Romans 8:17 and 18 say, “If children, heirs also; heirs of God and joint heirs of Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him that we may also be glorified with Him. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the coming glory to be revealed to us.” Here we see that the condition for being heirs of God and joint heirs of Christ is that “we suffer with Him that we may also be glorified with Him.” We may not like suffering, but we need it. If we suffer with the Lord, we shall be glorified with Him.
Although I would not say that without suffering we shall not be glorified, it is certain that the degree of our suffering determines the degree of our glory. The more suffering we pass through, the more our glory will be intensified, for suffering increases the intensity of glory. We want to be glorified, but we do not want to experience suffering. However, suffering increases glory. In 1 Corinthians 15:41 Paul says that “star differs from star in glory,” indicating that some stars shine more brightly than others. We all shall shine, and we all shall be glorified, but the intensity of our glory will depend on the amount of suffering we are willing to take. It is certain that the Apostle Paul will shine more brightly than all of us. We shall be glorified, but the intensity of our glory will differ according to our suffering. Therefore, Paul says that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the coming glory. The present suffering means nothing compared with the coming glory.
Suffering is also related to the growth of life. The genuine growth of any kind of life depends on hardship and suffering. Without hardship or suffering it is difficult for any life to grow. The suffering mentioned in verse 17 concerns not only outward glorification but also inward growth in life. The more we suffer, the more we grow and the faster we are matured. Therefore, if we expect to grow in life, we should not reject suffering, because suffering helps our growth. We should not expect a life that is free of suffering.
The believers, by the experience of the divine dispensing, shall reign in the coming age with Christ through endurance in this age. In 2 Timothy 2:12a Paul says, “If we endure, we shall also reign with Him.” Enduring is related to life in this age, and reigning with Christ, to the coming age. Endurance is the entrance into the coming reign with Christ. If we would reign as co-kings of Christ, we need to endure sufferings. The entrance into the coming reign is through the endurance of sufferings in this age.
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