Sermon Tone Analysis

Three weeks we began to unpack glorious blessings and promises made from God, that should cause us to rejoice even though this present age of weakness, groanings, and sufferings continue on in our lives and the lives around us.

We saw in v28 that God is at work for our good (eternal good and final good) in all things and all circumstances!

Which is meant to lead us to rejoice in Christ.

We also saw (beginning last week) of the certainty of salvation in Christ.

We read "For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”

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And today in v30 is the continuation of that thought, Under the heading of:

God’s gracious dealings with His people.

That those whom God chooses for salvation, He calls, and the ones He calls, we will justify, and they will certainly make it to glory!

30 "And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified; and those he justified, he also glorified.”

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“And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified”

The people of God will respond to His call in faith, and by faith they are justified.

And what happens to all the justified?

They’re all glorified.

The glorifying of God’s people for the climax of these verses.

Entering into glory forms the climax of God’s divine purpose for your life.

This glory involves the ultimate and complete conformity to the image of Christ.

4 "When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

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2 "Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed.

We know that when he appears, we will be like him because we will see him as he is.”

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This, then, is the purpose of God’s gracious predestination—

the creation of a new race sharing and displaying the Creator’s glory.

What’s chap.

5:2 say? 2 "We have also obtained access through him by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.” ()

We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God! Taking theses successive stages from v29.

God’s foreknowing and predestining are all wrapped up into God’s definite and determinate plan that is fixed!

It’s His decree!

Then we have the calling and justifying of us from sinners to children of God.

This takes place in our lives and becomes our experience.

But glory?

This isn’t something that we’ve experienced yet.

This is something that lies in our future.

From our perspective:

As a matter of history, the people of God have not yet been glorified; so far as the divine decree is concerned,

however, from God’s perspective:

their glory has been determined from all eternity, hence—‘those whom he justified he also glorified.’

Why doesn’t he mention sanctification?

Remember what’s on the forefront of Paul’s mind.

Glory is on His mind.

Sanctification is progressive conformity to the mind and image of Christ here and now.

Glory is perfect conformity to the image of Christ there and then.

Sanctification is glory begun; glory is sanctification consummated.

Paul looks forward to the consummation of the work of grace—a consummation guaranteed by its inception:

6 "I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

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So let’s see the DESCRIPTION of God’s gracious dealings with us.

In this verse the apostle describes succinctly the broad sweep of God’s gracious dealings with believers.

Then we see the DEVELOPMENT of God’s gracious dealings with us.

Each of these aspects of which are found scattered throughout his letters.

They were ‘predestined’ before the world began ‘for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ’ ().

Then they were ‘called’ by God according to his purpose (8:28)

through the preaching of the gospel ()

to belong to and be in fellowship with Jesus Christ (1:6; ) and

Bruce, F. F. (1985).

Romans: an introduction and commentary (Vol.

6, p. 177).

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

to enter his kingdom and glory ().

Being predestined and called, they were justified through faith in Jesus Christ (5:1; ) and

by the blood of Christ (5:9).

Finally, those whom God predestined, called, and justified, Paul says, he also glorified’.

That’s the DESCRIPTION of God’s gracious dealings with us.

Then we see the DESIGN of God’s gracious dealings with us.

Taking Scripture together as one book.

How is this description, designed by God to be profitable to us?

How is this information useful to the church body?

Well, it teaches us first of all that...

[1.] Salvation is all of grace.

How about when we see this glorious chain of redemption in v30?

All we see is God’s grace.

We see no mention of human effort.

These things are acted upon our souls with no mention of human merit.

From the first step to the last, salvation is all of grace!

It’s just like we read in 11 "For though her sons had not been born yet or done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to election might stand—” ()

In Jacob and Esau’s case (and ours) the purpose of God was stated before they were born

His primary purpose was to provide comfort and encouragement for vulnerable believers caught in the overlap of the ages and exposed to suffering and persecution (cf.

8:18, 31–39).

They are to know that the Holy Spirit comes to their assistance by his intercession on their behalf, and that God works with the Spirit to make all things work for their ultimate good.

They are to know also that, as those whom God foreknew and predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, having been called and justified, they will also certainly be glorified.

(and therefore was not dependent on their actions).

Election is not based on foreseen actions, deeds, or faith.

Rather, it is based on God’s sovereign predestinating grace.

[2.] Salvation is all free.

I mentioned, it’s not dependent upon any works or merit in us or faith in us.

Certainly, we’re chosen TO faith and TO holiness but not because of it.

13 "But we ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God has chosen you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth.”

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4 "For he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him.”

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But we’re not chosen because we believed and were made holy or because God did foresee it.

But chosen that we would be holy, chosen that we would believe.

Faith and holiness are only the fruits or the effects of God’s saving grace in us.

[3.] There’s also a warning in here.

Some have seen the doctrine of the certainty of salvation and have given up their responsibility to evangelize.

They say: God’s sovereign and all powerful and He will save perfectly all the predestined ones!

We cannot forget that the same God who ordained the end, also ordained the means.

No one will be in glory that’s not been born again here on earth.

No one is born again without knowing Christ.

Who He is and what He did on the cross!

Everyone will have a heart transplant, the heart of stone removed and a soft moldible heart planted inside.

All must repent of their sins and believe the gospel!

So we’ll never lay down the task of evangelism.

Because nobody gets saved with out a saving understanding of the gospel.

[4.]

We also are helped to see the greatness of our obligation to God.

Once we see the the eternal love of God descend down upon our lives, choosing us out of the others living in the misery of our sin.