Mark Tabata’s Weekday Devotionals:
Friday April 3 2026
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Romans 8:19-23 (ERV)-Everything that God made is waiting with excitement for the time when he will show the world who his children are. The whole world wants very much for that to happen. 20 Everything God made was allowed to become like something that cannot fulfill its purpose. That was not its choice, but God made it happen with this hope in view: 21 That the creation would be made free from ruin—that everything God made would have the same freedom and glory that belong to God’s children. 22 We know that everything God made has been waiting until now in pain like a woman ready to give birth to a child. 23 Not only the world, but we also have been waiting with pain inside us. We have the Spirit as the first part of God’s promise. So we are waiting for God to finish making us his own children. I mean we are waiting for our bodies to be made free.
In Romans 8, the Apostle describes the effects of the resurrection of Jesus on both humankind and the natural realm. He explains that the resurrection of Jesus will result one Day in the restoration of this universe to what God had initially intended. Sadly, the creation had been cursed because of humankind’s sin.
Genesis 3:17-19-Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. 18 Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. 19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”
Yet God had pronounced this curse “in hope” for the Day when it would be redeemed!
Some believe that Paul is only talking about the resurrection of dead humanity when the Lord returns in this passage in Romans. However, a deeper study reveals that he is talking about both the resurrection of mankind and the resurrection of this universe.
“Creation is a significant term in this text. It cannot refer to redeemed believers because “the children of God” is one group distinct from “creation” itself. Creation yearns to experience the “freedom of the glory of the children of God.” Neither does it refer to angelic entities because they were never subjected to futility or enslaved to decay. It also does not refer to unbelievers because they are not delivered from the “bondage to decay.” Consequently, what Paul means by creation is the cosmos, which is Abraham’s inheritance (Rom. 4: 13). Creation refers to the heavens and the earth, which God subjected to futility in the wake of the original couple’s sin. This is the “curse” of Genesis 3. The world God created, though subjected to futility and enslaved to decay, is redeemed—like humanity itself, including “the redemption of our bodies”—from death through the resurrection of Jesus the Messiah. Creation—the animals, trees, oceans, and skies—is the object of God’s redemption through the resurrection of Jesus….At the same time, the redemption of creation is not merely a return to what it once was. Redemption moves creation along to the purposes God had for creation initially. God’s creation will be free from sin, free from corruption, and free from death, and thus free to fully become what God intended in the beginning….The gospel is the story of how God fulfills the promises to Abraham in Jesus the Messiah. The gospel is the hope of Israel, which is resurrection. Resurrection proves God has not given up on creation or its purposes. The gospel is a message of salvation for not only Jews and Gentiles but the whole of creation. It is the message of the resurrected Lord, the resurrection of our mortal human bodies in the power of the Spirit, and the resurrected earth, as the redeemed live in communion with the Triune God. These three wonders are seamlessly sewn together in Paul’s biblical narrative.” (John Mark Hicks, Bobby Valentine, & and Mark Wilson, Embracing Creation: God’s Forgotten Mission, 1482-1500 (Kindle Edition); Abilene, TX; Abilene Christian University Press)
The Apostle describes the Creation as undergoing “birth pains.” This is a significant phrase, and shows that Paul is saying that there will be a “new birth” for the Creation someday.
“Why would Paul choose this image? Was he just looking for an image that would convey how much pain the creation is in because of man’s sin? Given the context, there’s more to it than that. It’s important to note that Paul says the creation is suffering childbirth pains, not death pains. I know I’m stating the obvious here, but there’s a huge difference between the pains of childbirth and the pains of death…In the same way, Paul’s point is that the suffering of the present sin-infected universe will eventually result in the delivery of a new sin-free universe.” (Dan Chambers, Bring On Heaven: A Biblical Deep Dive Into The Nature Of Our Forever Home, 62 (Kindle Edition): Franklin, Tennessee: FaithWorks Press).
Our brother Peter wrote these powerful words of encouragement for God’s people of all ages;
2 Peter 3:13-Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
The resurrection of Christ ensures that one Day, the realm of nature will be resurrected and restored.
Father, we praise You and we thank You for the promise of the resurrection. Amen.