This morning, as I journeyed through the Book of Romans, the Spirit seemed to give emphasis to a separation between creation in general and the sons of God.
Paul writes that "we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body."
Romans 8:18-23.
This was far more than a perspective of human superiority. The text implies a deep yearning and a hope for something better for all creation, even those humans who had not yet fully understood God's intent for this whirling piece of dirt, which we now knows orbits among millions of galaxies.
Even before Paul's writings, history gives evidence of this hope in that regardless of origin, every civilization has shown evidence of a sense of higher purpose, often aligned with a superior Being, or some ever-present awe with a part of Creation yet understood. Be that the Sun, or some alignment of distant stars from which constellations were formed, men and women hope for more.
Even the Roman emperors called themselves the Sons of God, and when entering a newly conquered city would purport to be the bearers of Good News! As far back as the Latin phrase "bonus nuntius" which translates to "good news", giving rise to the Ancient Greek phrase "euangélion."
Gōdspel is a word derived from the Old English words gōd, meaning "good", and spel, meaning "news". The term was first used in Mark 16:15, that we should go out and share the "Good News."
One might now better understand Paul's message. Everything created awaits such a moment when the Sons of God will be revealed. Jesus, the incarnation surely provided hint of what awaits when the Body of Christ fully matures. Slow as it may seem, "a thousand years is but a day."
Maybe it's the new pup that has me so focused on becoming what is expected of me, or perhaps it's some emotional hold over from the look in the eyes of my former dog, Coach after 14 years of such expectancy. Each time our eyes met came an assurance of a deep love for and an expectation of me, which he could find in no other creature.
My wife called him our "Jesus puppy." There was something in the eyes of our devoted dog that images the eyes of Christ, at least as seen in our mind's eye!
I was created out of hope, and placed on this planet with personal purpose! Why, even when I walk through the woods, "the trees clap their hands" in expectation!
That's not arrogance, but a deep seeded hope, "the first fruits of the Spirit" present on our planet ever since he/she first blooded over the earth!
That's the Gōdspel, the God Spell!
Live into it!
Did you take pictures of the Northern Lights