Off the Shelf Sunday School--Romans
Warren Mueller
Christian Author & Lake Ecosystem Scientist. Manager Environmental Assessments at Ameren (Retired).
The Hope of Glory (8:18-25)
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
1. Christians follow the pattern set by the life of Jesus. We suffer and are humbled in the present life as the world, the flesh and demons persecute us and bring trials into our lives. However, just like Jesus, we will be glorified and made holy. The glory of being like Jesus will be revealed in us. (1 Jn 3:1-3) What are some of the ways in which we will be changed when we have the glory of Jesus?
2. Creation was cursed by God and became subject to corruption and death as a result of the sin of Adam and Eve. (Gen 3:14-19) Paul says that Christians and the world suffer death, decay and many other evils. However, Christians have the promise of God that he will restore us and creation to a state of holiness. There will be a new earth in which there is no evil, death or corruption. (Rev 21:1-5)
3. What are the first fruits of the Spirit that born-again Christians have?
4. A sign of being born-again is the sense that we don’t belong in this world. Also, there is a longing to be with Jesus, so death is viewed as a doorway to a better life. This is the longing and hope that Christians have that separates us from lost humans.