From Groans To Glory

Alba 2-6-2022

FROM GROANS TO GLORY

Romans 8:18-25

We live in a world with constant trouble, yet the apostle Paul writes in Romans 8:18, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Think about it this way...

“There once was an oyster whose story I tell,

Who found that sand had got under his shell;

Just one little grain, but it gave him much pain,

For oysters have feelings although they’re so plain.

Now, did he berate the working of Fate

Which had led him to such a deplorable state?

Did he curse out the Government, call for an election?

No; as he lay on the shelf, he said to himself,

"If I cannot remove it, I’ll try to improve it."

So the years rolled by as the years always do,

And he came to his ultimate destiny -- stew.

And this small grain of sand which had bothered him so,

Was a beautiful pearl, all richly aglow.

Now this tale has a moral -- for isn’t it grand

what an oyster can do with a morsel of sand;

What couldn’t WE DO if we’d only begin

With all of the things that get under our skin.”

Since we live in a world with constant trouble, we can easily get quite discouraged. We groan under the load of problems and concerns. Yet we hope for something better. Romans 8:18-25 leads us through the journey from groans to glory. Lets read...

18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.

20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not 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.

24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.

Yes there are groans, but there is also glory. But for the present we are more aware of the difficulties and are surrounded by many...

1. Hopeless Groans

When God first created the world, it was perfect, which is to be expected given that God is 100% good. He looked at His creation and called it “good”, and even “very good”. There was no suffering at all in that perfect creation.

There were no natural disasters. In fact, until the flood, it hadn’t even rained on the earth. And there was no disease, no cancer, no murders, no terrorist attacks, no wars.

What has gone wrong with the creation? Why is the creation corrupted? When the weather gives us what we don't want, people will say, “Mother Nature has unleashed something shocking.”

Others say that we are in the lap of the gods. Others say things are of biblical proportions. Is it Mother Nature, or the weather gods that are responsible? Why do these things happen?

Our text answers the question as to why creation is corrupted. Here we learn that the creation was subjected to futility. That means – if it was subjected at a point in time to futility, it also means that there once was a time when it was not subject to futility, a time when it was not corrupted.

And that time was the time before the fall and sin, that is – rebellion against God, entered the human race. But not only did it enter the human race, the effects of that sin were so great that creation was affected also.

So now, the whole creation groans. The verb “groan” describes the utterances of one who is caught in a dreadful situation and has no immediate prospect of deliverance.

Creation originally was not cursed; it was good. It was not subjected to futility; it was perfect. Nevertheless, today, creation is cursed; it is not in its original state.

As soon as Adam and Eve sinned, their sin subjected the entire creation to chaos. Things began to deteriorate and go from order to disorder. Mankind began to engage in conflicts of various kinds.

Earthquakes, floods and other natural disasters began to occur on a regular basis. And because we live in this world, we are all impacted by that chaos, regardless of whether we have a relationship with God through faith in Jesus or not.