In All Things God Works for Our Good

A couple (unnamed) said this is their favorite Bible verse:

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 (NIV)

Chew it over for a moment: (reread slowly).

It’s bold, isn’t it? It’s the assurance you seek when things get rocky: sick parents or troubled pregnancy, financial stress or legal problems. Sitting with your mom in the hospital Intensive Care Unit, you might turn to this verse.

You don’t need a reminder that “God works for the good of those who love him” when everything is coming up roses, do you? When everything is peachy, it’s easy to be confident that God provides for your life.

· But: can God work accidents for our good?

· Can God work a failed business or getting fired for our good?

· What about a heart attack, cancer, or mental illness?

The statement covers all those situations: “we know that in all things God works for the good.”

To say that you “KNOW that in all things God works for the good of those who love him,” you need to be sure of both God’s power and God’s love. It points to a reality that goes deeper than appearances or feelings: Even when it doesn’t seem like God works for good in all things, we believe he does.

This claim is built on faith that God controls “all things.” It means you’re positive God has the power and authority to change things if they aren’t going according to his purposes. It means God didn’t just wind up the world like an old-fashioned watch to run down by itself, but God is actively at work in his creation every minute of every day. It’s a big statement of faith!

The apostle and church-planter, Paul, wrote this letter in the early days of the Christian church to remind all God’s people, whenever we read this passage, that God is big and powerful. He’s loving and full of grace. The love of those who love God is small, compared to his fatherly love and care.

When Paul dictated this letter to the Christians in Rome, they needed encouragement. Living out your faith in Jesus Christ as Lord in the capital city of the Roman Empire was not a cakewalk. When there were holidays or celebrations, the inhabitants of Rome were expected to chant w/ enthusiasm: “Caesar is lord!”

In the Roman Empire, esp. the city of Rome, it’s not just unpatriotic to say, “Jesus Christ is Lord;” it’s considered treason.

Being out of step with the patriotism of Rome means your business could lose military contracts or imperial orders.

You could be kicked out of the tentmakers’ guild, or

have your membership suspended in housebuilder’s union,

or lose your stall in the vegetable market for disloyalty.

Lawyers and doctors might refuse to work for Christians.

Neighbours might view you with suspicion.

Kids: your friends’ parents might not let them come to your b-day party b/c your family is Christian

We need to face it: there’s a cost to being Jesus’ disciple.

There are forces in the world: political and economic, social and spiritual, that put pressure on Jesus’ followers to renounce their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord. There are situations in politics, universities, hospitals, and other workplaces where a Christian perspective are unwelcome and will be attacked vigorously. That’s why God’s word mentions “our present sufferings.”

Just as Jesus suffered throughout his life as an obedient son to his heavenly Father, so Jesus’ followers are called to endure hardship as members of the same family.

It’s tough sledding for Christians in a world that doesn’t confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and Saviour. Love for God, obeying God’s Word, and faith in the Lord’s providential care puts you out of step with the allegiances, assumptions, and values of the rest of culture and the rebellious spiritual forces in the world.

When you’re faced with those challenges, God’s word puts our difficulties into proper perspective:

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. Romans 8:18–19 (NIV)

“Eager expectation” – gives a great picture. Trees and animals, holy angels and all the rest of God’s creation wait eagerly for the glory to be revealed in God’s children. Jesus was glorified after his resurrection; similar glory is in store for his followers when we die or Jesus returns.

It sparks the imagination. What will your glorified self be like? What does physical and mental shalom look like?

Shalom = everything in proper relation w/ everything else

In glory, every body-part works properly with every other body-part. Imagine: brains, muscles, and nerves operate the way they ought to. Everything broken or off-kilter set straight! The glory of Jesus reconciling all things to himself is beyond what we can ask for or imagine. It will be glorious!

All creation is waiting with eager expectation, but the world has its own frustrations, we learn. It’s not much of a surprise that the world is off-kilter. Shalom–everything in perfect relation to everything else– was broken when humankind fell into sin.

It’s a surprise to discover God is the one who frustrated the creation. Stick with me here, it’s a challenging idea, but we’re just trying to follow the Bible passage:

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 freedom and glory of the children of God. Romans 8:20–21 (NIV)

We need to pause here and unpack that. What does it mean? When was the creation subjected to frustration?

After Adam & Eve disobeyed God disrupting the Shalom and perfection of God’s creation, the Lord pronounced their doom. He announced the consequences of Adam & Eve mistrusting God’s guidance and listening to the lying hiss of the evil one.

Their disobedience didn’t just cut them off from God and sour relations b/t them as a couple. Sin brought a curse on the ground as well.

The proper relationship b/t plants and gardeners was disrupted. B/c of sin, the ground was doomed to produce thorns and thistles. Life would never be the same; relationships were frustrated. Death and decay would come. God said it:

By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food

until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken;

for dust you are and to dust you will return.” Genesis 3:19 (NIV)

It’s a terrible disruption of the way God created things to work. But this is not the end of the story. God’s story – even the story of the fall into sin – does not end with frustration.

Let’s return to the Romans passage. God’s goal is clear:

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 freedom and glory of the children of God. Romans 8:20–21 (NIV)

What does this liberation look like?

We caught a glimpse of the good news in the sacrament of baptism. The water of baptism is a sign & seal of cleansing, renewal, and life. Sprinkling w/ water reminds us of the saving work of Jesus as he brings liberation from bondage to decay for all creation. He brings freedom and glory to the children of God.

Since human sin brought frustration, bondage, and decay, a human must atone for sin. The weight of punishment and the cost of restoration is too great for any of us to pay for ourselves. You can’t pay for yourself, so you can’t pay for other’s wrong.

So, God entered his creation and became human. Jesus is fully human and fully God. He volunteers himself. He’s the promised offspring of Adam & Eve to atone for their disobedience; to pay for the disobedience of all humankind.

By his suffering and crucifixion, Jesus took the punishment for sin. He covers our guilt. He washes us clean. Jesus’ death and resurrection frees creation from decay. He brings freedom and glory to the children of God. Baptism is a sign and of the cleansing, renewal and life offered through faith in Jesus. It’s a promise that we can accept on behalf of our kids. As they grow and mature they can accept God’s promises, but parents and guardians can say “yes” when they’re young.

In 2023, we live b/t Jesus’ 1st coming and The Day he returns. By faith we receive all the benefits of Jesus’ sacrifice. Yet we still get frustrated by the brokenness that plagues creation. We groan w/ the pain and frustration of life in a sin-stained world. Yet by God’s grace and help of the HS, “we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.”

It sounds awkward, to tell all of you, regardless of your gender, that we await our adoption “as sons”. It doesn’t sound inclusive. Paul’s word-choice is intentional to show the benefits.

It’s not right, but in Paul’s day, adopting a son offers bigger rights & privileges than adopting a daughter. Females weren’t equal in the Roman Empire. The Kingdom of God is different!

God assures us nobody is 2nd class! All God’s children have privileges and a royal inheritance in God’s family as dearly-loved children b/c of the sacrifice & love of God the Son.

We’re still waiting for Jesus’ Kingdom to come in all its fullness. Until Jesus returns, we have to endure the frustrations of a sin-stained creation. At times, we groan and cry out to God in pain, sorrow, and confusion. But we’re not alone. God’s word says,

The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. Romans 8:26 (NIV)

That’s comforting. “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

And God has shown us in Jesus and the outpouring of the HS that he IS for us. He has shown his power at the cross: breaking the hold sin has on the world. Jesus has defeated all evil forces.

He has shown his love by rescuing us from sin & death. You can be sure that “God works for the good of those who love him.”

You can understand why this is a favourite Bible passage that a couple felt compelled to submit to Crosspoint’s top 20 list.

What kind of a response does it call for?

How is this passage, this sermon going to transform your life?

It’s the kind of passage that encourages us in sadness and pain. God’s Word give comfort when the frustrations of this world have you perplexed and grieving and crying-out to God.

Maybe that’s not where you are right now. I hope not. But if you are, God’s Word and Spirit are for you.

But everyone, from little George to the oldest person here will have days of discouragement. This passage sets us up and helps us prepare the next generation for trouble: even when you can’t hang on, God hangs on to you.