2020!
We won't be forgetting this one any time soon. All politics aside, everyone has been affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Some more than others. It has been a year of fear, panic, worry, anger, grief, anxiety... an emotional overload. The deaths, riots, lockdowns, and quarantines have caused suffering of various kinds all around us. Many have turned to drugs and alcohol. Most churches and believers that I hear from are seeking solace in forms of social justice or political platforms like that is the answer to the suffering all around us.
Suffering is a part of life. Right now it is a huge part of life. Suufering is common to the human experience. But we are not without encouragement. The Bible is not silent. The Apostle Paul says something outrageous in Romans 8. He says that ALL OUR SUFFERINGS are "not worth comparing" with the glory that will be revealed in us.
Think about all the suffering going on right now in the world.
Think about all the suffering that has gone on throughout history.
Can you imagine?
I have to ask, "What could possibly make all that seem like nothing?"
It is "...the glory that is going to be revealed to us." (Romans 8:18) Oh man! I cannot wait!!!
Paul then goes on to say, "For the creation eagerly waits with anticipation for God's sons to be revealed." (Romans 8:19). The whole of creation is waiting eagerly on us to be fully restored that day. It is waiting because the whole of creation wants to be restored. On that day everything, I mean EVERYTHING gets set right.
But we will be restored first. What a glorious day that will be! "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." (Matthew 25:31-34)"Who then is a faithful and sensible slave, whom his master has put in charge of his household, to give them food at the proper time? That slave whose master finds him working when he comes will be rewarded. I assure you: He will put him in charge of all his possessions." (Matthew 24:45-47) And they will reign for ever and ever. (Rev. 22:5) It matters not what we are going through... One day it will not matter.
But for now, let us remember that we do not walk through all of this alone. Jesus walks with us. He knows our suffering, our every hurt and our every need. Let us faithfully serve Him as we eagerly wait with anticipation that day ....that glorious day!
The Apostle John wrote in Revelation 21:3–5, ”Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them. They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away. Then the one seated on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new.” He also said, “Write, because these words are faithful and true.””