| The Christian Life | July 1940 |
The Secret of True Happiness
“Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.”—Philippians 2:4
TO seek the well-being and blessing of others, even at the cost of self-sacrifice, is one of the secrets of true Christian happiness. Christian happiness, therefore, does not depend upon the abundance of material things which one possesses; but rather upon the manner in which one uses whatever possessions he may have for the blessing of others. We know that our Heavenly Father is rich, and therefore is able to bless us with material wealth, but He has not promised to do this for the Christian. God has set before the followers of the Master the opportunity of sacrificing everything as He may direct, in the interests of others. Jesus explained the terms of discipleship to the rich young nobleman saying, “Go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.”—Matt. 19:21; Mark 10:21; Luke 18:22
Selfish human reasoning would conclude that since our Heavenly Father is exceedingly rich, that naturally He would shower His children with multitudinous earthly blessings. This indeed was His program for the obedient ones of the nation of Israel, as the Scriptures show. The promise to them was, that if faithful He would bless them in basket and in store. This, also, is God’s program for all humanity under the Kingdom arrangements of the next age. The earth and its blessings were created for the blessing of man, and man in his creation was made to enjoy these material good things.
When God created Adam He presented him with a real garden spot in Eden. In this garden, the account assures us, God placed everything that was “pleasant to the sight, and good for food.” (Gen. 2:8,9) God gave man dominion over the animals, the fish and the fowl, and showered him with blessings the richness of which our imperfect minds today can hardly conceive. There was no sickness, sorrow, nor tears. Moreover, the “First Lady” of the land was given to Adam as a helpmeet, and what a wonderfully congenial companion Eve must have been.
Abraham, we are told, was a “friend of God.” (II Chron. 20:7; Isa. 41:8; Jas. 2:23) The record tells us that God blessed him with material riches. He blessed him also with a wonderful promise, a promise which was rich in meaning for Abraham as well as containing a hope for the blessing of all mankind. Isaac was blessed materially. Jacob, too, had great possessions in the land of Goshen, because he was God’s friend. At Jacob’s death, the Israelites in turn became God’s favorites upon the earth and upon these He showered material blessings proportionate to their measure of obedience to His law.
GOSPEL AGE AN AGE OF FAITH
But with the beginning of the Gospel Age—the Faith Age—a new order was ushered in for God’s people. In this age the chief blessings of God’s people are of a spiritual nature. This new order was inaugurated by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Since then the servants of God have been begotten to a new hope of life on the basis of their agreement to sacrifice all their earthly interests. Should we expect, then, that these would have great earthly possessions? Indeed no, nor has God promised that they always shall be abundantly provided for in matters of food, clothing and shelter. What God has promised in the way of material blessings to these spirit-begotten children of this age is simply that their bread and water shall be sure.—Isa. 33:16
Yes, just “bread and water”—the only things of an earthly nature that are promised to those who lay down their lives in God’s service during this age. And, even this bread and water might not necessarily mean literal bread and water. It may, and probably does, specially apply to spiritual sustenance. This does not mean that God is less able to provide material blessings for His people now than in previous ages. It is merely that the saints of this age have the privilege of co-operating in a different phase of the Divine plan, a phase which calls for sacrifice—a sacrifice calling for the “filling up of that which is left behind of the sufferings of Christ.” Many who profess to be followers of the Master seem to lose sight of the fact that for the most part the steps which the Master took were those of self-sacrifice which led Him finally into death. But such are the steps of the narrow way, and those who have agreed to walk in them should not look for divine favor along the lines of material blessings of any kind. Willingness, on the other hand, to sacrifice earthly blessings is the manner in which we now demonstrate our worthiness to live and reign with Christ during the thousand years of His Kingdom period.
THINGS GOD HAS PROMISED
God has indicated, however, that there are certain experiences which are sure to come to the faithful of this age. He has made it clear, for example, that “in the world ye shall have tribulation.” (John 16:33) This is sure for every one of us if we are faithful to our calling—“if the world hate you, ye know that it hated Me before it hated you,” Jesus said. (John 15:18) Sacrifice and suffering, compensated for by the joys of faith and hope, is God’s program for His children in this age. The joys of faith and hope, however, far outweigh all the advantages of material prosperity.
While God has invited us to sacrifice and suffer according to the flesh, He has, on the other hand, promised grace and strength to help in every time of need. He has promised to be with us in our suffering, to comfort and to sustain us. He has promised that He will not permit us to be tested above that which we are able to bear. He has promised that He will cause all things to work together for our ultimate good, as new creatures in Christ Jesus. Indeed, He has given us abundant assurances that He will care for all our interests as they pertain to the life of sacrifice now and to the hope of glory in the future. These spiritual blessings enjoyed by the fully consecrated seem unreal and visionary to the natural man. Concerning this the apostle says:
“For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so, the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Spirit teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”—I Cor. 2:11-14
BATTLE BETWEEN THE FLESH AND THE SPIRIT
There is a constant battle between the spiritual and the natural. For that reason we will have trials down to the very end of the way. God created man, as a naturally minded being, and we, being the descendants of our first parents, have inherited this natural minded condition. But the terms of the narrow way call for sacrifice of the natural, in order that a change of nature from human to spiritual may take place: Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, hence there is no other way to victory in Christ Jesus, and final exaltation with Him upon His throne, except that in which all earthly interests will be wholly given over, even unto death.
Let us make no mistake about this. The apostle says, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, … Set your affection [margin, mind] on things above, not on things on the earth.” (Col. 3:1,2) It is not enough that we set our affection on things above at the beginning of the Christian life. We will need to continue resetting our affection upon spiritual things. These spiritual “setting up” exorcises will be found a most necessary prerequisite to true Christian attainment and victory.
Again the apostle declares, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: … he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Gal. 6:7,8) Sowing to the flesh does not, as some may suppose, necessarily involve the practice of degenerate vices. Sowing to the flesh would be catering to any of the legitimate natural desires of the flesh and permitting those desires to divert us from the course of sacrifice. Sowing to the spirit, on the other hand, implies the daily yielding up of the flesh and its interests in self-sacrifice to God, in ways directed by Him for the blessing of others.
Following up his argument on the matter of sowing to the spirit, the apostle adds, “Be not weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Gal. 6:9) In other words, sowing to the spirit is a matter of doing well—not doing for ourselves, but for others. This is made clear by the apostle’s concluding remarks, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”—Gal. 6:10
PREPARED FOR FUTURE WORK
The Heavenly Father is now selecting a class to be kings and instructors in the Kingdom. The objective of the Kingdom arrangement is the reconciliation of fallen man to God. This reconciliation will be effected upon the basis of man’s return to the principles of love which motivate Jehovah Himself. Obviously, therefore, those who are to co-operate in the accomplishing of this divine objective with respect to mankind, must, themselves, fully demonstrate their hearty approval and acquiescence in all of the divine arrangements.
For six thousand years mankind has been seeking the goal of happiness along the lines of selfishness: They have mistakenly supposed that true happiness could be realized by the possession of wealth at the expense of others. This reign of selfishness is now revealing a terrible fruitage in the present-day collapse of a civilization that was based upon it.
Meanwhile, God has been preparing to inaugurate love as a ruling principle in the affairs of men. With Him, it is not just a theory. He was the first to give a practical demonstration of the operation of love in that He gave His own Son to be man’s Redeemer. It was because God so loved the world that He thus gave up the dearest treasure of His heart in order that man might be blessed.
Jesus fell in line with this program of love, by Himself further demonstrating its advantages by sacrificing all that He had in the interests of others. And now the church, invited to be joint heirs with Christ in the Kingdom, are called to similarly sacrifice all that they have for the blessing of others. They are invited to lay down their lives for the brethren, and also to be baptized into the death of Christ, with the assurance that this death-baptism is on behalf of the dead world.
Thus it is that the members of the church, in sacrificing earthly advantages and material good things, are but falling in line with the divine arrangement through which all mankind are ultimately to be blessed. From this standpoint we can see that there can be no more convincing evidence of true Godlikeness and Christlikeness in the Christian than his burning zeal to sacrifice everything to the glory of God for the blessing of others.
As already noted, Jesus, Himself, was a perfect example in all of this. He made the supreme sacrifice! He kept on sacrificing, and finally sacrificed the last thing He possessed, which was His life. We are asked to do likewise. We are admonished to follow in His steps. We, of course, in comparison to Jesus, have very little to sacrifice. To begin with, Jesus was very rich, but for our sakes and the sake of the world became poor; but we are poor to begin with. Jesus was perfect—“holy, harmless, undefiled and separate from sinners.” But we are imperfect. Our righteousness is but as “filthy rags.” Jesus, being perfect and having kept God’s perfect law, was entitled to life. We, on the other hand, are condemned to death. Thus seen, anything that we have of value is merely what the Lord has provided for us. Our life, our righteousness, is all from Him. This means that when we present our bodies a living sacrifice they are acceptable only through Christ Jesus.
SPIRITUAL RICHES
But if we are truly sacrificing all earthly hopes and prospects as well as our earthly possessions of time, talent, and substance, what riches we enjoy by faith! How wondrous is our vision of the future inheritance with Christ Jesus! Even now we have a foretaste of this future glory divine. Concerning this, the apostle says, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him; the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.”—Eph. 1:17,18
We cannot fully appreciate the value of the riches of faith, hope, joy, peace, etc., that are ours through the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. They are too wonderful to adequately describe or fully appreciate, but surely we would not exchange them for all the wealth of the world. Yes, the blessings of God that come to us through His Truth are more precious than anything the world can offer.
What, then, is the true secret of Christian happiness? The apostle gives us this secret in our text. It is to be found in minding the things of others. Not by meddling in other people’s affairs, but by self-sacrificing alertness, being ready to extend the blessings of the Truth to all who may have a hearing ear. In the context the apostle admonishes the Philippian church to be “like-minded” as himself—that is, ever watchful and willing, no matter what the cost may be, to serve others. It is this same apostle that quotes Jesus as saying, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”—Acts 20:35
Yes, God wants us to look on the things of others. Jesus did this, and, the apostle says, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 2:5) While Jesus was laying down His life for others, He was inspired, the Apostle Paul tells us, by the “joy that was set before Him,” and this enabled Him to endure the cross and despise the shame which was heaped upon Him.—Heb. 12:2
Jesus had come to save the lost world, to rescue the perishing, and He was happy to serve sacrificially, and looked forward to serving in glory. His outlook, therefore, was entirely an unselfish one. It was because of this that He was able to leave with His church such a rich heritage of joy and peace. There is no other joy, no other peace, no other satisfaction quite so deep and genuine, as that which is derived from self-sacrificing service for others; especially when that service is directed by the will of God as it was in the case of Jesus. Let us, therefore, faithfully follow in the Master’s footsteps.
Further on in the chapter from which our text is taken, Paul explains to the saints at Philippi that if they continued faithfully to hold forth the word of life as he had admonished them to do, it would mean that in the day of Christ, when he, the Apostle Paul, received his own reward of glory, honor and immortality, he would also be able to realize that the Lord had manifested His blessing upon his earthly ministry. This is a remarkable statement by the apostle. He thereby places so much importance upon the matter of Christians being faithful in witnessing to the Truth, that he felt that if one small church, such as that at Philippi, had caught the spirit of his teachings sufficiently to inspire them with continued faithfulness along this line, he would feel that all of his earthly ministry had been well worthwhile.
The prophet declares that “There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.” (Prov. 11:24) Let us, dear brethren, make no mistake about this. If we are feeling poor spiritually; if we have lost the joy which once was ours, if we wonder what has happened to the “good old days” when we were all happy together in the Lord and in the Truth, let us see if the trouble may not be in the fact that we are holding back our sacrifice.
The Prophet Malachi made a statement to natural Israel in which is explained the reason for their lack of blessings in the Lord. This statement applies equally well in principle to the church today. The prophet said, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, … and prove Me herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”—Mal. 3:10
The tithing system of natural Israel called for a tenth of all their earthly possessions. Spiritual tithing in this age calls, not for a tenth but for all. All that we are and would otherwise hope for as humans we gave up in consecration, when we entered into a covenant with the Lord by sacrifice. Are we holding anything back? If so, we are losing many of the rich blessings of the Lord.
Let us then resolve anew that we will bring all the tithes into the storehouse; that is to say, Let us look well to the terms of our consecration and make sure that we are actually carrying out what we agreed to do when we said to the Lord, here I bring to Thee my all. If thus, in sincerity and genuineness, we are demonstrating the sincerity of our consecration, there will be no question about the rich joys of faith that will flood into our lives as day by day we follow along in the footsteps of Jesus even unto death.