Fellowship In The Gospel

by J. BENNISON | Category: Fellowship And Unity: | Oct 1950

It is necessary to say that only a disciple of the Lord has heaven's high commission to preach the gospel. That is where Paul begins. He declares himself "a servant (bondservant) of Jesus Christseparated unto the gospel of God" (Romans 1.1). To this great life-work he regarded himself as " set apart " from all else, from every other claim and ambition. He had no misgivings as to where he stood in relation to his Lord-" Whose I am," said he, acknowledging his divine ownership.

It is of foremost importance for the disciple to know the contents of his mandate; as it is for a soldier to know his marching orders. We are called upon to guard the sacred trust, for such it is. Conditions may change, but not the message. "The gospel is the power of God unto salvation " (Romans 1. 16). If this is so, how necessary it is that nothing should be added to or taken from it! God has not changed-" I, the LORD, change not" (Malachi 3.6). It is not what men say about the gospel, but what the Lord and the apostles say. "To the law and to the testimony! If they speak not according to this word, surely there is no morning for them " (Isaiah 8.20). In early times various perversions and counterfeits of the gospel appeared. Since then these have greatly multiplied. Any so-called "gospel" that denies the Deity of the Son of God, minilnizes or misrepresents His vicarious sufferings, detrack from His atoning sacrifice, tampers with the resurrection and the all-authority of the Lord Jesus, hiding or obscuring God's great salvation from men, is not the gospel of God; it is "another gospel" or rather a "different gospel." There was only one Gospel although designated by different names. It is called the Gospel of God, because God is its source of Christ, because it has to do with God's anointed One, the Risen Christ; of the Grace of God, because it can never be merited; of the glory of the blessed God, because it magnified the God of glory; the Gospel of our Salvation, because in its acceptance it restores man to fellowship with God.

This Gospel has its roots in the Old Testament. It was no new thing in God's economy. Every time the coming of Christ was mentioned the gospel was proclaimed. It began in Eden when the LORD God said to the serpent that the Seed of the woman would bruise his head. It was typified in all the sacrifices and offerings. It was foreshadowed in the tabernacle with its services. Albeit it was not fully revealed until "the fulness of the time came," and "God sent forth His Son" (Galatians 4.4). Step by step the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John reveals something of its glory, as they present the Christ in all the peerless beauty of His glorious Person, whether as the Infant of days, or in the grandeur of His eternal Deity, or as the crucified Saviour. That One, who opening the book, read the words:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,

Because He anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor."

went on to say, "To-day hath this scripture been fulfilled in your ears " (Luke 4.18, 21). Then ere He leaves this world to go back to the Father, He entrusts to that little band of faithful men a commission which is clearly stated by the four writers, each of which is supplementary and complementary one to the other. This is clear when we place them together.

"Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matthew 28.19, 20).

"Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to the whole creation. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned" (Mark 16.15, 16).

"That repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name unto all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem" (Luke 24.47).

"As thou didst send Me into the world, even so sent I them into the world" (John 17.18).

How explicit and unequivocal are the Lord's words-" Go-make disciples of all nations" "G~preach the gospel to the whole creation" ; "Repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name unto all the nations" ; "Even so sent I them"

Nationally, Israel, as the people of God, had been set aside according to Matthew 21.48. Its place was taken by another nation whose responsibility was to show forth the excellencies of Him who had called them out of darkness into His marvellous light (1 Peter 2.9). These disciples formed the nucleus of this nation, and to them was given the constitution of the nation. They were also charged to publish the good tidings to all nations and make disciples. Nothing short of that would suffice. The preaching of the gospel by those carly disciples was a prime responsibility. They went forward at the Lord's bidding, not earning a reputation for inoffensive piety. They were men under orders, men "that have turned the world upside down " (Acts 12.6). What a testimony! A mere handful of men had filled Jerusalem with their teaching (Acts 5.28). Peter's brief statement, when they were brought before the council, was "We must obey God rather than men" (Acts 5.29). These men, as they went forth with their God-given message, shook kingdoms to their foundation, their enemies being a witness. And the reason of their success was their utter abandonment to the word and will of their Lord and Master. What zeal! Yes, but it was a zeal coupled with knowledge. Compare Romans 10.2.

David made a grave mistake when in his zeal for God he brought up the ark on a new cart drawn by oxen, adopting a mode borrowed from the Philistines! Explicit instructions had been given that only the Levites should bear the ark. The new cart and oxen had no warrant in God's word (1 Chronicles 13., 15.1-15).

At the commencement of their preaching through the operation of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, about three thousand received the word, and were baptized and added to the Church of God in Jerusalem (Galatians 1.18). The formation of such churches was an essential part of the will of the Lord in the preaching of the gospel and was the initial step in a line of action followed throughout the New Testament era. How important it is to realize that the object of such preaching was not only to rescue the perishing from destruction, but the adding together of such as were saved to be a corporate testimony for God in their respective localities!

"Free-lance gospellers " and such like, are departures from the divine plan. Make no mistake about it, though it may appear trivial, it opens the way for more serious violations of the will of the Lord. We doubt not their sincerity. Who would doubt David's sincerity? All he did was the right thing in the wrong way, and the Lord came in in judgement. Our only safety is both to cleave to the Word and consult the God of the Word.

Fellowship in service was the order of the day. Later we read of Paul planting and Apollos watering (1 Corinthians 3.6). One sows and another reaps. Planting alone would be futile labour, but planting and watering combine in producing the green olive trees in the House of God. True, God gives to each one his work, and the very thought of this should be conducive to happy fellowship in the work of the Lord.

And now, so long as the commission is unrevoked, so long as "Go y~ make disciples " remains in the Scriptures of truth there rests on each one a solemn responsibility. The commission itself may leave us cold, even though we belong to Christ, until there awakens within our hearts a responsive constraint to His command, that joyous, spontaneous impulse corresponding in measure to His own when He said, "I delight to do Thy will, 0 My God" (Psalm 40.8). His life was one of perpetual joy in doing the will of His Father. And such was His compassion even for those who were rebellious that the flood of tears could no longer be restrained when He cried, "How often would I have gathered thy children together . . . . and ye would not! " (Matthew 23.87).

He who rendered this service to His Father, delights to receive service from His people which in measure corresponds with His own.

"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation" (Isaiah 52.7).

"What shall I do, Lord?"

<Author:J. Bennison>

J. BENNISON | Oct 1950
Fellowship And Unity: