quaintance with his own heart, and a spirit of generously-judging charity towards others:-but with these there must be associated his having fixed a high point of attainment, towards which he was continually aiming, and still feeling himself far beneath it. On this principle, it may be observed, that a believer's opinion of himself is not to be taken as the proper criterion of his progress in the divine life. It would indeed, as a criterion, approach nearer to the truth, were it to be taken, not in the direct but in the inverse ratio; the opinion being depressed, in proportion as the character is elevated, -humble-mindedness growing with the corresponding growth of the other graces. There may be a steady and even a rapid advance in all that is spiritual and excellent, while there is, at the same time, such a rising conception of the purity and loftiness of the standard, as to make his distance from conformity to it appear greater to the believer's own mind than before; so that a child of God may be growing in grace," while he is sinking in self-estimation,-his increasing lowliness being itself one of the indications of his advancing spirituality.

Still, however, this self-abasing sense of deficiency is by no means incompatible with a comfortable and cheering assurance of God's forgiving mercy and paternal love. While the Apostle humbly speaks of himself as "less than the least of all saints," he still, by the very expression, classes himself amongst them; and the whole of his writings, while they breathe the same spirit of selfliffidence, are at the same time distinguished by the pirit of happy confidence towards God. His selfliffidence was not despondency. His lowliness was not unbelieving self-exclusion from Christ. He "cleaved to his Lord with purpose of heart," and had" peace and joy in believing." With the same

breath he exclaims-" O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" and, "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.— There is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death."*-How very differently may the believer, whom I have supposed to shrink from the bold affirmation, in answer to a fellow-creature's inquiry, “I am a child of God”—how very differently may he speak of himself, when a question, involving the very same amount as to state before God, is put to him in a different form. Suppose that, instead of asking, "Are you a child of God?" you were to put the inquiry-" Does your hope, as a sinner, rest exclusively on the free grace of God, through the righteousness and atonement of Jesus?"-there might be no hesitation to answer then. With a full heart, and an eye gleaming with the tear of grateful joy, would the humble believer say "Yes, indeed: I am a poor, sinful, guilty, lost creature,-worthless, helpless, hopeless. But I believe the record that God has given of his Son. I know from that record the fulness and the freeness of his mercy to sinners through Jesus Christ. Here I place my hopes; and I have joy and peace in believing. Christ is my all. His finished work is my only confidence; and, I bless God, it is enough; I need no more. 'I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him against that day.' 'O! to grace how great a debtor!"-Now this is the language of assurance. It expresses the first principle in the character of

* Rom. vii. 35; viii. 1, 2.

every believer; the principle, namely, of self-renunciation, and of exclusive reliance on mercy through the merits of the Saviour. And there can be no doubt, that wherever this first principle exists, all the other graces will be found proportionally existing, that enter into the composition of the Christian character; and that the sinner who is, in deep and humble sincerity, under the predominant influence of this principle, is a child of God. But then, in what I have now supposed this child of God to say, self is not the immediate and prominent subject. În as far as it is the subject, it is in the way of confession of unworthiness and guilt. CHRIST is properly the subject. To Him the willing testimony is borne. Self is laid at his feet, in prostrate dependence; and the glory is given to him alone. It is in vain to say-Well, but does not what you suppose him to say amount in effect to the same thing as if he had said in so many words, "I am a child of God?" Be it so. I answer, that saying a thing in one form may indicate a very different state of mind indeed from saying the same thing under another form. When we read of the attitude and utterance of the publican," standing afar off, not so much as lifting his eyes to heaven, but smiting on his breast and saying, God be meroiful to me a sinner!" we have a deep impression of his contrite humble-mindedness. Should we have had the same impression, if the publican had been represented as coming to God, and saying, "O God, thou knowest what a duly contrite, broken-hearted, humble man I am?"-The same impression! No: we should have had the very opposite; we should have fancied we were listening to the Pharisee. And why are we not similarly affected by what he does say? Does he not actually express the sentiments of contrition, broken-heartedness, and humility? He does; but in a very different form of

speech. And I adduce the case as an exemplification of the general principle, how differently and even oppositely, we may be affected by two different modes of uttering the same apparent feelings. And on this principle, may not a man humbly, sincerely, and fervently, express the sentiments and emotions of a member of God's spiritual family, who yet, from genuine, unaffected humility, might shrink from affirming, roundly and unhesitatingly, "I am a child of God?"

These observations, however, are in perfect harmony with what I have admitted to be the obvious import of John's words-namely, that it is the intention of God that believers should "know that they have eternal life." They are intended only to show that confidence towards God, and a comfortable assurance of personal salvation, may be enjoyed, whilst there may be a hesitancy, and a becoming hesitancy too, to express it in a particular way; and that to require a readiness to express it in that way as a test of the faith of the gospel, is unreasonable, unscriptural, inconsistent with a correct knowledge of the structure and operations of the human mind, and, withal, when tried by the unassuming delicacy of the Christian character, in exceedingly bad taste. That the God of grace intends his people to "know that they have eternal life," might be shown not only from these words, but from the many passages of scripture in which they are exhorted to constant confidence and joy: "Rejoice in the Lord alway; and again I say, Rejoice:"*"Rejoice evermore :"+ such exhortations clearly implying a satisfactory knowledge or confidence of their state. But this leads me immediately to the subject of another Proposition.

PROPOSITION V.

THERE ARE CERTAIN THINGS WRITTEN, BY WHICH BELIEVERS ARE TO KNOW THAT THEY HAVE ETERNAL LIFE.

"These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life."

In order to the reader's having a clear view (if it be in my power to give it) of this important part of my subject, I shall first very briefly advert to certain mistakes respecting the way in which it is to be known by believers that they have eternal life; and shall then endeavour, having cleared the ground, to answer the question more directly, What saith the scripture?

SECTION I.

Mistakes respecting the way in which assurance of eternal life is to be known by believers.

1. I begin with observing in general, that the knowledge must arise from, or be founded in, something written: that is, it must, in some way or other, rest on the testimony of God in his word. This it is of the very first importance to bear in mind. The observation is intended to dispose, in one lot, of all those pretensions to personal assurance of state before God, which have their origin in alleged suggestions and impressions, whispers and voices, and all descriptions of direct divine intimation, to the mind of the individual, of his safety. I have no faith in any thing of the kind; but hold every pretension to it as enthusiasm and unscriptural delelu