ly; or on the other hand to disturb the
divine order of creation in a measure by {22} wilfulness and sin. Now
faith is simply the faculty of loving correspondence with God.
'Justification by faith' is the only conception of justification which
is possible in the light of the root facts of human nature. But of
course the practical appeal of this conclusion to the heart and will is
immensely increased, if men can be shown to have acted as if they were
independent and to have found it a failure; if life lived in
independence of God, with God as it were withdrawn from the actual
scene of life to its far-off horizon, is found to have resulted in
havoc, weakness and despair. So, in fact, St. Paul's doctrine of the
true means of justification is based on an appeal, not so much to the
ultimate constitution of our human nature as to the experienced results
of our independence of God, to the facts of sin, whether among Gentiles
or Jews.

4. Finally, the principle of justification by faith is contrasted with
that of justification by works of the law in the view which it involves
of the character of God. The law, as St. Paul interprets it, views God
as a lord and taskmaster. Faith presents Him as the Father of our
spirits, always waiting upon us with His eternal, unchangeable love;
bearing with us; {23} dealing with us even on a false basis which by
our sins we have forced upon Him, in order to bring us to a recognition
of the true; anyway acting or withholding action, if by any means we
can be won to recognize His true character and our true life.

These are the broad contrasts between the alternative methods of
justification by faith or by 'works of the law.' The law, and the
attitude towards God which the law suggested, are, in St. Paul's view,
the main characteristic of the Old Testament. This is a point of view
which we should expect in one trained by the Pharisees. We may
possibly feel that St. Paul tends to identify with the Old Testament as
a whole one particular element in it which specially characterized one
particular period. But at least the element was there, and occupied
there a highly important place in the whole development; and if St.
Paul in his idealizing manner sometimes speaks as if it was the whole
of the older covenant, as if he had forgotten all the teaching of
prophet and psalmist, yet he is not really forgetful. Law is to him
the characteristic of the old covenant. But behind the law God's
de