Suffering - Romans 8 Bible Study

Paul said "For I consider that the present sufferings of this time do not compare to the future glory that would be revealed to us." This word suffering is a word that all of us can relate to. It's a word that is attacked us unexpectedly. You know, the thing about suffering is that it never asks when it can come into your life. Has suffering come into your life? Find out what we know about suffering and how you can change your response to suffering.

Show Notes

Have you ever thought your life is beyond repair or wondered if God could use your brokenness for good?

We all tend to look and search for purpose in our pain and suffering. In this Bible study, Noe Garcia takes participants on a journey through Romans 8, which many scholars believe is the greatest chapter in the Bible. Noe shares his life story and experiences of abuse, depression, and overwhelming hopelessness. He reveals how God redeemed, repaired, and restored him.

Through Romans 8, Dr. Noe Garcia will help you understand Christ's transformative power to repurpose hurt and brokenness for your good and His glory.

Session topics:

• Shame
• Battlefield
• Philophobia
• Suffering
• Purpose
• Trust
• Separation Anxiety
• Conquer

Dr. Noe Garcia is the senior pastor at North Phoenix Baptist Church in Phoenix, Arizona. He and his wife have four children. Noe holds a Doctorate of Ministry and Executive Leadership from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Noe is an adjunct professor at Gateway Seminary and a writer for Lifeway Voices. He is passionate about reaching and equipping people with the gospel of Jesus Christ, in Phoenix and around the world.

To learn about the full study including workbooks and videos, visit https://www.lifeway.com/en/product-family/romans-8-bible-study

And to find more great studies and small group curriculum just search "lumivoz" in your favorite podcast app or go to https://lumivoz.com

Creators & Guests

Host

Dr. Noe Garcia

Dr. Noe Garcia is the senior pastor at North Phoenix Baptist Church in Phoenix, Arizona. He and his wife have four children. Noe holds a Doctorate of Ministry and Executive Leadership from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Noe is an adjunct professor at Gateway Seminary and a writer for Lifeway Voices. He is passionate about reaching and equipping people with the gospel of Jesus Christ, in Phoenix and around the world.

What is Romans 8: From Broken To Belonging - Noe Garcia?

Is there purpose in your pain?

Have you ever thought your life is beyond repair or wondered if God could use your brokenness for good? We all tend to look and search for purpose in our pain and suffering. Depression, anxiety, hurting relationships, and unmet expectations can cause us to question God. In this study, Noe Garcia takes participants on a journey through Romans 8, which many scholars believe is the greatest chapter in the Bible. Noe shares his life story and experiences of abuse, depression, and overwhelming hopelessness. He reveals how God redeemed, repaired, and restored him. Through Romans 8, he'll help you understand Christ's transformative power to repurpose hurt and brokenness for your good and His glory.

Pastor Noe Garcia author, Lifeway, B&H Publishing, Lumivoz podcasts

Paul said for, I consider that the present sufferings of this time do not compare to the future glory that would be revealed to us. This word suffering is a word that all of us can relate to. It's a word that is attacked us unexpectedly. You know, the thing about suffering is that it never asks when it can come into your.

It never asks, how long can it stay? It just comes in unexpectedly with no mercy staying as long as it wants to stay. And here's what we know about suffering. It's part of this broken world. We can't control when it comes in, but we can control how it responds. You know, when I first gave my life to Jesus Christ, uh, I have to admit I didn't know God well.

I knew that I was forgiven of my. I knew that Jesus was my savior, but I didn't dig into the scriptures to know the heart of God. And the truth is, my theology came from social media and tv. Now I had social media theology, and there were two things that I often saw when it came to suffering. The first was this, that if I was suffering it was probably because there was sin in my.

There was this sin that I needed to confess and bring before God. And if there was sin in my life, I was suffering because God was punishing me. It was a very fearful way to live and to be honest, I lived as a prisoner, so afraid to mess up cause I didn't want God to punish me. And then here was the second thing.

If I was confessed before God and there was still suffering in my life, here's what I thought. Here's what I heard, that if I suffer, Then God was going to reward me. If I suffered. God was gonna compensate me for my suffering. This too is a dangerous way to live, and here's why. There's many times in my life where I went through very difficult things, even as a Christian, and I waited, God, where is my reward for my suffering?

What I come to realize is that if God chooses to reward us or to bless us, it's in spite of us, not because of. And I don't know about you, but I wanna learn how to suffer. Well, all throughout the scripture, you see these Bible characters who suffered and man, they suffered well Job. He lost everything. He had a, a physical suffering, a mental suffering.

He lost his family. Everything he had. He suffered, but he suffered well. Then you see Joseph, a man who was so dedicated and faithful to God, he wouldn't budge. When he was tempted by sin. He stayed faithful and he suffered at the hands of his own family members. They betrayed him and they hurt him deeply, but he suffered well.

And then you see in the New Testament, the discipl. Man, the disciples had radical obedience and their radical obedience led to extreme suffering. They were faithful in preaching the gospel. They were faithful in following Christ, and they were killed for their faithfulness, but they suffered well. Then you see Paul, Paul suffered so much for the cause of the gospel, and here's what even Paul.

Paul says that he suffered so much. He felt like there was a death sentence on his life. In fact, Paul says he despaired of life itself. You know what that means? I don't care if I live or die. I'm tired of suffering. Yet he suffered. Well then Jesus. Jesus living a perfect life with no sin. If anyone deserved compensation, it was.

But Jesus suffered well all the way to the cross. See, there's a way, Christian, that we can suffer. Well, nobody likes this word suffering yet. Nobody can escape this word suffering. If it hasn't knocked on your door, it will knock on your door, but I don't want you to. Because there's a way to suffer well here on this broken earth.

You know, my wife and I, early in our marriage, I'll never forget things were going quite well. I was a college pastor. The ministry was growing. We lived in a great home. We didn't really face much during this time of our life. And I was living in a season where I thought, I'm living in the compensation for my suffering.

And I'll never forget, my wife was three months. And were out in the car and she begins to get strong stomach pains. And these strong stomach pains got more challenging and more difficult and more painful. And as we continue to drive, we recognize we, we probably need to go straight to the hospital. We didn't make it to the hospital.

My wife had a miscarriage right there in the car and I couldn't understand it. And in fact, if I'm being transparent, I didn't suffer well. I was like ASAP in Psalm 73 where he says he was a brute and a beast before God, cuz he was ignorant at what God was doing. I turned into a beast. I turned into a brute before God.

I was so angry. I just thought I've suffered enough, God, I, I've suffered from this. Of pain, I've suffered from everything that I've experienced. And why can I just have a break? Why can I just have peace without suffering in my life? Why do I have to experience more and more pain? I'm being faithful to you.

Why don't you just bless me and I couldn't answer that question and these unanswered questions begin. Tobi, my. It made me frustrated and after we had this miscarriage, man, it was challenging to see people around me, my friends, who we were happy for, but we couldn't understand while they were having this, this happy and healthy pregnancy.

We were overhear suffering. My wife would attend a baby shower and, and she would smile and she'd give the gift and she was happy, but it was like a slap in the face from God. We didn't understand any of. And I didn't suffer well and I regret not suffering well, but there is a way to suffer. Well see.

Scripture says that we live in this broken world and the world groans, waiting, waiting for the return of Christ. Our bodies grown, waiting for the full redemption of our bodies. This world we live in is not complete. It's broken. Our bodies are defected. The earth is defected. Everything we see is defected and the truth.

Everything we see is suffering because it's not whole and it's not complete. But I wanna encourage you, while suffering will not, if it hasn't already, you may suffer mentally. You may suffer emotionally. You may suffer physically or you may suffer. There is a way to suffer. Well, there is a way to remind yourself that although in the midst of this suffering, God loves you, and it doesn't mean that he's mad at you, and it doesn't mean that he's left you.

Because the truth is, even if you are living in sin and there are natural consequences for the way you are living, God is not here to punish you. God loves you and he loves you, unc. But we can suffer well in the midst of this. And Paul gives us the secret to suffering. Well see. He says, for when I consider this word, consider means that he carefully calculated this man that has faced so much persecution, the man that has said I despair of life itself.

He says, I have taken all of this hard. I have taken the moments in my life where I didn't even feel like living anymore. And he uses the word consider. He says, I have calculated, I have weighed this out. Here is my suffering. Here is the hardship, here is the pain. Here is a thing that says I despair of life itself.

But when I consider, when I calculate, when I weigh it against something else, what's that? Something else? When he compare. It's a future glory that's gonna be revealed. Here's what he says. There's no comparison. When you put it on the scale, it tips over and the future glory outweighs the present.

Suffering. Our minds can't even comprehend how great this is going to be. Our minds fully do not understand what God is going to do. See, right now as we are suffering, we are suffering on the way to future. We are suffering on the way to something much greater, much more glorious that our minds cannot comprehend.

And in fact, I want you to listen to what he says in Revelation chapter 21 about what this future glory is going to look like. I want to give you a little taste in Revelation chapter 21. Listen to this, and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, behold the dwelling place of God is with. He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will be with them as their God.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourn nor crying, nor pain anymore for the former things have passed away. Did you hear that? God, the creator. Who hung the heaven, who hung the moon, and the stars and the sun himself, who created all of this is saying, I'm going to intimately be with you, and I myself will wipe away every tear.

No more suffering, no more pain, no more cancer, no more divorce. No more will it. We will be complete. We will be whole. We will be before the Creator in future glory. Now tell me, can suffering compare to that? I don't think so. There is a great glory that's waiting to be revealed. So how can you suffer? Well, here's how you can suffer well, to know that as a child of God, you are on your way.

To a future glory that nobody can take away from. You are on your way to no longer having any pain and being for the creator God himself. So family of God suffer well because we are suffering to a future.