The Pulpit Commentary — 1 John — Section 45

an appalling height. We would not intimate that the Church of Rollie is one form of 11ntichrist; but so far I\S this one point is concerned, or auy point of her teaching which obscures the ~Jory of the Redeemer, she is so far antichristian. 3. Papal iefallibility. "'hen the pope applies to himself the words," No man cometh to the Father but by me," he is so far, certainly, anticbrist. 4. Socinianism. 'l'he denial of the eternal Sonship, an.\ con8equently, yea, necessarily, of the Incarnation, is another nnticbrist. 5. Deism. Deuyini revelation is another. 6. Anti-supernaturalism is another. 7. Positivism, 1 in its deuial of all but the phenomenal, and its worship of humauity is another. 8 . .Agnosticism, in denying that God is knowable, or that he has ever m~de himself kno~, _is an~th_er, and the most modern, most attractive, and most perilous form of ant1chnst existmg at the present day. The growing culture of the daJ lrn.s broken off much of the roughness of religious controversy on all sides; but this system, which, ~nder the guise ?f ignorance, declines all inquiry into religion, as lying beyond all possible knowledge, 1s about the most subtle fallacy by which men could be misled. 'V. 'l'HE APOSTLE'S DISCLOSURE OF THE REAL ANTICHRISTIAN PRINCIPLE IS MOST VALUABLE Al\'l) INSTRUCTIVE TO EVERY AGE. It maJ be made special use of by at least six classes of persons. 1. By the theologian. Here is indicated: (l) 'l'he centre- po)nt of his theology, the centr~i sun which lights up the whole of it. (2) 'l'he testing- pomt, or touchstone to be applied to every system of thought-vYbere does it place the Christ? (3) The true tolerance which is demanded. (4) Also where he must be intolerant., viz. wherever the Christ is robbed of bis glory. 2. By the preacher. In his preaching, the Son of God must be all in all; he must be preached as "wisdom from God untv us; ernn righteousness and sanctification and redemption." And his hearers must be taught to be ,·ery impatient of any form of thought which relegates the Christ to an inferior place. 3. By the Christian. A young man once said to the writer, "I wauted to be right; I wanted to be religious; but my religion wanted a centre-point; and now I have it in Christ." Just so. In Christ, the incarnate Son of God, is the immovable centre of all we believe and know. All Christian doctrine is what it is because Christ is what he is. When he is denied or dislodged, the whole Christian scheme falls to pieces. 4. By the inquire,·. .In the search after Christian truth, let him study the testimony concerning Jesus, his Person, and his work. And if at first he cannot see all in Christ that the matured Christian sees in him, let him "follow on," ready to recei,e the kingdom of God as a little child, and he will certainly come at the truth concerning his Saviour's 12lory. 5. By the student of comparative religion. Such a one sees here the main point of the Christ.ian religion; and it is one with which there is nought in the world to compare. 6. By the student of prophecy. Since the Person of Christ as the incarnate Son of God is the supreme feature in Christianity, let him not wonder that in the Christian age, while the believer finds his chief glory in Christ, the unbeliever finds in him a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence. "You may say anythino- you like in praise of Christ," said a noted sceptic to the writer, "if you will but put him on the merely human platform 1" Ah I it is here, it is here the great conflict will centre, and prophecy leads us to expect that it will grow fiercer and wilder till the end shall come. We know the issue: "He must reign till he hath put all enemies under hi~feet." Ver. 19.-Deserters, self-revea'lers. Connecting link: "Even now are there many antichrists" are the words we have just studied. Do not these words raise the question-But whence come these antichrists? The reply, as indica~ed by this verse, is painful enough. They went out from the bosom of the Church itself. The_v first espoused the cause of the Lord Jesus1 and then from s~me cause or other took offence, went out, and since have fought agamst the very Sav10ur for whom they had vowed, with us that they would live and die! Topic-..dn early defection from the Church, and ho:V it is =unted for. Let us arrange our expauaiun of the teachingd of this verse under twu heads. ., I. HERE IS A PAINFUL HISTORIC FACT, WITH AN APOSTLB'S COMMENT THEREON. 1. There had been a defection from tl/,P, ranks of the fa-ithful. They went out from us." How many questions we would like to ask the Apostle John about this I But details are not given us, nor are they accessible. We can gather little more than we 1 See e.ddresa~s of Mr. F. Harrison, in the weekly edition of the Times, January 3, 1884. 01t. n.1-29.] T!lE FIRST EPISTLE GENF]RAL OP JOHN. 41