That He Might Fill All Things - Part 3 — T. Austin-Sparks

Christ Filling All Things

The fragment of scripture around which our thoughts and hearts are gathered at this time is that in the fourth chapter, the letter to the Ephesians, at verse ten, He that descended is the same also that ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.

He might fill all things. And this morning we are going to place alongside of that the complementary counterpart to chapter one, verse twenty-three. He put all things in subjection under his feet, gave him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all things.

That he might fill all things. His body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all. So, we are going, as the Lord enables us this morning, to consider those two statements along four lines. Firstly, the purpose which they indicate.

Secondly, the means by which the purpose has its realization and fulfillment. Thirdly, the method by which the means its vocation. And fourthly, the obligation that rests upon those concerned. Perhaps I should say here at once, by way of getting help for myself and getting you adjusted mentally and at heart, that these gatherings are for solid and sound instruction.

We trust that our hearts will be really touched. We shall be drawn out in spirit and in worship. Things must be or should be the result of any ministry. But we are not here at this time just to try and say pleasant things, make one another feel comfortable and happy.

We are here to be instructed. And that as soundly as the Lord will do it, solid ground under our feet in our life and testimony. Having said that, I trust you will adjust to that and realize that it is work and not play for which we are together.

The Eternal Purpose Revealed in Ephesians

Now then, coming to these complimentary words that we have read, beginning with the purpose that is indicated, you have this letter to the Ephesians in your hand. So-called to the Ephesians. You can just cross that right out because it wasn't in the original letter at all.

There was a vacant space in the original letter for any name or church in Asia to be put in there. It was a circular letter. That by the way. But it's useful to have a handle by which to use this document.

And so because Ephesus was one of the places to which it went, it may have been the first place, that name has been attached to it for a very long time. Now when we take up this letter, this mighty document, we find that we are, as we read through, we are moving in the realm of sovereign purpose.

That is an unmistakable characteristic of the letter and its language. There are three phrases or words which constantly recur in this letter, indicate that when we come here, we are in the presence of something very positive and very definite as to purpose.

The first phrase is his will. His will. And you must look upon that not just as something willing, but as an object. It's a very definite thing, this will of God. It's something very concrete. You can look at the letter and move with me in it, in these connections.

Chapter 1, verse 5. Having foreordained us unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. The good pleasure of his will. Verse 9. Having made known unto us the mystery of his will.

The good pleasure of his will. The mystery of his will. Verse 11. In whom also we were made a heritage, having before ordained, according to the purpose of him who doeth all things, after the counsel of his will.

All this coming so quickly in this letter, the beginning of it, the laying of the foundation for all that is to follow, and each phrase carrying its own significance, surely does impress us with this fact.

We are here present with something, pleasure of his will, counsel of his will. Chapter 5, verse 17. Wherefore be ye not, but understand what the will of the Lord is. I say again that we, of course, daily and continually ask that we might know the Lord's will.

But in so doing, we are thinking in relation to many details of our lives. We want to know the Lord's will, whether we should go here or not go here, do this or not do this, and so on. We say we want to know the will of the Lord, and we go to the Lord about it, and ask him to show us his will, that is specific and particular in its application, quite right.

But that is not what the apostle is talking about here. Understand that this letter comprehends the Church. Individual lives come into that, but it is the Church that is in view, and it is that will, I write it with a capital W if you like, that will that is behind everything here.

Then there is that word purpose, as you know, which is characteristic of this letter. We've just read the first occurrence of it, in chapter 1, verse 11, in whom we also were made a heritage, having been foreordained according to the purpose of him who worketh all things out of the counsel of his own will, his will, the purpose of him.

Chapter 3, verse 11 again, according to the eternal purpose, the margin says the purpose of the ages, which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord. And if we want a third emphasis, we come to this word foreordained.

Chapter 1 again, verse 5, having foreordained us according to the good pleasure of his will, and verse 11 in the same chapter, in whom we were made a heritage, having been foreordained according to the purpose of him, his will, his purpose of the ages, foreordained accordingly.

If this all refers to the church, and we are of that, we certainly are moving in the realm of tremendous, sobering purpose. Something laid down, fixed, irrevocable, laid down before the foundation of the world.

God's Purpose Against Human Futility

The one thing, dear friends, from which all the Lord's people, and we might say further, for all men to be delivered, growing sense, intensifying sense in this universe, or in this creation, of futility.

Futility. There's a growing fatalism over men's hearts, because they cannot explain, they cannot get the meaning. Fatalism is a most soulless fatalism, which just says, well, if it is to be, it will be.

If it isn't to be, it will not be. That's all there is to it, so you'd just better give it up, take your hands off. It's going to be. You can't alter it. It will happen. I say that is the very heart weakness of looseness, of life certainty, indefiniteness, of insecurity, of utter aimlessness, every sense of purpose and meaning out of existence.

And that's a growing thing. It's a growing thing. Why is it? Why is it that over this world today, there is a wave of suicides that has never been known in civilized history before? Dwell upon that. You may not be acquainted with it.

Some of you from the continent know very well, especially from northern Europe, where it is just like a terrible wave. It's just because of this very thing, feeling of hopeless impotence in the presence of forces with which men cannot cope and which they cannot...

Fatalism, as we call it, is the most disintegrating thing in anyone's life or in any society. There is no cohesiveness about this, no holding together. And you know that goes right to the heart of this letter.

In him all things hold together. The answer is in him. But here we are in this letter for Christians, for the Church. We are right in the presence of something that is so much the opposite of all that, to all that.

Such a contradiction to all that. His will, concrete, definite, positive, settled and established from all eternity, which cannot be defeated and deflected or in any way frustrated in its full and final realization.

It's according to it. And all who are in this body of solid ground, isn't it? And is it not true that the greatest need is to be on solid ground in days such as these? Over against all this state of things which we have only touched upon so lightly, over against all this is God's fixed and established purpose.

Something that God has fixed and established. And in relation to which it says here, he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. The purpose then begins with his Son which God has settled in his unalterable, unchangeable, irrevocable will is that his Son shall ultimately fill all things.

This is the word of God. And of course we are confronted with whether we believe the Scripture. We read things like that. You wonder perhaps why such a thing is said. Because you all do believe. I venture to say, dear friends, that in the awful upheavals and shakings of the end times, the faith of the most devout believer will be shaken as to the Scriptures, as to the word of God.

Forgive me if that sounds a wrong thing to say. However, whether you can endorse it by your own experience or not, there's a tremendous shaking going on amongst Christians today as to whether the Bible can really be relied upon.

More or less, that is the statement. Sheer, definite, positive, because it comes right from God himself, the Eternal Comfort, full knowledge of all that would rise against it. Settled it with full knowledge of all the history of this world under the work of evil.

And the seeming contradiction, he has nevertheless laid it down from eternity. In the end, my son shall feel alongside of that, just as definitely, positively, categorically, certain body, certain elect body of power to be medium, vessel for the determined purpose concerning his son.

That elect body, known to us by various names, in general, the Church. Here in Ephesians, it is the Church which is his body. An elect. That leads us then to the second thing, the means. The Church, the elect, the body of Christ.

The Church as God's Chosen Instrument

Lay by that any further, the fact that God has foreseen this body and chosen this body before the world was in Christ. It's set down here in the scriptures as a fact. A divine fact. And you know, God's facts are very awkward things and very stubborn.

You come up against God's facts. That's an end of all argument. Here is the fact. God has done this. It's to be so in the scriptures of truth. But then, God has not only fixed it from eternity, He has given the revelation of it in time.

The Holy Spirit comes from God for this purpose of making known this very thing. To give the revelation by sovereign means. By sovereign means. Wonderfully sovereign means. Using vessels. Preserving vessels.

Anointing vessels. Enabling vessels through untold opposition and adversity and suffering and numerous difficulties. Just enabling vessels to fulfill this ministry to the Church, to the people of God, the knowledge of this revelation has come.

Dear friends, we have not measured. We probably in time shall never be able to measure all the tremendous triumph that lay in this one, one of Paul at last, at last, to give this revelation in full. That man ought to have been dead a dozen, a score, a hundred times if the devil could have...

That man ought to have been absolutely neutralized again and again not only by the evil powers, but by menace that everywhere man was marked down for his own destruction and for the entire and final discrediting of him and his ministry.

And that at last we have it on record in this fullness which we were seeing on salvation. This, this, this it looks like a little pamphlet, doesn't it? There it is, the letter to the Ephesians. What does it amount to on paper?

The greatest document that has ever entered into this creation. Of the exceeding greatness of God's power in a man's life for a ministry, for a ministry. The revelation, this eternal purpose of God for the church.

I say God has sovereignly given it to the church to make it known that there is an elect body in existence in the eternal council of God. It is the object of this dispensation particularly to be called out of the nation.

All the difficulties and problems of course arise there theologically. For God does not say who belongs to this elect. He has never yet said to you and to me directly and personally look here, I chose you.

You belong to the elect. He doesn't do that. See this big problem exists everywhere amongst people. I wonder if I am one of the foreordained and predestinated. I have reason to question whether I belong to that.

You know all the difficulty because God has not just said to individuals directly in this way that they are of the elect. But God works on this line. God works on this line. We may touch this more intimately presently but you see you are familiar with this sort of thing.

But when the Lord brings to many people the light and the revelation and the truth that is here it comes their way or they come its way by the sovereignty of God. And you watch either literally or metaphorically their mouths opening.

This is what I've been wanting. You see I didn't know what it was but I've had a great longing for something and this is it. And this is it. This just answers to something in me which has prepared me for this.

Something has been going on. Even in my unconverted days I knew that there was something more in life than I had. I was dissatisfied and I knew and I went here and I went there and I went somewhere else to find it but I couldn't find it but this is it.

This is it. Isn't that true? Well that's that's our experience and the experience of many. And God just works you see. When the revelation the light comes there's been a preparation perhaps an unconscious preparation very largely that is an unenlightened preparation in darkness in distance far away from God yes, yes, yes something drawing some hunger longing and then it's just as though the hand goes into the glove they say this is it.

The sovereignty works in relation to the elect. You have not seen it in every case you have met yet. Don't give it up. I mean you may you may think of people who yet are not like that. They're showing no signs of that.

Ah, but the end is not yet. The end is not yet. Time may come when through deep suffering history their hearts will be prepared and they'll respond. That's all we need to say about this matter of elect or ordination.

God works accordingly. But I want to put in here this it is to remind you and point out to you that in this letter that we have before us the gospel the eternal purpose are united. Very important thing to remember.

The Gospel and God's Eternal Purpose

Some people I am afraid have got a mentality well the gospel the simple gospel of our salvation is one thing. All this is. Indeed we have known that saying all right you can have all your your deep teaching if you like.

You can have all that sort of thing if it appeals to you. We are satisfied with the simple gospel. And Lord have mercy upon such people. Here you have the profoundest document as I have said that has ever been given from God to man.

And not as two different and separate things but as joined right in the gospel and the eternal purpose. Look at the word gospel. And there is some Paul links it into himself. This ministry that was given to him this full rich profound ministry he calls his gospel.

He was chosen for this gospel. Oh if only our gospel were richer and fuller we would have much better results. But don't divide these things. Remember this is the gospel. What is it? It's the good news.

In him for ordained for the foundation heritage need of linking not leaving salvation as something in itself something smaller than it really is but linking purpose with self. And I don't think we shall get very far with the kind of Christians that will be until we've attended to that witness remedied it and brought in relation to salvation the full purpose of God himself.

The Church as the Fullness of Christ

Come next then thirdly to the method the purpose the means the church the elect then the method. Let us remind ourselves again that the apostle is particularly occupied with the church in this message.

It runs throughout and then it emerges in one sublime definition which he calls this mystery history. And you must look upon familiar words in the light of the whole of the letter the whole revelation chapter five chapter five verse twenty-two and onward.

Wives in subjection unto your own husband as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ also is the head of the church himself the saviour of the body but as the church is subject to Christ so let the wives also be to their husbands in everything.

Husbands love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself up for it that he might sanctify it having cleansed it by the washing of the water with the wine that he might present the church to himself a glorious church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing but that it should be holy and without blemish even so for husbands also to love their own wives as their own bodies.

For husbands also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his own wife loveth himself. No man ever hated his own flesh nourish it cherisheth it even as Christ also the church might he be even as you because we are members of his body.

For this cause shall a man leave his father. His mother shall plead to his wife. The twain shall become one flesh. Three is great. But I speak in regard to Christ and the church. I say that is the sublime issue to which the apostle leads to gather up everything that is in this letter.

Now we do not know all that was in the mental background of the apostle. We know that he had a very full and deep thorough knowledge of the old testament which was his only bible and that it was ever with him either in his full consciousness or in his subconsciousness.

We do not know but the Holy Spirit knew whether behind what was being written here was an old testament. Whether it was so or not come to think about it. It does seem that it is so old testament story gathered into one little old testament book of Esther the book of Esther.

Esther as an Illustration of the Church's Vocation

Now whether what I'm going to say is the right interpretation to put upon that book or not. I'm not very concerned about that at the moment because I believe that it does serve as a very good illustration of what we are now considering that is the method by which this means the church the body is to fulfill its eternal vocation of bringing the fullness of Christ into expression the book of Esther.

I hope you remember the story. It's not necessary for me to take you through it thoroughly. It opens with a picture of the happenings of the great Medo-Persian kingdom and palace with Ahasuerus there in all his glory having a banquet lasting for a long time for all the rulers the princes the governors of his great domain from India to Ethiopia.

That's no small thing gathering all these representatives and having this wonderful time feasting reveling displaying of his glory. And then when that is over that is over gathering his immediately intimate company of counselors for seven days of another feast.

And all this pageantry has been going on and there is in its full swing. Ahasuerus gives commandment to his eunuchs to go and bring in the queen the queen Veshti who said it was beautiful and he wanted to display her beauty to those who were assembled a feast here I must put in a parenthesis something on the natural ground.

I have a prejudice in favor of Veshti. I have a great deal of sympathy with Veshti but that has just to be said by the way in the natural realm there is a spiritual side to this which makes it necessary for us to let go of our partialities and our prejudice.

Veshti refuses to come in to obey the king's command fiercely angry and appeals to his counselors. What does the law say in a case like this. You know their answer. They say well it's not only to the king that she has done mischief.

All our wives will begin to behave like that if you let her out. Well of course that's persuasive. The result stripped Veshti of her royal right to cut her off to set her aside. No longer. There's a vacancy for how long.

And that must be filled if the king is to have what he must have there the story opens concerning Esther which you are familiar way there Esther a captive exile an alien to that kingdom. She is there in his harem.

What is the detail. Don't know but somehow or other the sovereignty is at work. The sovereignty of that throne is at work. And Esther is known is focused upon is chosen is chosen is marked off for this high position.

All this vacancy is given everything to furnish her adorn her and make her suitable for that position clothed with royal power and enriched with royal gems and called redeemed from her exile from her captivity and brought in as one of we are not told of any marriage ceremony.

But undoubtedly there was something by which she had to commit herself to a covenant of loyalty of devotion of faithfulness to be what best she had refused to be alive only for the king not for herself.

Many more details. We are not moving on to the great and glorious end of all this in the sovereignty for the release and the redemption of a race. But it does not require a very great deal of insight to see a spiritual meaning.

In all this seems to me to have a double application. God chose man at the beginning for this very thing. Adam was created for this very thing and brought into that glorious association with God at the beginning.

But then he did this very thing not to be for God but for himself. Not to be for the glory of God but to retain the glory as best for himself for his love for repudiation. And that story is written in history that is not in the book of Esther that period in which Vashti is in the reign of vanity life purpose gone all the meaning of life gone.

Only imagine what Vashti was thinking and feeling after this. As things developed and Esther came into her sleep perhaps remorse many other emotions. The fact is the reign of vanity meaninglessness in life.

All the meaning has gone out of her. Isn't that the human race? In Adam called given given potentially dominion what is man. And then taking it into his own hands and refusing to hold it only for God's glory for himself set aside and this long long drawn out period of meaninglessness in the human race that's one application.

But what about Israel? Israel chosen called to the kingdom called in the Old Testament the wife of Jehovah called to that high position taking it all all to himself and not holding it for God. The great the great challenge of the coming of God in the flesh into this world had this very issue bound up with it.

Will Israel hold everything for God. Or will Israel hold everything for themselves. Well we know what happened. No away with him. We will not have this holding everything for our own glory set aside. And this long two thousand years of vanity will strike the dashed he cut off and set aside.

Sad sad story. Is it not the race in Adam failed. God had this elect somewhere quietly heaven from eternity right there in his eternal knowledge foreknowledge and counsel. She was there when Israel failed.

God in this manner he brought in the church to take her place. And all the vanity of Israel is reversed in the same now then look what does this all mean. An interpretation if only by way of illustration of this letter to the Ephesians.

So forth chosen that's the Esther instrument and vessel chosen when other failed. The element of sovereignty is at work bringing in this vessel foreknown foreseen and foreordained knowing it choosing it and then blessed.

Be God calling calling to himself the vessel redeeming from vanity redeeming from alienation redeeming from exile and captivity. That's the story of the church. Isn't it releasing from the terrible embargo of the rejected world of the rejected race the rejected Gentiles called what a word that is the New Testament called redeemed.

And here then Wright rushes in at that point through the gap which we we present. Is this word grace in this letter. This word grace thirteen times the apostle uses that word in this letter grace that we should be to the glory of his grace.

His grace. Well isn't that it. Who was she. What was she. Where was she. And now to the next place in the kingdom adorned with all his glory glory of his grace something which to our hearts is still more precious.

She was there. What had she. Where she was. But out of the royal store there was brought for her everything required which she did not have not one fragment of which she had. There was brought everything to make her suitable for that most august of the most high clothed provided with everything to make her not an obstacle.

What a story of grace that is dear friend. What a lot comes in at that point. What is this church in nature. Or come to ourselves. What are we in nature. Well if we know anything about ourselves at all we are prepared to say anything and everything but suitable for his presence.

No hope no chance no possibility whatever of ours standing in his presence as we are in ourselves exile in captivity far off for the garments of salvation the robe of righteousness and lavishes upon us.

Oh wonder this word riches. Have you traced it through this letter riches. I would like to give you passages again and again in this letter riches according to the riches of his grace. The riches of his grace to me as the apostle was given this ministry to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ.

Esther brought him adorned with all that for his presence and for his service that he might present the church unto himself a glorious church not having spot or wrinkle or any such. That's the end of the story.

The Marriage Relationship of Christ and the Church

The method. What is the method by which the church will fulfill this high vocation. The marriage relationship with the Lord. That's the method with all that that means. That's Ephesians 5 22. To the end.

The marriage relationship. I speak marriage relationship. This spiritual marriage. More wonderful the more you think about it. Married to the Lord joined to the Lord one spirit. In the natural and the flesh these twain become one flesh.

But in the spiritual these twain become one spirit joined to the Lord one spirit one flesh one body one life. There is no figure in all creation set forth oneness identity in the thought of God more than the marriage relationship when it is according to God's law part and part and part.

That's how God intended to be. More or less it's like that in humanity. But some more one cannot and does not live without the other. Sometimes we open our morning paper and look down the list of the departed and we see just two notices.

The woman has gone and within a few days the man has come. That's I don't say how it ought to be but that's the ideal. I mean there is something there. Isn't it in that when it's according to heaven I speak of Christ in that church.

I ask you dear friends can you live without Christ. He cannot live without you. It's stated here the church which is his body the fullness of him and the literal is the fulfillment of him. The fulfillment for his own fulfillment.

This religion the marriage relationship. That's the method. Oh what a lot we ought to say about it. But our time for the moment is gone. We just come to the last thing the obligation. Well the obligation.

Walking Worthily of the Calling

If this is if this is God's revelation if it is this is not some beautiful story some spiritually or religiously romantic story. If this is spiritual truth. And oh may God lift it right out of the realm of teaching mere teaching and doctrine I'm told so often.

Oh it's only words. It's only teaching. You're simply spending your time giving a lot of teaching. God help me God help you. That's all that matters. Dear friends if this is God's truth there is an obligation surely resting upon it surely resting upon this.

I beseech you cataphract. I beseech you therefore walk wildly perfectly cool in all lowliness of bearing one another in mind. The obligation if this is more than a beautiful picture if this is something that really comes to us as God's word to us today in this time it puts us under a big obligation as to our demeanour and our conduct.

Walk worthily in all meekness lowliness. That's the demeanour the sort of people we ought to be called to such by such a call. Oh no no no there's no room here for conceit or spiritual pride. No room for us to take the glory to ourselves and hold it to ourselves.

That's the way of bashfully in all lowliness and meekness. God's church and God's people ought to be like that and conduct. And here every relationship in this life is lifted by this concept of marriage relationship with the Lord.

Why hasn't it? That must come up onto a higher level, mustn't it? If it's a reflection of Christ in the church children parents parents children servants masters masters servants every relationship is touched by this great concept.

What the church is. It's high noble honourable position. It's wonderful dignity as before God. That dignity ought to come down to our behaviour our conduct our relationship. We're talking in the court not of a hazardous but a greater court of heaven and we have a word we have a word.

And it's in the New Testament courtesy. Be courteous, says the Lord. Be courteous. That's surely a very low level courtesy. Good manners proper behaviour etiquette that comes into this in the court of heaven.

Good manners amongst those who make up this bride courtesy. I fear, dear friends, that we often fail in common courtesy very often. There are better manners amongst the people of the world than there are amongst Christians.

That's a terrible thing to say. Our conduct in every relationship of life must be touched by this high. It is not only a dream and a teaching but stated as a fact. I speak of Christ as the church even as even as even as husband, wife servants, masters, masters, servants, children, parents families even as Christ and the church it's challenging.

It's practical. What are you going to do about that? What are we going to do about that? Are we going to say this now right away. Well I determine that from this moment from this moment by the grace of God I will live up to that level of my holy sublime calling by the grace of God.

I will adjust to this. I will do something about it. I will watch my behavior. I will be careful of myself. I will keep a guard upon how I react it's an obligation. I this see walk with you the Lord.