Reading: 2 Chronicles 12:10-12;
13:1-21.
Genesis 3:15. "And I will put enmity between thee and the
woman, and between thy seed and her seed; He shall bruise thy head, and thou
shalt bruise his heel."
(I need not remind you that
that was addressed to the serpent.)
Revelation 17:14. "...and they also shall overcome that are
with him..."
That which I believe the Lord
has laid on my heart very definitely and strongly for this season of our
gathering together is what is represented by those passages, and many others,
namely:
THE BATTLE FOR THE THRONE.
In the history of this world as
it is recorded in the Scriptures, the first and the final issue is that of
dominion. Every other factor and element is gathered into that. The books of
Genesis and Revelation bound that history, and two factors characterise those
two books in a comprehensive way. All the other books of the Bible are but
aspects of that whole matter. Their value is the specific aspect of the entire
issue with which they respectively deal. That might be a help to you in your
future readings in any one book of the Bible, that is, to note its distinctive
aspect of the comprehensive truth.
The two comprehensive features of
Genesis and the Revelation are dominion and redemption. In Genesis
the order is dominion and - because the dominion was lost - the redemptive programme.
In the Revelation the order is the redemptive programme consummated and dominion
restored. Let me repeat that. Everything that lies between Genesis and the
Revelation represents aspects of that comprehensive truth - dominion and
redemption, redemption and dominion. But note: in both of these books
comprehensively, and in all the other books specifically, redemption is always
subservient to dominion. That is one of the things which we shall more fully
consider as we go on.
I want to pause for a moment just
to say something by way of parenthesis. It is that we are not at this time
occupied with some scheme or system of truth, but rather with the ultimate issue
of this universe, and this is a matter which, more than ever in the history of
this world, concerns the people of God at this time. If, as we believe is the
case, we are approaching the end of the dispensation, then the issue of all the
dispensations is on the immediate horizon. If you were asked, what is the issue
of the dispensation? You would probably answer, The coming of the Lord. I want
to say that that is only introductory to the issue. The issue is the dominion of
the universe. We hail the coming of the Lord because of what it means in its
outworking. It is not merely an isolated event, it is something which carries
with it all that has been pointed unto through the ages, and all that God
eternally intended before time was. That is, God's method and means, and basis
and character of the government of this universe. So that we are occupied with
no small thing, and it is necessary for us to get the magnitude of the
background, in order to give us an adequate motive for facing the conflict. For
the conflict in which we are today, beloved of God, is no personal thing, no
small, narrow, local matter. We are in THE conflict, it is heading up - and we
believe very soon - to the final settlement of the government of this universe;
dominion according to God's mind. We are in that conflict today. If you are
knowing anything of the history of spiritual conflict, that is the explanation.
Well, all that is
parenthetical, in order that we might face this matter in a right way, not
thinking that we are just to get teaching. We are to face the most practical
issue that has over been presented to man, and not only to man but to angels and
demons.
Man and His Inherent
Functions
Having said that, we are able to get closer and
closer to this matter. And at this point we have to introduce man as being
central to the conflict and to the issue. There are three inherent faculties in
man's constitution according to the Divine design and purpose. Those three
inherent faculties in man's constitution are prophet, priest and king. I want
you to take very careful notice of the way in which that is put. It is said that
those are inherent faculties in the constitution of man according to the Divine
design and purpose. These are not merely temporary or periodic functions,
neither are they merely offices.
(We are not dealing with the
specific gift of prophets or prophecy. Such were - as we understand the
Scriptures - given in a relative and not a primary way. They related to bringing
the Lord's people into the fullness of His thought. The specific gift will
"cease," but the spiritual reality will remain.)
We
will say more about that later.
In the Scriptures these three
things overlap and run together in normal times. When things are right and
according to God's mind they all obtain at the same time, at least in principle.
When things are either undeveloped or deranged they either disappear or are out
of proportion. (Of course, you will have to be working pretty energetically with
your background knowledge of the Word to be able to follow this and confirm it,
for we cannot stay to fill in all detail). Let me repeat that. In the Scriptures
these three things overlap and run throughout together in normal times. When
things are not normal, that is, when they are undeveloped or when they are
deranged, either or all of these disappear or else they are out of proportion.
The book of Judges, covering some 400 years, is an abnormal and deranged state
of things, and the constant repetition in the book of Judges is: "And there was
no king." That explains a lot.
The Prophet and Priest
Related to the Throne
Now I want you to notice
another thing which is very important. The prophet and the priest are always
related to the throne. The king is above them, and they are for him. In other
words, all that is represented by the functions of prophet and priest is unto
dominion. That is not very profound. I think that lies on the face of an
ordinary reading of the Scriptures. Take the books of the Prophets. What has the
prophet to do with? The throne, always! Our chapter (2 Chronicles 13) shows how
the priest also relates to the throne. It was by the action of the priest that
the young king, rescued from the massacre of the seed royal, came to the throne,
in accordance, you notice, with the word of the Lord to David, but it was
through the priest. When that priest died that throne was upset, all went wrong
in the land; but while that priest remained alive, with his influence toward the
throne, the government was pure and right. So that what is borne out by the
Scriptures very fully and clearly is that the functions of the prophet and the
priest are unto dominion. These three, while manifested in the form of office,
rather represent spiritual features than official status. (It is necessary for
me to work myself through all this seeming technique in order to reach the
necessary end, but I think it is all vital, all important, and it ought to be
all very instructive). Let me repeat that these three things - prophet, priest,
king - while manifested in the form of office, rather represent spiritual
features than official status. Take that which they represent spiritually.
The Spiritual Meaning of the
Prophet
PROPHET. The prophetic function is
related to spiritual knowledge. Now stay with that and think! Spiritual
knowledge is the nature of the prophetic function. What does that mean? It
represents the expression of the mind, the thought; so that in the prophetic
office you have God's thought placed in the mind of His instrument, which is in
the nature of spiritual knowledge. The prophet's knowledge was not studied, was
not got from manuals and commentaries. It was revelation, spiritual knowledge.
It was not the fruit of the activity and energy of his own brain, it came by the
Spirit of the Lord. The true prophet has always to express his ministry in some
way like this: "The hand of the Lord was upon me," or, "The Spirit of the Lord
came upon So-and-so and he prophesied." So that the prophetic function has to do
with spiritual knowledge, deposited as God's thought in the mind of His
instrument.
The Meaning of the Priest
PRIEST. The priestly function has to do with
righteousness. It is a moral question when you come into the realm of the
priest, and this not only in the mind but in the heart. The prophet represents the
mind of God, the priest represents the heart of God on all moral matters,
gathered up into all that is meant by the word "righteousness," hating iniquity.
That is a matter of the heart, and that comes within the compass of the priest.
That is why, in the Holy Spirit's taking up through Paul of the symbolism of the
Divine provision against the enemy, the breastplate is the breastplate of
righteousness. It is a matter of the heart. Righteousness here is a matter of
the state of the heart, and the keeping of the heart and its affections and its
desires holy, in the sense of moral integrity.
The Meaning of the King
THE KING. The king, the throne,
has to do with holiness; holiness in a spiritual sense. This is a matter of the
will. Holiness is the foundation of His Throne; spiritual holiness, not only
moral integrity and uprightness. This relates to the will, and brings in the
whole matter of authority. Authority in the last analysis is a matter of
spiritual holiness. Trace that through God's Word. Track that down to its final
representations in the New Testament, and you will see that it was because of
His spiritual holiness that the Lord Jesus was able to utterly cast out the
prince of this world. "Which of you convicteth me of sin?" "The prince of this
world cometh and hath nothing in me." "Now is the prince of this world cast
out." Authority, dominion, the throne, has to do with spiritual holiness,
working through the will. How did the Lord defeat the prince of this world when
He came to overthrow him and to rob him of the dominion which He knew was vested
in Him? His utter devotion to holiness, and that devotion expressing itself in a
will bent with every ounce of its strength upon pursuing that path of holiness.
You come up against a mighty
will when you come up against the Lord Jesus in the wilderness with the devil.
See the resolution; see the unwavering purpose. Follow Him right through all His
temptations: "I come to do thy will..."; "Not my will, but thine"; "He set his
face as a flint..." But what was the governing factor of that will? It was
holiness. It was against compromise with what was unclean. It was against
compromise with an unclean world. "All these (the kingdoms of this world) will I
give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me." Ah! But they are unclean,
therefore unacceptable, and the strength of the will is seen in this, that He
would rather go to the Cross and suffer all its agony to keep clean in God's way
than He would accept the easy way out and the government of the kingdoms of this
world in their unclean state. That is the King. You see, dominion is no mere
despotism, it has a character. It is spiritual holiness.
Now you see what I meant when I
said that, while these three things are manifested in the form of office they
rather represent spiritual features, so that you have mind, heart, will. The
mind with God's thoughts, the heart with God's standard of righteousness, the
will with God's strength of holiness - prophet, priest and king.
I want to take you back again, and remind you
that there are these three constituents in the nature of man according to God's
mind. This is how man is made when God makes him. He is made with these things
in his being. They are not things which developed in the course of history, that
God said, Now, in organising Our system We must have prophets, and priests and
kings. Those things were all the expression of an inward thing, which was
constituent in the creation of man. This is the image of God in which man was
made, and it expresses itself. You must remember that back of everything
historical and typical in the Word of God there are spiritual realities. You
have to get back of the prophet and the priest and the king and see what is the
heavenly, spiritual meaning of this. The prophet is God represented in His
reason and intelligence. Through the prophet the Word of the Lord is; "Come now,
and let us reason together, saith the Lord." That is, Let us get down to
Divine thoughts. "Your thoughts are not my thoughts, neither are your ways my
ways...." There is the expanse of distance as between earth and heaven between
your thoughts, and your ways, and Mine, and you must come back to My thoughts,
My ways. That is the work of the prophet. The priest is God represented in His
moral qualities. You notice what the function of the priest was. It was to
examine and scrutinise the offering; to, if possible, find a fault, a flaw. We
have sometimes said that the priest was the most expert fault-finder in history.
It was the business of the priest, if he could, to find a blemish. If he could,
then that offering could not be accepted, it was excluded. And when at length,
passing his expert eye, the sacrifice was without spot and without blemish, it
was offered to God. That is all a question of moral blemishes, and the priest,
therefore, in his function represents God in His moral qualities. The king
represents God in His government, and His government is controlled by the law of
spiritual holiness.
Now all this was vested in man in
creation. Man was constituted by these elements. Man was not merely appointed to
these offices. If you could now just follow that ahead, you would see that every
child of God who comes into line with God's design and intention and purpose is
a prophet, a priest and a king, by constitution and not by appointment. The
appointment was a consequent or a subsequent thing. What I mean is this: God
never merely appoints to office. God makes men that are that. He does not
appoint priests, He makes men priests. He does not appoint prophets, He makes
prophets. He does not appoint kings, He makes kings. That is a law which governs
everything in the Divine order. God never takes from among men someone
selectively and appoints him to office, and says, Now I am going to make you a
minister, that is, I appoint you a minister. God takes hold of men and women and
puts them through the fire and constitutes them something, and everybody has to
say, That is a prophet; that is a priest; that is a king; in a spiritual sense.
A Weakness in Organised
Christianity
The phrase "organised
Christianity" has been used with a good deal of, shall we say, criticism. It is
a phrase which means disrepute amongst some of us. Now you understand what we
mean. It simply means that organised Christianity represents a system, an
appointment by man, an election by man instead of inward constitution or
spiritual formation, by God. One is organised, the other is organic. A prophet
is not an officer, a priest is not an officer, a king is not an officer in the
first instance. These are the functions which come out of the very constitution
of the person or persons in view. They represent something which God put into
man when He made him as from Himself. It is very important to notice that as we
go on.
Let me repeat my last
statement. God never merely appoints to office. He makes men who ARE that
spiritually, and then calls attention to what He has done.
The Range of Man's Dominion
I would like to take one
further fragment before breaking off, with a word about the extent of man's
dominion, because we are not primarily occupied with the prophet and the priest.
What we have said has been said in order to give the full circuit of man's
constitution, and we have emphasised that the prophet and the priest are unto
the king, and our specific object is the king, or rather, dominion. We want to
recognise afresh the extent of man's dominion according to God's original
thought in His creation. Looking at the Scriptures, at man created by God,
before anything else happens, we find, firstly, that the dominion of man is
related to nature, that is, the three kingdoms, the animal kingdom, the
vegetable, and the mineral. That was man's kingdom in nature, where he was given
dominion. "Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands." "Thou
hast put all things in subjection under his feet." That in the first instance,
related to Adam. But, secondly, his kingdom, his dominion extended beyond the
sphere of nature. It was also spiritual, and embraced the sphere of angels,
unfallen and fallen. "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to
minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation." They are our ministers.
"Know ye not that we shall judge angels?" "He gave them authority over unclean
spirits." "Behold, I give you power (authority) over all the power of the enemy."
Man's dominion reaches into the spiritual realm. I am speaking now of man
according to God's mind.
Note two things, perhaps a little difficult to
grasp as they are said in the first instance, but I will repeat them in order
that you may be able to get them. Man's delegated dominion from God gave him
dominion or government over the kosmos, that is, the world order. Man's faithful
and obedient allegiance to God gave him authority over the spiritual forces
beyond the kosmos. Let us work backward and prove it. When man was unfaithful
and disobedient he lost his authority over the spiritual forces. They took the
upper hand of man. Resultantly he lost his government over the kosmos. Man's
dominion over nature and the world order was conditioned by his faithful
obedience to God, but that faithful obedience to God put him in a position of
government over the world, by having dominion over the spiritual forces in the
world. This has a tremendous bearing upon the last chapter of the Ephesian
letter and the book of the Revelation. You see the issue of the ages to be man
brought back to authority over the spiritual forces in the universe and
establishing the government of God in the earth. That is redemption.
If
you think this is a vast, far away thing, something too much beyond your grasp,
let me say to you that this applies to the weakest child of God. There is not
one who is not called to this. Can you see the discrimination that is implied
and involved by and in what I have said? Kings, priests, prophets, are not in
God's thought isolated individuals, forming a special class. Those things relate
to the whole. It is a kingdom of priests, that is, kingship ultimately is
corporate, collective, not merely individual. That is God's original thought. If
the thing were individual and specific it would be autocratic and despotic. That
does not mean that because it is universal it is democratic, but it does mean
that it is theocratic - God over all - BUT through His new creation. God's nature
expressing itself to the full in a new heaven and a new earth, through a new
people. To that you and I are called, every one of us, the weakest, the
simplest. We are in the battle for the Throne. We shall be touching upon
problems which may arise as we go on, but I do want you to recognise this, that
man was constituted for dominion, but he was conditioned as to his dominion, and
the condition was faithful and obedient allegiance to God.
It is exactly where you find
the Lord Jesus in the book of the Revelation; when you come to find Him Lord of
lords and King of kings, you find He is "the Faithful and True Witness."
We are touching the last thing; we are touching
the Throne. We are coming to, "Him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me
in my throne..." and when that happens Satan will be cast down from heaven, and
there will be no more place found for him. That is what is in view. We are in
that conflict now.