I think at one point or another, we have all been given this reassuring hope. “The pain is only temporary.” In many ways, this hopeful phrase is of supreme importance in times of suffering. While its logic does not apply to every single instance of suffering, there is a degree of truth in a multitude of ways. When I hear these words, the popular message of Romans 8:18 comes to mind: “I don’t think the sufferings we are going through now are even worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed to us in the future” (CJB). This reminder may be the most consoling response one can offer a sufferer.
For many years, I have struggled with a few mental health disorders. I have struggled with substance abuse. At least twice, these ailments led to a crisis. Twice, I was hospitalized as a result. In those moments, I could not possibly wrap my mind around the idea that my suffering was temporary. And yet, it was. I am supremely thankful to have the support system I do. I am beyond grateful for the nurses, therapists, counselors, and professionals who pushed me to believe the truth of this message.
I think the idea that pain is only temporary is a universal truth. You do not have to be a Christian to believe it. I will say that in my years as a churchgoer, I always appreciated teachings on verses such as Romans 8:18. They were scarce; more often than not, I was presented with theodicies. The free will theodicy. The original sin theodicy. The heaven theodicy, if you will. Indeed, there is a time and place for discussions on these concepts. But when one is grieving or facing a health crisis, saying people suffer because of sin can only make matters worse.
I am not saying churches should embrace a universalist message. Not that it would matter much, but I believe I would be excommunicated from every denomination if I were to say so. What I can say is that there are moments when logical doctrines cause nothing but harm. In my last post, I mentioned that in the face of grieving, logic is tossed out the window. Suddenly, defenses and offenses become blistering reminders of how polarizing religion can be. And it can certainly make the situation much worse.
Yes, most of the time when faced with hardship we beg the problem of suffering. “Why me?” “What have I done?” “How could God allow this to happen?” Imagine if instead of presenting a logical defense of God’s allowance of suffering, a pastor could change the course of the conversation. Instead of defending their point of view, why not try to help the suffer understand that God never intends suffering to permanent? No one suffers for eternity—unless you accept the Christianized concept of hell, which I do not.
I do not believe that we go to heaven when we die. This simply is not biblical. I likewise do not believe that “bad people burn in hell.” Hell is never even mentioned in the Bible! This is all clearly up for debate, and I hope to write on the topic one day. My point in raising this issue is to correct the idea often sucked out of this verse. Paul is not saying that “going to heaven” is the primary purpose of our suffering. “The glory that will be revealed” is Paul’s way of acknowledging that one day, whether in heaven, on earth, in purgatory, or wherever, God’s purpose will be revealed.
In this life, it is impossible to understand why we suffer. In this life, the purpose of hardship is for us to endure for the hope of what is to come. While researching this verse, I came across an old research article which explains of Paul’s intentions,
“[Paul] looked at the world and the human struggle with wide open eyes. The hope he finally came to was reached through despair. His hope respects an ultimate glory: this alone prevents his despair from being complete.”1
Hope. That was Paul’s solution to the problem of suffering. That was his drive to endure his despair. It was my mother’s drive to endure the harshness of her cancer. It was my drive to process the grief of losing her. The pain is only temporary; but hope is eternal.
If it is hope that you will be in heaven someday, then I encourage you to cling to such hope. But heaven itself is not necessarily the glory we anticipate in suffering. The glory that will be revealed to believers of the Bible is one day understanding that there was a purpose for the pain God allowed. Taking it a step further, as Mr. Lewis has argued, humanity’s destiny is to one day be united with their god (or gods).2 This union is, indeed, the ultimate essence of glory.
I mentioned earlier that I loved hearing verses such as Romans 8:18 exegeted in church when I still attended. I believe the ultimate aspect that I enjoyed the most is the encouragement to have hope. It was often distorted to a very specific hope, the hope that when we die, we enter paradise. But that is a very Western way of thinking. It centers solely on the self as it implies that we deserve to enter heaven. Do we? Have not all sinned and fallen short? Many modern scholars argue that the glory Paul speaks of is the “hope of redemption.”
Redemption from what, though? Sin? Possibly. But the following verses in Romans suggest it is redemption from the frailty of human life (e.g., 8:21, 23). One of my favorite scholars, Craig Keener, writes that humanity has been subjugated to perishability; we acknowledge that our bodies, our material life, is mere vanity, and we long to escape this.3 He states, “‘Redemption’ refers to the freeing of slaves; the goal of freedom here was liberation from death (7:24).”4 Don’t we all anticipate the end of suffering?
Human life is only temporary. And as such, suffering is only temporary. In regards to the problem of pain, I think we can draw this from Romans 8:18: every soul anticipates the end of suffering. We all question why we suffer. But as Paul acknowledges, we may not know why we suffered in this lifetime. That is to be revealed at another time. What we should focus on, and what we should encourage those struggling to know, is that we can hope in the future. We must certainly acknowledge the pain and devastation, but we can rest in knowing that it will not last forever.
Whether you are a theist, polytheist, atheist, or anything else, I believe we all possess a desire to see the pain end. It is a universal truth and a path I have walked many times. We may not all agree with the Bible or Paul (I, for one, think Paul is a bit overrated… but that’s just me) but we can agree that there is always hope. Sometimes, we have to realize the pain is only temporary. It may get worse before it gets better. And it may very well be that the trials do not compare to the glory that is yet to come.
1. Lewis, Edwin. “A Christian Theodicy: An Exposition of Romans 8:18–39.” Interpretation (Richmond) 11, no. 4 (1957): 405.
2. Ibid., 411
3. Keener, 106.
4. Ibid.