Not Ashamed- Part 29- The Providence of God

Introduction-Romans 8:28

There are many glorious truths in this chapter which give us hope both now and for the future.

Verse 28 in particular is a great encouragment to any believer that is facing difficulty or trial.

This verse reminds us of the fact that God is sovereign and that He is able to work even those things which seem to be bad from our limited perspective for good.

Tonight we will consider the Providence of God and how God is able to work all things together for the good of those who love Him.

We can take comfort in knowing that..

God is at Work in Our Circumstances

The wonderful truth that is here being communicated is that God is actively working in all things and ultimately will work all things together for good.

This certainly does not mean that all things will be good and we can easily recognize that there are many things that happen unto believers which are not in themselves good.

Yet the promise of scripture is that God will work all these things together for ultimate good.

We may not be able to see how anything good could come of the trial or the suffering we are called to endure but we can be assured that God is working all things together for good.

There are many examples of this principle in scripture.

The Apostle Paul experienced a great deal of suffering, difficulty, and trial and yet he realized that God was working all these experiences together for ultimate good.

Philippians 1:12–14 KJV 1900

But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

Paul dealt with much persecution and opposition but he recognized that ultimately the suffering he endured was for the furtherance of the gospel.

We see it in the life of Joseph as well as he was sold into slavery and cast into prison but ultimately rose to a position of great power and influence in Egypt that he might be the one who would help to save many people alive when the time of famine came.

Genesis 50:15–21 KJV 1900

And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him. And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.

There must have been many times in Joseph’s life that he wondered what God was doing and why he allowed him to experience such difficulty and trial, but in the end he could plainly see that God was at work.

Though you may question why you are facing the circumstances you are facing and you may be tempted to doubt if anything good can come from your experience, trust that God is at work and He is working all things together for good.

We must recognize however that this verse does not mean that we will have our way but rather that God will have His way for only He is able to understand fully what is best for us.

We may think that we know what is good for us but God sees the end from the beginning and knows what will bring about the ultimate good in our lives.

We must also understand that this is not a blanket statement to be applied to all men or even to every believer for there are some...

Important Qualifiers

The first qualifier given is that this promise is made to “them that love God.”

God has clearly demonstrated His love for us and we ought to love Him in return.

1 John 4:19 KJV 1900

We love him, because he first loved us.

It is our love for God which will cause us to yield to Him and which will allow Him to work in our hearts and lives.

The scripture is also clear that our love serves to motivate us to live according to His commandments.

John 14:15 KJV 1900

If ye love me, keep my commandments.

If we are living contrary to His commands we must expect chastisement and correction from God to bring us back to Him.

We need not think that we can live in sin and rebellion and enjoy the goodness of God. Yet even then God will chasten and correct us which is ultimately for our good if we will respond correctly to it.

It is our love for God that causes us to trust Him as He works and helps us not to resist Him as He leads in our lives.

The second qualifier is connected to the first in that it is those who are the called according to His purpose who will be the beneficiaries of this promise.

God has a purpose for each of our lives and it is when we are willing to answer His call and to live according to His purpose that we will reap the greatest good.

When we surrender our lives to His will we are then in the position for Him to work in a much greater way in our lives. God will not force us to yield but is waiting for us to humbly submit ourselves to Him.

When we know that we are in the will of God we can be confident that whatever comes in our life, God will use it for good and for His glory so long as we remain yielded to Him.

What peace and comfort this should give to us as we face trying circumstances or times of suffering.

Conclusion

All of us surely want to claim this precious promise but we must remember that it is reserved for those who love God and who are called according to His purpose.

May you and I endeavor to demonstrate our love to God by surrendering to His will and allowing Him to work as He sees fit in our lives.

May we be reminded that God always knows best and that even when it seems that circumstances are against us God can and will work all things together for good.

We can trust God and know that it is not His desire to harm or to hinder us but that He is working all things together in His time to produce something good!

Providence- Foresight; timely care; particularly, active foresight, or foresight accompanied with the procurement of what is necessary for future use, or with suitable preparation./In theology, the care and superintendence which God exercises over his creatures.

God understands and sees all that you and I may go through and is able to take all of it and work it for good if we will but yield to Him!