The Fight of the Faith by T. Austin-Sparks - Chapter 5 - The Mystery of the Gospel

The Fight of the Faith

by T. Austin-Sparks

Chapter 5 - The Mystery of the Gospel

Dear Saints,

This message was originally posted on December 14, 2014. As I was editing it and preparing for this post, I have to say I was blown away both by what Brother Sparks presented as well as what Doug shared. I can say this is one of the most intense, comprehensive, confrontational and challenging of all of Doug’s expositions.

My notes:

For those who might not yet know what 'mystery' means in the New Testament, and what it doesn't mean, we might want to take a step back before proceeding. As we see in the scriptures, it has several applications: 'the mystery of the kingdom of God' (Mark 4:11); 'the mystery' (Romans 16:25; Ephesians 3:3; Colossians 1:26); 'this mystery' (Romans 11:25; Colossians 1:27); 'a mystery' (1 Corinthians 2:7); 'a great mystery' (Ephesians 5:32); 'the mystery of His will' (Ephesians 1:9); 'the mystery of [the] Christ'  (Ephesians 3:4; Colossians 4:3); 'the mystery of the gospel' (Ephesians 6:19); 'the mystery of God' (Colossians 2:2; Revelation 10:7); 'the mystery of iniquity' (2 Thessalonians 2:7); 'the mystery of the faith' (1 Timothy 3:9); 'the mystery of godliness' (1 Titus 3:16); 'the mystery of the seven stars' (Revelation 1:20); 'the mystery of the woman and of the beast' (Revelation 11:25).

Better understood, 'mystery' means a sacred secret kept until a time revealed by the Holy Spirit, and it is available for all to come to know, not limited to an elite class. 'Mystery' is not something kept secret for only a few to come to know. Though we cannot explore each instance noted above where the word 'mystery' is used, we will focus on that pertaining to Brother Sparks' message. When it comes to 'the mystery of the Christ' (i.e. ‘mystery of the church’; ‘mystery of the gospel’), it doesn't come to us merely from an intellectual pursuit, but a 'spirit of revelation' as Paul prays in Ephesians 1, an illumination of the eyes of our heart. Though we are to diligently study the word of God so as to handle it accurately (2 Timothy 2:15), we need spiritual revelation and illumination to not only know it mentally, but to know it experientially. The Apostle Paul, after exhausting the Greek language and failing to describe the unsearchable riches of Christ, resorts to prayer, that "God ... may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation (unveiling) in the [full, mature] knowledge of Him, the eyes of our heart having been illuminated, so that you may know...". Understanding 'the mystery' requires 'full knowledge' (epi-gnosis). This is what Doug taught us years ago, as I noted in my Bible:

   Epignosis (?????????) = absolute obedience and response of the whole person, volition, as well as the mind to the personal will of God. It is the apprehension of the revelation of the Person of God in Jesus Christ and becomes a matter of personal relationship and fellowship with God, not merely an abject intellectual assent to God. Epignosis is both the condition and result of growing conformity into the derived image and manifestation of Jesus Christ.

In the introduction prior to the reading of the message by Brother Sparks, after reading the relevant scriptures, Doug explains aspects of "the mystery" and its revelation and realization being the very foundation and reason for establishing Morning Star Testimony Church.

As Brother Sparks addresses the poor, unsatisfactory, inadequate and shallow condition of the church in 1943 when he gave this message, Doug takes it further as he sees a very real issue is the lack of assemblies having a weekly corporate prayer gathering to deal with the condition of the church. "Without a corporate prayer meeting, everything you're doing (pastor) may be right and may be something according to the word of God, but it will lack any power and effectiveness. There'll be no testimony of Jesus there. - I mean NO testimony of Jesus." Doug picks that up again with "Every prayer meeting is a hastening of the coming day of God in its functional representation of the heart and mind of God or it's a failure. No prayer meeting that does not accelerate history forward as an instrument in God's hand for the consummation is a complete failure - utterly a failure."

Brother Sparks challenges the emphasis on evangelism at the cost of discipleship and spiritual growth that results in sonship. "Today, and for a long time, evangelical leaders have put all the emphasis, or the main emphasis, upon getting people saved. They are interested in that more than anything else, and that is the direction of their main occupation. With what result? That we see a most unsatisfactory state among Christians, and that too in the face of the fact that the very existence of the New Testament itself is the evidence that to bring converted people to full spiritual growth is as important as bringing them to new birth."

I am only scratching the surface of this power-packed message. You will miss much listening only once through. Pray for a spirit of wisdom and revelation before you listen to this message – and every time you listen to it. I am convinced it is one of the most vital and important messages we are so privileged to receive from these two brothers now in glory.

At the conclusion of Doug's commentary on this message, he shares his deep respect and appreciation of Brother Sparks' as his spiritual father, one whose ministry is apostolic and so rare.

In the Discussion, Doug challenges us to take inventory as to who it is we're wanting to please; ourselves? ... or God. "There's not an effort to please God and to be pleasing to God if we're abiding in the One who pleased Him. And if we're not abiding in Him, then 'Lord, what work of the cross do you need to do in me so that I get out of Adam - out of what I am - into Christ, the One who's already pleased You. And if I'm walking in fellowship and abiding in the One who pleased You, I'm going to share in Your pleasure. My fulfillment will come when You obtain the riches of the glory of Your inheritance in me." "When Christ has adequately been formed in my life, then I will experience the Father's pleasure." 

Doug shared a couple times along with a few in the assembly - definitely worth listening to. However, the audio recorded was not easy to listen to as the microphone was not near enough to each speaker, but I did what I could to help make it a bit better.

Audio: https://dougriggs.s3.amazonaws.com/Assemblies/12-14-14+Sunday+Assembly.mp3

Discussion Audio: https://dougriggs.s3.amazonaws.com/Assemblies/12-14-14+Sunday+Discussion+-edited.mp3

Recommended Resources:

The Day of Visitation series (see the Video Page)

T. Austin-Sparks: Vocational Fellowship

https://www.austin-sparks.net/english/books/vocational_fellowship.html