Grace Baptist Church, Nokomis, IL.

Text:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” (Rom 8:28-29)

I want to take a quick look back at what leads up to this passage because verse 28 is a pivotal verse of this chapter. It states, “And we know that in all things…” What “all things” did Paul have in mind? Of course, we know it’s literally “all things.” But are there in specifics he was thinking about? First and most importantly, God saved us by the death of His Son (v. 3). Second, God gave us the Spirit to dwell within us (v. 9a).

In addition to what God has done, “all things” refers to how God work in our lives today. The groaning of creation is an illustration for our own groaning. God is at work. Romans 8:18, reminds us of our suffering. God is at work during our trials. When we experience pain, when we face persecution, when we suffer and groan, in all these things God is working for the good of those who love Him.

But we need to have a right understanding of what our good is. If we define our good as anything that makes us happy for a moment or even a season, you might say that Satan is working for our good. But God defines our good differently. Our good is that which makes us more like Jesus (v. 29).

Many use a text such as this to divide us. We certainly could talk about the doctrines of predestination and the foreknowledge of God. Strictly speaking, this text doesn’t address predestination in regards to salvation, but in regards to becoming like Jesus. We confuse the issue when we ask the wrong questions of Scripture. The question isn’t, “Did God predestine me for salvation?” The question, rather, is “Do I trust in a God who gave His Son for me, so that I might walk in His truth and become more like Christ every day?”

Don’t lose focus of what the purpose of God’s working for our good is. The purpose is so that we might glorify God more by becoming more like Christ. Ultimately, the purpose is that Christ would be exalted (v. 29b). It would be selfless for God to give His Son for us for our salvation, and He did. But that wasn’t His highest priority. God’s highest priority is the same as ours, that He might be shown as great. It just so happens that that which glorifies Christ most also works for our good. We obtain the grace of God. We grow in Christlikeness.

Verse 28 begins, “And we know.” Is this something that you know? When you’re struggling in life, do you truly know that God is working for your good? When you can’t see the good in a situation, do you know that God is working it for your good? No matter what you’re going through, if you know Christ as Savior, you can know that God is working for your good.