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Suffering and glory are the major themes of this section of Romans. At first glance they do not seem to go together; the first to be avoided at all cost and the second to be sought. Paul introduces the idea of suffering because honesty did not allow him to talk about our glorious future inheritance without acknowledging that the path to glory is a cross. The early church experienced persecution, death, great need, illness, and pain. When we become followers of Christ it does not mean we will be excluded from the hardships of this world. Christians will suffer for many reasons and our suffering causes real pain. Sometimes it leaves scars that are not erased in this life. But we must remember, suffering will not last forever and Christians do not suffer alone. We have the Holy Spirit who lives in us to help, encourage, guide and direct us. The groaning of the Holy Spirit is a work analogy. As we carry our burden, he comes alongside and groans with us in lifting the burdens of our daily life. Paul understood the reality of suffering. But he also understood that knowing God makes all the difference in how we respond to that suffering. We have hope centered upon the promised return of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have God in heaven who hears our prayers, Jesus Christ who is praying for us, and the assurance that this present suffering is not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ( Romans 8:18, 34) In verse 23, Paul discusses adoption as something in the future. Yet, in verse 15 adoption was treated as something that has already taken place. Some might ask how adoption can be both past and future at the same time. The answer is that the word is used in two different ways. In one sense we have already received our adoption since we have been brought into God's family. Nothing is ever going to change that relationship. Yet, in a second sense we still wait for our adoption because we do not yet enjoy all its privileges. We are waiting for our future resurrection and the glorification of our bodies. Verse 23 says, "We wait eagerly," verse 25 , "We wait patiently." It is important to take the two adverbs together, because biblical patience is not passivity. It is an expectant, though patient, waiting. It expresses itself in vigorous service while we wait for Christ's return. In John 21:15-19 Jesus called Peter into service for his church. Jesus understood the love that Peter had for Him, but He wanted Peter to understand how he could show his love in service. Jesus also showed him the way he would be able to accomplish the task saying, "Follow me!" Romans 8:26-27 teaches us about prayer. First, prayer is not easy, but regardless of the problems we may have with prayer, we must pray. In fact we are commanded to "pray continually" in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. Prayer is a spiritual discipline. In prayer we come to God who hears us and desires to work for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 2:27) We read that the Spirit is praying for us in accordance with God's will. What a comfort it is to know that even when we don't know God's will the Spirit does, and is praying that it will be done in our lives! In verses 29-30, we are confronted with five verbs in past tense that help us begin to understand the process of salvation. : He fore knew, predestined, called, justified and glorified. These five truths about God and His relationship with us are often misunderstood. The reason for the misunderstanding is that we are not God. Our judgments and comprehension are finite, but God is infinite. Humans speak of "fore" knowledge and "pre" destination, but these prefixes have meaning only for us. Strictly speaking there is no time frame, past, present and future, in God. God is outside of time, existing eternally, knowing all things at all times. Yet, He created time for His purposes and for His glory. He has worked through history, and continues to create new life, both spiritual and physical, today. God is concerned and involved with the details of our world. Foreknowledge means that salvation had its origin in the eternal plan of God. It focuses our attention on the distinguishing love of God according to which some are chosen to be conformed to the character of Jesus Christ. Some people have taken foreknowledge to mean that, since God knows all things, God knows beforehand who will believe in Him and who will not. As a result He has predestined those whom He foresees will believe in Him for salvation. In other words, He foreknows and predestines our faith. But verses 28-29 are not talking about human actions or responses at all. They are speaking entirely of God, who He is, and what He does. Each of these five terms is like that. Predestination, like foreknowledge, tells us that having fixed His distinguishing love upon us, God appointed us to be conformed to the likeness of His Son. He does this by calling, justifying, and glorifying those chosen. Does this mean, then, that people who do not believe in and trust God can blame God for their lack of faith, since it seems they have no responsibility in the process? No, God places responsibility on each of us for belief or unbelief. Our God is a God of multiple truths. Read John 3:16-18. Do you hear God's call to believe in Jesus Christ? It is the Holy Spirit who tugs at our hearts, leading us to Jesus, as the truth of God's word is heard. God's call is trustworthy and good. "Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son." Though we will not fully understand God's call to some people and not to others, we must trust and yield to His judgments. If God is truly righteous, and He is, salvation must be all from God or we would have room to boast. The Bible never says that we are saved because of our faith. That would make faith something good in us, that we somehow contributed to the process. But it does say that we are saved by or through faith, meaning that God gives it to us so that we can be justified. Our role, in the process of salvation is to receive the faith He offers us and yield to God's mercy, thanking, praising, and worshiping our holy, gracious, and powerful God. Is it wrong to have questions? No, Christianity is truth! God will bring a sense of peace to the questions asked from a sincere, seeking heart. Verses 31-39 direct us to
the glorious truth that nothing can rob believers of their eternal
glory because God is responsible for it. If salvation was based on our
love, not on God's, we would never have full assurance of our
salvation, for our hearts and emotions are susceptible to sin and
change. There would be days when our assurance would seem justifiable
and days when it would not. Heaven would be a reward for the strong and
not an open gift of love for sinners saved by grace. Thankfully, we
have assurance in this chapter that our salvation is all from Him. God
knows who His children are for He knows all things from eternity to
eternity. God's desire for us is that we know Him and love Him more, so
that we may be transformed into His image. We are Christ's possession.
If God is for us, who can be against us? This question separates
believers from non-believers. Within all who know Christ, there is the
growing conviction that God's love is the very foundation of our
salvation. Because God's love is a divine love, it will never be
shaken, as is clearly stated in verses 38-39. For now, we wait, eagerly
and patiently, for future glory, expressing our love for God in service
to others.
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