God is The Communion. He is the original unique, eternal life concerning which the Bible is written. Three persons living together in one being is the same as three persons living together in communion; the bond of such perfectness can only be love. Into this Communion the Lord Jesus came to bring us. Yet how He should accomplish it none but His Father and He with the Holy Ghost knew. It is no wonder He said, 'I am the way'; there surely can be no other. The final end in view was so horrific that the final moment of decision was greeted with repeated cries — 'Abba, Father, if it be possible let this cup pass from me.'
His pleas at that late hour did not mean that He was drawing back or refusing to go through with the ordeal. He had known and committed Himself to the sacred covenant from the foundation of the world. How could He withdraw from that? By sacred symbol and heartfelt words He had already established the commemorative feast among the apostles. To Him it had been done as though it was all over already, His heart had been brimming with love at the time and still was. With everything in His own hands He deliberately took and broke and gave the bread, and poured out and circulated the wine for His friends to eat and drink. He had no intention of going back on His words and actions. His oath had been as much to them as to His God and Father.
Men only tryst with whom they trust, and He had invited their trust without attempting to explain to their understanding all that was involved in what they were doing. They would not — could not — have understood had He attempted it anyway. But He does not ask man's total commitment only to betray it. His cries in the garden were not the cowardly cries of the traitor; He does not betray men. That man lying before God was not failing for fear, He was enquiring of His Father whether or not after all some other way could be found. But no, The Communion of God could only be established for men by Him; there was no other. Being both human and divine, He was the sole hope of men, the true Communion of God and man, He must bear the greatest contradictions of all.
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G.W. North (1913 - 2003)
G. W. North was born in London England in 1913. As a young man he became aware that the Lord was calling him into the work of the ministry. At timely stages the Lord placed folk in his path who were able to direct him into the truth of heart purity and a more expansive understanding of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He held pastorates in Kent and Bradford. By the late 1960s, following a significant period of ministry in Liverpool, he began a more itinerant ministry. This led him to many parts of the world, and occupied him until well into his eighties. His powerful preaching and the unique sense of the Lord's presence, which seemed to brood over his meetings, were always intensely challenging.The true secret of his remarkable ministry stemmed from his personal communion with the Lord Jesus. To him, 'entering the holiest' was not merely a theological concept; it was a distinct spiritual reality - and the central feature of his spiritual life. It was here, in the place of worship, that his revelatory ministry found its source. He preached from understanding and conviction. He was never the echo of another, nor did he take on board the ebb and flow of various contemporary emphases. He was not a man of 'books'; he soaked himself in Scripture and allowed it to saturate his heart and mind. Truly, this is a man who has lifted up a standard for the people. Mr North went to be with the Lord on 29th April 2003, shortly after his ninetieth birthday.