The Second Greatest Promise of the Bible

Intro: Early 20th Century Playwright, William Somerset Maugham, once wrote a story about a janitor at St. Peter’s Church in London. One day a young vicar discovered that the janitor was illiterate and fired him. Jobless, the man invested his meager savings in a tiny tobacco shop, where he prospered, bought another, expanded, and ended up with a chain of tobacco stores worth several hundred thousand dollars. One day the man’s banker said, “You’ve done well for an illiterate, but where would you be if you could read and write?” “Well,” replied the man, “I’d be janitor of St. Peter’s Church in Neville Square.”

Today’s text reminds us of this great truth: for God’s Children… good things comes from bad circumstances. Romans 8:28 is one of the greatest promises of the Bible, perhaps its the second greatest behind that of John 3:16 (eternal life). It is the pinnacle of hope during difficult and trying times! Dear friend, as a child of God you will never find yourself in a hopeless situation becasue God soveriegnly rules over our lives bringing about good for us in even in the most trying times!

Today I want to share with you five aspects of this great promise.

I. The certainty of the Promise (And We Know)

While quoting this text we often hop over these first 3 words, “And we know.” But it is these words that attest to the certainty of God’s promise. Our text doesn’t read, “Perhaps all things”, “Possibly all things”, or even “Potentially all things,” but “We Know, that all things....” The apostle Paul is writing from 1st hand experience… “We know that it is true,” God keeps His promises!

ILL: For the life of me I can’t remember my mom promising me something that she didn’t follow through on. If my mother, who is human can keep her promises to me, how much more will God!

A promise from God is MORE surely to come about than death or taxes. A promise from God is more certain than the sunrise, more certain than the coming of tomorrow! God who can not lie tells is in His eternal Word (2nd Cor. 1:20)!

Life is full of problems and the Bible is full of promises, and we must tackle life’s problems by trusting God’s promises! An old preacher once said, “God’s promises are like the stars; the darker the night, the brighter they shine.” During life’s difficulties we take peace in knowing that God has the final say in all things therefore everything will turn out for the good for us!

II. The Completeness of the Promise (All Things)

Not a few things, not some things, not many things, or even most things, “ALL things work together for good...”

Common sense tells us that good things work together for good. The love of a faithful wife, the birth of a healthy baby, A raise at work, I’m grateful for the sweet blessing of life. I’m reminded of the old Hymn, “Count your many blessings name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done!” Thank you God for the sweet things, but what about the sorrowful things? Divorce, the birth of an unhealthy child, the lose of a job, a death of a love one, an unjust accusation. God’s Word says ALL THINGS, EVERYTHING works together for good!

Work Together {V} synergeō (Sin-aira-ghero) means fellow-worker. God takes the good, the bad, and the ugly and mixes them together in such away that the outcome is always good!

ILL: You wouldn’t eat a bowl of baking soda for breakfast, or a cup of flour! But, put them together, throw in some more ingredients, mix it up, bake it and you got Biscuits. I love Biscuits! You wouldn’t eat a teaspoon of sodium would you, it’s poison, what about chloride? No its posion too but Sodium Chloride is differnet… that’s salt. I love salt and the right amount of salt is good for your health. Likewise, God works all things together for our good!

This great truth shown all throughout Scripture. Paul was beaten and stoned, he had a thorn it his flesh but it kept him humble. Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers, falsely accused of rape and thrown into prison, but God was working behind the scenes and raised him up to 2nd in command of all Egypt in order to preserve his family and to make them into a great multitude of people. Years later he told his brothers Gen. 50:20! Jesus was nailed to a cross but that brought about forgiveness of sin!

And we know that God works all things together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose! Is there anyone here today, anxious, suffering, and hurt hold on a little longer Rom. 8:18!

III. The Cause of the Promise (God causes NASB)

The cause of the promise is the Sovereign hand of God! Modern translation read “God causes all things...” We serve a mighty God who is in inerantly good, who loves us, and who rules and overrules over the circumstances of life! Eph. 1:11b, there is not one thing in your life that God is not in control over. Regardless of how large or small, how good are seemingly bad, God is in control.

ILL: Think of a master painter carefully creating a beautiful masterpiece. Every brushstroke is intentional and perfectly placed. God is like that master painter—He is sovereign, in control of every detail of our lives.

What may catch us by surprise never catches God by surprise, He is safley and securly seated on the throne and though it may seem that your world is turned upside down, it is God who hold the earth on its axis! Romans 8:31.

IV. The Condition of the Promise

Unfortunelty, this promise is not for everyone. It is condtional it only holds true to those who love God! In my Bible, I often place a heart around a text that is meaningful to me, you can’t put a heart around this text unless God in your heart by grace through faith in Jesus! Do you love God?

Love {v} agapaō means to show love, to demonstrate love. God demonstrated His love towards us (Rom. 5:8), how do we demonstrate our love to God, how can we know that we love God (John 14:15, 1 John 5:3). Are you walking in obedience to the Lord. Do you live by faith according to His Word!

ILL: Many people think that God is a cosmic killjoy, but His precepts are given to use for protection and provision. I read a story about a guy who wanted to go swimming with his girlfriend at midnight. The neighbor down the block had a pool and he knew they were gone for the weekend. They ran over there and scaled the fence even though there were no trespassing signs. Just as he hit the diving board, the girl yelled, but it was too late. There was only a foot of water in the pool, he broke his neck and he is in therpay to this day. He didn’t realize the signs on the fence - the precepts - would have protected him.

The greatest command of the bible is to love the Lord, for those who don’t love Him, you can read this verse (Ro. 8:28) in reverse: all things work together for bad to those who don’t love God.

Friend, everyman has a date with deity, Jesus is either your savior or He’ll be your judge. You will bow to Him either as Savior or executioner, Is. 45:23! Today you may be living high on the hog, drinking champaign and eating caviare. But because you have reject what is surely good, the Gospel message everything is going to end bad for you, but for those who love God everything works for the good today and in eternity.

V. The Consequences of the Promise

Many have a short sighed view of this promise, thinking when something bad comes about there will be something else good to follow, meaning a change in your current circumstance, that may be true but that not the point. The context is found in the following verse… “to be conformed to the image of His Son!” In all things God is shaping you and molding you into the image of Jesus! You are a piece of art, His workmanship, God is perfecting you through your circumstances!

ILL: Like a potter who works a piece of clay!

I was talking to friend this week, she asked how things were going, I told her “if Jesus can suffer the injustice of the cross how can we expect not to face injustice. David wrote “It is good for me that I was afflicted” Ps. 119:71a, the consequence dear friend is the conclusion, with God on the throne of your life we can truly say, “it’s all good” because God is working everything according to counsel of His will making us like eternally perfect Son, Jesus, this is the 2nd greatest promise in all the Bible!