"And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments."

"But whoso keepeth His word, in him verily is the love of God perfected; hereby know we that we are in Him."

" We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." (1 Jno. 2:3, 5; 3:14.)

It can never be held too simply that the foundation upon which our souls alone can rest is a work wrought for sinners, so that as sinners we may build on it. We have not to look in at ourselves for the evidences of being born again, in order to know we are. The moment we do so, we are off the ground of simple faith, and involved in a process of reasoning which naturally and necessarily produces doubt and anxiety of soul. Have we not deceitful hearts? Have we not a subtle adversary ever ready to take advantage of our readiness to flatter ourselves,-to hush our souls into a false peace ? Thus, while the careless may be readily persuaded that all is well, the more sincere and earnest we are, the more perplexed and anxious we must be. No word of God seems there to be to throw its light into the gloom and dispel it. Granted we are "justified by faith," who shall assure me that I have it? Granted, "he who believeth on Him hath everlasting life," what word of God settles for me that I believe in Him ?

True, there are marks-evidences:Scripture gives such. The application of them to myself is the difficulty. Scripture does not settle that I have the marks. That must be a reasoning of my own, prejudiced naturally in my own favor, blind as I often find myself, and with the solemn utterance of divine wisdom before me, " He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool." (Prov. 28:26.)

Thank God, to no such reasoning are we left. He who " justifieth the ungodly," because for ungodly ones Christ died, has assured me that, without need of further reasonings, all who trust in Him are blessed. (Ps. 2:12.) Without any trust in myself of any kind, I may trust One who died for the ungodly. My title to confide in Him, my Savior, is thus not my godliness but my ungodliness. And "to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly,, his faith is counted for righteousness." (Rom. 4:5.) Observe, it is not here, "that justifieth the believer"-true as that is,-but justifieth the ungodly; for what my faith sees if it look within is not itself or its virtues, but that ungodliness which is but the dark background on which shine forth, in all their glory, the virtues of Him who loved me and died for me when I was only that.

Sweet and precious faith, solid and unshaken, that trusts not itself but Christ ! My ungodliness is no delusion. No deceitful heart betrays me there ! No word of the old liar am I listening to in that, but the true and faithful word of the living God. So, too, that Jesus died for the ungodly, that same word is my warrant. Once again, then and there it bids me " trust in Him," and tells me it is no deception-can be none-to know my blessedness. Test every link there as you will, it is a threefold cord, not quickly broken.

Various are the objections, however, raised to this. The truths of Scripture themselves, torn from their proper connection and misapplied, become apparently the most formidable of all. Texts, too, no less than truths, used after (I must say) the most careless fashion, lend seeming authority to what is simply sad, injurious error. Who has not heard, for instance, the words, "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith ; prove your own selves," taken and dwelt upon as the plainest possible command to look into one's self for evidences of being born again ? And how many even now need to be told that the whole sentence, as the apostle wrote it, conveys exactly the opposite thought ? And yet that is the truth. We have only to remember that a certain part of this sentence is a parenthesis, and, for the moment laying it aside, we have, " Since ye seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, . . . examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith, prove your own selves." They had got in themselves the proof of Christ speaking by the apostle, for themselves were the fruit of it. How could they doubt whether Christ had spoken by Paul, when through Paul He had spoken to them? If they questioned that, they might well question the reality of their own conversion. But that he was persuaded they could not do ; and so he goes on to ask, in the very next sentence, "Know ye not, your own selves, that Jesus Christ is in you ?" As much as to say, Do you need to look?

This passage, then, so often quoted for it, certainly does not prove what it is quoted for-that it is right and needful to examine ourselves to see if we be Christians. To look in for peace is never right. It is the sure road to doubt, with the earnest, and to get off the ground of real confidence ; for it is always well to doubt self, and we are never called to have faith in ourselves. There is no word of God that I am born again; but if I know myself a sinner, there is abundant assurance that I may trust Jesus as one. If I cannot trust myself-even my faith,-I can trust Him.

But then, are there no evidences? I have already said, assuredly there are. The texts that stand at the head of this paper are the undeniable proof of it. The question is simply, When and how do I obtain them ? and what use do I put them to ?

It would be a poor thing to say that this faith we are speaking of wrought nothing one could be conscious of in the soul. It would be a poor account to give of faith, and no honor to it, and no comfort to the possessor of it to believe or find it so. Would it be comfort to say or think that I should never be conscious of true love to God, or true love to my brethren ? I think there would be as little of comfort as of truth. " We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." We know, then, we are conscious of, our love.

But how differs this from building upon evidences ?

In this way, that such evidences are only possible to one who is already building upon Christ.

Let me prove and illustrate this. The seventh of Luke may supply us both with proof and illustration from our Lord's own words.

" A certain creditor had two debtors:the one owed him five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both."

There is the divine picture of divine forgiveness. Two debtors, differing in the amount of their debt, differing not at all in this-they had nothing to pay. Beloved reader, have you ever stood before God so? If you have not, you shall. In the very truth of your condition as He knows, and as He has pronounced it. Solemn, most solemn anticipation, that! What must be the reality ? But it shall be; and your entire lot for eternity depends upon this, when and where you shall meet Him so-whether in the day of grace and salvation, or in the day of account and doom.
But, O beggared and bankrupt soul, thou hast not even a promise to make more, thou art so lost! not a right feeling, nor a sigh or tear that thou canst take comfort in any more ! bring that hard heart thou canst neither break nor soften, and set thee down in the presence of this Speaker, and see and own thy God in Him ! Listen now, and let thine ear drink in those precious words, "When they had NOTHING to pay,"-was ever a sad truth so sweetly uttered ?-" he,"-mark who this "he" is in our Lord's intent!-"HE frankly forgave them both."

How sweet and simple this utterance ! Does it need, think you, the ransacking of my thoughts and feelings with reference to it, to know it is for me ? Nay, the Lord cuts off the thought of that by the question that follows. "Tell me, therefore," says He to Simon, "which of them will love him most?" A question that even a Pharisee has to answer with " I suppose that he to whom he forgave most." Jesus said unto him, " Thou hast rightly judged."

Thus even human experience is competent to give the answer as to how love is to be produced in the soul. By the knowledge of love. "We love Him because He first loved us." And here in the seventh of Luke, how is this love shown ? By full and free forgiveness. The knowledge of forgiveness it was that caused in the heart of the debtor the love of him who forgave him to spring up.

Now, weaken the certainty of that knowledge, and you weaken the spring of all this feeling. If I am doubting the reality of the forgiveness which I have from God, will it have no effect in hindering the outflow of my love to Him? According to our Lord's words, it surely will. Or will my heart go forth in full, conscious delight in Him at the very moment I am doubting whether He may not banish me from His face forever ? And if I am not doubting, I have surely no need to examine my heart for evidences.

No, Scripture has, in perfect knowledge of what we are, and in perfect wisdom as to how we need to be dealt with, decided this. An apostle who came short of none in entireness of devotion to One blessed object, he who could say, " To me to live is Christ," gives us the very secret of that life given to Him, in the words, "And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

Nay, it is "as the elect of God, holy and beloved," we are exhorted to " put on" the things which suit such. (Col. 3:) It is God's way, and good, to give all the blessing freely, which is ours in Christ, and then say, " Now walk worthy." How different from spelling out, or seeking to spell out, in the worthiness of my walk, whether I have the blessing !

It is as the love flows in, the love flows out. "If any man thirst," says our Lord again,-thirst, mark there is your title to Christ in all His fullness,-" If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink; and he that believeth in Me (so having drunk, remember), out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." (Jno. 7:)

Well then, we must drink,-drink,-DRINK ! Man can create nothing,-no, not love in his own heart! he must receive and enjoy, and the living waters shall flow forth. We shall be conscious of love as we are conscious of His love, and how it has been manifested in His giving Himself for us.

But how about, then, "We know we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren "?
Why, simply, so we do. But it is not the first way of knowing. It is the knowledge of a saint who has drunk in the love of Christ into his soul, and knows what he has got. But it is not the way a doubting soul acquires peace. Peace is got by believing, not our own feelings, which as a foundation are all untrustworthy, but the word of God about the blood of Jesus.

But still there is a solemn use and need-be for the apostle's statements here. Who can read his- words, " Hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments," without feeling he surely is thinking of some who say they know Him, and are not keeping His commandments. So indeed he is; and if there were need in the apostle's days of testing the tree by its fruit, how much more is there now? Thus, if I find still professors, orthodox enough in form of speech, but whose lives show nothing of the power of the gospel, I am entitled to take them up upon the ground of their professed confidence in Christ, and say, Are you keeping His commandments ? Do you love the brethren ? No other ground is it possible to take with such, for their profession is all right and orthodox. Now, if the soul is really firm in Christ, it can afford to look at itself, and stand a shake. If after all it is not building on Christ, the conscience may get alarmed, and the man find out his condition.

But it is quite another thing to say to one who does not take the ground of confidence, but of doubt, " Do you keep His commandments ? " There I should be doing positive mischief and wrong to speak so. Such a soul wants Christ to confirm, not self to shake, him. And I must deal with him accordingly. Only can he keep commandments when he keeps the first of all-the loving God. Only can he love God as he knows he is loved. Only can I exhort him to holiness when I can do it upon the ground of his being " elect of God, holy and beloved." Otherwise Christ is made to men a more vigorous law than the law of Moses ; but not so of God.

What we want is " rightly to divide the word of truth "- to apply it as itself teaches. The Lord Himself apply it, beloved reader, to every one who has need, and whose eye may rest upon this paper.