The Lost Gospel and Its Contents Part 8

Again:--

"The Word, Who also was with Him." (Apol. ii. ch. vi.)

Again, Trypho says:--

"You maintain Him to be pre-existent G.o.d." (Ch. lx.x.xvii.)

Again:--

"I a.s.serted that this Power was begotten from the Father, by His Power and Will, but not by abscission, as if the essence of the Father were divided; as all other things part.i.tioned and divided are not the same after as before they were divided; and for the sake of example I took the case of fires kindled from a fire, which we see to be distinct from it," &c. (Dial. cxxviii.)

"THE WORD WAS G.o.d."

Justin writes:--

"The Word of Wisdom, Who is Himself this G.o.d begotten of the Father of all things" (Dial. ch. lxi.) (See previous page.)

Again:--

"They who affirm that the Son is the Father are proved neither to have become acquainted with the Father, nor to know that the Father of the Universe has a Son; Who also, being the first-begotten Word of G.o.d, is even G.o.d." (Apol. I. ch. lxiii.)

Again:--

"It must be admitted absolutely that some other One is called Lord by the Holy Spirit besides Him Who is considered Maker of all things." (Dial. ch. lvi.)

But it is useless to multiply quotations, seeing that all those in pages 69-71 are the echoes of this declaration of the Fourth Evangelist.

St. John writes:--

"ALL THINGS WERE MADE BY HIM."

And Justin writes:--

"Knowing that G.o.d conceived and made the world by the Word." (Apol.

I. ch. lxiv.)

Again:--

"When at first He created and arranged all things by Him." (Apol.

II. ch. vi.)

Again St. John writes:--

"THAT (_i.e._ THE WORD) WAS THE TRUE LIGHT THAT LIGHTETH EVERY MAN THAT COMETH INTO THE WORLD."

I have given above (p. 51) sufficient ill.u.s.trations from Justin of this truth. I again draw attention to:--

"He is the Word of Whom every race of men were partakers." (Apol. I.

ch. xlvi.)

Again:--

"He was and is the Word Who is in every man." (Apol. II. ch. x.) "For whatever either lawgivers or philosophers uttered well, they elaborated by finding and contemplating some part of the Word. But since they did not know the whole of the Word which is Christ, they often contradicted themselves." [77:1] (Apol. II. ch. x.)

Again:--

"These men who believe in Him, in whom [Greek: en hois] abideth the seed of G.o.d, the Word." (Apol. I. ch. x.x.xii.)

Again:--

"I confess that I both boast and with all my strength strive to be found a Christian; not because the teachings of Plato are different from those of Christ, but because they are not in all respects similar, as neither are those of the others, Stoics, and poets, and historians. For each man spoke well in proportion to the share he had of the spermatic Word." [77:2] (Apol. II. ch. xiii.)

Lastly, St. John writes:--

"THE WORD WAS MADE FLESH."

And Justin writes:--

"The Logos Himself, Who took shape and became man and was called Jesus Christ." (Apol. II. ch. v.)

Again:--

"The Word, Who is also the Son; and of Him we will in what follows relate how He took flesh, and became Man." (Apol. II. ch. x.x.xii.)

"Jesus Christ is the only proper Son Who has been begotten by G.o.d, being His Word, and First-begotten, and Power, and becoming man according to His Will He taught us these things," &c. (Apol. I. ch.

xxiii.)

Again:--

"In order that you may recognize Him as G.o.d coming forth from above, and Man living among men." (Dial. lxiv.)

Again:--

"He was the Only-begotten of the Father of all things, being begotten in a peculiar manner Word and Power by Him, and having afterwards become Man through the Virgin." (Dial. ch. cv.)

After considering the above extracts, the reader will be able to judge of the truth of some a.s.sertions of the author of "Supernatural Religion," as, for instance:--

"We are, in fact, constantly directed by the remarks of Justin to other sources of the Logos doctrine, and never to the Fourth Gospel, with which his tone and terminology in no way agree." (Vol. ii. p.

293)

Again:--

"We must see that Justin's terminology, as well as his views of the Word become Man, is thoroughly different from that Gospel." (Vol.

ii. p. 296)

Also:--

"It must be apparent to every one who seriously examines the subject, that Justin's terminology is thoroughly different from, and in spirit opposed to, that of the Fourth Gospel, and in fact that the peculiarities of the Gospel are not found in Justin's writings at all." (!!) (P. 297.) [78:1]