Romans 8:18-27 (#30.2025.11.16)

Scott Keffer [: 00:00:02

Hi. If you're looking for greater hope, assurance and confidence through the shifting sands of life, then join me on today's episode as we dig deep into the Bible to discover rock solid truth for life and living from the God of the Bible. I'm your host, Scott Keffer. Hi and welcome to today's Episode. As always, for a deeper experience, you can go to the Show Notes and download the Blank Insight sheet. Fill in the blanks along with the group. Depending on how you're listening to this, there will be a link to the episode website@beholdingbibletruth.com and a sheet with the answers is included as well. Enjoy today's episode.

Scott Keffer [: 00:00:47

Well, we're walking our way through the Book of Romans and here, right in center, if you will, right here in Romans 8, we find the Gospel for believers. The Gospel for believers. Not only the good news, but the great, great news of the Gospel. So stand with me if you will, while we read this section. All right, but you as sons, I wish to be crying AB The Spirit himself divides with our Spirit, and we are children of God and their children, heirs of God and fellows to Christ. If indeed we suffer within him, so that we may also be glorified with Him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation, pray eagerly for the revealing of the Son of God.

Scott Keffer [: 00:01:50

The gravy was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him. You subjected it in hope that the creation itself also would be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of God. We know that the whole creation groans, suffers pains of childbirth together until the end. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves, growing within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body and hope we have been saved. But hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see with perseverance, we wait eagerly for it. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

Scott Keffer [: 00:02:57

So when the Lord Jesus Christ was here on earth, he claimed to be the Son of God. And when the religious leaders heard him claiming to be the Son of God, how was their response? They went crazy. Why? Because when he claimed to be the Son of God, he was claiming to be God. Exactly. He's claiming to be God. He is the only begotten of the Father, which means he is the only one of the same nature as the Father doesn't mean that he was born at some point in time. It means he is of the same nature, right? He is the same, right? The exact representation, it says, and of the same nature as the Father. So to claim that he's the Son of God, he would have to be God.

Scott Keffer [: 00:03:44

So now he's saying in him, and through him, we become sons of God. What? So, so you start to comprehend, what does that mean? What, how's that? So we've become of the same nature as God. So he says, we've been adopted. And, and our adoption is as sons of God. We are adopted. Our adoption is as sons of God, which by its nature should confound and amaze us. So I thought, what are some of the things that he starts to unfold here in this passage in Romans 8, he starts to let us know, what does it look like. So the first thing I put down is the Son of God is confident.

Scott Keffer [: 00:04:35

Son of God is confident to draw near. Son of God is confident to draw near. As a son, you can draw near to the throne of the Most High, right? And you can cry out, what? Abba, Father, Abba, Whatever word to me, the different the abba is the idea not as a baby would call their dad, but what as a, you know, a young adult would call. What would you call your dad? Would it be papa? Would it be Daddy? Would it be father would write Abba is that idea of not a four year old, but a young adult who understands the father and speaks with intimacy and confidence. Abba, Father. So in Hebrews it says, let us therefore do what? Draw near. Underline that. Draw near.

Scott Keffer [: 00:05:25

Draw near again, I remind myself, draw near. Draw near to whom? The immovable, unshakable, unchangeable one who is invisible, immortal, who dwells in unapproachable light. Scripture says he dwells in unapproachable light. So he gives us a picture in the universe of the actual sun, right? That is 10,000 right? Degrees. It is impossible to approach the sun even in a, even in a spaceship today, because it would be consumed both by the power of the sun and the, the power of the light, right? It's not even possible. You would have to be of the same nature as the sun, equal in power to be able to get near the, the actual sun. Does that make sense? Otherwise you'd be consumed by it. So the only one who can come near to the Father is one who is of the same nature, the one at his right hand, right? Which is the Son of God.

Scott Keffer [: 00:06:26

But he says, let us therefore draw near. Draw near. Draw near with confidence. Why? It's a throne of grace. It's now a throne of grace that we may receive mercy. What's mercy for? You've sinned, you've fallen, that's why you draw near to give mercy, right? And you might find grace to help in time of need. So he says in Hebrews, therefore, brethren, since we have confidence, there's a word again. Confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus.

Scott Keffer [: 00:07:01

By what? The blood of Jesus. We don't enter by our own righteousness. We don't enter in having. Having accomplished it. Right. We enter in right by the blood of Jesus. And it's a new and living way. How did it happen? He inaugurated it for us through the veil that is his flesh.

Scott Keffer [: 00:07:23

And since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us. There's the word again. Draw near with a sincere heart and full assurance of faith. So he says to draw near. So a friend of ours, who, she's got a friend who's in the 70s, going through Parkinson's, not doing real well, she brings him over from time to time and to walk him through truth. And I think through the process he came to a real faith in Christ. So he came over and I said to him, have you read the story Ben Hur? How many have read Ben Hur? Or at least seen the movie, right? Yeah, yeah. Is it Charlton Heston? Was he.

Scott Keffer [: 00:08:14

Yeah, he's not. So of course the idea is he's a Hebrew slave who rescued, right, rescues the, the Roman official and as a result, he adopts him. And as a result. So he hadn't, he had, he said, I, I think I can remember the movie. Is there, are there chariots in it? I said, yeah, that would be it, right? He comes back and there's the chariot race, right? So in Roman adoption, you take on as if you were a, a full, natural born son, you take on the father's name, the father's inheritance, all, all of that, all your, your debt is wiped out. Everything is, is gone. The difference in Ben Hur is that Ben Hur was adopted because of what, what he did. What he did.

Scott Keffer [: 00:09:07

The difference in Ben Hur was he was adopted because he saved the captive. And in, and in Christ's kingdom is we're adopted and he's the one who saves us. He did it. He did it and we're adopted. Full adoption, right? Always adopted, huh? And of course, in our world we would adopt and then try to unadopt I didn't like who they are. I didn't like going through it. Right. There'd be part of us who want to do that.

Scott Keffer [: 00:09:38

But in this case, who's the one who adopts us? God himself, who he says in scripture, he says he did that before the foundation of the world and full knowledge of who you are. Right. So I put on there. So how confident are you? That's the question. How confident are you to draw near? How confident are you to enter in? How confident are you to go before him? How confident? On a scale of 0 to 10, how confident are you to be able to go before him? Draw. What's he say? Draw near. Draw near. What's that mean? Come near.

Scott Keffer [: 00:10:18

Ra near. I would say the full comprehension of what we have as a result of being adopted as sons. Son. Right? Adopted as a son. Where is the Lord Jesus? At the right hand of the Father. What is that? That's the position of authority, the position of favor. This is my son in whom I am well pleased. It's the well pleasing one.

Scott Keffer [: 00:10:44

As a result, we draw near in and through Christ we draw near. So draw near. So how confident are you to draw near? And often say draw near in corporate is not the same as drawing near or personally. And the, the. The key to our adoption is you're. You are adopted. You personally. To be able to draw near, you don't have to draw near in a crowd.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:12

You draw near and you can draw near personally. So how confident are you to draw near in. In First Peter it says blessed be hoop the God and Father. So we have the God and Father and we have the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ at the right hand of God the Father. And what did God do? The Father, According to his great mercy, he caused you to be born again to a living hope. Right through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to. And obtaining what? An inheritance.

Scott Keffer [: 00:11:54

Well really, what kind of inheritance is that? Imperishable, undefiled and will not fade away. Not like the 401k. This one will not fade away, right? Not a 401k. And it says your inheritance is. It's reserved in heaven. What? For you? What does that mean specifically for you? It's reserved in heaven for you. And that word literally means to guard. So a son of God knows their inheritance is guarded.

Scott Keffer [: 00:12:37

Son of God knows their inheritance is guarded. So it says it's reserved in heaven. Notice he doesn't say for all of you. He says for you there's an inheritance with your name on it. What? And it says who? You. You are but protected. How are you protected? By the power of God? Through faith or salvation ready to be revealed. The Son of God knows their inheritance is guarded and they are protected.

Scott Keffer [: 00:13:13

And the one protecting you is guarding your inheritance. And the one guarding your inheritance is the one protecting you. Who's the one from eternity past has called you out of darkness. The one who spoke all things into being. The one who by the word of his power upholds all things. And if he upholds all things by the word of his power, he who guards your inheritance is also protecting you. Is that a good thing? See, the Son of God knows that draws near and knows that your inheritance is guarded and that you are protected. The second Son of God also focuses on Christ through trials.

Scott Keffer [: 00:13:59

Oh, that's the part I don't like. Right? If, If. If we indeed suffer with him, he says, why? Why do we focus on Christ through trials? To battle losing heart. To battle losing heart, he says, fixing our eyes on Jesus, who is the author and perfector of faith. He's. He has written your story. Do you know that? He's written your story. And wherever your story is at the moment, it ain't done right.

Scott Keffer [: 00:14:37

You don't know where you are in the movie, in the story. You might be in a low part, you might be in a high part. I don't know. But it's not over. He is the author and the finisher. That's what perfected me to bring to a conclusion. He's the author and perfecter of faith. Of faith.

Scott Keffer [: 00:14:56

Good for the joy set before him. He had joy set before him. What did he. What did he do? He endured the cross, despising the shame. And he's done what no one can do. No high priest ever could. Sit down. The Lord Jesus Christ, as the high priest, has sat down once for all.

Scott Keffer [: 00:15:23

Once for all. Right? If you understand that, that is great news. He sat down right. Right hand at the right hand of the throne of God. So he says. Consider him. He has endured such hostility by sinners against himself. Why do we consider him? So that? What is so that? It's purpose.

Scott Keffer [: 00:15:42

It's a. It's an arrow that points to the purpose. We consider Christ. We look to Christ. We. We call upon him. We fix our eyes on Him. What does that mean? Continually.

Scott Keffer [: 00:15:53

Right. Continually. There's a reason. So that you will not grow weary. And what does that mean? You're going to grow weary. If you haven't, you will. If you are, you will. Again, you'll go into Weariness.

Scott Keffer [: 00:16:10

And out of weariness, you go into losing heart. And out of it. But we battle losing heart. So a son of God focuses on Christ. Why? Because you will lose heart. There will be times when you will lose heart. And you will lose heart. Physical, right, mental, psychological.

Scott Keffer [: 00:16:30

Whatever trials you go through, you will lose heart. He says in this we greatly. Oh, come on. Like, what do you mean? We rejoice. Well, for a little while. Even though for a little while, if necessary. What does that mean? Sometimes God knows it's necessary that we go through stuff. You've been distressed by various trials.

Scott Keffer [: 00:17:04

So that the proof of your faith, right? The proof of your faith, it's not to disprove your faith. God does it to proof your faith. To whom? Not him. You. It isn't him. The proof of your faith, he shows it to be genuine faith for us. Proof of your faith be more precious and gold, which you can now purchase at Sam's club, which is perishable, perishable, even even though tested by fire, may be found to result the praise and glory, honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. So we battle losing heart, don't we? Without losing heart.

Scott Keffer [: 00:17:53

That's the reality of what it is to. To. To assume that that's not the case. To assume that you're never going to lose heart. To assume that's praise God. No matter what. It's praise God in the midst of. Yes, and sometimes we just really battle that, don't we? Lord, I just need.

Scott Keffer [: 00:18:09

I need help. I need help to praise you. I need help not to lose heart. I need help. I need help. So next, the Son of God has concluded. Has concluded that glory is of immeasurable value. So I put that little picture down there, right, of glory weighing more than present sufferings, which is what he's saying.

Scott Keffer [: 00:18:39

But the Greek language suggests that that's not even a good example, right? So we have glory down here, we have sufferings over here, and that weighs more. But he's saying that isn't even appropriate because glory isn't even of the same. You can't even weigh glory. It exponentially is of a different. Completely different nature. Completely different nature. So he says, for I have considered, I have reckoned. It says Paul goes through a thoughtful process to sit down and say, okay, glory, I don't see it.

Scott Keffer [: 00:19:15

I don't even know completely what it is. I'm not even sure about that. But he said, there's. There. It's clear to me that glory is of another level of value, which makes those things that I Can see and taste and feel here, not even of the same. I couldn't even put them on the same scale. I couldn't weigh them on the same scale because glory is of another nature. Does that make sense? It's not even possible.

Scott Keffer [: 00:19:44

See, I consider that it is of immeasurable value. And yet that's not to minimize sufferings. See, Paul's not saying that they don't mean anything, that there. There. There isn't real suffering in life, is there? There is real suffering, he says, and me, far more. Far more imprisonments, beaten, times without number, often in danger of death. And if you read that whole paragraph right, 39 lashes multiple times to the point of death, dangerous for rivers, robbers, countrymen, dangers from gentiles in the city, in the wilderness, on the sea. Dangers from false brethren in hunger, in thirst, night after night, sleepless.

Scott Keffer [: 00:20:34

All of that. He goes that. So it's not to minimize. These are real. These are real challenges, are they not? Life is full of real challenges. Disease, cancer, strokes, right? All of that stuff. You look around and go, what's up with that? Who's our. Who's the country artist that I think we love? The stroke.

Scott Keffer [: 00:20:55

Andy Travis. You think that stroke. And he. He can't talk. And then he did barely sing just a little bit at CMA Awards, and you go, like, what's up with that? Real suffering. So he's not saying these aren't real, that they're not heartbreaking. They're not heartbreaking. But Paul says, I've considered that there's a glory that.

Scott Keffer [: 00:21:16

That I can't see or think or imagine. And it's not like this, just a little bit better. It's not like this, just a little bit better. It's of a completely different nature. Unable to put upon a scale. Then he says, the Son of God waits eagerly. Waits eagerly for what? The fullness of their adoption. Fullness of their adoption.

Scott Keffer [: 00:21:53

Completely. But not yet. There is the fullness of this. When did it. When did it happen? Before the foundation of the. The earth. Right before the foundation of the world in love. He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ before the foundation.

Scott Keffer [: 00:22:10

And yet, right there is a fullness to come. Right there is a fullness. Our citizenship is. And we eagerly wait so often. Think about that. What are you eagerly waiting for next week? I eagerly wait. Think about what do you eagerly wait for? The game. Usually wait for the payout.

Scott Keffer [: 00:22:35

I usually wait for retirement. I eagerly wait for when I'm not sick anymore. I eagerly wait for healing. I Eagerly wait for lots of things, but saying here we eagerly wait. Am I eagerly waiting? Sometimes I think I just want him to come again because I'm tired of fussing, right? Tired of the world. Not like I want Christ, I just want out, right? I just want relief. I mean, that's true. It's just the honest truth, right? But it's saying, right, as a son, eagerly waiting for our.

Scott Keffer [: 00:23:08

The fullness of our adoption, for. For intimacy to come. What's going to happen? The Lord Jesus Christ is going to come. He's going to. He's not going to tweak my body. He's not going to tweak it. He's going to transform it, right? My knees are bad. I go in, I get a tweaking, but they're, they're, they're.

Scott Keffer [: 00:23:34

The whole thing's declining. No matter what we do, it's declining. I've tried stuff, right? Everybody knows some are declining faster than others. It's just declining, right? The outer is fading away. But he said he's going to transform the body of this humble state into conformity with the body of his glory. How's he going to do that? The power which he has eased him to subject all things to himself. What, he's going to transform my body? So we care for it in the meantime, but we don't treasure it because it's fading away. No matter what we do, it's fading away.

Scott Keffer [: 00:24:17

John MacArthur said adoption is complete, legally, now. It's. It will be complete experientially, in the resurrection, in our adoption. So he said he's waiting for adoption. It's the fullness, the completion of what he's going to do, which when we see him, will be made like unto him. That's the fullness. MacArthur knows what that's like. He's now whole.

Scott Keffer [: 00:24:45

So the Son of God. So in the midst of this, he's. He begins to talk about creation, the world in which we live. He said creation was subjected to what? Futility and decay, utility and decay. What happened? So the Lord God said to Adam, because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you. What did he command him? You shall not eat. Cursed is the ground because of you. Cursed is the ground because of you.

Scott Keffer [: 00:25:31

We live in a fallen world that's cursed. So it's saying, literally, the creation is groaning. Creation is groaning, aching, like. Like child pains, right? The creation is groaning. And literally the word eager expectation has this idea that the creation is straining its neck, waiting for something. What? The adoption of the sons of God. Waiting for the sons of God. Because creation, as if it had a life to it, is waiting.

Scott Keffer [: 00:26:06

Because when the sons of God are revealed, what's going to happen? There's an anxious longing for the sons of God. And in Revelation, it says, I saw a new heaven and a new earth. What's that going to be like? I don't know. But not a tweaking, a transformation. Transformation. What would that be like? Verse 7. First Earth passed away. He will dwell among them, and they shall be his people.

Scott Keffer [: 00:26:35

And God himself will be among them. And he will wipe away every fear. These great promises, they're pictures and they're promises. Wipe away every tear. There no longer be any death, nor will no longer be any mourning or crying or pain. And so how does this relate? Suffering will occur for a time. Life is full of trials and challenges and suffering and pain and. But there'll be a time when all of that will be wiped away.

Scott Keffer [: 00:27:14

All of that will be gone and the first things have passed away. So it's saying, even creation is looking forward. Even creation is straining its neck waiting for the sons of God to be revealed, waiting for Christ to come again, waiting for the consummation of everything. Says in Scripture that. That the Father is summing up all things into Christ. He's summing up. There's a time when all will be completed. All will be completed.

Scott Keffer [: 00:27:50

So it says. I love this back. In Romans 8, it says, we ourselves having the first fruits of the Spirit. The Spirit is a deposit, right? A down payment, if you will, of what's to come. A pledge, if you will. Even we ourselves grow within ourselves. We're waiting for our adoption, the redemption of our body. It says, for in hope we have been saved, right? There's a.

Scott Keffer [: 00:28:17

There. There's a future to our adoption. But we hope. But hope that is seen as not hope. For who hopes what he already has, right? There's a. There's a fullness to our adoption that is to come. And that is the basis of our hope. That's the basis of our hope.

Scott Keffer [: 00:28:38

For if we hope for what we do not see with perseverance, we eagerly wait for it. So I put back here, son of God perseveres. Son of God perseveres. Perseveres. That's a good word, isn't it? You kind of see that. You kind of see it as you say it. He perseveres, right? So I press on. Not that I've already attained it or I've already Become perfect.

Scott Keffer [: 00:29:07

Paul says, but I press on. I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I myself have been laid hold of by Christ Jesus. I press on. I press on A persevere. So Son of God perseveres with hope. And we're looking. What are we looking for? Well, first of all, reminder. Then faith is the.

Scott Keffer [: 00:29:30

It's the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. And I love this. In Titus, he says, for the what is appeared? Grace. The grace of God. Isn't the grace of God the most amazing thing ever? The God of the universe is gracious and compassionate. When he appears to Moses, it says, yahweh came down in the cloud. And he says, the Lord, the Lord God, gracious and compassionate. Float anger and abounding in loving kindness.

Scott Keffer [: 00:30:04

Keeping loving kindness for thousands. Forgiving iniquity, transgression and sin. Forgiving iniquity, transgression and sin. All three forms of sin. All three forms of transgression. Some rebellion, some omission, some commission, Some outward, some inward. All forms of sin. Forgiving iniquity, transgression and sin.

Scott Keffer [: 00:30:27

But the grace of God I love this has appeared. Aren't you glad it appeared? What did it do? Bringing salvation to all men. Instructing us to deny ungodliness and world desires, worldly desires. And live sensibly, righteously and godly in this present age. How do we do that? That's worth it. How do we do that? It says we're looking. What are we looking for? The blessed hope. Who is that? That's him.

Scott Keffer [: 00:30:57

The blessed hope. In the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Christ Jesus. He's the blessed hope. So we persevere with hope. Looking for the blessed hope was him. Who's him? And so I'm a great reminder that Christianity is not a set of beliefs. Christianity is the Lord Jesus Christ, come in the flesh. Shed his blood on the cross.

Scott Keffer [: 00:31:26

It is as an historical event. It is built upon God becoming flesh. Yes, there are beliefs that follow after that. But we look to one. We don't. We don't have a set of beliefs. We believe in one. The one who's coming again.

Scott Keffer [: 00:31:45

The one who's coming again. So we persevere. Persevere. And lastly, in this section, it says, in the same way, Spirit also helps our weakness. We do not know how to pray as we should. But the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep reward. And he who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit Is because he intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. So I put on there lastly a son of God.

Scott Keffer [: 00:32:14

Praise. Son of God. Praise. Praise to the Father. Right. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Right. Our praise to the Father through the Son with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Scott Keffer [: 00:32:31

Praise to the Father through the Son with the help of the Holy Spirit. What do you see? The Trinity. Praise to the Father through the Son with the help of the Holy Spirit. And he says, hey, here's the deal about prayer. You're weak in prayer. How many already know that? Right. The Spirit helps our weakness. He says why? You do not know how to pray as you should.

Scott Keffer [: 00:33:06

Which means you don't know what to pray. You don't know how to pray for what you don't know what to pray for. That pretty much leaves you we. I don't know how to pray. I don't know what to pray for. I don't know how to pray for what? I don't know what to pray for. So it says, the spirit helps your weakness. We do know how to pray as we should.

Scott Keffer [: 00:33:28

So I put down a couple of things. The Son of God prays in weakness. The Son of God prays in weakness. Embows how many read power through prayer or any embounds. So he was. I believe he was a chaplain. Methodist might be in the background, but chaplain in civil War I think. And he wrote a bunch on prayer.

Scott Keffer [: 00:33:57

A bunch of power to prayer. A bunch of others. Prayer is the easiest and hardest of all things. I love that. Right? It's the simplest and the sublimest. The weakest and the most powerful. Why it. Its results lie outside the range of human possibilities.

Scott Keffer [: 00:34:21

Isn't that cool? Because when we pray all we can see is things that we can see happening. Which means the things that General I've experienced or. Right. But for God. What? They are limited only by the omnipotence of God. Which is unlimited. So. So he says that.

Scott Keffer [: 00:34:46

That. That. That the results lie outside the range of human possibilities. They are limited. It's funny how he says this right. For. For effect. They're limited only by the omnipotence of God.

Scott Keffer [: 00:34:59

Which has no limits. Which means prayer has no limits. Because God has no limits. It is the easiest and the hardest of all things. So we pray in weakness. I don't know how to pray. When you pray. Yes.

Scott Keffer [: 00:35:13

For Elder. He says, ask for help. You don't know how to pray as you should ask forever. Then he says, pray with devotion. Go yourself to prayer. Keeping alerted him with an attitude of thanksgiving. Come on. Prayer, devotion, I hate that.

Scott Keffer [: 00:35:33

Now I'll be devoted to my physical health. I'll be devoted to where I eat. Maybe I'll be devoted to how I look. I'll be devoted to the stuff of my job, stuff of stuff. But devoted to prayer. Devoted to prayer. Devoted to prayer. Devote yourself to prayer.

Scott Keffer [: 00:35:54

And, and how should you be keeping alert? Hard to pray, isn't it? Hard to pray. Remember, for first skin Christian, you know, you should pray. Read this book, Good prayer em bounds. And you know those early guys get up three hours of prayer. I'd go out, wrap myself in a blanket, and then pretty soon, you know, keep alert in it. Why? Because you've got to fall asleep in prayer. What did he say to the, to the disciples? What Jesus say? They're sleeping, you're snoozing. Yeah, right.

Scott Keffer [: 00:36:28

It's a picture for us. The picture for us. Prayer's hard. People learn in it. People learn in it. It's hard. Devote yourself to prayer. I love this.

Scott Keffer [: 00:36:40

And Jesus said to them, here's a picture. He says, suppose one of you has a friend, goes to him at midnight, says to him, friend, lend me three loaves. For a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before it. And from the inside he answers, what's that? Family? Everybody are in the big bed and we're not getting out. Right? There's no, there's no central heat. It's not cozy out there. When I get out of bed, I don't have slippers. Probably we're not getting up.

Scott Keffer [: 00:37:17

Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock. Right from the inside, the answers have said, do not bother me. Do not bother me. The door already has been shot. And my children and I are in bed and we're cozy. We're not getting up. I cannot get up and give you anything. I tell you, even though he will not get up and give me anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence.

Scott Keffer [: 00:37:47

In the King James version, when I first started reading the Bible, it was King James. The word importunity was in there. I had no idea what importunity meant, but it sounded like a cool word, right? Importune. Importune, right. It literally means shamelessness, means shamelessness. Yet because of his shamelessness, shamelessness, you will get up and give him as much as he needs. So we might also think there's that kind of bolt, right, of boldness to it. In other words, I'm not leaving until you answer the door.

Scott Keffer [: 00:38:30

Right there's that sense of I'm banging till you answer the door. So with shamelessness, with devotion, and also with importunity. Importunity. And then you think when things were really bad, you get this, don't you? Somebody's sick, you really care about. When something's urgent and dire, we get that. We pray. We pray that way, don't we? When it's urgent and dire, it's hard to keep praying for the things that are long term or even more urgent. But we pray with.

Scott Keffer [: 00:39:04

With importunity, with shamelessness. Right? He also says in Luke 18, let me tell you another one. He was telling them a parable. We said parable. This parable had a purpose. What was it to show? What is he showing? All times. When? All times. So he's understanding there will be urgent things and they'll be non urgent.

Scott Keffer [: 00:39:32

But he's saying at all times men ought to pray and not to lose heart. Oh, here we are. Back to losing heart. What does losing heart mean when you think about pray? I got no answer. I know. Answer. Does this really matter? God really here? Is he really going to do anything? I've been praying for this for a long time. Praying for this for a long time.

Scott Keffer [: 00:39:57

I don't know. Is that weeks, months, years, Decades? I don't know what it is. Praying for a long time. Prayer is hard to keep going, isn't it? It's hard to keep praying. It's hard to keep praying when there is no answer. And God encourages us along the way. But he says that you should pray and not lose heart. So he's saying, in a certain city there was a judge he didn't fear.

Scott Keffer [: 00:40:19

God did not respect man. He was a judge. Like our judges these days, they don't fear God or respect man. There was a widow in that city and she kept coming in saying, give me legal protection from my opponent. For a while he was unwilling, but afterward he said to himself, even though I do not fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection. Otherwise by continually coming, she's going to wear me out if she's not going anywhere. The Lord said here what the unrighteous judge said now, will not God, will not God who is just bring about justice for his elect, who cry to him day and night and will lead delay long over them. I tell you that he will bring about justice for them quickly.

Scott Keffer [: 00:41:14

However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith? So we have some praying with faith and perseverance, hard to persevere in prayer, very persevere. But you know, you know, you may not remember for you, but you know, when your son or daughter wanted something and they wanted it so badly that they were not going to stop, they're just going to keep asking you and asking you and asking you, did you have a son or daughter like that? Like, they're, they're just going to keep asking. So you finally cave. They're just going to keep asking, right? And no doubt, if you have one like that, maybe you were like that where you had that thing that I'm, I want that thing. It's the bike. Or I want to go on that trip, or I want, I want that thing. Right? And so you're going to keep asking. And your parents finally just paid, right? They finally just caved.

Scott Keffer [: 00:42:21

And then, of course, your kids would figure out which things to ask you and which things to ask your spouse. Where's the easiest route? So they start to catalog those in their head, right? How can I get. Oh, if I want to ask for these kind of things, I go to Mom. If I want to ask for those kind of things, I go to dad, right? In this case, we go to our Heavenly Father. You go to our Heavenly Father. And so James says, maybe at best, the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much, availeth much. So prayer, prayer, powerful. It's hard to pray.

Scott Keffer [: 00:43:09

It's hard to pray. So as a son, it's starting to say, as a son of God, if you get this right, you grow. Just think about this, he says, creation groans, you groan, and God groans through the Holy Spirit who's in us and with us. Creation is groaning. We're groaning. The Spirit of God in us and with us is groaning as well. God doesn't leave us alone in our groaning or in our struggle in this piece, because you are a son of God. You are a son of God and a son.

Scott Keffer [: 00:43:47

Praise prays with the help of the Holy Spirit. All right. Write down an insight that you got from today. I wonder if when you pray, God of the universe hears you. I wonder if I'm able, any place at any time to not have to speak a certain way, to go through an app, to get on the phone, go to a certain place and do it a certain way. I could call upon the God of all creation who sits above the old vault of the earth. And his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. He's sovereign over all things.

Scott Keffer [: 00:44:32

If I could, if I could talk somewhere and he heard me, what would I do? Would I Talk to him, call upon him, ask him for help. Here, this is, this is a good one here. But does that. And I think when I go through life, which are the things I think I don't need you. Do you think you can out ask God? Do you think as a parent that when your kids ask for help, they never do anymore unless they need more money? Right. That's all they ask for. Right. They need more money.

Scott Keffer [: 00:45:16

Or can you come over and do this project that we can't do without you? Yeah, right. Yeah. But it's never. They, they never ask for advice or wisdom. Right. You notice their, their sentences never answer. You know, just pay attention to grammar. Their sentences never end with a question mark.

Scott Keffer [: 00:45:35

They always end with a period or exclamation point. They ask you when they don't need something. Right. Think about how do you feel when your child asks you for help? Nobody in here hates it. Do you. How many. So think about that. Could I ask God for help more? Can I out ask him? Yeah, I can't ask him too much.

Scott Keffer [: 00:46:02

How about if the more I ask him, the more I honor him? Yeah. So maybe if I want to honor Him, I should ask him more. We assume there's a limited number of answers. So I want to ask him for some of that stuff because I want to save it for the big stuff. Right. And I don't want to bother him because he's got other things. Not our Father. Not our Father who art in heaven.

Scott Keffer [: 00:46:35

Not our Father who has immeasurable infinite ability to answer our prayers. Infinite ability to answer our prayers. Go. We want to close this in prayer. And may God our Father, who sits upon a throne and is there to answer prayer, May he bless you, may he keep you. May he cause his face to shine upon you. May he lift up his countenance and grant you a shalom deep in your soul. And may you cry out to him more often.

Scott Keffer [: 00:47:05

Amen. Thanks for listening. I hope you have greater hope, assurance and confidence in your life and a deeper trust in the God of the Bible, in His son, Jesus Christ. Until next time. May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. And may the Lord lift up his countenance on you and give you his peace, his shalom in your soul and in your life. Until next time.

Scott Keffer [: 00:47:37

May God bless you and keep you. It.