Why this Present Suffering?
A Sermon on Romans 8:18-23
Scripture
18For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. 20For the creature was made subject …
Sermon Description
Is Scripture completely irrelevant? Listen to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones looks at the contemporary answers found in Romans 8:18-23. The sufferings of this present time are the unchanging problems of mankind. Human suffering is always a result of sin. Science and philosophy cannot give man such hope in the face of humanity, but the Gospel of Christ can. Look at nature from the Bible's standpoint and find comfort on its terms. The greatest consolation in this present affliction is that this is God’s world. The ground was cursed for man’s sin and the world is under the wrath of God, but there is good news. The Christian Gospel is the only explanation and solution to the sufferings of the present time. Learn that every human's greatest need is to be reconciled to God and the only promised deliverer is Christ. A Christian is still subject to all the sufferings of this present world; but man has a new view of time, and sufferings, which are incomparable to the glory to come. Are you groaning with creation? Find out that you should be! Nothing can frustrate the plans of God. Cast yourself on His compassion and love; your sins have already been dealt with.
Sermon Breakdown
- The Bible speaks to our present condition and gives us understanding, comfort, consolation and hope.
- The comfort and hope the Bible offers is not psychological or vague. It is offered in specific terms. We must accept the Bible's message as it presents it.
- The Bible explains why the world is as it is - because of the Fall. Man rebelled against God, and the whole creation fell with man.
- The Bible does not just diagnose the problem but offers a solution - the gospel, God's plan of redemption in Jesus Christ.
- Jesus Christ came as the promised Deliverer, the seed of the woman, to defeat sin and the devil. He lived a perfect life, died an atoning death, rose again, and ascended to heaven.
- The Christian hope is the return of Christ, when there will be a new heaven and new earth, and the redemption of our bodies.
- The whole creation eagerly awaits the manifestation of the sons of God, the redemption of Christians, because then it too will be delivered from corruption.
- Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ - not life or death, angels or demons, the present or the future. This is the Christian's certain hope.
- To experience this hope, we must repent of our sin, acknowledge our need, and cast ourselves upon the mercy of God in Christ.
Sermon Q&A
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Romans 8: Suffering and Hope in the Present Time
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the common charge against Christianity today?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the most common charge brought against Christianity today is that of irrelevance - that it has nothing to say to our present hour and current crises. Many people believe the Bible is outdated and has no application to our modern world and its urgent problems. They question what an "old book" could possibly contribute to addressing today's complex challenges.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones respond to the charge that the Bible is irrelevant to modern problems?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that the Bible is actually the most relevant book in the world because it deals with the fundamental problems of mankind, which have never changed. While technology and scientific discoveries have advanced, the essential problems of humanity remain the same - unemployment, inadequate wages, moral issues, human sin, drunkenness, theft, dishonesty, greed, selfishness, and hatred. He states that "there is no single sin being committed in Glasgow tonight, but that you'll find it in the Bible," though the form may change.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the root cause of suffering in the world?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the root cause of suffering in the world is human sin - our rebellion against God dating back to the original fall of mankind. He explains that when Adam and Eve rebelled against God in the Garden of Eden, it brought spiritual death, enmity, strife, physical death, and a curse upon the whole creation. This sin and rebellion, "inherited but repeated and confirmed by us individually," is the source of all our troubles and the sufferings of the present time.
How does Paul describe the condition of creation in Romans 8?
Paul describes creation as being "subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope." Lloyd-Jones explains that the whole creation is in "bondage of corruption" - it groans and travails in pain together until now. Creation did not sin willingly but was made subject to futility because man, as the head of creation, had fallen. The ground was cursed, thorns and thistles appeared, and nature became "red in tooth and claw" with predatory animals living on weaker animals.
What is the Christian hope that Dr. Lloyd-Jones presents as the answer to suffering?
The Christian hope is God's eternal plan of redemption through Jesus Christ, not world reform or political solutions. This plan includes: 1. Personal reconciliation to God through Christ 2. The new birth and becoming a child of God 3. The second coming of Christ who will return as "King of kings and Lord of lords" 4. The redemption of our bodies ("the adoption") 5. The deliverance of the whole creation from its bondage to corruption 6. The establishment of a new creation where "they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain"
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones contrast worldly perspectives on suffering with the Christian perspective?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones points out that worldly perspectives (politics, humanism, science, philosophy, eastern religions) offer no genuine hope or consolation. He quotes Bertrand Russell's pessimistic view that all human achievements "must inevitably be buried beneath the debris of a universe in ruins." In contrast, the Christian perspective gives believers a new view of time - seeing beyond "this present time" to the glory that will be revealed. Christianity acknowledges the reality of suffering but provides understanding, comfort, consolation, and above all, hope in God's ultimate plan of redemption.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones say about the relationship between Christian doctrine and Christian comfort?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes that you cannot extract Christian comfort apart from Christian doctrine. He explains that when Paul says "I reckon" (Romans 8:18), he is drawing a conclusion based on the doctrine he had previously laid out in the first seven chapters of Romans. Lloyd-Jones says, "If you want to know the comfort and the consolation that the Christian gospel has got to give you, well, then you've got to accept the whole of the Christian faith." He criticizes those who treat the Church like "a kind of dispensary" where they can pick out remedies without accepting the whole message.
What assurance does Dr. Lloyd-Jones say Christians can have in the midst of suffering?
Christians can be assured that nothing can separate them from God's love. As Paul reasons in Romans 8, "If God be for us, who can be against us?" Lloyd-Jones quotes Paul's conclusion: "I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, economic collapse, confusion, revolution, anything you like to throw in, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." This gives believers security even in the midst of present sufferings.
Itinerant Preaching
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.