Waiting with Eager Hope

Day 204: Romans 8:9-25

“...all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.” - Romans‬ ‭8: 22-23‬

We all identify with the word groan that is found in these verses. It is the Greek word stenazō, and it can also be translated as to sigh, complain, or moan. Nida and Louw, in their Greek Lexicon, explain that the word expresses “to groan or sigh as the result of deep concern or stress.”

Are you feeling that concern or stress as you take a look at our world today? You are not alone. Christians for nearly 2000 years have also been sighing over the state of our world and longing for renewal.

We have the Holy Spirit now, but we will one day experience our “full rights.”

In light of the context of Romans 8, maybe you're groaning today because you're not where you want to be personally. Keep in mind that you are a child of God, adopted into his family. We aren't to groan because we've lost hope. We are to "sigh, complain, or moan" because we know that what is to come (heaven) is better than anything we can experience here.

When Jesus returns, he will make all things right. Check out the following verse for another reminder:  "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." - 1 John 3: 2 NIV