REFORMED WITNESS
Volume IX, May 2001, Number 5
Spiritual Sensitiveness
A Reformed Witness Hour radio sermon by Rev. H. Hoeksema
In Philippians 1:9 & 10 the apostle prays that the church in general and the believers individually may be and more and more become spiritually sensitive. I quote: "And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ."
How sad a sign it is when the church is no longer spiritually keen and sensitive to embrace that which is good, to react against all the allurements of evil. When they that profess to be of Christ, that hear testimony that they are washed by the blood of Jesus and sanctified by His Spirit, that they are delivered from the law of sin and death by the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, appear to grow more gradually obtuse, slower to react against the temptations of the world, gradually to reveal a keener appetite for the things that are carnal and show less desire for the things of the Spirit, this is a bad sign indeed. It means that the church gradually becomes more and more worldly-minded. What was formerly condemned as being of darkness now meets with approval. What was formerly repulsive to the soul of God's child now is eagerly sought. More and more the church becomes accustomed to carnal speech, to carnal fashions, to carnal habits and carnal pleasures. And in proportion as her love of the world and the things that are therein increases, her desire for the things of the kingdom of God grows weaker, till at last she appears to be hopelessly swallowed up in darkness.
The prayer of the apostle Paul which I just quoted points in the very opposite direction. Believers must become quicker to discern, must become spiritually more keen to detect the difference between the light and darkness, must become more and more ready to abhor that which is evil and to cling with all their heart to that which is good. In other words, they must increase in spiritual sensitiveness.
For this the apostle prays. This is uppermost in his mind and heart, and becomes the subject of his ardent prayer.
Notice that the apostle prays that the church may increase in knowledge and in all judgment. When the apostle here speaks of knowledge, the reference is not to a natural knowledge of natural things; but to spiritual knowledge, to the knowledge of God in Christ Jesus of His grace and salvation, of the riches of His manifold mercies and loving kindness, of His will and purpose, His precepts and ways, of the purpose whereunto they have been called out of darkness into His marvelous light. In the knowledge of those spiritual things, of the things of the kingdom of God and of His covenant, believers must grow. Neither is the apostle thinking of and praying for a natural knowledge of these spiritual riches. This also is possible. One can have a head full of learning, so that he is intellectually founded in the things of the Word of God. He may be even able to speak of the things of God and of His eternal purpose to the instruction of others; yet his heart is far from the Lord. He does not taste that the Lord is gracious. He is a stranger to the abundant mercies of salvation. He knows all about the Lord Jesus Christ, yet he does not know Him. That the apostle does not pray for this natural knowledge of spiritual things is evident: for he speaks of a knowledge of love. He prays that their love may more and more abound, overflow, in knowledge. He desires for the congregation a spiritual knowledge, the knowledge of a reborn heart, in which the love of God in Christ Jesus has been poured forth and spread abroad, of a heart that knows no greater delight than to keep the commandments of our God, to respond to that marvelous love that has been revealed unto it.
To this growth in knowledge is very closely related that spiritual judgment of which the apostle speaks in the text. When he speaks of judgment, he does not refer to a mere discernment of reason, but to a spiritual power of immediate recognition, the recognition and discernment of love, to know at all times what is pleasing to the God of our salvation. The apostle prays for the church and for the believers that their love may more and more so abound that they may be acutely sensitive to the horror of sin, to the corruption of the world, and to the temptations of the devil on the one hand; and to the joy of walking in the way of God's commandments and of doing that which is pleasing to Him Who called them out of darkness into His marvelous light.
This growth in spiritual knowledge and judgment, this increase in spiritual keenness and sensitiveness, is necessary for the Christian in the world. For only then will he approve the things that are excellent, and disapprove of the things that are corrupt. He will then spontaneously taste the things that are excellent, that is, those things that are distinct and differ from all other things by their goodness. They are distinct because of their taste of truth and love, of righteousness and holiness, of purity and mercy, of meekness and lowliness, of humility and kindness. And they have this taste in distinction from all the things of darkness, of the lie, of corruption and iniquity, of pride and self-exaltation, of hatred and enmity and malice and strife and envy, of the things that taste of death. They are excellent because they are of the spirit of God in Christ, and that Spirit is a Spirit of light, and there is no darkness in Him at all. These things the believers must approve. Their spiritual taste must be so developed that they desire them, relish them, yearn for them only, and abhor all the vile things of darkness and corruption. By nature we are different, for we are darkness and love the things of darkness. We have a taste for the things that are corrupt. But by grace we receive in principle a new taste. In principle the things of sin are now repulsive to our taste, and the things of righteousness and holiness we relish. In that spiritual taste for the things that are excellent the believers must grow. They must become more and more keenly sensitive, so that they spontaneously discern and approve of them in distinction from the things of darkness and corruption.
But the prayer of the apostle for the church and for believers is not yet finished. He prays that their love may abound in knowledge and judgment and spiritual sensitiveness to approve the things that are excellent, in order that they may be sincere and may be without offense until the day of Christ. For indeed, to be acutely sensitive and spiritually keen-edged must and will reveal itself in a life of sanctification, in a walk as children of light in the midst of the world. This is the purpose of grace. For He hath called us out of darkness into His marvelous light in order that we might show forth His praises. If we are spiritually dull, if we do not grow, in all spiritual knowledge and judgment, so that we are quick to discern between light and darkness and are ready to approve the former and abhor the latter, we will not and cannot be sincere and without offense in the midst of the world. For in this world we are surrounded by many dangers and temptations. The devil, the world, and our own sinful flesh offer a thousand things to our taste that are not excellent, but corrupt. Frequently they are daintily prepared. The arch-liar is a cunning deceiver, and knows how to give to his corrupt things the odor of enticing deliciousness that appeals to the pride of life, to the lust of the flesh, the desires of our sinful heart. And unless our love abounds in all knowledge and ready discernment, we will enter folly's temple and feast with their guests at the banquet she prepared. But the keener we grow the better we are armed against all these surrounding temptations, and the more we will be sincere and without offense in the midst of the world until the day of Christ.
In our English language the term sincere has the signification of unmixed, pure. And in the original Greek a word is used that points to a walk that can stand the true and severe judgment of the light, of the will of God, of God Himself. To be without offense implies that the direction of your whole life is such that no one strikes against you and stumbles over you because you are never found in ways you were not expected to walk as a child of light: pure, unmixed, without offense in the word of your mouth, in the look of your eye, in the inclination of your ear, in the movement of your hand, in the direction of your feet; sincere and without offense, wholly consecrated to the will of Him that called you in your personal and individual walk and life and in all the many and manifold relationships of life in the midst of the world. In your joys and pleasure, in your sorrows and griefs, in your friendships and fellowships, in your associations and confederations, in your private and in your public life before the church before the world, whether you sit in the house or walk by the home and in the shop, always and everywhere let your conversation and walk be such that you may be sincere and without offense in the midst of the world. For God's people must dwell alone. They must be to the praise of the glory of God's grace in the midst of a world of darkness.
Significantly the apostle adds: till the day of Christ. Till the day of Christ the believers must be in the world. And in that world they must be without offense and sincere, as children of light in the midst of darkness. For the day of Christ is coming. It is the day that is all of Christ. It is the day of His full and glorious revelation, the revelation of His complete victory. It is the day when all that is of darkness, of sin and corruption and death, shall be put down and abolished forever. It is the day when only the things that are of Him, the things of light and righteousness, the things of God and His eternal glory, the things of His covenant and His everlasting kingdom, shall remain and abide forever. Until that day the believers must be in the world. Until that day they are called in the midst of the world to stand for the cause of the Son of God, to fight the good fight, to wage the warfare of God. Until that day they must partake of the sufferings of Christ. For it is given them of grace not only to believe in Christ, but also to suffer with Him. For that reason they must continually grow in the grace of spiritual knowledge and judgment and the grace of spiritual sensitiveness, that they may approve the things that are excellent, and thus may be sincere and without offense in the midst of the world, until the day of Christ. That day may indeed also spur us on in the battle. For when that day arrives, we shall be completely, perfectly, sincere, pure even as He is pure forever and ever. This hope we have in Him. Therefore, the day of Christ is the object of our deepest longing and yearning. In that hope we shall make the prayer of the apostle our own, that we may purify ourselves even as He is pure, and be sincere and without offense in the midst of the world until the day of Christ.
All this is of course impossible without the principle of the love of God in our hearts. That love is the deepest spiritual source from which all the rest must spring as from a fountain. Therefore, the apostle writes, "And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment." Love is the spiritual principle and root from which the knowledge and judgment, the spiritual discernment and keen sensitiveness to approve the things that are excellent so that we may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, must grow and develop. The existence of that spiritual principle of love wrought in our hearts, in the moment of regeneration by the Spirit of God, is presupposed. Without it neither knowledge nor judgment, neither the tasting nor the approving of the things that are excellent, neither sincerity nor inoffensiveness in the midst of the world are possible or conceivable. Without that principle of love knowledge is mere intellectualism, judgment a mere natural keenness, approval of the things that are excellent nothing but a signing of our own condemnation. For we do not perform the things that we approve, and all our attempted sincerity is by nature horrible hypocrisy.
Love; therefore, is the deepest and ultimate principle. For love is of God. It is the bond of perfectness. It is the life of God that has been revealed in Christ Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, that is in the bosom of the Father. God loves Himself. And He is love in Himself. But from eternity He has willed to love a people for His own name's sake, a people whom He has given to Christ, that He might redeem them, sanctify them, and perfect them until they shall dwell in the love of God in His tabernacle forevermore. That love of God has been most gloriously revealed to us in the accursed tree of Calvary, where God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them. That love of God, revealed in the cross, was poured out in our hearts by the Spirit which He has given us, so that we taste that He loves us. And by that same Spirit His love to us finds response in our hearts by our love to Him. To love Him is to love the light. The love of God in Christ Jesus, poured forth, spread abroad in our hearts, is the fountain and spiritual principle of all knowledge and discernment and acute sensitiveness to approve the things that are excellent.
May this prayer, then, by the grace of God be constantly in our hearts and upon our lips. For of the grace of that abounding love we have need. And that prayer will certainly be heard. The fruit of that prayer will be that love abounds, overflows, as a living fountain springs up into our hearts and minds, controls our thinking and willing, our inmost desires and all our aspirations. Then we shall more and more abhor sin and corruption and the world, even the sin and corruption that is still within us, and approve the things that are excellent. In the day of Christ love shall be perfected. We shall walk in the light forever, shall know as we are known, and see Him face to face. That will be glory indeed!
Rev. H. Hoeksema
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