Every Day Devotion

Romans 8:24 [24] For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? (ESV) Do you have hope? I hope you do. That play on words was intentional. We have a notion about hope that is basically a wish for something that we do not have much faith in actually happening. A person might say, "I hope it doesn't rain today." "I hope I win the lottery." One might even say, "I hope things get better." Paul is talking about hope in a different way. The biblical view of hope is not a wish that something would happen, but rather a confidence that it will happen, it just has not happened yet. This is the kind of hope that we were saved in. We placed our faith in Jesus Christ. His promise was eternal life. Have we experienced eternity yet? No. Yet, real hope has confidence in God's promise. We could complain that we are not experiencing all that God has promised. We could be prone to feel hopeless. Paul addre...

Romans 8:22–23 [22] For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. [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. (ESV) We serve an amazing God. We see his Creation and we are rightfully in awe of him. We have come to him for the forgiveness of sin, placing our faith in Jesus Christ, and we are in awe of him. This is right for us to do. As great as our salvation is, and as great as God's Creation is we haven't even begun to imagine how great things will be in the future. Our Creation is full of mountains, deserts, oceans, forests, creatures of all sizes, colors, and varieties. Paul says that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. In other words, there are bigger and better things coming. God will restore and renew all things. Creation itself long...

Romans 8:20–21 [20] For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope [21] that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (ESV) We have a wonderful revelation of God in the Word of God that has been faithfully written down by men who were led by the Holy Spirit. Our Bible shows us exactly who God is. His holy and perfect essence is described in the pages of Scripture. We know of the salvation that is found in Jesus Christ through the holy words of Scripture. Additionally, we know that Creation has a role to play in revealing the divine nature and character of God. Psalm 19 tells us that the heavens declare the glory of God. Even Jesus said in Luke 19 that if the disciples did not give him glory the very stones would cry out. Creation plays a significant role in showing forth the glories of God. Sadly, Creation is somewhat handicapped in h...

Romans 8:19 [19] For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. (ESV) Mankind has always had a relationship with God's creation. In the first chapter of Romans Paul describes Creation as being the very thing that declares God's glory. Man saw God's glory revealed in Creation, but instead of worshiping the Creator, man worshiped the Creation. As a result man is under God's judgement and without excuse. To this day we have an issue with mankind treating the Creation as if it is the thing to be worshiped. Many godless people who want nothing to do with serving and worshiping a Creator are consumed with serving and even worshiping the Earth. The fact that they are missing is that Creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. Creation longs for God. Man should follow. Creation was subjected to frustration as man fell into sin in the Garden. Earth's first couple, Adam and Eve, were in a place of paradise...

Romans 8:18 [18] For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. (ESV) Perspective. What an important word. Let's be honest. We do not like the idea of suffering. We will do almost anything to avoid any kind of suffering. Some churches have gone so far as to preach against the idea of suffering, declaring it to not be a part of the true believer's life. Paul is not shy about the topic. Paul uses the sufferings of this present time as a means to consider the greater glory that awaits us. Perspective. Paul is not in any way attempting to diminish our suffering. A view toward eternity puts our suffering in a proper understanding. Yes, our suffering is terrible. In the grand scheme of eternity it is not even worth comparison. Maybe you are thinking that Paul does not know what he is talking about when it comes to suffering. In 2 Corinthians 11 Paul describes countless beatings, often near death, ...

Romans 8:17 [17] and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (ESV) Do you know who you are? If you are a believer in Jesus Christ you might simply say, "I am a Christian." Or, you may say, "I am born again." I have heard people say that they are "Christ-followers." These are all helpful descriptions of what it means to be a new creation in Christ Jesus. In this verse we learn more details concerning our identity. We are children. We are not just any children, but we are God's children. That fact should never cease to amaze us. In our sin, we were without God and without hope. If God were to choose children to adopt why would he adopt us? We were in complete rebellion to him. Yet, God called us unto himself, and sacrificed his own Son to purchase us. Truly amazing. We are God's children. Paul takes things a step further. We are not only ...

Romans 8:16 [16] The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, (ESV) Those whom the Lord has called unto himself are adopted as sons and daughters. Adoption was a big deal in the Roman culture. Dr. John MacArthur writes the following:  "In Roman culture, for an adoption to be legally binding, seven reputable witnesses had to be present, attesting to its validity. (MacArthur Online Study Bible Notes)" What is the witness that we have been adopted by God? Paul tells us that the Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. Many people have taken this verse and insisted that we will experience some sort of mystical or emotional feeling if we are truly adopted. The problem is that is not verified anywhere in Scripture. We do have passages in Scripture which help us to understand what happens to truly adopted children of God. In Galatians 5:22-23 Paul describes the "fruit of the Spirit." If the Holy Sp...