A People That Dwell Alone

by THOMSON, A. J. S. | Category: General | Jun 1966

After the Lord had established the Aaronic priesthood in Israel, He then dealt with the food of the people (Leviticus 11). This matter is dealt with in detail. The difference between clean and unclean was precise, for God who is holy requires holiness in His people.

Clean animals parted the hoof and chewed the cud. God named certain animals which conformed to only one of these features and therefore were unclean. The parted hoof would be easily seen, but the chewing of the cud may have been more difficult to determine. Great care was needed in case of transgression.

Fish and birds came under review as well. Fish that had both scales and fins were clean, but otherwise they were unclean. Fins were to enable them to pass through the waters and scales resisted outward action. So too we who pass through this world should resist all outward influence and keep the world outside. Birds which flew and had legs above the feet were clean. We who are redeemed are to keep ourselves above this earth, and should be heavenly in character. The creeping things that dragged themselves along the ground were unclean. The believer must never be grovelling on the earth and, like the serpent, partaking of earth's dust.

In Exodus 25.8, God says, "Let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them." And in that sanctuary, when the priest appeared before God on behalf of the people, he wore the mitre on which was inscribed "Holiness to the LORD". In this way they were accepted before God. Failure to abide by these conditions was a punishable offence.

In Nehemiah 2.19,20, we find the separation of persons. Sanballat and Geshem despised the work of Nehemiah. Nehemiah's answer was clear and decisive, "Ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem." In chapter 6 we read of the wall being builded, and the enemy then asks their fellowship in the plain of Ono. "Ono" comes from a word which means "to be strong in mischief". "Plain" is from a word which means "to divide" or "to cleave asunder". It is clear later that mischief was intended. In chapter 11.35 we read of it as "The valley of craftsmen".

The aim of these adversaries was to make the people afraid and to weaken their hands in the work. God's purpose was to separate His people from unclean things and persons, and this purpose is carried forward into the New Testament. "Come ye out from among them and be ye separate, saith the Lord, And touch no unclean thing; And I will receive you, And will be to you a Father, And ye shall be unto Me sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty" (2 Corinthians 6.17,18). They were to be separate and touch no unclean thing, for then, and then only could God say, "I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."

The question of meats does not now concern us, for we are dealing with the spiritual and not the material. "But meat will not commend us to God: neither, if we eat not, are we the worse; nor, if we eat, are we the better" (1 Corinthians 8.8). "For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. For he that herein serveth Christ is well-pleasing to God, and approved of men" (Romans 14.17,18). The highest form of eating of old had to do with the altar. In Hebrews 13.9 we read, "Be not carried away by divers and strange teachings: for it is good that the heart be established by grace; not by meats.... We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle." Christ our altar satisfies all by His grace. We are to go to Him in the outside place, the place of reproach. This may not be a pleasant experience, but we go there because He is there. In the past, God said, "I will bring you out... I will bring you in" (Exodus 6.6 and 8). There is a progression of thought in 2 Corinthians 6. It commences with separation from unbelievers and ends with sons and daughters to God. We who have been called into the Fellowship of God's Son Jesus Christ our Lord have a very great responsibility to maintain the holiness of separation from all worldly things and persons. Some may be in doubt about separation from evangelistic unions and other religious bodies outside the house of God. It is quite clear that what Paul preached would not find acceptance amongst many believers today. What he preached was "that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2.4). We fear that many who preach the gospel today may be likened to the animal which parted the hoof but did not chew the cud. As that animal had to be rejected, so we must leave all who do not preach the whole truth. We must maintain divine standards and say to all such as Nehemiah said, "Ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem." We need to be alert to what may appear to be similar. "I am doing a great work and I cannot come down" (Nehemiah 6.3). Again Paul says, "I shrank not from declaring unto you the whole counsel of God" (Acts 20.27);

If in all humility and weakness we seek to walk the separate path, God says, "I will receive you." May God help us to seek the favour of God, even although it may incite the displeasure of men. Let us be diligent to give due heed to what God honours and counts holy, and step aside from every other religious activity which does not conform to the divine pattern.

THOMSON, A. J. S. | Jun 1966
General