Deceitfulness of Sin


The deceitfulness of sin appears in perverting and wresting the oracles of God, so as to make those words, which natively tend to the salvation of men, to be the occasion of their destruction. So, when a contentious sinner hears such a description of God as in the verse where the text lies, "God is love," he is disposed to make this inference from it, That, surely, under the government of such a God, there can be no such thing as hell. But they who understand the nature of that love which is here ascribed to God, will see that in proportion as it is true, so there must be in God an opposition to whatever is contrary to his infinitely benevolent nature. Therefore, he must hate and punish enmity against himself and his creatures. The more glorious and amiable that his nature is, the more inexcusable and hateful must all such enmity be. On the other hand, he who is love must be disposed to befriend, honour, and patronize that love to himself and to his creatures, which is the resemblance of what is in himself. Therefore, as to the love of God himself, this saying, "God is love," must be as a seal to that declaration, "All things work together for good to them that love God." And, in the text, it is applied for enforcing the precepts concerning the love of mankind.
John Love

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