The Music of Glorybound

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 Dennis Stickfort

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How to write your testimony effectively - Telling your own story is perhaps one of the most effective methods in sharing the gospel message.  It's Biblical, attractive and effective if done right.  “The problem with some writing isn’t that it’s bad writing. It’s just boring,” - Ginger Kolbaba, managing editor of Marriage Partnership magazine...

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 George Müller Biography - George Müller was one of the early brethren in the United Kingdom who is known for his work of faith among orphan children by running his organization by faith to provide for their needs.

"May it not be the will of God that I should establish schools for these children, asking Him to give me the means?"

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Ron Mills' Story - At the age of 22 I started to consider suicide as an answer to feelings of hopelessness. By the time I was 23 I would get brief periods of wondering “is this all there is to life?" I remember going to night clubs after drug use and drinking and just standing amongst hundreds of people and feeling very alone and tired of life. There had to be more to this Life (more...)

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Help will be valued upon Genesis 4:4, 5," TARGET="_blank">Genesis 4:4, 5, where we read that God had “respect” to Abel and his offering and not to Cain and his, and Romans 2:11," TARGET="_blank">Romans 2:11, where it is said that there is “no respect of persons with God.”

We can be quite sure that this latter verse is ever and absolutely true. The Greek word, “to have respect of persons,” means, “to receive the face of a person,” i.e. to look at the outward appearance—at the gold ring and the gay clothing, at the feature and the stature, etc., whereas we know that “God looks, not at the outward appearance, but at the heart.” When, therefore, we read that God had respect to Abel and his offering, we must divest ourselves of any idea of favouritism or unfair preference on His part. In fact, the Hebrew word in Genesis 4," TARGET="_blank">Genesis 4, “to have respect,” has no thought of respect of persons, but of looking to someone, or something. The word is used in Psalm 119:117" TARGET="_blank">Psalm 119:117—”I will have respect unto thy statutes continually”; again in 2 Samuel 22:42" TARGET="_blank">2 Samuel 22:42—”They looked but there was none to save,” and also in Isaiah 17:7" TARGET="_blank">Isaiah 17:7—”In that day shall a man look to his Maker.” We may be sure that had it been righteously possible, God would have accepted Cain as well as Abel. The key to the verse is in Hebrews 11:4" TARGET="_blank">Hebrews 11:4—”By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain . . . God testifying of his gifts.” It was not that Abel was “more excellent” than Cain, though very likely he was, but that his sacrifice was more excellent; so that God simply had respect to Abel because of his sacrifice. The expression, “by faith,” shows, I think, conclusively that God had revealed how his creatures were to approach him, “for faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” No doubt, Cain’s sacrifice was beautiful enough, but it was Cain’s way, not God’s. It was merely the work of his hands-of the same vegetable kingdom as the fig-leaves of which Adam and Eve had made themselves aprons. Abel offered from the first-fruits of  the flock and of the fat thereof, i.e. the slain lamb. In Abel’s offering there were two things : there was something which spoke of his repentance, it was as though he admitted that he deserved the death of the victim; and there was something, too, which spoke of the lamb of God, without blemish, slain before the foundation of the world. How far Abel apprehended the truth we cannot say; he obeyed and allwas known to God. We are blessed according to His appreciation of the infinite Person and work of Christ, not according to ours, which, however, does determine our enjoyment of our blessings.

W.H.

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What is the application of Psalm 45" TARGET="_blank">Psalm 45? Is the Bride mentioned in the Psalm Israel or the Church? How are we to understand the expressions, “unto the king” and “unto thee” in v. 14?

In order to fully understand Psalm 45," TARGET="_blank">Psalm 45, it will have to be accepted that its principal application, so far as the Bride is concerned, is not to the Church but to Israel. The expressions, “King’s daughters,” “the daughter of Tyne,” and “the rich among the people,” etc., are more easily explained when we think of Israel in her future exaltation above the other nations, and acknowledged as Bride by the Lord, in keeping with His promises of Isaiah 54:5;" TARGET="_blank">Isaiah 54:5; Isaiah 62:5;" TARGET="_blank">Isaiah 62:5; Hosea 2:19, 20," TARGET="_blank">Hosea 2:19, 20, etc., than when we think of the Church. Yet there are, no doubt, one or two expressions, such as, “Forget also thine own people” and “raiment of needlework” (as compared with Revelation 1:8," TARGET="_blank">Revelation 1:8, R.V.), which appear to suit the Church better, although they can perhaps be understood of Israel also.

Of course, some take it for granted that if the Church is the Bride, Israel cannot be; and if Israel is the Bride, the Church cannot be; but this is to lose sight of the fact that the term is figurative, and there is no reason why the figure should not be used of Israel in the Old Testament and of the Church in the New Testament. This is the case with other figures, e.g., Israel is the Vine of the Old Testament (Psalm 80:8," TARGET="_blank">Psalm 80:8, etc.), while the Church in union with Christ is the Vine in the New Testament; Israel is the House in the Old Testament, while the Church is the House in the New Testament (Numbers 12:7;" TARGET="_blank">Numbers 12:7; Hebrews 3:6)." TARGET="_blank">Hebrews 3:6). Even the term, “Body,” which we usually look upon as the exclusive property of the Church, had been used of Israel in Isaiah 26:19" TARGET="_blank">Isaiah 26:19 (where the italics should be omitted).
Moreover, it may be that these early pictures, like the early prophecies of the Messiah’s coming, in which events separated (as we now know) by many years, are joined together as if one—are so worded by the Holy Ghost as to include applications both to Israel and the Church, some details being more suited to the one application, and some to the other. This would be helpful in studying the Song of Songs, of which Psa. seems to be the germ.

I consider this to be a better way of looking at the matter, than to accept the view suggested in Newberry’s Bible, where he distinguishes two women, the “Queen” (Israel), to whom he applies vv. 9-12, and the “King’s daughter” (the Church) to whom he applies vv. 13-15. I could agree that the Israel aspect of the picture is prominent in the former verses, and the Church aspect in the latter; but I cannot see two separate Brides in the Psalm definitely distinguished from one another.
With regard to v. i, I think that the “unto the King” at the begin- fling of the verse, and the “unto thee” at the end of it, refer to the same person. It is only an example of what is very common in the Psalms, in Isaiah 53," TARGET="_blank">Isaiah 53, and elsewhere, that is, an abrupt change from speaking about the Lord, to speaking to Him. And this speaking to Him is continued into verse i6, which, as well as verse 17, is addressed to the King, not to the Bride, although in our A.V. it looks as if it were.

W.R.

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Why is Joseph’s genealogy given in Matthew's Gospel, instead of that of Mary, seeing that Joseph was not the father of the Lord Jesus?

There are, as is well known, not one but two genealogies of Christ in the Gospels. In Matthew 1" TARGET="_blank">Matthew 1: His royal descent is traced from Abraham, through David and the kings of Judah, down to Joseph, His legal, though not His actual father. But in Luke 3" TARGET="_blank">Luke 3 His natural descent is traced from Mary’s own father, Heli, through a different branch of the Davidic family up to Adam. The phrase, “Being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph,” which is parenthetically inserted in Luke 3:23," TARGET="_blank">Luke 3:23, really answers the questions asked above. For since He was supposed, or legally reckoned, to be Joseph’s son, it was necessary that there should be what might be called an official genealogy, through him to David and Abraham, as well as that through His mother, in order that all objections to His claim to be “Son of David” should be silenced. In Matthew’s Gospel Joseph is prominent, and in Luke’s, Mary, not merely in the genealogies, but in the entire narrative, which in each case is as it should be, in view of the Jewish character of the former, and the Gentile character of the latter.

W.R.

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The R.V. of Psalm 68:11" TARGET="_blank">Psalm 68:11: “The women that publish the tidings are a great host,” has been used in favour of public preaching of the Gospel by women. What is its real meaning?

Psalm 68" TARGET="_blank">Psalm 68 is primarily connected with the bringing up of the Ark by David to the “resting place” (Psalm 132:8," TARGET="_blank">Psalm 132:8, R.V.) which he had, in accordance with his boyhood’s vow, prepared for it; though, of course, prophetically it looks forward to events far beyond that. It begins in v. with the words uttered by Moses on the occasions when the Ark was being taken up to move onward through the wilderness (Numbers 10:35);" TARGET="_blank">Numbers 10:35); and in its earlier verses it recounts in few words the bright side of Israel’s past history, as connected with what the Ark symbolised—the presence and power of God with His people. Their march through the desert; their arrival in the promised inheritance; and their victories over the nations that dwelt there, and those others that surrounded it; are pictured as won by the Presence of God with them. On various occasions these were celebrated in song, especially by their women-folk; and it is to such celebrations that the words quoted in the question refer.

See examples of them, in Exodus 15:20, 21," TARGET="_blank">Exodus 15:20, 21, after the Red Sea crossing; in Judges 5:1-3," TARGET="_blank">Judges 5:1-3, after Barak’s defeat of the host of Sisera; and in 1 Samuel 18:6, 7," TARGET="_blank">1 Samuel 18:6, 7, after David’s own victory over Goliath. Also compare the rejoicing on this occasion of the bringing up of the Ark as described in 2 Sam. 6. 15-22." TARGET="_blank">2 Sam. 6. 15-22. It is worthy of note that in many respects our psalm may be compared with the above-mentioned Song of Deborah.  Those who advocate that women should do what in the New Testament they are forbidden to do, must be hard bestead for proof, if they have to come to Psalm 68:11" TARGET="_blank">Psalm 68:11 for it.

W.R.

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PRAYER AND WORSHIP
THE PROPER OBJECT OF OUR WORSHIP

In this dispensation, to which Person in the Godhead should the worship of the assembly be directed?

Without question our Lord Jesus Christ is a true and proper object of His people’s worship. The wise men from the east came to worship Him (Matthew 2:2)," TARGET="_blank">Matthew 2:2), and “when they saw the young child with Mary His mother, they fell down and worshipped (not them, as the Romanist and Ritualist would have it, but) Him”—not to mention such cases as occur in Matthew 8:2;" TARGET="_blank">Matthew 8:2; Matthew 9:18," TARGET="_blank">Matthew 9:18, which perhaps would hardly mean more than an act of deep reverence (for “worship” etyrnologically means “worth-ship,” and is thus used in law courts—”your worship”).

In Matthew  14:33 we read that those in the boat recognised Him as “Son of God;” as did the healed man of John 9:38" TARGET="_blank">John 9:38 when he exclaimed, “Lord, I believe, and he worshipped Him.” In each instance it is the revelation of the glory of His person, which draws out the adoring worship of His own. This was the case on earth after His resurrection (Matthew 28:9)," TARGET="_blank">Matthew 28:9), and never did the Lord disclaim such worship, as did Peter (Acts 4:12)," TARGET="_blank">Acts 4:12), but accepted it as His rightful due.

This is all perfectly true and most blessed, and wherever to-day God is worshipped, our Lord Jesus Christ receives His part, for He is God the Son. But this being so, we must not confuse the Persons of the Trinity. Each has His proper place and function, and in John 4" TARGET="_blank">John 4: the Lord clearly indicates that it is God the Father who is seeking worshippers, and it is “in spirit and in truth” that the true worshipper must worship Him.

The worship of the Old Testament saints was figurative. The worship of the Lord when on earth was direct and personal, but there was another worship, even then beginning, true and spiritual. The Lord Jesus is the Way to the Father. If in our priestly worship we habitually stop short of Him, we fall below what the Lord wills for His people. He is the High Priest over the house of God, delighting to present their worship to the Father. The object, the way, and substance, the power of worship are all indicated in that most inclusive verse, Ephesians 2:18," TARGET="_blank">Ephesians 2:18, “For through Him (the Lord Jesus) we both (Jew and Gentile) have access by one Spirit unto the Father.”

W.H.

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