Ro 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
In the previous article I gave a definition for the Greek word translated vanity in Romans 8:20, from a Greek and Hebrew Interlinear I download from the Internet. Part of that definition is “transientness; morally”, and I cited Apostle Paul in Romans 7:18-21, to show that mankind, including the body of Christ is saddled with temporary and short lived morality. I have plenty of time to mull over the scripture verses and these verses give us a peek at the methodology God employs in His strange work in the world, Isa 28:21. Short lived morality is ultimately the cause of much suffering, pain and evil in the world. Eve and then Adam certainly exhibited short lived morality in the Garden of Eden when they both ate the fruit. Both knew that God prohibited eating the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil and that there were consequences involved with that action. But one might also point out that since they did not have the knowledge of good and evil, did they have the capacity to know that their actions were wrong? Was it due to vanity that Eve and then Adam disobeyed? God clearly states He created evil in Isa 45:7 and also states that the knowledge of good and evil is characteristic of both Himself and the Word of God, and that the possession of the knowledge of good and evil made man as one of them.
Ge 3:22 And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
As a side note the StrongNote Definitions embedded in the Greek and Hebrew Interlinear I download from the Internet, is equipped with the Strong’s Lexicon and is the source for the definition I am citing for vanity. I urge you to download the Greek and Hebrew Interlinear at http://www.scripture4all.org/download/download_ISA3.php It is a useful tool for studying the bible and allows you to view the actual Hebrew and Greek text as it appears in the manuscript. After a while the mistranslation of the Word of God which supports some of the doctrines of man, Eph 4:14, will become apparent. So let us take a look at why God subjected the creature to vanity and the implications surrounding that fact. And we will do so by using the scriptures. It would seem that pain, suffering, affliction and being saddled with short lived morality is all integral to the outcome of the manifestation of the sons of God. Someone who is immature and naive can hardly be expected to make sensible choices and these poor choices negatively impact themselves and others. I know that is certainly true with me in the past and sadly enough at times true today. You can’t put the cart before the horse, you can’t make a omelet without breaking a few eggs. It also appears you cannot create a mature or perfect child of God without immersing them in a world filled with fellow human beings that also have short lived morality. Which contributes to a myrid of individual choices that results in various degrees of good and evil. Part of God’s purpose in Christ is to display His glory on the earth in the thousand year kingdom of God, Re 20:6. Which is where the subjection of all things under man’s feet, through Christ and his body, begins in earnest.
He 2:6 But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him?
7 Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands:
8 Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.
Why are all things not put in subjection to man at this time? Because they have to be disciplined, trained and matured to assume that role.
Col 1:12 at the same time giving thanks to the Father, Who makes you competent for a part of the allotment of the saints, in light, CLV
1Pe 5:10 Now the God of all grace, Who calls you into His eonian glory in Christ, while briefly suffering, He will be adjusting, establishing, firming, founding you. CLV
James 1:12 Happy is the man who is enduring trial, for, becoming qualified, he will be obtaining the wreath of life, which He promises to those loving Him. CLV
The primary definition of the Greek word translated into the English word trial is “an experiment, attempt, trial, proving”. This same word is used in He 3:8, and many if not most of the Jews who were tried and tested in the wilderness erred in their hearts because they did not know God’s ways. God’s ways are to allow difficulties, afflictions, sufferings and tribulations to come mans way for character development,for maturity and for the development of fruit of the Spirit, Ro 5:2-5. Paul in another verse, states we are to endure hardness like a good soldier, 2Ti 2:3, which brings the analogy of Army boot camp to mind. In which men are being trained for war but the weapons of warfare the body of Christ is being trained in, are not carnal, 2Co 10:4, but spiritual. The start of thIs growth process is to stop childish behavior and becoming well acquainted with the scriptures. The Apostle Peter puts this way.
1Pe 2:1 ¶ Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,
2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
What is our growth but growith in the fruit of the Spirit, Ga 5:22-23, Jas 5:7, 2Ti 2:6. When you have time, search the word “fruit” and read the scripture verses that come up in the New Testament that contain that word. All this growth in the fruit of the Spirit can only come about in a proper teaching environment designed by God for just that end. Does the end justify the needs? Of course it does but in the midst of it all it is easy to loose sight of the fact that God is making us with more godly character than we ever could achieve on our own.
Ro 3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
I have spent many hours awake at night when I could not sleep and during daily walks contemplating scriptures, attempting to answer why God had to subject the creation to vanity in order to accomplish the manifestation of the sons of God. The short answer is that God needed a teaching environment wherein He could teach, instill and bring to fruition the fruits of righteousness in His immature offspring. This short answer, is akin to saying a car runs on gasoline. But let’s open the hood and look at the moving parts, so to speak. Let us look again at the definition for the word vanity in Romans 8:20. “Inutile, figuratively, transientness; morally, depravity.” Inutile means of no use or essentially useless. The question arises in my mind, when in time did God plan to subject the creation to vanity? When using a reference bible to look at the Romans 8:20 verse, Genesis 3:19 is cited. But in my mind, when reading the bible, one should always keep in mind that God knows the end from the beginning. As such, everything that happened in the past, happened because God intended for it to happen, or allowed it to happen so as to serve a purpose in His overall purpose in the earth.
Isa 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
It states in Eph 1:4, that the body of Christ were known in Christ before the foundation of the world. Being found in Christ takes place at the first resurrection and is the manifestation of the sons of God mentioned in Romans 8:19. Since the manifestation of the sons of God is contingent upon man being made subject to vanity. It would seem to me that God’s intention to subject the creation to vanity was in the cards well before Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. Since scriptures state that man in himself has not the power to obey the laws of God because the flesh is weak in Ro 8:3. And that the weak moral condition of man was apparently present in man from the very beginning. It appears man has been placed in a conundrum of sorts and the reasons why, are subtle but are for good reason.
2 Co 4&6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
A little more light is shined on this concept a bit later in the same epistle when Paul entreats the Lord the third time to remove a “thorn in the flesh”.
2 Co 12:7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Are God and Jesus Christ egomaniacs that need to have mankind in abject subservience to themselves. No. Neither are the members of the body of Christ simply conduits for the power of God. They are to be in one accord with God and Jesus Christ and demonstrate the same godliness and holiness as they do, He 12:10. But man is carnal and before he will be allowed to rule and reign with Jesus, the flesh must die, which is the whole purpose of the cross. Let’s look at a few instances in the past of misconduct of previous sons of God.
Ge 6:1 ¶ And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
2 That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
3 ¶ And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
4 ¶ There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.
5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
And of course Psalm 82.
1 ¶ « A Psalm of Asaph. » God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.
3 Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.
6 ¶ I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.
These instances are a prime example of the adage that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. It would appear the sons of God of old were also subject to the lust of the flesh. Upon reflection it seems to me that the flesh and lusts of the flesh were a necessary part of the nature of mankind initially, in order to make man more survivable as a species. To have a powerful mutual attraction between male and female insures that man would be fruitful and multiply. To amass food, shelter and herd animals and other forms of wealth, even to the point of coveting and theft, would be consistent with traits that would insure survivability. Many aspects of the flesh would help make a species better able to survive, adapt and in the long run would also ensured that man would have dominion over the earth. And that was God’s intent, Ge 1:26. But after a certain point in time, in the development of man, when mankind increased in population to the point where they lived in towns and cities, laws and the rule of law became necessary. You have to view what God is doing in this earth with man, on a individual level and at a societal level. How do you weigh one’s own self interest against the interest of God and others in a society?
Mk 12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
This of course does not come natural to man, as man was made carnal and can not please God, Ro 8:7. Man can only change by being taught, disciplined by God and by dying to the carnal nature God initially subjected all mankind to, Ro 8:3, 8:20. When you view the Old Testament in light of many of the verses in the New Testament, often times one can ask themselves why God allowed the vessels of wrath to oppose His will for so long? It would appear it was for educational purposes. In the first verse that follows, God wanted to make His power known in the earth and the second verse God uses past sin and rebelliousness of those in the wilderness for admonition to the body of Christ.
Ro 9:22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
1Co10:11 Now these things happened unto them for ensembles: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world has come.
Most all scriptures in the bible and the New Testament in particular are for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 2Ti 3:16. But for myself personally, the scriptures mirror the condition of my soul and spirit at different times in my life. Understanding and insight of scripture verses become instruments of change in my life in a timely and determined fashion by God. When you run into the brick wall of wanting to do the good but finding yourself doing that which is evil, as Apostle Paul describes in Ro 7:18-20. When you find that you greatly desire to overcome and lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset you, He 12:1. And then run the race with patience, but have difficulty doing so. This internal and external conflict exerting pressure on you, brings you closer to God. Brings you to the point where you start to increasingly come before the throne of grace for help in your many times of need, He 4:16. When you become acutely aware of the lack of strength within yourself. When you begin to hunger and thirst for righteousness. When you fear that you will come short of the glory of God. Then you are in a position where God can begin to teach you and develop fruit within you. It is stated that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, Proverbs 9:10. Perhaps that is the primary reason why God subjected the creation to vanity. A aspect related to this is briefly mentioned by Paul in 2 Corinthians and goes hand in hand with Php 2:12-13.
2Co 7:10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
11 For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.
Even repentance to salvation is a work of God in our lives and involves inner turmoil and fear. In short it is God purifying our hearts by faith. A person could go overly long on this topic but before I finish let us again look at a few scripture verses in the book of Hebrews directly related to why the creature was subjected to vanity. So that life experiences and God Himself using those life experiences, could teach us to make mature choices in life based on love.
He 5:13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
He 12:11 Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
Of course we should always emulate and keep our eye on the author and finisher of our faith, He 12:2 , and have the mind set of Jesus Christ to do the will of the Father. Who died in the flesh for us and his example encourages us to die to the flesh also.
He 5:7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;
8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;
In the coming Kingdom of God, Christ will rule with a rod of iron with the body of Christ, Re 12:5, Re 20:6. But it will be a reign of righteousness. The fruit of the Spirit fully developed in the body of Christ will ensure that they will be mature, willing and perfect servants to Christ, mankind, and the purpose of God, Eph 1:10. We should all keep this in mind as we grow in the fruit of the Spirit and to humbly submit ourselves to the mighty hand of God working in our lives. The love of God in Christ Jesus entails our realizing the high potential God has in mind for us.
1Pe 5:6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.