Fidelity rewarded.
Christ's manifestation in the body, in the earthly life was one thing; his manifestation after his departure to the Father was quite a different thing. This change, or rather development of the Divine plan, was difficult even for the apostles to understand. Observe how simply and yet how fully, in answer to Jude's perplexed and anxious query, the Lord explains the condition and the method of his own manifestation of himself in the approaching spiritual dispensation.
I. FIDELITY TO CHRIST IS THE CONDITION OF THE DIVINE MANIFESTATION. This fidelity is both emotional and practical; it is displayed in the heart and in the life.
1. Love is the inward principle and motive. The personal nature of the Christian life is here strikingly exhibited. "If a man love me"—language this which bring the individual believer close to the living Christ. What a rebuke to all merely sacerdotal and ecclesiastical views of religion! If a man be spiritually enlightened and quickened, he will love Christ; both because Christ is in his own character and ministry deserving of the purest, strongest love our nature can offer, and also because "he first loved us"—because his goodness found its highest expression in devotion and in sacrifice.
2. Obedience is the evidence of love. Law and love do not always seem to harmonize; yet human relationships furnish examples of their combination. Obedience here takes the form of keeping the Master's word. This involves our
II. THE DIVINE MANIFESTATION TO THE FAITHFUL TAKES THE FORMS OF LOVE AND FELLOWSHIP. It must not be forgotten that the love and kindness of God are presumed as preceding and as accounting for the dispositions and purposes above described. But whilst the Divine pity is the cause of the Christian's newness of heart and life, it is also true that the dispositions and habits which become the Christian are the condition of the enjoyment of those amazing privileges which Jesus here describes.
1. There is, then, a sense in which the Father's love is the reward of the affectionate obedience of Christ's people. The filial dutifulness and affection are approved, and the approval is manifested by the tender affection of the paternal heart.
2. In addition to, and indeed in proof of, this display of Divine love, there is assured Divine fellowship and indwelling. How different is this representation from the imaginations of human fancy, the expectations of human reason! Yet it is in the highest degree honorable to God, and it tends to inspire and to elevate man. The Christian welcomes his Maker, his Savior, as his Guest and Friend.—T.