Whether in friendships, marriage, family relationships, or employment, the root of all conflicts is unmet expectations. This is also true of our relationship with God when we suffer hardships in life. The favorite verse of one of Pastor Ben’s mentors in Los Angeles was Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” This verse helped him filter all of his expectations through the lens of His heavenly citizenship. Paul addressed our heavenly citizenship in Colossians 3:1-2, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.”

If we seek God’s righteousness above everything else, we will know His desires; then we will have the right perspective on life and the proper expectations. The way in which we respond to troubles in life reveals our perspective and our expectations. As we learned in previous sermons, those receiving salvation receive many blessings from God including a spirit of adoption, joy, peace, freedom from bondage to sin, spiritual blessings, access to God, and hope, etc. Adopted sons or daughters expect Him to always provide peace and security, as we think our Abba, Father should.

However, we want to ignore that little irritating clause in verse 17, “provided we suffer with him”. The high calling of the Christian life is a life of suffering. Isaiah 53 describes Jesus as a suffering servant; He lived a life of suffering. As an heir of God, we receive many benefits including an allotment of suffering. Paul said in Philippians 1:29, “For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake.” Granted means that the suffering has been given generously and graciously to us by God. Though not easy to understand or accept, suffering is not a curse, it is a benefit. This doctrine is completely antithetical to the hedonistic society in which we live.

Romans 8:18-30 presents a new theme in Paul’s letter, with verse 17 representing a transition. The theme of this section is Heaven, Glory. Eight times in these verses Paul begins a sentence with “For”, signifying that what he is going to say is based on the previous thought. The idea presented in verse 17 is that the children of God are going to experience sufferings and verse 18 says but or “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” In other words, the glory that believes experience in heaven will make current suffering seem trivial. Understanding this heaven-glory relationship helps us set realistic expectations in life now.

I. Heirs of Glory

It is helpful to read verses 16-18 together. “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Believers are heirs of glory. The word glory has become synonymous with heaven, so we become heirs of heaven.

• Heirs of heaven

God’s adopted children have a great inheritance to look forward to, and the first aspect of that great expectation is eternal life in Heaven. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:9, “"What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” In 2 Corinthians 12:1-4 Paul recounted being caught up to the third heaven. This is the place where God dwells. Paul was overwhelmed by the things he heard and saw, things which cannot be described, things of which man cannot conceive. Revelation 3:12 tells us that we will be given a new name in heaven and we will be pillars in God’s temple, with our names written on the pillars. Our new name will be written on a white stone given to us (Revelation 2:17), and we will receive a crown (Revelation 2:10). There will be no more sorrow, nor death, nor crying, nor pain (Revelation 21:4). There will be no more sin, for evil cannot exist in God’s presence. “But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death." (Revelation 21:8) The curse of sin will be lifted (Revelation 22:3); sin will be removed from us and from all in heaven. And, amazingly, we will feast with God at His table in heaven! (Luke 22:30) This is only a sampling of the glory that awaits believers.

• The heirs of heaven

John identifies the heirs of heaven in John 1:12, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” Receiving Jesus means:

• Believing in who He is (the Christ, the Son of the living God – Matthew 16:16)

• What He has done (lived a sinless life and paid our sin-debt – 2 Corinthians 5:21), and 

• What He commanded (repent and believe the gospel – Mark 1:15).

Paul said in Romans 10:9, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” The Jews thought that salvation belonged exclusively to them, but Jesus opened the doors of heaven to all people. For those who believe a great inheritance awaits! 

II. Heirs of God (V. 17)

Believers inherit heaven, a new existence, and we also inherit God Himself! God is the pinnacle of our new existence. Paul identifies that this will take place in the fullness of time, when God unites all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on the earth (Ephesians 1:10). When this takes place, we will receive God as our portion; He will be the centerpiece of our blessing; we will experience Him in a fantastic new way. We will receive a sense of indescribable fulfillment, immeasurable awe, majestic wonder, full sinlessness, and God’s glory in all its splendor. This is all that Moses wanted! In Exodus 33:18 he pleaded with God, “Please show me your glory.” Through the spirit of adoption and the power of the Holy Spirit we have a glimpse of what Moses desired. Realizing that we inherit God Himself should direct our attention to heaven and all its glory. However, we have a tendency to cheapen heaven by focusing on its beauty and the benefits we will receive, rather than on the glory of God. This reveals that our hearts cling to the things of the world.

Asaph wrote in Psalm 73:25-26 “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” When David was hiding from Saul in the cave of Adullam, he cried out to God, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living." (Psalm 142:5) To say that God is our portion means that He is our inheritance. After Israel sinned in the matter of the golden calf, only the tribe supported Moses in the discipline of the people. Deuteronomy 10:8-9 tells us that the Lord “set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord to stand before the Lord to minister to him and to bless in his name, to this day. 9 Therefore Levi has no portion or inheritance with his brothers. The Lord is his inheritance.” When the Israelites entered the promised land, the Levites received no inheritance of land, but they inherited God himself, a far greater inheritance! In the Old Testament literature, portion referred to a person’s lot in life. We see this in Psalm 16:5, Lamentations 3:24, and Ecclesiastes 9:9.

When David said that God was his portion, he was simply saying that God is all that He needs and wants in life. He was saying that all of his desires are fulfilled in God. God becomes our portion when we confess - by repentance and faith - that He is all we want and need in life! At the point of salvation, we are given the Spirit of Adoption and then we know and feel that God is all we ever want in life! Spurgeon said, “The Lord is our all-sufficient portion. God fills himself; and if God is all-sufficient in himself, he must be all-sufficient for us. It is not easy to satisfy man’s desires. . . . But all that we can wish for is to be found in our divine portion.” The believer longs for glory because God is their portion! He is all we want - He is all we need - fulfilled in Him. When we pass from this world we will receive our inheritance - our portion - we will receive God!

In 1 Corinthians 15:28 Paul gives us a glimpse of the future: “When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.” The idea of all in all carries the notion of unity, as in Ephesians 1:10, where we will be united with God; we will be in Him and He in us. We will be absorbed into Him in some way, but not in the sense of Pantheism – God will still be God and we will remain created beings. At this time, we will experience the fullness of His love. It is important for us to have clear heavenly expectations - because correct expectations will be what helps us in our suffering now. In verse 18 Paul gives us a word picture of scales, comparing the present suffering and the future glory. The future glory far outweighs our present suffering. Today we have the first fruits of this glorious inheritance - the gift of the Holy Spirit - God grants us a glimpse of Himself by giving us a Spirit of Adoption, then we eagerly anticipate our full inheritance of God Himself!

Heavenly expectations help us understand earthly realities, the practical effects on our lives. Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” This verse is often taken out of context. It does not say that God will give you what your heart desires; it says God will give you the desires for what is best. If He is in you and you in Him then delight in Him. He is all you need - find your fulfillment in Him and Him alone! This is the message of Matthew 6:33 - seek His kingdom FIRST! Because everything in this world is ultimately meaningless (Ecclesiastes 1:2). So we delight in Him - in the glory of His creation, in the sweetness of His word, in the faithfulness of His character, in the beauty of His righteousness. 

As we delight in the Lord we are like a city on a hill - a light to all the world . Isaiah 40:9 states, “Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, ‘Behold your God!.’” Isaiah saw beyond Israel’s Babylonian captivity to the comfort of their future hope. This is the message we take into the world. We are to be like messengers on a high mountain; we are to be bold – not fearful – and let the world see us loudly and triumphantly proclaim the good news: “Behold your God!” The good news is that He is our creator, against whom we have sinned, but we can find peace and receive forgiveness and be restored through faith in Jesus Christ; all we need is Him.

III. Heirs with Christ (V. 17)

Verse 17 proclaims that believers are “fellow heirs with Christ”. This means that whatever Christ receives in the eternal kingdom, we also receive!

1. Glory – John 17:22 – “The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one.”

2. Riches – 2 Corinthians 8:9 – “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.”

3. All things – Hebrews 1:2 – “but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.”

4. Like Christ – Romans 8:29 – “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” We will finally be perfected in our righteousness and glory!

5. Holy – Ephesians 5:27 – “so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

6. Heirs of Christ’s authority – Revelation 3:21 – “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.” On God’s throne we will also judge along with Christ. Revelation 20:4 says,

“Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.” 

1. Perfect knowledge – 1 Corinthians 13:12 – “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” We will be able to judge correctly because we will have perfect (complete) knowledge.

We cannot possibly conceive of all these things; they only reinforce what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:9, “"What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” These are great expectations, ones that we can hold onto, and know them to be true because God has revealed them to us!

Having the proper heavenly expectations affects earthly realities. We are to call upon people to gaze upon the beauty of God and the glorious inheritance awaiting believers. “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.” (Psalm 27:4) At the center of this glory is the Son. When we think on the beauty of God , His glorious nature, His grace, His divine love, and His free gift of life, we will live in a way that reflects that beauty. We will live in a way that represents our Father well, as His ambassadors. We will live in a way that is worthy of such a great inheritance. Our living in this way will cause others to wonder how we can have hope in a world where hope seems to have died. 1 Peter 3:15 tells us, “In your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” Be prepared!

IV. Heirs of Suffering

Of the many who hear the good news of the gospel only a few truly receive the message. The reason few respond in faith is that saving faith comes at a cost. Mark 10:28-30 recounts Peter asking Jesus what His disciples would receive in return for leaving everything to follow Him. Jesus responded, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.” As believers we have great expectations of heaven, and we can have great expectations in this world. Whatever the size of our biological family, it is dwarfed by the size of our worldwide church family. Suffering is an essential part of our sanctification. God cares more for our holiness than our temporal happiness.

Suffering is the Christian life. We suffer because the world hates us; we are different; we are in the world but not of the world. We suffer because we have an enemy in Satan who attacks and accuses. We have an enemy within – death, disease, fallen people, our own fallen flesh. We ask, why does God allow suffering in the life of His adopted children? Doesn’t He love them? God allows suffering because He desires to share His holiness with them. Our holiness comes only as He removes sin from us. Teaching us to obey and conforming us into the image of Jesus is a loving act of God. Hebrews 12:6 says, “For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives." Obedience to God is a crucial component for producing the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, etc. In referring to Jesus, Hebrews 5:8 says, “Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.” If Jesus, in His humanity, needed to learn obedience, how much more do we? God adds pressure to our lives to keep us from sin and to weed out the sin that is sticking around. He chastens us to increase our virtue and our holiness, so that we can live in His presence forever.

Selah:

1. What unmet expectations do you face in your family, your job, your government, your church?

2. What attitude do you need to change in order to be more inclined to welcome suffering in your life?

3. How do heavenly expectations affect your life today?

4. What are you most excited about when you think of heaven? Why?