Technically, I’m a one-aunt man. My father had one sister, Ellen, who was caught Home as a child, and my mother had only one sister, my dear Aunt Helen. Through the years she has borne more than her share of sorrow with the regal dignity of the King’s daughter that she is. Her countenance reflects heaven’s sunshine even on dark days; I regret I have not spent more time with her.
My wife received a note from her the other day (she is a great letter writer). Included was the following paragraph to Yours Truly:
“Will you pass on to the editor of Uplook that there is a ministry I feel is lacking in our assembly writings today. There are lots of doctrinal and biblical articles, but very little of a devotional nature (men who wrote like W. Pell and L. Sheldrake, etc.).
In our assembly we have eighteen elderly sisters who are widows, and most of us need solace and simple heart messages. So many long for comfort, especially as age creeps up on us. Hope I’m not speaking out of turn.”
And my July-August issue was planned to be on Doctrine! Well, Aunt Helen, this Uplook is for you, and your seventeen widow friends, and all the other aching hearts behind those brave smiles out there. Almost a dozen devotional articles just for you. (Sorry, none by Will Pell or Leonard Sheldrake, but we’ll keep looking.)
As a child, I often heard the adage, “Early to bed, early to rise, Makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” Is that what does it? I have my doubts, even though I don’t question the salutary effects of disciplined living. And even if such living did bring health, wealth, and wisdom, something vital would still be missing. Jeremiah declares:
“Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth Me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord” (Jer. 9:23-24).
Paul gives the secret in 1 Corinthians 14:3, where he speaks about the threefold effect of the ministry of the Word of God: “edification, and exhortation, and comfort.”
What is edification? The word oikodome comes from two words meaning, “to build” and “a home.” One result of the Word finding a place in our hearts is “the promotion of spiritual growth” (Vine). The building up of the saints and of assemblies of believers is one of the objectives of this ministry.
What is exhortation? Primarily, paraklesis means “a calling to one’s side.” It is akin to the word used for the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. However, unlike the word for comfort in our verse, exhortation is always prospective, urging the believer to pursue a path that follows the Word in the future. The word for comfort is retrospective, finding a present answer in the Scriptures to a trial already experienced.
What is comfort? In 1 Corinthians 14:3, Paul does not use the familiar word already translated exhortation; instead he uses paramuthia, “a speaking close to anyone.” It denotes, says Vine, ‘consolation, comfort,’ with a greater degree of tenderness” than is found in paraklesis.
That’s what my dear aunt is looking for! This was what she meant when she spoke of “solace and simple heart messages.” They are the soft whispers of the Saviour to those who have learned to lean on His breast.
If we want to be healthy, you’ll need the edifying ministry that the Bible gives. Then you can boast, not in your own might, but in the strength that comes from knowing the Lord. If you want to be wealthy, the enriching life comes by submitting ourselves to the exhortative work of the Word of God. But if you want to be wise, you need to listen to the gracious “speaking close” that the Saviour does when we withdraw long enough from the hurried, worried world in which we live to hear the whispering of our Master as He comforts and consoles His own.
P. S. It’s also good to listen to your aunt.