^ In ancient times when God delivered His people from the bondage of Egypt, what pledge did He give them ? " Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I WILL BE hath sent me unto
I
ROMANS VIII. 24, 25 65
you." " I WILL BE," that is the name by which God would be known. " 1 will be " what ? It was for hope to fill it up. The promise was magnificent by its very vagueness. The children of Israel could fill it up in part by what they knew of God. " I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." The promise of the name means that, and goes beyond it. The name is not " I AM," a revelation of the self-sufficiency of God. It is " I WILL BE," a promise of God's inexhaustible sufficiency through the future for all His people's need. And so it is now. This God of the "will be" of the future, is the God of our salvation.^
Something I may not win attracts me ever — Something elusive, yet supremely fair ;
Thrills me with gladness, yet contents me never, Fills me with sadness, yet forbids despair.
It blossoms just beyond the paths I follow. It shines beyond the farthest stars I see ;
It echoes faint from ocean caverns hollow. And from the land of dreams it beckons me.
It calls, and all my best, with joyful feeling,
Essays to reach it as I make reply; I feel its sweetness o'er my spirit stealing,
Yet know ere I attain it I must die.
IL
Waiting with Patience.
1. What are we waiting for ? — The first thing the Apostle mentions with respect to the goal of our Christian hope is that all things and all life shall be set in their proper places once for all. " Waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God." The sons of God are hidden now, and the throne of glory has not been unveiled. Things are not in their right places. The light has been put under a bushel ; the sun has been obscured. The true order of things has not been set in the light of heaven.
The whole passage preceding the text deals with the goal of our hope. There is one point, however, on which it is of utmost
^ P. J. Maclagan.
ROMANS-
66 THE SAVING GRACE OF HOPE
importance that we should be clear and allow no misconception to arise. St. Paul says we are " waiting for our adoption — the redemption of our body." Now by this word " adoption " he does not mean our acceptance as the sons of God ; nor does the " redemption " mean atonement through the precious blood of Christ; for both these are complete already. But they both mean the final deliverance of the children of Grod at the second coming of our blessed Saviour, when all God's people shall be set free from every impediment, and, as adopted children, or as a chosen bride, shall be presented spotless, in perfect freedom before the throne of the Lord. \
\ The traveller in an unknown land, who wishes to explore it, to know how it lies, what it contains, how far its forests and its plains extend, looks out for some mountain from the elevation of which he can best survey it. He climbs to one height, and it takes him clear of the wood, showing how the forest in the distance is bounded by a low range of hills. If he climbs to a higher point, he hopes to see what lies beyond that range. Patiently he toils up the slope, until he gains the desired outlook and beyond the low hills he sees a vast and verdant plain, through which a river flows shining in the sun. But still on the utmost verge his view is restricted by sloping downs, which seem to indicate the presence of the sea beyond. If he can climb to the summit, he hopes to see what now he surmises. In patience, then, he toils up\i\(ard once more, hour after hour, until, standing on the mountain top, he sees all round the mighty expanse. The forest lies beneath, a dark olive patch ; the low hills seem hardly distinguishable from the surrounding plain ; the great river is a thin silver streak ; and beyond lie stretches of moorland, valley, and grassy downs ; and farther still, lies the open sea, like a polished shield, extend- ing far away, until lost on the horizon. At each point, his hope of what he wished to see became reality ; it was no longer hope ; for what a man sees is not hope, but knowledge. But hope of wider knowledge spurred him on, and, in patience, he plodded upwards, waiting until the object of his new hope was reached. Then all that he had thought and surmised, all that he had toiled for, was accomplished.^
2. What is the value for the present life of this hopefid waiting ? — •' If we hope for that which we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." There are three tests of the value of a truth for this
1 J. E. Manning.
ROMANS VIII. 24, 25 ey