The Pulpit Commentary — Romans — Section 337

dcnoy, By the strength of the inwara impulse. There must be 11 "call " a necessity within ratified by compulsion without. By the way they have be,,,n led. 'Haa not the ~loudy pillar guided our steps, th_e road ~i.og bloc~ed in other directions? Our post 1s to be abandoned only when II higher poait1on manifeetly offers itself. ill, WOBK DIDEOTED TO THE SALVATION OF' MEN CANNOT BB TOO HIGHLY E8TEEllJro, As apostle of the Gentiles, Paul wa.s charged with a. splendid embaesB!!'.e. What hearts were cheered, what minds illumined, what conscieocee freed from gl~m, what holiness and philanthropy effected, by the preaching of Christ crucified a.nd exalted for the redemption of men I We do not disparage aught tha.t ministers to men's temporal comfort, that enlarges their knowledge of this present world and their lllaiJtery over its varied contents, that embellishes their homes and quickens their sensibility to pnre sources of delight ; yet to turn II soul from the error of his ways, to save from spiritnal death, to instil ioto the breast enthusiastic loyalty to the cause of God, this con.oectin"' as it does the transitory with the eternal, preparing the spirit for a nobler exercise of capacity in II boundless congenial sphere hereafter, making earth the pathway to heaven, this must be allowed to be the highest, most awe-stirring mission that can engage our attention and engross our powers, Let those set apart to this work entire~y or partially, prize their functions! Pastors, deacons, teachers, visitors, members of committees, etc., down to the very doorkeepers of God's honse, may exult in all that appertains to this vocation, may be conscious that therein they are co-operating with God and the angels. If great thoughts and little souls do not harmonize, neither does it become us to ally grand endeavours with mean conceptions. Behold this title glittering with heavenly radiance, " the work of the Lord." This enterprise occupies the heart of the ascended Saviour, as it filled his life here below.-8. R. A. Ver. 16.-'l'he dedication of a part th6 CMUJecration of tle whole. The reference is to Numb. xv., where the ordinance is given that before the Israelites ate of the food of Canaan a portion of the dough should be taken as a cake offering to the priests. This was II recognition of God's sovereignty, of hill care and goodness, and by this acknow- ledgment the entire food was hallowed. L THE APPLICATION TO THE APOSTOLIC · ABGUMENT CONOEIL"mi"G THB 1'UTUBE OF' !BBAEL,- The Jews as ·a nation seemed cast away, stripped of former privilege and dignity. Yet, since the patriarchs and prophets and priests had been declared holy unto the Lord, and had served him according to his appointment, the remainder of the people must be accounted sacred, and thus the apostle was led to lllJ)eCt the future salvation of Israel when it should tum to the Lord. The inner life of the tree should be restored and invigorated, and then the branches should a,,a-ain acquire beauty and fruitfulness. They were still "beloved for the fathers' sakes." II. THE BAME METAPHOR APPLms TO TBE BELATIONSBIP OF CBBIST TO BIS PEOPLE. His holiness wraps them round. Not only were individual institutions and officers symbolical and prophetical of the Messiah, but tJ1s nation as a whole typified tJ&s &m of promise. "When Isro.el WI\S a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt." 'l'his explains many references of Old Testament passages to Christ by the evangelists and apostles. The nation was the "servant" of God, by which title, there- fore, Jesus Christ is constantly designated. Israel as a whole was claimed as ~ s peculiar possession. By right of redemption, and the death of the firstborn in Egypt. the tribe of Levi was allotted to Jehovah in recognition of his lien upon Israel, and the number of the firstborn over and above the number of that tribe was balanced by a money payment. Yet Israel we.s "a holy nation unto the Lord," and the service of the priesthood represented, not superseded, the service of the nation. So is Jesus Christ termed "the Firstborn from the dead," and the Christian Churoh is "the general asRembly of the Firstbom." Ohrist sanctified Mm.s,V for his people, that his meriQJ might attaoh to them. We talk muoh to-day of the solidarity of the race, and this helps us to realize how the leaven leaveneth the lump. Great men are seen to be universal property; the use of their gifts blesseth all mankind. As one t.akes a common tool nnd by deft hnndling oonvinoes us of what it is capable; as one cultivates his e.,ta~ as a nursory e.nd pattern for rul gardens; as another enlarges the domain of science whereby the nnvigntor, the mnnufncturer, the thiuker, and the consum~r al.I reap a bone.fit ; so did our Snviour teach us how much may be m.adt1 of humau lifo, how grand 886 THE EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS. [on. xt. 1-80.