Called According to His Purpose

Romans 8:28–30 NKJV

28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

Romans 8:28 is one of the most quoted verses in the Bible. And for good reason. It is an encouraging word when we find ourselves in less than desirable circumstances. No matter what our situation we know that God is in control, that He is working for our ultimate good.

I mentioned last week that this would be part 2 of last weeks sermon.

Last week we looked at prayer.

that we have a weakness in that we don’t know how to pray as we ought.

that the Holy Spirit helps us in this by praying for us according to the will of God.

So it would seem that our weakness regarding how we ought to pray is in the lack of knowledge that we have about God’s will.

Paul, later will tell us that if we will offer our lives to God, that is if we will surrender our will to God

and if we will resist being conformed to this world and allow God to transform us according to His purpose

then we will not just know God’s will we will be the living proof of it.

So here in Romans 8:26-30 the key issue is God’s purpose for us.

The most notable differences between the atheist and the Christian is - purpose.

this is one of the prevailing ideas in western cultures is that there is no God. If you watch the National Geographic channel or if you watch any of the many nature or science documentaries, you will see them present the wonders of the natural world.

The animal kingdom with all of the strange and exotic creature and their behaviours,

the earth itself from the depths of the oceans to the peaks of the mountains, the cycles of the seasons.

Or even the vast universe with the seemingly limitless stars and galaxies.

They are presented with the most amazing cinematography to show the beauty of our world and universe. And their conclusion is this was all an accident with no purpose whatsoever.

Is it any wonder that suicide is rampant?

Is is any wonder that people cannot seem to find happiness?

Millions have been taught and lead to believe that their whole life is an accident and that they have no purpose.

The Bible gives us a very different narrative. We find in the scripture that we were created by an almighty God who made us each as individuals with a deep and meaningful purpose. Your life matters! It matters because God made you. It matters because God has a purpose for you.

In these verses this morning Paul declares God’s general purpose for each and every believer. If we can hear this, if we can understand the work that God is doing in us, then we will be able to see the events of our lives through the eyes of God and find peace and joy in every detail.

All Things Work Together for Good

Every detail, every event, every trial, and every victory and every defeat is the woof and the warp being skilfully and purposefully woven together by the master to create a beautiful tapestry. This is such a phenomenal truth. It certainly does not say all things in your life will be good but rather all things work together for your ultimate good.

It would be wrong I believe to say that all things are good.

Sickness is not good,

death is not good,

sin is not good.

However, God works all these things for our good.

Look for example at the life of Joseph. He was sold into slavery by his own brothers which set him on a course which would see him separated from his family, his father who loved him very much, falsely accused, imprisoned for many years and then only after many years of trials was he brought before Pharaoh and able to see the purpose of God. So that he could finally tell his brothers

“you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good.”

When we get to the end, and we say I have fought the good fight, I have run my race we will be able to look back on it all and say it had a purpose, it was for my good, God is good to me.

Romans 8:28 NKJV

28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

Paul says “and we know” Paul see this truth as something that as Christians we should know this. It is already evident in your life. even now you can look back and see the hand of God work in and through your life. both since you have become a Christian as well as the events that have led up to your conversion.

This reality of that all things work together for good is not universal. There is a qualifier stated from two perspectives first from us to God then from God to us.

Those Who Love God

“To those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

Those who love God are the called and the called love God. If fact to love God is impossible unless we are the called. If we are not the called then we are spiritually dead and therefore ruled by a carnal mind and as Paul has told us the carnal mind is enmity against God.

1 John 4:7–10 NKJV

7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

1 John 4:19 NKJV

19 We love Him because He first loved us.

John also teaches us that if we truly love God we also must love our brothers and sisters.

1 John 4:20 NKJV

20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?

So those who love God are those who are the called. What does this mean the called.

The Called

The word can mean a general invitation as in the preaching of the Gospel. So in a sense all who hear the Gospel proclaimed are called.

This is the way I believed it is used by Christ in

Matthew 22:14 NKJV

14 “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

Chosen meaning elected pick out or chosen by God to obtain salvation through Christ.

Called can also have this meaning

it means to be divinely selected and appointed.

This is the sense in which Paul uses the word in Rom 8:28.

Why do I say that, well because Paul clarifies his usage in verse 30

Romans 8:30 NKJV

30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

So this is somewhat more than a “hey come over here” this is an effectual calling.

This is like when Christ called Lazarus forth from the grave. “Lazarus, come forth”! When Christ calls in this way He empowers and compels. When Jesus called Lazarus to come forth it was not up to Lazarus, he was compelled by the power of the word of God. Just as the sea and the winds obey when Christ said peace be still so Lazarus was compelled to come forth.

The call of God not only invites us it gives us both the will and the power to obey.

We are the elect of God. We are those who were divinely selected and appointed by God according to His purpose.

And it is according to His purpose that all things work together.

According to His Purpose

This is where this ties in with last weeks message. The Holy Spirit helps us because we don’t know how to pray as we ought. He’s help come by way of groans in prayer for us according to the will of God.

God has a purpose for you. That means that your life is full of purpose. Everyday is given to move you toward His purpose, every person you meet, every conversation you have. You never just happen to be somewhere or happen to speak to someone. Every moment of your life is ordered by the Lord, every person you meet is a divine appointment.

Many Christians have tried to understand their lives based on the atheistic view that things just happen for no reason. They have the idea that God set them on a path and has just left them to it to see where they end up. The live their life with no sense of purpose. they believe that what they do for a job doesn’t matter, God doesn’t really care, or who they marry they believe it’s just up to them to chose someone to spend their life with. This view will cause you to misinterpret the situations and events of your life.

The God who has made even the number of hairs on your head an important piece of information, the God who knows even when a sparrow falls to the ground, He is the God had ordered every detail of your life. You are truely in His hands.

The reason that we don’t know how we ought to pray is because we don’t know how it is that God is weaving these things in our life together.

We may not see today what God is doing in our life to bring about His purpose so this is where we must trust.

We must set our sight on God’s purpose