Hope in the Groaning: Awaiting Resurrection and Renewal

Jul 12, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Waiting Like Noah’s Unreturned Dove

Hope begins in the awkward pause between sending and receiving. Like Noah staring at empty skies after releasing the dove, biblical hope holds space for what’s unseen while anchored to God’s faithfulness. This waiting isn’t passive resignation but active trust, a refusal to settle for half-answers when full restoration is promised. The ache of unmet hopes becomes holy ground where we learn to lean into God’s timing rather than demand immediate solutions. [16:02]

Why, my soul, are you so dejected? Why are you in such turmoil? Put your hope in God, for I will still praise him, my Savior and my God. (Psalm 42:5, NIV)

Reflection: Where do you feel stuck in a season of “not yet”? How might this waiting become an act of hope rather than despair?

Day 2: Hope’s Taut Measuring Line

True hope stretches like a pulled-tight cord—uncomfortable yet purposeful. Just as a taut measuring line reveals true dimensions, hope clarifies life’s chaos by aligning it with eternity’s blueprint. This tension isn’t failure but faithfulness, holding space for God’s promises amid life’s frayed edges. When circumstances sag, hope keeps pulling us toward resurrection’s horizon. [19:21]

Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:14, ESV)

Reflection: What current situation feels like a stretched cord? How might this tension be shaping your trust in God’s faithfulness?

Day 3: Groaning With Creation’s Labor Pains

Hope sounds like a groan—creation’s collective ache for redemption. Paul names our sighs as sacred participation in God’s renewal project, not evidence of weak faith. Like a woman in labor, our deepest pains signal impending life. Every frustration with brokenness becomes a prayer: “Come, Lord Jesus.” [21:25]

We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. Not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:22–23, ESV)

Reflection: What “groan” have you been silencing? How might voicing it deepen your dependence on the Spirit’s intercession?

Day 4: Resurrection as Our Measuring Stick

Christian hope isn’t wishful thinking but confidence in Christ’s already-won victory. Just as a carpenter’s level reveals what’s crooked, the resurrection recalibrates our vision—every grief, injustice, and death sentence will bow to eternal life. What seems unshakable today is temporary; what feels lost is being restored. [32:50]

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. (1 Corinthians 15:20–21, ESV)

Reflection: Where do you need to measure your circumstances against resurrection reality rather than present pain?

Day 5: Surrendered Hopes in God’s Grand Story

Hope shifts from clutching our scripts to trusting the Author. God’s “good” in Romans 8:28 isn’t comfort but Christlikeness—the process of being conformed to His image. Our unmet desires become altars where we exchange “I wanted” for “He knows,” finding freedom in His better story. [40:21]

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son. (Romans 8:28–29, ESV)

Reflection: What personal hope needs surrendering to God’s greater purpose? How might release lead to deeper conformity to Christ?

Sermon Summary

Christian hope begins with a simple need. The world needs it, the church needs it, and Jesus offers it. Scripture does not flatten hope into a nice feeling or a positive attitude. Scripture gives hope weight, tension, waiting, and groaning.

The Hebrew word Yahal shows hope as waiting, like Noah waiting seven days before sending the dove again. That kind of waiting is not empty time. It is the kind of waiting that can say with Psalm 42, “Why, my soul, are you so dejected? Put your hope in God.” The Hebrew word kavah adds another picture. Hope is like a measuring line pulled tight. There may be no movement, but there is a lot of energy, and that tension is not always comfortable.

Paul sets Romans 8 inside that kind of hope. Paul does not pretend present suffering is small. Sin, sickness, death, broken relationships, injustice, natural disasters, frustration, and decay all belong to “the sufferings of this present time.” Creation itself groans, and God’s people groan too. Christian hope does not require a person to paste on a smile or put a positive spin on what is actually painful. Christian hope can say, “This is not as it should be,” and still believe that suffering is not the end.

Paul’s image of labor pains gives suffering a boundary. The pain is real, but it is not the pain of death. It is pain with new life coming. Hope is not optimism that rushes past grief. Hope can mourn with those who mourn and still say God is present, faithful, and at work.

Christian hope also remembers the past while looking to the future. Hope looks toward the day when creation will be freed from “the bondage to decay” and all things will be made new. Jesus gives that hope its ground. Christ suffered, died, rose again, and lives as the “firstborn from the dead.” Because something crazy has already happened, Jesus was dead and is alive, resurrection life is not wishful thinking.

Christian hope changes the present because what a person hopes for changes what a person lives for. The Spirit helps in weakness, especially when prayer has no words left and only groaning remains. Romans 8:28 does not mean every moment feels good. God’s good is deeper than comfort, because God is conforming his people to the image of Christ. The church holds this hope together when one person cannot hold it alone, telling and singing the story until faith can cling again.

Key Takeaways

1. Hope can tell the truth. Christian hope does not need to rename evil as good or rush suffering into a silver lining. Paul lets creation groan, and that groaning is honest worship in a broken world. Hope gives sorrow a boundary, not a disguise, because resurrection life is coming but pain is still pain. [24:04]
2. Waiting has holy tension. The picture of kavah makes hope feel like a cord pulled tight, full of strain and energy. Biblical hope is not passive, sleepy waiting. It is the uncomfortable space where nothing seems to move, yet faith remains stretched toward the Lord. [18:59]
3. Resurrection anchors Christian hope. Christian hope is not built on personality, mood, or best-case scenarios. It rests on the fact that Jesus was dead and is alive still to this day. Because Christ has already risen, the promised future of resurrection life has a solid place to stand. [32:50]
4. The Spirit prays through groaning. Human weakness does not cancel hope, because the Spirit meets God’s people exactly where words run out. Wordless groans are not wasted or ignored. The Spirit takes them and makes them effective intercession according to God’s will. [36:26]
5. God’s good is deeper than comfort. Romans 8:28 cannot be ripped out of suffering and made into a promise that everything will feel good now. God’s good is the better good of being moved through his purpose and conformed to Christ. Faith trusts that God’s plan for good is wiser than the small, controllable good a person would naturally choose.

## [40:21]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[13:14] - Opening and the Need for Hope
[15:27] - Hebrew Pictures of Hope
[16:02] - Yahal: Noah Waited
[17:50] - Kavah: The Cord Pulled Tight
[20:08] - Romans 8 and Christian Hope
[22:22] - Suffering Seen as It Really Is
[24:50] - Creation Groans in Hope
[26:42] - Hope Is Not Mere Optimism
[28:26] - Hope Remembers and Looks Forward
[32:00] - Resurrection Makes Hope Possible
[34:29] - Hope Changes Today
[35:55] - The Spirit Helps in Weakness
[37:10] - All Things Working for Good
[41:03] - The Church Holds Hope Together
[43:10] - Prayer for Living Hope

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Romans 8:18-30 (ESV)
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

Psalm 42:5 (ESV)
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.

1 Corinthians 15:20 (ESV)
But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

Observation Questions

In Romans 8:22-23, what two things are described as "groaning," and what does this reveal about the nature of hope?
The sermon mentions the Hebrew words Yahal (waiting like Noah) and Kavah (a cord pulled tight). How do these images contrast with a passive or superficial view of hope? [16:02]
According to Romans 8:26, how does the Spirit respond when believers lack words to pray?

Interpretation Questions

Why does Paul compare suffering to "labor pains" (Romans 8:22) instead of another type of pain? What does this imply about the purpose of suffering for believers?
The sermon states, "Christian hope can say, 'This is not as it should be,' and still believe suffering is not the end." How does Romans 8:18-25 support this tension between honesty about pain and confidence in God’s future? [24:04]
How does Christ’s resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:20) directly address the fear that Christian hope is just "wishful thinking"?

Application Questions

The sermon says groaning is "honest worship in a broken world." What would it look like to stop pretending everything is fine and instead bring your rawest struggles to God this week? [24:50]
When have you tried to rush past grief or suffering with forced optimism? How could you practice holding both sorrow and hope in that situation? [27:42]
The Spirit intercedes for us "with groanings too deep for words" (Romans 8:26). How might this truth change the way you pray when you feel spiritually weak or speechless?
The sermon emphasizes that "God’s good is deeper than comfort." What is one area of your life where you need to trust God’s definition of "good" over your own desire for comfort? [40:21]
How can you intentionally "hold hope" for someone in your community who feels crushed by suffering? What practical step will you take to remind them of resurrection life this week? [41:26]

Sermon Clips

68s

#GodWithUsNow

“``We have one who is present with us right here, right now. He hears our groanings as we wait, as we hope, as we experience this tension. His spirit takes our groanings, and he makes them effective intercessions When all you can do is moan, he takes that, and he makes it effective in accordance with God's good and perfect will. We can have confidence that when we're in the midst of suffering, when we're in the midst of that tension of hope, when all we have is wordless groans, that there's someone who hears our prayers, but not only that, there is someone who is actively working on our behalf. That's today. That's our hope right now, right here.”

63s

#ResurrectionGuarantee

“He is the guarantee of our own future resurrection. And so simply put, we can have confidence in this crazy idea of a future resurrection, of everything being made new because something crazy has already happened. Jesus was dead, and he's alive still to this day. That's why we hope for resurrection because we believe that he's already done it, and his promise that we're gonna join him can be trusted because of that. This is essential. The idea of the resurrection is essential. Paul says in first Corinthians 15 that if Christ had not been raised, our hope is futile. There's no point to it, and we should be pitied more than anyone. But if Christ was raised from the dead, we who claim him as lord have been given this promise and sure hope that we too will experience resurrection life.”

40s

#JesusResurrectionHope

“What gives us the audacity to hope for that? It's what we preach here every week. We preach that Jesus, God's own son, took on human flesh. He came and lived amongst us. He suffered that current suffering we're experiencing. He suffered that to the point of death on a cross, but he didn't stay dead. Three days later, he rose again. He defeated sin and death. He is sitting at the right hand of the father. He is alive today.”

73s

#CommunityHoldsHope

“This isn't an easy message, but it is a good one. But if you're sitting here and you're like, I'm struggling to hold on to this hope. The suffering is crushing. It's all I can see, and I know these things to be factually true, and yet I'm struggling to hold on to it. Do you know what the beauty of the church is? It's that if you can't hold on to this hope right now, know that I'm holding on to it for you. And the person sitting next to you is holding onto this hope for you. We come together and we tell the story. We preach it. We sing it to one another because we know it's hard. We know that this hope is difficult to cling onto, but we desperately need it. And so if you are here and you go, I can't do it today, that's okay. We've got it. And maybe tomorrow, you're gonna be holding on to this hope for the person sitting next to you.”

64s

#SurrenderToGodsGood

“This means that we're actually sharing in his goodness that he demonstrated through his death and resurrection. It's not a comfortable good, but it is the better good, and that's why we can't separate hope from faith. Because we need faith to believe that God's good is better than our good. That when he says he's working all things together for our good, if we don't experience in the moment, we can say, but God, I still trust you, that you desire my good and that your plan for it is far greater than mine. This means that we actually have to surrender our hope, surrender our desires to him, trusting that he knows our need, that he desperately loves us, that he does have good plans for us that may at times look very different than our own good plans for ourselves.”

67s

#HopeBoundsSuffering

“But our hope gives it's almost like the boundaries to our suffering. It's the boundaries to our sorrow and discouragement because the pain that we experience that's real, this pain is not the pain of death. It's actually the pain of childbirth. Right? That's what Paul says. It's the pain that there's new life coming. There's resurrection life. That's what we are hoping for. That's why there's boundaries for us as those who follow Jesus to our pain and to our sorrow. Paul speaks of this in his letter to the church in Thessalonica. He he talks about how he doesn't want them to grieve as those who have no hope because they do have hope. Because Jesus died and rose again in the same way through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. And so Paul is saying in this instance as well, we don't need to bypass grief. This isn't saying don't grieve. It's saying don't grieve as if you don't have hope.”

38s

#HopeAndMourning

“right because our hope doesn't have to exist outside of our suffering. It doesn't have to be like, oh, no. It's all gonna be okay. That's optimism, but our hope says, this is sad. This is sorrowful. Our bodies aren't supposed to ache and break like this. But in the midst of it, God is still present, he is still faithful. We are called to mourn with those who mourn, and it's not because we don't have hope, it's because we have hope we can say this is hard, and God is still at work, and God still has a plan and purpose in the midst of it.”

77s

#HopeWithinGroaning

“That is the suffering of the current time, and Paul does not invite his readers to look at this present suffering and just, you know, put a positive spin on it. See the silver lining of your current suffering. We don't need to reframe what is bad and say, no. It's actually good. He says that suffering that's all around us is nothing in comparison to what we're looking forward to, the glory that is going to be revealed to us. And so therefore, we can look at our present suffering, and we can just see it for what it really is. We can look around and metaphorically join in with all creation in groaning. Have you ever, like, stubbed your toe and all you can do is just groan? Like, that idea of there's nothing else to do but just go, this is not as it should be, and that's right. Christian hope can exist within the groanings.”

Ask a question about this sermon

Saanich Baptist Church This sermon · AI assistant

What do Hebrew words reveal about hope?

How does the Spirit aid believers' hope?

How does hope change what Christians live for?

Hope in the Groaning: Awaiting Resurrection and Renewal

Devotional

Day 1: Waiting Like Noah’s Unreturned Dove

Day 2: Hope’s Taut Measuring Line

Day 3: Groaning With Creation’s Labor Pains

Day 4: Resurrection as Our Measuring Stick

Day 5: Surrendered Hopes in God’s Grand Story

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Hope in the Groaning: Awaiting Resurrection and Renewal

Share