Commentary on 1 John, Commentary · Chapter 5 · Verse 2
1 JOHN 5.2.
By this we know that we love th… children of God, when we love God, and … …mmandements.
IN the fourth Chapter the Apoſtle had exhorted us to the unfained love of our Brethren; now he proceeds to a word of direction, ho… … now whether we love them or no.
Hereby we know, &c. It was the ſcope of this holy Apoſtle … ſuch things as by the knowledge whereof their joy might be full, and with his exhortations he mingles divers marks and ſignes, that ſo knowing the eſtate, they might have fulneſſe of …y. Now therefore, becauſe love of … Brethren was a courſe of full Joy, yet if we knew not whether we loved them … no, it would …e matt… …f little …, therefore he tells us how we …, to ſati…fie ſome weak Chriſtians th… might be doubtfull, … …ny we kn…w that … love the children of …, when we love … his commandeme…s. A right Preachers …. Firſt he ſayes down inſtructions and duties, and then layes down ….
In the words two ….
Firſt, The expediency of our knowledge of our love to our Brethren, which is here implyed, elſe he would not have laid down marks to know … by.
Secondly, The marks of diſcerning our love, which are two.
1. Love of God.
2. Obedience to the commandements of God.
Doct. It is a behovefull point to a Chriſtian …s comfort, not onelyonly to love Gods children, but to know that he loves.
The ſcope of his writing was to fulfill … was a means of th… …e teacheth us this main duty to love our Breth… … onelyonly ſo, but … how to know it. Iſa. 48.17. I am the Lord thy God the holy … teacheth thee to profit. Why then ſurely if God teach us ſuch a point … …his, its a way of profiting, and therefore to walk in the knowledge of our love to Gods …aints, is a profitable way.
Reaſ. 1. From the aſſurance it will give us of our good eſtate before God, and of Gods protection of us in ſuch an eſtate … therefore if we know this, we know we are in a good eſtate. The love of our Brethren is an undoubted argument of our paſſage from death to life, 1 John 3.14. Therefore the knowing of this, muſt needs give us much comfort; nay, it not onelyonly gives me evidence, but it manifeſts to others that our eſtate is good, John 13.35. Now, if we did not know out … courages a Chriſtian that others … ſuſpect himſelfe; thus …
Further … this … God will …eive … God. … God … …on, ….10. …
Reaſ. 2. From … they may … 22.6. They … love her. If therefore God … we … him, and his …, we know we fall under a covenant of … I will bleſſed …m that bleſſe thee, Gen. 22.3. … contra… Let them be … and turned back that have … will to Zion; let … be to the c…en on the …, thereof the m…er filleth …ot his lay, neither … paſſe … God … …0.5, th… Implying, that lives in an eſtate … of … ſhall never proſper in the outward or inward man, … ſhall … as the corn on the houſe top; and as God … him not, … no… from him, ſo man bleſſeth him…, becauſe he is turned from him, …od its … ſhall be turned b… If we …oe not love our Brethren, every thing … again … A man that wants a ſpirit of love, hath no ground … for bleſſing, he withers as the corn on the houſe … hot weather, … no root. If a man have not his heart ſoftned … …ove … his Brother, theſe is ſomething within him which will not ſuffer … there want … and moyſture, upon which he …ight proſpe…; … grow… … b…de he yields no ſervice en… to God …an. … hopes the ſpa… …f love … bleſſings.
Reaſ. 2. … and comfortableneſſe of … dealing … is ſincerely affected … 2 Cor. 1.12. … we … they, and …ad to … carefully, and pai… … him, Thy corn was not currant, or … was not fully … …oth, he ſtands confidently out, and it comforts him much: So … when joy, when others ſuſpect his love to them, which is his debt, Ro…. 13.8, …hy, if he know he hath pa… it the… to the full, and in current duties of love, … ſatisfies …: This is our re…cing, the teſtimony … conſcien….
Ʋſe 1. It reproves the … of men, when they content themſelves with the love of the … but are not ſolicitous to know whether that way be a way of … hav… much ſelfe lo… and falſe love … may eaſily … …ves. All this have I don… …ith the young … 9.…. … …oncei…ed of himſelfe, an… his is … are … …waded we doe ſuch things in lo…, when i… nothing ſo … take … upon truſt have not ſo much wiſdome as thoſe that … they, the… …rely before they pay it. Why, everyday we that a … of love to …, le… … therefore we pay our debt in currant love. God … not onelyonly tha… we …ould love our a …rethren, but that we ſhould know… …
Ʋſe 2. Of …, not onelyonly to … down …es to people, But withall to lay … the…of whereby … may know it. This was St. Johns practice, and he doth … their joy.
… commandents, is an undoubted …
… to God before we can … to …ee … when … Prov. 6.21. as the apple of …
Reaſ. … not his life … againſt his Brother Herod … looſe form … at … of Gods … our Breth… … cannot … from … from the other.
… love of God is an evidence that we love … Brethren, ſo… a … not God, …e ſo was not his Brother, … be for ſelfe … on … grounds, and its … civill love not a … Brother love. 2 … 10.…5, 16. For Je… … King, ſo … with …, a good man, he would think it …, but … it was that he might … zeal for the Lord …, and to w…k out … …ands. So … no means part … Jacob was not this great love? No, he … found it did advantage his eſtate.
Ʋſe 1. A ground of tryall, whether … love to our Brethren …e unfained or no; ſuch as we may be bold to ſay, I know I love them. … thou affected towards God? Doſt thou look … and wouldſt thou … his commandements as thy took precious … life, that thou wouldſt part with thy life ſooner thou them … it thus, … ſincere and unfained Many … their … very good, becauſe they finde their hearts love Gods children, and favour … But exee… you have … …eart fea… God, making … … ment, … not … …ouring …ligion that will … the love of God and obedience to his commandement be … otherwiſe you may affect Gods children, be … you … harmleſſe as Pil…to did Chriſt, gave … …ting… … the … of Caeſar wa… a ſigne the fear of God … enemy to Chriſt, onelyonly out of conviction of conſcience, … he was a juſt man. … reſpects may many times move a man …, the very ſence of … ſings and helps by th…; as La…a… …. But this is far from tru…; otherwiſe, if we love them in obedience to God and his commandements, its an evidence of … ſincere ….
Ʋſe 2. For … that deſire to know that they love their Brethren. … conſtantly conſcionable of your obedience … commandements, and love him, and then you may be aſſured … to your Brethren is ſincere. Break your obedience to God …, and your … to him, and then you will ſoon break off you… … Brethren, a… … and … did, bu… …intain obedience to Go… … Brethren.
Ʋſe 3. Of comfort to Gods ſervants … good evidence of their unfained love to their Brethren, If God give that … to love God and keep his commandement. Its our an… …e if thy love hath this ſuperſcription on one ſide, Love of God, one the other ſide the …ce to Gods commandements, it …ll prove currant, before God … a ſufficient breaſt plate againſt all …iſconſtructions of the world …y this we …ew our love to our Brother, if we love God and keep his commandements.