As we prepare our hearts, souls, and minds during this Advent Season, something dawned on me. I’m probably late to the game, but this is the first time that the following thoughts have occurred to me in quite this way. The people of the Old Testament were eagerly awaiting the coming of the Messiah because they felt oppressed by foes on all sides. There were enemies everywhere they turned: Egyptians, Amalekites, Philistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, and Romans, just to name a few. They were enslaved, attacked, taxed, and taken into captivity. To be sure, the Israelites had plenty of their own sins and were probably very deserving of their earthly problems. However, God still chose them and remained faithful to them through all their adulterous acts towards Him. They were groaning through their trials for the arrival of their Messiah.
People of the Jewish faith are still waiting for the first coming of Christ. The “groaning” is inherent in their faith, I would presume. Christians, however, believe He came to earth, died, and rose again, and this is where my little revelation comes in. I realized for the first time that I am joining in with the groaning. America has historically been a very wonderful place for Christians to live and practice their faith. That is the whole reason the Pilgrims came to the New World. Their bold faith provided us with the freest country on the planet. To be sure, there are millions of Christians in the world throughout history and present day who do (did) not live with the freedom to worship as they wish(ed). They have been groaning all along.
There are also many people who are suffering from illness, pain, and loss. Even though God consoles and gives His children the ability to endure pain and suffering, I am sure there is still much groaning. A young family that loses a parent to cancer is groaning. A woman who regrets an abortion is groaning. A young person who is in an accident and loses the ability to walk is groaning. A child who grows up with an abusive addict as a parent is groaning, and so on and so on.
Currently, Western culture is becoming more and more hostile towards Christians. There are so many examples: Christian bakers who decline to bake a cake for a same-sex wedding are threatened. Christian students are belittled by atheist teachers and professors. Making statements about Biblical principles like marriage being between and a woman bring with them a label of “hate speech”. There is no way to deny that being a Christian in Western culture is not the cake walk we once enjoyed. The Pilgrims of the 17th century enjoyed religious freedom. As it usually happens, many took this for granted and fell away from a devout faith. After the first Great Awakening of the early 18th century and the American Revolution, America again enjoyed a thriving Christian society. Unfortunately, decline started almost immediately, and humanist and progressive movements have been building momentum ever since.
Now, for the first time, I realize that I have joined in on the groaning like never before. I have felt it for a while, but today it became apparent. Christ’s second coming is described in the book of Revelation where He promises us new glorified bodies, no more tears, no more pain, and a new perfect Earth. It is tempting to sit back and wait for this perfect afterlife, but isn’t it better to join in the groaning? This is not our home. As soon as we are so comfortable that we feel like this is a rather good home, we are no longer groaning with desire for our eventual perfect home. As John Bunyan pointed out, we are Pilgrims. There is much work to be done while we make progress, so may the groaning spur us on.
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