VOL 2: Part 16 | Glory Awaits: Suffering and Hope | Message by: John Weber
BIG Idea: Because we are heirs with Christ, we endure present suffering with unwavering hope, knowing that future glory, bodily resurrection, and God’s help through the Spirit await us.
Application: Hold onto hope in the midst of hardship, knowing that your suffering is not meaningless—it’s leading to eternal glory, and the Spirit is helping you every step of the way.
Romans 8:17
…and since we are his children, we are his heirs. in fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. but if we are to share in His glory, we must also share His suffering.
Glory = the brightness, splendor, and majesty of God.
Ezekiel 1:26-28
Above this surface was something that looked like a throne made of blue lapis lazuli. And on this throne high above was a figure whose appearance resembled a man. 27 From what appeared to be his waist up, he looked like gleaming amber, flickering like a fire. And from his waist down, he looked like a burning flame, shining with splendor. 28 All around him was a glowing halo, like a rainbow shining in the clouds on a rainy day. This is what the glory of the Lord looked like to me. When I saw it, I fell face down on the ground, and I heard someone’s voice speaking to me.
Even though we go through many trials and even sufferings in this life, we can persevere in the
Romans 8:18-30
18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. 19 For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. 20 Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, 21 the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. 22 For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.
23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. 24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)
26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. 29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.
3 Hopes:
1. Our first Hope is for a new Creation - verses 18-21
Paul tells us “I am convinced that the suffering that you and I endure in this life can’t even
“Eager expectation” is a phrase that means to “stretch your head to see something.”
“The whole creation is on tiptoe to see the wonderful sight of the sons of God coming into their own.” ~ J.B. Phillips translates
Genesis 3:17
And to the man he said, “Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat, the ground is cursed because of you. All your life, you will struggle to scratch a living from it.”
The fall of man brought about the curse on all creation; the complete redemption of man in Christ is required to restore it.
One day, creation will be freed from its bondage to decay and brought into the same freedom we will share as children of God.
2. Our second hope is for the resurrection of the body 22-25
Just like the pains of childbirth, our sufferings as Christians are temporary, and they have a purpose.
Because we have this
3. Our third hope is for God’s help in the present 26-30
1 Corinthians 2:10b-11
The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
Even as the Spirit groans along with you, God knows the mind of the Spirit, and the Spirit knows the will of God. And that is a perfect match for effectual prayer!
God has a wonderful plan for our lives that He laid out for us before we were born. This plan includes our:
Justification, which deals with our past.
- The moment we trusted Christ, wefrom the of sin. Sanctification that has to do with the present.
- Right now, in this life, we arefrom the of sin. Glorification that has to do with the future.
- One day, webe from the very of sin
Join us as we read the Bible together in 2025.
https://bit.ly/ReadwithMe25