Romans 8:19-24

I love Romans 8. The chapter is rich and varied and reveals the mystery of God held secret for so long which is...."Christ in you, the hope of Glory."
But I am also intrigued by this passage from verse 19-24 and while I can come up with no definitive explanation, the speculations of theology can be very interesting. So please accept these rumblings as only Greg's thoughts. Try them on and see how they fit. Here goes:

vs. 19,"The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God."

What an intriguing concept. Some how, someway, Creation has been forced to a lower state than before, a place of decay and in the RSV death as well.In fact Creation's fortunes have been intricately linked with the place of man.
Now what can we be sure of from the text? 1. Creation has been frustrated and lowered. It is not allowed to be what it once was and in fact has been brought to a place where it will run down (decay) and die. 2. This is not the picture we receive of Creation in the Garden in Genesis. 3.No where in this passage nor in Genesis do we catch even a hint that Creation is at fault or particiapted in the slighest in Man's rebellion and disobedience of God. 4. It appears that Creation's subjection is nearly identical to Man's, at least in its effect. Frustration, decay and death.
5. So if Creation has no fault, no sin no trespass, why has it been subjected to the same 'curse' as man?

Here is another thing we know. The One who subjected Creation to this aspect of the curse is----God Himself. This is not the desire of Creation but a decision of God's and further more, He links the well being and restoration of Creation with the redemption of Man. Creation cannot and will not be restored in and of itself. The freedom and wholeness of Creation will find its fulfillment only in the wholeness of Man. So "we know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time."

The things I have just shared above are clearly indicated in this Scripture. These truths have been revealed to us. What is not clear and I cannot find overtly in Scripture is, "why did God subject the Creation to the curse of Man when in fact it has no guilt?
This is my speculation: God created Creation and then He made Man and He put Man in charge of Creation as His caretaker. Man was to name the animals and to care for the well-being of all of Creation. Man was the head steward tasked by God, in charge if you will. Then when Man rebelled, was kicked out of the Garden and subjected to decay and death, a fracture in the economy of God could have been created. Now Man who was the pinnacle of His Creation has been marred and brought low, producing a state where Creation which was 'under' Man would have been more glorious, more beautiful, more alive and more eternal than Man in his fallen state. So then does Creation rule over Man? One explanation that I offer for what happened is this: God's ultimate will will not be thwarted by Man's disobedience. God decided that Creation, which was created to be in relationship with Man would remain in the same relationship EVEN though they were not guilty as to rebellion. So when Man fell by his own disobeience, God cabled Creations' existence and state directly into an unchangeable situation where--whatever befalls Man befalls Creation. As Man suffers and dies so does Creation and conversley, as Man is redeemed and restored so will Creation.
If this is true it at least answers some of our questions. Who subjected Creation to decay and death if it did nothing wrong. Why is its welfare linked with the welfare of Man? Why does Creation eagerly wait and deeply groan for Man to be redeemed and restored?
A further corollary to Man's rebellion and sin is that the effects of our decisions in Adam have impacted negatively--the entire cosmos. But fortunately, the decision and acts of the one Man Christ--has brought and is bringing redemption--for all the cosmos!

One last bit of speculative theology comes out of this passage. If the magnificent Creation we see today is a mere shadow of its former self; if the world has been lowered and frustrated and made to decay; what must of it been like before the Fall? And what might it look like when it is restored?

When the Scriptures say that the 'trees clap their hands in joy' I'm sure it doesn't mean that trees have hands, but can it mean that even now trees have a hidden consciousness that would be openly seen in the Garden? When Jesus says that 'these very rocks would cry out' is this hyperbole or is their some underlying reality that we have lost out on? Have you ever looked at your dog, looked into their eyes and there seems to be this desire to communicate, to speak and yet there is chasm between their desire and their ability to speak. Could this be an example of Creation being frustrated and lowered in its experience so that it might maintain its postion in relationship to fallen Man? I am intrigued by C. S. Lewis' view of Narnia and the creatures who inhabit it. They talk, they live but they are always in the best way when there is a son and daughter (Mankind)of Aslan (Jesus Christ) on the throne (in charge) of the Kingdom.

For sure, I do not know what Creation was like nor what it will be like in the restored Kingdom. I know that the Bible tells us that the lion will play with the lamb and the child with the asp and it will be good! If this broken, fallen world can be so achingly beautiful and yet beset by horrilbe pain and decay, I can't wait to see what a Creation (and Mankind) will look like when the frustration is gone, the decay is arrested and death is defeated. That Day is coming!