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Scripture Reading: Isa. 7:1-2, 10-15
We are here today for one thing only, which is to learn more concerning the Lord Jesus. All of us know how perfect the Lord was when He was on this earth. In reading the four Gospels, we can see how good and perfect the outward living of the Lord was. Yet from the four Gospels, we cannot tell why the Lord had such a superb outward living. Why was He so perfect, and why was He such a Son of Man? Isaiah 7:15 gives us the reason He had such a living. Why was He able to refuse the evil and choose the good? How did He know to reject the world and choose God's will? How did He know to reject glory from men and choose glory from God? We can find out the answer to these questions from Isaiah 7. Verse 14 says, "Behold, the virgin will conceive and will bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel." We know that this refers to the Lord Jesus. Unfortunately, many people have dropped verse 15. We should know that not only does verse 14 refer to the Lord, but that verse 15 also refers to Him. Verse 15 tells us that He ate butter and honey all his life. Because He ate butter and honey all His life, He was able to choose the good things and refuse the bad things. This is why He could obey God, seek for His glory, and win His heart.
What is the significance of butter and honey? Among all the tasteful foods, butter is the richest of them all. Moreover, nothing in the world is sweeter than honey. Butter is the richest food, while honey is the sweetest food. The Lord Jesus ate the richest and sweetest food throughout His life. This is why He could reject the evil and choose the good.
The Bible tells us what the richest thing is. It is God's grace. The Bible also tells us what the sweetest thing is. It is God's love. All the time, God placed before Christ the rich grace and gave Him to taste the sweet love. This is why He could obey God and choose His will. This is why He could reject the evil and choose the good. Today we will consider a little how the Lord ate butter and honey, and how He rejected the evil and chose the good.
At the age of twelve, our Lord went with His parents to Jerusalem to keep the feast. After the feast His parents returned, but He remained in Jerusalem without their knowing about it. Later His parents returned to Jerusalem to look for Him. After three days they found Him in the temple. His mother said, "Child, why have You treated us like this? Behold, Your father and I, being greatly distressed, have been seeking You." The Lord did not answer saying, "Do you not know that I should do My Father's will?" Instead, He answered, saying, "Did you not know that I must be in the things of My Father?" The Lord had eaten the butter and the honey. At the age of twelve, the Lord knew the Father already. He had the heavenly butter and honey. He had received the richest and the sweetest and was living in God's will. If it were us, we might have said, "Go back to Nazareth to care for your carpentry and your housework. I will not go. Let me stay in the temple." Our Lord did not behave this way. He spoke, and He testified; yet He went back with them. After they returned to Nazareth, He was subject to them. The reason He could choose the difficult thing was that God had given Him the richest and sweetest taste.
Mary was a very good woman. At the same time she was a very small woman. The better a person is in the world, the smaller his head is. Often, the best persons have the smallest heads; they are the most muddled ones. In reading the four Gospels, we see that Mary bothered the Lord all the time. When the wine ran out, she told Him, "They have no wine" (John 2:3). While He was preaching to many people, she would come to speak with Him (Matt. 12:46). Yet the Bible says that "He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them." This was the Lord's choice. It was something that others would find hard to do. He could have rejected them and stayed in the temple. But He chose to return with them and to live with a simple-minded and ignorant Mary. The reason for this is that He had eaten butter and honey and was able to choose what was otherwise unbearable to men.
When John saw Jesus coming to him, he said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29). Later he said, "He who is coming after me is stronger than I." How much stronger? He said, "Whose sandals I am not worthy to carry." The Lord Jesus was so great! Yet He came to be baptized by John. If we had come and were so great, with such seniority, being preeminent from eternity and being King of the heavenly kingdom, we would have shown ourselves off. Although we may not say anything with our mouth, subconsciously we would show ourselves off as being better than others. We are born proud, and we love to show that we are greater than everyone else in front of everyone. Yet the Lord came to the Jordan and was baptized by John.
Is it an easy thing to be baptized by others? There was an old sister in Foochow who was a very nice person. She realized that she needed to be baptized, but she wanted to choose the person who would baptize her. Some brothers were well-respected in her eyes, while others were not well- respected in her eyes. She had made up her mind not to be baptized by a certain brother and designated another person to baptize her. All those who are a little better off than others in this world try to select some well-respected ones to baptize them.
Our Lord was very peculiar. He was extremely extraordinary. Even John the Baptist marveled and tried to stop Him, saying, "It is I who have need of being baptized by You, and You come to me?" What did the Lord say? He said, "Permit it for now, for it is fitting for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness." He was willing to go to the Jordan, to the death water. He chose humiliation and death. He fulfilled all righteousness. Righteousness was actually fulfilled on the cross, but it was first expressed in the death water. He chose the good and rejected the evil.
Consider how much trouble there was for the Lord to be baptized by John the Baptist. The Lord would lose all His "loftiness" before the world, the sinners, the tax collectors, and the prostitutes, for they were all baptized by John as well. When the Lord began to preach, He said the same thing that John did: "The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God has drawn near. Repent" (Mark 1:15). The audience was the same group of people as those who had heard John. A tax collector among them might say, "Was He not baptized together with us on that day? Why, He is teaching us today!" Another sinner might repeat, "Was He not baptized together with us on that day? And now He is teaching us today!" This would surely have been embarrassing and unsightly. Later, trouble did occur. When the Lord and His disciples went to live in Judea and baptized men there, some came to John saying, "He who was with you across the Jordan, of whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him" (John 3:26). They despised Him. The Lord had put Himself in a most difficult position. Yet He chose this. The reason is that behind Him there was power; He had tasted of the rich grace and the sweet love. He had eaten the butter and the honey. He had tasted the richest and sweetest. This is why He was able to humble Himself to the lowest.
If we can ever humble ourselves, and if we are ever willing to humble ourselves, it is because we have the butter, the richest grace, and the honey, the sweetest love. This is why we can humble ourselves before men. This is why we are willing to humble ourselves. The world cannot do this, but we can because we have the richest grace and the sweetest love.
When the Lord came out of the water after His baptism, the heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him like a dove. Later He was led by the Spirit to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil for forty days and nights. In the end, Satan himself appeared to Him and tempted Him saying, "If You are the Son of God, speak that these stones may become loaves of bread" (Matt. 4:3). When the stomach is hungry, it is not a sin to eat. But the Lord rejected the offer. The main goal of Satan's temptation was for the Lord to do one thing according to His own will. He wanted the Lord to resort to His own way to satisfy His hunger. But the Lord said, "It is written, Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out through the mouth of God" (v. 4). He was willing to suffer hunger, and He was able to suffer hunger. I am presenting one thing before all of you today: if we want to live like the Lord, we must daily receive in a hidden way the butter and honey from heaven. The Lord was able to turn the stones into loaves. But He did not do it because He already had the butter and honey.
Perhaps a little joy, a little glory, or a little comfort is already lying at your fingertips. Once you say something, you will have it. Or you may not need to say anything at all and you will have it. It may be within your power of reach, and you may be able to get it without exerting any effort of your own. What will you do? The Lord would not turn the stones into loaves. But we would much rather do it. We would not only turn the stones into loaves, we would wish we could turn all the stones into loaves. We wish we could do our best to serve ourselves. The reason we do this is that we have not tasted of the heavenly butter and honey. If we have the butter and honey, we would be willing to give up everything that is ours and everything that lies at our fingertips. There is only one kind of person in this world who will consecrate himself to God; it is one who knows His love. There is only one kind of person in this world who is qualified to sacrifice his own joy; it is one who knows God's grace.
The Lord was not tempted in only one thing. Satan said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, cast Yourself down." How marvelous it would be to fly down from heaven. Will not men recognize such as the Messiah? He could have received His glory with simpler ways. But He would not do this. Satan told the Lord, "All these will I give You if You will fall down and worship me." Is it not good to receive all the kingdoms of the world and their glory when all one has to do is to secretly worship him a little? The kingdoms of the world are good. But our Lord was able to give them up and decline them because behind Him there was a power. He knew God as no one else did. He was filled with the Holy Spirit as no one was. He tasted of the riches of grace and the sweetness of love as no one else did. This is why He could do it. This is why He was able to give these things up.
Peter had heard two to three times from the Lord that He must go up to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes and be killed. And on the third day He would be raised. Peter felt bad about this; he pitied the Lord and said to Him, "God be merciful to You." We may think that the Lord would have comforted Peter a little and would have told Peter, "It is good that you love Me. But I have to go to Jerusalem. I have to die." Instead, the Lord said, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men." Here the Lord made a clear choice — He chose death.
If there is anyone in this world who has ever chosen the cross and the narrow way, this person must have first tasted the riches of God's grace and the sweetness of His love. Recently, News Magazine published the martyrdom of Miss Han and Miss Nien, two Western lady missionaries in Fukien. These two British women were working in Fukien and were kidnapped by bandits. First Miss Nien's fingers were cut off by the bandits. A month ago both were killed. How could they suffer this? Both of them were old and were deep in the Lord. Before she died, Miss Han wrote a poem called "The Martyrs," in which one of the lines says, "The faces of the martyrs are the faces of angels! The hearts of the martyrs are the hearts of lions." The faces of the angels are beautiful, and the hearts of the lions are bold. How amazing it is that a martyr could write such a song of martyrdom! Before she died, she wrote to one of her friends, "God's grace is sufficient for me. The circumstance tells us that we are in danger and in difficulties. But I have never in my life been as close to God as I am now."
There was one missionary of the China Inland Mission who was kidnapped. Later he was released and some friends asked him of his experience. He said that since his regeneration, he had never experienced a day when he was as full of peace and joy as the night he heard the bullets ringing around him and the ways of escape were cut off from him.
There must be a reason and power behind the actions of martyrs. Do not think that God gives weak ones like us a poor wage and asks us to bear great burdens. Our God has given us butter and honey. By these we can sacrifice and suffer martyrdom. This is not a pretense; it is not a matter of words only. I know this as a fact, and many people know this also. The reason anyone can give something up, deny himself, or choose the difficult things is that, behind him, there is a great power. The reason the Lord Jesus was able to reject the evil and choose the good was that there was a power behind Him.
On the mount of transfiguration, the Lord manifested to God and men the highest expression of Himself as a man. The Bible never says that we will be perfect in this life. The Bible only says that God will keep us in a blameless state in this life. It never says that we will be without mistake or without blemish. But our Lord was without blemish in this life. I have spoken once about the Lord on the mount of transfiguration. Many expositors agree that the Lord could have ascended to heaven from there; God would have to receive Him if He had. Mark 4:28-29 says, "The earth bears fruit by itself: first a blade, then an ear, then full grain in the ear. But when the fruit is ripe, immediately he sends forth the sickle, because the harvest has come." The Lord was ripe already, and God had to receive Him. While He was talking to Moses and Elijah, the conversation was concerning the matter of His death, that is, what was about to take place in Jerusalem. After He descended from the mount, His heart was set towards Jerusalem. His face was towards Jerusalem. He chose death. Here we see the Lord making another choice. The reason our Lord was able to choose not to ascend to heaven from the mount of transfiguration and choose the pathway to Jerusalem was that He had tasted of the heavenly butter and honey. The reason the Lord could decline ascending to the Father from the mount and the reason He could descend instead to the cross was that He had tasted of God's grace and His love. Without God's grace and His love, He could not have suffered this way. Some children suffer for their parents, but they do so unwillingly. Some parents suffer for their children, but they do so with murmuring. Some students submit to their teachers, but it is not a voluntary action. Only Christ, who had eaten the butter and the honey and tasted the richest and the sweetest, was able to choose the difficult things, that is, the good things, willingly.
Two events were most glorious in the Lord's life: the mount of transfiguration and the entrance into Jerusalem. When He entered Jerusalem, many people welcomed Him with palm branches, shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!" This was what the Jews said. Moreover, He had many friends. Lazarus had just resurrected, and some were preparing a feast for Him. A few Gentile Greeks came to Philip and asked to see Him. They all wanted to see Jesus. Even the Lord's enemies, the Pharisees, said among themselves, "You see that you are not doing anything worthwhile; behold, the world has gone after Him" (John 12:19). At this time, the Lord could have gained anything He wanted. But when Andrew went with Philip to see the Lord, what did He say? He said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24). Here was another choice. He could have received His glory and become king at that time. But He only chose one way. What He said here deeply touches my heart. "Unless the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."
"Now is My soul troubled; and what shall I say?" (v. 27). This word shows that the Lord's heart agreed with His mouth. "Father, save Me out of this hour. But for this reason I have come to this hour." The Lord could have asked the Father to save Him out of that hour, but He knew that for this reason He had come to that hour. The Lord was again rejecting the evil and choosing the good. Formerly, when we read this portion, we did not know how He could have made such a choice. But the Bible tells us that it is because He had tasted butter and honey. He had tasted the riches of grace and the sweetness of love. This is why He could choose the good and reject the evil.
Finally, in the garden of Gethsemane, the Lord made the greatest choice! There He could have said, "I will not die." He did say, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me" (v. 39). But immediately following, He said, "Yet not as I will, but as You will." Although He saw the bitterness of the cup, He dared not choose His own will. He was not afraid to die, but He was fearful of the burden of sin. He was not afraid of the cup, but His holy nature was fearful of bearing sin. Before He put the cup and God's will together, He was still able to say, "If it is possible, let this cup pass from Me." But immediately following, He said, "Yet not as I will, but as You will." Hence, in the garden of Gethsemane, we see that He single-heartedly chose God's will and single-heartedly rejected everything that was not God's will. Finally, what did He say to Peter? He said, "The cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?" (John 18:11). I can tell you that without Gethsemane, there would have been no cross. Without the obedience of Gethsemane, there would not have been the death on the cross. Obedience came before the cross. Our Lord humbled Himself, becoming obedient even unto death, and died the death of a cross (Phil. 2:8). Many people have not taken care of the consecration at Gethsemane properly. This is why they run away when they face the cross. They do not have the power behind them. Our Lord had the butter and the honey. This is why He was able to choose the good and reject the evil.
Brothers and sisters, obedience requires power! If God has not first satisfied your heart, you will never succeed no matter how hard you outwardly try. We have to learn to contact God daily and receive the heavenly butter and honey, so that we can choose the good and reject the evil on earth. I say this to you because I have a deep feeling that the Lord is coming soon, and the kingdom is before us. From now on, temptations will increase, dangers will increase, and seductions will increase. Formerly we rejected the sins. Now we have to reject the joys. Formerly we suffered God's stripping. Now we have to willingly obey. Formerly we bore the yoke grudgingly. Now we choose the cross willingly. More and more we are seeing that, unless we know to choose the good and reject the evil, all kinds of things will come upon us. Satan will grant us more favor. The world will become kinder to us and give us many things. The circumstances will turn more to our way, and unless we reject them in a definite way, we will not be able to overcome them. How can we overcome the world? If the Lord had not chosen death Himself, it would be possible for us to not die and love our life. But let us pay attention to one thing: we have the ability to choose what is placed before us because we have the heavenly butter and honey. We have to receive daily the butter and honey from heaven, so that we will know what to choose and what to reject. We should not allow our circumstances to make the choices for us.
