196 THE KEY OF MYSTERIES

God's justice and mercy, and not unfrequently is foolish enough to infer that the Creator cares not for man's happiness or misery, and makes no distinction between good and bad. But since the Most Holy and Most Merciful God has revealed Himself through His eternal Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, and earlier still in some measure by means of His Holy Spirit speaking through the prophets, declaring His will and His commands, teaching us the terrible consequences of sin and urging men to awake to righteousness and sin not, therefore His justice, mercy, love and holiness are proved by the holy Scriptures which He has given us. From their pages man may learn with perfect certainty that God will never accept impenitent, sinful and wicked men, and that, if He does not recompense them for their evil deeds in this world, He assuredly will in the next. Above all, God's love and goodness are shown forth in the character of His only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and also in the fact that the latter suffered and died for us, the just for the unjust. Had the Saviour been a mere creature of God, His sufferings might have shown His own goodness, but not that of God. Nay rather, men might be led to think evil of God for letting the noblest and best of men thus suffer and die on the cross for the salvation of those that believed on Him. But the doctrine of the Trinity in Unity removes this difficulty, for it thus becomes clear that 'God 1 was in Christ,


1 2 Cor. v. 19.
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reconciling the world unto himself;' that He did not inflict suffering upon an innocent creature but bore it Himself in the person of His eternal Word. Here again there is admittedly a great and glorious mystery, but right reason assures us that, if unselfish love and the perfection of self-sacrifice for the good of others be virtues, they must somehow exist in God, and that the Almighty must be able to manifest these gracious and most holy qualities. The doctrine of the Trinity in Unity alone shows how this is possible. The holy Scriptures inform us that, since men are sinners and therefore cannot by themselves in any manner cleanse themselves from their guilt and wash away the uncleanness of their hearts, they are unable to deliver themselves from the chains of sin and from eternal ruin and misery. Moreover, God's holiness and justice are such that it would be a violation of both these attributes were He arbitrarily to accept the unclean and sin-polluted, thus also making His threats of punishment meaningless. Yet His love and mercy made Him unwilling to leave mankind to endless sin and eternal death. Hence the eternal Word of God, one with His Father, took upon him perfect human nature, becoming incarnate as the Lord Jesus Christ. By His obedience to the divine will even unto death upon the cross, He the sinless one suffered for sinners. He thus won to Himself the hearts of believers, making them repent of their sins which were the cause of His sufferings. They are forgiven