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TOPIC: Gordon, Samuel Dickey - Quiet Talks About the Tempter (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 098. The "How" of Training
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The "How" of Training
And now we want to talk together about how these disguises may be quickly and surely detected. And it is a great comfort to know that even though the disguise be ever so cunningly made up, it can yet be easily detected. It does not require intellectual wisdom or keenness to pierce through the most subtle disguises. The detection comes easily to a heart kept in tune with our Lord's heart. It comes through a simple training of the spirit and judgment by the Word and by the Holy Spirit.
There are two "hows" in the answer. One has to do with ourselves, and the other has to do with the tempter. The first is in the training of our ears and eyes and touch. The second is in getting familiar with some of the tempter's footprints.
First, the bit about our training. The one need here is to have keen ears, and keen eyes, and a sensitiveness to the evil one's presence and touch. With these it is very important to cultivate a simple common sense, a good poise of judgment. We don't want to move from Faith Street, on the top of the hill, down into Queer Street on the slope.
The great thing here is ears trained to distinguish between the Master's voice and the tempter's. Our Lord said, "My sheep hear my voice." (Joh_10:27.) That word "hear" means recognize. The sheep were trained, by constant contact with the shepherd, to recognize his voice, and to know at once the voice of the pretending thief. We are to be trained to recognize our Master's voice, and to know quickly that other voice that tries to deceive us by imitating His. How shall we get this faculty of quick and sure recognition?
There are three simple essentials here. They can be put very simply, and briefly, because they have been spoken of before in these Talks. The first is the act of surrender to the mastery of the Master. That is made a practical thing by the habit of yielding the life to Him, as each day brings new light. Surrendering is turning every last ragged remnant of the evil one, however disguised, out of doors. So only can there come clear keen eyes and ears for his approach. Any unsurrendered bit confuses both eyes and ears. It blurs the moral sense.
The second essential is in the daily quiet time, alone with the Master, over His Word. It must be daily. It must be with the Word itself. It must be quiet, unhurried, unflurried time. It must be with the door shut, the outer things shut out, and one's self shut in with the Master. So the mind becomes informed. So the judgment is enlightened and moulded. So the whole being becomes saturated with God's truth. Through all of this there comes the sensible poised judgment.
The purpose here is not the Book itself, though it has the central place. It is not even for prayer, though that will have an absorbing place. It is that through the Book, and by means of the prayer, we shall come into direct touch with the Lord Jesus Himself. So the Book shall be enlightened to us. So prayer shall be a real talking with Himself. The Book itself trains the judgment. The direct touch with the Master trains the spirit.
The third essential is habitual obedience to the Spirit's voice as He speaks to your innermost heart through His Word. Obedience has a most direct influence on ears and eyes and spirit. If you obey, your spirit senses become keener, and more accurate. If you disobey, or fail to obey, in something about which you are clear, at once ears and eyes and spirit begin to get confused. Failure to obey dulls and deafens the ears. Listening to what we know is true, but what we won't obey, is ruinous to the hearing. (Isa_6:9-13.)
Mark most keenly that the whole purpose here is to get trained spirit senses, so as to recognize surely God's voice, and to detect just as surely the imitation voice that comes. These three things act directly upon the spirit senses.