The Preaching of John

John was a faithful minister of Christ, bearing earnest testimony for his Lord on every suitable occasion. He had not enjoyed the training of the schools, his early life having been passed by the Sea of Galilee in the society of uncultivated fishermen; but, by association with the great Teacher, he had obtained the highest education which mortal man can receive. He drank eagerly at the fountain of wisdom, and then sought to lead others to that «well of water springing up into everlasting life.»

He had a clear understanding of the character and mission of Jesus. The evidence that the despised Nazarene was indeed the Messiah for whom Israel had so long waited, seemed to him so clear that none need walk in the darkness of error. But the Jews would not believe. The apostle’s heart was grieved as he saw that the prejudice and hatred which they so obstinately cherished, were bringing ruin upon the nation, and destroying their hope of everlasting life; that their own blindness, pride, superstition, and ignorance of the Scriptures, were riveting upon their souls fetters that would never be broken. Yet, notwithstanding their stubborn resistance to the truth, John ceased not to warn them, and to present Jesus as their only hope of salvation.

In preaching the words of life, John spoke with great power and feeling. The simplicity of his words, the sublime power of the truths he uttered, and the spiritual fervor that characterized his teachings, gave him access to all classes. He seemed ever to be imbued with the Holy Spirit. The wisdom with which he spoke caused his words to drop as the dew, softening and subduing the heart. It was his constant aim to bring the minds of the people up to grasp the unseen; yet even believers were unable to fully comprehend the sacred mysteries of divine truth unfolded in his discourses.

John believed in God as a child believes in a kind and tender father. His great love expressed in giving his Son to die for a lost race seemed to the apostle too great for language to express, a mystery which finite minds might not fathom. «Behold,» he exclaims, «what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.» He was lost in amazement that the plan of salvation, devised at such a cost to Heaven, should be refused by those for whom so great a sacrifice had been made. His favorite theme was the infinite love of Christ. When speaking on this subject, he forgot self; and the love and trust that pervaded his own heart gave a thrilling power to his words.

He had a keen sense of the love that should exist among Christian brethren; and he urged this love upon his children in the faith as an essential characteristic of the followers of Christ. While the heart is destitute of Christian charity, all pretensions to the Christian name are vain. «He that loveth not his brother, whom he hath seen, how can he love God, whom he hath not seen?»

The apostle was a teacher of practical holiness, giving, in his sermons and writings, unerring rules for the conduct of Christians. He declared in unmistakable terms that to be a Christian is to be Christlike. It is to be pure in heart and correct in morals; in no case should one rest satisfied with an empty profession. His own life was an illustration of his teaching, both in practical holiness and in love to God and man. It was his one great aim to conform to the will of God. He followed his Saviour so closely, and had such a sense of his purity and exalted holiness, that in contrast, his own character appeared exceedingly defective, and his humility was deep and genuine.

Although exposed to persecution and peril, and meeting many hindrances in his work, John was spared to the church for many years. Evil men, instigated by Satan, plotted to cut short the useful life of this man of God; but holy angels protected him from their malice. The church needed his testimony, and he was permitted to stand as a witness for Christ.

The apostle lived to see the gospel he loved preached far and near, and thousands eagerly accepting its gracious offer of pardon. But the joy of seeing sinners brought to Christ was not unmixed with sadness as he saw many come into the church who were not thoroughly converted, and who brought with them pernicious errors. Some were deceivers. While professing to believe the gospel, they denied Christ, and taught false doctrines; and the times were full of peril for the infant church. Some claimed that faith in Christ released them from the necessity of obedience to the law. Others held that the law was binding, also the Jewish customs and ceremonies, and that the observance of these was sufficient to insure salvation without the blood of Christ. They held that Jesus was a good man, like the apostles, but denied his divinity.

John saw the danger to which the church was exposed, and he acted with promptness and decision. The emissaries of Satan sought through misrepresentation and falsehood to stir up opposition and hinder his work. But John had been intimately associated with Christ; he had listened to his teachings and witnessed his mighty miracles; and he bore a convincing testimony that made the falsehoods of his enemies of no effect. He wrote to the churches, exhorting them not to give the leaders in these heresies the least encouragement, and by his personal influence and his zeal for the truth he hedged up their way, and saved many souls from ruin.

To one of the helpers in the gospel, a lady of good repute and extensive influence, he wrote: «Many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver, and an antichrist. Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward. Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him Godspeed; for he that biddeth him Godspeed, is partaker of his evil deeds.»

He also taught, in the most unequivocal terms, the binding force of the law of ten commandments. «Whosoever committeth sin,» he said, «transgresseth also the law; for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not; whosoever sinneth [transgresseth the law] hath not seen him, neither known him.»

The apostle testifies that those who profess to know God, and to be living without sin, and yet break the divine law, give the lie to their profession. His epistles breathe a spirit of love; yet when he comes in contact with this class, he does not hesitate to reprove them sharply, and to warn them of their fearful deception. He says: «He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.» «If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth; but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.» «Little children, let no man deceive you. He that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning.»

Here the apostle speaks in plain terms, as he deemed the subject demanded. In this age of boasted liberality, such plainness would be branded as bigotry. «You must have charity,» is the cry everywhere, especially from those who profess sanctification. But charity is too pure to cover an unconfessed sin. The apostle teaches that while we should manifest Christian courtesy, we are authorized to call sin and sinners by their right names, and that this is consistent with true charity. While we are to love souls for whom Christ died, and labor for their salvation, we should not make a compromise with sin. We are not to unite with those who are rebelling against divine authority, and call this charity.

The character of God has not changed. He is the same jealous God to-day as when he gave his law upon Sinai, and wrote it with his own finger on the tables of stone. Those who trample upon his holy law may say, «I am sanctified;» but to be indeed sanctified, and to claim sanctification, are two different things. John enjoyed the blessing of genuine sanctification; but he did not claim to be sinless. He sought perfection in the way that Christ indicated in his prayer for his disciples: «Sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth.»

The errors that crept into the early church, and threatened its prosperity, have never been extinct. They are peculiarly active at the present time, constituting one of the perils of the last days. And God requires us to stand, as did John in his time, unflinchingly for the truth. With the love of the truth burning in our hearts, we shall «earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints.» —