Daily Worship (Aug 23

Romans 8:18–30 (NIV)
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

Devotional Thought
We do not have to look very far to see that our world is broken. Genesis 3 explains why. Sin shattered the good world God created. Our relationship with God was broken. Our relationships with one another became filled with conflict. Shame entered the way we see ourselves. Even creation itself was affected by the curse.

Romans 8 tells us that creation still feels the effects of that fall. Paul says creation is “groaning” as it waits to be set free. We groan too. Our bodies get sick. People we love die. Relationships fall apart. Work becomes frustrating. We struggle against our own sinful desires. Christianity does not require us to pretend these things are not painful. Things really are broken.

But brokenness does not get the last word.

Paul says that God is working toward something glorious. Jesus has already entered our broken world. He took our sin upon himself and suffered death on the cross. Then he rose from the grave. His resurrection is the beginning of God's work of making all things new.

That means Christians can grieve without giving up hope. Romans 8:28 does not mean that everything that happens to us is good. Sin is not good. Suffering is not good. Death is an enemy. Instead, God promises that he is able to work through all these things for the good of those who love him.

You may sometimes feel like a piece of shattered glass. You can see the cracks in your life and wonder what God could possibly do with them. But God has not abandoned his creation. In Christ, he is redeeming his people and will one day renew the whole world. We may not yet see the finished picture, but we can trust the Artist who is putting it together.

COMMA Questions

• Context: How does Romans 8:18–30 fit with Paul's teaching earlier in Romans about sin, salvation, and new life through Jesus?
• Observation: What words and pictures does Paul use to describe the condition of creation and God's people?
• Meaning: What does it mean that creation is groaning and waiting to be liberated from its bondage to decay?
• Main Idea: What hope does God give his people while they live in a world that is still suffering from the effects of sin?
• Application: What broken part of your life do you need to entrust to God's redemptive work today?

Prayer
Father, I see the brokenness of this world and the brokenness in my own life. Thank you that you have not abandoned your creation. Thank you for sending Jesus to rescue sinners and defeat death. Help me trust you when I cannot see what you are doing. Give me hope as I wait for the day when you make all things new. Amen.

Luke 15:11–24 (NIV)
Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

Devotional Thought
After Adam and Eve sinned, one of the first things they did was hide. They covered themselves with fig leaves and hid among the trees when they heard God approaching. Sin still makes us want to hide.

Jesus tells a story in Luke 15 about another person who ran away. A younger son demanded his inheritance from his father and left home. He wasted everything his father had given him. Eventually, he found himself hungry, ashamed, and alone. Everything had fallen apart.

The son decided to go home, but he did not expect to be welcomed as a son. He planned a speech about becoming one of his father's servants. Shame had changed the way he saw himself and his father.

But the father saw him coming.

Instead of making his son earn his way back into the family, the father ran to him, embraced him, and welcomed him home. The son had truly sinned, and his choices had real consequences. Yet the father's mercy was greater than the son's failure.

That points us to the gospel. In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve hide, but God comes looking for them. In Luke 15, the son runs away, but the father welcomes him home. And in the gospel, God comes after sinners through his Son.

Jesus did more than tell us that God loves sinners. Jesus carried our guilt to the cross. He was stripped and exposed so that our shame could be covered. He suffered outside the city so that we could be brought into God's family.

You do not have to hide from God behind excuses, accomplishments, religion, or pretending everything is fine. Because of Jesus, you can come into the light, confess what you have done, and receive mercy. Our sin is real, but God's grace is greater.

COMMA Questions

• Context: Why does Jesus tell the parables in Luke 15, and what do the lost sheep and lost coin teach us before we reach the story of the lost son?
• Observation: What does the younger son do, and how does the father respond when he returns?
• Meaning: What does the father's response to his returning son teach us about God's heart toward repentant sinners?
• Main Idea: How does Jesus' story show us God's answer to the guilt and shame caused by sin?
• Application: Where are you tempted to hide your sin instead of bringing it honestly to God?

Prayer
Father, I confess that I often want to hide when I sin. Thank you for coming after sinners and welcoming us through Jesus. Help me stop making excuses and covering my sin. Give me faith to confess it, receive your mercy, and live as your beloved child. Amen.

Revelation 22:1–5 (NIV)
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

Devotional Thought
The Bible begins with a garden, and near the end of the Bible we find the tree of life again.

That matters because Genesis 3 ends with terrible loss. Adam and Eve are driven out of Eden. Cherubim guard the way back to the tree of life. Sin has brought separation from God, pain, frustration, and death. God's beautiful creation has been shattered.

But Genesis 3 is not the end of the story.

Revelation 22 gives us a picture of where God's plan is going. God's people are once again in his presence. The curse is gone. The tree of life is there, and its leaves are described as bringing healing to the nations. God's servants see his face. Darkness is gone. God's people live and reign with him.

How do we get from Genesis 3 to Revelation 22?

Jesus.

Genesis 3 contains the first promise that the serpent will not win. God promises that an offspring of the woman will crush the serpent's head. Jesus came as that promised Savior. At the cross, it looked like the serpent had won. Jesus was wounded and killed. But through his death and resurrection, Jesus defeated sin, Satan, and death.

We still live between Genesis 3 and Revelation 22. We still experience broken relationships, sickness, temptation, frustration, grief, and death. We still see the shattered pieces.

But we know where the story is going.

God's plan is bigger than helping us cope with a broken world. Jesus is making all things new. One day there will be no curse, no death, no hiding, and no separation from God. The God who came walking into the garden looking for sinners will one day dwell with his redeemed people forever.

Until then, we live with hope. We resist sin, love our neighbors, care for creation, seek reconciliation, and endure suffering because we know the brokenness we see today is not permanent.

COMMA Questions

• Context: How does Revelation 22 complete the story that began with creation and the fall in Genesis 1–3?
• Observation: What details in Revelation 22:1–5 remind you of the Garden of Eden?
• Meaning: What does the statement “No longer will there be any curse” tell us about the final result of Jesus' work?
• Main Idea: What future is God preparing for his people and his creation through Jesus Christ?
• Application: How should God's promise to remove the curse change the way you respond to brokenness in your life today?

Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you that sin, suffering, and death will not have the final word. Thank you for defeating the serpent through your death and resurrection. Help me live with hope while I wait for you to make all things new. Teach me to trust you with the broken pieces and to look forward to the day when the curse is gone forever. Amen.