The Pulpit Commentary — Romans — Section 253

fignration the t>oul of Christ in its intensity tinged with splendour the very skirts of his garments. rt. THE 'll°H0LE CREATION Ill INTRRESTED IN THIS UNVEILING. With uplifted and outstretched head does the" creature" wait to decry the long-desired event. Genesis t<!lls us of the ground cursed for man's sake. Man was formed to rule over the world, but, unable to control himself, his dominion bas been broken in upon by disorder. And the beasts have suffered through the degradation of man. If the master deteriorate, eo ,,.ill his household. The howling of the dog, the moaning of the lion, the writhing of the 'll°onn, the fluttering of the imprisoned bird, all confirm the assertion of "subjection to Tanity unwillingly." The poor brutes at the mercy of rough men may well pant for the redemption of the sons of God. Had man continued upright and grown in true wisdom, doubtless the Tery character of nature had changed for the better. Then had the glo'll"ing language of Isaiah been descriptive of common occurrences : "The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, . . . and a little child shall lead them." All things in God's universe a.re linked together. Man was formed out of the dust of the ground, and we must despise nothing. Ill. IT IS ALREADY 0BSERVAllLE THAT THE PREVALENCE OF CHRISTIANITY ALLl!I• VIATES THE BARDEST LOT. Many are the philanthropic agencies which owe their origin to the diffusion of the Spirit of Christ. First deemed quixotic, sentimental, then plausible and possible, and further becoming actual, the contrary bas at last come to be thought disgraceful and unnatural. :More consideration is shown to the lower animals. Earth yields up her stores to investigation, rejoices in the augmenting power of man to use her forces and bring her marvels to light. That sympathy with nature which modem poetry exhibits was almost nnknown to the ancients. We are learning the language of Creation, interpreting her smiles and t.ears. At the death of Christ, the association with nature's pangs was ms.de visible by the rending of the rooks and the darkening of the sun. IV. If this tendency to amelioration is even now patent, WHAT SHALL BE THE EFFECT OF THE ACOOJll'LUIBJ[ENT OF Gon'e l'URl'OSEB I Then shall "earth be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God." lia&ea in his song called the "heavens to hear, and the earth to give ear." Our Sanour showed his comm.and of the elements. Winds and waves, trees, sickness, and evil spirits obeyed his word. In the desert the wild beasts hurt him not. In anticipa- tion of the day when men shall be like the Saviour, the psalmist called upon earth to "make a joyful noise before the Lord. Let the floods clap their hands, for be cometh to judge the earth." Isaiah predicted that in Israel's millennium" the mountains and hills shall break forth into singing.n And in the Book of Revelation we hear the chorus of redeemed creation: "Every creature which is in heaven and in earth, and under the earth, heard I saying, Blessing ... be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever." The cross of Christ is the great rectifier, reconciling all things unto God. If we cannot fathom the deep secrets of God, it is good, however, for us to meditate on the hints of a widespread redemption. There is something in the prospect which dw!l.rfs our eel.fish earthly plans, and ennobles all that is linked on to God and his kingdom. It makes the pains and strifes and aches of the world bearable, because "our redemption draweth nigh." Are we doing aug~t as the sons of God to quicken the approach of the apocalypse? May our awaking be not to shame and everlasting contempt, but to the glorious emancipation of redeemed humanity 1-S. R. A. Ven. 24 25.-Hopeful patience. The Christian, like the rest of the creation, waits for full redemption, but conscio1!-81Y and_ aepiringly. He is an heir wh~ bas not yet entered into the possession of bis inbentance. He is saved from the guilt of sin, and is being released from its power. His sun is veiled under. morning ~l~uds, and _he 111all soon rejoice in cloudless splendour. A state of hope 1s the condition in which ar,d the innrument by which he work.a out his complete salvation, I. Hon IS EXERCISED oN TRE UNSEEN, What we see is hero before us; what we hor,e for is still in the future-the invisible womb of time. Faith a.nd. ho~ are in!!t:parable companions; where the former is, the latter ls nigh. Hope 11 fatth 1n the attitude of looking towards better things to come. It vividly picture& the approaching OB. vm.1-39.] THE EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS. 251