God, that cannot lie, hath given sufficient assurance to the world that Jesus Christ His Son, the Son of His love and Son by office, to reconcile and recover the world unto himself. He testified therefore the truth and divine origin of the Christian religion and that it is the sure appointed way and means of bringing us to God. In those words we may observe:
· The privilege and stability of the real Christian: He that believeth on the Son of God hath been prevailed with unfeignedly to cleave to Him for salvation and hath the witness in himself
· He hath not only the outward evidence that others have but he hath in his own heart a testimony for Jesus Christ. He can allege what Christ and what the truth of Christ have done for his soul and what he has seen and found in him as
1. He has deeply seen his sin and guilt and misery and his abundant need for such a Saviour
2. He has seen the excellency, beauty and office of the Son of God and the incomparable suitableness of such a Saviour to all his spiritual wants and sorrowful circumstances
3. He sees and admires the wisdom and love of God in preparing and sending such a Saviour to deliver him from sin and Hell and to raise him to pardon, peace and communion with God
4. He has found and felt the power of the Word and doctrine of Christ, wounding, humbling, healing, quickening and comforting his soul
5. He finds the revelation of Christ the greatest discovery and demonstration of the love of God so it is the most apt and powerful means of kindling, fomenting and inflaming love to the holy blessed God
6. He is born of God by the truth of Christ. He has a new heart and nature, a new love, disposition and delight and is not the man that he formerly was
7. He finds yet such a conflict with himself, with sin, with the flesh, the world and invincible wicked powers as is described and provided for in the doctrine of Christ
8. He finds such prospects and such strength afforded him by the faith of Christ that he can despise and overcome the world and travel on towards a better
9. He finds what interest the Mediator has in Heaven by the audiency and prevalency of those prayers that are sent thither in his name, according to his will and through his intercession, and
10. He is begotten again to a lively hope, to a holy confidence in God, in His goodwill and love, to a pleasant victory over terrors of conscience, dread of death and Hell, to a comfortable prospect of life and immortality, being enriched with the earnest Spirit and sealed to the day of redemption
Such assurance has the Gospel believer: He has a witness in himself. Christ is formed in him and he is growing to the fullness and perfection and perfect image of Christ in Heaven.
Commentary on the whole Bible: 1 John 5 p. 1972
– Matthew Henry
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