Because this is a moral universe, character, which is the excellence of moral beings, is naturally paramount. As the excellence of steel is strength and the excellence of art is beauty, so the excellence of mankind is moral character. An honest man is the noblest work of God, an apothegm usually attributed to John Wesley, may sound at first rather extreme, but if we allow the word honest to stand for all the moral virtues we may be able to understand the apothegm and possibly to agree with it. A saint should be not only a man of intense spiritual devotion but a man of symmetrical virtues and perfectly balanced character. Relationship between moral beings is by confidence, and confidence rests upon character, which is a guarantee of conduct. It is true that sin has introduced confusion into the world so that we do not always find consistency of moral conduct among men; yet to live in a moral world it is necessary that we put confidence in our fellow man. A complete breakdown of confidence would destroy the adhesive quality of society, tear apart the fabric of civilization and turn the world into a cage of savage beasts. However bad men may at times become they must still trust each other. It is either confidence or chaos. What has all this to do with faith in God? Just this: God is a being of supreme moral excellence, possessing in infinite perfection all the qualities that constitute holy character. He deserves and invites the unreserved confidence of every moral creature, including man. Any proper relation to Him must be by confidence, that is, by faith. Where there is no faith it is impossible to please God.
