The following is a manuscript of the sermon presented by Senior Pastor Dr. Roger Patterson on Sunday, August 20, 2023 at our West U Baptist campus. To view the sermon in full, check out the link below.

I’m still deciding about the worst pains I’ve experienced in my life.  In my junior year of high school, I was playing some pickup basketball. I was playing defense near the basket. The guy who had the ball faked his move, which made me leap into the air. As I was coming down, he then leaned into me to go up for his shot. The top of his head came under my jaw and slammed my teeth together.

I broke 3 teeth that day and my view of dentists has never been the same.

Having your teeth broken is severe pain.

But I’m still deciding if that or lower back pain is worse.

You all may not be able to relate to broken teeth, but what about when you “tweak your back” and it drives you to your knees?

I’ve had my lower back seize up on me where I am on the floor and I can’t move. Anybody else?

It’s some of the most excruciating pain…and it’s as if you can’t find relief.

Back pain…or…tooth pain?

            Let me be honest here…it’s the tooth pain!

Wouldn’t it be nice if physical pain was our only suffering that we endured?

Unfortunately, it’s the pain of the heart and mind that often does the deepest damage on our lives. We carry emotional wounds, mental wounds, and broken hearts around.

There is so much suffering that we experience in this life.

Today, my hope is to encourage you when it comes to enduring and navigating suffering. My hope is that you:

• if you are in the midst of suffering, will be filled with hope.
• if you aren’t in a season of suffering, that you would see this as an opportunity to be equipped for it when it does come your way.

One guarantee that we all have is that we will have hardship, suffering, and sorrow. Jesus knew this.

Look at what he told his disciples in John 16.

Jesus is about to be betrayed by Judas. He is about to be arrested, tried, and sentenced to death on a cross. It is here that Jesus says to his disciples these words.

John 16:32-33

“Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. ³³ I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Jesus said, “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

We see Jesus state a fact: you will have tribulation.

We also see Jesus then invite us to take heart in the midst of our suffering, sorrow, and difficulty.

My hope for you today is that you will take heart.

How do we do this? How are we to take heart in the midst of suffering?

Let’s turn to Romans 8 and allow the Apostle Paul to help us take heart in the midst of suffering.

Romans 8:18-30

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. ¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. ²³ And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

²⁶ Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. ²⁷ And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. ²⁸ And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 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. ³⁰ And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

What does Paul say to us about suffering and hardship that will help us endure? How might we take heart?

Take Heart by…

I. Suffering with a Different Perspective

Notice the different perspective in verses 18-22.

Romans 8:18-22

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. ¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

Verse 18 begins with, “For I consider…”

The Apostle Paul is “considering…” he is pondering…he is thinking about the situation and predicament that we all find ourselves in.

And in his thinking, notice what he concludes about suffering:

1. It is temporary.

Romans 8:18

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.

No matter what your struggle, it is temporary. Yes, the pain is real. The burden and weight you feel are profound. The fact that it dominates your mind day in and day out. You go to bed thinking about it and wake up and it’s the first thing on your mind.

But here is what is true: It is temporary.

I remember one night Julee and I had gone to bed. We were lying in the dark talking. We were talking about a burden here at the church. It was a hard season and it was wearing on me.

But what I appreciated about my wife is that she said to me, “Roger, this is a temporary season. It will get better.”

And she was right. I can’t even remember now what the struggle or hardship was that kept me awake that night.

It did get better. The burden did lift!

But you may say, “Well pastor, you don’t understand the weight of the pain and loss and hurt that I feel. I lost my child. I lost my spouse. We can’t get pregnant.”

I don’t know those pains. But it leads me to this encouragement to you while we think about a different perspective.

The second thing I want you to see here is this: This suffering you are experiencing as deep and profound as it is…

2. It is not the FINAL WORD.

Romans 8:18

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

Another way to say it…

“The pain of this age shouldn’t even come up when we lay hold of what we are promised. We are going to be so blown away that we won’t even remember the pain, setbacks, tribulation, and hardship we had to endure in this age. It’s going to be crazy amazing!

The third thing that I hope brings you hope when it comes to having a different perspective is this:

3. You are not alone – others too suffer trials and even the creation has been subjected to frustration.

Romans 8:19-21

¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 

You know, there is a lot in the media about climate change and global warming. If you watch the Today show, for the entire month of July, the lead headline at 7am every day was, “We are experiencing record heat.” Another one was, “We have just experienced the hottest day in recorded history.”

For the first time in 84 years, California will today be hit by Hurricane Hillary.

We see devastation from the wildfire event in Maui and our hearts break.

Nearly 2,000 years ago, the Apostle Paul told us that creation was broken. It wasn’t the more recent Carbon/Greenhouse Gas Theory that everyone is sounding the alarm about, that should inform us.

Creation is groaning. Creation is longing for redemption.

Listen to the words of Warren Wiersbe as he comments on this portion of Scripture.

Wiersbe says…

When God finished His Creation, it was a good Creation (Gen. 1:31); but today it is a groaning Creation. There is suffering and death; there is pain, all of which is, of course, the result of Adam’s sin. It is not the fault of creation. Note the words that Paul used to describe the plight of creation: suffering (Rom. 8:18), vanity (Rom. 8:20), bondage (Rom. 8:21), decay (Rom. 8:21), and pain (Rom. 8:22). However, this groaning is not a useless thing: Paul compared it to a woman in travail. There is pain, but the pain will end when the child is delivered. One day creation will be delivered, and the groaning creation will become a glorious creation! The believer does not focus on today’s sufferings; he looks forward to tomorrow’s glory (Rom. 8:18; 2 Cor. 4:15–18). Today’s groaning bondage will be exchanged for tomorrow’s glorious liberty!

Here is what is true: If we solve the CO2 Emissions issues that are in the news every single day, creation is still broken. It has been subjected to futility. And I’m not saying we shouldn’t solve the CO2 emissions. I know somebody who is working on this diligently and has a solution coming to market…and we praise God for that.

Yet, the condition of the earth, the atmosphere, our lives and experience is one where we say, “Wait a minute…we long for something more.”

And so, the fourth thing that I want you to see when it comes to a different perspective in regard to suffering is this:

4. Suffering leads us to long for heaven.

Romans 8:23

And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.

Listen again to Wiersbe.

Wiersbe says…“The reason we groan is because we have experienced “the firstfruits of the Spirit,” a foretaste of the glory to come. Just as the nation of Israel tasted the firstfruits of Canaan when the spies returned (Num. 13:23–27), so we Christians have tasted of the blessings of heaven through the ministry of the Spirit. This makes us want to see the Lord, receive a new body, and live with Him and serve Him forever.”

We groan inwardly, because we are waiting eagerly for the completion of our adoption, when Jesus Christ returns.

So, can we put a name on this perspective? We have been talking about having a different perspective. What do we call it? We call it HOPE.

It’s right here in verses 24-25.

Romans 8:24-25

²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Hope is an expectation of belief in the fulfillment of something desired.

We believe that:

• Jesus is rose from the dead…
• that He is at the right hand of the Father, waiting for His enemies to become His footstool
• that He will return for His bride, the church
• that He will judge the living and the dead
• that He will destroy Satan, his forces, and death itself
• and that we will reign with Christ and enjoy a new heaven and new earth.

This is what we hope. This is what we believe. This is what we wait for in expectation.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

¹⁶ So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, ¹⁸ as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Take Heart, as we have a different view of suffering. And that view produces a glorious Hope in our lives.

The second principle that I want you to see today in regard to enduring suffering and hardship is this:

Take Heart by:

1. Suffering with a Different Perspective
2. Suffering with a Paraclete

Some of you all just said, “What does a Pair of Cleats have to do with this?”

Others are like, “Oh yeah, I did some of my worst suffering in life in a pair of cleats!” This just took you down memory lane!

Take heart by…

II. Suffering with a Paraclete

I have two pairs of cleats here. These were Cooper’s when he played soccer in 9^th grade. He didn’t use them much, as, he didn’t play much. It wasn’t his sport, because it involves a lot of running over a lot of time.

But these…these are his football cleats. They have been used a lot. He last used them his senior year of high school and there still is evidence of the field on his cleats. He used these over and over again.

When it comes to your Paraclete, which describes yours?

The word Paraclete is the Greek word for “Helper, Counselor, Advocate” the name given to the Holy Spirit by Jesus in John 14.

John 14:16-17

¹⁶ And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,¹⁷ even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

The Holy Spirit is our Helper, who is with us forever.

There is so much that we could say here, but let’s just keep it to what the Apostle Paul says of the Holy Spirit as our Helper or Advocate.

Romans 8:26-27

²⁶ Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. ²⁷ And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 

Notice what we see here.

1. The Spirit helps us in our weakness. Notice that word helps and weakness. The word helps means, “Joins in.” The word weakness means, “Disability, sickness, or disease.” It’s our inability to fix what ails us, what challenges us; that which causes our suffering.

The Apostle Paul says, “The Holy Spirit joins in to assist us in our disability or illness.”

Many of you know my friend Dan Hall. Dan is a quadriplegic. He is unable to do anything for himself and must have a helper at all times. He is completely dependent upon other people.

Yet, with help. He overcomes. He has planted a church, is pursuing his doctorate degree, and is still leading and consulting at a high level.

We too overcome with our helper, the Holy Spirit.

What else do we see the Holy Spirit do for us?

2. The Holy Spirit Intercedes for us.

Romans 8:26b-27

For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. ²⁷ And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 

This means He advocates for us.

Often the trial is so difficult, we don’t pray as we ought to. But the Holy Spirit intercedes and advocates for us. And we don’t know how to pray, but He knows what to pray. Notice it says here in verse 27 that the…

“Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

He prays for us according to the will of God. This is what he is advocating for.

Now, the question is are we allowing the Holy Spirit to help us in our weaknesses, or disabilities, and our inability to fix what ails us?

What does our relationship look like with God the Holy Spirit?

            Like these unused cleats?

            Or, like these well-worn cleats?

Remember, Jesus said, “Take heart. I have overcome the world.”

We…

Take Heart by:

1. Suffering with a Different Perspective
2. Suffering with a Paraclete
3. Suffering with a Purpose

Take Heart by…

III. Suffering with a Purpose

Look at the purpose we see in verses 28-30.

Romans 8:28-30

²⁸ And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 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. ³⁰ And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

What is this purpose?

In other words, how does God use suffering in our lives?

Verse 29 teaches us that God uses suffering in our lives to conform us to the image of his Son, Jesus.

Suffering isn’t authored by God. But God uses the fact of suffering to do a few things:

1. Teach us that He is Sovereign – He brings Good from what we are going through.
2. To transform our lives into the image of Jesus

God’s plan for your life…God’s will for your life is that you look like the Son, Jesus. That when you get squeezed, Jesus comes out. When you get ruffled, Jesus shows through you.

And even when your heart is broken, you are in a desperate situation, that you so lean into the Holy Spirit, and lean on Him in your disability, that Christ shines through you.

 So, as you have often heard me say, “Don’t waste the pain.” God you do in me what you need to do in me. Shape me, chisel on me. Use the sand paper, the saw, whatever you need in this trial and season to cultivate me into the image of Jesus.

He called you…he justified you, and he will glorify you.

Listen to Warren Wiersbe as we close:

Wiersbe says…The believer never need faint in times of suffering and trial because he knows that God is at work in the world (Rom. 8:28), and that He has a perfect plan (Rom. 8:29). God has two purposes in that plan: our good and His glory. Ultimately, He will make us like Jesus Christ! Best of all, God’s plan is going to succeed!

God has two purposes…Our Good and His Glory.

This morning, I want to invite you to bring your burdens, suffering, and hardship to the Lord and leave it with him.

We are going to stand and sing…and open these prayer kneelers to that you can come before him. Maybe you have a prayer need that one of us on the pastoral staff can pray for. Come and bring your hardship and suffering to God.

Allow him to give you a different perspective…

Draw near to the Holy Spirit and thank Him that He is your Helper and Advocate.

Thank God that He is at work for your good and His glory.