Romans 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son… I. CHRIST IS THE GRAND IDEAL OF MANHOOD. "The image of His Son." Not the corporeal nor the mental image, but the moral character. This is — 1. A perfect ideal. (1) He was without blemish. "He did no sin." His judge could find no fault in Him; and He challenged His enemies to convince Him of sin. (2) He possessed every virtue, grace, lofty aspiration. There have been men who have had many virtues, but they have been associated with many salient imperfections. , a model in some respects, was so inconsistent that, having spent his life in exposing popular superstitions, his last request was that a bird might be sacrificed to Esculapius. and Seneca had many virtues; but the one was infected with vanity, and the other was mean-spirited and greedy to a fault. So with the best of the old Hebrew men; and even apostles had their faults. But you cannot put your hand on a single flaw in Christ's character, nor point to an excellence that did not dwell in Him. (3) Not only had He all virtues, but all His virtues were harmonious. There is in Him an exquisite balancing of the passive and the active, the masculine and the feminine virtues. He is indignant, but never boisterous; tender, but never weak; resolute, but never obstinate; condescending, but never familiar. 2. It is a soul-approving Ideal. By the laws of man's moral constitution he is bound to approve of this Ideal. A man wants a mansion; the architect gives him a plan so accordant with his own taste that he is bound to accept it. Another man wants something cut in marble; the sculptor presents an object that comes up to his loftiest ideas, and he is bound to accept it. So man wants a model character; and God gives him an Ideal that meets his highest conceptions of the morally beautiful, and he is bound to accept Him. And all men alike. There are ideals in architecture, painting, poetry, costume, which some may admire, but others loathe. But here is an Ideal that commends itself to the deepest soul of every man. It fits every soul — no soul too small for it, no one too large. It is literally "the Desire of all nations," that for which humanity has been hungering through all ages and lands. 3. It is a universally attainable Ideal. A man may give an ideal of painting, and to practical men, and they may say it is too difficult to work out; but not so with this Ideal of character. The most imitable character is that which is — (1) The most admirable. We imitate only what we admire. (2) The most transparent. There are characters so misty that you cannot discern the principles that rule them; these you cannot imitate. (3) The most unchangeable. A fickle character would be beyond your imitation. Christ answers in the highest degree all these conditions. II. MAN'S CONFORMITY TO THIS IDEAL IS GOD'S PREDESTINATION. Whom did He foreknow? Not some men, but all men; not some things, but all things. The idea is, that all the men He foreknew He ordained to have one grand Ideal of character to aim at and to conform to. God has predestinated that all men, to have health, must attend to certain conditions; that all men shall commence their existence in infancy, shall go on through the various stages, and in the end go back to dust. And likewise God has foreordained that all men shall form their character after the Ideal of excellence embodied in Christ. This is the grand purpose of God in relation to humanity. Conclusion: Learn from this — 1. The transcendent value of the four Gospels. In other parts of the Bible you are brought into the presence of legislators, historians, prophets, apostles. But here you are brought into the presence of Christ Himself. Elsewhere you have scattered star-beams; but here you have the Sun Himself. 2. The grand work of the Christian preacher. To exhibit Christ, who is the Chief among ten thousand, and the altogether lovely, and to urge men to love Him. (D. Thomas, D.D.) Parallel Verses KJV: For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. |
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