SERMON XIV. THE LOVE OF GOD IN MAN'S SALVATION. SERM. [2 Tim. 3. 16.] ST. JOHN iii. 16. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. AMONG the innumerable company of books and writings, which now are extant in the world, there is not one that propounds any certain principle whereon we can trust for the mercy and favour of God, nor by consequence directs us to the way how to obtain true happiness, but only that which we justly call, by way of excellency, "The Scripture given by inspiration of God," for that end and purpose; without which we could never have had any certain knowledge of any thing about it: for no creature could ever think of himself, that the Almighty Creator of all things could ever be reconciled to any of those who have dishonoured and offended Him, by not doing the work, and so not answering the end for which He made them. Much less could any have ever thought of that wonderful way that is revealed and described in the Holy Scripture for the effecting of it, unless it had been first there revealed; which, by the way, is an undeniable argument of its Divine authority, seeing such things are delivered in it, which could never have come into the heart of man, or any creature whatsoever, without being inspired by God Himself. And as we could never have known any thing of the right way that leads to happiness, unless we had been taught it by the Scripture; so we could never have been certain, that the way there taught had been the right way, unless that Scripture had been "given by Divine inspiration:" for, not to speak of men only, all creatures in themselves are fallible; it is possible for them to be deceived themselves, or to have a mind to deceive us; and therefore we can never be sure that what they say is true, but have still reason to suspect and doubt of it, whatsoever pretence they make, and what arguments soever they may bring for it. But God, we know, is wisdom and truth itself; it is impossible for Him either to be deceived or deceive: so that His Word is the most certain ground that can be given us to build our faith and hopes upon. And therefore, that we might not be at any uncertainty about the greatest work we have to do in the world, even how to regain the favour of God, and so be happy for ever; He Himself hath been graciously pleased to teach us all things necessary to be known in order to it. This He hath done all along in His Holy Scriptures, both by His Prophets, inspired for that purpose with His Holy Spirit; and also by His only-begotten Son Himself, in many of those Divine oracles that came out of His mouth while He was upon earth; and particularly in this which contains the substance of all the rest, and is so divinely worded, that we cannot say where the emphasis lies; for every word is so weighty and emphatical, that it ought to be carefully weighed and considered, by all that desire fully to understand the sense and meaning of the whole sentence. The first word, "for," shews that this is brought in as the reason of what went before. Our Lord is here instructing Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, in the way to life and happiness; and among other things He tells him, that "as Ver. 14, 15. Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life," as whosoever looked upon the brazen serpent, which Moses by God's Num. 21. 9. command set upon a pole in the wilderness, lived notwithstanding he had been bitten by a fiery serpent. And lest this should seem strange to Nicodemus, our Lord here gives him the reason of it, drawn from God's infinite love and goodness to mankind, in sending His Son into the world for that very end: "For God," saith He, "so loved the 10. XIV. SERM. world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." God, the Infinite, Almighty, Eternal God, Jehovah, the Lord of Sabaoth, essence itself, existing in and of Himself, and giving existence to all things else; the Creator, Preserver, and Governor of the whole world; who is every where, knows all things, and doth whatsoever He pleaseth in Heaven and earth; the first of all causes, the fountain of all light, the principle of all motion, the centre of all perfections; holiness, wisdom, power, justice, truth, goodness, love itself:-"He so loved the world:" He loved it, He exerted that His Divine perfection, even His love, in a peculiar manner towards it. He had manifested His infinite wisdom, power, and goodness in the creation, or production of all things out of nothing, and in the first settlement of them in their several ranks and orders: and He still continueth to do it, in His preserving, managing, and disposing of all and every one of them. But, in the redemption of mankind, He manifested His love also, or good-will towards them, as His 1 John 4.9, beloved disciple also observes, saying, "In this was manifested the love of God towards us, because that God sent His only-begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love; not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins." It was not out of respect to any thing that we could do, whereby to shew our love to Him, or merit His love to us, but out of His own infinite essential love to Eph. 1. 5. mankind, that He sent His Son to be our Saviour, "according to the good pleasure of His will," as the Apostle speaks. Deut. 7. 7, As Moses told the children of Israel, "That the Lord did not set His love upon them, nor choose them, because they were more in number than other people, but because the Lord loved them;" so He did not send His Son to redeem mankind from any other motive whatsoever, but because He loved them; because it was the good pleasure of His will to express and manifest this His Divine perfection, His infinite love towards them. All the creatures in the world are His: and there were some other of them who had corrupted themselves, and were fallen from that estate in which 8. He made them, as well as man. But, howsoever, leaving the other to themselves, He was pleased to pitch upon him as the object upon which to shew His love, in sending His Son to redeem fallen man, and not the fallen angels: "He Heb. 2. 16. took not on Him the nature of angels, but He took on Him the seed of Abraham," because He loved the latter, and not the former. This is the only fountain of all the favours he vouchsafes to mankind in general, more than to any other creatures. I say to mankind in general; for the blessings which He bestows upon particular men, and upon some more than other, He bestows them only in His Son, for His sake, or upon the account of that propitiation which He made, and whereby He therefore reconciled His Father to them, and merited His love and favour, and all manner of blessings for them. But our Lord here doth not speak of God's love to this or that particular man, but to mankind in general, saying, "God so loved the world:" the world of men in general, as the word "world" usually signifies in Scripture, and particularly in this place: "The whole world," as St. John ex- 1 John 2. 2. presseth it. The whole species of men; all mankind, from the beginning to the end of the world, whatsoever age or place they lived in; whatsoever estate, condition, degree, quality, or temper they be of, Jew or Gentile, bond or free, high or low, rich or poor, old or young, as they are all equally under the eye of God, He had respect to all in this great expression of His love; "for all have sinned and come Rom. 3. 23. short of the glory of God." Adam himself and his whole posterity are guilty before Him: "There is none that doeth Ps. 14. 3. good, no not one;" "The whole world lieth in wickedness;" 1 John 5. and, therefore, all had equally need of a Saviour. And, accordingly, "God commended His love towards us, in that Rom. 5. 8. while we were yet all sinners, Christ died for us;" "He 1 Tim. 2. 6. gave Himself a ransom for all;" "He tasted death for every Heb. 2. 9. man;" for every one that is of that nature in which He did it so that every man is equally capable of being saved by Him; God excepts against no man, and therefore men must have a care how they presume to do it: for this is to usurp upon God's prerogative, and to limit His boundless 19. 4. XIV. SERM. love; to restrain it to some particular persons, when He extended it to all; for He loved the world, the whole sinful world. Yea, "God so loved the world:" He loved it in such an extraordinary and wonderful manner, that we cannot but admire 1 John 3. 1. and be astonished at it. As the Apostle saith, "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God." So we may truly say, Behold, what manner of love was this! Who is Eph. 3. 18. able to comprehend the breadth, and length, and depth, and height of it?" That the Almighty Creator of all things should love His rebellious creatures! That God should love man! Ps. 8. 1, 3, sinful man! "O Lord, our Governor, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth! When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars which Thou hast ordained; what is man that Thou art mindful of him, Ps. 106. 4. and the son of man that Thou visitest him?" "That Thou visitest Him with Thy salvation?" Who could ever have imagined it? Who could have believed it, if God Himself had not said it? But He Himself hath said it; He hath said, that He loved the world, and not only that He loved it, but that "He so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son:" His own and only Son, whom He Himself had begotten of Himself, by communicating His own unbegotten essence to Him from all eternity; and so His Eternal Son, "God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, of one substance with the Father;" whom therefore the Father loveth as Himself: and that all might know He did so, He twice proclaimed it to the world, by a voice Matt. 3. 17; from Heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." And yet, "Hear, ye Heavens, and give ear, O earth; stand amazed and wonder, all ye powers of the world!" The Lord, the most mighty God, the everlasting Father, gave this His only-begotten, His infinitely beloved Son! What a gift was this? What could God Himself give more? What could He give greater? Herein the infiniteness of His love shineth forth as gloriously as His infinite wisdom and power do in the creation and government of the world. And therefore He had no sooner 17.5. |