Israel is called Cod’s “peculiar treasure,” but the Church is the pearl—pure, perfect, and precious.

It was through the Jew that blessing in the gospel was brought to the Gentiles, therefore the names of the twelve tribes are on the gates. Whether we take the city as describing millennial conditions or the eternal state, apparently there will be very close intercommunication between the earthly city and the heavenly. The heavens will be opened and Jacob’s great vision of the ladder will be fulfilled (Gen. 28:12; Jn. 1:51).

In the modern city of Jerusalem today there is the Damascus gate and the Valley gate. This of course means that the road to Damascus or to the valley starts from these gates. It could be that the Church will be reminded by the names of those gates the means by which the blessings of heaven came to her (Rom. 9:4-5; 11:11-17).

The last mention of the bride in Scripture is in Revelation 22:17. Some years ago, a question was asked in a Christian magazine: “Can it be shown from Scripture that the Church, and not Israel, or a remnant of Israel, is the bride?” The answer was: “In Revelation 22:17, the bride, led by the Spirit, speaks in response to a testimony rendered, not in the synagogues, but in the churches. It is in the churches that the voice of the bride is heard. There are other proofs, but is not this one sufficient?”

Chapter 5: The Seven Stars & Seven Churches

The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in My right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches (Rev. 1:20).

The book of Revelation opens up the unveiling of Jesus Christ, in His Person (ch. 1), His Church (chs. 2-3); and His kingdom (chs. 4-22). It is divinely outlined for us in chapter 1:19. Write: the things which thou hast seen—in chapter 1; the things which are—in chapters 2 and 3; and the things which shall be hereafter—in chapters 4 through 22.

The great vision of the risen Christ in chapter 1 is the first of a series of seven visions of the Saviour covering every phase of His Person and work. This first vision is in three parts. First, as King, He presents His names and titles (vv. 4-8); secondly, as Priest and Judge, He walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands (vv. 9-16); thirdly, as the Mighty Conqueror, risen from the dead, He carries at His girdle the keys of hell and of death (vv. 17-18).

After seeing the vision, John is told to write: “The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in My right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks.” Then the great voice, as of a trumpet, adds: “The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.”

There has been considerable controversy as to the meaning and interpretation of the letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3, They may he regarded in three ways. First, historically and locally: the messages to them describe conditions actually existent among them in John’s day. Obviously, this would be the primary application. Secondly, spiritually and practically; here we have lessons for the local churches in every age. Thirdly, prophetically and representatively: give an outline from God’s standpoint of Church history, from its beginning at Pentecost until its end at the rapture.

Most evangelicals would accept the first two applications, but many would either doubt or deny the third. What reasons have we for saying that the seven churches, commencing with Ephesus and ending with Laodicea, give us a symbolic and chronological outline of conditions in the Church, covering the whole period of the present era of grace?

First, the seven golden candles are called a mystery. That would indicate something hidden or covered and now being revealed. Here is something not lying on the surface. It needs to be studied and investigated. We are dependent on the Spirit of God to open our understanding as to the meaning of the messages. In each case we are told, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” The message was not only local, but universal.

Second, there are a number of similar chronological and prophetical outlines in Scripture. For instance, the seven feasts of Jehovah in Leviticus 23; Daniel’s seventy weeks in Daniel 9; the seven parables of the kingdom in Matthew 13. It is logical to assume that we have another one in the seven churches of Revelation 2-3.

Third, there is a selection. As well as the seven churches mentioned in Revelation 2-3, there were at least three others in the same area; Troas (Acts 20:6-7); Colosse and Heirapolis (Col. 1:2; 4:13). But seven were selected for a definite purpose. Asia Minor was a comparatively small province. The churches mentioned form a rough geographical circle, starting with Ephesus at the coast. They probably came into existence or were founded by Paul during his two-year residence at Ephesus (Acts 19:10). We read that all those who lived in Asia heard the Word.

Fourth, the contents of the letters show a progression of teaching, from the beginning to the end at Laodicea. There is a gradual deterioration, punctuated by two revivals, ending with the repudiation of the corporate church testimony of Laodicea.

Fifth, there are a number of remarkable references to the second coming of Christ in the last four churches. In the first three, the coming is not mentioned; but in the last four, it is prominent. The first three point back to the beginning, the last four point forward to the coming.

Sixth is the significant meaning of the names of the churches. Ephesus means, “desired” or “desirable.” It is a term used by a lover to the maid of his choice. Smyrna means “myrrh”; Pergamos, “married”; Thyatira, “continual sacrifice”; Sardis, “escaping”; Philadelphia, “brotherly love”; Laodicea, “the people’s rights”! What a wealth of meaning there is in each name!

Seventh, the key fits the lock! Dr. Harry Ironside uses an interesting parable of an old castle with an ancient lock. A key is found in a heap of rubbish. When it is tried in the lock, the door swings open. We would naturally conclude that it was the proper key. Ironside says: “When the key fits perfectly the wards of a very complicated lock, and opens without effort, it is difficult not to believe that they were made for one another!” If we had no Bible and only a history book, we would see that church history falls naturally into seven peri- ods; the apostolic times; the age of persecution; then Constantine and his state religion; followed by the dark Middle Ages; then Luther and the Reformation; the evangelical revival beginning with the Wesleys: and ending in the lukewarm indifference of the present day. This is not a fanciful, arbitrary estimate of church history, forced to suit some particular school of interpretation, but is the sober natural division of the historian, which cannot be altered or denied. The seven churches present practically every difficulty of church life.

A final and, to the writer, a conclusive reason for regarding the seven churches as a panoramic outline of the whole church age, is the position of the rapture of the Church in the book of Revelation. Three positions are taken by commentators on the subject.

Premillennialists are generally agreed that it takes place at the beginning of chapter 4, where John is symbolically caught up to heaven and gets a vision of the throne and the twenty-four elders, clothed and crowned and seated on twenty-tour thrones. The elders are regarded as the completed Church, a holy priesthood, risen and glorified.

Others suggest that the rapture is indicated by the catching up of the Man child in 12:5, in the middle of the Great Tribulation. Some would equate the appearing of Christ in glory in chapter 19 and the rapture of the Church as the same event.

A careful reading of the book would show that there is no mention of the Church on earth from the end of chapter 3 till the end of the book in 22:16. If the glorified elders in heaven represent the completed Church, then the legitimate inference would be that the rapture takes place between chapter 3 and chapter 4. From that point on, Israel is in view as God’s testimony on earth. The Church’s testimony ends with the Laodicean period described in 3:14-22.

Archbishop Trench, in his book on the seven churches, denies the prophetic interpretation, but gives an interesting history of those who held it.

Henry Blount (1838) says: “Many commentators before the Reformation, and Brightman, Forbes, Mede, More, Gill, Sir Isaac Newton, Vitringa, Lampe, and others since that period, said that the seven churches were typical of the state of the Church during seven different periods, from apostolic days till the end.” Blount himself held that view. He adds, “they not only portray as types, but predict as prophecies, the whole church period.”

The Mystery of the Seven Stars

The risen and glorified Christ interprets the seven stars in His right hand as the angels or messengers of the seven churches. It should be noted that each letter was sent to the angel or messenger of the church. His responsibility was to convey the message of Christ to each individual assembly.

A number of suggestions have been made as to the meaning of “the angel of the church.” Some would take the word literally, as meaning an angel who acted as guardian over each individual church. But they fail to explain how a literal and invisible angel could convey a message to a literal local church.

Others would translate the word as “messenger,” and apply it to a courier who conveyed the message from John on Patmos to the local churches in Asia Minor. For instance, a note in the Scofield Bible says, “The natural explanation of the messengers is that they were men sent by the seven churches to ascertain the state of the aged apostle, now an exile in Patmos (cf. Phil. 4:18); but they represent any who bear God’s messages to a church.”

Another explanation is that the “angel” was the local bishop or pastor. But the bishop or the pastor is an official unknown to the New Testament. A plurality of bishops or pastors, yes, but the bishop over a local church was a later development which concluded in a hierarchy—an arrangement pilloried in the teaching of our Lord and His apostles. It is not likely that John, who used such strong language about Diotrephes in his third epistle, would countenance or encourage such an official in these letters.

A fourth interpretation is that the angel represents the eldership or the presbytery of the church, but the fact that the word is singular would seem to rule out that idea.

It should be noted that in all seven churches, the exhortation is to him “that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” The servant of God who is in the hand of the risen Christ, and has his ear open to receive the message, is the medium that God uses to convey the message to His people. This requires time spent in the sanctuary, and intimate communion with the great Head of the Church. It is prophetic ministry in the true sense of the term. It is not sermonizing or word spinning, but a man who can diagnose conditions, get his message from the throne, and convey it in the energy of the Holy Ghost to God’s people. This is the desperate need of the time.

Chapter 6: The Mystery of Godliness

And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory (1 Tim. 3:16).

In the Pastoral Epistles—1 and 2 Timothy and the Epistle to Titus—Paul summarizes his final teaching concerning the great doctrines of the faith, which he has expounded at length in his former letters. In the first three chapters of 1 Timothy, he outlines a number of doctrines relating to the Church; in the last three, he emphasizes the second coming of Christ, and the corresponding conduct of the servant of God in view of its imminence. In the center, as the connecting link between the two, is this tremendous statement concerning the Person and work of Christ. It is the climax, heart, and core of the epistle.

In writing to Timothy about his responsibilities in the church at Ephesus, apparently Paul has in mind the vision given to Jacob at Bethel, described in Genesis 28, when he fled from the wrath of his brother Esau. He speaks of the house of God and the pillar of truth, reminiscent of Jacob’s exclamation; “This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!” Then he erected his pillar and made his vow. This was a result of seeing the vision of the ladder set up on earth, the top of which reached to heaven, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon it.

There seems to be a distinct reference to the ladder in verse 16, In the first clause of the statement, “God was manifest in the flesh” (1 Tim. 3:16) we see Him coming down; in the last clause, “received up into glory,” He is going up; and in the center we see the angels, “seen of angels.”

The passage seems to be based on the typology of Genesis 28. The house of God would be the local church at Ephesus, where Timothy was ministering at the time, and “these things” of verse 14, would be the instructions of chapters 1-3 concerning the gospel, prayer, woman’s place in the church, the qualifications of the elder and the deacon in the local gathering. The pillar and base of the truth would be the public testimony which each assembly is responsible to maintain. At the word “truth,” Paul catches fire, and in verse 16 he gives this tremendous statement concerning it.

Some have described the verse as a beautiful early hymn in adoration of the Christ, and that Paul is merely quoting it. Men sang their creed in the form of an epitome of Christian doctrine. The six lines, and the form of the words, certainly give the impression of the rhythm of a hymn of worship con-corning our Lord Jesus Christ But Fairbairn and many others insist that it is not a quotation, but original with Paul and is comparable to the doxologies which he uses at the conclusion of other statements of doctrine, for example in Romans 8:38-39 and 11:33-36. W. E. Vine comments: “Attempts to make the six clauses parallel or antithetic in three groups of two, scarcely seems justified.”

Another point worth mentioning is that some have interpreted the passage as a statement of doctrine, not concerning Christ personally, but as the Christ, that is, Christ and His people, the mystical body. The last clause, “received up into glory,” in this interpretation is applied not to the ascension of Christ, but to the rapture. However, this would seem to be a strained application. Whether we take the name “God” as in the AV, or the pronoun “He who” as in the RV, as the subject of the first sentence, it is implied in each succeeding clause, and there is no doubt that it means the personal, individual Christ in each case.

Two of these mysteries in the New Testament are called “great.” One is the relationship between Christ and His Church, illustrated by Adam and Eve (Eph. 5:32). The other is the mystery of godliness. We are told that it is such “without controversy,” or by common consent. There should be no difference of opinion or argument here. All are agreed that this is one of the top secrets.

Godliness or piety is one of Paul’s favorite words in the Pastorals. The word he uses indicates not piety as a quality or condition, but active, operative piety—a way of life. It should be noted that the secret of all godliness is occupation with a Person, with the One who is presented to us in this wonderful statement. The mystery of iniquity of 2 Thessalonians 2:7 is headed up in a person, the man of sin. But in contrast, the mystery of godliness is also headed up in a Person, the Man of Sorrows (1 Tim. 3:16).

Let us consider the six clauses in the verse. They cover all the ground from the incarnation to the ascension, and two of the intervening statements show the results.

Gad was Manifest in the Flesh

It has been said that the divine name does not occur in the most ancient manuscripts, and that the weight of textual evidence shows that the first word should be “who” instead of “God.” But the unexpressed antecedent is undoubtedly Christ. The fact of His deity is explicit throughout. There is very much to be said for the AV rendering as the correct one. The first word indicates His deity and the last one, “flesh,” His humanity. God, who is a Spirit, becomes visible in a human body. The word “manifest” covers the birth arid the whole life of our Lord here below. This has been Paul’s teaching in all of his Epistles. For example, in Colossians 1, he expounds His deity; in Philippians 2, he outlines, in seven successive steps, His mighty stoop, from Godhead glory to the death of the cross. Here these mighty truths are expressed in synoptic form. God was manifest in the flesh. The Evangelist Luke uses 2,500 words to describe the incarnation; the Apostle John expresses it in four words: “The Word became flesh.” Augustine, the early church father, expressed it in this way: “God—what more glorious; flesh—what more lowly; God in flesh—what more marvelous!”

The two natures were visibly demonstrated at Sychar’s well in John 4; on the little boat on the lake in Mark 4; and at the tomb of Lazarus in John 11. Paul expresses it in a sentence: God was manifest in the flesh!

Justified in the Spirit

The AV and the RSV spell Spirit with the capital S, indicating the Holy Spirit. With this most of the commentators agree. Men regarded Christ as an impostor, a blasphemer, a usurper. He was hated, persecuted, and finally judicially executed. This was in the sphere of the flesh. But in what way was He justified or vindicated in the Spirit? The believer in Him is justified or declared righteous by faith, by grace, by blood, and by works. Isaiah, speaking prophetically of the Messiah, says: “He is near that justifieth Me” (Isa. 50:8).

There were two occasions when heaven was opened, and a divine voice testified to Christ’s Person: first, at His baptism in Jordan. John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance, with a view to the remission of sins. But Jesus was sinless and did not need to repent. Naturally He would be exempt from the rite. But He voluntarily submitted, and when He came up out of the water, the heavens were opened, and the voice of God declared: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Luke tells us that the Holy Spirit descended in bodily shape like a dove and abode upon Him. Then the voice came to Him directly, “Thou art My beloved Son; in Thee I am well pleased.” He was vindicated by the voice of God His Father, and by the sign of the Holy Spirit. This was at the beginning of His public ministry.

The second occasion was on the Mount of Transfiguration, at the peak of the Lord’s ministry. While He was praying on the mountaintop, He was transfigured, and the glory of His Godhead shone out through the veil of His flesh. Moses and Elijah appeared in glory with Him, and conversed with Him about His coming death (exodon) at Jerusalem. Many years later, Peter tells us that the glorious scene was a preview of the power and coming of the Saviour (2 Pet. 1:16). But he and James and John were fast asleep in the presence of this display of His glory. When Peter awoke and saw it, he cried out impulsively: “Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for Thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias: not knowing what he said” (Lk. 9:33). He thoughtlessly wanted to put the Son of God on the same level as the two servants of God. But he was immediately rebuked by the voice out of the cloud: “This is My beloved Son: hear Him.” Again He was vindicated by heaven.

But the greatest vindication of our Lord was at His resurrection. He had been condemned and crucified by the responsible leaders of Judaism, and by the Gentile political power of Rome. Everything humanly possible was done to seal His grave and to make it inviolate. But all of this was upset by His glorious bodily resurrection. All three members of the Holy Trinity were involved in that stupendous event. The Scriptures tell us that Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father (Rom. 6:4; Col. 2:12). In John 10:17-18. Jesus told His disciples: “I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.” His resurrection was an act of His own volition.

Two passages tell us that the resurrection was an act of the Holy Spirit “Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit” (1 Pet. 3.18; cf. Rom. 8:11).

A final passage which speaks of the vindication of Christ by His resurrection is Romans 1:4, where He is “declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.”

While the resurrection of Christ is not actually mentioned, yet it is obviously implied in the statement: “justified (or vindicated) in the Spirit.”

Seen of Angels

Among the glories of our Lord Jesus Christ, described in the epistles of the Apostle Paul is His headship in various spheres. He is the head of all creation (Col. 1:15-17); head of the body, the Church (Col. 1:18); head of the man (1 Cor. 11:3); and the head of all principality and power (Col. 2:10). This last headship would include all the angelic beings and celestial hosts in heaven. We read that they worship Him (Rev. 5:11-12; Heb. 1:6). They are vitally interested in the Scriptures concerning His sufferings and glory (1 Pet. 1:12). They are the silent spectators of order and decorum in the church (1 Cor. 11:10). They learn lessons of the manifold wisdom of God, as they see Jew and Gentile being united in one body in its fellowship.

In His incarnation, we are told, our Lord was made for a little while lower than angels, with a view to the suffering of death, but is now crowned with glory and honor (Heb. 2:9). There are five occasions during the earthly life of our Lord when we read of angelic ministry.

First, at His birth. They announced His birth to Joseph, to Mary, and to the shepherds watching their flocks in Bethlehem. This was climaxed by the heavenly angelic chorus, saying: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

Second, after His fasting for forty days and His temptation in the wilderness, we read that the angels came and ministered to Him.

The third occasion was in Gethsemane, where, being in an agony, His sweat was as it were great drops of blood, and Luke tells us there appeared an angel unto Him from heaven, strengthening Him.

Angels appeared again at the resurrection, both to the Roman guards, and to the women who came with the spices to anoint His body.

Finally, at His ascension, two men in white apparel appeared to the disciples and said, “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come [again] in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven.”

It is noticeable that there was no angelic assistance at the cross. He was forsaken by God and man. Satanic hosts were there (Lk. 22:53; Col. 2:15), but these He gloriously overcame in His death and resurrection. Angels were the first to see Him in that hour of conquest and victory.

Some would translate the word “angels” as “messengers” and apply it to the women in the garden or to the witnesses of the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:5-8, the “preaching” of the next clause (1 Tim. 3:16) being based on this testimony. This of course is true, but it seems more reasonable to take the words “seen of angels” as referring to the celestial messengers, as in the AV.

Preached unto the Gentiles

These four words describe, in a concise form, the great missionary labors of the apostle and his fellow workers outlined in the Acts, and down through the centuries, continued by a host of devoted preachers and missionaries. William Carey, David Livingstone, and Hudson Taylor are names that naturally come to mind. But they are only examples of that great multitude of messengers that have carried the torch of gospel testimony to the ends of the earth. The record is still being written. If will be revealed on that day when the purposes of God for the redemption of fallen man are complete Today the work is being accelerated, so that all who care to listen may hear. Three great radio stations, located at strategic points, beam the glad tidings twenty-four hours a day to every part of the globe. Wherever the door is open, foot soldiers do the follow-up work in making the Saviour and His love known. What a harvest there will be!

Relieved On in the World

The New Testament Church is the result of the Word heralded among the nations. It all started in an upper room with one hundred and twenty humble disciples. According to the risen Saviour’s promise, the Holy Ghost came down, baptized them into one body, energized and filled them with power to carry out the great commission. They made disciples, baptizing them into the Name, and teaching them to observe all things that were commanded. The results have been evident in every age and in every land. In spite of lire and sword and stake, though “by schisms rent asunder, by heresies distressed.” the gates of hell have not overcome or smashed this living organism, the Church of God. Today behind iron, bamboo, and purple curtains, little companies of believers meet in the Lord’s Name for worship and mutual edification in the Word. They are known only to God, and are members of the body of which Christ is the glorified Head. They are in the world, but not of it. One day, when their number is complete, Christ shall come and take them out of the world to the Father’s house.

Received Up into Glory

This final clause seems out of sequence with the last two, but actually it is the complement of the first clause. There He is coming down at His incarnation; here He is being received up at His ascension. There are at least fourteen passages in the New Testament that refer to the ascension of Christ and His work on the throne on behalf of His people. There are seven words in our English version that describe it: He was lifted up (Jn. 12:32); raised up (Acts 13:34); received up (Mk. 16:19); carried up (Lk. 24:51); taken up (Acts 1:9); He went up (Acts 1:10); and ascended up (Eph. 4:10). This is the glorious climax to His finished work on the cross, and the introduction to His unfinished work on the throne.

Part Two: Dispensation
Chapter 7: The Kingdom of Heaven

The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the seaside. And great multitudes were gathered together unto Him; so that He went into a ship and sat and the whole multitude stood on the shore

And He spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; and when he sowed, some seeds fell by the wayside, and the fowls came and devoured them up: some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had not deepness of root. And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: but other fell into good ground and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold some thirty fold. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

And the disciples came, and said unto Him, Why speakest Thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables, because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophe- cy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive. For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

For verily I say unto you, that many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. When anyone heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received the seed by the wayside. But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also heareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him. Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them. An enemy hath done this, The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay, lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheal with them.

Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

Another parable put He forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Another parable spake He unto them: The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake He not unto them: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open My mouth in parables, I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and His disciples came unto Him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world, and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of Man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field, the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.

So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto Him, Yes, Lord. Then said He unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.

And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, He departed thence. And when He was come into His own country. He taught them in their synagogue insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? is not this the carpenter’s son? is not His mother called Mary? and His brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? And they were offended in Him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country, and in his own house. And He did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief (Matt. 13:1-58).

A careful consideration of the teaching of our Lord in the Gospel by Matthew would show a dramatic change at the end of chapter 12. Up to this point, the King has been presenting His credentials to the nation of Israel. But after careful examination of those claims by the leaders of the nation, He was deliberately rejected. They said His miracles were the work of Satan and not of the Son of God. He calls this the unpardonable sin and turns away from the nation as such. The unpardonable sin of Matthew 12:31, also called the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, is the national rejection of Jesus