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wonder that those who have thus stepped out should, for a while, be like Abraham, who
knew not wither he went.
"One thing we know, that whereas once we were blind, now we see" (John 9: 25).
"One things have we desired of the Lord, that will we seek after" (Psalm 27: 4).
"One thing we do, forgetting the things behind, and reaching forth unto the things
before, we press goalward" (Phil. 3: 13, 14).
Like the blind man in John 9:, we may not be able to answer all the queries and
quibbles of the Pharisees, but no arguments on their part, nor failures on our own, can
alter the fact that whereas once we were blind, now we see. Like the Psalmist, our goal is
the Lord in His temple. Not a temple made with hands, but heaven itself where our
citizenship is, and from whence we look for a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall
change this body of our humiliation, that it may be transfigured unto the likeness of the
body of His glory (Phil. 3: 20, 21).
An infallible test for doctrine has always been its attitude to the Person of the Lord
Jesus Christ. "He shall glorify Me" is the Lord's witness to the Holy Spirit's teaching.
Our forgetting of things behind has made us relinquish ordinances, dogmas, hopes, fears,
and many God-given commands and promises, which we have seen were never addressed
to us, but our appreciation of the Son of God, our love unto Him, our view of the
grandeur and majesty of His heavenly throne, His present and future glory as raised "far
above all," His position as Head of the church which is His body, all these things have
become magnified as we have stepped over the boundary line of Acts 28: into the
epistles of the fulness." Our own position has also changed from that of babes to that
of full-grown men. The things which pertained to the days of childhood are forgotten, and
found to be unnecessary and a hindrance.The "milk" of the Word has been exchanged for
the "strong meat" (cf. I Cor. 2:, 3:; Heb. 5: 11-14) of the mystery, which was hidden
away from all generations.
Let us consider afresh some items of these deeply important things. The connection
between the Lord's Supper and the new covenant is established in Matt. 26: 28. We are
not left in doubt as to the meaning of this new covenant. The very latest reference to it is
found in Heb. 8:, and there its distinctive Jewish and kingdom bearing is fully set forth.
The house of Judah and the house of Israel are unequivocally set forth as the subjects of
this new covenant, and its relation to the reinstating of Israel and Judah as the people of
God is as clearly taught in Heb. 8: as in Jer. 31: That the new covenant of II Cor. 3:
is the same as that of Jer. 31: and Heb. 8: is clear from the evident allusion to Jer.
31: in II Cor. 3: 3. We find no covenant, old or new, in Paul's epistles written after
Acts 28: The Lord's Supper was instituted on the night of the Passover, which
commemorated the exodus from Egypt. The Lord's Supper was a pledge and seal of the
new covenant promise to lead a redeemed Israel into the promised land under grace, not
law.
Heb. 5:
11. Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.
12. For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first
principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
13. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses
exercised to discern both good and evil.