Romans 8:12-25 (NRSV)
Read Romans 8:12-25 on biblegateway.com
Verse 12So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh- Verse 13for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Verse 14For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. Verse 15For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, "Abba! Father!" Verse 16it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
Verse 17and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ-if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. Verse 18I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. Verse 19For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; Verse 20for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope Verse 21that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. Verse 22We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; Verse 23and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. Verse 24For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? Verse 25But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Devotion
We are not alone in our longing for God to reveal Godself, for God's kingdom to come. Indeed all of creation is waiting, groaning, hoping. In this era of increased temperatures, arctic ice melt and rising sea levels, the groans of all of creation are deafening. These groans are intricately connected to the groans of entire communities of people (mostly poor) for whom the probability of being inundated by flooding is greatly increasing.
To be sure, the apostle Paul did not have the same set of geological and ecosystemic wisdom we now have. This is all the more reason to be amazed by the ease with which he references the inextricable connection between humans and the rest of God's beloved creation. We hope with all creation that the effects of climate change and its risks for humanity can be reversed. Even so we also hope Paul’s words are equally true for us today, "the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us."
Prayer
Lord Jesus, we trust that nothing can separate us from your love, not even the troubles of a changing environment. Protect all those who are affected by changing climate and give us the strength to help them. Amen.