light. He is essentially pure, and glorious. His nature is a fountain of all essential blessedness and glory. He is the fountain of all being and well-being to his creatures, both visible and invisible. He is in the Light: that is, he invariably and incommunicably possesses his excellencies, and from the full knowledge he has of the same, his blessedness is continually maintained. Christ is the Light. He is as God-Man, the fountain of nature, grace, and glory. He is the fountain of all light and knowledge, and Truth, natural, spiritual, and eternal. "In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." Col. ii. 3. Light is with us, the sensation and perception and apprehension of the same. As it respects light and darkness, as emblematical of prosperity and adversity, the Lord himself speaks thus. "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things." Isa. xlv. 7. So the state of sin, and the state of grace, is expressed by darkness, and light. As also by death, and life. "For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light." Eph. v. 8. So with respect to the state of unregeneracy, and a translation out of it into the state of grace, the apostle says, "Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son." Col. i. 13. The apostle Peter, speaking of the state the saints are in by regeneration and conversion to the Lord, expresseth himself thus. "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him, who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light." 1 Epis. ii. 9. Our apostle says, "We know that we have passed from death unto life." iii. 14. This is expressing the state of sin, as death; and the state of grace, as life. The passage from the one to the other, is by regeneration. And also by a translation "into the kingdom of God's dear Son." Which consists "in righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." Sin is a work of darkness. And the renewed people of God are thus addressed. "The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light." Rom. xiii. 12. Afflictions are expressed by the term darkness, as prosperity, either spiritual, or temporal by that of light. The state to which the body is reduced by death, as it lies in the grave is expressed to be "a land of darkness, as darkness itself, and of the shadow of death, without any order, and where the light is as darkness." Job. x. 22. So is Hell expressed by the same term. "And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matt. xxv. 30. So Heaven, glory, and a blessed immortality, is expressed also by its opposite term. It is styled, “the inheritance of the saints in light." Col. i. 12. Heaven is the inheritance of the saints in light. The state of blessedness, glory, and immortality, is expressed by white robes: by mortality being swallowed up of life: by their being "before the throne of God, and serving him day and night in his temple." Rev. vii. 15. The state of the church in the spiritual reign of Christ, is thus expressed, "The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory." Isa. lx. 19. The state of the church of Christ, in the new heavens and new earth is thus expressed. "And I saw no temple therein; for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple

of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof." Rev. xxi. 22, 23. And when the Lord addresses his church to shine out of obscurity, He says, "Arise, shine: for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising." Isa. lx. 1-3. The passages which have been quoted, are sufficient to prove, that all good is expressed by Light, and all evil of every sort, by Darkness. And the Divine Essence and Majesty is declared by John thus. God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. There is nothing but sin in fallen angels, and fallen man. Yet it is not in them as creatures of God's forming, but as fallen from that state in which he created and placed them. Their wills are the whole seat of their sin and sinfulness. And all their actual sin and sinfulness proceeds from the activity of their wills. As God is light, and in him is no darkness at all, so his word, truths, doctrines, ordinances, are all pure and holy. Every part of the revelation he hath made of Himself, in his most holy word, is worthy of Him. It is all light, purity, and perfection. It is as pure as the light. His saints as they are brought out of darkness into his marvellous light, they walk in the light. They are as an apostle declares, the children of light and of the day, they are not of the night, nor of darkness. Hence the same apostle exhorts them, to walk as children of light. Their renewed wills are the seat of all habitual grace. The spiritual activity of their minds is the fruit of this. Their object and subject on whom, and on which their spiritual minds are exercised is God in all his Persons, as revealed, and shining forth in everlasting Love, in the exceeding riches of grace, salvation, glory, and Life eternal in the God-Man, from whom it is reflected on them. And all they have the inward knowledge of, and all they enjoy in real communion with the Divine Majesty in the Person of the Father, everlastingly proves, and demonstrates this immutable verity, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. That he is of purer eyes than to behold evil. That He is the fountain of Essential Purity. That "there is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside Him, neither is there any rock of salvation, but Him, and the Lord our God.” All the holiness of all the saints and angels in heaven, is communicated unto them. It is not of, and from themselves. It is bestowed upon them, and continued in them, and their wills are rendered impeccable in holiness, and they cannot will to sin, no not for evermore. Yet all this is of free favour. It is not essential and natural to their nature. But God is Essentially Holiness itself. It is the very perfection of his Godhead. He can no more cease to be Holy than he can his being what He is. God is light, and there is no darkness in Him. I come

4thly. To the apostle's end and design in these words. This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

Most assuredly one end and design was, to keep up and retain in their minds unto whom he wrote, a reverence of the divine Majesty. That they might consider, as light cannot mix with darkness, so they could not converse with God, but as they had a suitable frame, and proper

apprehensions of Him, as the Holy, Blessed, Glorious Lord their God. This glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD, was to be before them in their accesses unto Him: which would be the means of possessing their minds, hearts, wills, affections, and memory, with such proper conceptions of his Majesty, as would help and assist them in their worshipping Him, and in their walking before Him, and in their holding communion with Him. Another end of the apostle might be, to give all, who should come in succeeding ages and generations, and be brought to believe and profess the truths of the everlasting Gospel, to know that the Holiness of God shines in, and throughout every part, truth, doctrine, and ordinance of the same. Again it might be, to anticipate to their minds, that this was a part and branch of that truth he was about to pursue, in filling up his present subject. He therefore prepares their minds for the further and fuller reception of the subject. As this is contained in the next two succeeding verses, which will each be separately opened and explained, as the Lord may be pleased to assist, and impart light, and shed his Spirit, as the Spirit of grace, in his gifts, graces, and anointings, I shall say nothing more at this time. May it please the Holy Ghost, to shed his sacred influences on what hath been delivered in the present sermon, so far as will be for your profit, and His praise and glory. This I must entirely leave with his Majesty. It being with Him alone, to bless, or to withhold a blessing. I will therefore close with the following Doxology. "Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God; be honour and glory for ever and ever." Amen, 1 Tim. i. 17.

SERMON VI.

If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth.-1 JOHN i. 6.

In the former verse the apostle had expressed an immutable truth, concerning God; which he received from the Lord Jesus Christ himself, from the very beginning of his being admitted to be one of his disciples and apostles, and which he was commanded to declare unto all saints :-That God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. Which he makes use of, to speak on the subject of having fellowship with him, of walking before Him, of doing the truth from the heart. He here asserts in the most positive terms, that such as say they have fellowship with God, and are in a state of sin, are liars. So are those also who live in any known sin. So are they also, who walk in the course of sin. It signifies not what they know: what they profess: what they are in the Church by office. The apostle puts in himself, and the rest of the apostles, including them all in the word we. Denying this to be a truth of them, or any others whosoever, or whatsoever they were; let them profess Christ the Essential Word, who was constituted by the will of the Three in the Essence existing, to be the Mediatorial Word, in consequence of which,

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He became the Incarnate Word; yet if they walked in darkness, in a state and course of sin, it was not speaking the truth, to say they had fellowship with God the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. This was contradictory to the message which the apostles had heard of Christ : which they received from Him: which they declared in his Name. It was directly and positively contrary unto the same. This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. Thus you see the introduction of the words, and from the same may have some general insight into the true and proper meaning of them. To open them, so as that the general and particular meaning of them may be clearly understood, I will divide them into the following particulars.

1. We have a positive declaration, we have no fellowship with God, whilst we are in a state of sin. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth.

2. What it is to walk in darkness, and what we are here to conceive of the same. Darkness is here opposed unto light: walking is a progressive motion. It is therefore expressive here, not only of being in a state of darkness, but of a walk according to that state. If we say that we have fellowship with God the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ, and walk in darkness, we lie, even in so saying.

3. To walk in darkness, and say we have fellowship with Him, who is light, and in whom there is no darkness at all. This is not to walk according to the truth. Such do not the truth. The truth of God is not in them, neither are they even externally influenced thereby. I think these particulars if properly opened and explained, will give us a full and clear account of the subjects contained in these words: If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. May the Lord himself help and guide me through each of these particulars, so as to do justice to the text, give you satisfaction, and glorify the Lord. To which I say Amen. For without him we can do nothing. I am

1. To set before you, that which we have before us. A positive apostolical declaration. Which is this: we have no fellowship with God, whilst we are in a state of sin. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. This is delivered by our apostle, in the name, and as the universal acknowledgment of all the apostles, that it was wholly incompatible with the grace of God, to have fellowship with God, whilst any remained in a sinful state. And the Lord Christ himself had expressed the impossibility of it, when he said to Nicodemus, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John iii. 3. But this being a truth which seems to be universally acknowledged by all sorts of persons, and our apostle using the word we, If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth, I conceive it does not, nor is it designed, to express the state and case of sinners in their unrenewed and unprofessing state, but it must belong to such as made a profession of Christ, and might make a boast of having communion with the Holy Trinity. Which subject he had been writing on, to this very intent, that the persons written to, might have the same blessed fellowship with himself, and the apostles in this un

speakable grace. His words are these. "That which we have seen and heard, declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full." He could not write thus to unregenerate persons: it could neither suit him, nor them. Therefore it must be saints, or such as were connected with them in church communion, and by a Gospel profession, whom he must have his eye, and design upon, when he says, This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. So that such as are designed by the apostle, most certainly were under a profession of the same truths, the apostles declared unto them. They professed the knowledge of the Person of Christ-of his eternity-of his incarnation and manifestation in the flesh-of his being the Essential Word-of his being That Eternal Life which was with the Father, before all time. They also professed they had received the knowledge of Him, and that they had communion with Him. It may here be observed, it was in John's time, as it now is. The outward visible church of Christ, was constituted both of persons who were born again of God, and who were not. The former were partakers of Christ: the latter not yet what they were, was with the Lord, and not known to themselves, and others, until it was manifested by outward conduct; or by a defection and a departure from the truth. And this declaration of the apostle contained in our text, If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth, might be designed in the first place, to prevent real saints from being careless and remiss to arouse their minds: to reach their hearts: to express how the best of them, had need to watch their hearts: to be careful of their walk : to avoid in themselves, and others, every thing which tended to sin; seeing it would interrupt them in holding and maintaining communion with their heavenly Father. He being Light, Purity and Holiness, there could be no communion held with Him, if the mind was impure. No.

Holiness becometh the house and worshippers of the Lord for ever. As also in the second place, to declare that such persons who were under the influence of their own sins, and corruptions, could not, so long as this was the case, say what they might, have fellowship with the Lord. To shew the impossibility of the same, he expresseth the subject thus. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. Were we, the apostles of Christ, to be found walking in darkness, and at the same time were we to say, we have fellowship with God the Father, who is Light, and in him there is no darkness at all, we are liars: we tell lies: we lie, and do not the truth. The if here, is not to express it to be a possible case thus to act. No. They were established in the immutable truths of Christ's Person and salvation, and the love of the Father in Him to them. They were most immutably fixed in their knowledge and evidence, that they had communion with the Father, and his Son Jesus Christ, and had in their own souls the evidence of the real blessedness of the same. They knew the influence and effect which it produced in their hearts, tempers, frames, lives, and conversations. In their walk with God, and in their holy warfare against self, sin, the world, and devil, they knew the blessed