Podcast Summary: The Groan Before the Glory | Bishop T.D. Jakes

Podcast: The Potter’s House Podcast
Host: The Potter’s House
Guest/Speaker: Bishop T.D. Jakes
Date: October 19, 2025

Episode Overview

Main Theme:
Bishop T.D. Jakes delivers a passionate sermon on "The Groan Before the Glory," drawing deeply from Romans 8:18–28. The sermon explores how pain, groaning, and suffering are not merely obstacles but divinely purposed processes that precede spiritual breakthrough, deliverance, and ultimate glory. Bishop Jakes calls listeners to recognize, endure, and surrender to God’s transformative work, affirming that all suffering has meaning as God shapes His people for manifesting His glory.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Scriptural Foundation: Romans 8:18–28

• Comparing Suffering and Glory:

  • Pastor Jakes emphasizes Paul’s message that present sufferings are "not worthy to even be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." (02:27)
  • Suffering is universal—not just in the world, but among believers too.

• The Groan of Creation

  • "The whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now." (06:10)
  • The world is waiting for the manifestation of God’s children—a revelation of true identity beyond flesh.

2. Suffering as Part of God’s Purpose

• Not All Suffering is Demonic:

  • Jakes challenges the idea that all suffering is caused by the devil—God sometimes allows hardship to mold us.
  • "Sometimes it's the hand of the potter putting indentations into the clay so that he could shape you into something that he could use for his glory." (03:19)

• Deliverance is Coming:

  • Regardless of vanity or corruption, God will deliver: "The creature itself also shall be delivered..." (05:12)
  • Hope is central—"We are saved by hope"—the enemy attacks hope because it’s the means of salvation. (06:24)

• Learning to Wait and Hope

  • "You’re going to have to hope like a crazy person… set the table for dinner and have nothing in the refrigerator." (07:10)

3. Spiritual Warfare and Intergenerational Trauma

• Inheritance and Memory:

  • Bishop Jakes explains that some struggles are inherited—not just in psychology but in biology, referencing studies on intergenerational trauma (e.g., Holocaust, slavery).
  • "Some of the fears that you have are not even your own… the cells in your body have a memory." (11:00)
  • The Spirit must intercede for us, dealing with “the things that your great grandmother did… that happened to them.” (13:10)

• The Spirit as Transformer and Curse Breaker:

  • "The Spirit is the only thing eternal enough to pray for your past, your present, and your future all at the same time." (16:44)
  • "You are a curse breaker that breaks curses for your generation, that changes the trajectory of the rest of your life. Somebody jump up and holler: 'It stops with me.'" (17:41)

4. The Purpose of Groaning and Suffering

• Subjected to Vanity:

  • God permits internal emptiness, conflict, and disappointment to break stubbornness and bring surrender.
  • "God ain’t gonna stop till he gets what he wants broken in your life." (21:19)

• Suffering Is Not Punishment, but Process:

  • "This is not a devil doing this to you... This is God making you subject to vanity." (24:15)
  • "He’s gonna take you through it over and over and over again until he convinces your stubborn self that it doesn’t work." (22:26)

• Travail Leads to Birth:

  • The current global and personal unrest is likened to labor pains—something new, glorious is about to be born.
  • "The world is about to give birth. It’s in the middle of delivery right now… there’s travail in the womb…” (27:48)

5. Transformation Through Surrender and Praise

• Power in Tears and Groaning:

  • “The greater the groan, the greater the glory.” (34:45)
  • Jakes cites biblical examples of crying out—David (Psalm 34), Jonah, and the souls under the altar in Revelation.
    • "David said, ‘This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and delivered him out of all his trouble.’" (37:33)
    • "Out of the belly of the fish cried I, and the Lord heard him…” (37:45)
  • Suffering waters your dreams: “The more you cried, you watered your dream.” (35:28)

• Breaking Through Generational Curses & Stagnation:

  • Bishop Jakes urges listeners to refuse to run anymore, to stand despite hardship, and to "break through" inherited limitations—poverty, addiction, pride, etc.
  • "I'm going to break through it. If I have to apologize… if I have to fix things that I didn't break… this groaning is gonna turn to glory." (31:58)

• Praising and Declaring Victory:

  • The congregation is urged multiple times to shout, dance, and praise, connecting vocal, embodied worship with victory over spiritual bondage.
  • "Praise him till your daughter gets a breakthrough. Praise him till your son comes back home." (45:29)

6. Manifestation of Glory

• Groaning Precedes the Glory

  • "After the groaning, here comes the glory." (57:06)
  • The process of pain and spiritual labor leads to a supernatural release—breakthrough, healing, deliverance, and fulfilled destiny.

• Concrete Steps and Declarations

  • Listeners are told to lay hands on themselves, declare and claim victory, and literally step into glory as an act of prophetic faith.
  • “If I step on it, it's mine. If I step on it, it's mine.” (69:23)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "Sometimes it's the hand of the potter putting indentations into the clay so that he could shape you into something that he could use for his glory." (03:19, Bishop Jakes)
• "The Spirit is the only thing eternal enough to pray for your past, your present, and your future all at the same time." (16:44, Bishop Jakes)
• "You are a curse breaker that breaks curses for your generation, that changes the trajectory of the rest of your life. Somebody jump up and holler: 'It stops with me.'" (17:41, Bishop Jakes)
• "The more you cried, you watered your dream. The more you shed tears, you watered your dream. You didn’t even know you were watering, but God ordered your tears." (35:28, Bishop Jakes)
• "The greater the groan, the greater the glory." (34:45, Bishop Jakes)
• “You can't get my glory unless you’ve lived through my story.” (48:15, Congregation)
• "If you can't holler, scream. Scream till tongues come out of your mouth. Scream till tumors come out of your body. Scream. Scream. Scream till the power of God hits you." (53:05, Bishop Jakes)
• "Here comes the glory. Here comes the glory. Here comes the glory. After the groaning, here comes the glory." (57:06, Congregation)
• "If I step on it, it's mine. If I step on it, it's mine." (69:23, Bishop Jakes)
• "Some trust in horses, some trust in chariots. But I will remember the name of the Lord." (70:06, Bishop Jakes)

Important Segments & Timestamps

• [02:19] – Opening scripture reading, Romans 8:18–28
• [05:12] – The promise of deliverance from bondage
• [11:00] – Biologic and generational inheritance of trauma and oppression
• [17:41] – Declaring an end to generational curses: "It stops with me."
• [21:19] – On God breaking stubbornness through repeated trials
• [27:48] – Global groaning and the analogy of labor/delivery
• [34:45] – "The greater the groan, the greater the glory."
• [35:28] – Tears as the water for your dreams
• [45:29] – Praise as a weapon for family and community deliverance
• [47:14] – "The more I groan, the closer I got" – proximity to God through groaning
• [53:05] – Scream and liberation: “Scream till the power of God hits you.”
• [57:06] – "Here comes the glory. After the groaning, here comes the glory."
• [69:23] – Stepping into glory, claiming new territory
• [70:06] – Remembering the name of the Lord above all other powers

Tone & Language

• Emphatic, passionate, repetitive for emphasis, evocative, rhythmic.
• Frequent calls for audience participation: "Shout yes, somebody!", "Holler!", "Give God a crazy praise!"
• Use of metaphors and vivid imagery: the potter’s hand, birth pangs, spiritual barrenness, breaking curses, watering your dreams with tears.
• Blunt, sometimes confrontational about personal and spiritual responsibility—"You are your own teacher… you’ve got a fool for a client."
• Encouraging perseverance: "Having done all, to stand, let us stand therefore…"

Final Takeaway

Bishop T.D. Jakes passionately asserts that suffering, trials, and groaning are not random or merely obstacles, but God’s method of bringing His people into greater levels of glory and purpose. Listeners are challenged to surrender, persist in hope, break generational limitations, and express their faith through worship and declaration.
The groaning is proof of birth pangs; glory is the promised outcome.

“I reckon that the sufferings of this present world are not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18; Repeated thematically throughout the sermon)