Lately, we have explored many facets of this “new life” that unfolds within you and me when we choose, by faith, to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord.
Yet, this “new life” also has an earthly side—one that can, at times, be deeply painful. What happens when the “rubber hits the road” in our lives? What if truly terrible, painful, and tragic events befall me—a believer—here on earth? How, then, do all these wonderful truths we have discussed so far offer us comfort?
I would like to share with you a prophetic word the Lord gave me for believers here in South Africa—people left devastated, for instance, by the flood damage that struck so many parts of our country earlier this year. In the Breede River Valley, for example, farmers told me that a flood of such magnitude had not occurred in the last hundred years.
Whatever has happened in your life as a believer—situations for which you have no answers to all the “why” questions—I invite you to take time to be still, and to allow God’s Spirit to minister to you right where you are.
This is what I hear the Lord saying:
“Calm down! Be still! Breathe, and allow Me—Myself—to minister to you through this word!”
Let us turn to Romans 7 and 8. We will focus specifically on the passage in Romans 8:18–39.
First, I want you—believing child of the living God—to pause and become aware that the Lord Himself is right there with you, and within you. Hear how He assures you that His grace is sufficient for you. Yes, He is able to bestow everything upon you in abundance, so that you may always have enough of everything in every respect—and also have enough to contribute generously to every good work. (2 Cor. 9:8)
Visualize this promise unfolding in your life somewhere down the line! Feel it in your very being as it happens!
Remember what a prophetic word is, according to 1 Corinthians 14:3. Prophecy is God speaking—painting pictures for us to awaken something within us and bring it to pass—designed to strengthen, encourage, and comfort us.
Romans 8:18–39 is, therefore, the Lord’s word to you, intended to bring the purpose of 1 Corinthians 14:3 to life in your own situation—regardless of your specific circumstances.
Perhaps you are a farmer, witnessing the devastation and damage caused by this massive flood or tragedy all around you. Or perhaps the rain simply refuses to fall. Or maybe you—or a loved one—have recently endured intense pain and suffering.
Whatever the case may be, I know how difficult it can be to talk about such things during times like these.
In fact, all we can manage is something that appears three times in this passage. All that escapes our lips is this… a SIGH!
In the original Greek, this refers to an emotion welling up from within—an expression that cannot truly be captured in words. It is more like a wordless groan—a kind of wailing sound! It wells up from deep within us, brought on by near-inhuman stress, as well as deep-seated, incomprehensible, and inexpressible pain and trauma.
Have you noticed who is “groaning” in this passage from Romans 8?
In verse 22, we read of creation “groaning.”
In verse 23, we read of how we, as believers, “groan.”
And then, in verse 26, we hear how God’s Spirit, from deep within us, also groans!
Have you ever heard this “groan” amidst everything around you—in the created world, even in the middle of a storm or during a natural disaster?
Remember, the creation around us was created “perfect” (according to Genesis 1). But because of the Fall and human sin, it has become a mere caricature of that perfect creation; it has begun to decay and change. Indeed, all around us, things are slowly but surely dying.
It is important to realize that this groaning and these tears of creation are not without hope. Even creation itself knows that not everything is lost or doomed! There is always hope, because God is at work! After all, God has a greater plan—something better is on the way, something better is unfolding! We are all heading toward something better! We are on our way to a new heaven and a new earth!
Verse 23 tells us that this is also what is happening within us, as believers! Yes, if we listen carefully, we repeatedly hear this “sigh” rising from deep within us as believers!
Sometimes, truly tragic things happen to believers, too! Consequently, we often lack the words to express exactly how we feel or what we are experiencing during such times. In those moments, we can only sigh, weep, groan, and moan.
Yet, we are never without hope! After all, we know who we truly are in Jesus Christ and what has taken place within us! We know that we have been born again and that our spirit has been made completely new.
Yes, of course, a significant degree of brokenness still exists within us all—Romans 7 speaks to this.
Therefore, the Lord, through His Spirit, must transform our way of thinking, our emotions, and many of our choices, in order to make us more “holy” in those areas as well.
This is why we groan, moan, and sigh as broken people; for we still inhabit a broken world—a place where even God’s own people encounter terrible things.
Thank God, however, for the Holy Spirit dwelling within us—who, for this very reason, also “sighs” along with us!
Yes, at times, God’s Spirit sighs from deep within us. And so, we sometimes hear... How that which spontaneously “escapes” from our mouths and spirits—sometimes in the form of unintelligible words or an unknown language—is actually God’s Spirit speaking to the Father on our behalf, at times when our ordinary Afrikaans or English no longer suffices! Fortunately, the Father understands what the Spirit is saying, for He prays in accordance with the Father’s will and heart.
Given this—in light of this prophetic word—you and I can rise up as new people! We do not remain down after such tragic events! Instead, we choose to take that one step forward each day! We choose to do the one thing we *can* do, day by day—one thing at a time!
Just as the domino effect teaches us: we begin by giving that first 5 cm domino in our lives a push—the right action to take in light of what the Lord reveals to us!
We then see that 5 cm domino fall forward, “automatically” toppling a 7.5 cm domino, which in turn knocks over an 11.2 cm domino, followed by a 16.7 cm domino. In this way, we see the 1.92-meter domino—the tenth in the sequence—fall, and eventually, by the twenty-first domino, one as tall as 250 meters begins to topple!
Yes, we must therefore ask the Lord to bring about what is described in Romans 12:2 and 2 Corinthians 10:3–5 within us. May He begin to renew our minds and help us align ourselves with the rhythm in which His Spirit desires to lead us from this point forward!