Romans 8:18-31 18For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance. 26Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. 28And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. 31What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (NKJV - emphasis mine)
This past Sunday in my Sunday School class we talked about Jesus walking on the water and my class asked me why the disciples went out on the boat if they knew a storm was coming. I had to explain to them that there was no doppler radar and they had to rely upon their “doppler windows”. The geography of the area also doesn’t allow for you to see the storm coming, it simply rolls in over the mountain range. By the time you can see the clouds its too late, you have to deal with the consequences of the storm.
Isn’t life a lot like that? While we are not ignorant of our surroundings how often are we surprised by the storm? Think of the storms that show up in our lives: sickness, injuries, death, loss of home, loss of job, etc.. How many times did you know the storm was coming? Even if you recognized the symptoms, weren’t you still surprised when the full force of the gale hammered against your body?
That’s who I want to talk to today. Those of us that are standing there naked, bloodied and cold in the aftermath of the storm looking around at the devestation that it has caused . As we pick up the fragments of our lives we look to the heavens and ask “why?”.
The passage that I have cited is one of my favorite ones to go to during these times in my life. Let’s walk through it together – shall we? Paul starts in vs 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time STOP! Do you hear what Paul is saying? Suffering is going to happen. Expect it. We live in a world that is cursed by the effects of the fall. When death and sin entered the world, Paradise was lost.
Look at the back half of vs 18 are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. That’s a pretty sobering thought isn’t it. There is nothing in this life that can compare to the next life. Heaven awaits the Christian! Hallelujah! Nothing we endure this side of heaven can compare to the beauty of being with Jesus! Read verses 19 through 23 above. All of creation longs to be restored to the time before sin entered the world. Creation longs to be set free from the bondage of sin as well. The world is as eager to see its redemption as we are.
Verse 28 is probably one of the hardest verses for us to accept. Notice that it does not say that only good things will happen to us. It simply says that all things work together for good to those who love God.
When Joseph was thrown in the pit would we call it good? Before you answer remember that this was the beginning of a chain of events that saved the tribe of Israel from death.
When David stole Uriah’s wife was that good? Before you answer remember that it was Bathsheba’s son who became one of the greatest kings of Israel and also gave us the books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon.
I would ask you the same question now. Is the storm that you are enduring good? Before you answer remember that you are limited by the tick of the clock. You have no way of knowing what is going to come to pass in your life. You have no way of knowing what chain of events has started with this one. Trust God in the midst of the storm, He knows exactly where you are and what you are going through. Go back and read vs 24-27 above – God has given us hope. More than that – He has given us the Holy Spirit to constantly remind us of Christ. Take comfort in the thought that the Spirit Himself is praying for you right now in exactly the way that you need. Trust God in the storm.
I want to share with you a piece of text from A.W. Tozier’s book The Root of the Righteous
It was the enraptured Rutherford who could shout in the midst of serious and painful trials, “Praise God for the hammer, the file, and the furnace.”Read vs 29-30, God is in the business of making saints. Sometimes we have to endure the hammer, the file or the furnace. If we will simply submit to His will in our lives and trust Him in the middle of what we are enduring we can be comforted. Trust in the Master – He knows exactly what He is doing.
The hammer is a useful tool, but the nail, if it had feeling and intelligence, could present another side of the story. For the nail knows the hammer only as an opponent, a brutal, merciless enemy who lives to pound it into submission, to beat it down out of sight and clinch it into place. That is the nail’s view fo the hammer, and it is accurate except for one thing: The nail forgets that both it and the hammer are servants of the same workman. Let the nail but remember that the hammer is held by the workman and all resentment toward it will disappear. The carpenter decides whose head shall be beaten next and what hammer shall be used in the beating. That is his sovereign right. When the nail has surrendered to the will of the workman and has gotten a little glimpse of his benign plans for its future it will yield to the hammer without complaint.
The file is more painful still, for its business is to bite into the soft metal, scraping and eating away the edges till it has shaped the metal to its will. Yet the file has, in truth, no real will in the matter, but serves another master as the metal also does. It is the master and not the file that decides how much shall be eaten away, what shape the metal shall take, and how long the painful filing shall continue. Let the metal accept the will of the master and it will not try to dictate when or how it shall be filed.
As for the furnace, it is the worst of all. Ruthless and savage, it leaps at every combustible thing that enters it and never relaxes its fury till it has reduced it all to shapeless ashes. All that refuses to burn is melted to a mass of helpless matter, without will or purpose of its own. When everything is melted that will melt and all is burned that will burn, then and not till then the furnace calms down and rests from its destructive fury.
I’ll close with vs 31. What shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us. God is for you Christian, He has proven Himself to you time and time again. He expressed His complete love for you when His Son was sacrificed for our sakes. There is nothing that can separate you from Him.
Grace and Peace to you all…
No comments:
Post a Comment