4 Ye are of God, little children, and have over- come thgm 9g - becaule greater is he zhat zs in you,than he zhat zs in the world. | q Their being born of God, and their participation of a direive and ſtrengthening Influence from him, kept them from being over- come by the plauſible Notions, the alluring Blandiſhments of the Fleſh and Senſe, the Terrour of Perſecution uſed fowards them by theſe Antichriſtian or Pſeudo-chriſtian Tempters; and enabled them to overcome, becauſe the Divine Spirit in them, was ſtronger than the others lying, 1mpure Spirit. 5 * They are of the world : therefore ſpeak they of *oh.3.31. the world, and the world heareth them. E 6 We are of God: *He that knoweth God, hear- * John eth us ; he that is not of God, heareth not us. Here- 19: 27- by know we the Spirit of truth, and the ſpirit of er-
ror r. . r Hegiveth here a further Rule whereby to judge of Do&rines and Teachers, viz. what they ſeverally ſayour of, and tend to. The Do- &rines and Teachers whereby theſe Chriſtians were aflaulted and temp- ted, were of an earthly ſavour and. guſt, tending only to gratifie worldly Luſts and Inclinations, and to ſerve ſecular Intereſts and De- ſigns; and therefore Men only ofa Worldly Spirit and Temper,were apt to liſten and give entertainment to them, On the other hand, ſays he, ( in the Name of the Aferters and Followers of true and pure Chriſtianity, comprehended with himſelf ) We are of God, 1. e, Our Do&rine and Way proceed from God, and tend only to ſerve, pleaſe and glorifie him, and draw all to him ; therefore ſuch as know God, 1.e. are his Friends, and converſe much with him, hear us; the Things we propoſe and offer, are grateful and ſavoury to them, ( as Fohn 8. 37, 47. ) having manifeſtly no other Aim than to promote ſerious Godlineſs. And hereby may the Spirit of Truth and Errour in Matters of this Nature be diſtinguiſhed : The one being next of kinto Purity, and Holineſs, and a godly Life ; the other to Senſual:- ty, anda Def1gn only of gratifying the animal Life. 7 Beloved, letus love one another «5, for love is of God 7, and every one that loveth, is born of God, and knoweth God. s In oppoſition to the Malice and Cruelty of theſe Enemies to true and pure Chriſtianity, he exhorteth to mutual Love, not limited to themſelves,as undoubtedly he did not intend; ſee Note on chap. 3.14. but that they ſhould do their parts towards all others, letting it le upon them, 1f 1t were not reciprocated and mutual. # This he preſ- ſes as a further Diſcrimination ; nothing being more evidential of — and Alliance to God, than a duly regulated Love, which is of him. 8 He that loveth not, * knowetn not God ||; for Ma ug God is love z. 7 : hg” u Yea, lince Love is his very Nature, and that God is Love, thoſe "7 that love ( upon the account and in the way above expreſt ) are born of h:m, partake from him that excellent and moſt deleRtable Nature, know him by a transformative knowledge : But they that love not, they are meer Strangers to him, and never had to do withhim. _ 9* In this was manifeſted the love of God towards ww" becauſe that God ſent his only begotten Son into 1e world, that we might live by him t.
+ There could be no higher demonſtration of his Love; Fohn 3.16. * 10 Herein is love , * not that we loved God, but * J9" that he loved us, and ſent his Son Þ zo be the propitiati- gom. 5.8,
en. for our fins. | 10,
w In compariſon of this wonderful Love of his, in ſending his Son F Ch. 2. 2. to be a Sacrifice for our Sins, our Love to him 15 not worthy the Name ot Love.
11 Beloved, * if God ſo loved us, we ought alſo to * Mat. 18.
love one another t. 33- + We diſcover little ſenſe of this Love of his to us, if we do not m—_ ſo. bl 4
*Toh.3.16. Ch. 3. 16:
12 * No man hath ſeen x God at any time : if we "JOE love one another, God dwelleth inus, and his Þ love is : 5 _—
perfeCted in us. + Ch, 2.5. x The Eſſence. of God is to offf Eyes inviſible, incomprehenſible to _. our Minds. » But by yielding our ſelves to the power of his Love, ſo as to be transform'd by it, and habituated to the Exerciſe of mu- tual Love, we come to know him by the moſt pleaſant and moſt ap- prehenfible Effe&ts, experiencing his in-dwelling, vital, operative Preſence and Influences, whereby he is daily perfe@ing this his own Likeneſs and Image in us. This is the moſt deſirable way of know- ing God, when though we cannot behold him at a diſtance, we may ſeeingly apprehend him nigh us, and in us. | 13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, be@uſe he hath giren us of his Spirit *. * The near inward Union between him and us, is beſt to be dif- cern'd by the Operations of his Spirit, which is the Spirit of all Love and Goodneſs, Chap. 3. 24. Epheſ. 5. 9. : 14 And *we have ſeen and do teſtify 2,that the Fa- * Cl. 17: ther ſent the Son to be the Saviour of the world,
; He here ſignifies we are not left at any uncertainties, touching ; that
heſf,
h, 1.1:
Chap. V.
that matter of Fa, wherein lies this mighty Argument for the Ex- erciſe of mutual Love among Chriſtians, God having ſent his Son to be the Saviour of the World : For, as he again inculcates, We teſtify upon Eye-ſight, having beheld him, and converſt with higp, living and dy- ing.
15 Whoſoever ſhall confeſs that Jeſus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God *.
* This Diſcourſe is moſt ſtudiouſly and obſeryably interwoven, of theſe two great Things mentioned, chap. 3. 23. Faith in the Meſſiah, and the Love of one ansther, as being the principal Antidotes againſt the poyſonous Infinuations of the Apoſtates, Of Confeſſing, ſee Note on verſe 2, ;
16 And we have known and believed the love that
* Ver. 12, God hath to us. God is love; and * he that dwelleth
in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him a.