Its Expression
“Whosoever shall coat ae Jesus j is the Son
God, God abideth in him, and he in God, And we
oe and have believed the love which God aR in us. God is love; and he that abideth in love abide =
in: God, and God abideth in him. Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, even so are Se we in his world.” — 1 John 4. 15-17 ec ee
(RANTED that the life of the Christian is the Christ
life communicated by the Spirit, and that the sustenance
of Christian life is Christ apprehended by the Spirit, it
follows that the expression of the Christ life will be Christ.
-This John states superlatively in the words, “As He is, even so are we in this world.”
It is questionable whether there is any statement in the New Testament quite as startling in this particular connection as this of the beloved apostle. It is so startling that we are compelled to face and examine it as to its context before considering it in itself. We do not propose to deal fully with the whole argument of the apostle. These especial words, “As He is, even so are we in this world,” constitute the declaration of a great fact, and it is announced here because of its bearing on the argument in which the apostle is engaged. We can only enter fully into the meaning of the declaration as we have at least a general understanding of the wider truth being dealt with.
The apostle is occupied with the great subject of a manifested life, of a new quality of life, which he speaks of as eternal life. Yet he never deals with it in the abstract, but always as revealed in the Person of Jesus Christ.
Going back only as far as the statement immediately preceding our text, “Herein is love made perfect with us,” there has been a difference of opinion as to what the word “herein” refers to, as to which is cause and which is effect.
te nee: pened * the fice ae we ae blanc 3 in the day ‘e ef judgment because of our likeness to Christ; or does he mean to say that our love is made perfect in the fact that es God abideth in us, and that because of this we have boldness in the day of judgment; and that, moreover, on account — ig: of the fact that “as He is, even so are we in this world?”;: Personally I believe that the latter is the correct exegesis of the text. The “herein” refers to that which has been already Saad. “God is love, and he that abideth in love abideth a in God, and God abideth in him. Herein” — in this mutual - Seca sing, abiding i in love, that is, our abiding in God,
and God abiding in us, in that supreme and marvellous: Be chacion is love made perfect with us.” That being so, we may examine the statement itself. “As: as He is, even so are we in this world.” Our first question is, as Who is “He”: The “He” here undoubtedly refers to 4
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Christ. John constantly referred to the Master by the use
of the personal pronoun, and sometimes by the expression: =. -that-One* — It-is a peculiar characteristic of his writings,
especially noticeable in the Epistles. There are occasions — - when. without naming Christ, without even using the personal pronoun, it is most certain he is making reference to Him. For instance, he writes in one place that we — “ought to walk as He” — literally, “as that One walked.”* ‘An explanation of this method of the apostle is to be found in the fact that he wrote with his eyes perpetually resting upon the Lord Christ. He opens this Epistle, “That — which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, — 1 John 2. 6 and Sue ack by feces ‘concerning hen Word ees that which we have s seen and heard.” * In Sve case
F ofa a man who writes with the enon of Christ fling I his os vision. If there is a phrase which describes that which — cannot be seen, or heard, or handled, it is the phrase, “the Word of life.” The phrase suggests that which is intangible,
Be conderable, something that cannot appeal to the shee if senses, and yet John writes clearly that this Word of life: was manifested to men in the Person of Him to Whom the
“same apostle refers in the opening of his great Gospel when
he wrote, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word — became flesh, and tabernacled among us (and we beheld - His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father), - full of grace and truth.”* So that the supreme revelation of
life, of eternal life has been granted to us in the Person of * Jesus Christ. ee
The writings of John are not in some senses as pied i as those of Paul. His argument is never as conclusive, and the logical element is almost entirely absent. Paul is the great logician. John is the great interpreter. Paul leads us along the line of stately argument until our reason is — compelled to acquiesce. John presents to our mind and — heart a great vision, and we are convinced without argument. I do not desire to place these men in conflicting contrast, for their method is complementary, and they give us the two sides of the great whole of conviction. John’ 35 reference then in the words, “As He is, even so are we in this world” is to Christ.
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Now we may ask a second question, “How is He?” What did the apostle mean? The vision of Jesus to John was always that of Love incarnate. God is love, and Jesus is God revealed, consequently He is love revealed. We may reverently repeat the declaration in slightly altered form, “Ns He is love, even so ate we love in this world.” As the life of the Christian is the Christ life, and the Christ life is the love life, so the life of the Christian is the love life. When that is said, everything is said. We may attempt to see the different colours that commingle in a*perfect harmony, making the essential light of life, but when we have said love, we have said all.
Tarrying yet a little with the text, before attempting to examine its application to practical life, and how love is therein expressed, notice carefully the form of the statement here, “As He is,” not as He was. If it be true that John always wrote with his eye upon the human Christ, it is equally true that John always saw in the human Christ the eternal One. Notice how human Christ is to John. “We have seen... we beheld... our hands handled.”* Yet see how He is also the eternal, “The Word of life.” Is it possible to handle the Word of life? Is it possible to
see the Word of life? Is it possible to behold the Word of
life: In these statements there is evidenced the great consciousness of John, two facts mingling and merging into a majestic unity, the fact of the human which is Divine; the revelation of the Divine expressing itself in human limitation. “As He is” not as He was. It is not the vision of the past, save as that serves to express the abiding present.
And again notice the tense is the same in the other sentence of the declaration, ‘“‘so are we.” Not, so shall wely John 1. 1
4 ‘be. There is a sense in which we are not yet perfected into the likeness of Christ, and it is John who also says, “Now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that, if He shall be manifested, we shall be like Him.”? That is the future tense, but there is a deep and present sense in which we are now like Him. “As He is,” in the essence of His nature, “so are we” in the essence of our nature in Him. Because the statement is startling he reaffirms it by the addition of the words, $n this world.” In the midst of the present economy, in the midst of the limitation of the processes of our education — using that word in its highest spiritual sense — even here and now, “as He is, even so are we.”
We may now inquire how that Christian life expresses itself. When we yielded our poor life to Him, He gave His rich life to us, the life of love. How does it express itself in this world? The expression of the Christ life in the Christian is identical with the-expression of the Christ life in the Christ.
‘Let us go back and contemplate Him during the days of His sojourn amongst men. While paying attention to the human, let us not forget that we are seeing the Divine.
We shall follow three lines of consideration. As we take our way through the world, we come into contact with God, and man, and the devil. Every day we live these touch us somewhere. What was the expression of the
Christ life toward God: What was the expression of
‘the Christ life toward man? What was the expression of the Christ life toward evil: By such contemplation shall we understand not what we ought to be, but what we are, and what we cannot help being, if we are wholly and absolutely yielded to Christ.
17 John 3. 2 in service. The Christ life expresses “itself toward evil in - antipathy, in antagonism, and in authority. e As to the first of these, is there anything more here in the study of the life of our Lord than His confidence in — His Father, absolutely uninterrupted, absolutely unquestion- — Bie ing? The very keynote of the music of the life of Jesus is to be found in that old-time prophecy concerning Him, — “1 am come... I delight to do Thy will, O My God,’ on As the life of the Christ passes in review before our minds we find that the whole of it is true to that first note of its music. It is the chord of the dominant, and you hear its tone running through all the harmonies. Confidence in — 5 God is faith in God. In the letter to the Hebrews, after the writer has given that marvellous scroll of the heroes and heroines of faith known and unknown, he says, Let us look at the supreme Witness, “Therefore, let us also, seeing we “are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset — us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking.”* At what? At the witnesses: No. “Looking — z unto Jesus.” And why? “Who is the Author and Perfecter of faith.”* Not of our faith. The word our does not occur in the text, but “of faith” as a principle of life. The word Author very literally means file leader, that is, one who marches first in the procession, one who blazes the way ‘through the forest, the pioneer of faith. The writer is holding Jesus of Nazareth up to the view of these men
Psalm 40. 7,8 %Hebrews 12., 2
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economy was passing away. He is telling them that more re radiant than all the witnesses of the past is Jesus, the Exem- aa ie plification of faith, the One Who has given the most oe perfect example of what the life of confidence or faith in God really is. 2 a Then the word Finisher is also suggestive. We might substitute the word Vindicator as revealing the intention at fie % this point. He most perfectly sets the pattern and proves the power. All through the life of Jesus this confidence in
God is evident. His confidence appears to have been unin- ie
terrupted, unquestioning, and unbargaining. As far as the - y records reveal, Christ only once asked the question that we with our faltering faith so perpetually ask. He only once asked God “Why?” When in that awful mystery of the Cross He stood in my place, and suffered the veiling of the face of God, and passed into the mystery of the darkness
incomprehensible, then He said, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”* We so often askk Why: Why must I bear this: Why must I go along this rough pathway: Why have I been called to pass through these sorrows? Lam not rebuking the question, for it comes up too often ‘in my own heart. But by way of contrast come from the fe % ofttime Why of men to the lonely Why of Jesus. With quiet, calm strength He moved along the pathway Of ae
life, and all the duties and actions were true to that chord i of the dominant, struck ere the music was heard by man, Never until He stood in my place in all the depths and
‘meaning of atoning agony did He ask Why: His other — i sayings all breathe the spirit of a perfect confidence. “Knew — a se I Matt. 27. 46 tae
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48 THE LIFE OF ebiiah CHRISTIAN
ye not liat’t pine be Wout My Father’s business:?”* “We must work the works of Him that sent Me.”* “I do always the things that are pleasing to Him.”* I have “accomplished the work which Thou hast given Me to do.”* “Father, into Thy hands I commend My Spirit.”*
That is the first expression of the Christ life toward God. “As He is, even so are we;” and that confidence will grow in proportion as we yield ourselves to the Christ, developing and enlarging every day.
Confidence merges into something more profound, communion with God. Perfect confidence in love creates the desire for fuller knowledge of love, and so the soul passes upon this basis of a perfect confidence into the region of a perpetual communion. There is a reflex action here. The more one trusts God, the deeper and the closer the communion with God becomes. Again consider the life of our Lord, and we shall see that His communion with His Father was unbroken until that dark and mysterious hour of the Cross. In the lone vigils of the mountain-side, in the nights spent in retirement from the thronging crowds, we find Him realising the deepest experience of a communion with God which was perpetual. Do not imagine ‘that Christ’s communion with God was limited, that He only entered into communion when He left the crowd. He lived in communion. He was never out of the Divine presence consciously. His was a life homed in God, He lived and moved and had His being in God. That fact is most clearly stated by Himself. “TI and the Father are one.””®
Alone, “and yet I am not alone, because the Father is ee Me.””?
1Luke 2. 49 2John 9. 4 §John 8. 29 4John 17. 4
5 Luke 23. 46 ®John To 30 7John 16. 32
God was never pee ork tie life a Jus: God. The sense of the importance and the urgency — the Divine enterprises became the very passion of His vee life, and that whole life was therefore poured out in un- is — service. Jesus never rested from His work with — % God. He always rested in His work with God. Do - not Peas that His work for the Father began with the Cross. hat was simply the culmination, the final movement in
one continuous co-operation with God. Every breath He ~: - drew was part of the force doing God’s work. The ee - fact of His living was in itself co-operation with God. ‘om
That was the manifestation of Eternal Life in its expression: e ae
a Reval God, and “as He is, even so are we in this world.” This, then, is the expression of the life of the Christian.
with thé Father: oA “They that trust Him wholly, oe Find Him wholly true.” We cannot try to trust God, but if Christ has His way,; trust will deepen and broaden, and become cece ae Yielding to the indwelling One, we shall find what it is to have perfect confidence in God, because of our bade ing of His. love..: From this foundation of confidence will come the life of communion. Communion means friendship, an interest in -all the things of God, and a conviction of His interest in ‘i: all the things of our lives. Communion will express ie - in familiar intercourse, an intercourse in which each both = speaks and listens. All the highest ideals of friendship ate 2: “realised between the soul and God in communion. You a se wae
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remember the story of the old Scotch woman whose minister was absent from his pulpit, and a stranger preached one Sunday. Somebody asked her how she had enjoyed the message of the stranger. “Oh,” she said, “it was verra guid,” but she strangely missed her own minister. When asked why, she uttered what I think was the rarest and most beautiful compliment ever paid to a minister. “Weel,” she said, “it is not always what oor meenister says, but I never listen to oor meenister without feeling he is so familiar with God.” Oh, to be familiar with God! That is the completion and fruitage of communion.
In the actual experience of such communion the whole. life becomes co-operation with God. There is nothing of greater importance than that we should understand ‘this, that when we are living in true relationship with God, our
whole life becomes co-operation with Him. A Christian
cannot live without working for God. The life is the work. If we believe and understand this, we shall cease making false divisions between the secular and sacred, and shall no longer divide our lives into compartments, one for business, one for pleasure, one for home, one for religion. Everything in the vocation in which you abide with God is co-operation with God, and with the great forces of God, for the bringing in of righteousness, and the establishment of His kingdom.
Such is the Christ life in the Christ, and such is the Christ life in the Christian where the Christian is abandoned to the Christ. It may not be that we have perfectly realised experimentally all the truth, but it does mean that if the life of Christ is in us, we must test ourselves in the light of that revelation, and see what is our duty and responsibility.
Now let us consider what is the expression of the Christ
life toward men. Three words again will help us — sincerity, sympathy, and service. What is sincerity? It is the simplicity of righteousness based upon the sublimity of love. Sincerity simply means perfect simplicity, not the simplicity of superficiality, but the simplicity of sublimity. Is there anything more true of the life of Christ than that of the simplicity of His dealing with men? There was no ulterior motive in what He said to men. There was no mental reserve when He talked to them. There was no
double dealing in His methods with men. His whole
attitude towards them was characterised by freedom from diplomacy, or subtlety. Jesus was the most transparent man that ever lived, clear as the light, simple as the line of truth. He was sincere, and therefore without offence in His dealings with men.
The Christian life always expresses itself in the same way. It is based upon love, and there is no sentinel of righteousness so strict and sttingent as love. To do right because of reputation, to do right because it is the correct thing, to do right to escape criticism, all such motives will fail sooner or later. To do right because I love is the one and only lasting motive. “Love never faileth.”*
And yet more, sympathy, the capacity for comradeship, is the measure of freedom from self-consciousness, which gives me the consciousness of my brother’s consciousness,
“A heart at leisure from itself, To soothe and sympathise.” The measure of our ability to sympathise with some one else is the measure of our freedom from self-consciousness; and the measure of our freedom from self-consciousness is the measure of our love-consciousness. Christ was sur- 11 Cor. 13. 8 at Toy I 4 2 THE LIFE OR THB CHRISTIAN.
charged with this. Sympathy characterised His attitude towards men. Every fibre of His being thrilled to essential love, and because of that He was self-forgetful. It would have been one great transport of delight to see the changes passing over His face. If a woman in trouble came near Him, He was troubled with her trouble. If a child played near Him, He played with the child. A recent writer has declared that Christ never smiled. Who told him so: There are some things so palpable as to be taken for granted, and so the Scripture makes no such declaration. Of course He smiled. No man incapable of smiling loves children, or can be loved by them. This Man took them in His arms, put one of them in the midst of His disciples as a type and pattern of what their life should be. If you do not agree, then I cannot argue, but I know this Man of love smiled often. If we had met Him in those days, He would have been joyful in our joy, or sad with our sorrow. And the measure in which Christ dwells in us, is the measure of our laughter with the man who laughs, and our rejoicing with such as rejoice, and our ability to enter into the realm of sorrow with those passing through its shadow.
The sympathy is practical, and becomes service. It is not a pity which weeps and passes on its way unhelping, but a pity that goes down to the need of the man with power to aid. Such pity is not idle. It is rather a mighty impulse to serve, and the measure of the service is sacrificial. The difference between the service which is Christly and all other may be gauged by the cost to the man who is serving. We begin to express the Christ life when our service to humanity costs us something. It is possible for a very wealthy man without the Spirit of Christ to sign cheques, but when the cheque is signed in blood, Christ is behind
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ES act evil You say, but here is the difference. And yet; think again. You tell me you still love evil. I do not believe it. Are you truly a Christian? Then while it; perfectly true that evil may fascinate you, as it is presented — to you in such guise as to be a temptation, yet get to th e deepest fact of your life. All the while if Christ be there,. you hate the thing which is fascinating you. You would
give anything to be rid of it. Trust that protons; Bs “sciousness. Trust it, and yield to it. In the matter of evil
Ae - dislike for it, an antipathy toward it. The proportion o our devotion to Christ, and of our submission to the ‘ spiration of His life, is the proportion in which we also oles i our love of evil, and sin becomes a hateful thing. —
This antipathy toward evil issues in antagonism. ne also we ee union with Christ... Christ definitely refused 1 Jobn 14. 30 the Er:
to let evil alone. So will every Christian. “The plea of evil,” as Mr. Watkinson says, is, “let us alone, Jesus Thou Son of God” (cf. Matt. 8. 29, Mark 1.24). This is its cry to-day, in the city, in the nation, in our own heart. “Let us alone,” do not interfere with us. And the true Christian is always saying, “Come out.” So surely as the Christ life is in us, with merciless, ruthless, and pitiless determination our life will be poured out in unceasing attack upon the strongholds of evil in the city, in the nation, in the home, and everywhere. In the wilderness Jesus said, “Get thee hence, Satan,”* and He will never cease His work until the enemy is finally cast out. If our life be Christ’s life, then we can never sign a truce with evil. We cannot sit down and be indifferent to its presence.
And then thank God for the last word. The Christ life was that of authority over evil. Because Christ has won the battle already, the life of His follower shares His authority. It is most interesting to notice in the study of the life
of Jesus that from that wilderness temptation on to the end, He never argued with the devil again. Whenever He came into contact with him, or with the evil spirits, it was with the tone of authority, and the authority was immediately obeyed. The Christ life in the believer sets him in antipathy to evil, and gives him a marvellous and mystic authority over it. If we will let Him speak through us, then He through us, and we through Him, can master every form of evil.
This then is the expression of the Christ life, and there can be no simulation of it. I cannot imitate it. It is possible to make flowers of wax, but the difference between them and the flowers of God that bloom and blow is the difference
1 Matt. 4. 10
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ITS EBXPRESSION $5
between finite and infinite beauty. It is possible to paint a picture of some great landscape, but after all it is but a gathering of colours, and the flinging of them with genius upon a canvas; and the difference between the picture and the landscape is the difference between the copyist and the Creator. It is possible to imitate the Christian graces and virtues, but the difference between such imitation and the actual Christian life is the difference between base meta’ and the coinage of the kingdom of God. We cannot imitate this life. Our imitation will lack life. There may be some things which appear to be remarkable imitations of Christianity, but bring them and the Christ together, and you will at once find the infinite distance. There is only one way in which such life may be expressed and that is by the indwelling Christ Himself outworking all the beauties of His character through the duties and activities of the life of His child.
And yet a final word. Is the life present? Then let there be no discouragement because as yet the blossom and the fruitage are not perfect. “First the blade, and then the ear, and then the full grain in the ear.”* Thank God if the blade be peeping above the brown soil to-day. It is the prophecy and potentiality of Christ-likeness which at last shall be found in perfection even in our lives.