Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible

Guest (Male): The Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals presents the timeless teaching of Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse.

Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse: I’ve long since learned to live as though Jesus Christ were coming today, and to plan as though he were not coming for years. Everything I do and say is subject to the thought, sometimes expressed, but always there even though unexpressed, that everything is subject to the blessed will of God.

I think that God let Paul’s plans go awry and his hopes fail in order to give great comfort to all believers of all generations. If the great apostle could form definite plans that seemed to be most holy and most spiritual and most unselfish and most desirable, only to see these plans fail, then shall we not be in ready expectation that our plans, too, may fail?

The Christian who grieves when his plans fail does not understand the sovereignty of God. But he who says, “It’s all right, Lord; you can do whatever you please with me and mine and with our plans,” that is the Christian who is always filled with joy.

Guest (Male): God's word is for our godly gain, to teach, rebuke, correct, and train, equipped by him we can pursue the work God has for us to do. God's word is all the Christian needs to grow in grace and do good deeds.

Over a half a century ago, the late Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse, then pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, saw the need to spread God’s word beyond the hearing of his local congregation. He started the radio ministry which has become known as Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible.

The application of God’s word as taught by Dr. Barnhouse is as relevant today as when he first taught over the radio airwaves decades ago. The message we’ll be featuring on today’s edition of Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible is entitled, “When God Interferes.” You may become frustrated when people or unforeseen circumstances interfere with your plans and desires.

But when God interferes, you should joyfully submit to his guidance and direction, knowing that his purpose for your life is far greater than anything you could ever hope for or imagine. Has God intervened in your life to accomplish his plan and purpose for you?

The scripture text for this edition of Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible: Romans chapter 15, we're looking at verses 22 through 24 and verse 28. Here again is Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse with a message entitled, “When God Interferes.”

Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse: Through the Lord Jesus Christ, we come unto thee, our Father and our God, and in the Holy Spirit. We ask thee to open our eyes that we may see the deep things of thy word. We long to know the fullness of thy will and to this end, we pray that thou shalt give to us a spirit of yieldedness to thee, and then the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of thyself. Whatever our needs in this hour, we pray thee that thou wilt meet those needs as they are known to thee. We ask it in the name and for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

My subject today is "When God Interferes." And the text is in the 15th of Romans where we read: “This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming to you. But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions, and since I have longed for many years to come to you, I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain, and to be sped on my journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a little. I shall go on by way of you to Spain.”

Now as we come near the end of this epistle, we see the mind and heart of Paul. For many years, he has longed to visit them, he says. A man like Paul would, of course, desire to visit the capital of the Roman world, just as any alert American, whether from Idaho, Mississippi, or Maine, would desire to visit Washington, Philadelphia, and New York, at least once in life, and as early as possible, to see the buildings of our government, the shrine of independence, and the canyons of finance and industry.

Paul’s mind roamed over the whole Roman world, and he thought of those faraway places where there were souls for whom Christ had died. Somehow he fixed on Spain as the goal of his travels, with Rome the brief halting place on the way to the Iberian Peninsula, where the Carthaginians had entrenched themselves until they were expelled by Scipio Africanus, and where Julius Caesar and Pompey finally established Roman power.

Now our text reveals three plans in Paul’s mind. Plans made many years before, but whose fulfillment had been hindered. The barrier to his coming was now removed and his visit was projected along certain fixed lines. First, Paul tells why he had been hindered so often from making the journey. He had been faithful to the call from God to preach the gospel from Jerusalem, all the way through Asia Minor and across into Europe by way of Macedonia, through Greece, to the frontiers of Illyricum.

If he had followed his own willful way, he could have left his work at any time and gone off to Rome. Many people have left duty for pleasure and have lost much by so doing. I know two sisters, one of whom rushed into a hasty marriage. The other, a schoolteacher, stayed by to help in her home in spite of several excellent offers of marriage.

The one sister felt no obligation to her parents. The other stood faithfully by through the death of one parent and then after several years, the death of the other. But then, it was too late for her to marry and bring up a family. So she kept on teaching school and on the side, did magnificent missionary work for God among her students and in her church.

When her life neared its end, she was surrounded by multitudes of friends who, in time of distress, were delighted to care for her in her illness and to give her mental companionship and spiritual fellowship. The other sister, who had lived for herself and her own interests, was heard to say, “I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’m getting old and I may be sick. I soon will no longer be able to drive a car, get my meals, take care of my own needs. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I have no friends who'll come in and do for me what they’ve done for my sister.”

She had sown for selfish pleasure and she was now reaping its emptiness. The older sister had lived for duty and had won a thousand friends as she constantly did for them what they and others were now willing to do for her. Paul must often have been tempted to go to Rome. He says that he has longed to come to them, that he’s had this great desire for many years. How strongly tempted he must have been.

He worked in Corinth for two years, supporting himself by making tents. He had no family to support. He could have gotten a job on any one of a thousand ships and with his ability to sew canvas, would probably have secured free passage to Rome by making and repairing sails. But his heart was forced into line by his will, which was yielded to the Lord. He knew his duty and he followed that duty to the end.

We remember in the Bible that David, when his father commanded him to go up to the army and take parched grain and ten loaves to his brothers. A close reading of the narrative would seem to indicate that the father told this to David in the evening. What dreams the boy must have had that night. We can imagine the feelings of a sixteen-year-old youth in Kansas who’s told that he’s to drive his uncle’s Cadillac to New York because the uncle has had to fly back for urgent business. What would the boy dream about that night?

Well, David was told in the evening to go up to the army where it faced the Philistines, where there was movement and life and the smell of great deeds in the wind. And yet we read: “David rose up early in the morning and left the sheep with a keeper.” And then went as his father had commanded him. It would have been so easy to say, “Get someone to take care of my sheep; I have an important mission. I must go up to the army.” But his first thought was for his sheep. And because he was faithful in few things, God made him faithful over many.

“This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming to you,” writes Paul. “I have had the ambition to preach the gospel of Christ to those who did not know him.” Now the second thing he tells them is that he no longer has any room for work in these regions. And here is important teaching. Here is a deep inner revelation of the true method of establishing Christian missions.

Many years ago, Roland Allen, a British missionary, wrote a masterpiece on Christian work in foreign lands under the title Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours? In this book, he showed that the way in which mission fields were organized during the 19th and early 20th centuries was not the way in which Paul established the church.

There was entirely too much paternalism by the white missionaries from the Western world. There was an entirely too much control of young converts. Missionaries were unwilling simply to go in, preach the gospel, turn the work over to their converts and then get out. The result was increasing tension between the missionaries and the national churches and a failure of the church to expand as it should.

Somebody may point out that in the regions where Paul preached, the churches did not last. It’s true that some of the cities where churches were located have disappeared. Others have become fastnesses of formalism, and their Christianity bears little resemblance to the original truth that Paul taught. But this is a part of the plan of God.

I grieve, but I’m not too concerned when I learn that the young church in the Cameroons, for example, now in full possession and management of its buildings, schools, hospitals, and affairs, is going through very rough times and that it can best be compared to some of Paul’s co-workers of whom he wrote to the Philippians: “All seek their own and not the things that are Jesus Christ’s.”

It grieves, but it does not disturb me that Galatia is now Turkish Angora and that Ephesus and other churches of Asia have fallen into ruins. God knows what he’s doing, and his plans are not being frustrated. Only those who think that they are called to keep the ark of God from falling will be panicked by these backward movements of men and churches.

Our text shows us that the true missionary establishes a church, ordains as elders men who have not been to theological seminary, and turns over to them the scriptures and the young believers. The rest is up to God the Holy Spirit. If we think that he has botched the job in those places where Paul ministered, it’s because we do not understand his goal.

God is not out to convert the world. He is saving some individuals out of the wreck before the ship founders. When we understand this, we know perfect peace. In the vision of the book of Revelation, the Lord of the church holds the stars in his hand and walks in the midst of the golden light holders. He shows himself as Lord of those who are ministers and Lord of those who comprise the whole church. He is never frustrated.

He has said: “All that the Father gives to me shall come to me.” And we can be sure that not one of his chosen ones shall be missed, nor shall any of them fall away. He saves, he keeps, and he holds fast all who are his own. Paul would probably have been the last to claim that he had spoken of Christ to every member of the population in all the cities and districts where he had ministered.

How then could he say that there was no more room for work in these regions? How this gives the laugh to those who complain against foreign missions on the ground that there’s so much work to be done at home. God’s answer is that as soon as he has established a handful of believers in any community, there is the church of Jesus Christ.

And it is up to that little group, yielded to the Holy Spirit’s power, to bear the representative witness in that community. The church is not to be expanded primarily by a body of clergy, but by all believers. Now the United States of America is completely evangelized. If anyone challenges this statement, I require him to drive to any place in the country, turn on the car radio, and not find a gospel program.

On Sundays, it’s possible to get the full gospel on at least ten stations almost any hour of the day or night. And if someone complains that many people do not turn the gospel on and listen to it, we reply that the responsibility is completely theirs. At the judgment seat, the Queen of the South shall rise up in judgment against them. Queen of Sheba, God will say, did you hear about Solomon? I did. And what did you do? I immediately formed a caravan and took some treasure and made the long journey to see that great king.

Then the Lord will turn to the American and say, did you hear about Jesus Christ? Yeah, I did. And what did you do? Oh, I turned the knob and listened to a soap opera. And the Lord will say, depart from me, you workers of iniquity; I never knew you. Lastly, Paul announced his plans for the future. Plans that never came to fruition.

I want to come up to this truth by a roundabout way. An interesting story comes to us from the experience of Bible translators who are laboring among Indian tribes of South America. A translator goes into a tribe whose language is totally unknown, and with smiles and gestures, picks up a few words. After a while, the translator finds a young man who seems especially intelligent and takes him on as an informant, paying his expenses to devote his full time to the work.

The translator fills notebook after notebook with words and phrases and soon is able to use the native language for all his daily needs. But then comes the probing process to find exact shades of meaning and to seek the right words for translating Bible terms. What tribal word can be used for "saved"? Shall it be that which means saved from drowning, or the one used for saved from a wild beast, or the one that means being saved by medicine when you’re sick, or perhaps any one of a dozen other kinds of deliverance?

One translator was trying to get his tribe’s expression for past, present, and future. He soon discovered that they spoke of the past as being in front of them and of the future as behind them. He explained that in our language, we think of going forward into the unknown and that every step takes us toward what has not yet happened and takes us away from the past.

And therefore we translate Paul’s great verse to the Philippians: “This one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” But the informant pointed out that his people see the matter in an entirely different way.

They could see, as though it were in their hand, anything that had happened in the last few hours. Events of yesterday were a little farther off. And those of last week and last month still farther off, while all that happened last year was far, far away. The future, on the contrary, was behind them where they could not see it. So they were stepping backward into all that was swirling around them in the present.

Now who can say that their concept is inferior to ours? At all events, there was no need to argue the matter; a language is a fact. So the translator wrote: “Therefore forgetting the things that are in front of us, we step backward into the future.” Oh, there are great complications in translation, but they give the idea of the truth, and this is the important thing.

Now whether we think of the future as lying before us, into which we enter as into the unknown, or whether we think of it as behind us in the darkness, we have no exact knowledge of the future. God in his mercy has hidden the future from us. If we think about it, we can understand why. If the future holds something that is hard and difficult, we would be inclined to despair.

How sad life would be if we knew the death date of a child within a year. And how terrible to anticipate that atomic fallout would come upon us on a given date. Our ignorance of these things makes it possible for us to live in hope. And the presence of hope is one of the most important factors in balanced living.

Similarly, if we had positive foreknowledge of something great and joyful, for example, that a vast inheritance would be ours on a certain day, if we knew that some worldly honor would come to one of our loved ones, the nerve of strong endeavor would be cut, and it would be very easy to fall into laziness or to diminish our efforts to perform the daily tasks which God has set before us.

Now Paul had formed his own idea of what his future would be. He was going to take an offering which had been collected in Greece and he was going to carry it to the believers in Jerusalem. Now I shall show in another study, the Lord willing, that he was out of the will of the Lord in his desire to go to Jerusalem. And he informed plans to visit Rome while on the way to Spain. And these plans were never fulfilled.

I do not say that he was out of the will of God in looking far ahead, but some of his plans would never come to pass and we must learn from this. My actual writing of this message is in an early month of the year 1960. It’s scheduled for broadcasting late in this same year. In my date book, I have this year fully planned with the dates of departure from the United States for a missionary journey and the dates of return.

I have written in my calendar my speaking engagements for the entire year. In the back of my calendar, I have outlined plans for 1961. Already a dozen weeks of meetings have been scheduled. I have written in the Sundays on which I expect to speak in Philadelphia. Under September, one year ahead, I have written leave for England on September 11th, 1961.

Under November and December, I have written certain dates for New Delhi in India. Under January 1962, I have written dates for Philadelphia, and under February, two full years in advance, I have written dates for preaching in certain churches in California. Now some of these dates have already been confirmed, both by my office and by the churches.

In spite of all this, I’m sure that I could dictate rapidly for an hour concerning events which might occur to void all these plans. The Lord might come. I might go to heaven through death. I might be alive but in the hospital. Some parts of the country might be unapproachable because of atomic fallout. I might lose my voice. It’s not necessary to go farther.

I’ve long since learned to live as though Jesus Christ were coming today and to plan as though he were not coming for years. Everything I do and say is subject to the thought, sometimes expressed, but always there even though unexpressed, that everything is subject to the blessed will of God.

I think that God let Paul’s plans go awry and his hopes fail in order to give great comfort to all believers of all generations. If the great apostle could form definite plans that seemed to be most holy and most spiritual and most unselfish and most desirable, only to see these plans fail, then shall we not be in ready expectation that our plans, too, may fail?

The Christian who grieves when his plans fail does not understand the sovereignty of God. But he who says, “It’s all right, Lord; you can do whatever you please with me and mine and with our plans,” that is the Christian who is always filled with joy. Paul’s prayers in this instance were not answered and his plans were not realized.

Paul never reached Spain. So far as we can tell, the gospel did not reach that country to any extent for almost 200 years. The year 251 AD is generally given for the establishment of Christianity in Spain. But already Spain was in the heart of the great apostle and he was praying for that land. The fact that Paul’s prayers were not always answered and that his plans were not realized need not stop the true believer from praying and making plans.

Our trust is in the Lord, not in our plans. We are filled with joy precisely because he is Lord, Lord of our lives and Lord of all our plans, even down to detailed circumstances. He can do with us exactly what he pleases and when and where. And in our total commitment to this will, his will, lies our highest joy.

And our God and Father, we pray thee that thou shalt take this lesson to each heart. There are some who listen today who have been sorrowing because their plans have been disturbed. There are some who are frustrated because they have not had their own way. There are some who are despondent because something they have desired has been withheld from them.

Teach each of us in no matter what circumstances that thy way is the best way. Give us a heart that is so yielded to thee that we may be movable by thee, that we may be guided by thee, that we may move at thy touch and be willing to have thy will. We ask it all in the name and for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Guest (Male): When the Lord interferes with our plans and desires, we must learn to submit to him, knowing that he causes all things to work together for our ultimate good. We hope you have benefited from today’s message, “When God Interferes.” To listen to additional teaching by Dr. Barnhouse, visit us online at AllianceNet.org.

An audio copy of today’s message is available by calling us toll-free: 1-800-488-1888. Today’s message again is entitled, “When God Interferes,” or simply request message number R15-27. We would also like to make available to you a free copy of our booklet entitled The Names of God.

Most of us have a first, last, and middle name and perhaps a nickname or two. But scripture records more than 400 names of God that reveal fresh and profound insights about his character and attributes. This free four-chapter booklet will show you how an in-depth look at the names of God can help you discover a wealth of riches in the knowledge of him.

Ask for your free copy of The Names of God when you call or write. Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible is a radio ministry of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We exist to promote a biblical understanding and worldview.

Drawing upon the insight and wisdom of reformation theologians from decades and even centuries gone by, we seek to provide contemporary Christian teaching which will equip believers to understand and meet the challenges and opportunities of our time and place. We also produce the radio broadcast The Bible Study Hour featuring the teachings of the late Dr. James Montgomery Boice, and Every Last Word featuring the Bible teaching of Dr. Philip Graham Ryken.

For a complete list of radio stations carrying our programs, visit our website AllianceNet.org. Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible comes to you through the generous gifts of listeners. If you have benefited from the broadcast and would like it to continue, please prayerfully consider a donation to help us keep this ministry on the air.

For more information or to make a contribution to help further our work, contact us by calling toll-free 1-800-488-1888. That’s 1-800-488-1888. Visit us online at AllianceNet.org or write: Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, Box 2000, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. Be sure to ask for a free resource catalog featuring books, audio teachings, commentaries, booklets, videos, and a wealth of other materials from outstanding reformed teachers and theologians, including Drs. Donald Grey Barnhouse, James Montgomery Boice, Martin Lloyd-Jones, and Philip Graham Ryken. Thanks for listening. Join us again next time for more classic teaching on Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible.

The Bible has a commanding word to do God's saving work on earth, which draws our souls from death to life and rescues us from endless strife. Amazing gift, a work so hard, the life imparting word of God.