GOD COMMENDS FAITH—NOT SIN.
By G.
IN the eleventh chapter of Hebrews a number of persons are spoken of in terms highly commendatory. It is well to note especially why they were deemed worthy of commendation. The one thing to their credit was their faith. All of these people had faults. Many of them have faults recorded against them in the Scriptures, some of them very grievous sins; yet God has deemed them worthy of special mention—has set His seal of approval upon them. Infidels and skeptics are wont to point out the defects of these people, and then point to the fact that God commends such men. Some will take warrant to commit sins of which these persons were guilty, because of their honorable mention by the Spirit's dictation, while others refuse to acknowledge God at all because, they allege, He endorsed men who were guilty of atrocious deeds. This course is in keeping with that of the scribes and Pharisees who said of Christ, "This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them," and therefore they rejected Him. Such logic is in sheer ignorance of God's mercy, which is in full harmony with His perfect justice. Such one-sided deductions come of superficial reading of the Scriptures, and a lack of understanding of the character of God and His wonderful love for His creatures. Those who view the situation from such a standpoint apparently think that God is just such a One as themselves, and they judge Him by themselves, setting up their own fallible standard of judgment and justice instead of God's perfect standard. God has not commended any man for his faults, but, no matter how faulty, He does commend faith. He does not regard sin lightly, yet He loves the creature; and this is the basis of His perfect plan of salvation. "God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." God does not let sin, which is "the transgression of the law," pass unnoticed, or its punishment go by default. That is shown by His gift of His sinless Son to die for sinners, and then by making faith in Him a condition of justification, of pardon. He thus devised at great sacrifice5a plan by which He can be just and yet justify them that believe in Christ. So we have this emphatic statement by the apostle Paul: "Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Peace with God implies being in His favor, regardless of previous character or condition. Only the exercise of faith, the "faith that works by love," which is "the faith of Jesus," can bring one into a position where God can commend him. It is only by a continuous faith in Christ that one can stand "perfect and complete in all the will of God," and therefore be worthy of commendation by Him. "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy." If skeptics would only believe the Gospel, and honestly contemplate the merciful plan of salvation, they would see the beauty and reasonableness of God's love, and no longer charge Him with human folly and vindictiveness. "The wages of sin is death;" "sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death;" but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." G.