The Companion of the Way
by
H.C. Hewlett
1962
Moody Press
Chicago, Illinois
~ Out of print and in the public domain ~
The Strength Of The Toiler - Paul
(Acts 26)
The path of testimony which Paul trod for so many years
began with the experience wherewith that of Stephen ended, with the revelation
of the Lord Jesus Christ in Heaven. Not only was the Lord pleased to answer the
martyr's prayer by the conversion of one implicated in his death, but He raised
up this very man to carry on and to amplify, both by his preaching and by his
writings, the witness to Christ in glory. While Paul spent his days in the
proclamation of this grand theme, there was given to him on a number of
occasions such a special realization of the Lord's nearness that, in this also,
he was Stephen's spiritual heir. Taken in sequence, these present a rich
unfolding of the great truths of the unchanging presence.
The SATISFYING Presence (Acts 26)
"At midday, O king, I saw in the way a
light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and
them which journeyed with me. And when we were fallen to the earth, I heard a
voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why
persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And I said,
Who art thou Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise, and
stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make
thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of
those things in the which I will appear unto thee; . . . Whereupon, O king
Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision" (Acts 26:13-19).
Three times in the Acts the record of Paul's conversion is given, two of
these being in his own words. The last account is quoted because of the express
words of the Lord Jesus, "I have appeared unto
thee." Few men have ever hated the name of Jesus and the disciples of
Jesus so fiercely as did the brilliant young Pharisee of Tarsus. His own
confession is that he was "exceedingly mad
against them." Intent on persecution, he was journeying to Damascus, when
he was arrested by the shining of a light from heaven surpassing the brightness
of the noonday sun. He has told us little of what he saw in that moment when the
rays of glory from Christ's face shone upon him. He did not speak of it: "Am I not an apostle? . . . have I not seen Jesus
Christ our Lord?" (I Cor. 9:1). However the record is given largely in
the impact of the vision upon his subsequent life.
While Paul lay
prostrate, a voice from the intense light asked him, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" Then the
voice compared him to the ox that kicks back against the goad that would urge it
forward. Had Paul been fighting inwardly against the accusings of conscience,
and had the radiant face of Stephen and the grace of his dying words been often
in his memory, challenging him to search out these things? Gazing upward, and
realizing at once that he beheld the God of his fathers, for none else could
bear such sublime majesty, he addressed Him as Lord. Trembling at the charge of
persecuting Him, he asked, "Who art thou,
Lord?" Was it the sight of manhood, even in that glory, that also drew
from him the question? Then there came the words that shattered all his pride
and obstinacy, words whose implications surely searched him hour after hour
during the three long, sightless days that followed (Acts 9:9): "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest." The hated
Nazarene was the Lord of glory; the despised Jesus was the long-awaited Christ;
the hunted sufferers were the saints of God.
From that moment Paul was
the willing captive of the Saviour's love. His further words, "What shall I do, Lord?" (Acts 22:10) became the
keynote of his life. He gave himself to be Christ's bondslave, utterly and
forever. He had set out that morning with gifts of persons likely to make him an
idol of his people, and with the garlands of earth's glory thick upon him. In
that
heavenly sunshine
these poor things withered and died, and henceforth nothing was of value
to him in comparison with that face which he had seen, bright with the majesty
of the Godhead and beautiful with eternal love. In later years he wrote of it to
the Philippians: "What things were gain to me,
those I counted loss for Christ." And if we venture to ask: "Were you not
precipitate in your renunciation, brother Paul? Was it not just your impetuosity
of eager youth?" he replies, "I count
(i.e., I still count, after all these years of toil and privation) all things but loss for the excellency of the
knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord" (Phil. 3:7-8). His soul was satisfied
indeed.
Marvel not that Christ in glory
All my inmost heart hath
won,
Not a star to cheer my darkness
But a Light beyond the sun.
The SOVEREIGN Presence
(Acts 22)
"And it came to pass,
that, when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I
was in a trance; and saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly
out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me. And I
said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that
believed on thee: And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was
standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that
slew him. And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the
Gentiles" (Acts 22:17-21).
It was Paul's first visit to Jerusalem
after his conversion, and the Lord appeared unto him in a trance to direct him
away from the city and send him to the Gentiles. Paul pleaded that he should be
permitted to stay, and advanced the most laudable reasons for this. He had been
a leader in the persecution of the believers. Was it not then most fitting that
he should take his place publicly as a disciple where once he had "made havock of the church?" Again, there was
his share in the death of Stephen, whose memory was so sadly dear to him. Ought
he not by his testimony to make what amends might be possible for that grievous
wrong? Ought he not to honor the Lord Jesus by confessing His name in the city
where He had been crucified? Not only so, but there burned in his heart that
love to his erring people of Israel which was later to find expression in the
words, "I could wish that myself were accursed
from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh" (Rom.
9:3).
These were in themselves entirely worthy motives, but the will of
Christ must take
precedence over the
noblest choices
of the soul. Christ's presence will not be the
constant realization of the heart unless His sovereignty be recognized and
unless He be owned as Lord of the life and all its relationships. His will makes
no mistakes but decrees all with unfailing love and unerring wisdom. He sees the
end from the beginning and knows the purpose of every step in the path of His
servant which may seem perplexing to human eyes.
It was thus with the
service of Paul. He had been told at his conversion that he was to be a witness
to all men, and to the Gentiles, but little could he have foreseen either then
or in the visit to the Gentiles. Ahead lay the mighty ministry of his missionary
journeys, wherein, for example, "all they which
dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks"
(Acts 19:10). Ahead lay the planting of those lines of churches in Asia and
Greece. Ahead lay the writing of those letters in which the doctrines of the
Gospel and of the Church should be embodied, even to such amazing revelations as
those to the saints at Ephesus. Beyond all these, but the result of them, was
the impact which Paul was to make on the centuries to come. Today we owe an
incalculable debt to him and to the Lord's dealing in his life.
The SUSTAINING Presence
(Acts 18)
"Then spake the Lord to
Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace:
for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much
people in this city" (Acts 18:9-10). At Corinth the apostle met with much
opposition and distress. There was the pain of the break with the Jews. To his
witness to them that Jesus was the Christ they had responded with blasphemy, and
he had left the synagogue. Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue believed,
and all his house with him, but there was no abating of the relentless hostility
of the Jews. Again, there was the constant problem of the Corinthian character,
which led finally to the heartache of the apostle in his letters to the fickle
and loose-living believers in that city. Just how he felt as he gave himself to
win the Corinthians for Christ is seen in his words, "I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much
trembling" (I Cor. 2:3). From a natural viewpoint there was much to
discourage, and he might well fear that the hatred of the Jews would lead to
some outrage like the stoning in Lystra.
In a night vision the Lord drew
near to His tried servant and spoke those words of cheer which so often came
from His lips, "Be not afraid." These
words had been addressed to Jairus in the depth of his sorrow and to the
terrified disciples when He walked across the sea to their help. These words
were to be heavenly music to John in his exile in Patmos. To Paul they came as
rich encouragement to continue
his witness to the Corinthians. The secret of the Lord's message to him
lay in the accompanying assurance of the perpetual presence, "I am with thee." The Lord's interest in Corinth
lay not in its vast commercial empire and in its wealth, but in the believers,
and especially in the despised man named Paul. This man might indeed be weak in
bodily presence, and in speech of no account to Grecian reckoning but he was the
vessel chosen of Christ to bring salvation to that place.
No hurt should
come to him from any man. No hand would be permitted to hurl a stone at him; no
rod would be uplifted to leave its scar upon his back. The omnipotent presence
would be his bodyguard to protect him from every ill. His fears were dispelled.
Christ was his shield and his salvation. Later there was an uproar in the city,
for the Jews took Paul before the tribunal of Gallio, the Roman governor, but
Gallio indignantly dismissed both of them and their complaint, and the Greeks
took Sosthenes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and thrashed him there and
then. Through all of this Paul was preserved unscathed, and he remained a good
while in Corinth, until the time came for him to leave Greece. The Lord had much
people in that city. Populous in itself, Corinth was strategically placed, with
access to the Aegean and Adriatic seas. Through Corinth there flowed a constant
stream of trade. The testimony for Christ was thus calculated to be carried far
and wide by those who would come to Corinth, hear the message, and take it to
their homes.
The SUCCOURING Presence
(Acts 23)
"And when there arose a
great dissension, the chief captain, fearing lest Paul should have been pulled
in pieces of them, commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force
from among them, and to bring him into the castle. And the night following the
Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified
of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome" (Acts
23:10-11). It was an occasion of peculiar difficulty for Paul. He had come to
Jerusalem -- though warned as to this (Acts 20:23; 21:4, 11), bringing to the
believers the bounty of the Gentile churches, and with it that deep burden of
love for his nation which ever characterized him. Nevertheless, nothing seemed
to go as he might have wished. Though unto the Jews he became a Jew, that he
might gain the Jews, and to them that were under the law, that he might gain
those that were under the law (see I Cor. 9:20), he met with grave trouble.
Rescued from imminent death by the intervention of the Roman garrison, he
appeared before the Jewish council, but was removed by the soldiers lest he
should have been killed in the strife between Pharisees and Sadducees. He had
gone far to meet the clamor against him, even reasserting for the moment his old
life with the Pharisees, but to no avail.
In the darkness of the night
following, a sad and weary man lay in the castle. From the Lord's words to him,
"Be of good cheer," it seems that he was
disconsolate and disappointed. Perhaps with his sensitive heart, he was also
reproaching himself for the scenes which had taken place. Which of us has not
known at least a little of the sting of self-reproach when we have searched
ourselves, seeking reason for circumstances of difficulty and discouragement?
It was then that the Lord stood by him, the Lord who knew all the
devotedness of Paul's heart, and prized dearly his life of service and
suffering. With words reminiscent of scenes in His earthly path in which He had
spoken in like fashion to other needy hearts
ministered His comfort
afresh. The
paralytic lying helplessly at the feet of Jesus, the woman who touched the hem
of His garment, the disciples on the lake, and again on the way to Gethsemane,
had all heard those gracious words (Matt. 9:2, 22; 14:27; John 16:33). They had
all known the peace given by that voice, for "when he giveth quietness, who then can make
trouble?" (Job 34:29).
"Thou hast
testified of me in Jerusalem." It was the Master's own appraisal of what
lay deepest in the longing of His servant. Amidst all the strange events of
Paul's visit to Jerusalem had run the golden thread of his witness to the Lord
Jesus. None who heard him could doubt his wholehearted allegiance to his Saviour
and his conviction of the greatness of His Person and of His work. But Paul's
service was not yet finished. His desire to go to Rome (see Acts 19:21) was to
be granted, even though the manner of its fulfillment was hidden from his sight.
In the seat of earth's power, and even before the proud Caesar, the ambassador
of the enthroned Christ must bear his witness to the One before whom even kings
must bow, and whom earthly monarchs need as Saviour as truly as do other men.
There "the prisoner of Jesus Christ"
would stand, and there would he proclaim the blessed name. The conspiracy of the
Jews at Jerusalem, the lonely years at Caesarea, and the shipwreck on Malta,
were all alike in the permissive will of God, but were not allowed to frustrate
the promise. The Lord brought Paul to Rome by ways which he knew not. To human
eyes the path must have seemed mysterious, but all along the way the sacred
presence went also.
The SOLITARY Presence (II
Tim. 4)
"At my first answer no
man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to
their charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that
by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear:
and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. And the Lord shall deliver me
from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be
glory for ever and ever. Amen" (II Tim. 4:16-18). The apostle was in
prison for the last time. His course was finished, and the time of his departure
was at hand. Very soon he was to be "with
Christ; which is far better." Already he had stood before Nero and in the
words quoted above, he described that first trial. Greatly he felt the
loneliness of that scene. Asian brethren were turned away from him (II Tim.
1:15) and that Demas had forsaken him, having loved this present world (II Tim.
4:10), but that all forsook him. Not one friend could be found to stand beside
the man who had experienced so much in suffering for the sake of his brethren.
He wrote, "Only Luke is with me" -- Luke,
the dear companion of his journeys, who was content in a self-effacing ministry
of attendance on the apostle. Yet in Paul's loneliness there was no bitterness,
only love. As the Lord had prayed for those who nailed Him to the Cross, and as
Stephen in like manner prayed for his murderers, so Paul prayed for those who
had deserted him.
We look back wonderingly to that trial, and try to
picture in our thoughts the meeting of Paul and Nero. There they faced each
other -- earth's best and earth's worst, the saint of blameless life and the
monster of foulest sin. Even Nero was one for whom Christ died, and to whom the
exceeding goodness of God willed to present the message of salvation. How great
must be the guilt of that man with his load of fearful vice, with his hounding
to death of the Christians, and with his rejection of the Christ of the Gospel!
Alone, and yet not alone!
"Notwithstanding," said Paul,
"the Lord stood with me." It was a
solitary presence, but it was all-compensating. Christ had been with him through
all his years, and He did not fail His servant in his last weariness. Indeed,
all the characteristics of His nearness to Paul in earlier days were gathered up
in this final scene. It was a sustaining
presence, for the Apostle said, "[He]
strengthened me, that by me the preaching might be fully known." It was a
succouring presence, for he said: "I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion."
It was a sovereign presence, for his
heart was at rest in this certainty: "The Lord
shall deliver me . . . and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom."
Then it was a satisfying presence, for
he concluded his narrative with the last doxology of his writings, the glad
tribute of a worshiping heart -- "To whom be
glory for ever and ever. Amen"
Once more Paul's voice was heard.
The closing greetings were to be added to his letter to the son in the faith who
was so dear to him. What better thing could he wish than that which he, Paul,
had known and proved so long? So he gave his last message, "The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be
with you. Amen." Christ had been sufficient for Paul. He would be so for
Timothy. He is so for us today.
Chapter
12 - THE STEWARD OF GOD'S HOUSE - Revelation 1 - John
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