Romans 8:18-30--Future Glory

Romans 8:18-30
English Standard Version

Future Glory
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing 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 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. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

​26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

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Recall that we have just talked about how we are made to be children of God, but this does not exempt us from pain and suffering.  For if Jesus went through pain and suffering so that He may be glorified (see His prayer in John 17 before He was arrested where His focus is that the Father and the Son may be glorified), then we too should expect to go through similar sufferings and that we may likewise be glorified--though we've already talked about how our glory as the Church will be different.  Like the Sun and the Moon have different kinds of glory where the job of the Moon is to reflect the Sun, so it will be with the Church who is the Bride of Crist.  While we in the Western culture make everything about the Bride, in the Eastern culture and the kind of wedding that is being described for us in heaven, it's all about the Groom.

So then, Paul says that all the troubles, trials, and tribulation that we go through in this life pales in comparison to the indescribable glory that awaits us.  It is worth the price of admission.  Paul says all of creation longs for the Elect to be redeemed and restored to their place as "sons of God" (like Adam was called in the beginning).  The rest of creation that fell with Adam cannot be redeemed or restored...it will have to be destroyed and recreated.  This is much like our story though too in that we must die to our old man to be made alive in Christ and we must become a "new creation."  "17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." (2 Corinthians 5:17).  For us this is a metamorphosis that today affects our souls and one day will affect our bodies as we will receive new bodies like Christ's resurrection body, but the rest of creation will 


2 Peter 3:8-13
English Standard Version
8 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
Not only does creation groan and long with expectation, but so do all of us who have received the down payment of the Holy Spirit.  We are like the betrothed who has been engaged to her husband-to-be.  The date of the wedding has not been set, but we've been told, "I'm going to prepare a place for you that where I am, there you may be also," and we know that as soon as the announcement is made, "Behold, the Bridegroom cometh," that the wedding ceremony will begin and that He will not wait to consummate the wedding.  So then we are waiting expectantly like those in the Parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25 who have oil in their lamps and have their wicks trimmed (oil in the Bible often represents the Holy Spirit), so that we are ready when He comes like a thief in the night to start the wedding.  There will be no more time to "get ready" once He shows up--everyone without the Holy Spirit gets left out in the dark and the words spoken to them in Matthew 25:12 sound exactly like those spoken by Jesus in Matthew 7:23 and Luke 13:27.  So then, although many of us long with expectation for Jesus to come and make all things new and make all things right, and for Him to be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, are we really ready for Him to come at any time?  Have we repented of our sins and received the gift of the Holy Spirit as our engagement ring to show that we belong to the Bridegroom and that we have Someone we are waiting for and a reason for staying pure and unadulterated?  I think this is the imagery that Paul intends for these Christians to be thinking about.

Like with a Bride and Bridegroom, we come back to the fact that we are chosen.  While the Bride gets the opportunity to say "yes" or "no" to the proposal, it is the man that chooses His Bride (traditionally, and this is the way that it works in our marriage to Christ as the Church).  The man does not choose to marry every woman, for there is something special about the one that He chooses that makes Him love her and want to spend the rest of his natural life with her.  This is the "election" of the Bridegroom, though in many cases in many cultures, there are arranged marriages where the parents, in this case the Father, would have selected a Bride for His Son before they had met each other--maybe before either of them had been born.  Again, this is the imagery that we have that the predestination has happened since before the foundations of the world in "eternity past."

So then, we long as adopted children to meet our Father and Christ our Brother.  We long for what we have no see with great expectation, anticipation and hope, and we do so by faith.  "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1).

Now we come back to idea of patiently enduring our trials and sufferings as we wait expectantly, we also have to wait patiently.  See 2 Corinthians 1:6, 2 Timothy 2:24, and Revelation 2:3.  We also see this in the book of James as we are told to endure suffering with patience.


James 5:7-12
English Standard Version

​Patience in Suffering
7 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9 Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. 10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.

12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.

Paul reminds us that the Spirit is also here to help us make it through each and every day.  The Holy Spirit is not just there to keep our eyes focused on our future glory and hope, but to be our Guardian and to give us every good and perfect gift here and now, and to strengthen us, defend us, and equip us for every good work that has been prepared (and predestined) for us in Christ Jesus. (See Ephesians 2:8-10)


Ephesians 1:3-14
English Standard Version

Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

​11 In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

The Spirit intercedes for us and is our Advocate (our Comforter and Counselor--the same words used for Jesus while He was here on earth) as He pleads our case to Christ and to the Father, even when we don't have the words to say.  He reveals the will of God to us and searches the deepest, darkest parts of us to show us where God wants to change us and to effectuate that change.

In this midst of this part comes a verse that so many take out of context.  "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."  But how do we know that?  First we know that because anything that gets through to us has to come through The Father, the Son, and the Spirit to get to us.  Second, we know God's intention for us is to conform us into the image of His Son, so anything that He allows to come into our lives is working towards that goal and purpose--He is sovereign and nothing happens without His permission, and it is all part of His design, even if it's not the way that we would have designed things.  We know He's a good Father who gives good gifts to His children (and we are His children by adoption).  But how are we so sure of everything?  We are certain of these things because we understand God's unconditional love, election, adoption, and predestination.  Nothing made God choose to love us, elect us, or adopt us, "For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13).  "8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:8-10).  It is because of who God is that we have this confidence that all things both in the past, present, and future work together for His glory and for our good.  "20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today." (Genesis 50:20).  That is the gospel!  It does not mean that everything is going to be "pie in the sky, bye and bye," but it means that God's good plan both for us individually, for us as the Church, and for all creation is good in all that He does because He is the only one who is Good--"17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone."  (Mark 10: 17-18).  We can be sure everything that happens to us is for His glory and for our good because that is the unchanging character and nature of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Don't miss Romans 8:29-30 which go along with verse 28 to better explain it (as do the entirety of verses 31-39 that we will study tomorrow, for they all answer how it is that we know when Paul says, "And we know...."):​"29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified."  Again, we can be sure of our hope because we are certain that it has already been decided since before the foundations of the world, and as we will talk about tomorrow, there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God.  He has always loved us for reasons we cannot explain other than to say it is for His good pleasure and His glory alone, so then there is nothing that can make Him stop loving us because it is His nature and identity to do so.  The Father loves the Son and all those who belong to the Son.  It is for this reason that we can have assurance and certainty of our salvation because it is based solely on the nature and character of God which does not change and His will and His work which cannot be thwarted.  This work that is described here is something that is past tense, yet there is also a "not yet" expectation and hope for the fulfillment and consummation of these things.   "12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known."  (1 Corinthians 13:12)