Sincerity stands opposed to hypocrisy, than which nothing is more detestable to God; and nothing is more agreeable to Him than uprightness and integrity. This is called godly sincerity (2 Corinthians 1.12) which God requires, approves of, and is a grace He bestows upon His people. – John Gill (1697-1771)
Category Archives: John Gill
The Forgiveness of Sins
God, only, can forgive sin. It is His sole prerogative. It belongs to Him, and to no other (Mark 2.7; Isaiah 43.25; Daniel 9.9). And this appears from the nature of sin itself: it is committed against God, and none but He against whom it is committed can forgive it; it is a breach of His righteous law, and none but the Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy, can remit it or free from obligation to punishment for it. Besides, if there were any other who could forgive sin, then there would be one equal to God, whereas, “Who is a God like unto Him that pardoneth iniquity?” (Micah 7.18). And it may be observed that saints, in all ages, under the Old and under the New Testaments, never made their application to any other but to God for the forgiveness of sin, nor are they ever directed to any other for it (Psalm 51.1; Daniel 9.19; Matthew 6.9, 12; Acts 8.22).
From: A Body of Doctrinal Divinity, Or, A System of Evangelical Truths Deduced from the Sacred Scriptures by John Gill; reprint (Paris, AR: The Baptist Standard Bearer, Inc., 1984), p. 497. Originally published in 1769.
John Gill (1697-1771) was a well-known English Baptist pastor in London. He was pastor of the same congregation later pastored by Charles Spurgeon. Gill’s Body of Doctrinal Divinity represents the substance of five years’ worth of sermons preached in his church.
On Systematic Theology
Having undertaken to write a System of Theology, or a Body of Doctrinal Divinity; and Theology being nothing else than a speaking of God, or a discoursing concerning Him; His nature, names, perfections, and persons; His purposes, providences, ways, works, and Word: I shall begin with the Being of God, and the proof and evidence of it; which is the foundation of all religion; for if there is no God, religion is a vain thing; and it matters not neither what we believe, nor what we do; since there is no superior Being to whom we are accountable for either faith or practice. Some, because the being of God is a first principle, which is not to be disputed; and because that there is one is a self-evident proposition, not to be disproved; have thought it should not be admitted as a matter of debate: but since such is the malice of Satan, as to suggest the contrary to the minds of men; and such badness of some wicked men as to listen to it, and imbibe it; and such the weakness of some good men as to be harrassed and distressed with doubts about it at times; it cannot be improper to endeavor to fortify our minds with reasons and arguments against such suggestions and insinuations.
From: A Body of Doctrinal Divinity; or A System of Evangelical Truths, Deduced from the Sacred Scriptures by John Gill; reprint; The Baptist Faith Series 1 (Paris, Arkansas: The Baptist Standard Bearer, Inc., 1984), p. 1. Originally published in 2 volumes (1769). The Baptist Standard Bearer edition is a reprint of an edition published in 1839.
John Gill (1697-1771) was an English Baptist minister and voluminous author (he wrote his 1,000-page A Body of Doctrinal and Practical Divinity (originally published as separate works) only after he had written a commentary covering every verse of every chapter of the entire Bible). He pastored the same Baptist church (1719-1771; 52 years) in London that would later be pastored by Charles Spurgeon (1854-1892).
God’s Holiness
The holiness of God the Father…is visible in the works of creation for, as He made all things by His Son – not as an instrument, but as co-efficient with Him – so, when He overlooked them, He pronounced them very good, which He would not have done had there been anything impure or unholy in them. Angels – not only those that stood, but those that fell – were originally holy, as made by Him. The elect angels continue in the holiness in which they were created, and the angels that sinned are not in the estate in which they were at their creation. They “kept not their first estate,” which was an estate of purity and holiness, and “abode not in the truth” in the uprightness and integrity in which they were formed (Jude 6; John 8:44). And, as for man, he was made after the image, and in the likeness, of God, which greatly consisted of holiness: a pure, holy, and upright creature he was, and had a law given him – holy, just, and good – as the rule of his obedience, and which was inscribed on his heart, some remains of which are to be found in his fallen posterity, and even the Gentiles.
From: A Complete Body of Doctrinal and Practical Divinity, Or, A System of Evangelical Truths Deduced from the Sacred Scriptures by John Gill; reprint; 3 volumes (London: W. Winterbotham,796), 1:153.
John Gill (1697-1771) was a British Baptist minister and prolific author. He pastored the same church which was later pastored by Charles Spurgeon.
Love in the Trinity
The three divine Persons in the Godhead mutually love each other. The Father loves the Son and the Spirit, the Son loves the Father and the Spirit, and the Spirit loves the Father and the Son.
That the Father loves the Son is more than once said (John 3:35; 5:20) and the Son is sometimes called the well-beloved and dear Son of God (Matthew 3:17; 17:5; Colossians 1:13). He was, from all eternity, as “one brought up with Him” and was loved by Him before the foundation of the world – and that, with a love of complacency and delight, as He must, since “He is the brightness of His glory, the express image of His person” and is of the same nature and possessed of all the same perfections with Him (Proverbs 8:30-31; John 17:24; Hebrews 1:3; Colossians 2:9). Yea, He loved Him as his Servant, as the Mediator, in His state of humiliation and obedience, and all under His sufferings, and on account of them; and even whilst He bore His wrath as the sinner’s Surety, He was the object of His love as His Son (Isaiah 42:1; Matthew 3:17; John 10:17). And, now, He is at His right hand, in [His] human nature. He looks upon Him with delight, and is well-pleased with His sacrifice, satisfaction, and righteousness.
The Father loves the Spirit, being the very breath of Him, from whence He has His name, and proceeding from Him, and possessing the same nature and essence with Him (Job 33:4; Psalm 33:6; John 15:26; 1 John 5:7).
The Son loves the Father, of whom He is begotten, with whom He was brought up, in whose bosom He lay from all eternity, as His own and only-begotten Son. And as man, the law of God was in His heart, the sum of which is to love the Lord God with all the heart and soul; and as Mediator He shewed His love to Him by an obedience to His commandment, even though that was to suffer death for His people (Psalm 40:8; John 14:31; 10:18; Philippians 2:8).
The Son also loves the Spirit, since He proceeds from Him as from the Father, and is called the Spirit of the Son (Galatians 4:6) and Christ often speaks of Him with pleasure and delight (Isaiah 48:16; 61:1; John 14:16-26; 15:26; 16:7, 13).
And the Spirit loves the Father and the Son, and sheds abroad the love of them both in the hearts of His people. He searches into the deep things of God and reveals them to them, and takes of the things of Christ and shews them unto them, and so is both the Comforter of them and the Glorifier of Him (1 Corinthians 2:10-12; John 16:14).
From: A Complete Body of Doctrinal and Practical Divinity, Or, A System of Evangelical Truths Deduced from the Sacred Scriptures by John Gill; 3 volumes; reprint (London: W. Winterbotham, 1796), 1:114-115.
John Gill (1697-1771) was an English pastor, theologian, Bible commentator, and author. A Body of Doctrinal Divinity (1767) and A Body of Practical Divinity (1770) were originally published separately.
