Rich and deep secrets of the divinest character are to be found in this epistle.
At the opening of it, the Lord is called "the Word of life," because He is the manifestation of the life. He has shown life to us. In His person, St. John heard it, looked on it, handled it.
It has also been imparted to us. In the power of the Holy Ghost, we have been given to receive it from the source of it.
In its nature, or essence, it is infallible, or indestructible, beyond the reach of the sting of death. It is here called "that eternal life." Unlike the life that was in Adam, who was "the living soul," which was to be tested; and which, as we know, was lost in the struggle, this life of Him, who is "the quickening Spirit," is invulnerable, and has so proved itself by resurrection. For resurrection is life in victory.
But further. This life clothes itself, if I may so express my thoughts, with relationship. It puts itself into relationship. And what would life, even human life, be without that? Were we to live in mere individuality, life would be but existence. But we share a life that is common, and stand related to one another. And so, this eternal life. It was, as we read here, "with the Father"-and, as we read again, it introduces us into "fellowship." "Our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son, Jesus Christ." It introduces us as children, thus putting us into nearest relationship to God; and this is our fullness of joy-as we still further read here; "these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full."
We may be weak and sickly. The workings of unbelief, the force of lust and vanity, the fiery darts of the enemy, may cause -various distempers in the soul; but the due condition or attribute of this life, thus introducing us to the relationship and fellowship of children, is nothing less than fullness of joy.
And further still. This life has its moral qualities, as well as its nature or essence, and its relationship. It is undefileable, as well as eternal. The possession of it is our moral restoration. The Son of God was manifested; to take away our sin, and in him is no sin." The Message which He who is this life, brings to us, is this, "God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." And this is the contradiction of that word which the serpent, the liar, brought to the ear of Eve. He told Eve, that, as to God; there was no light at all in Him, neither truth nor love. The Son, the Life, tells us that there is nothing but light in Him; and that to have fellowship with Him, we must ourselves walk in light. And this is our moral recovery—not, however, perfect as yet—for if we say; that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves." But then, the Son, who has this life for us-this secret of moral recovery; has also remedy for this lack of perfection, and we are to use Him. We are to confess our sins, and God is faithful to the Son our Savior just to that work of His which has accomplished reconciliation—to forgive us our sins.
And though it be indeed true, that this moral restoration is not now perfect in unhindered power in the soul, and that we have, still sins to confess, yet is it complete in the range or sphere of its influence. That is, it heals us not only as towards God, but as towards one another. It brings us back into the light, and it makes us to love one another. The moral power of it is the contradiction of both Adam and Cain. Adam, in Gen. 3, represents the ruined nature in relation to God, forcing him into distance and darkness; Cain, in Gen. 4, represents the same ruined nature in relation to our fellow-creatures.
But now, through the virtue of this life; we walk in the light, and we love one another.
All this is told us in the early parts of this epistle. And it is a: great discourse. The life in its own eternal infallible essence, in its known and enjoyed relationship, and in its various restoring moral virtues, is the subject of it.
Fathers, young men, and little children, are also severally addressed, addressed, too, in reference to this life, or to Him who has it in Himself for us.
The fathers make Christ their object. They, as it were, gaze at Him, consider Him, learn Him, under, stand Him.
The young men make Him, and the life they have received from Him, their strength, Using it in conflict with the world, that scene, which "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life," are animating, and filling.
The little children make Christ, this life, their joy, knowing the Father through Him—knowing Him for themselves, in the free and happy spirit of adoption.
Surely; this exhibits beautiful, varied, moral power in the soul, by reason of this life. And as connected
with the condition of the “little children," John introduces a warning against that form of the lie, or that
Antichrist, which denies “the Father and the Son." And this is most suitable and seasonable. Because the standing or condition of the “little children," altogether depends on that mystery. They are in the adoption; they know the Father; they enjoy it, as I said. But this is taken away from them, by that lie or antichrist which denies the Father and the Son. Relationship is lost to us then. The soul is robbed of it. Another lie, at the beginning, robbed Adam of his innocency; this lie robs the little children of their joy. How rightly, therefore, are they warned against it.
It is said to some one, in another place, “Hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown." And, in like spirit, John would here tell the children to hold fast what they had, that no lie should take their joy from them.
This epistle takes us back, in spirit and in recollection, to the first chapters of Genesis. Indeed, John is, generally, independent of all merely dispensational truth, and is intensely personal and individualizing.
Genesis opens with Creation. This epistle, like the gospel by the same Evangelist, with Him that was before creation. In the system of creation, man, and all things with him, or under him, were in life, order, and beauty. Death was then the foreign thing, and consequently it was the threatened thing. The revelation or proclamation that was made in the midst of all that scene of life, and order, and beauty, was about death.
In the present evil world, we have death; the wages of sin, manifested. The earth has become the grave of its inhabitants. Sin reigns unto death upon it. Life is, therefore, the foreign and proclaimed thing-and this epistle tells us so. Life is to be received by us, dead as we are in trespasses and sins; as death, on the other hand, was incurred by Adam in his estate of life and perfection. We are now summoned to hear words of truth from the Son of the Father, as Adam heard and received the lie from the serpent. We have to acquaint ourselves with "the Word of life," personally and immediately, as Eve acquainted herself personally and intimately with the Tree of death, when she took it and ate of it (see Gen. 3:66And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. (Genesis 3:6)). That acceptance of the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil gave Adam fellowship with death in all its sorrowing, degrading results. He lost the garden, and Eve, and God -everything. He lost himself. A disturbed conscience; the apron of fig leaves; the covert of the trees; the sword of the cherubim; all tell the ruinous details of his condition. Acceptance of "the Word of life," according to this epistle, recovers everything, and everything, lost though it may have been, and lost as it was, with unspeakable advantage. We get God in the relation of a Father: We get ourselves in fullness of joy. We get one another as brethren. We get inheritance, as in glory. All is now ours, in incorruptible, unassailable, victorious, abiding virtue. We feed on meat taken from the eater, and sweetness gathered out of the strong one.
Thus is it with us in Christ. And after this manner it is, that this epistle, as I have already hinted, keeps us’ in company, in spirit, and in remembrance, with the earliest chapters of Genesis. It all but closes the volume; but it links itself, morally, with the opening of it.
There are, however, other thoughts that arise in the soul, on reading this epistle, which I would also communicate-in no way, of course, contradictory of what I have suggested above; nay, in no measure, even the slightest, interfering therewith; but still of another kind.
This epistle may be said to exhibit the power of communion to leave upon the soul the impression of the object with which the communion has been enjoyed.
There are, consequently, three principal thoughts found again and again in it; and these are, manifestation, communion, impression. That is, the Lord is manifested in some form or character; the believer has communion with Him as so manifested; a kindred impression is thereby left on the believer’s soul.
This is simple.
The epistle opens with a declaration of this manifestation. And the interpretation that is made of that manifestation is this, that it gives the soul communion or fellowship with the Father and His Son Jesus Christ; and it is then further declared, that the result of this upon the soul, the impression produced by this communion is, fullness of joy (1:1-4).
This is a sample of what, as I judge, is a great leading character of the whole epistle, and as I have already suggested. Here we find our object manifested, a certain communion with that object, and then a corresponding impression produced.
So again. The object manifested is declared to be "light"; and accordingly, it is at once denied that there any communion with that object, if our walk be still in "darkness" (1:5, 6).
Then, quite in accordance with what I have suggested, it is said, "he that saith he abideth in Him, ought himself so to walk even as He walked." And in consequence of this, as love had been illustrated in Christ’s walk or doing for us; if we take the place of fellowship with Him, or profess that we abide in Him the light, and yet hate one another, we deceive ourselves, and are still in darkness (2:7-9).
And still pursuing this epistle, we are told of another quality, or virtue, in this object that has been manifested; that "in Him is no sin." And, therefore, it is also again at once denied, that we have either seen or known Him, if we commit sin (3:5, 6).
The same principle is recognized in that passage-that the object will, if the soul have fellowship with it, leave its likeness behind it.
So again, a second time, as to love. Love is perceived or manifested in the Lord Jesus laying down His life for us. If we shut. up our -compassions from one another, that love does not dwell in us. We can have had no fellowship with it (3:16, 17; 4:9-11).
And further still, as to love. It is a perfect love -which has been displayed; communion with it, therefore, believing, intelligent apprehension of it, will beget full assurance in the soul, and cast out all fear (4:17-19).
Surely I do not say too much, when I say, after all this, that this blessed epistle gives us various manifestation of God in Christ, "the Word of life," and that such manifestations leave their impressions on the souls that have communion with them.
And this same thing, the power of communion with manifestations to leave impressions on the soul, is incidentally contemplated in two interesting instances.
1St. We are to be like Jesus in glory, when He is manifested in glory, because we shall see Him in that glory (3:2).
2ndly. We are liars, if we say that we love God, while we are hating our brother. Such things cannot be. Our brother has been seen-God has not been seen. Therefore, on the principle of the epistle, on the- principle that communion with things manifested, leaves impressions behind it, we cannot love God, whom we have not seen, if we love not our brother whom we have seen (4:20, 21).
These passages strikingly affirm the general principle.
But there is true blessing from all this. It takes us into real, vital, personal knowledge of the Blessed One. And supposing that these impressions, of which we speak, are but faintly and partially produced in the soul; and surely we know too well that such is the case—we know where to charge the mischief; that is, on the imperfectness of our communion with the object, and not on the object or manifestation itself. And that discovery is our blessing. For God is true to us; it is we who are false to ourselves. The manifestations made of God to us should produce, as this epistle tells us, joy, light, love, holiness, assurance of heart. If then, we find that all this precious fruit is but partially ripened in our souls, we charge this on the poverty of our communion with our object, and not on the -manifestation He has made of Himself. That manifestation is such as would secure all these virtues in us in full measure. We find out, that we are not straightened in Him; but in our own bowels. And surely this is precious. The reflection in us is faint; but the light that has awakened it is unclouded.
The way, however, to deepen these impressions, is, still to be occupied with the manifestation. We are not to be too carefully turning over the shame and the grief of this faintness before the conscience, but to be returning, so to speak, again and again, to the object. And with this judgment, the Spirit in the apostle seems to concur, when He says, "these things have I written unto you, that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe in the name of the Son of God" (v. 13). Let the Son of God be still the object of your faith.
I would say a little further on this epistle. In chap. 5:13-21, the apostle gives us three results, and then -closes his letter. We get, in these verses, three "We knows," leading forth three distinct, though connected, truths, each of them weighty, solemn, and precious.
1St. He that is born of God sinneth not, but keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.
Such doctrine had been considered in some of the previous parts of the epistle. The Son of God had been declared to have been manifested to take away our sin, and to have no sin in Himself (chap. 3:5): such words teaching us, that the life imparted to us by the Son is a clean life, a life according to God in righteousness and holiness. The fountain of it is Himself, without touch or stain of sin; and that which flows from Him in us is of like quality. The same fountain cannot send forth both salt-water and fresh. The nature that sins, that yields sin as its fruit, can have no communion with Him. What fellowship has light with darkness? Neither can "the wicked one," the source of the unclean nature, touch that which is born of God, or derived from the Son, as is here taught us. He cannot come in to defile it, as he defiled Adam.
And this is very blessed. It intimates a condition gloriously beyond that of Adam. All Adam’s estates and possessions were exposed to the attempts of "the wicked one."—The Serpent was no trespasser in the garden of Eden. He had title to be there, so that Adam might be assayed. But it is otherwise with us. We carry a life, and are heirs of an inheritance, that is not thus exposed. Both our life and our inheritance, all our estate in Christ, and through Christ, are drawn from Christ in victory over him. The Serpent is not seen in the city, as he is in the garden (Rev. 21, Gen. 3) The Tree of Life is there, but not the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
2nd. We are of God, and the whole world lieth in the wicked one.
Such doctrine had also been previously treated in the epistle. It had been declared, that all that was in the world was of the world, and that the enemy of God was the one that was quickening the world, as its indwelling energy (chap. 2:16, 4:4.). There were, thus, two distinct scenes of action, and two distinct principles of action. There was God in the saints, and there was the wicked one in the world. The saints were of God; all besides were of the world. The one had the renewed faculty of the flock of God, to hear the Shepherd’s voice; all besides had taste and intelligence only for the interests acid delights of a system which their own hearts and hands, Corrupted and occupied by Satan, had fashioned and were sustaining every day (chap. 4:1-6.).
This is a proposition of an awful character. It teaches us, that there is no belonging to God among men, but by being drawn out of the world by Jesus.The world may have its varieties and measures; but it is all in the wicked one. All is but varied darkness, and enmity. No deliverance, no translation into light, no return to God, but by the way of Jesus, that manifested Life, which this epistle had declared.
3rd. The Son of God has come to give us an understanding to know Him that is true, and we are in Him, and have the true God, and, in Him and with Him, eternal life.
This likewise is doctrine of wondrous value. The world by wisdom had not found out God. All their learning had left them ignorant of God. The altar at Athens witnesses this. But God had now revealed Himself, and that revelation was in Jesus. The glory of God shines in the face of Jesus Christ. This epistle had already taught us this, that the eternal life that was with the Father had been manifested. The apostles had seen, and heard and handled it. So that knowledge of God was now secured to us. We have been given an understanding to know Him; and we find this knowledge to be eternal life—as this epistle had likewise already said, "he that has the Son has life;" and had shown the various fruits of being in the knowledge of, or fellowship with, this revealed God.
All thoughts of our own, all conjectures of our own about God, can but make idols or false deities. We are to keep ourselves from all such. We are to know God only in this manifestation of Himself which we get and have in Jesus, and we are to treat all other thoughts of Him as idolatrous. This only is "the true God," and we are to keep ourselves from all besides as from "idols."
Thus we have three distinct, weighty propositions. Solemn, interesting, blessed conclusions they are. The saints have knowledge of God, and life in that knowledge; and thus they are separated from a world which the wicked one owns and animates, and are in possession of that which that same wicked one can never touch.
And the whole closes with that warning already referred to, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols. The true God being now revealed, let no thought of God, no reasoning about Him, no conclusions of our own wisdom or theology, arise independently in the heart. All this will but end in idolatry; refined it may be, speculative and philosophic; but still idolatry. The notions of man about Him must be false; for by wisdom we cannot know Him. God has been pleased to Manifest Himself, and with that manifestation we are to have communion, and by the light of it to walk apart from all idols; ever esteeming it our blessedness, that we are not left to our conjectures about God, but are called to know Him in the light of His own revelation of Himself, and in that knowledge find our life eternally secured to us.
Lord Jesus! when I think of Thee,
Of all Thy love and grace,
My spirit longs, and fain would see
Thy beauty, face to face.
And though the wilderness I tread,
A barren, thirsty ground,
With thorns and briars overspread,
Where foes and snares abound;
Yet in Thy love such depths I see,
My soul o’erflows with praise-
Contents itself, while, Lord, to Thee
A joyful song I raise.
My Lord, my Life, my Rest, my Shield,
My Rock, my Food, my Light;-
Each thought of Thee doth constant yield
Unchanging, fresh delight.
My Savior, keep my spirit stayed,
Hard following after Thee;
Till I, in robes of white arrayed,
Thy face in glory see.