[March 22d, 1863.]
I. Who is the conqueror, , but the believer, ? The word world in the Scriptures means, 1. The material universe. 2. Our earth. 3. What they contain, and all that they contain. 4. Their rational inhabitants, and when spoken of the earth, mankind. 5. The wicked as opposed to the Church. 6. What characterizes the world, i.e., men, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. 7. Things seen and temporal; all things, the fashion of which is passing away.
II. Overcoming the world is therefore a very comprehensive work. It includes, 1. Successfully resisting the influence of the things of the world, as seductions to sin, its wealth, its pleasures and its honors.
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Raising ourselves above all under the influence of the things seen and temporal, and living under the influence of the things unseen and eternal.
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Taking the word “world” to mean men, and especially the ungodly, to overcome the world is to overcome their undue and pernicious influence over our opinions and over our conduct. The force of public opinion and passion is almost irresistible. The dominating influence of the philosophy, of the maxims and customs of the world, is of all things the hardest to overcome.
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The world is the kingdom of darkness; it is Satan’s kingdom. To overcome it, is to overcome error, ignorance, vice, evil, in short, in all its forms. This, therefore, is a stupendous work. Think of a solitary soul—and in one sense every soul is solitary, it is isolated, having its own life, consciousness and character—think of such a soul in a world, in a universe of evil, operated on by all things sensible, by all other souls, itself corrupt, its own nature in alliance with its enemies, and it will be seen that to overcome the world is indeed a work exceeding all human power.
III. How is this work to be accomplished?
- Not by asceticism. 2. Not by philosophy. 3. Not by the power of reason, conscience, or the will. 4. Not by Theism. 5. Not by faith in the word of God in the general. 6. Not by the Church, its rites, its ministry, or its worship. But, 7. By believing that Jesus is the Son of God. What does this mean? and why does this faith secure us the victory over the world?
What is it to believe that Jesus is the Son of God? (1.) That the man Jesus, the person who appeared and was recognized under that name, was the eternal Son of God; that he was God manifest in the flesh. This includes faith in his divinity and incarnation. (2.) It is not only the person but also the work of Christ that is here intended. His relation to us is expressed by the name Jesus, his relation to God, by his title, Son of God. As to us he is a Saviour, as to God he is his equal. The truth believed then, is that we have a divine Saviour, therefore an almighty, an all-sufficient, an everywhere present Saviour.
How does faith in this doctrine overcome the world? 1. Not by the mere moral power of the truth believed. It is not merely because the doctrine of the incarnation is a more exalted and powerful doctrine than the doctrine of God; it is not that God as manifested in the flesh is more intelligible, more accessible, more lovely, more congenial than God as an infinite Spirit. All this is true. But all this is true to devils, as well as to thousands who are the slaves of the world.
- It is (a.) Because those who believe this doctrine are reconciled to God. This is the first step. So long as the soul is an outcast, an unpardoned criminal, incarcerated in the prison of God’s justice, the object of his displeasure, he is of the world, he is a member of the kingdom of darkness. It is only when he is delivered from God’s curse, reconciled to him by faith in Christ, that it is possible for him to resist or overcome the influences by which he is surrounded, and by which he is thoroughly pervaded. (b.) But secondly, those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God are born of God. They are partakers of a new life. The life of Christ is communicated to them. The principle in them, antagonistic to the world, is no longer mere feeble darkened reason, a scared conscience and perverted and rebellious will, but the indwelling God, the Holy Ghost. It is therefore an almighty, indestructible, permanent power, which is imparted to them, and which manifests itself in them by raising them above the world. “Because I live,” says Christ, “ye shall live also.” (c.) Thirdly, the spiritual, not the moral power of the truth that Jesus is the Son of God, is made by the Holy Ghost the proximate means of our overcoming the world. (1.) The glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ is made so clear that we are ravished by it, absorbed by it, delivered thereby from the love of sin and of the world. (2.) The constraining influence of the love of this incarnate God, leads us to renounce all things for his sake. (3.) Zeal for his glory, for the advancement of his kingdom is enkindled in the soul, and overcomes all other motives to action. The great lesson taught is, that it is not by ourselves, nor by human means that we can be delivered from this present evil world, but only by believing what the Scriptures teach concerning Christ.
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