We have seen four cases from the New Testament concerning service. The first case was the conceiving and bringing forth of Christ. The second case was that of finding Christ. The third case was the testifying for Christ, and the fourth case was following Christ. All of these cases have illustrated clearly, adequately, and completely that the New Testament service is outside of religion. Some may say that this is simply our way to interpret these four cases; therefore, we do need confirmation from the Lord’s own teaching. In this chapter we will see the clear and plain word of the Lord Jesus. By this we will see that the way we have interpreted these four cases is soundly confirmed by the Lord’s teaching.
In the above passages, there are four cases that reveal something of the Lord’s teaching concerning the New Testament service. The first case is related to John the Baptist. “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He has a demon. The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold, a gluttonous man and a wine drinker, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. And wisdom has been justified by her works” (Matt. 11:18-19).
John came neither eating nor drinking. This does not mean that John did not eat anything. We are told that he ate strange things such as locusts and wild honey. What the Lord meant is that John did not come eating and drinking in the cultural way. He did not eat in the way that people were accustomed to; he did not come eating according to tradition. Surely he did a lot of drinking, but he did not drink any drink in the way of culture. In other words, in his eating and drinking there was no culture, no civilization, and no tradition; he did not eat and drink according to man’s system or culture.
What did people say about John? They thought that he had lost his mind, and they said that he had a demon, that he was demon-possessed. By looking at the way he ate, drank, and lived, they thought that he had lost his mind and that he was possessed by a demon.
Then Jesus said that the Son of Man came eating and drinking. This was also not normal in the eyes of the people because He was eating and drinking more than they thought He should. He was feasting with the publicans and the sinners. Therefore, they said that He was a gluttonous man and a wine drinker. John was at one extreme, and Jesus was at the other. Which one was right? Is it right to eat contrary to human culture, or is it right to feast even with the sinners?
We may think that it would be better to compromise a little and to be somewhere in the middle, not at either extreme. However, let me say a word at this point. In the Lord’s salvation, there is no compromise. Eventually, you will be either in the New Jerusalem or outside of it. If there is no compromise, then what should we do? Should we follow John or Jesus? The Lord Jesus said nothing about following one or the other in this matter. In this aspect, there are no rules for living. What He said is that wisdom has been justified by her works, or justified by her children.
We need to be the children of wisdom; and wisdom, no doubt, is Christ Himself. Children are those who have the life of the parents. To be a child is a matter of life; therefore, the children of wisdom are those who have the life of wisdom. Christ is justified by those who have His life. It is a matter of life; it is not a matter of eating and drinking the way John did, or the way Jesus did. We all should eat and drink by following the life of Christ within us. Should we eat and drink in a wild way like John, or should we feast like the Lord Jesus did? The answer is simply to follow the life of Christ. Because we are the children of wisdom, we have the life of wisdom, and wisdom is Christ. Because we have the life of Christ, we do not need to go along with any outward rules, but we need to go along with His life within us.
Let us apply this principle. Today there is the so-called “hippy” type of living, and nearly all the hippies have long hair. Suppose a hippy becomes a Christian. Should he leave his hair long, or cut it short? Christians, of course, are not hippies, but neither are they non-hippies. Christians are the children of wisdom. They have the wonderful life of Christ within them. Therefore, they should not go along with the hippy way or with the non-hippy way. They should simply go along with the life of Christ within them. We who are Christians are men of Christ. We are those who have Christ as life. Gentlemen condemn the hippies, and the hippies condemn the gentlemen, but we do not condemn anyone, nor do we justify anyone. We only justify the life of Christ. Wisdom is justified by her children. We do not care for the gentleman-way or the hippy-way; we only care for Christ. Hallelujah! Christ as life is the rule of our living.
If you consider yourself a gentleman, you may see all the hippies among us and think that we are a “hippy-church.” However, you need to take note that we also have many so-called gentlemen among us, but this does not mean that we are a gentleman-church. We should not be a gentleman-church or a hippy-church, but a Christ-church, a church full of Christ.
Some may ask why I have the gentlemen’s style haircut and not the hippies’ style. Let me tell you, before I made the decision to have my hair cut in this way, I had much contact with the Lord. Eventually, my decision was made according to the inner life of Christ. The inner life of Christ directed me to cut my hair in this way. Because I cut my hair in this way does not mean that I am in favor of the gentlemen’s way. If you ask me how you should cut your hair, I will simply tell you to go to the Lord and see what He tells you. Let the inner life of Christ decide for you. None of us has the position to criticize anyone. As long as something is not sinful, we have no right to judge it. Let the Lord Jesus do this.
Here then with John the Baptist is a case showing us that the proper Christian life is outside of religion and culture.