Romans 8:23-25

You can be seated. Please turn with me in your Bible to Romans chapter 8.

Romans 8 · chapter mention

We're looking today at Romans chapter 8, verses 23 to 25, but I'm going to start reading at verse

Romans 8:23–25

18. Romans chapter 8, if you're looking at a pew Bible, is page 944.

Romans 8 · chapter mention

Let's read these verses together. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time

are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with

eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility,

not willingly, but because of him who subjected it in hope that the creation itself will be set

free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now,

and not only the creation, but we ourselves who have the first fruits of the Spirit,

groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in

this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope for who hopes for what he sees.

But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Let's pray.

Lord, we thank you for your Word. We thank you for the Apostle Paul who wrote it so many years ago.

Thank you for preserving it and giving it to us, for those who have translated it into our language

so we can readily understand it. And we pray that your Spirit would do accomplish the work that you

desire in our hearts as we hear your Word today. In Jesus' name, amen. Well, this morning's passage is

about hope. It's about the hope that Christians can have. And it's a very relevant topic because in

our present world, hope seems to be increasingly difficult to grasp. If you read contemporary

philosophers, existentialists, nihilists, postmodern and deconstructionist thinkers, they talk about

the absurdity of life, the arbitrary nature of language, the breakdown of meaningful

metanarratives, large stories that make sense of the world. Last year, the New York Times Book Review

asked two contemporary fiction writers which topics were underrepresented in their field.

One of them said, joy. We seem to have decided that despair, alienation, and bleakness are the

most meaningful and interesting descriptors of the human condition. We are suspicious of the joy

and fullness of life. And it's not just philosophers and fiction writers. More and more people are

despairing of ever finding lasting joy and hope. For the first time since the 1930s, the overall life

expectancy in the United States has decreased. And the primary reason for this is the dramatic

increase in the number of deaths of despair caused by drug overdose, alcohol abuse, and suicide.

Suicide is now the second leading cause of death among 15 to 34-year-olds in this country.

Last year, the Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest public school district in our country,

reported 5,000 incidents among its students of suicidal behavior or deliberate self-harm such as cutting.

More broadly, the number of Americans diagnosed with major depression is steadily increasing,

14 million as of last year. And for the first time again in generations, most younger Americans

believe that they will be worse off, not better off, than their parents.

One writer said, a society which believes in a worthwhile future saves in the present so as to

invest in the future. Contemporary Western society, both governments and individuals,

spends in the present and piles up deaths for the future.

And we think you only live once, so you might as well get what you can for as long as you can.

One, we struggle to identify a meaningful and enduring source of hope for the future,

that will govern our present experience of reality.

What is it that you hope for? What is it that keeps you going from one day to the next?

Is there an enduring source of hope that gives meaning to your life in the present from day to day?

Or is the object of your hope constantly shifting from one thing to another to another?

Or have you lost hope? You've resigned yourself to just existing without really having something to live for.

This morning's passage tells us that Christians live in hope. We hope for what we do not yet see,

and we wait for it with patience.

This morning I want to look at three things. I want to look at the glory that awaits us,

the struggle to keep waiting for it,

and the power we have to wait with eagerness and patience.

First, the glory that we're waiting for.

Our future hope as believers in Christ Jesus.

What is it that Christians can confidently hope for?

What Paul says in verse 23,

we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.

Now you might say, well, wait a minute.

How are we still waiting for our adoption and redemption?

I mean, didn't Paul just say, if you look back in verse 15 and 16,

that we are already adopted?

We have received the spirit of adoption.

The spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.

You know, we're not waiting to see whether God will graciously receive us into His family as His children.

We're not sort of like being in temporary foster care,

where you have a place to stay for now, but you really belong to somebody else.

No, the Bible says in John 1, 12,

to all who received Christ, to those who believed in His name,

God gave power to become children of God, born of God.

We can be secure in our status as God's adopted children,

welcomed into His family,

and our status as God's children is secure.

And you might say, well, haven't we already been redeemed?

We've been adopted.

We've already been redeemed, right?

Romans 3, 24 says,

we're justified by His grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 1, 7,

in Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our sins.

But this verse, verse 23,

says that we are waiting for these things.

What does that mean?

Well, the word that's translated here, adoption as sons,

it's a combination of two words,

the word son and a verb that can mean make, become, or put in place.

In other words, it means being made a son,

becoming a son, taking one's place as a son.

All right, often this word refers to a child being adopted into a family.

And in the ancient Roman culture,

it was the son who received the privileges of full inheritance.

And so, Paul is saying that all God's children,

men and women alike,

receive the full privileges of an inheritance,

a spiritual inheritance in Christ.

But here this word,

becoming a son,

being made a son,

doesn't just refer to God's initial act of receiving us into His family.

That's what was referred to back in verse 15 and 16,

but also to God's final goal,

that as His children,

we would become,

as verse 29 says,

conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus.

What are we waiting for?

We wait for the day when we will see Jesus,

our Savior,

face to face,

as He is.

When we will be made completely like Him,

when we will reflect that beautiful image

that God's children were meant to bear.

From the very beginning,

we wait for the day

when we will take our rightful place

as heirs of God's kingdom

and rule over God's creation

in the new heavens and the new earth.

That's what verse 19 and 21 speak about.

The revealing of the sons of God,

when creation itself will attain

the freedom of the glory

of the children of God.

You might ask,

what exactly is this glory?

That word comes up a lot in the Bible

and quite a bit in this passage,

verse 18, verse 21.

What is this glory of God's children

that Paul is talking about?

Glory is a multifaceted concept,

but one aspect of glory

is being praised

and publicly approved of.

God's children are promised

the glory of being

known, loved,

and even praised

by God Himself.

Many years ago,

C.S. Lewis gave a sermon

entitled,

The Weight of Glory.

It's well worth reading.

You can find the full text online

for free if you Google it.

But listen to some of what he says

about this,

about glory,

the promise of glory.

He says,

nothing is so obvious in a child,

not in a conceited child,

but in a good child,

as its great and undisguised

pleasure in being praised.

Not only in a child either,

but even in a dog or a horse.

It is the humblest,

most childlike,

most creaturely of pleasures.

The pleasure of a beast

before men,

a child before her father,

a pupil before his teacher,

a creature before its creator.

And that is enough

to raise our thoughts

to what may happen

when our redeemed souls,

beyond all hope

and nearly beyond belief,

learn at last

that we have pleased him

whom we were created

to please.

There will be no room

for vanity then.

We will be free

from the miserable illusion

that it is our own doing.

We will most innocently rejoice

in the thing

that God has made us to be.

And the moment which heals

our old inferiority complex

will also drown

our pride forever.

The promise of glory

is the promise

almost incredible

and only possible

by the work of Christ

that some of us,

that any of us

who really chooses

shall actually please God.

To please God.

To be a real ingredient

in the divine happiness,

to be loved by God,

not merely pitied,

but delighted in

as an artist delights

in his work

or a father in a son.

It seems impossible.

A weight or burden of glory

which our thoughts

can hardly sustain,

but so it is.

In our first reading

this morning,

Peter said,

the tested genuineness

of your faith

will one day result

in praise and glory

and honor

at the revelation

of Jesus Christ.

This is one thing

that we're hoping for,

taking our place

as God's children,

heirs of His kingdom,

glorified.

But second,

Paul says,

we wait for the redemption

of our bodies.

You know,

we have redemption

through the blood of Christ.

We can know

the forgiveness

of our sins,

but Paul says,

we're looking forward

to the day

when our bodies

will be fully

and finally redeemed.

Think about what

that will be like.

Our bodies will no longer

be enticed

by the deceitfulness

of sin,

no longer defiled

by our past participation

in it.

No longer drawn

to repeat ungodly

and destructive patterns,

our bodies will be

cleansed and renewed

and purified

and resurrected.

Our bodies will no longer

bear the ugly scars

of trauma,

shame,

and abuse.

Revelation 21 says,

the former things

will pass away,

and the one who is seated

on the throne

will make all things new.

And He will wipe away

every tear from our eyes,

and there will be

no more mourning

or crying

or pain.

Our bodies will no longer

be prone to weakness

and sickness

and decay,

no longer vulnerable

to disability

and dementia

and disorientation.

We will be fully

and finally healed,

whole,

vigorous,

and strong.

Listen to C.S. Lewis

once again.

He says,

we are to shine

as the sun.

We are to be given

the morning star.

Scripture gives us

these promises.

In one way,

God has given us

the morning star already.

You can go and enjoy

the gift on many

fine mornings

if you get up early enough.

What more,

you may ask,

do we want?

Ah,

but we want so much more.

We do not merely

want to see beauty.

We want to be united

with the beauty we see,

to pass into it,

to receive it

into ourselves,

to bathe in it,

to become part of it,

but right now,

we can't.

We discern the freshness

and the beauty

of the morning,

but they do not make us

fresh and pure.

We cannot mingle

with the splendor

of the sun

that we see,

but it will not

always be so.

He says,

when human souls

have become

as perfect

in voluntary obedience

as the inanimate creation

is in its lifeless obedience,

and this is the promise

when we're conformed

to the image

of His Son,

then we will put

on its glory,

or rather,

that greater glory

of which nature

is only the first sketch.

We shall eat

of the tree of life.

The whole person

is to drink joy

from the fountain of joy.

The rapture

of the saved soul

will flow over

into the glorified body.

We cannot even imagine this.

We cannot even imagine

the glory

that we will have.

the security

we will feel

in being known

and loved

and approved of

and even praised

by God

who made us

by His grace.

It's not because

we merit this.

It's a gift

from beginning to end

and to share

in that beauty

that we only glimpse

and long for

in this world.

Consider the bodily

experience

of a baby,

an embryo,

a fetus

developing inside

her mother's womb.

Now, even though

none of us remember

being in our mother's womb,

research shows

that a baby

developing in her mother's womb

can actually experience

many things.

At only eight weeks,

the fetus responds

to touch

around her lips

and cheeks.

Around 11 weeks,

she begins exploring

her own body

and her surroundings

with her mouth,

hands,

and feet.

Ultrasounds show

babies at this stage

touching their buttocks,

holding on to the

umbilical cord,

turning,

walking up and down

the amniotic sac wall

on the inside.

At 13 weeks,

our sense of taste

is developed.

A fetus taste buds

look just like those

of a mature adult.

At 20 weeks,

the ears are well developed.

At 26 weeks,

the unborn child

responds to sound

and vibration.

Some studies even

indicate that infants

seem to recognize

some of what they have heard

while they were

in the womb,

after they come out.

of the womb,

whether it's a piece

of music

or a certain book.

But then contrast

that experience

of a baby developing

in her mother's womb

to a child born

into the world

and growing

into an adult.

Seeing,

breathing,

eating,

crying,

cooing,

speaking,

crawling,

walking,

running,

thinking,

feeling,

communicating

ever more deeply.

Here's the point.

compared to the

resurrection life,

the glory

of the promised life

in the world to come,

compared to the day

when our bodies

will be redeemed

and we will be fully

conformed to the image

of Christ,

our experience

in this present world

is only the prenatal stages.

That's why Paul says

in verse 18,

I consider that our

present sufferings

are not worth comparing.

We can't even fathom

what this glory

will be like

when we become

the glorified,

fully alive

children of God

in the resurrected

world.

And just as much

as you cannot explain,

there is no way

that you can explain

to a fetus

developing

in a mother's womb

how glorious

it will be

to emerge,

how glorious

it will be

to breathe in the air

and taste delicious food

and see a brilliant sunset

and speak to a fellow

human being

and contemplate

the greatness

of our Creator.

So much less

can we fathom

the glory

of the resurrection life

that Christ promises

to all who trust in Him

in the world to come.

But so real it will be.

That's our future hope.

It's glorious.

We can't see it.

We can't even fathom it,

but it's going to be glorious.

But as Paul unpacks

the glory that awaits us,

he also acknowledges

the struggle

to keep waiting for it.

This is our second point.

Struggle to keep waiting.

Verse 24.

In hope we were saved.

Now hope that is seen

is not hope,

for who hopes

for what he sees,

but we hope

for what we do not see.

One commentator pointed out

Paul seems to repeat

himself three times here,

making a rather obvious point.

But Paul isn't stuttering,

and he's not repeating himself

while he tries to figure out

what to say next.

He's intentionally acknowledging

and underlining

that living in light

of the Christian hope

is hard

because we don't see

that which we hope for.

No eye has seen,

no ear has heard,

nor heart imagined

what God has prepared

for those who love him.

And as we live

in the murky shadows

of this present evil age,

the hope that Christ promises

can at times seem distant

and vague

and even unreal

to our clouded

spiritual eyes.

I've been reading

the Chronicles of Narnia

with my kids recently,

and earlier this week

we were reading a chapter

in The Silver Chair.

In that book,

Jill and Eustace

and Puddleglum

have embarked

on a dangerous journey

through the wild

wastelands of the north

in order to find

a lost prince

that many other people

have disappeared

trying to find.

But Aslan

has sent them

on this mission.

Aslan had directed them

to search for a ruined city

of the ancient giants,

and he had told them

to follow his instructions

carefully

to repeat them

morning and evening

every single day

so they wouldn't forget them.

But they've been traveling

for many days,

and the weather's

getting colder and colder,

the terrain is getting

more and more difficult

to navigate,

every night they're

sleeping on the ground,

huddling together

under blankets,

and waking up

with frost

on top of the blankets.

They're freezing.

Suddenly,

in the middle of nowhere,

they meet a beautiful woman

riding on a horse.

They have no idea

who she is

or where she comes from,

but she's right there,

right in front of them,

and she promises them,

she tells them,

about a place

called the Castle

of Harfang.

And she says,

in the Castle of Harfang,

you can enjoy

hot baths

and soft beds

and bright fireplaces

and four hot meals

a day.

And almost immediately,

the focus of their hope

shifts.

Says they could think

of nothing but beds

and baths

and hot meals

and how lovely

it would be

to get indoors.

They never talked

any more about Aslan

or even about

the lost prince

whom they were sent

to find.

And Jill gave up

her habit of repeating

Aslan's signs

to herself

every night and morning.

At first,

she said she was

just too tired,

but she soon forgot

all about it.

And though you might

have expected

that the idea

of having a good time

at Harfang

might have made

them more cheerful,

it really made them

more sorry for themselves

and more grumpy

and snappy

with each other.

Isn't that the temptation

we face

when the Christian life

gets hard?

When the journey

seems like

we're trudging

through a frigid wasteland

and we haven't yet seen

what we're hoping for.

We don't feel

the presence of God

near to us

in the way we have

at other times.

We take our eyes

off Jesus

and the grand mission

He has given us

and the glorious hope

He has set before us

and instead we fix

our hope on something else.

That seems closer at hand,

more attainable,

more tangible,

more satisfying.

Instead of present sufferings

and future glory,

our priority becomes

comfort now.

Present relief

from our losses

and crosses

and unwanted burdens.

So we fix our hope

on a job

or a relationship

that we can see

instead of the God

whom we can't see.

Sometimes we stay

in unhealthy

and ungodly

dating relationships

for way too long

for this very reason.

at least I have

somebody in this world

that I can hold on to.

But Jesus says,

you may not be able

to see me now

but I love you

more than anyone else

in the world

ever will.

I shed my blood for you.

I poured out

my life for you.

I'm for you,

not against you.

Hold on to me.

Some of you

may be married.

Marriage has been hard

for a long time.

And you have little hope

that the other person

will change.

And Jesus says,

don't fix your eyes

on what you can see.

Trust me.

I know what it's like

to be married

to a self-centered spouse.

The church is my bride

after all.

All of us.

So I'm with you

every step of the way.

Even when it seems

like a frigid wasteland,

I'm teaching you to love

not as your spouse

loves you

but as I have loved you.

Sometimes we can even

redefine in our own minds

what the Christian hope

is really about.

Some churches say

Jesus didn't primarily come

to give us eternal life

in the age to come.

He came to give us

our best life now.

Other churches

emphasize above all else

the Christian mandate

to pursue social justice,

to be the change

you want to see

in this world.

Now these are important

and biblical concerns.

Jesus doesn't promise

financial prosperity

but He does say

to His disciples

that He's come

to give us abundant life.

And the Bible

does call us

to do justly

and love mercy

and walk humbly

before our God.

But Paul says

in 1 Corinthians 15,

if we have hope

for life in this world only,

we are of all people

most to be pitied.

Verse 18, Paul says,

our present existence,

sufferings included,

cannot compare

to the future glory.

Yes, this life matters

but 70, 80, 90 years

compared to all eternity,

it's a drop in the bucket.

We need to let

our future hope

of glory

in Christ

shape our present reality

instead of allowing

our present experience

and sufferings

to eclipse

our future hope.

We need to recover

the eternal perspective

that the Christian church

in the prosperous West

is in danger of losing.

I would dare say

that most Christians

in the Western world

think more about

preparing for retirement

than about preparing

for eternity.

Many people,

including many Christians,

say things like,

I hope I just die

in my sleep someday,

quickly and painlessly.

I want to enjoy my life.

I want to be as active

as I can

for as long as I can.

I want to complete

my career,

enjoy my retirement,

and then when death comes

I want to be gone quick,

and then, yeah,

I'll go to be with Jesus

or whatever happens next.

But that is a far cry

from how other Christians

in other times and places

have approached death

and dying

and eternity.

Francis of Assisi

in the Middle Ages

said this.

He said,

reflect and see

that the day of death

is approaching.

When he became

seriously ill,

he had dropsy,

his body became

full of fluid,

he insisted that his doctor

tell him the truth

about his prognosis.

The doctor gave one

of those nice answers.

He says,

by the grace of God,

all will be well.

Francis says,

tell me the truth.

What's your medical opinion?

I know God can heal me

if He wants to,

but let's be honest here.

And the doctor said,

in my opinion,

you probably have

about a few months

left to live.

And he said,

thank you.

And he rejoiced

because he was so

looking forward

to going and being

with Christ.

And he spent the rest

of his life

praying and praising

God more and more

and planning

for the future

of the order

he had founded.

Or consider one

of the Puritans,

Leonard Hoare.

He was the president

of Harvard.

It was before

Yale existed.

So we can excuse him.

He prayed for many years

that Lord willing,

he would die

of a consumptive

and lingering distemper.

In other words,

a chronic

and incurable disease

that would gradually

progress over

a long period of time.

Why in the world

would he pray

repeatedly

for such an awful thing?

His answer was,

so I can intentionally

prepare for eternity.

To turn away

from the passing

pleasures

of this present world,

to fix my affections

on Jesus Christ alone,

and to exhort

my family and friends

to take account

of the shortness

of their lives

in light of the shortness

of my own,

and to live in light

of eternity

and not get lost

focusing on this present age.

This is the eternal perspective

the Apostle Paul had

in Philippians 1

when he said,

to live is Christ

and to die is gain.

My desire is to depart

and be with Christ

for that is far better.

But he said,

to remain in the flesh

is more necessary

on your account.

You see,

if you say today,

I want to go

and be with Christ,

that'd be my choice.

It'd be far better.

People start worrying

you're suicidal.

Paul was not suicidal.

It is not the same thing.

Paul says,

we have hope

for this life

and the life to come.

God's put me here

on this earth.

I have a purpose

for being here.

He says,

it's necessary

for me to remain here

on your account.

God's put me here

so that I can serve others.

He has given me a mission

and I'm going to complete

that mission

and trust Him

every step of the way

even if I don't see

what in the world it is.

But my hope

is ultimately fixed

on being with Christ

for all eternity.

So there's a glory

that awaits us.

There's a struggle

to keep waiting for it.

And third,

Paul indicates

where we get the power

to keep on waiting,

to wait eagerly

and patiently.

Verse 23 says,

we wait eagerly

and verse 25 says,

we wait with patience.

We can wait eagerly

because we have

the first fruits

of the Spirit.

Verse 23.

Paul tells us

that though we do not

yet see the fullness

of the glory

that we hope for,

we do enjoy

the first fruits

of the Spirit.

The first fruits

is an agricultural metaphor

that's used throughout

the Old and New Testaments.

Basically,

the first fruits

is the first batch

of crops

of the season.

They indicated

the kind of harvest

that was sure

and soon to follow.

And Paul says,

the Holy Spirit

who indwells us

as believers in Jesus

is the first fruits

of our future glory.

The appetizers

of the heavenly banquet

to come.

Ephesians,

Paul communicates

the same idea

using an economic metaphor.

He says,

the Holy Spirit

is the pledge

or the first installment

or the down payment

on our inheritance

as children of God.

We have a very real

present experience

of the Holy Spirit,

His goodness

and power now.

And this very real

present experience

is simultaneously

the guarantee

of the future glory

that is even greater

to come

that we hope for

and yet do not see.

What does this look like

to have the first fruits

of the Spirit?

Well, it means

that the Holy Spirit

brings some of the content

of our future hope,

that glory,

into the reality

of our present experience.

Even now,

we can begin

to know the glory

of being loved

and approved of

by God.

And when Jesus

was baptized

in the Jordan River,

the Father's voice

spoke to Him

from heaven

and said,

You are my Son,

my beloved.

With you,

I am well pleased.

And when we are baptized

into Christ

through faith

in Him,

those words

are spoken to us too.

God the Father

publicly and visibly

claims us as His own.

He says,

You are my beloved child.

I have adopted you

in Christ with you.

I am well pleased.

So you can look back

to the day

that when you were baptized

and remember

that God has given you

the first fruits

of His Spirit.

It's a seal.

It's a sign.

We can rest

in His love for us.

We can long

for the day

when He will say to us

at the end

of our earthly pilgrimage,

Well done,

good and faithful servant.

Enter now

into the joy

of your Master.

We can begin

to know that glory.

We can begin

to taste

of the heavenly banquet

to come.

We're going to take

the Lord's Supper

in a few minutes.

And when we take

the bread and the cup,

the symbols

of the body

and blood of Christ,

our Savior,

when we feed on Him

by faith

and ask Him

to fill us afresh

with His Spirit,

we taste and see

that the Lord is good

and we long

for the day

when we'll feast

with Him

in His kingdom.

We can even begin

to experience

the redemption

of our bodies.

Maybe you've experienced

God graciously

restoring your body

to health

after a season

of sickness

or stress

through whatever means.

Maybe it was

a miraculous healing

in response to prayer.

Maybe it's through

natural means

that God has provided

like exercise

and diet and sleep.

God has made

those things too.

Maybe it's through

medical treatments

and the wisdom

that God has given

to your doctors.

Maybe it's all three.

Whatever the means

God uses,

we can praise Him

for our health

and we can look forward

to the day

when our bodies

will be fully redeemed

and forever healed.

Or when we experience

a new freedom

from formerly besetting sins.

When we gain new insights

into God's glory

and grace.

When we receive new power

to serve and to speak

in the name of Christ.

All of these

are the first fruits

of the Spirit.

Paul's encouragement

to us is,

brothers and sisters,

let every taste

of glory,

every experience

of the first fruits

of the Spirit

motivate us

to await with eagerness

the future glory

that God has promised

to us

and to not tire

of hoping

and looking forward

and anticipating that

and enjoying

the first fruits

of that.

Our passage

this morning

ends not just

with eagerness

but also with patience.

The end of verse 25.

We wait

with patience.

That word means

with resoluteness,

with steadfast endurance,

continuing

to bear up

despite present

difficulties.

How can we wait

not only eagerly

but also patiently?

Well,

verse 26 tells us

that the Spirit

helps us

in our weakness.

Now,

Pastor Matt's going

to get into that theme

next week.

I don't want to try

to steal his sermon,

but I want to make

one point

that spans

the passage

Pastor Nick preached

on last week

and the passage

Pastor Matt's

preaching on next week

and the passage

that I'm preaching

on this week.

I want you to notice

a word

that is repeated

three times.

Verse 22,

verse 23,

verse 26,

groaning.

Now,

throughout the Bible,

groaning is connected

with three things,

oppression,

prayer,

and childbirth.

So,

in the book of Exodus,

the people groaned

in the midst

of their oppression

in Egypt

and God heard

their cries.

In the Psalms,

many of the Psalms,

the Psalm writers,

the Psalms of Lament,

they lay their groanings.

Sometimes it's translated

sighings

before the Lord.

In prayer.

And several times

in Scripture,

groaning is connected

with childbirth.

Verse 22 says,

the whole creation

has been groaning

together in the pains

of childbirth.

Literally,

it's groaning

and travailing

like a woman

in childbirth.

Why?

Why is creation groaning?

Because it's been

subjected to futility

and it can't fix itself.

Creation is longing

to be set free

but it can't free itself.

And then in verse 23,

same word comes up,

God's children.

We ourselves groan inwardly.

We groan under the weight

of our fallenness.

We long to be set free

but we can't fix ourselves either.

But in verse 26,

the Holy Spirit Himself

intercedes for us

with groanings.

So here's the picture.

The whole creation groans.

Within the creation,

God's children groan.

And within God's children,

God's Spirit who indwells us groans.

The picture is of God

renewing the whole universe

from the inside out

through the indwelling Holy Spirit.

God's creation,

God's children,

and even God's Spirit

are compared to a woman in labor

who through painful anguish

brings forth new life.

And the Holy Spirit brings life,

gives birth to the children of God

and the glorified children of God

in turn lead the creation

into joyful praise.

Now here's the point.

We can wait patiently

because even in our deepest moments

of anguish and pain,

the Holy Spirit dwells within us,

bringing forth through our anguish and pain

life and freedom and glory

in ways that we can't even imagine.

Wesley Hill describes this experience

in his book,

Washed and Waiting.

He writes,

so much of my life as a Christian

has simply been learning how to wait,

to be patient,

to endure,

to bear up under an unwelcome burden

for the long haul.

Taped onto my desk is a quote,

Be patient toward all

that is unsolved in your heart.

Having patience with your own weaknesses

is something of what Paul was commending

when he described the tension

of living on this side of wholeness.

When God acts climatically

to reclaim the world

and raise our dead bodies from the grave,

there will be no more weakness,

no more disorder,

no more temptation,

but until then,

we hope for what we do not see.

We are washed and waiting.

This is our life as Christians,

our identity as people

who've been forgiven

and spiritually cleansed,

and our struggle as people

who persevere,

sometimes with frustrating thorns

in our flesh,

looking forward to what God

has promised to do.

We live in hope

for what we do not see.

We can wait with eagerness

because we have the fruit,

fruits of the Spirit.

We've tasted that glory

that is to come,

and we can wait with patience

because the Holy Spirit

dwells deep within us

and is groaning,

and in our deepest moments

of anguish and pain

is bringing life and freedom

and joy and glory out of them

in ways we can't even fathom.

So we can say with the Apostle Paul

in 2 Corinthians,

therefore we do not lose heart.

Though our outer self

may be wasting away,

our inner self

is being renewed day by day.

For this light,

momentary affliction

is preparing for us

an eternal weight of glory

beyond all comparison.

As we look not to the things

that are seen,

but to the things

that are unseen.

For the things that are seen

are transient,

but the things that are unseen

are eternal.

Let's pray.

Father,

Father,

we pray that by Your Spirit

dwelling in us,

You would renew

our hope

and fix it

once again

clearly

on You.

We pray that we would trust

Your promise

of this unfathomable glory

that awaits us.

We pray that You would be

near us

in our struggle

to keep on waiting

for it

and not

to turn our hopes

toward lesser things.

We thank You

for Jesus

and we thank You

for Your Spirit.

We pray in Christ's name.

Amen.

Amen.