For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us. Romans 8:18
A princess discovered a baby boy who was apparently abandoned in a basket. She took the infant to the palace and raised him as her own son, even though he was obviously a member of a slave race. Surrounded by wealth and privilege, the little prince had all the best that money could buy, and his education was geared to shaping him for great positions in the nation, possibly even an opportunity to rise to the throne itself. Ordinary people were required to bow in his presence, officials of the realm, including civil servants and soldiers were totally under his control to do his bidding, and the members of the slave race from which he had come were his to bless or destroy. The time came when he realized that the best for his future lay with the slaves of his birth, not with the masters of his adoption. So Moses reckoned as Paul reckoned in today’s text.
Paul’s reckoning, as was Moses’, was based on a comparison. Oh, the sufferings were very real. Paul’s body was covered with scars from his encounters with those who hated him and his Saviour. He knew the anguish of loneliness, of betrayal, of indifference by saint and sinner alike. But above the mountain of suffering that Paul knew and experienced daily, he could see the glory that awaited him. Moses could see beyond the squalor and oppression of the Israelites, even beyond the backsliding and complaining of the desert travelers, to the land of promise and the blessing God promises to His own. These two men provide us with wonderful examples of getting their priorities straight.
No matter how bad things get around us, God has something better on before. Even those Christians whose lives are filled with pain and heartache can find comfort in knowing that God has glory to reveal in us. The joys of Jesus’ presence are worth everything that we encounter here. The temporary tears and troubles of this life fade into insignificance when we place them beside the eternal bliss of Heaven and the sweet sound of our Lord’s commendation.
Make the comparison…are the things you are suffering too great to bear? Even if bearing them will bring you into a glorious eternal reward? -Jim MacIntosh