THE KING’S BUSINESS
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Spirit. No one is in a' position to under stand the Bible until he has turned to the Lord, then the veil is removed (John vii. 17). It is bad enough to be blind, but to be blind with no desire to see is worse (John iqc. 39; Revelation iii. 17). Trust in Christ, and the whole' Bible, becomes illum ined. It is not in the light of common sense, or philosophy, or science that we come to understand the Bible. It is only when we turn to the Lord—-when we behold the glorious person of Christ in the mirror of His Word, that, beholding Him, we are changed into His image. 3. T h e Office of th e M inistry E xercised in all S incerity by th e A postle (iv. 1 - 6 ). (a) The Sincerity of the Apostle’s Min istry. The fact that it is of the mercy of God that Paul had deceived his ministry leads to the exercise of all sincerity in its execu tion. Paul here refers^ doubtless, to the insin uation of his opponents (xii. 16) who had accused him of fickleness and dissembling in his dealings with the Corinthians. It is as though the apostle replied, “Our handling of sacred things and our relation to the gospel is open, free from any deceit, adul teration, or insincerity.” There is nothing in the gospel to make a man ashamed (Romans i. 16; 2 Timothy i. 8, 12) or cause him to resort to such reprehensible con duct. There is no need for the servant of God to seek to be crafty or to hide any part of his message (cf. 1 Thessalonians ii. 1-12; Galatians ii. 5, 14; cf. Ephesians iv. 14). The consciousness that God had called him to this ministry inspired the apostle with boldness of utterance and frankness of demeanor. “The source of a hidden gospel is to be found, not in the gospel itself, nor in its ambassadors, but in the wickedness of the heart of the sinner, which is under the control of Satan (iv. 3, 4; iii. 14, IS; 2 Thessalonians ii. 1-8). Spiritual vision is not possessed by the natural man (1 Corinthians i. 18;, ii. 14-16; Matthew v. 8; Isaiah xxix. 9-14).
• 22. Preparatory, prophetic, typical. The New Testament
1. Contains the light. , 2. Contains -the liberty.
3. Contains the spirit. 4. Contains the eternal. 5. Contains spiritual and internal prin ciples. 6. Seeks by inward principles to govern and control outviard actions and life. 7. The immanence of God—God with us. 8. Remedy for sin. 9. Paradise regained. 10. Fulfillment. 13. Life and immortality. 14. Gone to be with Christ. 15. Christ, an elder brother. 16. Deals principally with grace—so ends with a blessing (Rev. xxii. 14, 21). 17. Grace-came by Jesus Christ. 18. Man seeking Christ—“Where is He?” (Matt. ii. 2). 19. Book of the generation of Jesus Christ (Matt. i. 1), 20. Reveals Christ as the Saviour. “The two Testaments correspond some what as a mold and a medallion do, the same image being found in both—sunk in the surface of the one, projecting from the surface of the other. Both Testaments are necessary the one to the other as the right and left hands are to the human body whose very urilikeness helps in co-operation.” Some' Lessons from iii. 12 - 18 . There is a vast difference between, the bondage of legalism—the law, and the lib erty of grace—the gospel. There can be no real enjoyment until we are freed from the bondage of the law. Slavery to legalism puts a veil over the true perspective of our standing in Christ. It gives a closed eye to revealed truth. Not doing, but trusting gives a clear vision and faith. Thus the Scriptures likewise assume a new aspect. One film of legalism after another must fall from the eyes before there can be the enjoyment of the liberty of the 11. Antitypes. 12. Substance. 21. Characterized by endings. 22. Complete, historic, doctrinal.
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