of the quotation, `by works was faith made perfect'. This contains an element of truth that demands a little further elaboration, and as the essence of the teaching resides in

the word `perfect', we must endeavour to arrive at a scriptural understanding of the term.

The English word `perfect', when its true meaning is perceived, will be found to be very near to the meaning of the original word used by James. Per, in Latin, means

`through', and facio means `to do', which gives us our word `fact'. To perfect, both in the English and in the Greek, means, `to take anything to its logical end', or, as it were,

to turn `theory' into `fact', to turn faith without works into trust and confidence, which in their turn produce the fruits of righteousness. Perhaps an extreme example of the use

of this idea will help to fix it in the mind. In 2 Corinthians 6:14 the apostle Paul asks: `What fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath

light with darkness?' He cites from the Old Testament the promise that, if God's people came out and were separate, touching not the unclean thing, the Lord would receive

them. He then applies the teaching to the church, saying:

`Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God' (2 Cor. 7:1).

It is obvious that `perfecting holiness'; cannot mean `improving holiness'; it does, however, make most blessed sense when we perceive that the apostle Paul is urging the

believer to take the sanctification which is already his in Christ (1 Corinthians 1:30) to its logical conclusion. These Corinthians had been `cleansed', for he had already

written to them, `but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God' (1 Corinthians 6:11). In 2

Corinthians 7:1, he was but urging them to make this cleansing a living fact in their experience.

This conception that true Christian practice is the taking of salvation and its blessings to their logical end is further expressed by the apostle Paul in his three great epistles,

Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians, by the use of the word `worthy'.

`I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called' (Eph. 4:1).

As the use of this word `worthy' (axios) in Romans 8:18 means `not worthy to be compared', the idea of a balance is uppermost. The apostle says, in effect, put all the

blessings of grace on one side of the scale, and put your practical outworking of this grace on the other: in other words, `Walk worthy!'.

In Philippians 1:27 the word axios is translated `as it becometh', but once again the balance is emphasized:

`Only let your conversation (manner of life) be worthy of (be put in the scale with) the gospel of Christ' (Phil. 1:27).

For the third time we meet the word in the prayer of Colossians 1, `That ye might walk worthy of the Lord' (Colossians 1:10).

Here is a threefold worthiness that embraces the whole of Christian living. These are the things that accompany salvation.

CHARLES H. WELCH.

This leaflet is published by THE BEREAN PUBLISHING TRUST. The title Berean is borrowed from Acts 17:11, as we seek to emulate the believers in Berea, who `Searched to

See' if the things taught them were `So'.

The Berean Publishing Trust,

52a Wilson Street, London, EC2A 2ER.