BASIC WORD: GOD'S NEED AND GOAL

NOT BEING DISCOURAGED WHEN WE FALL

Scripture Reading: Isa. 55:8-9 ; 1 Sam. 2:6-7

THE SPIRITUAL PATH HAVING UPS AND DOWNS

In the preceding chapter we saw that the visible systems in the universe have spiritual significance. Now we need to see that these systems in the universe do not operate along a straight path. For example, there are mornings, and there are evenings; there are days, and there are nights; there are sunny days, and there are cloudy days; there are summers, and there are winters; and there are births, and there are deaths. Moreover, there are things that bring joy and things that bring sorrow; there are things that are beautiful and things that are ugly; and there are things that are sweet and fragrant and things that are rotten and stinking. In the entire universe it is hard to find any matter or principle that operates on a straight path. There are ups and downs associated with nearly everything. This is also true in regard to spiritual matters.

In our human considerations related to our spiritual life, nearly every Christian has the concept that the path of our spiritual life should be straight. After we are saved, it is our hope and desire to follow the Lord continuously for our whole life. However, this often does not happen. When we are revived, we again hope and desire to stand firm and to courageously follow a straight path without any further failure. In truth, no one’s experience of walking reflects a straight path. Even though we are saved, we will fall inexplicably and involuntarily, and after we are revived, we later will fall again. At such times we may wonder how we became so indifferent to the point of backsliding, and we may regard our situation as being so pitiful that it is impossible to rise up. Nevertheless, at a certain point and often just as inexplicably, we rise up and begin to love and pursue the Lord once again.

These experiences lead us to an important discovery about ourselves, the discovery that we are not dependable or consistent. When we hope and desire to stand, we fall without any seemingly logical explanation. When we think that we are finished, we likewise rise up again without any seemingly logical explanation. After we rise up, we often are even more determined to be careful and to remain on a straight path. However, at any time we can inexplicably fall again, because even though a will to stand is present with us, working it out is not (Rom. 7:18). In our mind and will there is a desire to walk along a straight path, but in our actual experience there are both falling and rising. We want the sky above us to always be bright without any sense of darkness, but there are always an evening and a night, and the sky always becomes dark at night. However, after the night there is the brightness of the coming day. Similarly, we rise and fall, fall and rise.

Can anyone say that he has had only an experience of rising from the time that he was saved and that his days have always been bright with no hint of darkness? I do not believe that such a brother or sister exists. Although our thoughts are focused on a straight line, God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts (Isa. 55:8-9), and He has ordained a path that is full of ups and downs (1 Sam. 2:6-7). After we experience a day, we will experience a night. After a summer there will be a winter, after a spring there will be an autumn, and after life there will be death. However, after death there will be resurrection. God’s leading is not according to a straight line; it is a path with both ups and downs.

OUR CIRCUMSTANCES NOT ALWAYS BEING SMOOTH OR ACCORDING TO OUR WISHES

When a brother who loves the Lord considers the matter of marriage, he thinks, “I am a young brother, I have received grace, and I really love the Lord. I have prayed and consecrated myself to the Lord, asking Him to prepare a good wife for me.” A young sister who loves the Lord also will ask the Lord to prepare a good husband for her. When brothers or sisters ask the Lord for a good wife or a good husband, they mean a sister or a brother who loves the Lord as much as they do. Many young brothers and sisters pray in this way, but their prayers often seem to produce an opposite result. For nearly thirty years I have been observing God’s children, and we have tried our best to help the brothers and sisters concerning their marriage, yet regardless of how much we try to help, the results never seem to match our ideal expectations.

Sometimes we had a feeling that it would be good if a certain seeking brother could marry a sister who truly loved the Lord. Or we thought that a brother who had much light and a sister who was quite spiritual would be a perfect couple. We felt good about both, and when we introduced them to each other, they too were pleased. After they were married, however, we discovered that the sister did not really love the Lord that much. Sometimes we felt that a good sister, who was even like Mary, should be introduced to the best brother, to one who loved the Lord very much. Little did we realize that the brother would turn out to be very fleshly after they were married.

We went to Tientsin to begin the work and establish the church in 1936. While we were there, we met a young brother who was in college and who really loved the Lord. Because we were at the initial stage of the church life, we considered him to be a treasure. At the same time, we knew a sister who loved the Lord very much and who also attended the same college. Eventually, they became acquainted with each other. One day the young brother came to fellowship with me and said, “Brother Lee, I have asked the Lord to give me a sister who loves Him. Do you think that this sister is suitable?” I said, “She is a good sister. If she is willing, it would be a wonderful match prepared by the Lord.” When they were married, I was present at their wedding, and I even spoke a word. We were all very happy that this brother had been blessed to have such a precious sister. We believed that they were a good match for each other—one was spiritual, and the other loved the Lord. As a couple, we also felt that they could serve the Lord. Regrettably, not long after they were married, the brother found out that the sister loved the world a great deal.

Even though some couples are very spiritual, and both the husband and wife love the Lord, their circumstances do not always turn out to be so ideal. Shortly after a couple was married, they began to have children. They prayed and asked the Lord to cause their children to love Him, to give themselves to Him, and to serve Him. However, even though the husband and wife both loved the Lord, their children did not love the Lord as much. The couple prayed continually, saying, “Lord, we give our children to You, and we pray that You would call them one by one.” However, none of their children were called. There was another couple who wanted their children to be saved and attend the meetings, to listen to messages, and to conduct themselves properly. However, they did not want their children to be called to serve the Lord. Nevertheless, their first child was called, and so was their second. We were happy that the children were called, but the parents were not happy that they were called. Some saints want their children to be called, but God does not call them. Others are anxious over the thought of their children being called, but God intentionally seems to call them. This is very mysterious. Hearing this, some may wonder if it is possible for the parents and the children in a family to all love the Lord. While we have certainly seen situations involving a whole family loving the Lord, even then not every situation is according to our ideal. For example, the most spiritual son may meet an untimely death, but a less spiritual son lives a long life.