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LESSON VI.—SABBATH, NOVEMBER 11, 1893

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Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Oct 23, 1893

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 19, No. 50.

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LESSON VI.—SABBATH, NOVEMBER 11, 1893.

SIN AND RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Lesson Scripture, 1 John 3 : 4-15.
  1. Everyone that doeth sin doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.
  2. And ye know that He was manifested to take away sins; and in Him is no sin.
  3. Whosoever abideth in Him sinneth not; whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him, neither knoweth Him.
  4. My little children, let no man lead you astray; he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous;
  5. He that doeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. To this end was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
  6. Whosoever is begotten of God doeth no sin, because his seed abideth in him; and he cannot sin, because he is begotten of God.
  7. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil; whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.
  8. For this is the message which ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another:
  9. Not as Cain was of the evil one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his works were evil, and his brother's righteous.
  10. Marvel not, brethren, if the world hateth you.
  11. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death.
  12. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer; and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
  1. What is the sinner's attitude toward the law?
  2. What is the definition of sin?
  3. For what purpose was Christ manifested?
  4. From what is he free?
  5. What insures freedom from sin?
  6. What is the sinner's relation to Christ?
  7. What is the character of the one who "doeth righteousness"?
  8. What is the character of the one who "doeth sin"?
  9. How long has the devil continued in sin?
  10. For what purpose was Christ manifested?
  11. What is the course of life of the one begotten of God?
  12. What reason is given for this statement?
  13. How are the "children of God" distinguished from the children of the devil?
  14. What message has been heard from the beginning?
  15. Whose case is cited as an illustration?
  16. Why did he kill his brother?
  17. What should cause no astonishment to the brethren?
  18. What is an evidence of the change from death to life?
  19. Who abides in death?
  20. How broad is the meaning of the sixth commandment?
  21. What character does not possess eternal life?

NOTES.

1. VERSES 4-6.—Unrighteousness, lawlessness, iniquity, and sin are the same (1 John 5 : 17), and are the result of being out of harmony with God's law, which is righteousness (Ps. 119 : 172). "The character of God is righteousness and truth; such is the nature of his law." The law detects sin (Rom. 3 : 20), and drives to Christ for justification (Gal. 3 : 24). "A view of our sinfulness drives us to Him who can pardon." Christ came to take away sin and abolish death (2 Tim. 1 : 10), but not the law. "Had it been possible for the law to be changed or set aside, then Christ need not have died to save man from the penalty of sin." "A wrong conception of the character, the perpetuity, and obligation of the divine law, has led to errors in the relation to conversion and sanctification, and has resulted in lowering the standard of piety in the church." "It is only as the law of God is restored to its rightful position that there can be a revival of primitive faith and godliness among his professed people;" Christ bore the sins of the world (John 1 : 29, margin) in the sinner's place (Gal. 3 : 13); and, although free from sin (1 Peter 2 : 22), and "hating sin with a perfect hatred, he yet gathered to his soul the sins of the whole world." "Under the mighty impulse of his love, he took our place in the universe, and invited the Ruler of all things to treat him as a representative of the human family." "Though the guilt of sin was not his, his Spirit was torn and bruised by the transgressions of men." It was at such cost as this that "he was manifested to take away our sins." That vital union with Christ which imparts his nature (2 Peter 1 : 4) enables us to realize the fulfillment of "God's mighty emancipation proclamation" (Rom. 6 : 14).
2. VERSES 7-9.—Righteousness must be within before it can be manifested in outward works. "Genuine Christlikeness cannot be manifested in the character until Christ is received by faith and formed within the hope of glory." "The tree that bears good fruit is a good tree and has a living root; not that the fruit works the tree and its fruit to be good, but it shows that they are so."—Fausset. God condemned sin in the flesh once (Rom. 8 : 3), and "the union of divinity with humanity in Christ was to reveal to us God's purpose to bring men into the closest connection with himself." "He who lays hold upon the righteousness of Christ may become a perfect man in Christ Jesus." "The character is revealed, not by occasional good deeds and occasional misdeeds, but by the tendency of the habitual words and acts." Christ prayed in behalf of all his disciples that the Father might "keep them from the evil one" (R. V.), and that prayer avails now.
3. VERSES 12-15.—The cause assigned for the murder of Abel is really at the root of all injuries inflicted upon the righteous by evil men, and was illustrated in the death of Christ. "It was not so much because he appeared without worldly wealth, pomp, or grandeur, that the Jews were led to reject him. They saw that he possessed power which could more than compensate for the lack of these outward advantages. But the purity and holiness of Christ called forth against him the hatred of the ungodly. His life of self-denial and sinless devotion was a perpetual reproof to a proud, sensual people. It was this that evoked enmity against the Son of God." "So in all ages the wicked have hated those who were better than themselves." "It is the spirit that through all the ages has set up the stake and kindled the burning pile for the disciples of Christ." The world hated Christ (John 15 : 24), and so would naturally hate his followers. "Love is of God. The unconsecrated heart cannot originate or produce it; it is found only in the heart where Jesus reigns."
Christ explained the spiritual nature of the sixth commandment (Matt. 5 : 22), showing that it is "exceeding broad." If it were the duty of the civil power to enforce the law of God, there would not be a sufficient number of innocent persons to inflict the penalty on those who are really guilty of murder. The spirit that leads to murder is not in harmony with the Spirit of Christ (Luke 9 : 56), and so shuts its possessor out of heaven (Rom. 8 : 9).
WORD THOUGHTS.—Sin (v. 4), error, a missing of the mark. The mark is the righteousness of God, the coming short of his glory (Rom. 3 : 23).—Lawlessness (anomia), against law, violation of law, iniquity, sin. All sin is included in this definition. Says Alford: "Every sin whatever, then, is a transgression of God's law; as indeed its very name implies; to sin being to miss a mark, and the mark being that will of God which is the law and aim to him who "doeth the will of God." Chap. 2 : 17.—Sinneth not (v. 6), it means just what it says. When Christ is in, sin is out.—Doeth righteousness (v. 7), doeth sin (v. 8). Two contrasts. The one of God, the root and source; the other of the devil, the root and source. Each indicate a state expressed by the word "abideth."—Begotten (v. 9) (better than "born"), denoting agency. We are said to be begotten of God through the word, but born of the Spirit. The life of God through the word is implanted in the soul, and sin cannot reign there.—Seed, the life of God given through the word.