Liberty—Law—Blessedness

Liberty—Law—Blessedness

It is a known fact that there is a great difference in how individuals read and hear God’s Word. Some are very superficial and rarely or never find anything to judge in their lives. Others can read and listen to the same Word, become downcast, and almost feel condemned because they see their own wretchedness. Others—in their state of superficiality—don’t think much about whether they are even in God’s will by what they say and do. Others, again, have ideas about God’s will as if it were some sort of “performance race” that leads to stress and sleeplessness. None of these people have understood the gospel.

“But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” Jas. 1:25. Just “looking into” this one Bible verse enlarges our horizon and gives us a heavenly vision. What sort of law is this perfect law of liberty? It is God’s Word. It is the law of the Spirit of life, which sets us free from the law of sin and death. When a love for God is lacking—a love for Him for His own sake—then God’s Word will have the effect of being a law on us, which it is, and we will not experience the Word as a law of liberty that makes us blessed. Paul testified that he pursued perfection because he was apprehended of Christ, and for Christ’s sake he reckoned everything else as loss and dung. With such a love for Christ, God’s Word is what it in fact is, namely, a perfect law of liberty that makes us blessed. Yes, may we look, look, and look again into this glorious law, so that we can be blessed in our work! Then the preaching, the ministry, exhortations, child-rearing, the work with the young people, etc., will be extremely effective, as we read about the prayer of a righteous man. Jas. 5:16.

Let us think of a mother or a father who guides, warns, rebukes, or exhorts a child. The finger points to the law—that which is holy, just, and good. But perhaps the child does not get the impression that the parents are blessed in their work. Then we should not be surprised that the upbringing of the child has a minimal effect. Or brothers can speak the truth so that sin and self-life are laid bare, but the listeners do not get to look into the perfect law of liberty, and they do not get the understanding that the doer of the work will be blessed in what he does. Then the meetings will just be words, words, and more words, and they will be of no effect.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly . . . .” Col. 3:16. Further on in the verse we see that this is supposed to result in teaching, admonishing, and singing with grace in our hearts. And why is it fitting to sing with grace in our hearts? Because, among other things, God did not send His Son and His Word into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved by Him. When the one who is superficial and the one who is downcast take this to heart, both of them will discover that God’s Word is the perfect law of liberty that will make them blessed. The perfect law of liberty is the gospel; it is the glad tidings. God’s Word is the word of His grace. Therefore Paul says to the elders in Ephesus: “And now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” Acts 20:32. Also, when the Word has the effect of fire and a hammer in our life (Jer. 23:29), it is still the word of His grace, the perfect law of liberty, that makes us blessed if we love His judgments and are doers of the work.

When we come together for meetings and gatherings, and share God’s Word with each other, let us remember that it is the word of God’s grace we are sharing with each other. Then nobody has cause to be discouraged, even though the Word that is spoken is ever so sharp. The Word that is living, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword—which word is that? It is the word of God’s grace. How blessed it will be at meetings and gatherings when we build each other up to look, look, and look again into the word of God’s grace, the perfect law of liberty, so that we do not become forgetful hearers but doers of the work, and are blessed in our work.

Yes, let us look into the perfect law of liberty so that we, with all our hearts, can sing as it says in NS #211: “We have found the way on earth to heav’nly blessedness.”