The Word Which is Life, Which, until His birth at Bethlehem, had been hidden in the Godhead, and so "was with the FATHER,' One with Him, ever abiding in Him; the Life, Which Itself was the invisible GOD, by being made Man, manifested Itself to man: "He came unto His own." By "us" S. John means, not so much men generally (though in real truth no man saw with his eyes "the Man CHRIST JESUS," without also seeing, though it may be he knew it not, the everlasting GOD,) but rather those who had been given faith to see through the fleshly tabernacle of our Redeemer, and to confess the Divine Being dwelling in that tabernacle, wholly, and perfectly, and inseparably united to It. Oh marvellous mystery of humiliation, and no less marvellous mystery of love. 3 That Which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the FATHER, and with His SON JESUS CHRIST. It is, then, by means of the Human Nature of our most Holy SAVIOUR, One as that Nature is with His Divine Nature, that we have fellowship with the saints of old; yea, and with Him, with Whom they had fellowship, the all-glorious and invisible God. It follows, then, that this fellowship is more than unity in faith and hope; it is actual oneness with them, as being all members of the One Body of CHRIST, He in us, and we in Him.1 Most humbly do I pray Thee, most loving FATHER, to give us all grace to "walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavouring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace," through JESUS CHRIST our LORD. 4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. Fulness of joy, therefore, of spiritual joy, of the only unfailing joy, must have its root in the truth, in true faith, in the faith which the Apostles taught the Church. And this joy Thou art Thyself, O LORD. 5 This then is the message which we have heard of 1 S. John xvii. 21; Hosea ii. 19. 2 Eph. iv. 1-3. Him, and declare unto you, that God is Light, and in Him is no darkness at all. Light is the symbol of true purity; darkness, of sin and igno rance. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, Either in wilful ignorance, or error, or sin. we lie, and do not the truth: CHRIST is Himself the Truth. If we walk in any darkness, we so far separate ourselves from Him; for "what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness ?”1 7 But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, Not only in the light of faith and grace, but in that Light in Which He is; that is, in GOD (for, even in this world we may spiritually eat the Flesh of CHRIST and drink His Blood, and so dwell in Him and He in us, be one with Him and He with us.) we have fellowship one with another, With saints and angels, and with GOD Himself. Oh high and awful privilege! oh wondrous blessing! and the Blood of JESUS CHRIST HIS SON cleanseth us from all sin. Once He cleansed us in our Baptism; often does He cleanse us, even as often as we in humble repentance and true faith come unto Him; and finally will He cleanse us when at the last He accepts us. Observe how many great Christian truths are expressed in these 12 Cor. vi. 14. few words: 1, that JESUS is the CHRIST, the promised Messiah, the anointed Prophet, Priest, and King of His Church; 2, that He is the SON of, and so of one nature with, GOD; 3, that He became truly Man, for GOD of Himself hath not blood, inasmuch as He is a Spirit, and a Spirit hath not flesh and bones as He hath; 4, that in Him the two natures were so wholly knit into One, that the Blood which He had naturally as the Son of S. Mary may be, and is, called the Blood of GOD; 5, that that Blood was poured forth (of course upon the Cross ;) 6, that It availeth to cleanse even now; 7, and that from all sin, except, of course, the one "sin against the HOLY GHOST." Of such wondrous, awful efficacy is that most sacred Blood. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. He is "faithful" to His promises, that ou repentance He will forgive; and that, having set forth certain conditions of grace, He will observe and abide by them. He is "just" to CHRIST JESUS Our SAVIOUR, Who has paid the penalty of our sins: "The LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Have mercy upon me, O GOD, after Thy great goodness; according to the multitude of Thy mercies do away my offences. Wash me thoroughly from my wickedness and cleanse me from my sin; for I acknowledge my faults, and my sin is ever before me. O LORD, hear: O LORD, forgive: O LORD, hearken and do: defer not, for Thine own sake, O my GOD. Observe the expression, "Confess our sins," which does not mean our sinfulness in a general way, but our individual sins one by one. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, For His Word is, "All have sinned:" if we say that we have not sinned, we deny the truth of His Word. 1 Rom. iii. 23. and His Word is not in us. We have not embraced the true Gospel of GOD. As for me, O my God, my cry shall be, GOD be merciful to me a sinner, a grievous sinner; to me, the sinner above the publican, be merciful as to the publican. CHAPTER II. 1 My little children,' these things write I unto you, ye sin not. that By "these things" S. John means the whole of the first chapter. "That ye sin not:" these words may be connected with what S. John had just before written, in which case his meaning is, "That ye sin not by saying that ye have no sin." But the words may be taken more generally, "That in every possible way ye may seek to avoid every possible sin." But forasmuch as, even when so striving, we cannot, by reason of the frailty of our mortal nature, always stand upright, he continues, And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the FATHER, JESUS CHRIST the Righteous: The just, sinless Man, the true and righteous GOD. "Plead Thou my cause, O LORD, with them that strive with me;" plead Thy merits, Thy Passion, and Thy Death, borne for me, against them that are ever seeking my destruction, even Satan and his angels. O Thou, the contrite sinner's Friend, That Thou wilt plead for me! When, weary in the Christian race, 1 S. John xiii. 33; Gal. iv. 19. When I have err'd and gone astray, When Satan, by my sins made bold, And plead, O plead for me! And when my dying hour draws near, When the full light of heavenly day 2 And He is the propitiation for our sins: In that He offered Himself a sacrifice for us, and in Soul and Body paid the penalty for us. It should be observed the Apostle says "is," and not "was," the propitiation, because that precious Blood avails as truly at this hour to cleanse, as It did when first He shed It; because, moreover, He is ever offering Himself sacramentally to the FATHER; because also He " ever liveth to make intercession for us." Precious Blood, my soul bedewing, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. Not for us only who are now in His Church did He die, but "GOD so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." He "willeth not that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." 3 And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. Obedience to Him is therefore the proof that we know CHRIST with saving knowledge; that we know Him to be our Advocate pleading for us, and the propitiation for our sins. Saving knowledge, the knowledge which is life eternal, the knowledge which |