Schoolmaster to Christ
NUMBERS CHAPTER 5
Schoolmaster to Christ
NUMBERS CHAPTER 5
Scripture Reading: Numbers 5 (KJV)
"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is defiled by the dead: both male and female shall ye put out, without the camp shall ye put them; that they defile not their camps, in the midst whereof I dwell. And the children of Israel did so, and put them out without the camp: as the Lord spake unto Moses, so did the children of Israel" (Num. 5:1-4).
Unfolded here is the great foundation principle on which discipline of the assembly is founded – a principle of importance that few understood or attended to. The presence of God in the midst of His people Israel demanded holiness on their part. "That they defile not their camps in the midst of which I dwell." The place where the Holy One dwells must be holy. This is a plain and necessary truth.
Though redemption was the basis of God's dwelling in the midst of His people, we must remember that discipline was essential to His continuance among them. In other words, He could not dwell where evil was deliberately and avowedly sanctioned. Our Holy Father can and does bear with weakness; but His eyes are too pure to behold evil, and He cannot look on iniquity. Evil cannot dwell with Him, nor can He have fellowship with it. To do so would involve denial of His nature; and He cannot deny Himself.
One may reply, "Does not God the Spirit dwell in an individual believer, in whom there is evil?" True, the Holy Spirit dwells in the true believer, on the ground of accomplished redemption. However, he is not there as the sanction of what is of nature, but as the seal of what is of Christ – His presence and fellowship are enjoyed in proportion as the evil in us is habitually judged. Will any one assert that we can realize and delight in the Spirit's indwelling while indulging the desires of the flesh and mind? No; we must judge ourselves, and put away everything inconsistent with the holiness of the One Who dwells in us. Our "old man" is not recognized – It has no existence before God. It has been utterly condemned in the cross of Christ. We feel its workings; we mourn over them and judge ourselves because of them; but God sees us in Christ – in the Spirit; in the new creation. It is our faith in the faith of Jesus Christ that keeps us spiritually alive. Further, the Holy Spirit dwells in the body of the true believer on the ground of the blood of Christ; and His indwelling demands the judgment of evil in every shape and form.
This is also the case regarding the assembly. No doubt, there is evil there – evil in each individual member, and therefore evil in the body corporate. But it must be judged; and, if judged, it is not allowed to act; it is rendered null. But to say that an assembly is not to judge evil is nothing more or less than corporate antinomianism. What should we say to a professing Christian who maintained that He was not responsible to judge evil in himself and in his ways? With great decision, we should pronounce him an antinomian. If it is wrong for an individual to take such ground, should it not be proportionally wrong for an assembly? Surely this cannot be called in question.
What would have been the result, if Israel had refused to obey the peremptory "command" given at the opening of this chapter? Suppose they had said, "We are not responsible to judge evil; and we do not feel that it becomes failing and erring mortals such as we to judge anybody. These people with the leprosy and the issue are as much Israelites as we are, and have as much a right to all the blessings and privileges of the camp as we have; we do not therefore feel it would be right for us to put them out."
What would have been God's rejoinder to such a reply? Turning to Joshua 7, we find a solemn answer to this question. Let us draw near and carefully inspect that "great heap of stones" in the valley of Achor. We learn that "God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of his saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are round about him;" and "Our God is a consuming fire." What is the meaning of all this? Let us hear and consider – lust had conceived in the heart of one member of the congregation, bringing forth sin. What then? Was the whole congregation involved? Yes; this is the solemn truth, "Israel [not merely Achan] hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed thing from among you" (Josh. 7:11, 12; emphasis added).
This is peculiarly solemn and searching; uttering a loud voice in our ears, conveying a holy lesson to our hearts. The narrative presents many in the camp of Israel as ignorant of the fact of Achan's sin and yet the word was, "Israel hath sinned – transgressed – taken the accursed thing – stolen and dissembled." How could this be? The assembly was one. God's presence in the midst of the congregation constituted it one. In other words, the sin of each was the sin of all. "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump." Human reason may take exception to this, as it takes exception to everything beyond its narrow range. But God says it, and this is enough for the believing mind. It does not become us to ask, "Why? How? Or wherefore?" The testimony of God settles everything, and we have only to believe and obey. It is enough for us to know that God's presence demands holiness, purity, and the judgment of evil. Let us never forget this. It is not on the principle so justly repudiated by every lowly mind, "Stand by thyself, I am holier than thou." No; it is entirely on the ground of what God is. "Be ye holy, for I am holy." God could not give the sanction of His holy presence to unjudged wickedness. Could there be a victory at Ai with an Achan in the camp? No; a victory under such circumstances would have been a dishonor to God, and the worst thing that could have happened to Israel. It simply could not be. Israel must be chastised – humbled and broken. They must be brought down to the valley of Achor; to the place of trouble. There, and there alone, can "a door of hope" be opened when evil has come in.
May we not misunderstand this great practical principle; which has, we fear, been misunderstood by many of God's people. Many seem to think that it can never be right for those who are saved by grace (who are themselves signal monuments of mercy), to exercise discipline in any form or on any ground whatsoever. To such people, Matthew 7:1 seems to condemn the thought of our undertaking to judge. Are we not, they say, expressly told not to judge by our Lord? Are not these His own veritable words: "Judge not, that ye be not judged?" No doubt. But what do these words mean? Do they mean that we are not to judge the teaching and manner of life of those presenting themselves for Christian fellowship? Do these words of our Lord lend support to the idea that no matter what a man does or what he teaches, we are to receive him all the same? Can this be the force and meaning of our Lord's words? Who could cede anything like this? Actually, in this same chapter of Matthew, our Lord tells us to "beware of false prophets?" But how can we beware of anyone, if we are not to judge? If judgment is not to be exercised in any case, why tell us to beware?
The truth seems simple. God's assembly is responsible to judge the teaching and morals of all who claim entrance. We are not to judge motives, but we are to judge ways. In 1 Corinthians 5, the inspired apostle teaches that we are bound to judge all who take the ground of being inside the assembly. "For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? Do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person" (vv. 12, 13).
This is most distinct. We are not to judge those "without" but we are to judge those "within." That is, those who take the ground of being Christians – of being members of God's assembly – all such come within the range of judgment. The moment a man enters the assembly, he takes His place in that sphere where discipline is exercised on everything contrary to the holiness of the One Who dwells there.
We should not suppose for a moment that the unity of the body is touched when the discipline of the house is maintained. This would be a serious mistake indeed – yet it is common. We frequently hear it said of those who rightly seek to maintain the discipline of the house of God, that they are rending the body of Christ. Again, this is a great mistake. Actually, the truth is the exact opposite – it is our bound duty to maintain discipline in the body of Christ. However, rending the body of Christ by so doing is an utter impossibility. In other words, the discipline of God's house must be carried out; but the unity of Christ's body can never be dissolved.
Occasionally we hear someone speak of cutting off the limbs of the body of Christ. This also is a mistake. Not a single limb of the body of Christ can ever be disturbed. In pursuance of the eternal purpose of God, and on the ground of the accomplished atonement of Christ, the Holy Spirit has incorporated each member of the body into its place. No power of man or devil can ever sever a single limb from the body. All are indissolubly joined together in a perfect unity, maintained by Divine power. The unity of the body of Christ may be compared to a chain stretching across a river; you see it at either side, but it dips in the middle, and if we were to judge by the sight of our eyes, we might suppose that the chain had given way at the center. So is it with the body of Christ, the church; it was one at the beginning; it will be one by and by; and in God's sight, it is one now, though the unity may not be visible to mortal eyes. One of the most difficult things for our age to understand and comprehend is that the Lord Himself daily adds to the church those who should be saved, not some program or plan designated by organized religious organizations.
It is important that each of us be thoroughly clear on this great question. By every means in his power, the enemy has sought to cast dust into the eyes of God's people, in order that they might not see the truth regarding this matter. On one hand we have the unity of Catholicism; and on the other the divisions of Protestantism. With an air of triumph, Rome points to the numerous sects of Protestants; and, likewise, Protestants are swift to point out the faults of Romanism. Thus the sincerely earnest seeker of truth hardly knows where to turn or what to think; while, on the other hand, the careless, indifferent, self-indulgent, and world-loving are only too ready, from all that they see around them, to draw a plea for flinging aside all serious thought and concern about divine things. Even if, like Pilate, they sometimes flippantly ask the question, "What is truth?" they, like him, turn on their heel without waiting for an answer.
We are persuaded that the true secret of the whole matter – the grand solution of the difficulty – the real relief for the hearts of God's beloved saints, will be found in the truth of the indivisible unity of the body of Christ, the church of our Lord on the earth. This truth is not merely to be held as a doctrine or a teaching, but to be confessed, maintained, and carried out at all cost. It is a great formative truth for the soul, and contains in it the only answer to Rome's boasted unity on the one hand, and to Protestant divisions on the other. It will enable us to testify to Protestantism that we have found unity, and to Roman Catholicism that we have found the unity of the Spirit.
However, in reply it may be argued that in the present condition of things it is Utopianism to seek to carry out such an idea. In our age, the religious situation is in such ruin and confusion that we are like a number of children who have lost their way in a wood, trying to make their way home – some in large parties; some in groups of two or three; and some all alone.
To some this may seem plausible, and it carries weight with a large number of the Lord's people in our age. However, in the judgment of faith, such a mode of putting the matter possesses no weight whatsoever. From the view of faith the important question is this: "Is the unity of the body of Christ, the church, a human theory or divine reality?" The Christian’s answer: A divine reality, as it is written, "There is one body, and one Spirit" (Eph 4:4). The "one body," is as important as the "one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all," because all lie side by side on the page of inspiration and by disturbing one, we disturb all.
In other words, the Word of God clearly and fully establishes the truth of the indissoluble unity of the body of Christ. Further, God’s Word clearly establishes the truth regarding the discipline of God's house. However, the proper carrying out of the latter will never interfere with the former – the two are perfectly compatible. Are we to suppose that when the apostle commanded the church at Corinth to put away from among them "that wicked person," the unity of the body was touched and affected? No; even though that man was a member of the body of Christ. We know this because he was restored in the second epistle. The discipline of the house of God had done its work with a member of the body of Christ – the erring one was brought back. Such was the object of the church's act.
This may help to clear our thinking regarding the deeply interesting subject of reception at the Lord's Table and exclusion from it. There seems to be a considerable amount of confusion regarding these things. Some think that no Christian should ever be refused a place at the Lord's Table. The case in 1 Corinthians 5 is sufficient to settle this question. Evidently that man was not put away on the ground of not being a Christian. He was, in fact, a child of God in spite of his failure and sin; and yet the assembly at Corinth was commanded to put him away. By not doing so, the judgment of God would have descended on the whole assembly. Since God's presence is in the assembly, evil must be judged.
Thus, whether we look at the fifth chapter of Numbers or the fifth chapter of 1 Corinthians, we learn the same solemn truth: "Holiness becometh God's house forever." We also learn that it is with God's own people that discipline must be maintained, and not with those outside. Keep in mind the opening lines of Numbers 5:1 – the children of Israel were commanded to put out of the camp everyone who was not an Israelite, everyone who was not circumcised, everyone who could not trace his pedigree in an unbroken line back to Abraham. Were these the grounds of exclusion from the camp? If not, then who were to be put out? "Every leper" – that is, everyone in whom sin is allowed to work. "Every one that hath an issue" – that is, everyone from whom a defiling influence is emanating: and, "whosoever is defiled by the dead." These were the ones who were to be separated from the camp in the wilderness, and their antitypes are to be separated from the assembly today.
Why was this separation demanded? Was it to uphold the reputation or respectability of the people? Nothing of the sort. What then? "That they defile not their camps in the midst whereof I dwell." So it is in our age. We do not judge and put away false teaching in order to maintain orthodoxy; neither do we judge and put away moral evil in order to maintain reputation and respectability. Here is the only ground of judgment and putting away: "Holiness becometh thine house, O Lord, forever." God dwells in the midst of His people. "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I." "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you" (1 Cor. 3:16)? And again, "Now therefore, ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God; and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; in whom all the building, fitly framed together, groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord; in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit" (Eph. 2:19-22).
One may be disposed to ask, "Is it possible to find a pure church? Is there not some evil in every assembly, in spite of the most intense faithfulness? How then can this high standard of purity be maintained?" No doubt there is evil in the assembly, because there is indwelling sin in each member. But it must not be allowed; it must not be sanctioned; it must be judged. It is not the presence of judged evil that defiles, but allowing and sanctioning evil. It is with the church, in its corporate character, as with the members in their individual character. If we judge ourselves, we will not be judged" (1 Cor. 11:31). Therefore, no amount of evil should lead a man to separate from the body of Christ; but if an assembly denies its solemn responsibility to judge evil, both in doctrine and morals, it is no longer on the ground of the Lord's church, and it becomes our duty to separate from it. As long as an assembly is on the ground of the Lord's church, however feeble or few in number it may be, to separate from it is schism. But if an assembly is not on God's ground – and most certainly it is not, if it denies its duty to judge evil – then it is schism to continue in association with it.
Some conclude that this tends to multiply and perpetuate divisions. But such is not true. It may tend to break up mere human associations; but this is not schism. In fact, it is the reverse, because all such associations, no matter how large, powerful, or apparently useful, are antagonistic to the unity of the body of Christ, the church.
It cannot fail to strike the serious student that the Spirit of God is awakening attention to the great question of the body of Christ, the church. Men are beginning to see that there is much more in this subject than simply the notion of an individual mind, or the dogma of a group. The question, "What is the church?" is today forcing itself on many hearts, demanding an answer. May God help each one of us to always offer an answer that is as distinct and authoritative as the voice of God – as clear as the voice of Holy Scripture can give. When assailed on all sides by the claims of churches, "High Church," "Low Church," "Broad Church," "Free Church," etc., it is an unspeakable privilege to be able to fall back on the one true church of the living God, the body of Christ. We are firmly persuaded that here alone is the divine solution to the many religious difficulties in our age.
One might ask, "Is it not a hopeless undertaking to set out to look for this church amid the ruin and confusion that surrounds us?" No; although we may not see all the members of the body of Christ gathered together, yet it is our privilege and holy duty to know and occupy the ground of the Lord's church, and no other. And how is this ground to be discerned? We believe that the first step toward discerning the true ground of the Lord's church is to stand apart from everything contrary to it. We should not expect to discover what is true, while our minds are clouded by what is false. The divine order is, "Cease to do evil; learn to do well." God does not give us light for two steps at a time. Therefore, the moment we discover that we are on wrong ground it is our duty to abandon it, and wait on God for further light, which He provides through His Holy Word.
Let us now proceed with our chapter. "The Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel; when a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a trespass against the Lord, and that person be guilty; then they shall confess their sin which they have done; and he shall recompense his trespass with the principal thereof, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it unto him against whom he hath trespassed. But if the man have no kinsman to recompense the trespass unto, let the trespass be recompensed unto the Lord, even to the priest; beside the ram of the atonement, whereby an atonement shall be made for him."
Having already considered the trespass offering, we will merely notice here the important questions of confession and restitution. Not only is it true that both God and man are gainers by the Great Trespass Offering presented on the cross at Calvary; but we also learn from the foregoing quotation, that God looked for confession and restitution when a trespass was committed. The sincerity of the confession would be evidenced by the restitution. It was not sufficient for a Jew, who had trespassed against his brother to say, "I am sorry." He had to restore the thing wherein he had trespassed and add a fifth to it. Although we are not under the law, yet we can gather much instruction from its institutions; although we are not under the schoolmaster, we can, and must, learn the good lessons from him. Therefore, if we have trespassed against anyone, it is not enough that we confess our sin to God and to our brother, we must make restitution; we are called on to give practical proof of the fact that we have judged ourselves as a result of that thing in which we have trespassed.
In our age, one cannot help but wonder if this is felt as it should be. We fear that today there is a light, flippant, easy-going attitude toward sin and failure, deeply grieving the Spirit of God. Most of us are content with mere lip confession; we lack a deep, heartfelt sense of the evil of sin in God's sight. By not judging its moral roots; by consequent trifling with sin, our hearts become hardened, and the conscience loses its tenderness. This is very serious. There are few things more precious than a tender conscience. We do not refer to a scrupulous conscience, governed by its own crotchets; or a morbid conscience, governed by its own fears. Both these are troublesome guests for anyone to entertain. We are here referring to a tender conscience, governed in all things by the Word of God – by His authority. This kind of conscience is an inestimable treasure. It regulates everything, takes cognizance of the smallest matter connected with our daily walk and habits, i.e., our mode of dress; our houses; our furniture; our table; our entire deportment, spirit, and style; our mode of conducting business, or, if it be our lot to serve others, the mode in which we discharge service, whatever it may be. In short, everything falls under the healthful moral influence of a tender conscience. "Herein," says the blessed apostle, "do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God and men" (Acts 24:16).
This is what we should covet. With all his splendid gifts; all his marvelous powers; all his profound insight into the ways and counsels of God; all he had to speak of and glory in; all the wonderful revelations made to him in the third heavens – he, the most honored of apostles and privileged of saints, gave holy diligence to always keep a conscience void of offence toward both God and man. If, in an unguarded moment, he uttered a hasty word, as he did to Ananias the high priest, he was ready on the spot to confess and make restitution – the hasty utterance, "God shall smite thee, thou whited wall," was withdrawn and God's word given instead: "Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people."
No doubt, if Paul had not withdrawn his words, he could not have rested that night with a conscience void of offence. When we do or say what is wrong, there must be confession; and if there is not confession, our communion will certainly be interrupted. With unconfessed sin on the conscience, communion is a moral impossibility. We may talk about it; but it is merely delusion. If we would walk with God, then we must keep a clean conscience. There is nothing to be dreaded more than moral insensibility – a slovenly conscience, an obtuse moral sense that allows all sorts of things to pass unjudged; that can commit sin, pass over it and coolly say, "What evil have I done?"
Let each of us, with holy vigilance, watch against all this. Let us seek to cultivate a tender conscience. Such will demand from us what it demanded from Paul – "exercise." But it is blessed exercise, yielding precious fruits. Do not suppose that there is anything savoring legality in this exercise; no, it is thoroughly Christian. In a condensed form, Paul’s noble words embody the whole of Christian practice: "To have always a conscience void of offence toward God and men" – truly this comprehends everything.
But, most of us do not habitually ponder the claims of God, or the claims of our fellow-man. How little our conscience is up to the mark – when all sorts of claims are neglected, yet we feel it not.
Too often in our age, there is little or no brokenness and contrition before the Lord. Too often we commit trespass without confession or restitution. Too often things are allowed to pass that should be judged, confessed, and put away. Too often there is sin in our holy things; lightness and indifference of spirit in the assembly and at the Lord's Table. In this age of self-pursuit we rob God in so many varied ways; thinking our own thoughts, speaking our own words, and doing our own pleasure. Seeing that we are not our own but bought with a price, can all this be called anything else but robbing God?
Sadly, all this hinders spiritual growth. It grieves the Spirit of God and hinders His gracious ministry of Christ to our souls. From various parts of God's Word, we know how much He prizes a tender spirit, a contrite heart. "To this man will I look, even to him that is of a contrite spirit and trembles at my word." With such a one God can dwell; but with hardness and insensibility, coldness and indifference, He can have no fellowship. With this in mind, let us exercise ourselves to always have a pure and uncondemning conscience, both to God and to our fellow-man.
Viewed from a dispensational or moral point of view, the third and last section of this 5th chapter teaches a deeply solemn lesson. It contains the record of the great ordinance designed for the trial of jealousy. Its place here is remarkable. In the first section, we have the corporate judgment of evil; in the second, we have individual self-judgment, confession, and restitution; and in the third, we learn that God cannot endure even the mere suspicion of evil.
This impressive ordinance has a dispensational bearing on the relationship between Jehovah and Israel. The prophets dwell largely on Israel's conduct as a wife, and on that score, Jehovah's jealousy. We do not attempt to quote the passages, but the serious student will find them throughout the pages of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Israel could not abide the searching trial of the bitter water. Her unfaithfulness was made manifest. She broke her vows. She went aside from her Husband, the Holy One of Israel, whose burning jealousy had been poured forth on the Faithless nation. He is a jealous God and cannot, will not, bear the thought that the heart He claims as His own be given to another.
Thus we see that this ordinance for the trial of jealousy distinctly bears the impress of Divine character. In it God fully enters into the thoughts and feelings of an injured husband. The bare suspicion is intolerable, and where it takes possession of the heart the matter must be sifted to the very bottom. The suspected one must undergo a process of such a searching nature that only a faithful one can endure. If there was a trace of guilt, the bitter water could search down into the very depths of the soul, and fully bring it out. There was no escape for the guilty one. The very fact that there was no possible escape for the guilty made the vindication of the innocent more triumphant. The self-same process that declared the guilt of the guilty manifested the innocence of the faithful. To one who is thoroughly conscious of integrity, the more a searching investigation is welcomed. A defect in the mode of trial that would allow a guilty one to escape, worked against the innocent. But the process was Divine, and therefore perfect; hence, when the suspected wife had gone through it in safety, her fidelity was perfectly manifested – full confidence restored.
What a marvelous mercy; having such a perfect mode of settling all suspected cases. Suspicion is a death blow to loving intimacy, and God would not have it in the midst of His congregation. He would not only have His people collectively to judge evil, and individually to judge themselves; but where there was even the suspicion of evil and no evidence forthcoming, He Himself devised a method of trial that brought the truth to light. The guilty one had to drink death, and found it to be judgment.1 The faithful one drank death, and found it victory.
