Read Romans 8:18-25
The final words of Romans 8:17 are these: “… if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”1 The subjects of this statement are suffering and glory. That leads us, naturally, into our next topic. Verse 18 states, “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in [Greek eis = to] us.” The verb translated “reckon” is the Greek word from which we get our English word “logic,” and has the meaning “to reason, or calculate.” In this verse, Paul compares the sufferings that we experience in this life as Christians, of which he personally knew a great deal, with the glory which shall be unveiled to us in a coming day. The words “shall be revealed” are actually more literally translated “about to be revealed.” This does not mean that God has failed to bring about His plans for the future. The point is that there are no prophetic events that must be fulfilled before the Lord returns to rapture the Church. The Lord Jesus could come at any moment. If we could keep our focus on the prospect of His return, secretly, to the air for us, it would result in our having a totally different perspective on our present sufferings.
Paul, who suffered so much for the cause of Christ, stated, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2Co 4:17). Now notice that Paul, in writing of “the glory which shall be revealed,” is not actually referring to what we call the Rapture. He states, “For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God” (Rom 8:19 NKJV). The reference to “the creation” is to the material universe, and particularly to the world in which we live. This decaying world in which we live is eagerly awaiting an event, described here as “the revealing of the sons of God.” This does not refer to the Rapture. It refers to the second coming of Christ, when He returns to establish His Kingdom and reign for 1,000 years. What is the significance of “the revealing of the sons of God”? Notice that Paul doesn’t write here of “the children of God.” As has been mentioned before, the term “sons of God” is expressive of character. When the Lord returns to establish His Kingdom, He will “be glorified in his saints, and be admired in all them that believe” (2Th 1:10). We will be on display in our transformed bodies, and people will look at us and say, “Isn’t He [Christ] wonderful!” All that we will be in that day will be entirely due to His redeeming grace. This is the moment that creation is anticipating. Why is creation anxiously awaiting this event? Paul gives us the reason in the verses that follow.
A literal English translation of the Nestle Text reads, “For the creation was subjected to vanity, not willingly, but because of the (one) subjecting it, in hope, because [or, that] even the creation itself will be freed from the slavery of corruption to the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Rom 8:20,21). Paul is stating that creation is suffering the consequences of Adam’s fall. The idea conveyed by the word “vanity” is “failure to achieve its full potential.” After Adam sinned, God cursed the ground on account of Adam’s transgression (Gen 3:17-19). This is what is meant by the clause “because of the (one) subjecting it.” It would be incongruous for a fallen man to have dominion over a perfect creation. The words “in hope” properly belong with verse 21, which should be translated “in hope that even the creation itself will be freed from the slavery of corruption to the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” When the Lord returns to establish His Millennial Kingdom, and the sons of God are put on display, at that time the curse will be lifted from creation, and it will enter into “the freedom of the glory of the children of God.”
Then Paul adds, “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now” (v22). Ever since Adam’s disastrous fall into sin, the creation has slowly deteriorated. The mountains are crumbling, the earth is experiencing the effects of earthquakes and volcanic events, etc. Paul goes on to point out that we ourselves are suffering also. “And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves” (v23). The reference to “the firstfruits of the Spirit” is to the fact that, as believers, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. This fact is God’s pledge of our future blessing. But, in the meanwhile, we also are experiencing the effects of Adam’s fall. We experience aches and pains and the deterioration of the body. However, Paul indicates that we are “waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.”
Although the moment we trusted Christ we were saved, God hasn’t finished with us yet. God created man as “spirit, soul and body” (1Th 5:23) and intends to save the complete man. “For we have been saved in hope; but hope seen is not hope; for what any one sees, why does he also hope?” (Rom 8:24 JND). Paul is saying that when God saved us, it was just the beginning of His plans for us; He has much more in store for us than that. Our salvation was in hope, or prospect, of a glorious future. But if we could already see the future, we would have nothing to look forward to. “But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance” (v25 NKJV). “Hope” in the Bible is never a doubtful thing. It expresses something that is absolutely certain, but it is still future. If we went through life without experiencing any problems, we might become very content with this life. But when we have to pass through trials, it fills us with yearning for our future prospects. Trials give us the quality of endurance. Paul writes in Romans 5:3,4, “Tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope” (NKJV).
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the KJV unless otherwise noted.
