The Pulpit Commentary — 1 John — Section 142

is a pMlanthropint. By this he should be known in his private walk and in the publio 1m•na_. On his banne! the device is, "One li[tcd 11p to the cross by men, 11.n<l. yet drnwing all men t-0 lnm." Let us inquire for a little into the nature of Ohristiaii sympathy. It is often misrepresented or misunderstood. 'l'he creed of some is of this nature, "We must ta.ke up a certain moral position; we must, indeed, be humane when suffering comes in our way; but to go down to the fallen is, forsooth, to compromise our moral position." It is the old Pharisaic feeling: "He is the ]hiend of publice.ne and sinners: he sits down with those, therefore he countenances their wicked practices. It is snfe to keep the leprous at a distance." Ilnt Christian sympathy is not at variance 111ith the highest mO'l'al, position. The truth is, it is only to bo found in conjunction wiih the very severest view of sin. It may be said to have its ori.,in its excitinu, stimulating cause in self-condemnation. We ourselves must feel the darkness, the i~olation, the }nsupportable sorrow of heart occasioned by an awakened conscience. For it 1s only-when we have realized what sin is in ourselves that we can feel for those who ll.l"e under its power. Were sin a. light thing, we might let it pnss, we might suffer it to lie upon a. neighbour; but seeing it is so heinous a thing, so subversive of law, so dishonouring to God, so ruinous in its consequences, how can we but deplore it wherever and in whatever form it exists? And is it not when such a view of sin is brought home most strongly to our minds that we feel gTea.test sympathy with the erring? Is it not in this way, too, that we cast off tt,ncharitableness 1 There is a providence in our having faults, if, by keeping our eyes upon them, we are led· to pass a. charitable judgment upon the conduct of others. What pleasure can it be to see a. neigh- bour plagued as we a.re? So is it with forgivingness. It is well that we ourselves stand in perpetual need of forgiveness, if thereby we are led to forgive others. So is it with active benevolence. Does it never seem strange that the Christian life is so very difficult? The young Christian imagines it is to be all victory: his faith shall never waver, his Father's countenance shall never be turned away; and so, when he turns to his neighbour and says, "Come with us, and we will show you good; for the Lord bath spoken good concerning Israel," he is not prepared for a refusal; he expects the devil to go out of the possessed at once; he lacks patience, which is a sure sign that his sympathy is not yet deep. Bat he does not go far ere a change comes over himself. As it is pnt, the old Adam is too much for the young Melancthon. Satan is not yet cast out of his own heart; but continues to molest in formidable strength, and it is only t-00 apparent that there must be many a struggle and many a fall. Mark now how thiB produces a. very material change in his treatment of others. Sin is a greater evil than he supposed it to be, and he feels for it a deeper sorrow. Shall he not _sorrow the more for those who a.re under its power, but who do not see it as he s.ees it? Shall he not be more patient when abuse and obloquy a.re heaped upon him, or when he receives the stolid look of the indifferent? It is not to be overlooked that the simple manifestation of a genuine, warm-hearted sympathy is sometimes sufficient. There are many souls in the world, ay, in the sphere in which we move, that a.re waiting to be comforted, that are waiting to be lifted up out of the dust. .All that they need is a kind Christian word. Tell them that we forgive them-we, a brother and a sinner once like them. Assure them by all we hold most dear that God forgiyes them for his Son's sake-forgives them, the vile, the outcast; and that will be as life from the dead ; the hope of the gospel will take possession of them, and shed a mild, benign lustre over their dark world. But there are others who a.re not so easily dealt with. There must be a prolonged, more laborious, and, in the end, perhaps, a. sharper treatment. But, seeing that it may be got, shall we, who are the messengers of God, refuse the needful assistance? .A physician finds that there a.re 11ome diseases more malignant and more intricate than others; but shall he therefore confine hi~self to cases in which the cure is safe and easy? Why, if he has a. remedy and refuses to apply it, because he is appalled at the danger or grudges the labour, he would be counted a disgrace to his profession; he would lack the element which is next in importance to skill-that which gives life and form and beauty to skill-sympathy with the di!!treesed. A.nd shall we who have a simple and universal remedy hold it back from thoRe who have the worst kind of distemper, or from those who are the most v~rulent against ourselves? Shall we not the ratl ,er extend to them our warmest sympathy? shall we not th!! rather extend to them the largest 6hare of our eame&t, prayerfrl, thoµghtful consldcra- 011, v. 1-21.] THE FIRST EPISTLE GENERAL OF JOHN. 139