Reading II
Rom 8:18-23

I think that most of us are aware of the structure of the Lectionary, the readings we hear each week on Sunday.  The Gospel and the First Reading are connected by the Psalm.  They are of the same theme.  The Second Reading is generally just a little icing on the cake, not related to the same theme as the Gospel or the First Reading.  Generally, the preacher will discuss the Gospel and the First Reading.  But today, I’d like to talk about the Second Reading, Paul’s letter to the Romans, 8th Chapter, because I think there’s an important lesson in this for us.  Perhaps a lesson that we know intellectually but we need to hear it from time to time, just to make sure that we are in reality, and that we have the right perspective.
 
We’ve all heard these questions in our lives, the great questions. “Why do bad things happen to good people?”  “Why is there so much evil in the world?”  “What happened with that tsunami?  How did those innocent people die and those who survived are devastated?  How did that happen?”  Last week in London – “How can there be men like that, claiming to follow their god, do so much evil?” 

As a priest, I’ve had some difficult questions asked of me.  I remember when an 11-year-old boy died of leukemia.  The whole parish had been praying for Brian for a year.  There were ups and downs and we thought he was going to make it.  Then, one Saturday morning at 5 o’clock, I received a call that he had died.  I went to the house and I’ll never forget it.  He was as white as marble, perfectly sculpted.  His father, who was a non-believer, was angry with me, and said, “Where is your God?” 

A young woman, not too long ago, last month, was killed tragically in an auto accident on a holiday weekend.  Her whole life in front of her – she had just started a new course in college, working double shifts at a restaurant to make ends meet – just suddenly gone.  What do you say to her parents? 

I knew a young priest, from my first parish that was killed in Alaska.  He was helping to build a hangar for their airplane (parishes in Alaska come with airplanes), and a metal beam fell on his head – killed him instantly.  His father and mother looked at me.  He had so much promise and there’s such great need for priests.  What do you say? 

A mother of three children was killed in a roll over on her way to work. She was just taking her three kids to daycare and one of them dropped a bottle. She went to pick it up and lost control of the SUV and it crashed and she died.  Her husband was so angry, especially with me.  As a matter of fact, I thought he was going to knock me out. He was a really big guy.  He came up to me and he said, “You!  Where is your God?” 

There were the three teenage boys whose bodies were riddled with bullets on a holiday weekend by unknown assailants.  What do you say to those parents, those loved ones, when those things happen?  Of course, the question they are asking is, “How can a loving God permit such suffering?”  You have heard that one. 
 
There are some answers to it; none of them are very satisfying.  We could say, “As a result of freedom, God does not control all.”  “Free will has its consequences.”  “There is a force of evil present in the world.”  “There are random occurrences that cause great harm,”  and “There is a degree of chaos in the universe.”  I would never give those answers to any of these people.  I just tell them, “I don’t know.  I don’t know.”  I don’t get in much trouble with that answer.  But I think Paul can help us. We need to think about this question, “How does God permit this evil?  How does He permit this suffering to occur?”  Now is the time we need to think about this, when we are not in the midst of a tragedy.  I hope that when those days happen, and by the way, they will come, we will have the right perspective and maybe we will get through them. 

Paul says and teaches us, that creation was made subject to futility.  Creation, our life, all that is, was made subject to futility.  I looked up the meaning of futility and I think what Paul means is the definition of futility as “completeness of failure.”  He is telling us that creation was made to completely fail, it will end.  He says, “It is a slave to corruption.”  Corruption means “to decompose, to fall into ruin.”  He says, “It’s groaning in labor pains, until now, waiting for redemption.”  Paul personifies creation and poetically attributes consciousness to the creation.  What he is saying is that creation, life, is dying.  If it wasn’t dying – if this world, this life, this creation was to last forever – then it would be immortal.  Then, I think, you might be able to make the argument, philosophically, that it had no beginning, if it has no end.  Therefore, it would be worthy of worship, for it would be God.  We, as human persons in this creation, if this is all there is, would be either blessed or probably cursed, to have the consciousness of knowing we’re here just for a little while and that’s it.  If this is it, if this creation is all that there is, I want my money back.  Because, as beautiful as life is, if it’s all it is, it’s ultimately a tragedy, a disappointment. 
 
But, Paul is not giving us sad news.  He is giving us good news.  After reminding us of the reality of death and corruption, he points to our hope in Christ Jesus.  He says, “I consider the sufferings of the present to be nothing compared to the glory that will be revealed in us in Christ Jesus.”  He even rejoices in his sufferings.  Elsewhere, in Colossians, Paul said, “Now I rejoice in the sufferings for your sake.”  Because Paul suffered for our sake, and he suffered – he was whipped and lashed countless times, he was shipwrecked twice, imprisoned, beaten, tortured, and finally beheaded – for the sake of Christ and the Gospel, for us, really, so that we could have this faith that we celebrate this morning.  He knew what he was talking about. He said all that suffering is nothing compared to the glory that will be revealed in us.  St. Peter also rejoiced in his suffering.  He said, “Beloved, do not be surprised that a trial by fire is occurring among you, as if something strange is happening.  But rejoice to the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that when His glory is revealed, you may also rejoice exultantly.” 
 
The problem we have is that we expect creation, life, to be perfect.  Indeed, society worships creation, like the golden calf, and is still looking for the fountain of youth.  When life is not perfect, they blame God, or we blame God.  That is what that’s about.  “How could God do this?”  Because creation is corrupt, dying, and when we experience the tragedy of that reality, some chose to blame God.  Charles Darwin was a Christian, a brilliant man.  When his daughter died, he stopped believing in God.  He said, “How could God do that to me?  Take my daughter?”  Ted Turner used to be a Christian.  When his sister died, he said, “I am no longer a Christian.  I can’t believe in a God that would make my sister suffer.”  Since then, Turner has actually persecuted Christians, Catholics especially.  He has gone to the source.  He is not on my top ten list. Countless others have given up faith in God because of some tragedy.  And we ask, “How can God let this happen?”  When we ask that question, there’s an underlying premise.  “How could God let this happen?”  The underlying premise is that God controls it all, and we are like puppets on a string and He’s up there playing with us.  That’s not what’s happening at all.  We are free.  We are created in His image, free.  Free to love or free to hate.  Free to be generous and free to be selfish.
 
This world is not perfect.  It’s not an end in itself.  It never was supposed to be.  We don’t live in Disneyland.  You’ve all been to Disneyland?  It’s pretty neat.  How would you like to live there?  That guy playing Mickey Mouse must get pretty bored.  If life was like Disneyland, we would be really a sorry mess.  It is through suffering that we grow depth.  Show me someone who has never suffered, and I’ll show you someone who doesn’t have much in the way of roots.  It’s through suffering and grief and loss, that we become real.  It’s through suffering that we learn to love.  Without suffering, we would miss the most important thing in life.  Creation is holy, it’s precious, it’s God’s gift, but it’s passing away.  That’s why Christians care about the environment because God gave it to us as a gift.  We, in turn, must keep this sacred gift pure and beautiful, to pass it on to our children and grandchildren.  But creation is a means to an end, a journey not a destination, it’s temporary and not eternal.  St. Paul says in 1st Corinthians, “If our hopes are limited to this life only, then we are the most pitiable people of all.”  That’s part of our history, but there’s something better than this life – something infinitely better – for those who hope in Christ Jesus.
 
I think that gives us perspective.  The perspective of a Christian is this, that everything that causes us pain is passing, everything that causes us pleasure is passing, what is important is that which is eternal, for that lasts forever.  So we persevere. We never give up.  Through our sufferings we are united even closer to God because we know that those sufferings are a share in Christ’s own suffering.  That’s why we are hopeful because there’s something better coming.  It’s a joyful anticipation that there will be a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
 
You know, the end will come.  You know that.  We expect most of us that it will come to each of us, individually, at our death.  But it could come on Wednesday.  Let me ask you a question.  If you were to know, this moment, with certainty that Jesus Christ would return on Wednesday, would that please you?  Did you hear that silence?  Last night, someone was sitting over there and he said, “No!”  He didn’t think, and he went, “Oh, my goodness!”  To be safe, if you knew Jesus Christ was going to come in His glory on Wednesday, would that please you?  (Yes.)  Oh, that was weak.  Well, Wednesday’s my day off, so I’m not in favor of it either.  On Thursday? 

It’s true, isn’t it?  We believe.  We’re here.  We believe.  We have this hope in Christ Jesus but we cling to this life. It’s like we don’t trust that when He comes and takes us home, we'll be ready.  Are we going to go? “No!  Not yet!  I have a golf tee time at 4:39.”  And He’d say, “John, let me take you out of your misery.” So, we say, "Come, Lord Jesus, whenever you are ready. Come, Lord Jesus." Amen.


So, we say, "Come, Lord Jesus, whenever you are ready. Come, Lord Jesus."
Amen.

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