Teacheth

1 John ii. 27.

f HAT was a true word spoken by the prophet when he said, “All thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children.” (Isaiah liv. 13.) It is certain that the amount of peace which we enjoy will be largely in proportion to the amount of teaching which we receive, and appropriate, at the hands of the Lord.

The untaught Christian is destitute of the deep and unbroken peace which is the inalienable heritage of those who have graduated in Christ’s schooL As the many objects of fear which, in the mind of the savage, people all “Ueacbetb.”

lonely places, disappear when he is instructed in truer science: so do

doubts and misgivings vanish, as the soul comes to understand its true standing in Jesus.

It is very beautiful to mark the direct teaching agency of the Lord in this passage, and to remember that it is vouchsafed to all His children.

There is no teaching, to compare with that of a father. The professional schoolmaster is apt to become mechanical. He looks on his pupils as so many brains which he must cram for examination. He finds, therefore, a peculiar charm in the bright and clever ones, who will repay his care; as the virgin soil of the Western States responds luxuriantly to the first scratch of the plough. He is in danger pf underrating the value of those who may be dull because they need better food — or because they have come of a race of dullards, stupified by generations of lethargy. The little tired maiden, worn out by nursing the new-born infant; the dull and stupid child; the boy who cannot fix his thoughts; the under-fed and the illclad offspring of poverty — these are often scantily attended to. But there is no such partiality with a father; and it has no lodgement in the heart of God. All His children are taught. He takes equal care over each. He perhaps takes most care over the stupid ones; putting the lesson in successive modifications, that it may be brought down to their capacity. It is His chosen business to make you know His will; and if He cannot do it in one way, He will in another. “Line upon line; precept upon precept; here a little, there a little.”

We are oft e nest taught by chastening. As the Psalmist fitly says: “Blessed

is the man whom Thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of Thy

8 o

“Ueacbetb*”

law.” (Psalm xciv. 12.) It may be, that there would be less need for this chastening, if only we would learn the same lessons in the easier forms in which they are first presented to us. It is when all other means fail that chastening is employed. But surely it is also true that there are some lessons which can only be learnt in the Garden, and beneath the Shadow of the* Cross. The most deeply taught Christians are generally those who have been brought into the searching fires of deep soul-anguish. If you have been praying to know more of Christ, do not be surprised if He takes you aside into a desert place, or leads you into a furnace of pain. God’s private mark is always burnt into the spirit in a furnace.

But after all, there is no text more clear or helpful in its teaching on this matter than the one referred to at the heading of this chapter: “The anointing which ye have received of Him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you; but as the same anointment teacheth you of all things, and is truth.”

Many amongst us are not able to attend any of those Conferences for the promotion of Christian living, which are so characteristic of the present day, and which are helping to prepare the Bride for the coming of her Lord. And there is sometimes a fear entertained by such, that they will fail to acquire some of those blessed truths, which in these days are being so marvelously unfolded to our ken. But let all such hush their fears, and be encouraged by the assurance of this passage, that the loving and obedient soul need not want any other teacher than the dear fLord Himself.

If the education of the inner life be intrusted to Him, He undertakes that nothing shall be lacking which ought “Ueacbetb.”

to be known; and that no time should be spent on superfluous or needless studies. The believer, who has the private tuition of the Saviour, will not be less proficient than those who have sat in the highest seats in the school of the church. Yes, and when Christ teaches, He needs no fee or reward. He demands only willingness to obey and perform, as each new item of truth is presented. If we will only put into immediate practice the truths He imparts, there is simply no limit to the blessed lore in which He will instruct us. “Who teacheth like Him?”

‘ There are three points to notice in closing.

i. Christ teaches by the Holy Ghost.

It is unmistakable that the Spirit is referred to in this passage as “the anointing which we have received.” The inspired symbol for the Holy Ghost, throughout the Bible, is Oil. The oil that was poured on Aaron’s head, and descended to the skirts of his garments, spake of Him. The Holy Spirit is, so to speak, the medium by which Jesus dwells in the surrendered heart, and operates through it, and in it. Thank God, we have received the Spirit from His hands. And when He gives, He never takes back. There can never be any withdrawal of that which has been bestowed. He abideth in you. But

though the Spirit can never be with drawn, He may be quenched and grieved to our unutterable loss. Let us yield to Him, that He may put forth in us all His gracious might.

2. This teaching is inward. There are doubtless many lessons taught by Providence. But after all, the meaning of outward events is a riddle, until He opens “the dark sayings on the harp.” And the teaching is therefore so quiet, so unobtrusive, so hidden that many an earnest seeker may think

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that nothing is being taught or acquired, as the months go on. But we cannot gauge the true amount of progress which we are making from year to year. The teaching is so thoroughly a secret matter between God and the Spirit. But when some. great crisis supervenes, some trial, some duty; and the spirit puts forth powers of which it had seemed incapable — there is a swift discovery of the results, which had been slowly accruing during long previous hours.

3. The main end of this teaching is to secure our abiding in Christ. “Even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in Him.” All Christian progress begins, continues, and has its fruition here. Severed from Jesus, we can do nothing. Abiding in Jesus, we partake of “the root and fatness” of His glorious life. All His fulness slowly enters into us. What wonder then, that the whole bent of the Holy Spirit’s teaching is

TEbe ZEeacbers Object to insist upon this prime necessity! And we may well study hard to be proficient in this sacred lore, learning how to abide in Christ, because all Heaven is there. It is thus that God is waiting to teach each of us, His little children. “If thou criest after knowledge, and 1 if test up thy voice for understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as hid treasures — then shalt thou find the knowledge of God.” (Prov. ii. 3-5.)