The Epistles of St. John

The Children of a Family going out into the world-Dangers of the
change-Why we should rejoice in it-The World an Order-How
the Order becomes a Disorder-God's love of the World-How
can we be told not to love the world seeing we are to be like
Him-Effect of the World upon us—Testimony of Wordsworth—

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--Man between God and the World-Man becoming the servant

and child of the world loses his strength, his freedom, his power of

appreciating the world, his sense of beauty, his capacity of enjoy-

ment, all God's love of the world-Forms in which the love of the

world in its evil sense presents itself-St. John's classification illus-

trated-Its practical value-Possibility of loving the outward world

with a true and divine love-Quotation from Cowper
117-133

LECTURE IX.

THE LAST TIME; THE CHRIST; THE ANTICHRIST; THE CHRISM.

Opinion that the Apostles made mistakes about the coming of the last

days and of God's Judgment-Reasons against that opinion-Periods

in History-Ancient History according to Guizot the period of

national divisions-Modern History the period of Unity and Univer-

this doctrine-The Scriptural division into the period before and after

the fall of Jerusalem, favours it-That division explains the uniform

language of the New Testament-The destruction of Jerusalem a

revelation of the Christ and of His Universal Kingdom-That

revelation of Christ the end of an age and the beginning of an

age-This earth always contemplated by the Apostle, as the seat

of Christ's kingdom-The Revelation of the Christ contemporane-

ous with the Revelation of the Antichrist, and of many Antichrists

-Characteristics of the Christ-Characteristics of the Antichrist

-The anointing from the Holy One-How it enabled humble

people to 'know all things'—That phrase illustrated-' No lie of the

Truth'-That phrase illustrated-How we may use St. John's words

in our time
134-151

LECTURE X.

THE PLACE OF THE DOCTRINE OF THE FATHER, THE SON, AND THE

SPIRIT, IN CHRISTIAN ETHICS.

The expression, He that denieth the Son hath not the Father,' illus-
trated-How the Apostles regarded a Christ who is not a Son, but
an independent being, as an Antichrist-How they regarded a Self-
Willed, Independent God, as a false God-How the idea of a Father
and a Son was inseparable from the idea of God-How the Uni-
versal Baptism was into the Name of the Father, of the Son, and

CONTENTS.

of the Spirit, in whom they are One-'Abiding in the Father and

the Son,' this phrase illustrated-The Eternal Life the blessing of

this abiding-Those who withdrew from the fellowship of the Church

denied the existence of a common life for all, of a divine life for

any-Connexion of the Anointing of the Spirit with the Unity of

the Church illustrated by the 133d Psalm-This Anointing never

withdrawn-Connexion of Theology with Morals-Pope's line, 'He

can't be wrong whose life is in the right,' considered and vin-

dicated

152-167

LECTURE XI.

HOPE; ITS GROUND, OBJECT, AND EFFECT.

The Death of souls-How is it to be explained-The root at which

Life may be renewed-The discovery of this root by the Jews and

Heathens to whom the Gospel was first preached-The command 'to

abide in it,' illustrated from St. John's Gospel-The words 'that ye

may not be ashamed before Him at His coming,' illustrated-The pas-

sage from natural to human emblems-The phrase, 'He that doeth

righteousness is born of Him,' illustrated-This divine birth the

ground of righteous acts-Also the ground of Hope-Hope directed

to the appearing of Christ and His the manifestation of the Father

whose children we are- -That appearing treated by the Apostles as

no less certain than the rising of the Sun-Hope therefore not de-

pendent on contingencies-Hope of that which is 'to be' a continual

witness of that which 'is'-Hope the means of purification-All

therefore should be encouraged to hope.

168-183

LECTURE XII.

THE DEVIL AND HIS WORKS.

The Accuser or Slanderer-Was St. John following an old Hebrew
tradition in speaking of such a Spirit?-Experience of thoughts
that are presented to our Minds-Whence do they come?—To say
that we are responsible for them is strictly true, but nothing to the
purpose-Suggestion of a Crime involves no obligation to commit it
-The words, 'The Devil sinneth from the beginning,' considered —
Do they involve the notion of Evil being as ancient as Good?—They
merely assert the presence of Temptation to Evil in every period of

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the World's History-That fact testified of in the Old Testament--

But the Tempter little spoken of there-Why the New Testament

alludes to him so continually-Christ, the answerer of slanders and

accusations against God, against the race of Man, against each mem-

ber of that race-The Good Seed produces only Good, the Evil Seed

only Evil-Why this statement appears to involve a contradiction-

St. John no Sentimentalist-Not a Witness for the pleasing side of

Morality and of the Gospel, but for facts, be they agreeable or dis-

agreeable
184-199

LECTURE XIII.

RELATION OF LOVE TO RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Justice and Mercy supposed to be characteristics of two different kinds

of Men-Proof from experience that each implies the other-Notion

that the Righteousness of the Old Testament stands in some sort of

opposition to the Love of the New-Answer from the story of the

First Murder-The command, Love one another,' implied in the

relation of Cain to Abel-Law could not be broken without an out-

rage upon Love-But if the Cainites become the Majority?--how

St. John deals with this question-The nature of transgression

cannot be decided by Statistics-The appeal to experience and con-

science-The state of Death; the state of Life-How we know

Love-Christ's Death in what sense a Definition of Love-How

Self-Sacrifice is proved to be the Law of Human Life; not an act

of Supererogation-Proofs that the Conscience of Men in the Old

World and in the New confirms this idea of it-The words, 'How

dwelleth the Love of God in you?' illustrated—' Loving in word and

tongue'-How to assure our hearts-The condemnation and acquittal

of the heart-The commandment to believe and to do

LECTURE XIV.✔

SPIRITUAL POWERS IN OLD TIMES AND IN MODERN TIMES.

200-214

Interest of Working Men in the Substitution of Living Language for
School Language-That Living Language very awful-Why it is
impossible for us to avoid the subject of spiritual powers and influ-
ences-St. John's recognition of them as widely diffused, and as need-
ing examination-What comes under the head of spiritual powers
or influences- The notion of communications from celebrated men

CONTENTS.