Everything Happens for a Reason (2)

Opening Line & Intro

I love Christmas music…In fact if you come to my office after November 12th this is pretty much all you hear...

There is one song that I used to love but now I can’t stand listening to it. Most times when I tell people that don’t like this particular...

That song is by a band called new song called Christmas Shoes...

I used to love it is about a guy who is not feeling Christmas…explain the song

Quote:

So I laid the money down, I just had to help him out And I'll never forget the look on his face when he said Mama's gonna look so great

Such a great song…but then it take a terrible turn or at least one that rubbed me the wrong way.

Quote:

I knew I'd caught a glimpse of heaven's love As he thanked me and ran out I knew that God had sent that little boy To remind me just what Christmas is all about

Being a family who has been devistated by cancer and hearing that line really hits me in a different way...

Basically saying all things happen for a reason...

I have told many people that I am preaching on this and most have said absolutely…but I am going to challange this because...

actually…this Bible doesn’t say that!

Why Does It Matter

This matters because sometimes we say this phrase and it is the exact WRONG time to say it and it is not the right thing to say. My challenge here is about what we ACTUALLY mean when we say it. Because our hearts and what we mean is in the right place.

Lets look at our passage for today: Romans 8:18-28

Scripture

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 8

18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation eagerly waits with anticipation for God’s sons to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility—not willingly, but because of him who subjected it—in the hope 21 that the creation itself will also be set free from the bondage to decay into the glorious freedom of God’s children. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together with labor pains until now. 23 Not only that, but we ourselves who have the Spirit as the firstfruits—we also groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 24 Now in this hope we were saved, but hope that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees? 25 Now if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with patience.

26 In the same way the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us, with inexpressible groanings. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because he intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

28 We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose

Verses 18 - Suffer

1) Adam and Eve Broke it and brought death

It is a theme that runs through out human history

We broke it, We tried to fix it ourselves and can't, only the one who created us truely knows what we need and how to get it.

The creation is eagerly wating

The creation is is subjected to futility (Not willingly but because of who subjected it????)

The creation will be set free

2) Creation was cursed by God no man - Noah is someone who we had hope in..He failed

3) The Spirit of God is in us.

In this time Nero was ruling and he was literally burning Christians in the streets as street lamps…That is suffering.

Paul was in between stays at prison

18-22 - Waiting in pain knowing freedom is at hand

Verse 21 - We are set free

We live in a fallen world,

we have been saved,

He will get us through,

We win in the end.

ONLY GOD CAN CONDEMN.

Vs 22 - The world is in labour pains awaiting new creation?????

vs 23 - Not just all of creation but US crave the adooption of the Spirit

vs 24&25 - The more we wait the more our anticipation can grow.

Vs 22 - The world is in labour pains awaiting new creation?????

vs 23 - Not just all of creation but US crave the adooption of the Spirit

vs 24&25 - The more we wait the more our anticipation can grow.

Vs 26 - The Spirit of God helps us in our anguish and interceeds on our behalf

Vs 24-26 - Pregnancy Issustration

Verse 27 - We are redeemed

vs 27 - God's Spirit knows us better than we know ourselves.

He asks for exactly what we need in our condition.

We have to trust this because...

We are waiting for the full manifestation of the promise of adoption. We know it is certain. We are waiting for it to come.

We need to remember that He is in control.

We are peomised Future Glory.

This world is not our home.

It is tainted by the fall it is NOT where we are meant to be.

We often compare Heaven to earth and make judgments of heaven and heavenly things based on our ecperiences here.

Even though we are told many times that we can't and shouldn't do this.

We need to realize that we don't belong here.

Imagine when it finally comes true - Chairopractor - pain until it pops

We forget or fail to realize that all life on earth right now is life in the CURSE.

A fallen world.

After the Labour pains comes the baby! And all the amazing things that come with having the baby.

It is all about hope for better things and knowing that God isn't going to win, HE has already won! We are just waiting for the victory to result in our relocation to our prize. It like winning on the price is right. They get their tickets to a fabulous destination and they have to wait to go there. It is theirs, they have won, but there is a time of waiting. They dont' win and INSTANTLY end up on a plane to Bali

vs 28 - ALL THINGS work for good It does not translate into “EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON”

Application

All things work for God literally means that no matter what happens GOD can and will redeem it. SO going back to Christmas shoes. I don’t think that God gave that poor kid’s mother cancer to improve that man’s attitude in line at Christmas. But I do believe that God used that situation to remind that man that there are more impartant things than how annoying christmas shopping can be.

Things can seem pointless, sickness, death, pain, loss…on and on...

BUT God has already won, we have hope in what it to come, Satan is a defeated enemy! He is trying to take as many of us down with him....

Closing

Us saying all things happen for a reason is not representitive of God. I would argue that we should be saying All things Can be given reason because our God is a God who redeems!