St Paul Sermon Series Week 3: Mike's sermon on Paul the Visionary Philosopher 'Romans 8.18-25 A New Creation? Part 2'

Paul the Visionary Philosopher                     Romans 8.18-25

A New Creation? Part 2

Today’s topic in the Sermon series is Paul the Visionary Philosopher – a new creation?

This suggests three questions – was he a visionary? Was he a Philosopher? Was he a New Creation after his Damascus Road experience.

There is little doubt that he was a visionary in more than one sense of the word, he was clearly someone who thought about the future with imagination and wisdom as evidenced in this particular instance by his discourse on the future – of how God would transform his believers and right the wrongs of the world as he and we know them.

Alongside his vision on the road to Damascus Paul often speaks of visions, some writers have attributed his visions to Epileptic fits, including Damascus, but there is no firm evidence of this – instead he has visions akin to those of the prophets.

Here he is thinking about all that has happened to him and others - Paul knew suffering - knew more suffering than any one of us have gone through or ever will go through.  He was beaten - stoned - rejected - shipwrecked - chained - imprisoned - starved - hungry - naked – cold and he looks at what has happened to the world God created and is asking himself why it should be and what is going to make it change for the better.

This is the Philosopher in him – a philosopher is one who uses reason in understanding such things as the nature of the real world and existence, the use and limits of knowledge, and the principles of moral judgment.

Paul is looking at the choices we make - every day we’re confronted with a number of choices. Behind every choice we make is one basic bottom line choice  -  To turn towards God or to turn away from God.   God is gracious to us - in every circumstance of our lives - God gives us that choice of turning towards Him and as Paul argues experiencing the Glory (which we do not comprehend) that is to come.

His philosophical style of argument is in my view little different from the style of philosophy that he would have learnt as a Jew and used in the Sanhedrin – so in this respect - not a New Creation.

In verse 19 onwards Paul is saying the earth is polluted and damaged physically, morally and spiritually because of man.  Many of the disasters and destruction we see around us are because of man. The planet’s been in decay - corrupt - as Paul puts it - since the fall of man.  

In his shared but mainly internal debate he reflects on his suffering and in visionary mode he concludes there’s no comparison to the Glory we will experience at our Resurrection even though he doesn’t know what that experience will be like.

He effectively says that as horrible - as horrific – his sufferings, those of other Christians and of the world in general have been, no matter how intense or extreme - there is no comparison as what’s coming is so far greater - so unimaginably better - so magnificently awesome - so beyond anything we experience in this life - that there is no way to compare them.

His vision is imprecise – it is simply that through the sacrifice of Jesus he is confident the day is coming when we will see the New Heaven and New Earth we have been promised –when God has cleared the world of sin and evil – even though Paul is suffering he “Waits eagerly” like person standing craning his neck to seek what’s coming along the road – he is excited by his hope even though the vision is not clear.

Paul is writing to encourage his readers to accept and just as important trust Christ and his promises and to make the choice to follow him.  I hope we understand just how incredible that choice really is or was – we need to grow our resolve to turn to towards God and to trust Him and share in that hope and vision of a better world.

What’s coming isn’t just about being set free from aches and pains - but being set free to live life as God created life to be lived.  To live as God’s children. See how important the use of the word ‘adopted’ is -in the Roman and Greek way of understanding things - adoption was much more than just a legal process of placing a child into a home.  An adopted child had the same rights - standing - relationship - as a natural born child. The sort of adoption I experienced.

When we come to salvation in Jesus - the same Holy Spirit present at the conception of Jesus - the natural born Son of God - enters into us - producing fruit - giving us a new birth - a spiritual birth - as a son of God making us that New Creation.

It is a powerful visionary and philosophical concept - As God’s adopted children - we’re God’s children - able to come into His presence and to call Him “Abba.  Father.”  With all of the trust and intimacy and privilege of what that title implies.  With Jesus - we are heirs of the riches of the kingdom of God.  

Heaven isn’t about sitting on clouds and playing harps - Getting to heaven is only the beginning of what God has in store for us. God has promised us a future incomparable to what we see today - an unimaginable eternity with Him.

In verse 23 - the Greek word for “waiting eagerly” is a different word than the one in verse 19. In verse 19 “waiting eagerly” had the idea of craning our necks to see what’s coming. 

In verse 23 the word is “ekdekomai” - which has the idea of waiting eagerly to receive something that’s been promised to us. Paul writes that we hope for what we do not see.  But what we know is coming - what our Father has promised to us - the fulfillment of what it means to be His child.

He uses the words ‘We groan’ - even though we have that promise – that we live surrounded by corruption and decay - we even feel it and see it happening in us - but we know that this isn’t the way it will be.  We don’t want to settle for this world.  We want something infinitely greater that God is bringing to us.   We know that something incomparable is coming

That’s where Paul is going in these verses in chapter 8.  The incomparable reality that’s coming - that God has given to each one of us who have turned to Him - who’ve trusted in Jesus as our Savior.  Not because we deserve it.  But because God is gracious.

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15 - that one day the perishable will put on the imperishable - mortal will put on immortality.  We - God’s children - will live forever in the presence of God - our Father.   There’ll be no pain - no sorrow - no crying - no death.  

This is Paul – a visionary of future glory – a changed man from the bigot that persecuted the Christians – a new creation – and as a Philosopher the style hadn’t changed but the content of his consideration had - very markedly. So yes – using old skills but as a Visionary Philosopher he was a New Creation – thanks be to God.