From groaning to glory, part one
OPINION —
Romans 8:18-25 is one of the lesser-known passages in Paul’s letter to the disciples at Rome. But lesser-known doesn’t mean lesser value and we’ll see he had some profound things to say in this passage. Let’s begin with some background on the church.
The disciples at Rome had their share of challenges. Like all followers of Jesus, there were engaged in the ongoing battle between the Spirit and the flesh that Paul addresses in chapters 6-8. Jesus spoke to this in the Garden of Gethsemane when He told His disciples, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41).
Another challenge came when the emperor Claudius expelled the Jewish people from Rome in AD 51 (see Acts 18:2-3). If you were a Jewish disciple in the church at Rome, this meant you had to leave. It also meant that the church at Rome was composed entirely of Gentiles from the time of the edict until Claudius’ death three years later in AD 54. While the Jewish people began to trickle back to Rome after that, Paul wrote to the church as early as AD 55 (Harrison and Hagner), so they would have been early in the process of reintegrating Jewish Christians. This would have represented a significant challenge. Although they were one in Christ, there was a lot of things they needed to work through. Paul spoke to this situation in chapters 13-15.
Finally, after Claudius’ death, Nero became emperor of Rome at the age of 16. His mother, Agrippina, was originally the power behind the throne until Nero had her killed five years into his reign (AD 59). Five years later, the great fire of Rome occurred and he began his campaign against the church. All this happened within a decade after the disciples at Rome received Paul’s letter. So yes, they had their share of challenges.
The disciples at Rome were headed for glory (8:18). Seriously Paul? This little, rag-tag group of disciples who had all the issues we’ve talked about (and more) — they were headed for glory? It certainly didn’t look like it. This group lived in the shadow of the Eternal City’s glory with its imperial cult that proclaimed the emperor as Lord — how could they possibly be headed for glory?
The glory Paul had in mind was not glory in general but the glorious resurrection — “the redemption of our bodies” (v. 23). In Eden decay, disease and death became part of our story due to sin. A day was coming, Paul wanted them to know, when God would complete his work of making all things new.
We’ll look at what he had to say about this next week.
Find more of Bruce’s writings at his website: a-taste-of-grace-with-bruce-green.com.
