The Bible teaches that God's people and creation are groaning. longing for Christ's return. And when we don't know how to pray, the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. Have you ever stopped to think that this means God is praying to Himself? Alistair Begg investigates this today on Truth for Life.
I invite you to turn with me to the book of Romans and to chapter eight. And to verse 26, we pick up. Paul's argument. He's told us that the creation is groaning. He tells us that the church is groaning.
And now quite remarkably he tells us that God himself is groaning. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for or Alternatively, how we ought to pray. But the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit.
Because the Spirit intercedes for the saints. in accordance with God's will. Amen. Gracious God, we pray now for your help. that the Bible might be alive to us.
That you will conduct that divine dialogue with our spirits by the Holy Spirit.
So that beyond the voice of a mere and an ordinary man, we might hear from you the living God. This is our earnest hope and expectation. Our humble cry. Hear our prayer. For Jesus' sake.
Amen. During this past week, I enjoyed the privilege, along with a friend, of listening as a young man whom I'd never met before told us. how it was that he came to believe in Jesus. told us how it was that he became a Christian. I don't have time to give you all the details.
Perhaps one day he'll be able to do it for himself. But the striking thing that he said was That the Holy Spirit essentially took over his life. He didn't use the exact phrase, but that was generally the area in which he spoke. I found that very interesting. And I made note of it because It struck me as Being in the same category as the response of a young.
Asian girl, when I asked her in Harvard Square how it was that she'd become a Christian. And on that occasion, she said to me, I entered through the narrow gate. And I always remember that because it was such a striking response. And when I asked this young man, and how did you become a Christian? He said, Well, the Holy Spirit invaded my life.
And actually it was very helpful for him to do so. Because although the details of how he arrived at that position, wear his own. The reality about which he spoke is Is a reality which he shares. with every other true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. And I want to take just a moment this morning to stand back from verses 26 and 27, because there will be some here this morning who have no prior knowledge of chapter 8 or even perhaps a prior knowledge of the Bible at all.
So I want you to notice that in verse 9 of chapter 8, The distinguishing mark or one of the distinguishing marks of a Christian is that the Spirit of God lives in them. You, however, he says, are not controlled by the sinful nature. which is the state of being unconverted, which is the normal condition of everyday life.
Now, we may not like the sound of that, but what the Bible says is we're either controlled by the sinful nature. or else we're controlled by the Spirit of God. By nature the former is true. By grace the former. the latter becomes a reality.
He says in verse 15 that we've been adopted into God's family. We're no longer aliens and strays. And in verse 16, He says the Spirit of God within us actually testifies with our Spirit that we are God's children.
So this is something very different from an individual who says, I have an interest in theology, or I like to read about spiritual things, or I am an attender at a local congregation. all of which is a matter of interest and maybe some help. But this is something very, very different from all of that. Namely, Now the spirit Testifies within us, within the Real you and the real me. that we are actually the children of God.
That we have become something that we weren't before. And in the case of this young man, he says, that's what happened to me. The Spirit of God invaded my life. And I became his child.
Well, I wonder, has the Spirit of God invaded your life? And would you be able to testify in the same way.
Now, as we've gone through these studies, we've seen that the reality of this experience. is one that takes us down the same path. as that which was walked by Jesus. And in verse 17, we are children, heirs of God, co-heirs with Christ. If indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we might share in his glory.
And you have this juxtaposition between suffering and glory.
Some people have an idea that Christianity exists to take men and women out of the realm of suffering. and bring them into the realm of tranquility. or of ease.
somehow or another to fly above and beyond all of the turbulence of life. And that's why they seek it out. And when they find that that hasn't happened, then they turn away from it and they say, well, it's no use at all. I might as well have got a self-help book. from the library and tried to fix myself for all the hell that that was.
Because I thought I was going to be done with all of these things. And I've been listening to some Christians, and it sounds as though their life has become much harder since they became followers of Jesus than it ever was before. How could that be?
Well, because the path of discipleship is the path that Jesus walked. He walked the path of suffering. into the realm of glory.
Now the word glory is an interesting word, isn't it? You don't really Uh find it used very often. Except in Christian circles. I know someone would say it is a glorious sunset, or that was a glorious meal, but even then, I don't think it's used very often, even as an adjective. and certainly not as a noun.
And since we're using it, and since it's an important word here, we ought to understand what Paul is. talking about And essentially it is this. That glory. is the outward manifestation or the outward shining of the invisible God. That God's glory.
Our gods Character and his power and his majesty which are all invisible to us, become visible as he makes himself known.
So, as has been prayed already this morning, there is a glory that attaches to creation. That when you stand and you look up into the night sky and you realize the vastness of the solar system there. And you look up into the galaxy that is our Milky Way. You find yourselves saying, This is something far greater than anything we have ever known. You take a tiny child in your arms and you look at the way that they are so intricately fashioned.
This speaks to God's glory because one of the ways in which God has manifested His glory is in the creation, not just in the creation of our world and our cosmos, but in the individual creation of you and me. You have been made in the image of God. And one of the ways that the invisible God becomes visible is in His creation.
Well, you say, but isn't the creation or the visibility of God somewhat marred? in our lives. Good. The answer is yes. And the Bible tells us why.
And if you would like to take a moment, I want to show you how Paul traces this argument here, even in Romans. And you need to go back to Romans chapter 1. And to verse Twenty-one. Where Paul is describing The fact that although men and women New God. New God.
Atheism is a choice. Atheism is a decision. Atheism is an act of rebellion. No one is born an atheist. Everyone is born.
with an innate knowledge of God. Men and women choose to deny the existence of God. Contemporary atheism wants to suggest that we were all born atheistic. And a few crazy individuals have chosen to invent the notion of a creator. The Bible says no.
And here Paul explains. For although they knew God, They neither glorified him as God, nor gave thanks to him, Ingratitude is always a mark of ungodliness. But their thinking became futile. And their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools.
And exchanged, and here's our word, exchanged the glory. of the immortal God. For images, made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
So, what he's saying is that when God made man, when he made Adam and Eve, he made them in his image. Adam and Eve turn their back on God, they disobey God, and the image of God is now marred in humanity. And at the heart of that is idolatry. It is the worship. Of someone or something other than the Creator to whom we are accountable.
And these Substitute gods are as prevalent in twenty-first century Western culture. as they were in the cultures of Mesopotamia and Assyria and the Amalekites and so on, all the way through the journey that is given to us in the Bible. Misdirected worship. is at the heart of it. When Paul then takes this forward.
He says in chapter three and in verse twenty-three that there's actually no difference between the Gentile person who's in this predicament or the Jewish person who's in this predicament. That's really what he's been arguing. He argues the Gentile situation in Romans 1. And then he says, but there's no peculiar advantage to you actually being a Jew, since you, even in your Judaism, substitute gods for the true and living God. And then he gets to it in verse 20.
23, there's no difference, he says, for all have sinned and fall short. of the glory of God. None of us. Gives to God the glory that He deserves, despite the fact that, as the Scottish Catechism tells us, the chief end of man, the reason for our existence, is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. Made in his image, we possess a dignity that is distinct from the beasts.
As sinners, That dignity is marred. And as a result of that, Our reach always exceeds Our grasp. Paul then comes to the solution. And wonderfully so when he gets to chapter five. And what he's been pointing out is That The exchange that we have made Exchanging God's glory.
for the shameful substitutes. Is an exchange that is more than matched by the exchange of God Himself. who has in Jesus exchanged all the glory that He knows in heaven For all the shame and the poverty and the dirtiness and the sinfulness of the earth. And that the great exchange that man has made in substituting himself for God. has been addressed By the great exchange that God has made, in substituting himself for man.
So that Jesus Takes the place of the sinner on the cross. Thereby making a reality Acceptance with God. For all who are trusting. in his provision. And that's why in chapter 5 he says, in light of this, and this is to summarize four chapters, he says, therefore, being justified by faith.
Not by anything that we have done. Being justified by faith, faith in what? Faith in this great exchange that God has provided in Jesus a Savior. Therefore, being justified by faith, we have present tense peace with God. We have access into this grace in which we stand now.
And here we go, and we rejoice in the hope of. Of the glory of of God. And what he's actually doing there is he's setting the scene for that to which he comes back here in chapter 8. Not only are we going to see God's glory, But God's glory is going to be seen. In us.
When John writes about this in 1 John, he says, and we know that when we see him, We will be like him.
Now Paul has been addressing this in this chapter 8. And he's been pointing out to his readers, and we are his readers, that uh the messed up nature of our world has to do with the fact that we are messed up. We've got a broken down world because we are broken down people. The nature of the breakdown is the breakdown in relationships between ourselves and God our Creator. Instead of us going to the provision that the Creator has made for us, we go to our own little creations.
Seeking some or another to make sense of our lives. to fill up our days. with the adoration of that which is less. And what God As intended. And hence the futility.
and the sense of emptiness That pervades things. It is then in light of this that he tells us in verse 22 that the creation is groaning. That in verse 23, The people of God are groaning. And that in verse 26, and here is the wonder of wonders. Beneath our groanings, God Himself is groaning.
And what he describes in verses 26 and 27 is phenomenal, it is mysterious, it is wonderful, it is almost beyond our ability to grasp. Namely, that what we have described for us here is the groaning of God. praying To God. God the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity. Who now lives within the life of a believer.
Speaking to God the Father In and through The prayers and the cries and the intercessions of those who are his children. You see how different Christianity is from most notions of spirituality and and world religions. Every day we live our lives. The great attempt is to flatten onto one terrain. Any notion of a god or gods or an interest in God or awareness of God or whatever else it is.
And Christianity stubbornly refuses. to be pressed down into that milieu. Not on account of arrogance. But on account of the inevitability of the fact that the claims of Christianity Stand out. as being So unbelievable.
Astro almost demand that we would consider them That's true.
Now we're at verse 26, and I think you'll be relieved about that because that's where we should be. And it is here that we are told that the Spirit helps us in our weakness. He's been describing life in the spirit. It is the spirit that is at work in creation. It is the spirit that is at work.
In our lives, and it is the Spirit now who helps us in our weakness. Let's address this in two ways. First of all, acknowledging this to be true generally. And then acknowledging it to be true specifically in the context that Paul gives us here. Paul has been very clear concerning the nature of weakness.
and classically so in 2 Corinthians and in chapter 12. He'd ask the Lord three times if he would take it away from him, and three times the answer came back: no. Because God told him, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect. In weakness. My power is made perfect in weakness.
Okay, he says. Therefore, deduction If that's the case, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses.
so that Christ's power may rest upon me. For, he says, When I am weak, Then I am strong. It's paradoxical, isn't it? It's ironic. Especially when you said it within the context of twenty-first century America.
Because of one thing that you're not supposed to admit to. is weakness. Everyone is a winner. In America. The Massachusetts school system.
I'm sure is very good in part. But it does some interesting things. In a book called Nurture Shock: New Thinking About Children. The authors identified the interesting decision on the part of the Massachusetts School. Two provide physical education classes in which the children Would jump rope.
without rope. And when we finish that, we're going to go out and we're going to play soccer. And when we play soccer, we're not going to count how many goals anybody gets. Because if someone gets more goals than another person gets, Then that would seem to suggest that someone is not as good as someone else, and since we can possibly allow for that. Having embraced egalitarianism as the great shrine at which we worship, therefore.
we will not have any goals. The book says modern parents are wanting to nurture so skillfully that Mother Nature will gasp in admiration at the marvels their parenting produces from the soft clay of children. The assumption is That thinking highly of oneself. is a prerequisite For high Achievement. And that's why, and some of you have actually started to do this, you put little notes in the lunchbox of your children telling them they're a genius.
The fact that they didn't Finish there. Cereal? that he left a room a royal shambles. and that they've been a pain in your neck for the last seven days. didn't stop you because you have imbibed so much of the spirit of the age that you actually believe that this is the key to the well-being and the future of your child.
Let me tell you what is the key to the effectiveness and well-being of your child. The discovery of their own personal inadequacy. And the discovery That in that inadequacy There is the opportunity for the opportunity For growth. and for achievement. You're listening to Truth for Life with Alastair Begg.
We'll hear more tomorrow about how the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We want you to know that Alistair has just released a brand new book to help you share the gospel with others, and he's here to tell us about it. Thanks, Bob. I'm excited to tell you about a book we've just released for you to use to introduce others to Jesus. is called the Man on the Middle Cross.
It's a small book. It presents three short stories of people who met Jesus, the woman at the well. the paralyzed man and the thief on the cross. The book explains that each of these people had a need. but didn't realize that their greatest need was to have their sins forgiven.
The reader of this book will learn that the book of the book This is actually the need of every person. and that Jesus offers forgiveness to those who come to Him. We priced the little book at only a dollar.
So that you can buy as many copies as you are able to do and give them away as widely as you can. And at a dollar each, you can even leave them behind at restaurants, coffee shops, or send them as Christmas cards. They cost less than a Christmas card. I think the book is a great way to make the upcoming holidays a season of gospel outreach. If everyone listening today can gives out just five copies, imagine the number of lives we'll touch.
Again, the book is called The Man on the Middle Cross. It's available at our cost of just one dollar. and Bob will tell you how to purchase a supply.
Well, actually, it's easy to purchase these little books online at truthforlife.org slash middle. or you can call us at eight eight eight five eight eight seven eight eight four. And when you go through the checkout process, if you're able to add a donation, that helps us offer this book for just $1. Your giving will help support the continued distribution of this daily program, and when you make a donation we'll say thank you for your partnership by inviting you to request the Advent devotional by Charles Spurgeon titled A Wondrous Mystery. Look for it when you give your gift to Truth for Life to-day.
Thanks for listening. Tomorrow we'll learn how we miss out on blessing. when we shun trials. The Bible teaching of Alice Kirbegg is furnished by Truth for Life. Where the Learning is for Living.
