8:18
This talk of suffering might not sound too good, but Paul declares that our present sufferings are as nothing compared to the future glory, and Paul truly knew what suffering was about. He was not making a nice preaching point, he had suffered much, physically and emotionally. Notice that the future glory will be revealed in us. We often do not realise how central we are to God’s plans. We sometimes say “it’s not all about us, it’s about Jesus”, and of course there is truth in this and correct sentiment. However, it is more Biblical to say it is all about Christ in us. We are not saved as mere bystanders, not merely as people rescued from a burning building and then hurried away to safety. No, we are central to God’s plans. Look at Genesis, God created man, male and female, in His image and told them to have dominion. After we sinned all the focus is on God’s dealings with man, mostly through Israel in the Old Testament, but then to the ends of the earth. So we have a central role in His plans now, we need to look at our lives in that context.
8:19
Paul now draws attention to the cosmic significance. All of creation is waiting for the children of God to be revealed. This is creation apart from ourselves. We are different from the rest of creation. There are those who say we are just animals, more highly evolved but no different really. Such a view is utterly unbiblical. We are not just supercharged chimps. We are the only part of creation that was made in the image of God. Jesus Himself said we are more important than other creatures (Matt 10:31). It is possible that part of the creation process involved us descending from other lifeforms, but whether or not that is the case it is certainly not the whole truth. God breathed His life into us (Gen 2:7). God made the world to function properly with men living their lives in faith and obedience to Him, the reason the world does not function properly is that we rebelled against God. Creation is waiting for that situation to be put right.
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