February 15, 2025 – Why Must We Endure Suffering?
Romans 8:22-23
Sermon: 2061 Turning Hurts into Hallelujahs, Part 2
Pray Over This
“For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.”
Romans 8:22-23
Ponder This
Aren’t you glad God gives you a fever when you have an infection? If you didn’t have a fever, you wouldn’t know you had an infection. The fever is a symptom of a deeper problem. The groaning of creation is like this. Look around at the world today. God didn’t make the world this way; He made the world perfect. But we see a world that is marred and scarred, and all of creation is groaning. Things die and decay; this is a part of their nature now. That groaning is the symptom of the deeper problem of sin in our world.
We also experience this. Your body is not yet redeemed. Your spirit is redeemed, but your body is not yet redeemed. You are not immune to suffering. If you think giving your heart to Jesus means suffering is all behind you, I’m sorry to tell you that’s wrong.
Do you know why we have so much suffering in the world today? We live in a cursed creation. Everybody experiences grief at some point. But with every sorrow and heartache, we look to God and know He did not make it this way, and He is making all things new again.
- What are some of the hardest things you have gone through in life? How have you tried to handle suffering on your own?
- How are you encouraged to know God is making all things new again? What are some of the broken things you long for Him to make new?
Practice This
Make a list of things you long to see in Heaven and of the brokenness you long to see removed from the Earth.
For more from Love Worth Finding and Pastor Adrian Rogers, please visit www.lwf.org.
You can also listen to Adrian Rogers at OnePlace.com.
