His Pereect Manhood

by James McFarlane | Category: The Lord Jesus Christ: His Person And Work | Mar 1953

HIS MOTHER.

The character of Mary is clearly drawn by Luke. Her submission to God's requirements is delightful to contemplate. There is evident restraint on her part, and Gabriel himself speaks with restrained words when he says-" The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee; wherefore also that which is to be born shall be called Holy, the Son of God." If Gabriel, who stood in the presence of God, confined himself to these simple words, how very carefully must we tread the holy ground when thinking and speaking of the incarnation of the Son of God! The manner of this godly woman is seen in her paean of praise, when in the home of Elizabeth she said

"My soul doth magnify the Lord,

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour."

It is a delight to look up the many R.V. references in Mary's song of rejoicing, to see a memory so richly stored with the wise selection from the Word.

God had provided for her the righteous man Joseph (a son of David) to whom she was espoused to be her protector and helper. His anxious thought for his promised wife is recognised by God who sent His angel to say-" Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she shall bring forth a Son; and thou shalt call His name Jesus; for it is He that shall save His people from their sins."

The promise in the beginning was that the Seed of the woman would bruise the Serpent's head. Writing of his kinsmen according to the flesh, Paul says-" of whom is Christ as concerning the flesh" (Romans 9.5), and the Lord said to the Samaritan woman, " Salvation is from the Jews" (John 4.22). The Child Jesus was the Son of Abraham and the son of David. As Man He had a spirit, a soul and a body, yet He is Immanuel, which means "God is with us" (Isaiah 7.14R.V.M.).

THE MEAL OFFERING.

Among the offerings under the Levitical Law the meal offering is unique in its typical teaching of the holy humanity of the incarnate Son of God.

It took various forms. There was the offering of the fine flour, of cakes baked in the oven, of cakes baked on the flat pan, of cakes baked in the frying pan, of bruised corn in the fresh ear. These were always offered without leaven or honey, but never without salt.

The meal offering accompanied the burnt offering, made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD, and was a thing most holy of the offerings. Only very briefly can one state what is taught in the meal offering. The Lord Jesus as the meal offering is not only a sweet savour to God, He is also the food of God's priestly people.

The fine flour signifies the purity of His nature as Man. The grinding of the fine flour speaks of Christ's sufferings at the hands of men. It is recorded of Him, "He was oppressed, yet He humbled Himself and opened not His mouth" (Isaiah 53. 7).

The oil tells of the Holy Spirit; the frankincense, that "exceedingly odoriferous spice" which was all burnt on the altar fittingly expresses the sweetness of His utter devotion to the Father.

HIS PERFECT HUMANITY.

MAN. FINE FLOUR.

In setting aside the law of human generation in the Lord's birth, God broke the entail of sin. In infinite humility the Word became flesh, becoming in the likeness of men, of the form common to humanity. In infinite love and wisdom God prepared the Lord's body, as was promised-" a body hast Thou prepared for Me" (Hebrews 10. 5).

Ordinarily children inherit weaknesses and deficiencies that result in disease, but there was no weakness nor deficiency inherited by the Lord in the body His Father had prepared for Him.

From the moment of conception until He bowed His head in death, the life of Jesus Christ was conditioned by two principles seen in the prophetic word

"Thou art He that took Me out of the womb: And Thou didst make Me trust when I was upon My mother's breasts"

(Psalm 22.9).

These principles moulded His human life. Accepting every circumstance as God given, He learned to depend on His God as He had depended on Mary, so that, in His darkest hour He could say, "I will put My trust in Him" (Hebrews 2.13).

MATURING. OVEN CAKES.

The meal offering of cakes baken in the oven was of fine flour mingled with oil or of unleavened wafers anointed with oil. The life of Jesus Christ was probably about thirty-three years and it is a matter for meditation that most of the first thirty years were lived, shut in from man. We get a glimpse of Him at the age of twelve. Did Luke overlook those thirty years? He gives us very little information, such as, "the Child grew and waxed strong, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon Him", or "Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and men."

Before the Rabbis the Boy Jesus showed advanced knowledge of the Scripture and showed His personal responsibility to His Father in holding His Father's things paramount in His life. Morning by morning the Father opened His ear to hear as one that is taught, and yet He was Himself the Word. He who was Wisdom increased in wisdom. He who is full of grace increased in favour.

Those thirty years were spent before His God in utter devotion to Him, hidden from public gaze, and we shall never learn how precious to the Father was this Cake baked in the oven, but faith hears the voice, "Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am well pleased" (or, "In Thee I have found My delight").

The transition from the quiet home to the wilderness was abrupt, from the godly company of His parents at home and from the synagogue to the temptation of Satan, to wild beasts in the wilderness, is a vivid contrast. Forty days without food pass, and when exhausted Satan tried the Lord on His trust in God, in the circumstances into which He had been thrust. The temptation was real, but He had been "made to trust" and He resisted the evil one. Tempted by the Devil in regard to the desires of the flesh, of the eyes and the vainglory of life, He overcame.

Though having a perfect human will, without sin, He did not exert His own will, but was subject to what was written. He took the place of subjection and of Him the glorious words were true, "becoming obedient, even unto death."

MINISTRY-MANWARD.

The meal offering might be of the flat plate, open to the gaze of all and parted into pieces.

Luke gathered his material by interviews with eye witnesses and ministers of the Word and wrote under the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit. The theme of the fifth chapter of Luke is seen in the call to service, "Fear not, from henceforth thou shalt catch men." Clearly the analogy is that as a fisherman lets down the net into the sea to catch fish, so disciples are instructed,-at His word to cast the gospel net into the world "to take men alive."

The disciples had had the bitter lesson that their skill as fishermen had availed them nothing, for they had toiled exhaustively all night and taken nothing, but, at His "saying," they easily obtained a splendid catch.

To illustrate the type of men to be taken alive, we are given three cases, the leper, a type of the sinner in his uncleanness, the palsied man, type of the sinner in his weakness, and the publican, type of the sinner in his covetousness.

The Son of Man entered into the circumstances of each case and "knowing the power of the Lord was with Him to heal," He stretched forth His hand and touched the leper.

"HE TOUCHED HIM" (verse 17).

Wonderful words, that bow the heart in adoration!

"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God, sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin," accomplished. So "He touched him" and said,

"Be thou made clean,"

and later bore the penalty for His act. The sinless Son of Man must fulfil the prophetic word, "I sink in deep mire where there is no standing."

To reach the second case, the Lord dwelt in Capernaum, in a house in which He was said to be "at home." To Him the four men carry their friend. When He saw their faith He said, "Thy sins be forgiven thee," and to prove that His power was from God He spoke those revealing words, "The Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins." The word which is translated "power" here is not duramis, which means strength, might, power or ability, but erousia, which, according to Liddel & Scott, means-" power, authority to do a thing" or "absolute power, authority, might as opposed to right." As to the Lord having power or authority to forgive sins, this would seem to be the first meaning whilst the second meaning can be seen in that word in Colossians 1. 13, "the power (or authority) of darkness," power as opposed to right. Erousia is used of the apostles in Mathew 10.1. One sees that the Son of Man ever took the place of humility in His perfect human life, entering into every circumstance with perfect trust in His God.

Levi, sample of covetousness in the sinner, heard the Lord's call and his old life dropped from him like a filthy garment and he became Matthew, the King's chronicler.

These three cases are used by the Spirit of God through Luke to illustrate the theme of fishing for men, showing how the Son of Man entered into the circumstances of the lives of sinners and dealt with the cause of disease, as He said, "They that are whole have no need of a physician, but they that are sick." "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost."

FURTHER EXPERIENCE.

The meal offering of the frying pan or caldron. "Now is My soul troubled " (troubled or disturbed, that is, as in boiling) (John 12.41) troubled spirit, soul and body. His physical sufferings were intense as He, from 9 a.m. till after 3 p.m. was hanging upon the cross, culminating in the cry, "I thirst." But His soul was troubled as He cried to His Father, "Be not far from Me." How true are the words,

"But none of the ransomed ever knew

How deep were the waters crossed,

Nor how dark was the night, the Lord passed through

Ere He found the sheep that was lost."

How carefully the Father provided for the burial of the precious body. God had reserved for Himself two men, one Joseph, a councillor, and Nicodemus, men of Israel, who gave the body honourable burial in a tomb hewn out of the solid rock. They wrapped it with myrrh and aloes. On the third day He was raised in glory.

THE MEDIATOR.

"If thou offer a meal offering of first fruits unto Jehovah thou shalt offer for the meal offering of thy firstfruits corn in the ear parched with fire, bruised corn of the fresh ear. And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meal offering. And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the bruised corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto Jehovah" (Leviticus 2.14-16). When Joshua led Israel into the land, he in turn was led by the heavenly Captain. Then the manna ceased when they ate the old corn of the land, sustaining food for warriors for which they had not laboured.

The Son of Man has left His followers a perfect example and the contemplation of His human life should stimulate us to follow His steps and to glorify God in our day. There is a place and work for every child of God in which he may use his life as an opportunity for service, for the way of the Master is the way for the disciple. Let us look at our day's work, as it is given to us day by day as something to be done to God's glory and man's welfare, through His help.

James McFarlane | Mar 1953
The Lord Jesus Christ: His Person And Work