Four Sons Dead in One Day. A SHORT PAPER ON THE PRIVILEGES, TRIALS, AND TRIUMPHS OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH. CHAPTER VII. THE PARALLEL BETWEEN EPHRAIM IN THE OLD, AND THE PRODIGAL SON IN THE NEW. Sovereign grace, o'er sin abounding, Without bottom or a shore." IT has, no doubt, been observed, that the Scripture to which I have referred in these papers is immediately connected with that condition of the Lord's people which is set forth under the headship or leadership of EPHRAIM. Let us read the whole of that precious Scripture together. The word which came to my heart on the Saturday night was"Thus saith the Lord refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears, for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord, and they shall come again from the land of the enemy." : These words stand between Rachel weeping for her children, and Ephraim bemoaning himself. My text, then, is a link between the two; it is a kind of wedding ring that marries these two mourning ones together; so that in this little family group you have three things which belong particularly and essentially unto the salvation of the Lord's people in the experimental department of it. There is (1) Lamentation and bitter weeping in Ramah; Ephraim's four sons had been slain; and Rachel was weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted because they were not. The mystery of Ephraim and of his four sons is still upon my mind. I am more and more convinced that there is a "feast of fat things," a 66 feast of wines on the lees of fat things full of marrow, and of wines well refined," and that this feast is all in CHRIST JESUS THE LORD; but the earnest, the foretaste, the pledge, the little "receivings out of His fulness" with which the saints are favoured here, come through the mysterious channels of the word of God. Ten thousand precious conduit-pipes run through the written Word; when the SPIRIT opens the heart to receive a little of the joy, the ear to receive a little of the truth, and the eye to receive a little anointing; the wisdom then received from the Lord is, as Solomon saith, "better than rubies, and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it." Oh, this beautiful Wisdom! Her riches are divine, She leads us to a sweet release, How rich are the commendations of WISDOM, by the Holy Ghost, in that cabinet of "THE PROVERBS," wherein is the trinity of the excellencies of composition-" brevity, obscurity, and elegance." The man that findeth WISDOM findeth life, health of soul, happiness in the Lord, and a crown of everlasting glory. I could willingly dwell a long time in the consideration of the work of wisdom, but I am driven to be brief. Returning to my weeping brother, the prophet Jeremiah, there is (2ndly) the repentance of Ephraim, the Lord's recognition of that repentance, and the relentings of Divine compassion over this wayward child. "I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus"-(the Lord recognizes the very words which, in secret, poor Ephraim pours out of his dreadfully bruised spirit; he gets near the Lord, and he says)"Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised." What is the meaning of this? He means the Lord sent this chastisement; and it had the desired effect at length; although, like a restive bullock, he had behaved. under many of the trying dispensations of the Lord. Now he is chastised; now, he bemoans himself; and now he cries out unto the Lord, "Turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the Lord my God." How inexplicable to sense and reason are the minglings of despondent feelings, and of a living faith in a child of God. Oh, my reader, I have known this many times; if I am not deceived, like Ephraim, I have bemoaned myself; like Ephraim, I have been "ashamed-confounded,” bearing the heaviest reproach; yet, like Ephraim, when thoughts of utter ruin and of eternal woe have overwhelmed my soul, I have felt a loving faith labouring to "lay hold upon eternal life," and I have said with Jonah—" Yet I will look again toward thy holy temple ;" and in looking, the love of the dear Redeemer in my soul has broken forth in few, but in fervent words, "Oh, my Saviour-God! Oh, my Jesus! My Brother! My Helper-do come to my relief," "And have been upheld till now." The third thing is, the compassion of the Lord toward Rachel, toward Ephraim, toward all truly repenting prodigal sons; for there is an analogy between Ephraim in the Old Testament, and the Prodigal Son in the new. Yea, it is the faith of some, that Ephraim was the type of the whole election of Grace among the Gentiles; and the Prodigal Son is the anti-typical representative of the many thousands who have been by grace Divine recovered from the fall. The mysteries and the miracles of grace are to be seen by the child of God, when the SPIRIT unfolds the mind of the Lord as written in the 14th and 15th of Luke's Gospel. There, the Great Supper is prepared, the Gospel dispensation comes in in the evening of time, or of this age. There was the morning of the creation, the forenoon of the Mosaic economy, noon time of the prophets, the afternoon of the Incarnation, the bloody sweat, the holy life, the atoning death of the Paschal Lamb. And now, the evening time, the night time, the period preceding that morning which shall have no clouds- -the time which the prophet says "neither night nor day"-is upon us. is Of the Great Supper, of the three-fold sending of the servants, of the three fold test the Saviour gave, and of the three parts of the parable -I desire to write in October number. All It is the custom in our day to carry most of the great predictions of the Bible over the Saviour's mediatorial work, over the day of his life and his death, and make those prophecies point to something in the future, something of a fanciful kind. this arises from the assumption of men, not taking the word of God as their guide; for we find Peter declaring, when speaking of the days of Christ, that all the prophets have spoken of those days. And so of these other predictions, we must realize the fulfilment of the words I have read, and of the following words, in the days of Christ and in the apostolic age. These watchmen, therefore, are nothing else, in the first place, but the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. And they are said to be upon the mount Ephraim, Ephraim signifies, as you aware, fruitfulness or fulness; and therefore, it is expressive of that Gospel standing which the apostles occupied. They did not stand upon a barren mountain, they did not stand in a barren land, they did not proclaim a lifeless, fruitless Gospel, but they stood upon that mountain and in that land where there were the infinite riches of the mercy of God which are by Jesus Christ; and therefore they proclaimed the same to them that were afar off, in order to bring them up to that Zion which is spiritual, and to that Jerusalem which is above, and which is free: "For thus saith the Lord; sing with gladness for Jacob," that is, the spiritual, Gospel Jacob; "and shout among the chief of the nations; publish ye, praise ye, and say, O Lord, save thy people," then who are his people? "the remnant of Israel." So in all ages there has been a great bulk of professors, but it is the remnant according to the election of grace that are the people of God. "Save the people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together, a great company shall return thither." My The words I have just read may appear difficult as to their meaning, but we shall understand them easily if we remember the words of the apostle to the Galatians, when, speaking of their partial apostasy, he uses similar language, by way of a figure of speech, to that which is here used. little children," he says, "of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you.' If, therefore, you take it strictly in the spiritual sense, and take the New Testament for your guide, you will see that all this language, while it contains natural figures or similes, has at the same time a spiritual meaning. ور "They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them; I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble." Of course this straight way is the Lord Jesus Christ, and the rivers of water are the promises of God which are by Jesus Christ; and the promises of God can never run dry. Promises of man, you know, friends, run dry, come to nought; that's a very common thing, we see that every day, men making great promises, but either little or no performance; and thus Job says, "My brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook, and as the stream of brooks they pass away." But the promises of God are rivers of water that can never run dry; because the Lord hath an eternal purpose in every one of His promises. He never promises without a purpose, and that purpose is eternal. Hence it is that His people are called according to His purpose. Here He says what He will do, and the apostle says it is done not only according to the promise, but according to the purpose that is in that promise. Now they shall come with weeping;" weeping after the mercy of God, and after the Christ of God. It is a bad sign when a Christian can be happy without the Lord's presence; it is a bad sign when a Christian can be happy without the anointings of the Holy Spirit; it is a bad sign when a Christian can be happy without finding at least sometimes the Saviour's name as ointment poured forth. Here then are these rivers of water, meaning the promises of God, that will never run dry; and the straight way of course means the Lord Jesus Christ. He is called the straight way for two reasons. First, because as the way, the truth, and the life, he is made plain to all the Lord's people; "the way-faring man, though a fool, shall not err therein,” but shall see clearly that Jesus Christ in His obedient life, atoning death, resurrection, and so on, is the way of eternal life. That is one reason He is said to be a straight way, because His work is made so perfectly plain to them that seek the Lord. the second reason He is called a straight way is because, thanks to His dear name! by Him everything is made straight. Many crooks in ourselves, but nothing crooked in Him; many crooks in circumstances, but nothing crooked in Him; many crooks we meet with in this life among good people and among bad people, but there is nothing crooked in Him, all is straight, all is symmetrical, all is perfect there, and that eternally so. Everything was straight in the first Adam, but sin entered and made everything crooked. Everything is straight in the last Adam; there sin can_never_enter to make anything crooked. Everything was straight in unfallen angels, but sin entered, and made all things with them everlastingly crooked. But while sin has spoiled us in the first Adam, it cannot even touch us in the last Adam. There then, everything is straight; it is "a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble." And And then, to show that this is a matter of new covenant relationship, he saith, "For I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my first-born." Now you all know it is one thing for us to be the offspring of God's creative power, and another thing to be the offspring of his everlasting love and abundant mercy. As the Creator, he is universally the Father of us all; He is there the universal Father of all creatures. But then as the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the saving sense, there he is the Father only of the seed of Abraham, only of those who are born of the Spirit, and are thus brought to know Him. Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations," meaning, they shall hear it, and so they did hear it ; “and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel," in the first Adam, "will gather him and keep him,” in the last Adam; "as a shepherd doth his flock. For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he." THE PENITENT'S PRAYER. "I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself."-Jeremiah xxxi. 18. Behold a sinful worm, O Lord, A soul devoid of rest; .To Thee I lift a sinner's prayer, To Thee I breathe a sigh; Thou God of love, the sinner spare, O spare me, or I die. Thy law is holy, just, and good, But I that law have broke; Yet look with pity on the tear, Thy grace has taught to flow; Has not the dear Redeemer bled, Then while before Thy throne I bend, Manchester. WILLIAM STOKES. ON CHURCH MEMBERSHIP. CHURCH membership is a most sacred thing. It ought not to be taken up carelessly, or be trifled with, or be easily broken off. Membership of baptised believers is, of course, a membership with the body of the spiritual Church, and with Christ Emmanuel the Head. The rights of membership are equal. The rich have no more right than the poor; the knowing or skilful have no more right, power, or authority, than the ignorant; the one officially engaged, or employed in a church, has no more membership than the unemployed. No member has any right to suppress, or remove, or deprive another. Truly the secret membership with the true Church, and with Jesus Christ the Lord-the Head-never can be cut off. But too often church membership is separated here; there appears little or no bond of union; yea, membership seems not worth a straw in our days. If no fault is to be forgiven how is membership so firm? If no forbearance is to be shown how is membership likely to be settled? Or how, indeed, is Scripture ground to be maintained? Or how can the right and proper spirit be manifested, if for any mere opinion, or for the lordly wish of one to rule over another, or instead of another, membership be severed, then where's the value, where the importance, where the sacred privilege? If a member has not committed sin proved, or not fallen from the truth in a church, how can he or she be deprived of right or position or place without any formal warning, without the voice of the whole body, and that, too, without any allowed defence? Such deprival of membership is not known in common societies. And why should it be tolerated in a church, and even approved and encouraged by ministers and pastors? The right of the English, as of man generally, is to have defence. How much more in a church! But when one can come into a community, and because of a little more money possessed, or assumed, or other cause, induce deacons to remove a fellowmember summarily and suddenly, with no kind of order, no official warning, no proper information to the members of what was to be done, indeed, the members not knowing that any wrong was done by the accused; no fair ballot, for some knew not what was doing; three or four meetings granted to the accuser, and no right and privilege of a defence to the accused, of a full, clear, decided explanation of the affair; then what is membership worth? It is a disgrace to mere humanity, an insult to common sense, a reproach, a blot, a shame to any society. Besides, how improper, how unseemly, how degrading, for a professed Church of Christ, especially when that member so ill-used, so injured, so severed, was by all the others said to be loved, admired, yea idolized? Who will now wish to be a member of a Baptist church if this is to stand? Where's anything in Sacred Scripture to warrant such a thing? But above all, when that member was an accredited and acceptable minister; yea, the recognised, the popular, the prosperous pastor of the same church, doing more than any they had heard in honouring God, harmonising Holy Writ, and establishing souls. Yet, in such unprincipled manner they cast him out. The churches ought to say, with strict unanimity, no such thing can be lawfully done. All the churches should say, with scriptural faithfulness, we have no such custom amongst us. All the churches should say, with great solemnity, we will not have it so. For, alas ! such has been the strange conduct of Hadlow Baptists to W. House, leaving him an outraged, ruined, sinking man. Now, will all ministers and Christians say, Amen? STRICTURES ON "N. L." DEAR BROTHER,-I have read very carefully the letter of your correspondent, "N. L.," in the August number of the EARTHEN VESSEL, and failed to discover whether he contends for "Strict Communion" or not. He says: "It appears that some persons wish it to be understood that the word Particular (which is in the trust-deeds of Baptist churches) means Particular redemption.' |