Reflecting on the Sermon 10/24/10

Rod preached from Romans 8:16-17 this week (it's not online yet, but check here later).  It was a continuation of last week's sermon on the assurance believers can have that they belong to God.  This week he focused on the last two evidences: 1. The Spirit testifies with our spirit that we belong to God, 2. We suffer with Christ. 

The part that I reflected on as I reviewed the sermon earlier this week was the fact that the Holy Spirit guarantees that we will, after suffering, share in God's glory.  We are heirs, we suffer with Christ, and we will be glorified with him.  This provides me, as a Christian, hope in the midst of suffering.  In my suffering, the Holy Spirit puts a hope and a longing in me for glory and this enables me to endure suffering with Christ.  This is amazing, especially when contrasted with non-believers.  In their suffering, the best they can do is bear up under it (a sort of resignation to fate) or get bitter.  But as a Christian, I know the hope of glory and that suffering with Christ reminds me that I am an heir and will share in his glory.  Praise God for this hope!

Let me know if you had any thoughts or applications from the sermon.