A
By Dr. J.M. Strawn and oldhermit
Amplification, Part one
II. Amplification, 18-39
“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”
Verses 18-39 deal with the work of the Holy Spirit in the earth and the method he employs to achieve his purposes. We are going to examine this idea of amplification in two parts. The first part deals with the amplification of comprehension, and the second will deal with the amplification of the life situation.
A. Amplification of Comprehension
Part of the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian is to amplify our comprehension of everything in our field of experience. The Holy Spirit builds up an amplified understanding of our day to day existence. This amplification of understanding is of course the reason the Bible was given to us in the first place. To live a Christian life, to be a people of true faith means that our understanding of life, our compression of life, has to be founded on something beyond mere carnal interpretation of our experiences. In these verses the Holy Spirit amplifies our comprehension of at least six things.
1. The Holy Spirit amplifies our understanding of our present sufferings.
“Our present sufferings are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” 18
Human suffering is not an abstract, it is real, it is difficult, and the one thing of which we can be absolutely certain is that there will be more of it. Suffering is simply a part of corporeal existence. It does not matter on which side of the belief spectrum one stands, all experience suffering at some point in life. The difference between the Christian and the world is the way in which suffering is perceived.
The Holy Spirit tells us that such experiences are punctuated. This means that our experiences are controlled by the Lord and they will eventually come to an end. Therefore, nothing is out of control. No experience of suffering is beyond redemption, and our suffering does not go unnoticed by the Lord (The death of Stephen). For those of the world, suffering is something that must simply be endured; and at the end of all their suffering, there is more suffering.
For
2. The Holy Spirit amplifies our understanding of the state of creation, 19-23.
“For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.”
a. Paul is rehearing the present state of creation. He says that all creation is waiting in expectation for something. Paul says that the universe and everything in it, that is everything confined to the natural realm, is tied to the state of the sons of God. That is interesting because this recognizes man as the superior and dominate figure of creation. The welfare of creation is dependent upon man and his relation to the Creator. All of creation waits in expectation for God to reveal the sons of God. We are not given any insight about what precisely is implied in all this.
b. Paul says that all of creation exists in a condition of frustration, “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.” 20-21.
* The word here for futility is Ματαιότης which means vanity, emptiness, purposelessness, ineffectiveness. In other words, nature has been rendered unable to fulfill its designed purpose, and this is no fault of the natural world.
* The creation is still waiting to be “set free from its slavery and corruption.”
* How does all of creation “groan and suffer” like a living thing?
From the Benson Commentary, Benson makes the following observation.
> All the hosts of heaven give light by which man works his wickedness.
> The fruits of the earth are sacrificed to man's passions for luxury, intemperance, avarice, gluttony, and every sinful indulgence.
> The earth is ransacked for materials from which we build weapons of war and instruments of murder and violence.
> The animal world is subject to pain and death because of man’s sin, and their sufferings are increased by man's cruelty, and inhuman treatment.
> Everything is in an unnatural state. Everything is turned into vexation and bitterness — Scott. (end quote).
There is nothing in creation that man has not perverted. Man has even turned everything in creation into objects of worship. Nothing in creation is as God intended it. This is the state of corruption and futility in which creation presently exists and over which creation has no control.
* What are the “pains of child birth?” Whatever these are, Paul says this is part of the present state – “until now.”
Creation has been subjected to futility through no fault of its own. Creation is here personified as an innocent victim. Unlike man, creation took no active part in being subjected to futility. This was the act of another – God, and creation passively suffers the results of sin. When man sinned, everything changed. Man's relation with God changed and so did his relation to creation. As a result, death became part of the earthly experience. Not just for man but for the rest of creation as well.
We are tuned to believe that death is natural. I suppose this makes it easier for the world to rationalize and justify euthanizing the elderly and the infirmed, but the truth is that death is not natural. Death is an imposed penalty upon creation by the Lord; but, freedom from death and corruption is coming. Presently, everything in creation is still chained to the reality of death and decay. This is why everything in the universe dies, wears out, and winds down.
c. But… creation can be relieved of this constant drain by being, “set free from its slavery to corruption (Is man the enslaver?) into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” Now, I do not pretend to understand what is involved in this or how creation is to be affected or benefited by this liberation. I don’t understand what impact the glorification of the children of God could possibly have on creation. I don’t know how this relates to the eventual destruction of creation which by all accounts occurs at the resurrection. One thing we do know is that everything on earth dies because of us; but, Paul says that one day, death, corruption, and decay will be no more and that creation waits in expectation of that day.
d. The universe “groans” with incompleteness, 22-23.
“For we know…” Paul takes for granted here a particular area of common knowledge about the state of creation. Apparently, Paul assumes our knowledge of these things. What do we know and how do we know it? Paul says, “that all creation (I take this to be non-exclusionary) groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also, we ourselves (This is NOT non-exclusionary. This is specific. It is in contrast to the whole creation. Paul singles Christians out from the rest of creation here.), having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”
Paul presents a contrast – “but ALSO we ourselves....” This is in contrast to the creation. We ALSO “groan within ourselves.” We ALSO “wait eagerly for our adoption as sons.” Creation waits for that too. Creation groans and waits to be “set free from its slavery and corruption.” Unlike us, creation is still enslaved to corruption. Freedom from this cannot be realized until the revelation of the “glory of the children of God.” Whatever that means.
WE TOO groan and wait eagerly for the completion of our adoption. This is the reversal of the edict of death, not just for us but for all of creation. This tells us that we, along with the rest of creation, groan together in a state of expectation waiting for something that is yet unrealized. Just as creation awaits being “set free from its slavery to corruption.” We too are waiting for “our adoption as sons.” The completion of this can only be realized in the resurrection which is the “redemption of our bodies,” 23. This apparently results in two things – the liberation of creation from corruption and futility, and our final glorification.
The relationship with God that man lost in Adam has already been restored in Christ. This is not true of creation. What we still look forward is the resurrection. What creation looks forward to is liberation from corruption. So, for us, and for all of creation, everything is moving toward the better in spite of the sufferings of this world. The Holy Spirit is teaching us that all things will be put right in the end. That is the bedrock of our hope. We wait here in our present suffering in hope, not in desperation.
Amplification, Part one
II. Amplification, 18-39
“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”
Verses 18-39 deal with the work of the Holy Spirit in the earth and the method he employs to achieve his purposes. We are going to examine this idea of amplification in two parts. The first part deals with the amplification of comprehension, and the second will deal with the amplification of the life situation.
A. Amplification of Comprehension
Part of the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian is to amplify our comprehension of everything in our field of experience. The Holy Spirit builds up an amplified understanding of our day to day existence. This amplification of understanding is of course the reason the Bible was given to us in the first place. To live a Christian life, to be a people of true faith means that our understanding of life, our compression of life, has to be founded on something beyond mere carnal interpretation of our experiences. In these verses the Holy Spirit amplifies our comprehension of at least six things.
1. The Holy Spirit amplifies our understanding of our present sufferings.
“Our present sufferings are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” 18
Human suffering is not an abstract, it is real, it is difficult, and the one thing of which we can be absolutely certain is that there will be more of it. Suffering is simply a part of corporeal existence. It does not matter on which side of the belief spectrum one stands, all experience suffering at some point in life. The difference between the Christian and the world is the way in which suffering is perceived.
The Holy Spirit tells us that such experiences are punctuated. This means that our experiences are controlled by the Lord and they will eventually come to an end. Therefore, nothing is out of control. No experience of suffering is beyond redemption, and our suffering does not go unnoticed by the Lord (The death of Stephen). For those of the world, suffering is something that must simply be endured; and at the end of all their suffering, there is more suffering.
For
the Christian
, suffering carries reward. Suffering has no basis of comparison with what awaits us when the suffering is done. No matter what we may suffer in this life, no matter how difficult or how bitter our experiences may be, they “are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” That may be a hard thing to remember when we are up to our eyeballs in suffering but consider the sufferings of Paul, the same man who made this statement.2. The Holy Spirit amplifies our understanding of the state of creation, 19-23.
“For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.”
a. Paul is rehearing the present state of creation. He says that all creation is waiting in expectation for something. Paul says that the universe and everything in it, that is everything confined to the natural realm, is tied to the state of the sons of God. That is interesting because this recognizes man as the superior and dominate figure of creation. The welfare of creation is dependent upon man and his relation to the Creator. All of creation waits in expectation for God to reveal the sons of God. We are not given any insight about what precisely is implied in all this.
b. Paul says that all of creation exists in a condition of frustration, “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.” 20-21.
* The word here for futility is Ματαιότης which means vanity, emptiness, purposelessness, ineffectiveness. In other words, nature has been rendered unable to fulfill its designed purpose, and this is no fault of the natural world.
* The creation is still waiting to be “set free from its slavery and corruption.”
* How does all of creation “groan and suffer” like a living thing?
From the Benson Commentary, Benson makes the following observation.
> All the hosts of heaven give light by which man works his wickedness.
> The fruits of the earth are sacrificed to man's passions for luxury, intemperance, avarice, gluttony, and every sinful indulgence.
> The earth is ransacked for materials from which we build weapons of war and instruments of murder and violence.
> The animal world is subject to pain and death because of man’s sin, and their sufferings are increased by man's cruelty, and inhuman treatment.
> Everything is in an unnatural state. Everything is turned into vexation and bitterness — Scott. (end quote).
There is nothing in creation that man has not perverted. Man has even turned everything in creation into objects of worship. Nothing in creation is as God intended it. This is the state of corruption and futility in which creation presently exists and over which creation has no control.
* What are the “pains of child birth?” Whatever these are, Paul says this is part of the present state – “until now.”
Creation has been subjected to futility through no fault of its own. Creation is here personified as an innocent victim. Unlike man, creation took no active part in being subjected to futility. This was the act of another – God, and creation passively suffers the results of sin. When man sinned, everything changed. Man's relation with God changed and so did his relation to creation. As a result, death became part of the earthly experience. Not just for man but for the rest of creation as well.
We are tuned to believe that death is natural. I suppose this makes it easier for the world to rationalize and justify euthanizing the elderly and the infirmed, but the truth is that death is not natural. Death is an imposed penalty upon creation by the Lord; but, freedom from death and corruption is coming. Presently, everything in creation is still chained to the reality of death and decay. This is why everything in the universe dies, wears out, and winds down.
c. But… creation can be relieved of this constant drain by being, “set free from its slavery to corruption (Is man the enslaver?) into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” Now, I do not pretend to understand what is involved in this or how creation is to be affected or benefited by this liberation. I don’t understand what impact the glorification of the children of God could possibly have on creation. I don’t know how this relates to the eventual destruction of creation which by all accounts occurs at the resurrection. One thing we do know is that everything on earth dies because of us; but, Paul says that one day, death, corruption, and decay will be no more and that creation waits in expectation of that day.
d. The universe “groans” with incompleteness, 22-23.
“For we know…” Paul takes for granted here a particular area of common knowledge about the state of creation. Apparently, Paul assumes our knowledge of these things. What do we know and how do we know it? Paul says, “that all creation (I take this to be non-exclusionary) groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also, we ourselves (This is NOT non-exclusionary. This is specific. It is in contrast to the whole creation. Paul singles Christians out from the rest of creation here.), having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”
Paul presents a contrast – “but ALSO we ourselves....” This is in contrast to the creation. We ALSO “groan within ourselves.” We ALSO “wait eagerly for our adoption as sons.” Creation waits for that too. Creation groans and waits to be “set free from its slavery and corruption.” Unlike us, creation is still enslaved to corruption. Freedom from this cannot be realized until the revelation of the “glory of the children of God.” Whatever that means.
WE TOO groan and wait eagerly for the completion of our adoption. This is the reversal of the edict of death, not just for us but for all of creation. This tells us that we, along with the rest of creation, groan together in a state of expectation waiting for something that is yet unrealized. Just as creation awaits being “set free from its slavery to corruption.” We too are waiting for “our adoption as sons.” The completion of this can only be realized in the resurrection which is the “redemption of our bodies,” 23. This apparently results in two things – the liberation of creation from corruption and futility, and our final glorification.
The relationship with God that man lost in Adam has already been restored in Christ. This is not true of creation. What we still look forward is the resurrection. What creation looks forward to is liberation from corruption. So, for us, and for all of creation, everything is moving toward the better in spite of the sufferings of this world. The Holy Spirit is teaching us that all things will be put right in the end. That is the bedrock of our hope. We wait here in our present suffering in hope, not in desperation.
These words jump out to me..
"the truth is that death is not natural. Death is an imposed penalty upon creation by the Lord; but, freedom from death and corruption is coming. "
Death is NOT natural.
A. Amplification of Comprehension
1. Our suffering
2. Creation
Thank God for His wisdom.