PAGE

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

200-214

LECTURE XIV.

SPIRITUAL POWERS IN OLD TIMES AND IN MODERN TIMES.

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

E

CONTENTS.

who have left the world, considered-The notion of communications

from personal friends, considered-The mystery of Memory-The

spiritual world made utterly frivolous by those who deal with its

secrets in our days-How the Apostles treated the workers with

spiritual enchantments in their times-The deliverance from evil

spirits, what it meant-The Apostles, asserters of human rights

against Men who were trafficking for their own reputation or pelf

-The Apostle's test of Spirits, whether they were of God,' considered

-The two possible meanings for the words, We are of God; he that

is of God heareth us, &c.'-Which was St. John's' meaning ?-The

words, 'Beloved, let us love one another; Love is of God,' an answer

-Whether those words confine Love to the Church-Difficulty of

love within a small circle greater than within a larger one-The

assertion 'God is Love,' not agreeable to our evil natures, but most

offensive to them-It is not ecstatic language, but the scientific ex-

planation of all previous revelations, itself the final revelation-The

attempt to make the Incarnation and Death of Christ a limitation

of this principle, instead of a proclamation of it, how crushed by

St. John-God's love the only foundation of all human love-All

spiritual influences which cannot be referred to this source, must be

futile and evil

xvii

PAGE

215-235

The words, The Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the World,'

considered in reference to the subject of the last lecture-St. Paul's

Speech to the idolaters at Athens-The blessing of those who

believed that in God they lived, and moved, and had their being-

Men's feelings respecting God illustrated by their thoughts of a

judgment-St. John's boldness in the prospect of judgment-The

warrant for it-Words,' There is no Fear in Love,' considered-The

apparent limitation of them, why it does not apply to that love of

which St. John speaks-Words, We love Him because He loveth

us,' considered-Do they refer to the 'motive of gratitude?'-Love

again asserted to be the obedience to a commandment -Love, in

our day, supposed to be incompatible with fervent hatred-It is

worth nothing unless it be fiery, and intolerant of what is unloving

-How we may become worse than our forefathers-How we may

become better than our forefathers
236-251

b

LECTURE XVI.

FAITH AND LOVE THEIR RELATION TO EACH OTHER AND TO THE

WORLD.

Love and Faith represented as two graces imparted to men—'
-Their

respective values a subject of continual dispute - St. John's method

of treating them altogether different-The words 'Every one who

believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God,' considered-St. John

sets Faith as high as St. Paul in the Epistle to the Romans-He

places Faith in the same subordination to Love as St. Paul does in

the Epistle to the Corinthians-The words, ' He that loveth Him that

begat loveth Him that is begotten of Him,' explain the previous

words,' He that loveth not his brother, how can he love God?'-Ground

of all love to men in God-Test of our allegiance to God, the love

of man-The war with the world-How Faith wins the victory-

What faith wins it

PAGE

252-265

The different worlds in which the Ephesian Christians found themselves

-The actual victory of the Son of God over these worlds-Cause of

this victory--Can it be ascertained by speaking of Christianity and

its high moral code ?--How St. John speaks of it-Words, 'Jesus

Christ came by water and blood,' considered--How the Gospels ex-

plain them-How the history of Christendom explains them--How

the Spirit witnesses with the Water and the Blood-The spurious

text, its irrelevancy to the subject of the passage-How these three

witnesses on earth explain the blessings of Christendom, and its

sins The worth of Testimony-Testimonies of God and Man-Out-

ward and inward Testimonies

266-283

LECTURE XVIII.

THE NATURE OF PRAYER-VENIAL AND MORTAL SINS.

St. John writes to believers in the Son of God that they may believe
in Him-What this means-He declares Eternal Life to be given-
Why then does he speak of Prayer ?—Prayer part of the gift of Life—

'Praying according to God's will,' not the natural notion of prayer-

Why it is the complete idea of prayer-How it gives the only prac-

tical solution of the problem about the existence of Evil-The limi-

tation to the efficacy of prayer-Mortal sins-The doctrine which

has been grounded on the Apostle's words—These words examined

by the light of their context-How the Apostle avoids all defini-

tions of Mortal sins-Motives for defining them-The subject con-

nected with excommunication-How St. Paul treats that subject—

Consequences of the Romish doctrine-Cure of it.
284-302

What St. John says we may be sure of—(1) 'He that is born of God

doth not commit sin'-How we arrive at this knowledge-How the

division of persons as believers and unbelievers robs us of it-How

an ETHICAL SCIENCE is possible-(2) 'We know that we are of God,

and that the world lieth in wickedness'-This language considered—

Illustration from Galileo's saying, 'Nevertheless it moves'-How

we may imitate his boldness-What we may affirm-No truth de-

pends on majorities-Uncertainty not certainty leads to persecution

-(3) 'We know that the Son of God is come, and has given us an

understanding,' &c. -How the Ephesians arrived at this knowledge;

how we may arrive at it-St. John lived to proclaim the living and

true God and to witness against Idolatry
303-315

LECTURE XX.

TRUTH IN THE WOMAN AND THE MAN.

What the early Church would have expected in a letter from St. John
to an Elect Lady-What is actually found there-The Lady a
Mother-TRUTH, the place it holds in St. John's Ethics-Truth said
by the doctors to be found only in Propositions—The Truth of which
the Apostle speaks in a PERSON-It is Truth in which we dwell, and
which dwells in us-The command not to bid God speed to the false
Teacher, considered-Its application to the first age, and to ours—
Wherein the Second and Third Epistles are alike—Wherein they differ

-Characteristics of the woman and the man-Truth, the founda-

tion of both their lives-Question respecting the feminine and mas-

culine virtues-The Life of our Lord has not exalted the former

above the latter, but has brought them into one-What this Life

shows to be the end and aim of Human Life-Is it Happiness? is

it Perfection? is it Truth?

NOTE ON POSITIVISM

PAGE

316-341

343