That sounds a bit ominous, doesn’t it? And maybe predicts a really discouraging conversation today. Well, I admit there will be a “groaning” discussion, but I believe we can end on a high note.
So what brought this particular topic to mind? It was a result of last Sunday’s sermon on Romans 8:18-30. There are three verses here that talk about groaning from different but connected perspectives. For some reason, I have always read and “consumed” these verses as separate messages. But there’s a powerful truth I learned through that sermon that helped me see the more all-encompassing truth found in this chapter.
- The first verse is Romans 8:22:
For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
This refers to the fact that everything, including all of creation, sits in a fallen, tainted state since sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden. Of course, we know that the earth isn’t human and can’t actually groan, but it’s not hard to imagine a groaning, of sorts, as we look around us at all the havoc that is wreaked on this earth. Fires, earthquakes, flooding, erosion. All serving to change the beauty of that first Garden into the fallen state we see today.
- The next groaning is in verse 23:
And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit,
groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Who of us with loved ones in heaven can relate to this? Of course we can’t wait until all the heartache of these losses is over. We echo the groaning of the earth as we await redemption.
- The final groaning verse is Romans 8:26:
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness.
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.
I first began to understand the depth of this promise 30 years ago after the sudden death of my
dad. The pastor talked about this during the funeral and I immediately related to the concept of hurting so deeply that only God’s Spirit living within me could truly communicate to God the Father, what I so desperately needed. I’ve relied on this verse consistently as I grieve the loss of my husband – and have shared its truth with those around me who need it as well.
I think it’s pretty clear that these are all related, but yet can stand on their own. That’s how I viewed them for years under my pastor tied them all together so beautifully on Sunday.
“Creation, we ourselves, and God’s Spirit all convey the pain and suffering of this world in groaning together in anticipation of God’s restoration of the world.”
As I was listening to this, and relating to it in a very visceral level, I found myself oddly (or not?) comforted by the fact that I was clearly not alone in my groaning, or heartache. The whole earth and even God’s Holy Spirit were groaning with me.
And what were we all groaning about? The reality of how far this world and everything in it has fallen, and the effect that has on each of us personally. There’s not a person out there who hasn’t experienced heartache on some level. We groan for that heartache, and we groan in anticipation of what’s coming.
I had a vision of an earth in anguish, a spirit crying out on our behalf, and a multitude of people all crying out to God for deliverance.
And guess what? God delivers! In a massive way.
The earth’s groanings are compared to that of a woman in childbirth. Mothers everywhere know the immeasurable joy of their child’s birth that comes after many hours of anguish.
That’s the promise God gives to each of us. Actually it’s two promises. First of all, we do NOT groan alone. All creation and the Holy Spirit groan with us.
And God brings it all to a glorious restoration in the end. What a blessed hope we can have despite a lifetime of groaning in this world.
For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling.
2 Corinthians 5:2
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