With chapter six the
first section of the Gospel is concluded. This section is
bound up with the word "Life." It has been made
clear, and emphatic, that life is inseparably related to
Christ. This declaration, with what was involved as to
the death of Christ, caused much offense, and many went
away. It is ever so! Jesus the Teacher, Worker, or Good
Man may be accepted, but make His death the exclusive way
to life, the feeding upon the Broken Bread the only
ground of union with Him, and of fellowship with God,
then that way is rejected. From the days of the apostolic
fathers up till now there has been strong deviation of
opinion as to whether the words "the passover,"
in verse 4 of chapter six, should be there, and are
original. Whatever the arguments against may be, we
submit that the whole spiritual teaching of the Gospel by
John justifies their being there. The very words:
"Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink
his blood, ye have not life in yourselves" carry
back to the Passover. As we have seen, the Passover was
the life of Israel when death was abroad, and it is
fitting that with John six the whole question of life
should be headed up in the Passover, or the Cross of
Christ. Chapter six marks a transition from life to
light, but combines them both. The same declaration,
emphasis, and conclusion will be made in relation to
light, as in the case of life, and the same result will
follow; offense and rejection through unbelief. The light
will sift, as it ever does. We have observed that chapter
one comprehends, by its words, the whole Gospel. This
second section is, therefore, foreshadowed in such words
from that chapter as: "In him was life; and the life
was the light of men. And the light shineth
in the darkness..." "The same came... that he
might bear witness of the light..."
"There was the true light... which lighteth
every man, coming into the world."
Then the discrimination
between those who see, and those who do not, is marked by
Nathanael (1:45): "...ye shall see..." (verse
51). Over against those who were in darkness, even when
the light was present, was one, truly, of their number,
but different. This was an Israelite indeed and without
guile; an Israelite, in whom was no Jacob. The
self-seeking, self-sufficient, time-serving Jacob was
subjected to the spiritual, transparent, God-seeking
Israel. This difference will determine who will come to
the light, and who will have their darkness doubly
darkened.
Christ
Fulfills the Feast of Tabernacles
Returning to chapter
seven, we find that another feast is in view, and is the
occasion of what comes out. It is interesting that in
"John" the narrative moves swiftly from the
Passover to the Feast of Tabernacles. In Exodus and
Leviticus the order is the Passover, on the 14th day of
the first month; then the Feast of Unleavened Bread,
Firstfruits, Feast of Weeks, Feast of Trumpets, Day of
Atonement, and, lastly, Feast of Tabernacles. Thus the
Feast of the Passover is on the 14th day of the first
month, and the Feast of Tabernacles on the 15th day of
the 7th month. All that lies between is missed out in
"John," and in one step we are from Passover to
Tabernacles. This is significant, and is in keeping with
what we said earlier about spiritual history (see chapter
4). Let us note that the Feast of Tabernacles is the last
of the Mosaic Feasts (the Feast of Purim was something
which came in much later in Israel's history). Thus the
Feast of Tabernacles looks back over all to the
beginning, and commemorates detachment and separation
from the world (Egypt), and speaks of a life of faith.
The security (?) of Egypt has been forsaken, and the
tents of the wilderness have been accepted. The stone
houses have been exchanged for booths, but this new order
is not so flimsy as may appear, for there will be the
infallible governmerit of the pillar of cloud and fire.
There will also be the "...rock that followed them;
and the rock was Christ" (1 Cor. 10:4). This
separation is from the light and life of nature, which is
shown to be darkness and death, unto life and light in
union with Christ. At the Feast of Tabernacles, as
celebrated in the Temple, a great candelabrum was
lighted, and great vessels of water from the Pool of
Bethesda were poured out in the Temple. These, as we well
know, are symbols of light and life for those who
believe. Christ takes hold of this custom, and puts
Himself in the place of both, uniting in Himself the
two-fold symbolism of the light and the life.
The transitional factor
in chapter seven is seen to be this: the question of
knowing the Father and the Son is quite definitely in
view, and it will be noted how through this chapter, and
those subsequent, the matter of ignorance in both these
directions is strongly emphasized and reiterated. The
whole question of spiritual light, knowledge,
understanding, truth, turns upon this final emphasis upon
life (7:37-39), and this by reason of the indwelling Holy
Spirit. Before there can be a knowledge of the Lord which
means fellowship, there must be the life. Life leads on
to light. This is a crucial test, and shows how crucial
chapter seven really is. Reject the life, which comes
alone by way of the Passover, the death of Christ, and
whatever the traditions may be, the historic light, yet
the intelligent apprehension of God, the real spiritual
understanding and fellowship with Him is impossible.
Christ
in Glory, and the New Day
Now a further great
mark of chapter seven is that it presupposes Christ in
glory, and that represents the new day. That new day is
typified by the eighth day, which, according to Leviticus
23:36, is the last great day of the Feast of John 7:37.
That eighth day, as we know, sees concluded the history
of Israel under the Law, and brings in the Church under
grace. It is the day when, all God's works having been
perfected in Christ, Christ is seated at His right hand
in glory, and the Spirit is poured forth, just as the
waters from Bethesda were poured out in the Temple. The
eighth day has become the first day for the Church, and
with it all things begin anew on resurrection ground. The
new day is that of the Spirit as life and light.
Looking again at this
seventh chapter we find the antagonism to Christ is
coming out with increasing severity. What has been latent
is now becoming manifest, and the hostility is well-nigh
universal. Even the members of His own family are said
not to believe in Him. There is suspicion, prejudice, and
even danger to life itself. Realizing this we cannot but
be impressed with the calm, undisturbed dignity; the
strong, steady moral ascendency in which Christ continues
to move. His confidence is not for one moment upset. He
goes on as One Who is perfectly assured that nothing can
befall Him or overtake Him until His work is done. What
is the secret of this spiritual and moral elevation? To
answer that is to disclose the law which governs the new
day of the Spirit, and all that that day brings in for
the believer.
The
Law of the Life Hidden in God
That law, as
represented in the Lord Jesus, is the law of a hidden
life in God. From that secret fellowship He refuses to be
drawn out. Note how even His brethren would argue with
Him. Note how they seek to impose upon Him the accepted
religious order, the recognized ordinances, the things
which are done by the religious people. Note how
He is advised to be politic in these matters; and then
note how He puts it all back, refusing its domination.
There is something for Him which takes pre-eminence over
all religious systems and accepted forms; something which
is more than policy or diplomacy. It is the witness of
the Father in His heart. If you have gone through this
Gospel, and put your pencil under every occurrence of the
name "Father," you have been astounded with the
result. This gives you the background of everything in
the life of the Lord Jesus. It is His filial devotion to
His Father, and it is in that secret communion that
everything is determined for Him. Things, methods, times,
means, all have to be decided back of the clamoring,
shouting, coercing, arguing elements of men - even
religious men and commonly accepted orders. It is never a
question for Him as to whether the thing is what is done
by others, or what it may involve, or even what the
advantage may be in doing it. Everything for Him is: Does
My Father will it? If so, how does He will it? And, when
does He will it? Thus you see there seems to be
some contradiction at the commencement of this chapter,
when He says that He goes not up to this Feast, and then
when the others have gone up He does go. The explanation
is that for Him it is not government by what exists
outwardly, but He waits to receive the inward government
of the Father's witness.
How many of the Lord's
people have come to failure, defeat and even disaster by
becoming a part of an accepted order, and surrendering
themselves to the government of an organized system, and
have sacrificed thereto the inner walk with God. Thus
their ascendency, spiritual power, and effectiveness have
become severely limited, and they have not been able to
help others as they might have done, because they have
not learned to know the Lord by an inward, secret
fellowship and walk with Him. This may raise difficulties
for many, but all those difficulties would be solved if
the Lord's work were so constituted that, even where the
matter of government obtains, all things were done by
prayer, and, as far as possible, in fellowship.
Surely that is what is
characteristic of the new day, the day of the Holy
Spirit, the day of life and light, in individual and
collective union with Christ.