Amen

We use these words, "So be it," or "Amen," at the end of our prayers. They imply a willing acquiescence in whatever the Father has revealed to be His will, combining "Thy will be done" with "I delight to do thy will, O my God," and show not only acceptance of the Divine will, but a genuine desire for its accomplishment. The cynic has said that "Thy will be done" is most frequently found on tombstones, inferring that one resists to the bitter end, and then says "Thy will be done" when nothing more can be done about it. To the child of God, however, this expression must represent the theme of the entire life; it must be the opening bar of life's symphony as well as the end. The meaning of the words is beautifully expressed by the life of the prophet who uttered them. He was called upon to perform a task that was distasteful from the natural point of view. He was only a boy when first called upon to speak, "Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a child" (Jer. 1. 6), yet this gentle boy had to rebuke a nation and pronounce God's judgment and, what was even worse, tell the nation to submit to Babylon. That he shrank from the storm of bitterness this message aroused and say "Yes" to Divine truth-would it not still remain truth? Yes, but it would prevent us from receiving the blessings the truth would bring. Unless we are meek and teachable and ready to accept the Divine will and revelation, we shall almost certainly oppose the truth, and find we are contending against its Author. Whenever there is a great truth at work there is nearly always hatred and animosity. The Pharisees hated the One who taught the humble folks; those who love the things of the world hate the voice which says that these things must be given up if we would follow Christ. Our Father will not reveal his truth to the proud. Jesus said (Matt. 11. 25): "I thank thee, Father because you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in your sight." Our Lord heartily approved of his Father's arrangements, for it seemed good in God's sight, and that is the attitude we must all bring to God's dealings. If it is good in God's sight we must say "Amen". If we cannot say "Amen" to the Divine methods we shall never say to the Word itself. Even the sincere Nathaniel questioned God's method, saying: "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?" Naaman asked "Are there not better rivers in Damascus than all the waters of Israel? Can I not wash in them and be clean? ". He nearly missed the blessing because he did not like the method used. We must say "Amen" to the Divine method before we can say "Amen" to the message.

The attitude of the true Church of God is shown by John's exclamation: "Amen, even so, come, Lord Jesus," in Revelation 22. 20. The glorified Christ announces the imminence of his coming, and the beloved Apostle says a double "Amen, Amen, Even so, come, Lord Jesus." Throughout the centuries the Church has looked forward earnestly for the return of the Lord. "How long, 0 Lord?" they have cried, and they have clung to the promise "If I go away I will come again". Only those who have made the fullest use of their privilege of communion with God can pray sincerely: "Even so, come Lord Jesus", for the coming of the Lord Jesus is a time of testing. Peter links the passing of the present order with the presence of the Lord, saying, "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up (2Pet. 3. 10). If our roots are deep down in the things of this life, if the heavens and earth that are now are all heavens and earth, we shall have great difficulty in saying: "Even so, come, Lord Jesus", If we are among those who love his appearing, we shall be able to say "Amen," but, if not, we may find ourselves saying: "Where is the fulfilment of his promise?" Peter says they are willingly ignorant; they do not desire the coming of the Lord. If we are satisfied with the things of this life we shall desire to push the time of the Lord's coming far away, but those who are oppressed and down-trodden can give a more heartfelt response. Our hearts must be fully in accord with his will, and we must be ready to depart. To say "Amen" to Divine judgment calls for the greatest Christian development and trust in God, for real Christian maturity. The child of God has such a spirit of love that sometimes he finds it hard to acquiesce in the Divine judgments, yet he must do so (Rev. 16. 5, 7). It is the realization of the justice of God that enables the Church to say "Amen" to his judgments. Systems and individuals which have done nothing but injure their fellows must be removed, for, "The Lord preserveth all them that love him, but all the wicked will He destroy" (Psa. 145. 20). This is not only a just Sentence, but a merciful one, for every thing that would hurt or offend must be removed. If, however, the judgment of God seems to us to be harsh, let us make quite sure that we have not misunderstood; then turn to our Father and dare to trust him and in the strength of that trust say: "Amen, O Lord."

Another example of approval to Divine judgment is given in Rev. 1. 7: "Behold He comes with clouds, and every eye shall see him and they also which pierced him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen". This refers to the revealing or apokalupsis of our Lord. At first the world sees only the clouds of trouble, and it is not until the trouble becomes worse that they will see the Son of Man in those clouds. All mankind who have opposed the Lord will wail because of him, and John says "Amen" because the sorrow and difficulty will produce a fruitage of repentance, so that they will be in a condition to receive the blessing of the Lord. As we look up into our Father's face let us realise that He will do nothing, He can do nothing, but what is in perfect accord with a love which far exceeds our tenderest, deepest conception of what love is. Then the whispered "Amen" will be heard no more, but there will be a new and confident tone in the voice of him who has come to trust God implicitly and say "Amen - so be it" to all his dealings.

AS