In affirming that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed to us, Paul is not trivializing our present sufferings—especially the sufferings of those who suffer much. Suffering, as we know, is one of the great challenges to faith in a loving and caring God. Certain approaches to asceticism can give the impression that God delights in our suffering—the more we suffer the greater his delight! Yet quite the opposite is true: Our sufferings elicit God’s compassion, empathy, and were there any other way by which we might be freed from sin’s enslavement without suffering, God would certainly choose that way. It is thus in view of that unimaginable glory that will be ours in Christ, that God permits the sufferings associated with our sinful state, using these to prepare our hearts for this eternal glory. And so it is that not only are the sufferings of this present time as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed, but so too, the greatest joys of this present time, are as nothing compared with the joys and glory that will be ours in heaven.