Christ came into the world so that man could be redeemed, and He also intends to redeem the entire creation so that the earth is returned to an Eden-like state. Paul speaks today of the glory that is ahead for us and for the creation.
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18) There was no suffering in this world before Adam fell from grace. It was sin that brought suffering into the world. Sin is the most deadly kind of pollution there is, and it has permeated everything. Becoming a Christian doesn't eliminate suffering in our lives; after all, Christ Himself suffered on this earth. Paul the apostle endured a great deal of suffering and eventually was martyred for his faith, so he knows what he's talking about when he speaks of suffering. But he also knows what he's talking about when he speaks of our future glory. The glory that is to come is going to be so overwhelming and so wonderful that it will have the power to make our sufferings seem like no more than a bad dream we once had.
The first time I recall ever reading verse 18 was in a hospital while I sat with a broken heart by my mother's bedside as she was losing her fight with cancer in 1996. I can't tell you how much this verse comforted me. She was in a great deal of pain and distress, yet Paul says no matter how bad the suffering is it isn't worthy of comparison to the glory that will someday be ours. My mother has been with the Lord for twenty-two years now and nothing in heaven or earth could entice her to return to an earthly body if it were possible for her to do so. Her suffering is over. She sees her Savior face to face. She will be in His presence forever, never again to have pain or sorrow. If we could ask her about the suffering she endured on earth, I believe she would say, "Oh, that? I'd almost forgotten about that. I don't spend any time thinking back on my struggles during my life on earth. I spend all my time rejoicing in my Savior and being thankful that I will live forever and ever and ever with Him."
We look forward to the day when we won't be subject to suffering and death any longer. The creation itself looks forward to that day. "For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the One who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God." (Romans 8:19-21) The world and everything in it fell into the bondage of decay when man fell from grace. Man brought sin into the world and brought the whole world down with him. But when the fullness of our redemption has come, and when the Lord Himself reigns as king over all the world, the curse of sin will be no more.
The prophet Isaiah foresaw the redemption of creation and said, "The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, and calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra's den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." (Isaiah 11:6-9)
In Genesis we learn that in the beginning humans and animals were vegetarians. Humans didn't prey on animals for food and animals didn't prey on each other for food. The Lord is going to restore man and the animals to a state of harmony with each other. Animals will be so tame that a rattlesnake could be petted in the same way we pet our dogs and cats today. The pastures will contain the amazing and delightful sight of cows and horses grazing along with lions and bears. If you are an animal lover, like I am, this knowledge will warm your heart. The Lord never wanted us to have to slaughter animals for food and He never wanted animals to have to kill each other for food, but the pollution of sin apparently changed the actual atmosphere in such a way that ever since the flood the earth evidently does not produce enough of the nutrients humans and animals need through plant life alone. Doctors and scientists say that meat is actually bad for us, yet most human beings and most of the animals of higher intelligence crave it. As much as I love animals, and as much as my little dog loves other animals, both of us would rather eat a steak than a baked potato. This is what sin and its pollution has done to us. Our natural bodies crave the taste of flesh. The plant materials of this sin-polluted world don't contain as much protein, iron, and other nutrients as evidently they once did, so our answer to this problem has been to eat the flesh of animals.
We know in our hearts that this world is not what it originally was. We know it was meant to be something more, something better. The animal kingdom knows it too. So both humans and animals eagerly await the day when our Creator redeems the entire creation. "We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies." (Romans 8:22-24)
If we are in Christ our souls have already been redeemed. Christ is going to redeem our bodies too. Just as He rose from the dead with an immortal and incorruptible body, we too will rise with immortal and incorruptible bodies. The Apostle John believed this with all his heart, and although he couldn't quite wrap his mind around what our glorious immortal bodies will be like, he looked forward to the day when we will have bodies like Christ's. "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 like He is." (1 John 3:2) The Apostle John saw the resurrected Christ in person. He talked with Him and ate with Him. But he didn't see the resurrected Christ in all His glory. John got a glimpse of the glorified Christ on the Isle of Patmos when he was given the prophecies of Revelation, but in his humanity he could not fully see the Lord as He is. I believe the Lord had to hold some of His glory back or else it would have killed John, for what John did see caused him to fall in a dead faint at the feet of Christ. (Revelation 1:17) But when Christ raises our bodies from the dead, we will be like Him, and therefore we will be able to see Him in all the fullness of His glory.
A day is coming when our perishable bodies will be made imperishable. The bodies we have used for dishonorable things will become completely honorable and incapable of sin. The bodies that become sick, that died, and that were buried in weakness will be raised in power. (1 Corinthians 15:42-43)
Christ has redeemed our souls. He will redeem our bodies too. He will redeem the creation. At that time the visions given to men like Isaiah and John will come true, and the earth will be Eden again---only better, because then the Lord will dwell on earth with those who have trusted in Him. "Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will serve Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign forever and ever." (Revelation 22:1-5)
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