Heirs Who Suffer

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. 

Romans 8:16-17 

If we are the children of God then according to our text, we are the heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. That means that what God has for Christ, He has for us. We are united with Christ. He is the Head, and we are His Body. He is the Bridegroom and we are the Bride. According to Ephesians, Christ is in glory now and we are already seated together with Him. Therefore, all eternity lies before us with all God has for us as His children. This is a glorious prospect. There is another aspect to this union we have with Christ. This involves our suffering with Him. We are understandingly less excited about this than about receiving our inheritance. It is part of the whole package. Christ endured great sufferings for us. It was not because He was doing evil or mistreating others. Rather He was going about doing good. The two groups who found Him most offensive were those who were identified by their religious rules, their separatism, and their self-righteousness. The second group were those who were treating religion as a business. These two groups arranged Christ’s execution. They were responsible for His sufferings. Part of our identification with Christ will involve suffering with Him. We will stand on the mountain, but we will pass through the valley.  

Our Wise and Sovereign God, 
we rejoice that You have made us Your heirs. 
We praise You that You will take us through the sufferings  
and bring us to a glorious end.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning