Romans 8:12-25

Brothers and sisters, we have a duty. Our duty is not to live under the power of sin. If you live under the power of sin, you will die. But by the Spirit’s power you can put to death the sins you commit. Then you will live. Those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. The Spirit you received doesn’t make you slaves. Otherwise you would live in fear again. Instead, the Holy Spirit you received made you God’s adopted child. By the Spirit’s power we call God Abba . Abba means Father. The Spirit himself joins with our spirits. Together they tell us that we are God’s children. As his children, we will receive all that he has for us. We will share what Christ receives. But we must share in his sufferings if we want to share in his glory. What we are suffering now is nothing compared with our future glory. Everything God created looks forward to the future. That will be the time when his children appear in their full and final glory. The created world was held back from fulfilling its purpose. But this was not the result of its own choice. It was planned that way by the one who held it back. God planned to set the created world free. He didn’t want it to rot away. Instead, God wanted it to have the same freedom and glory that his children have. We know that all that God created has been groaning. It is in pain as if it were giving birth to a child. The created world continues to groan even now. And that’s not all. We have the Holy Spirit as the promise of future blessing. But we also groan inside ourselves. We do this as we look forward to the time when God adopts us as full members of his family. Then he will give us everything he has for us. He will raise our bodies and give glory to them. That’s the hope we had when we were saved. But hope that can be seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? We hope for what we don’t have yet. So we are patient as we wait for it.