The Pulpit Commentary — 1 John — Section 152

throe wHnesses-the Spirit, the water, and the blood. The message is that God has given to us eternal life, nnd that this life is in his Son. Where the Son of God has been received by faith, there is the life actually existing; and this inward life is a distinctive personal seal of the truth of Gocl's worcls, whereby they are verified by every one who Bharcs the life. But, granting thnt this verification is lacking (as it is) in those who ho.vo not the life, ancl thnt in consequence the only testimony to the truth 0f God's words is tho.t which comes to them from without, how, then, does the case stancl as to tho sufficiency of that outer testimony? Thus there are certain wcll-understoorl laws which govern belief in human testimony; there are circumstances under which no one would think of rejecting such testimony-under which, if he were to reject it, he would be doing e. manifold wrong. Much more is this the case with regard to the testimony of God concerning Jesus Christ. It is in every respect greater, fuller, clearer, than the testimony of man. "If we receive," etc. Faith in God's testimony concernin,g his Son is required by the laws which ordinari1y govern human belief. I, THERE ARE CERTAIN OIROUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH 1'HE TESTIMONY OF MA~ WOULl, BE UNHESITATINGLY A0OEPTE.D, "If we receive the testimony of man," etc. If, not as expressing a doubt whether we do or no. The '\if" is nearly equivalent to "s:nce" or "inasmuch as." The fact is taken for granted, as one well known, that receiving testimony from man is a commonly accepted way of gaining knowledge. We can but offer in our limited space the very barest outline of how this matter stands. 1. More than three-fourths of every man's knowledge comes to him from the testimony of others. Even those who demand "verification" are content to accept the verification of another in every department save their own. If it were not so, the progress of man would be slow indeed. 2. What is required in a witness is (1) truthfulness; (2) com- petent knowledge. Let these conditions be fulfilled, and few would gainsay his testi- mony. 3. If for a particular fact, call it ::c, there were not only one, two, or three, but twelve witnesses. 4. If the twelve witnesses were all men of unimpeachable character, and teachers and examples of the loftiest morality the world has ever known. 5. IC they one anrl all gave up all that the world holds dear, and risked, or even forfeited, life itself in giving their testimony. 6. If it was well-known that the testimony was directly opposed to the very strongest prepossessions in which they had been nursed and nurtured; and if: 7. The effect of their testimony was to impart soundness, joy, life, love, where only disease, sorrow, death, and selfishness reigned before ;-in such a case, we venture to say, such testimony would be regarded as warranting, and even demanding, belief. It could not and would not be rejected. Be it so: then observe- II. THE TESTIMONY OF Goo 18 STILL WEIGHTIER THAN EVEN BUCH HUMAN TESTIMONY WOULD BE. Evidently the apostle's meaning is that, if we feel it incumbent on us not to reject human testimony when clear and ad~quate, much more ought we to feel it bind- ing on us to receive the testimony of God. For this (and specially this concerning Christ) is greater than any human testimony could possibly be. In wha.t sense? In many. I. It is great~ in ies origin. "God." It may, and probably would, be urged by an unbeliever here, "I grant that at once, that God's testimony is greater than man's; but the difficulty with me is, is it God's testimony?" 'l'hat is just the thing to be shown. The following hints may serve. (1) It is admitted by the philosopher that at the back of all things there is an infinite energy. 1 We can take this pagan text for a startins!;-point, and we affirm, if the energy is infinite, it can kt tts know something abO'Ut itself. (2) If the infinite energy deigns to tell us something about itself, it must be throu~h such channels of life, thought, and words as we can apprehend. (3) The fact that the channel of communication may be human is entirely consistent with the origin of cnm- munication being Divine. (4) When this is the case, then such human communication has to be interrogated and tested as to its whence and how. (5) If it stands this test, i.e. if (a) it claims to be from God, if (b) it justifies the.t claim,2 and if (c) there is 1 See article by Mr. Herbert Spencer, in Nineteenth Century, Janne.ry, 1884. • "If it jUBtifies that olaim." We desire to expo.ncl this, but cannot. The olaim might be justified (1) by the glory of pure moral teaching; (2) by the purity of personal chnracttr; (8) by mighty works. Jesus Obrist appealed to o.11 three. Tllo third, however, is now regarded by some e.s an arlditione.1 hindrance wther than a help. To such we would offer the following hints. I. The New Testament mirocles are not merely wonclers, but signs They fo.11 in with o. great redemptive plan. 2. If the evidewe afforded by the uoble moral ?.50 THE FIRST EPISTLE GENERAL OF JOHN. [on. v. 1-21.