GOD'S EVERLASTING LOVE "For I am persuaded that neither . . . any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." – Tomorrow:
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: 'For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:35-39, NKJV)
ANY OTHER CREATED THING
Some other versions read, "any other creature" (KJV), "anything else in all creation" (NIV), "anything which is made" (BBE), and "nothing in all creation" (NLT).
There are presently two primary realms, or domains. From the moral perspective they are the good and the evil, or light and darkness. Considered from the standpoint of the human senses, they are the visible and invisible, or the seen and the unseen. Concerning their durability, they are the eternal and the temporal.
From yet another perspective they are the created and the uncreated – things called into being and things without beginning or end. It is particularly from this last view that our text is speaking. It views the entire panorama of creation – everything that has been made, be it personalities or environments. The oceanic variety of created intelligences are described as "those in heaven . . . those on earth, . . . those under the earth" (Phil 2:11).
When the Holy Spirit speaks of creation, He often accents its vastness. Confirming everything that had a genesis was made by Jesus, the Spirit testifies, "For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities -- all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together" (Col 1:16-18, NASB). Again it is written, "The North and the South Thou hast created them" (Psa 89:12). The Lord is described as He "who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein" (Rev 10:6).
The people of God are impacted by this vast creation – both good and evil, temporal and eternal. Wicked personalities of unimaginable power and influence are described as opponents with which believers must grapple. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Eph 6:12). They can alter the environment in which we reside, as Satan did that of Job (Job 1:13-19). They can effect the bodies of people, as confirmed in the case of Job (Job 2:7), two possessed men of the Gergesenes (Matt 8:28), a man who could not speak (Matt 9:32), another who was both blind and dumb (Matt 12:22), a lunatic child (Matt 17:14-15), and a woman who was bent double and could not raise herself up (Lk 13:11).
The vastness of our foes is staggering to ponder! Already our text has enumerated many of them. There are circumstances: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, sword. There are conditions: life and death. There are personalities: angels, principalities, and powers. There are the uncertainties of life: things present and things to come. Conditions are even mentioned: height and depth. These are all areas and personalities from which competitive influences arise, often assaulting those who live by faith. With the power of finality, the Spirit has testified that none of them is capable of separating us from the love of God and Christ.
In Christ Jesus there has been a unity forged between Deity and the redeemed that cannot be touched by adversarial powers! There is a love so strong, so consistent, so indissoluble, that nothing external to the believer can neutralize or nullify it.
Still, the Spirit makes the case ever more strong. He speaks to our faith, lifting us away from the seen, the temporal, and the transitory. In one grand expression He gathers all opponents, all adversaries, and every competitive influence and domain: "any other creature," or "any other created thing."
Nothing opposes the believer that has not been created – that does not have a genesis, or beginning. For that very reason, such things will also have an end. The idea here is that anything beneath God cannot interfere with His love for us! Nothing that is under Christ – and that is "all things" (Eph 1:22) – has any power to push us beyond the reach of Divine love. Whether it is a personality or a circumstance, it cannot diminish the love of God for us in Christ Jesus.
Those in Christ are seeking for "immortality," and, indeed, their quest will be granted (Rom 2:7; 1 Cor 15:54). Even now, in Him, they "have eternal life" (1 John 5:13). They also are slated to receive an "eternal inheritance" (Heb 9:15), and have been called to "His eternal glory" (1 Pet 5:10). Their redemption is "eternal" (Heb 9:12), and Jesus has authored their "eternal salvation" (Heb 5:9), which is "with eternal glory" (2 Tim 2:10). As they traffic in eternal verities, they abide in Christ's love (John 15:10), or keep themselves in the love of God (Jude 21).
No created thing, regardless of its longevity, power, or influence, can separate them from that marvelous love. It is understood this is speaking of "created" adversaries, opponents, dark domains, and disruptive influences. Every foe you have is created – it had a beginning, and will come to an appointed conclusion!
There are no doubt opponents and circumstances confronted in the faith-life of which we are totally unaware. I gather the Spirit has only introduced us to our enemies, in order that we not be overwhelmed by the number and magnitude of them. But to assure us that full provision has been made for us, He says "any other created thing." Faith is willing to accept that, and rest in the Lord. You can launch out into the deep with God, not fearing the power of your adversaries!
PRAYER POINT: Father, I thank You through Jesus Christ that You made everything, and control it as well. I praise You that Your love is superior to everything that is made. I ask for grace to abide in it.