1 John 3:3 And every man that has this hope in him purifies himself, even as he is pure. A great hope, a great duty, a great example are here put before us. I. WHAT IS THE HOPE? An agnostic would say there is none; for the apostle plainly tells us that though "we are now the children of God, it doth not yet appear what we shall be." But then "hope that is seen is not hope; for what a man seeth, why does he yet hope for?" This hope, of which St. John tells us, is set on Jesus our Lord. It is not the hope of the Pharisee, trusting in himself apart from Christ. It is not the hope of the man of the world, who considers that he is no worse than others, though, like them, he does neglect Christ. It is the hope of the penitent and faithful follower of Christ, who walks by faith in the unseen Saviour, and casts himself for pardon, acceptance, and strength on Him. And this hope, as he learns it in Holy Scripture and in holy living, becomes gradually clear and definite to him. II. WHAT A DUTY IS LAID UPON US! The hope is so glorious that it fires us to seek its fulfilment. It is a long and difficult task, this of purifying ourselves. In many of us it needs a deep thinking on old, forgotten ways. In all of us the field to be cleansed is very wide, and the roots of the vicious, deadly weeds are far down below the surface. How much it means — to purify oneself! There must be purity of heart, but "the heart is deceitful above all things," and how shall we know it? There must be purity in the affections; but, even in our highest relationship, we are prone to selfishness. There must be purity for our body; but fleshly lusts keep warring against the soul. There must be purity of speech; but certain companionships, and our own forgetfulness of God's presence, make this very difficult: and one word of uncleanness may "set on fire the whole course of nature" in us, and destroy our growth in grace. There must be purity in the eye, turning it away from beholding vanity; purity in the ear, casting out as evil the filthy communication of the thoughtless and the profligate; purity in the mind, lest it absorb the things it hears, or take delight in the writings of hell, or pervert even holy teaching to the purposes of sin. Yes, and there must be purity of intention — a high aim in dealing with all men, the setting of a guard over ourselves when danger is near, a resolute acting on that Divine and comfortable saying, that "to the pure all things are pure." Oh, may we all go forward in this holy, difficult, blessed duty, while we have the Light to walk by, and the Cross to be our guide! III. And remember, once more, WHOSE LIGHT THIS IS, AND WHOSE CROSS. It is His glorious example which should help us most — the example of Him who died for us, who liveth for us. (G. E. Jelf, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.WEB: Everyone who has this hope set on him purifies himself, even as he is pure. |
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