" spirit of his mind" and the whole course of his conduct. Of course, what he spake as the Great Prophet of the Church, or did as the Redeemer of the world, was peculiar to himself, and can be no pattern for us : but in all that he either spake or did as man, we are to follow him without reserve. If we propose to ourselves any lower standard, or except any one of God's commandments from our rule of duty, we are not Christ's disciples. See what is said in our text, " He that saith he abideth in him, ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked :" and again in the following chapter : " Whosoever abideth in him, sinneth not. Whosoever sinneth, hath not seen him, neither known himk." Here then you see what all your profession of faith will amount to, if it do not approve itself by its fruits: it will be a self-delusion, and a lie altogether. Come then, beloved, and address yourselves to your high and heavenly work. Ye see your calling : O strive to " walk worthy of it!" yea, " worthy of the Lord," whose you are, and whom you profess to serve. Thus will you vindicate the Gospel from the charges which ignorant and ungodly men bring against it ; and will prove to all around you that it is indeed " the wisdom of God, and the power of God unto salvation."]
k 1 John iii. 6. See also 1 John ii. 4.
1 Johnii. 8. The darkness is past, and the true light noio
shineth.
OUR blessed Lord is supposed by many to have enlarged the demands of the moral law. That he speaks of giving a new commandment is certain : " A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another : as I have loved you, that ye also love one another3." St. John also speaks to the same effect in the words before my text ; though, in the words immediately preceding, he had declared, that it was not a new commandment. The reconciling of this difficulty will suggest the true explanation of our text. The command given us to love our neighbour as ourselves, was not a new commandment. It was a part of the moral lawb; and of the law originally
a John xiii. 34. b Lev. xix. 18.
c c 2
i JOHN, II. 8. [2436.
written on the heart of man in Paradise. Yet in some respects it was a new law : both as it respected the Lord Jesus who enacted it, and as it respected us on whom it was enjoined. Let us hear what the Apostle himself says : " Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old com- mandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. Again, a new commandment I write unto you : which thing is true in him, and in you." It was new as if respected the Lord Jesus Christ, who had proposed his own conduct as the model (which, of course, it could not be, till he himself had completed his work on earth), and had enforced it with his own authority as Mediator, which also must be subse- quent to his entrance on the mediatorial office. And it was new also as it respected us, because it was never before conceived to extend to the " laying down of our lives for the brethren0," and because it was en- joined with new motives, such as could never have existed before, even the testifying of our love to Christ, " who has loved us, and given himself for us." Previous to the coming of our Lord, a veil of obscurity hanged over these things : but now they were made clear, " because the darkness was past, and the true light now shined."
In considering the change which is here spoken of, I shall notice it,