Fellow redeemed children of God and co-heirs of heaven through Jesus Christ our Lord,
How much are you willing to pay? How much can you put away? These are questions that an investment counselor inevitable will ask. He will ask you to figure out your estimated worth and your annual estimated income. He will lay out a number of possible retirement plans and investment strategies. All this is to help you to be prepared for the future; to be able live comfortably and securely when you retire. He will urge you to make financially wise moves now so that you will be safe in the years to come. In the end, however, he cannot tell you that you can be 100% sure that your investments will pan out for you. There are always risk factors like a poor economy and who knows, maybe even war. In the end, a little doubt, a little uncertainty always remains.
Many people feel that way about their spiritual future also. When the question comes up, "If you were to die tonight, would you go to heaven?" Many will answer that they are not certain. Yes, even people who attend churches that claim to be Christian churches outwardly may not know the certainty which the good news about Jesus Christ gives. Today, the message from the letter to the Romans tells us that we can be certain of our spiritual future, because we have been Secured by the Holy Spirit! For he alone convinces us that we are God’s children and also he convinces us that we are heirs of glory.
The letter to the Romans was written by the Apostle Paul from the city of Corinth near the end of his Third Missionary Journey. He was writing to a body of believers that he had not started. There was no evidence that the churches in and around Rome were being led astray by false teachers. In fact, Paul states in the opening of the letter, "Your faith is being reported all over the world" (1:8), and again near at the end of the letter, "Everyone has heard about your obedience" (16:19). Why then did the Apostle Paul write this letter to the believers at Rome? Paul tells them in the beginning of the letter that he wants to visit them so that they may be encouraged by the preaching of the gospel and that they might encourage him in turn. You see the Apostle Paul knew that the Holy Spirit worked through the message about Jesus. He knew that the Holy Spirit alone convinces us that we are God’s children (11-15)
How does the Spirit convince us? Does he give us warm fuzzy feelings? Does he give us the gift of tongues? After all, the early Church had the gift of tongues. Tongues were frequently given to the early Christian Church believers after the preaching of the gospel. But not any more. Tongues were never a proof of faith. If that were the case, salvation would be pretty questionable for many believers today. How then does the Spirit convince us? Well, he does give us spiritual gifts. No, not speaking in tongues or prophesying, but the fruits of the Spirit. Where there is fruit, there is life. Paul wrote,11And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. 14 because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. The Spirit created faith in our hearts through the message of Christ Jesus. He has given us assurance that we are children of God by giving us spiritual life, by raising us from our state of spiritual death. He has replaced our sin-rotted hearts with new and living hearts.
If that were not enough proof that we are God’s children, the Holy Spirit shows us how we as sinners and rebels became members of God’s family; how our sin-hardened hearts came to believe the gospel. He assures that we have been given the Spirit. 15For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." He is with us and strengthens to follow the Lord’s Will.
We need not feel like we are less than full-fledged children of God. We never need to be uncertain about the status of our soul for eternity. Some children who are adopted later in life, actually rebel against their adoptive parents. Counselors call it misplaced aggression. Sometimes, we who have been adopted into God’s family do the same thing. We rebel against our loving adoptive Father and our Savior. We grieve the Holy Spirit by living rebelliously in sin which we know is wrong. Paul warned that this should not be our attitude for it has serious consequences. "12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.13 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live," We have no excuse for living rebelliously. The Holy Spirit is living in us and gives us the strength to live holy and God-pleasing lives. When we consider what pains and torments Christ underwent for us, suffering for our sins and dying that we might live, our new hearts desire to live as he wants us to live. Christ came that sin and sorrow no more would reign. By the message of the cross, the Holy Spirit convinces us that we are now secure in salvation as dearly loved children of God.
Secured by the Spirit that our sins are forgiven, the Spirit also convinces us that we are heirs of glory (16-19)
I was driving behind another car a few days ago. A middle aged man was driving and his wife was in the passenger seat. On the bumper of their car there was a sticker that read, “We’re spending our children’s inheritance.” I kind of chuckled when I read it and thought to myself, “I sure am glad that they’re not my parents”. Inheritances can cause a lot of strife if parents don’t clarify in their will how their estate is to be divided among their children. Inheritances can at times shock surviving family members. I have heard of rich parents who left their children nothing in their will.
Our heavenly Father is not like that. He does not keep his riches from us. Nor does he leave us wondering what we are going to receive. He lets us know. He promises us that we are heirs of glory. We will inherit glory. The difference between his inheritance and other earthly inheritances is that we receive it when we die. The Holy Spirit makes us certain that we are heirs of eternal glory. Now maybe you’re thinking to yourself, “Well, if we are to receive glory, why do we suffer here on earth? If we are really God’s children, why doesn’t he give us glory right now? Why are we still persecuted for our faith and ridiculed by the world?” Those are good questions, and the Apostle Paul answers them. He wrote, 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. 18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.
In spite of the troubles that we face daily, we can be certain that we will receive glory, because our Lord Jesus suffered, died and was glorified. We can be certain because he has made us children of God through his cleansing blood, and promises us that we will be glorified beyond all our expectations. The Holy Spirit equips our hearts with faith to believe the Lord’s promises. He also strengthens our trust in the Lord and his promises even and especially in our sufferings. I can’t tell you how many times I have made hospital visits expecting to find someone despairing over their sickness or loss, but found the opposite. The very people whose faith I thought I would need to encourage encouraged me. I have seen the Holy Spirit work through the gospel and give a frail body a strong faith in the Lord; faith which trust that as an heir of God, the Lord would surely glorify that believer. Faith which held on to the Lord and his promises.
You and I have a confidence that we will be glorified because Jesus our Savior bore the scornful cross and the pangs of hell for us, and he himself was glorified. By his payment for our sins, the Holy Spirit convinces us that we too shall be glorified when we die or when Jesus returns on the Last Day. He strengthens our hearts through his Word and Sacraments so that when we do suffer for our faith, we will not doubt our Lord’s proclamation that we are heirs of glory.
Some preachers today point people to their decision to accept Jesus into their hearts as the reason why they should be confident. Others point their listeners to what good works they do. One leaves the listener wondering if his decision was sincere enough, the other leaves the listener doubting whether or not he has done enough good works. God in his Word does neither of those. Instead, he tells us that we can be confident that we are his children who will inherit glory, not because of anything we have done or will do, but only and solely because of what Jesus our Savior has done for us. How can we be sure? The Holy Spirit gives us confidence and increases our trust in the Lord and his promises through the preaching of this good news. We need never doubt where we shall spend eternity because we have been secured by the Holy Spirit! Amen.
Prayer: Eternal God and Father, help us to remember Jesus, who obeyed your will and bore the cross for our salvation that through his anguish, pain and death we may receive forgiveness of sins and inherit eternal life. Turn our hearts ever toward you and enable us to trust your holy will for us here and in eternity; through your Son, Jesus Christ Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
