Justification by faith-the cardinal truth recovered at the Reformation through the instrumentality of Luther-must be known if the conscience is to be at rest in the presence of God, and the heart know the blessedness of being brought to God.

Job's question, " How should man be justified before God ?"-which had for long remained unanswered-is righteously settled and answered in the epistle to the Romans. An infinite distance lay between a thrice holy God and the lost sinner, and the law, holy, just and good, could only condemn, and by no means clear the guilty. For centuries God gave man every opportunity to prove himself worthy of eternal life, but after a long time of testing under law, man was no nearer God than at the beginning; indeed we have only to read the first two chapters of Romans to see how incapable man was to produce a righteousness acceptable to God; but, on the contrary, proved himself as under the power of sin. Job -realized the need of a mediator-the need of one great enough to place one hand upon the divine throne, and the other upon the condemned sinner, and reconcile him to God."Neither is there any daysman," says Job, "betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both" (Job 9:33).

But God has found a daysman in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ; and through His death and resurrection, a righteous ground has been found for God's dealings in grace with repenting sinners. Through Christ, God can be just and yet justify the one who, acknowledging his sins, believes in Jesus.

That justification is more than forgiveness, a simple illustration will help us to understand:

A prisoner is before judge and jury. Witnesses are called, and his guilt is fully demonstrated. The jury hands in their finding, "guilty," and the judge forthwith gives his verdict, sentencing the prisoner. Through the influence of friends, however, a petition is forwarded to the highest authority of the country, with the result that full pardon is granted.

The prisoner, thus pardoned, is liberated. But is he justified? Nay! he leaves the jail a forgiven transgressor, but all the courts of the world could not justify him! The stigma of his crime rests upon him while life lasts. But if another bears for him the full sentence, or pays his debt in full, then he goes out completely freed-justified. Now God would have a people before Him in fiill liberty and without blame, so that, manifestly, something more is needed than forgiveness.

It may help us to see, that in every recorded preaching by the disciples in the Acts, forgiveness of sins is the theme, while Paul in his preaching added the truth of "justification." (See Acts 13:38, 39.)

Keeping before us the fact that Paul received his commission from a glorified Christ, it will be readily seen that the last three verses of the 4th chapter of Romans are immensely important.

Justification by blood.

Here we have the ground, or righteous basis, of justification stated. God has set forth a propitiatory-Christ, made a mercy-seat by the shedding of His blood, for faith to draw near to God. This refers doubtless to the great day of atonement, when the foundation of God's relationship with Israel was laid for that year, but we have a risen Christ, as it is plainly declared in Rom. 4:25," Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification." Christ delivered to death for our offences shows God's righteousness in clearing the guilty. It explains also how He could deal in grace with those who trusted in Him in Old Testament times (see Rom. 3:25, 26). His forbearance as to their sins was in view of a work yet to be accomplished-a work to which we look back.

Justification by faith.

This was no new principle, as the apostle proves in Rom., chap. 4, taking the case of Abraham to show how completely it was apart from works of the law -Abraham being justified before the tatv was given.

James, in his epistle (chap. 2:21), cites Abraham to prove that a man is justified by works ! Is there then a contradiction ? If not, why the difference ?

First let it be clearly seen that Paul is speaking of justification before God, He can discern faith; we cannot; therefore we find in Rom., chap. 4, that in speaking of Abraham's faith, it is linked with an entirely different incident than that to which James refers.

When was Abraham justified before God ? Gen. 15:5, 6 is the answer. "And he (Abram) believed in the Lord ,and He counted it to him for righteousness." God made an unconditional promise to Abram, and he believed God implicitly:and God justified, or accounted Abram righteous, on account of his faith. So with the believer to-day; the reception of God's testimony in the gospel, that He who died for our sins has been raised from the dead, links the soul with Christ where He is, beyond the reach of death and judgment, so that the full penalty of God's judgment having been borne, the believer is justified in Christ risen. Here, there can be no imputation of guilt; the soul is free, and God has become the justifier (Rom. 8:30). God imputes righteousness to the believer in Christ who is risen, so that the standing of the believer is unassailable.

Justification of life.

This expression, it will be noticed, occurs in the second part of the epistle (chaps. 5-12) and is connected with headship. Adam being presented as head of his race, constituted sinners by his disobedience. Christ is head of a new race, constituted righteous by His obedience-obedience unto death.

Right to live we had not; on account of sin death passed upon all men. But since the death-penalty has been met by Christ, and He has become head of a new creation, every believer has changed headship, and the life now possessed is life in resurrection with Christ. Brought into new creation, the believer's life is unassailable; no guilt can ever be attached to it.

Justification by works.

This phase of justification cannot be too strongly insisted upon in these days of so much empty profession; the truth pressed by James is no less important than that presented by Paul.

Wherein then lies the difference of view-point ? James is writing of justification before men, hence in speaking of Abraham he refers to the time when in obedience to the command of God, the patriarch took Isaac his son and bound him upon the altar. Hebrews n:19 links with it Abraham's faith in God as the God of resurrection, His faith had fully trusted God for the fulfilment of His promises, and that faith was evidenced by his act in offering up his son. So "faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect" (James 2:22).

The two go together, and where there is the reality of divine life it must be evidenced by a consistent godly life and obedience to God. Men do not gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles; a tree is known by its fruits, so that where the confession of Christ's name is made, the word of James applies, " I will show thee my faith by my works."

Faith justifies before God.
Works justifies before men.

J. W. H. N.