All Things Work for Good for His Kids (Romans 8:28)
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Here’s my sermon from May 9th, 2021, our first Sunday back inside. The audio and video are both available here. You can also see the full manuscript below.
It feels so good to be back in here this morning, doesn’t it? It’s been such a long time. But we’re finally here. It’s so great to be back in this great building God has provided, preaching the word to you.
But the pandemic’s not over. Things still aren’t easy. Are they? Today, as we kick things back off again, I want to point you to a familiar passage of Scripture, a promise I think many of you know. God works all things for good for His kids. I want this verse - really my favorite in all of Scripture - to guide us as we move ahead together. We’ll get back into Galatians next week. For today, we come to this epic verse in Romans.
The apostle Paul, in this great letter, clearly lays out God’s plan of salvation. Here in chapter 8, he encourages us not to turn from our hope - even in the face of suffering - until God’s redemption is made complete.
In verses 26 and 27, God points us to the work of His Spirit. As a source of hope. And in verse 28, we see this rock - to which we can anchor our boat.
And these are tough days. The wind has blown many overboard. The waves have torn many a ship in two. We look around at all the trouble and sadness and evil and suffering, and we have to interpret it some way. We can’t just pretend it doesn’t exist.
Some would say, “There is no purpose. To any of this. We’re all on our own.” Others might say, “No. Everything happens for a reason. It has to.”
Now many might argue that God may be powerful, but He clearly isn’t good. While still others might say that He might be loving, but clearly isn’t strong enough to stop it.
But here in Romans 8, we find something so much better. What Hebrews 6:19 calls “a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul.” An amazing promise. In Romans 8:28, it’s this: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Now this is the simplest outline I may ever use. And - I never do this - but I’m going to have you recite it with me, as we go through. With the hope that God will imprint it on our minds.
All Things
First, what do we see? Paul speaks of “all things.” Say that with me: all things. That’s everything. That’s all the things. Not some things. Everything.
The big things
The small things
The seemingly insignificant things
The apparently extra-ordinary things
The dull and exciting things
Those passing conversations. The life-altering meetings. That big graduation day. And that first day on the job. Paul’s talking about the circumstances in our lives. The people we come in contact with. Places we travel to. Things we acquire. Events we experience.
All things. He’s in control of it all. He is Creator and He’s King. It’s not just “everything happens for a reason.” No. Everything happens according to His reasons. Across all His creation. And in our lives. He’s in control. We’re talking every detail. He’s over all things.
But what’s Paul’s emphasis here? What’s his main point? The hard things, right? Now I don’t have time to really get into how God can be sovereign over evil. But in some way, He is. He’s in control even over bad things that happen.
Car accidents. Tornadoes. Metastatic breast cancer. Traumatic leg injuries. He’s in control of it all.
Even someone touching or maybe eating a virus-infected bat in a market in Wuhan, China. Bad things like that. Or like spending a year holed up in your house with noisy toddlers. Or watching the millionth zoom class in a row. Or feeling like every one of your friends have forgotten you. Or losing your job. Or getting the virus yourself. He’s in control of it all.
Here we’re on this boat, cruising through life. And for most of the time, it doesn’t feel like smooth sailing at all. We have no idea where it’s taking us or why. But there is One who controls the winds and the waves. And that should bring us a healthy kind of fear - but also a deep, abiding peace.
Ephesians 1:11 speaks of God as the one who “works all things” - that’s the same term - “according to the counsel of His will.” Again, we’re talking all things. He’s in control.
Work for Good
Second, what do we learn about those “all things”? Hear the verse again: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
All things - what? Work for good. Say it with me: all things work for good. Yes, He works all things according to His will. But what do we learn here about His will? He desires our good. Hear me: He’s not just in control of all things. He works them toward a particular end. A goal in mind.
Things happen for God’s reasons. But this says more than that. God’s reasons are good. In particular, they’re for our good.
Now don’t misunderstand me. There’s a bad way to read this. You could try to read it like everything we go through is going to feel good. Or that even when we go through bad things, something good is always going to come from it - in this life.
Notice what Paul doesn’t say. God works all things together for our comfort. Nope. For our good. Even the tough things - like what we’ve experienced this year - they’re for our good.
Now: for what kind of good? What’s promised? Back to that boat. Not just despite the winds or despite the waves, but really in them and through them, God is carrying us to the destination He intends for us. He’s using the trials to transform us.
And we see that so clearly here in this chapter. Look at verses 29-30. Here we see what’s been called the golden chain of salvation.
Rom. 8:29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
So much there! But, for today, where’s God taking us? What’s His point? That we’d be “conformed to the image of his Son.” That we’d be “glorified.” He’ll finish what He started. He’ll save us completely. We’ll be without sin. We’ll look like Christ. Forever, church.
All things work for good. Again, things may not feel like they’re for our good. We may not understand how they’re for our good. But this is how He works. And it flows out of who He is.
Some say He’s powerful but not good. Some say He’s good but not powerful. But He’s both. In control. Doing good.
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
For His Kids
Third, what else do we hear in this verse? Again: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
All things - what? Work for good. For His kids. Say it all with me now. All things. Work for good. For His kids. We can’t neglect those two important clauses that let us know who these promises apply to. Hear them again.
- “For those who love God”
- “For those who are called according to His purpose.”
Don’t misunderstand that first clause. It’s not a condition that you have to completely meet for all things to work for your good. We don’t earn His care. That’s impossible. God doesn’t work that way. This is just a simple way to define a Christian. Christians are “those who love God.”
But lest we misunderstand things, we have the second clause. Why do we love Him? Because He first loved us. We call out to Him - but only because He first called out to us. Believers are “those who are called according to His purpose.”
To those who know Him, or rather are known by Him, these promises apply. So I know this is hard, but this verse just doesn’t apply to everyone. To those who know Jesus, God is not just our King. He’s also our Father. And He’s a good one, a perfect one, at that.
Like good earthly Fathers, He teaches us. He disciplines us. He gives us good gifts. Even if they may not feel like that’s what they are. And again, His goal isn’t that we always feel good, but that we look like His Son. He’s working, moving everything for us - toward that big goal.
I’ve shared this more than once. I want it to be a theme of sorts for our family here in Karis. We’ve tried to drive two truths into the heads of our kids over the years. And they’re these:
1. God is good.
2. God is in control.
There’s this story in the gospels, in Luke 8. The disciples are in a boat. The storm picks up. They’re freaking out. Jesus is asleep. He knows His Father’s in control. They wake Him up. He commands the winds and waves to chill. And the disciples freak out. Jesus responds with these words, “Where is your faith?”
Friends, Christ is the one who makes us right with this powerful, awesome God. Through His life. Through His death. If we believe. We are adopted in His family. We don’t have to be afraid anymore.
But there’s another reason not to fear. Jesus is in the boat. He’s guiding our journey. And He’s our companion on the trip.
A year or so ago, a counselor-friend challenged us. He said that our list was incomplete. We needed to add another point.
3. God is with us.
We could believe God is in control. And that He’s good. But only from afar. But no. That’s not the Christian faith at all. He came near. In Jesus.
All things. Work for good. For His kids. Child of God, trust this promise is true. You, outside of Christ, step in the boat with us. Come to safety. Approach His love. Child of God, rest in these truths.
Three Encouragements
Now these have been some hard, hard days. And we’ve suffered in so many ways. Most of us know someone who’s died. Marriages have suffered. Jobs have been lost. Depression and anxiety are through the roof. We’ve experienced so much isolation. And during this season, so much division. It will take years for us to overcome this. In many ways our world will never be the same.
But we know the God who rules over it all. This verse lovingly shouts to us that God is in control. That He is good. And that He is with us in it all. And I want to encourage you - beg you - to join with me in clinging to this promise.
But here’s what you may be thinking. I started out by saying, this is a promise you’ve heard and know. Paul’s first words are “and we know that.” And he goes on from there. But you may be thinking, “I really don’t know anymore. Or at least I’m not sure I know right now.”
I get what you’re saying. I’ve thought so many times over this past year, “Why Lord?” I’ve shouted to the heavens, “I just don’t understand.” I’ve wondered why God would will that this virus wreak this kind of havoc on our world. And on top of that, allow my wife to suffer through breast cancer like this. And my faith has been shaken. I’ve also thought, time and time again, with all the insanity going on in our country, and all the nonsense on social media. “Father, if this is who your people are, I’m not sure I want anything to do with this.”
But I can’t stay in those places. And you can’t either. I want to encourage you in three ways as we close.
Look Back
First, look back. Paul says, “And we know that” all things work for good for His kids. As you ponder those troubling thoughts, and as your heart moves to dark places, remember back to how you’ve seen God work in your past. Remember. Things have been hard. But can’t you see how He’s been good?
I’ve tried to explain to my kids that if I wouldn’t have met their mom, they wouldn’t really exist. For many years, they couldn’t get their heads around it. But I wouldn’t have met her without a lot of things falling into place.
Me getting dumped by a girl at Mizzou and moving abruptly down to Springfield.
Her father getting transferred from Denver to there when she was a kid.
Me later moving back there from Chicago after things didn’t go as I’d planned.
Amy losing her mom from a tonsillectomy gone wrong and spiraling into a life of sin.
Me getting fired from a job and sensing God pulling me toward vocational ministry.
Me getting a job at a church where I often couldn’t see God’s hand.
Amy being baptized at that church and us crossing paths.
Another girl going on a mission trip to Venezuela and then never speaking to me again.
Amy joining in on a mission trip I led to Haiti and me hitting on her there.
And none of that would have happened if it weren’t for a girl sharing Christ with me on my first job before I left for college. Those three kids wouldn’t be there. This wouldn’t be here.
Hasn’t He also orchestrated everything in your life? And won’t He also carry you through today? And tomorrow? Look back.
Look Ahead
But that’s not Paul’s purpose here. He’s wanting us to look a different direction. Second, look ahead. At where our Father is taking us. Again, that’s what we see in verses 29-30. Notice the word “for” at the beginning. This is how Paul defends verse 28. The Lord has known and chosen and called children to be made into the likeness of Jesus. He’s declared us righteous. We’re justified. If we believe, one day, we’ll be glorified. That’s what God is doing. That’s His promise. And it’s to us.
So Paul’s point to me and you is this. You know this - that all things work for good for His kids - why? Because God has a plan of salvation. It includes you and me - those who believe. And nothing’s going to stop it. Not even these trials. It’s not your ability to hold on to Him. He’s holding on to you. If you’re His child, He’s not going to let you fall out of the boat. He’s got your hand in His kind, firm grip.
And He has a plan. To transform us. God is doing something good in you - and in our church. Through this pandemic. Through this summer - and into the fall - we’ll be talking much about what God could be teaching us.
Lean In
Third, lean in. The Lord understands your doubts. And He’s with you, holding on, even in those moments. If you’re on a boat, and the weather gets bad, and the waves are tossing you about, there’s one place you need to be. And that’s in the center of the boat. If there’s a safe place, that’s it. You can’t stand on the boat’s edge, leaning toward the water. Or you’re no doubt going to fall in.
Friend, don’t lean into your doubt. Lean into your faith. In your doubts, call out to Him in prayer. Hear Him speak to you in His word. Move to the middle of the boat. Lean into Him. That’s where you’ll be secure. On there.
And that’s also where the people are gonna be. Right? The wise ones, at least. That’s the place of safety. Near the community of faith. Don’t further isolate yourself. Where the wind can toss you about. And the waves will end up consuming you. Get around brothers and sisters who can remind you of this promise. Jesus is in the middle of them. No matter how ridiculous so-called Christians have acted in these days, He’s among His true children. Look back. Look ahead. Also lean in.
Trust with me - though this has been so tough - that God is using this terrible trial to truly transform us. One last time: All things work for good for His kids. Let’s pray.