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\u201cFor we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven . . .\u201d (2 Corinthians 5:1,2).<\/p>\n
CREATED FOR FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD BUT LIVING IN A WORLD THAT IS BROKEN BY SIN, WE FREQUENTLY FIND OURSELVES CRYING OUT FOR RELIEF. We earnestly desire, as Paul put it, \u201cto be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven.\u201d And most of us have observed that \u201cgroaning\u201d is not too strong a word for what we do when the troubles of this world press down upon us.<\/p>\n
We need to be reminded that groaning is not wrong. Rather than the act of a weak person, it\u2019s often that of a strong person whose eyes are open to what has gone wrong in the world. Isn\u2019t Jesus the most notable example of how a strong person can sorrow? As He approached the tomb of His friend Lazarus, He \u201cwept\u201d (John 11:35). Then the account says that He arrived at the tomb \u201cgroaning in Himself\u201d (v.38). We need to dispense with the idea that spiritually mature people never hurt and never cry.<\/p>\n
Not only is groaning not inconsistent with godliness, but here is another amazing thing: groaning is not inconsistent with joy!<\/em> The most joyous of God\u2019s people are those who deeply, and even sorrowfully, cry out for His redemption. Indeed, it\u2019s often the bitterness of groaning that makes our hope so sweet. The godly life fits the definition of \u201cbittersweet,\u201d and it\u2019s quite appropriately compared to childbirth, an ordeal full of groaning, surely, but not without the joy that comes from hope: \u201cThe whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now\u201d (Romans 8:22).<\/p>\n The Psalmist sang that \u201cweeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning\u201d (Psalm 30:5). \u201cIn this we groan,\u201d said Paul, speaking of our fleshly bodies. But if we\u2019re faithful in our walk with God, our groaning is helping us get to our goal more fervently. Groaning<\/em> and earnestly desiring<\/em> are simply two sides of the same coin. The gospel, after all, is good news, but only to those who\u2019ve sorrowed over their separation from God. Having obeyed the good news, they\u2019re now yearning for a final homecoming with Him, reaching forward to that day with every ache of their hearts.<\/p>\n \u201cLife is a bridge of groans across a stream of tears\u201d (Philip James Bailey).<\/p>\n Gary Henry \u2013 WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com<\/p>\n