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In Christ is our all. We do not need to pray so much for this or for that, but for the
opened eye of faith that perceives that already in Him we are filled to the full:--
"And Jesus stood still, and called unto them, and said, What will ye that I shall do
unto you? They say unto Him, Lord, THAT OUR EYES MAY BE OPENED"
(Matt. 20: 32, 33).
#10.
"The Mould of Doctrine" (Rom. 6: 17).
pp. 163, 164
The closing words of the book of Judges seem to epitomize the ideal latent or
expressed in the heart of man.
"In those days there was NO KING in Israel, and every man did that which was right
IN HIS OWN EYES" (Judges 21: 25).
Iniquity according to Isa. 53: is synonymous with "turning every one to his own
way". Human nature rebels against the idea of being "run into a mould", and this
resentment is by no means confined to the unsaved and the ungodly. The schisms that
have rent the church, the differences that ruin the unity of the Spirit, may be trace back to
this source. It is true that no one of us has the right to endeavour to make other believers
little copies of ourselves, that is the baneful travesty of the truth, and lends some colour
of equity to the resentment expressed by Christendom. Nevertheless, it is the purpose of
God that we should be "run into a mould", the mould however being that of the image of
His Son:--
"For Whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image
of His Son" (Rom. 8: 29).
As a means to that end is the doctrine of the Scriptures:--
"But thanks be to God, that--Whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient
out of the heart unto the mould of teaching into which ye were delivered" (Rom. 6: 17,
Rotherham).
A footnote adds "As if to be fashioned thereby". The A.V. of this verse makes it
appear that the doctrine had been delivered to us, the margin, agreeing with Rotherham,
shows that we have been delivered into the mould of the doctrine instead. Do we come to
the Word of God that it may mould us? It will lead us into close conformity to the walk
(I John 2: 6), meekness (I Pet. 2: 21-23), death (Phil. 3: 10), resurrection (Rom. 6: 5, 6),
and coming glory (Phil. 3: 20, 21) of Christ into Whose image we must one day be
conformed.
Consequent upon this must come a growing likeness to each other. Phil. 3:, which
speaks of the wondrous conformity of the believer to the death and the glory of the Son