That I May Know Him
Scripture Texts: 1 Kings 18:1, 36; Luke 10:39-42
Introduction
It came through a spiritual gift granted a member of our congregation: "Know Me, know Me, know Me was His plea to Pastor John." Why does it seem that my first thought is one of reproof rather than encouragement? Why do I feel like there is always something more I can be doing rather than truly enjoy the rest He has given me? To his beloved Philippians Paul writes, "That I may know him…" (3:10) and yet that was some twenty years after seeing things that eyes hath not seen, and hearing words that ears cannot receive. What more could Paul do? And if Paul needed to "do more" just where does that leave me?
Choosing versus Doing
Again and again I must be reminded that it's not a matter of doing but of choosing, as Jesus instructed Martha and illustrated in her sister, "Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:42). Chosen means to pick out; choose; to pick or choose out for one's self; choosing one out of many, as the Lord did is selecting His apostles. In context this choice was not in the general sense of choosing good in opposite of bad; rather, it was choosing the better.
It was 'choosing one that is best out of many' that spoke to my spirit. I thought my devotions were going well, as far as choosing to have them, but it is so much more than that. Once devotions were chosen out of the many other things that could be done, and the discipline established, what then did I choose as best within that discipline? Had it degenerated into Martha's practice of being "cumbered about" by being distracted in my devotional service? Had I had become over-occupied with the work of my devotion by being more active in covering all the prayer bases and Bible reading, rather than contemplative in the rest by being with Him in that devotion?
A Rest that Knows
In Rules of Engagement, Derek Prince writes his reflections on Isaiah 6:1-3, "What has always impressed me is what they did with their wings: with two they cover their faces with two they covered their feet and with two they flew. I interpret covering the face and feet as the humility of worship, and flying as service. I believe in thanking God and praising him out loud—even dancing, clapping, singing. But there comes a time when I will put my wings over my face and my wings over my feet in humble worship and listen to hear what God says" (page 71).
Correspondingly Bob Sorge, in Secrets of the Secret Place, pens, "What could be more energizing in the course of a busy day than to stop and gaze upon the glory of his enthroned majesty? Look at the effect this glorious employment has upon the living creatures in heaven's throne room: 'the four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!' (Revelation 4:8). How is it that they do not rest? Are they never tired? No, they do not weary of gazing upon the beauty of the Lord for they are living in the place of eternal rejuvenation. Instead of tiring from their service to God, they are actually energized and made alive by it" (pages 153, 154).
I remember being visited by a minister once. He came in our house, sat upright on the edge of the sofa, looked at his watch more times than I can recall, "visited" with us, and left nearly thirty minutes to the second after conferring with his time piece one final time. Indeed, it constituted a pastoral visit—we talked but I couldn't be sure he heard anything I said. Truthfully, it made me feel more like a statistic than a person. There certainly was no rest in our time together.
Then the question: Have I now done the same to the Lord? Hustled into His 'room', sat down as if I was ready to stand up, spent more time talking than listening, and when my preset time was achieved check it off as another task completed while thinking of what needed to be done next. Where is the rest in that?
Oh, but to enter into His presence, rest by reclining at His table and then choosing the best dish of the meal—the Master's Word in fellowship. That is my portion, "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever" (Psalms 73:26). It is this fellowship of His Word that lets me know Him and has its root in the one thing "that shall not be taken away" (Luke 10:42).
Not Taken Away
The Lord's words, "shall not be taken away" presupposes there are things we can lose. The word "away" implies in other Scriptures to a forcible removal for the purpose of putting to death. I think that is a key for us in really hearing what Jesus was saying to Martha. Consider her situation. She received Jesus into her home and then neglected Him as she prepared an elaborate meal that He did not need! Certainly a meal was in order, but what we do with Christ is far more important than what we do for Christ. Again, it is not an either/or situation; it is a matter of choosing correctly. Mary had done her share of the work in the kitchen, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?" (v. 40); yet, the time had come for Mary to choose rightly. What did she choose? "which also sat at Jesus feet, and heard his word" (v. 39). Mary had chosen the Word over works.
Few things are as damaging to the Christian life as trying to work for Christ without taking time to commune with Christ. "For without Me ye can do nothing" (John 15:5), Jesus said. Mary chose the better part, the part that could not be taken from her. She knew that she could not live "by bread alone" (Matt. 4:4) but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. And by listening and allowing His Word to labor in her, Mary gave opportunity for the Lord to work in her—an eternal effort—and one that would not be taken away.
In fact, Mary of Bethany is seen three times in the Gospel record, and on each occasion, she is in the same place: at the feet of Jesus. She sat at His feet and listened to His Word (Luke 10:39), fell at His feet and shared her woe (John 11:32), and came to His feet and poured out her worship (John 12:3). It is interesting to note that in each of these instances, there is some kind of fragrance: in Luke 10, it is food; in John 11, it is death (John 11:39); and in John 12, it is perfume. Note the progression: food, life over death, and then a sweet-smelling savor.
The Spirit of Elijah
It is the Word that knits Mary, Elijah, and then us in the spirit of Elijah together. Just as Mary sat as a disciple at Jesus' feet and received His Word and Elijah was defined as a servant of the Lord who heard the Word, so too must we be able to hear the Word as a disciple in order to truly know Him.
In Hearing God, Dallas Willard writes, "we must therefore make it our primary goal not just to hear the voice of God but to be mature people in a loving relationship with him. Only in this way will we hear him rightly" (page 31). Solomon penned in his love song, "He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love…. eat, old friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, oh beloved" (Song of Solomon 2:4; 5:1). "The beloved, who both loves and is loved, does not want to order the lover about; instead the beloved desires that the lover understand what is needed so that no orders are necessary. In this union of souls is not right for one person to always tell the other what to do. And so it is in our union with God, a person both loving and beloved. He does not delight in having to always explain what his will is; he enjoys it when we understand and act upon his will" (page32).
Mary had this loving relationship with the Lord, knowing His will even more so than the apostles: "There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him. Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment" (John 12:2-3). "When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me" (Matthew 26:10). The Persic (Persain) version reads it, "according to my mind": it was done, in the faith of him, as the Messiah; it sprung from real and sincere love to him" (Gill). Thus, when know Him in love and through His Word He doesn't always have to tell us what to do, we will know it.
We see Elijah practice the same: The word of the Lord comes to him in 1 Kings 17:2 (Chereith), 8 (Zarephath), 16 (meal wasted not); 18:1 (return to Ahab) and then it was not spoken again directly to Elijah until 19:9, "And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?" Ah, but it did show up one other time in 1 Kings 18…in the past tense: "And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:" (v. 31).
I find it interesting that the Scripture is silent in knowing how Elijah understood the battle plan for rain in the land. He was simply told, "Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth." There were no other recorded instructions. There was no "I have commanded ravens…I have commanded a widow…." Just go, show and rain.
God is calling us, in the Spirit of Elijah, to know Him in such a way that He doesn't always have to order us about to accomplish His will. I think there are times that we don't move, don't witness, and maybe even over-analyze ministry all the while looking for His will when it has already been written. Yes, I understand there are certain times that are specifically ordained and He will speak concretely, but that doesn't translate to every time and every place.
We know it is His will to save, heal, and deliver…what else is there? Just as Elijah knew the word of the Lord to Jacob in setting up the stones as part of the battle plan, so too will the Spirit of God bring back to us the mind of Christ in doing battle for restoration, but we must go, show, and then the rain will come whatever the means it takes.
Close
"And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it" (Luke 8:21). In knowing Him by Word and love all He desires for us can be done!
