“MY PEOPLE DO NOT CONSIDER.”
“Consider
what I say, and the Lord give thee understanding.”-2 Tim. 2:7.
CONSIDER-reflect,
think, study, ponder. What ever may be said of the heathen religions and of
churchianity in respect to their requiring little thought, little study, this
is not the case with the religion of the Bible. It is not a religion of
credulity- “shut your eyes and open your mouth,” and swallow what is put
therein. True, it is a religion of faith;-but a faith based upon reasonable
evidences-a knowl-edge of God, whose plan and character it reveals. Hence it
is that the Scriptures invite the faithful to consider, to
search, to prove, saying, “Come, let us reason together.” And it is worthy of
note that all the false systems of religion and churchianity, misnamed
Christianity, to a large extent reverse this scriptural order, endeavoring to
obtain harmony, union, on a basis of comparative ignorance, rather than on a
basis of growth in grace and in the knowledge of the Truth.
As we see this to be true today in nominal spiritual Israel, so we find it
was true in olden times in fleshly Israel, to whom the Lord declares,-“The ox
knoweth his owner and the ass his master’s crib; but Israel doth not know, my
people do not consider.” (Isa. 1:3.) We are not to understand the Lord
to mean that the Jews had no knowledge of him whose sacrifices and ceremo-nial
law and worship had their daily attention: neither should we be understood to imply
that nominal Chris-tians, who in various ways manifest some respect and
reverence for the Lord, are wholly ignorant of him. The thought is rather that
God’s professed people today, as in olden times, while knowing something about
their Creator and Redeemer, do not know him in the sense of being really
acquainted with his character. In many respects they worship a strange God,
because they have failed to get rightly, thoroughly, acquainted with him. Such
an acquaintance can only be obtained along the line suggested in our text: by
giving heed, by considering, reflecting, studying the revelation which
God has made respecting himself. Not that the Scriptures give us a detailed
description of our Creator; but, rather, by revealing to us his plans, they permit
us through an understanding of the divine plans to have an under-standing of
the divine character which those plans ex-emplify and illustrate. As a man is
known by his works, so God is known by his works. Whoever, therefore, would
know God-appreciate the divine character-must come to such a knowledge through
an acquaint-ance with the divine plan which God is outworking.
Satan, the great adversary, seems to understand this matter thoroughly,
and employs his arts of decep-tion to hinder men from appreciating the divine
plan, and thus to hinder an appreciation of the divine charac-ter-to prevent a
real knowledge of God. He has been successful, marvelously so, as the Apostle
declares, along these lines. The God of this world has blinded the minds of them
which believe not,-lest the glorious light of the goodness of God, as it shines
in the face of Jesus Christ, should shine into their hearts. (2 Cor. 4:4, 6.)
It is impossible for him to hinder all knowledge and all appreciation of the
Creator, because the quality of reverence is deeply engraven in the natural man
who, though fallen and deranged, nevertheless instinctively looks for a God to
worship. Satan’s work, therefore, is and has been the blinding and deceiving
men,-many of whom, as the Apostle declares, are feeling after God, if happily
they might find him.-Acts 17:27.
The adversary’s success in blinding mankind would not be so easily
accomplished were it not that he per-suades men not to reason upon religious
subjects;-that upon every other subject than religion, thought, consid-eration,
reasoning, are advisable, but that on religious subjects, credulity, mistaken
for faith, is the safe, the wise, the acceptable course. So great has been his
suc-cess that we find not only the heathen world in ignorance, and
superstitious upon religious matters, but that the same principles, in a
lighter form, prevail in Chris-tendom-not only amongst Catholics but also
amongst Protestants. The remedy for this general evil must be sought and found
by all who would be saints, over-comers,-every one of whom must know the Lord
not merely theoretically but actually, through a knowledge of his character by
a knowledge of his plan.
Let us note how the Scriptures urge God’s people to consider. They
are to consider the natural things of the Lord’s provision, as they touch with
these in the course of human life, and are to read in them certain great
lessons respecting the Creator. For instance, notice our Lord’s statements, “Consider
the lilies of the field.” (Matt. 6:28.) “Consider the ravens.” (Luke
12:24.) Our
Lord calls attention to how such simple things in nature should be studied, be considered.
The lessons to be learned in connection with all the affairs of life will
be helpful to such as approach the study from the right standpoint, of faith in
the Creator, and a realization that he is necessarily the embodiment and
repre-sentative of the very highest and very noblest qualities of which the
human mind could conceive;-that he is perfect in Justice, perfect in Wisdom, perfect
in Power, perfect in Love. From this standpoint of faith we can learn a great
lesson from considering the lilies. Their beauty teaches us that the
Lord has a keen appreciation of the beautiful, and the fact that it comes to
them without their toiling or spinning, teaches us that God is abundantly able
to produce the beautiful without our aid, and that if necessary he could
likewise clothe us miraculously. It teaches, further, that since he has not
thus made provision for our necessities, it must be be-cause he has seen (as
the Word declares) that the expe-riences of life in the development of the
resources of nature, in providing for our own needs, will be helpful to us.
As we consider the ravens and sparrows, and note how the Lord has
made provision for their necessities without barns for the winter time, it
teaches us that his power and wisdom could similarly, if necessary, provide for
the necessities of his people, miraculously or other-wise; and that in leaving
humanity more subject to the vicissitudes of life than the little birds, the
Lord doubt-less intends thus to instruct mankind and to develop it’s reasoning
faculties in respect to life’s interests and necessary provisions, and in a
manner that will be more helpful to him, better calculated for his development
than would such a provision as is made for the dumb brutes. Faith can learn in
all the affairs of life lessons of divine wisdom, and may assure itself
reasonably, in harmony with the Lord’s suggestion, that human beings are much
more valuable than many sparrows, many ravens, many lilies, in God’s sight; and
that we may therefore more reasonably trust to his goodness and his interest in
human affairs.
Thus considering, and looking through the little affairs of life,
and noting the divine character as revealed in them, the mind is prepared for
the still greater revelation of God’s goodness set forth in his Word, which
assures of his sympathy for humanity in its fallen con-dition, and of his
willingness to assist in man’s recov-ery from sin and death along lines in
harmony with justice and love. Considering, from this standpoint, the
love of God revealed through his Son Jesus commends itself at once to our
hearts as being in full accord with what we find to be his general
character-justice, wisdom, love. The heart that thus considers makes
progress, grows in grace, in knowledge, in love. The heart that fails to consider
the little things fails to be able to appreciate the larger things, and thus is
hindered from a proper consideration of God and from a proper appre-ciation of
his plan, and thus from a proper appreciation of his character.
It
is David, the prophet, who exclaims, “When I consider the heavens, the work of
thy fingers!” (Psalm 8:3.) To the Prophet, whose mind was rightly directed and
who considered these things, “day unto day uttered speech and night unto
night showed forth knowledge;” and as a result King David-before the Gospel
dispensation, before the giving of the holy Spirit of adoption, before the
coming of the inestimable blessings which are ours today-gained a large
appreciation of his Creator, which became to him an anchor of the soul, both
sure and steadfast. The large conception of the divine character gained from
the consideration of the divine work, even as seen in nature, brought the
prophet-king near to God, in humility, in veneration, in love.
But if such a consideration of the heavens and the things of nature are
profitable and helpful, how much more profitable is the consideration of the
still higher things revealed to the Gospel Church through the holy Spirit since
Pentecost. The Apostle Paul calls our atten-tion in this direction saying, “Consider
the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus.” (Heb. 3:1.)
But how few of those who read the Scriptures have ever followed the Apostle’s
suggestion? how few have ever considered Jesus from the standpoint
suggested,-as the Church’s Apostle or special teacher sent of God to specially
guide and instruct the Church, and as the Church’s High Priest to whom the
faithful occupy the relationship of under priests? Had more consideration been
given by the Lord’s people to these matters, a larger number would undoubtedly
be much farther advanced than they are today, in the knowledge and love of
God. They would have seen that if Christ is a special teacher, a special High
Priest of the Church, and the Church his special pupils, brethren and under
priests, then there must be, according to the Scriptures, at some future time,
a still greater blessing in which both High Priests and under priests will be
the agents of God in blessing all the families of the earth.
Again the Apostle speaks of the high spiritual things which we are to consider,
after we have taken our first lessons in considering the natural things,
the lilies, ravens, heavens, etc., saying, “Consider him who en-dured
such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in
your minds.” (Heb. 12:3.) Alas, how many of God’s true children become weary and
faint in their minds, and are in danger of losing the chief prize because they
have failed to think upon, to study out, to comprehend, to consider the
Lord and what he faithfully endured of opposition. As they would consider his
perfection and how, as represented in him, the light shined in darkness and was
not appre-ciated, so they would expect that the light shining from them would
not be appreciated either.-(John 1:5.) As they would consider how the
Lord suffered in every sense unjustly and for righteousness sake, and then would
reflect that their own conduct, even though well meant, is imperfect, it would
strengthen them to endure hardness as good soldiers, and not to be weary in
well doing, and not to faint under opposition. It would enable them to realize what
the Scriptures plainly declare, namely, that experiences and testings are
necessary to the Lord’s people and if rightly received these all work out
everlasting blessings.
Such consideration of the Lord and what he en-dured and the reflection and
realization of their own imperfections while seeking to walk in his footsteps,
would tend to bring them not only to appreciation of the Lord’s sympathy for
his people and his grace toward them in covering from his sight their unwilling
imperfections, but additionally, this consideration would lead to sympathy for
their fellows in the narrow way. The Apostle intimates the propriety of such
reflections, say-ing, “Consider one another to provoke [incite, inspire] unto
love and good works.”-(Heb. 10:24.) Oh, how much the Lord’s people need to
remember this injunc-tion, if they would have proper forbearance and love one
toward another,-to consider one another’s sacri-fice, to think of each other’s
imperfections, peculiarities or good qualities, as the case may be. With the
Chris-tian brother consideration always means to think kindly, charitably,
even of the blemishes which love cannot hide. These blemishes are not to be
considered lest they sour our hearts and arouse in our minds an opposition to
one another; nor are they to be considered as an excuse for gossip or slander.
The Apostle explains that we are to consider one another with a view to
ascertaining how we can be most helpful to each other in the narrow way, most
edifying, most strengthening, most inspiring.
But now another matter: Looking back to our text we find that the Apostle
has united in it two thoughts: first, the necessity of considering; second,
the necessity of having divine assistance in order to the reaching of a right
understanding. “Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding.”
The natural man may assent to a great deal of what we have here written;
yet in some particulars it will be beyond his grasp. It is only for those who
approach the study of the divine will from the right direction-only for those
who consider from the standpoint of the school of Christ, learning of
him-only such have the divine assistance which the Apostle mentions, the
understanding which comes from the Lord. It requires faith in God and his Word
in order to be able to rightly appreciate either the natural or the spiritual
things which are ours, and to feed thereon in our hearts and to grow strong
thereby in our characters.