PENTECOST 7 – July 19, 2020 – Rom. 8:18-27
“A GLORIOUS SALVATION”
Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Epistle Lesson just read, from Romans 8. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- Our text clarifies one of the most difficult aspects of Christian faith – “hoping for what is not seen.” We are empiricists, focused on the things that can be seen, figuring out how to manipulate these things, how to use them to our advantage or our profit.
- We also recognize the negative things that can be seen, observed: aging, accidents, disease, natural disasters, crime, war, and ultimately death. We focus on these things hoping that there is something that we can do to mitigate or prevent such things. We emphasize healthy habits, protections, vaccinations, mitigating fire hazards, preaching peace, teaching social skills and tolerance. We prolong life and avoid death as much as possible.
- Now, it is certain that Christianity is of tremendous benefit for this life – the actuarial charts demonstrate this. However, Christianity principally identifies the negatives that we see and experience – and links them to the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, and the effect this has had on all of us, and even the Creation itself. The relief offered is salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life in the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, our Savior!
- And so Christianity – what God invites us to think, to believe, to hope – also emphasizes that which is unseen. Now, as we all know, the promise of the “unseen” does not mean that we will never see it. Really, it is little different than the family driving across California to see the Ocean. It is “unseen” but still hoped for and very real. And eventually, the family does indeed “see” the Ocean. We too will “see” with our own resurrected eyes, the promised Kingdom of God.
- But first, let us be clear:
I. There Is But One God, And No Other
OT Lesson: “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, and His Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last; besides Me there is no God. . . . Is there a God besides Me? There is no Rock: I know not any.’”
A. Note That He Is God Of Love And Salvation
OT Lesson: “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, and His Redeemer.”
B. He Has Prepared A Wondrous Future For Us
OT Lesson: “I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen.”
Jer. 31:31-34 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, . . . For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put My law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Dan. 12:1-3 “At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.”
C. So That Even Nature Desires The Same Glory And Freedom That We Shall Have As Children Of God
Text: “For the creation was subject to futility, not willingly, but because of Him Who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.”
Statement: These are the promises of the things to come, that will overcome the negatives that we see and experience in consequence of human sin, our own included. These are the things that are unseen, but that are just ahead of us down the road. All of this is important to us, for as we are all aware life can be tough, with very difficult challenges. Experiences can be extremely painful – not just physically but also emotionally and spiritually.
Application: On the one hand, we realize that there is no absolute imperative that things should be as painful and difficult as they often are. Most of us realize that things could be different, much better. On the other hand, people tend to assume that this is just how it is, and that if it is going to be changed we must do it. They forget all about God, and therefore they remain oblivious to the message: God is going to make things much better. The troubles are intended to move us to self-reflection and repentance, so that we are ready to embrace the promises and salvation of God! The intent is to destroy our self-reliance and to turn us back to God!
Transition: And this will continue – until the changes finally come on the Last Day. But we recognize that:
II. For Now, For Those Who Embrace The Promises Of God, There Is Eager Longing, Even Groaning Pains, For What Is Coming
Text: “And not only the Creation, but we ourselves, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.”
A. We, Who Have The First-fruits Of The Spirit, Faith, Know Our Bodies Will Be Glorious
Text: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed in us.”
1John 3:2 “ Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.”
B. So We Wait Patiently, In Faith And Hope
Text: “For in this hope we are saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.”
C. We Are Helped In Our Hoping By The Holy Spirit
1. Who empathizes with our weaknesses
Text: “Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses.”
2. He intercedes for us – in accord with God’s good and gracious will for us
Text: “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. 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.”
Statement: So there you have it. There are glorious promises, things as of yet unseen, that we are heading toward. But there are also difficulties for now, “the sufferings of this present time.” They are grievous, or at least can be, leading to groans and sufferings as in childbirth. But in the end, the sufferings “are not worth comparing to the glory that is to be revealed in us.”
Application: But because the fulfillment of the promises is, as of yet, unseen, it is essential that we understand that we live by faith, and that we live by hope. Remember: “hope that is seen is not hope.” So it is understood and expected that we will have to endure the hardships, the sufferings of this present time. But we are privileged to persevere in hope, and hope that is unseen, but nevertheless a sure and certain hope!
Conclusion: This does not mean that we do not continue protecting and preserving this earthly life as much as we can. But it does mean that we understand the inevitability of temporal death.
This does not mean that we have no aspirations or ambitions for this life. We surely do, and we thank God when we can accomplish at least some of them. But it does mean that we put no ultimate stock in these earthly things; they too will perish, and they only belong to us for the short time we are in this world.
We know that there is but One True and Living God, the Lord God Almighty, our Redeemer and our Savior! He is the One Who controls all things. He is the One Who has invited us into His Kingdom, and Who bids us wait for it patiently in hope. He is the One, the Spirit of God, Who intercedes for us out of love, helping us to live day by day in hope.
All of this, by the good and gracious will of God for us. Thanks and praise be to Him, Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.