Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered outside the gate. Therefore, let us go forth to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach. For we have no continuing city here, but we seek one to come.
Select a thought to read by choosing a collection, the month, and then the day:
“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”
David, in Psalm 91:1
In the secret place of the Most High, there are no divisions, no conflicts, and no rivalries. Here, if God chooses to bless one, then all rejoice. Here, if God chooses to anoint one, then all benefit. The saints in Antioch were there when Paul and Barnabas were singled out by the holy Ghost to go out and preach the gospel. The entire congregation blessed the two men and sent them out with joy; there was no envy of God’s blessing on them for that work.
Here, God’s saints are so accustomed to division that when they meet and taste the sweet fellowship that is in the Spirit, they can hardly wait to ask “What church do you belong to?” Many times, I have been in the middle of being blessed with a new brother or sister, feeling nothing but a big “amen” to their love and testimony, when all of a sudden the question would come: “What denomination are you?” Can the saints not just enjoy each other in the Spirit without referring to the divisions that Christianity has imposed upon us? Apparently not. At least, that is the case here in this part of the world. It is as if the children of God do not know what to say to one another, and so they resort to some Christian phrase, such as “What church?” to keep the fellowship going. The only thing is that whenever that Christian spirit is introduced into the conversation, the Spirit of truth is quenched, and the conversation withers to a discussion of some dead religious activity or standard: “How many people go where you go?”
Jesus is our fellowship; he is “the Amen” that we feel when we meet the children of God. Using his religion of Christianity, Satan has trained God’s children not to be satisfied with the amen that they feel when they get together. They cannot just be still and feast on one another’s testimony; they cannot just sit together and drink in the love of God that is in the power of the Spirit. In Christianity, “the simplicity that is in Christ” is good, but it is never quite enough. But under the shadow of God’s wing, the fellowship of Christ and the peace of the Spirit is all there is.
Are you satisfied with the Spirit of Christ, the Amen of God? Can you stay under God’s wing when you meet a brother or sister? Can you carry on a conversation with another child of God without wandering away from the Spirit of truth? Or do you resort to dead religious cliches to keep the conversation going? Search your heart, and give your answer to God.
In the secret place of God, there are no dead religious phrases or activities because there is not the first scrap of Christianity under the wings of the Almighty. That nasty thing is not allowed in, and every child of God who is brought to that holy place of rest is relieved of its terrible burden.