Known by God

If you have a copy of God's Word or a bulletin, go ahead and turn with me to Romans chapter 8.

Romans 8 · chapter mention

We're continuing on in our series of Romans, and we come to what, if you're a Bible reader, is probably a familiar passage.

If you're here as a visitor, you're probably like, those Presbyterians are always talking about this.

Let me assure you that you're simply getting the next section in God's Word.

As we march through Romans.

Romans chapter 8, verses 28 to 30.

Romans 8:28–30

This is the Word of the Lord.

And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good.

For those who are called according to His purpose.

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.

And those whom He predestined, He also called.

And those whom He called, He also justified.

And those whom He justified, He also glorified.

This is the Word of the Lord.

Let's pray.

Lord, we're thankful for Your Word to us.

We need Your help.

We need Your Spirit.

To drive out both distraction.

And to help us understand.

To help us apply Your Word to our hearts.

We pray that we might see Christ through them.

And it's in His name that we pray.

Amen.

Have you ever had a bad day?

Of course you've had a bad day.

But was your day like Alexander?

Alexander and his terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.

Now, you might hear some chuckling because it's the title of a popular kid's book and also a movie.

I haven't seen the movie, so I can't speak for anything in it.

But I know in the book that Alexander certainly has a bad day.

He starts out by having gum in his hair.

Because he was chewing gum and he went to sleep.

And then his brothers win prizes in the cereal boxes that they eat.

Or they don't eat a box, they eat a cereal that the box has the prize in.

He doesn't get a window seat on his ride to school.

He gets in trouble for singing too loudly or poorly.

And he forgets a number while he's counting.

So it's not going well for him at school.

Have you had a bad day like Alexander?

Maybe not that bad.

But you've certainly been forgotten.

Like Alexander's friends who forgot him on the playground.

And then his mom who forgot the dessert in his lunch.

How could she?

Maybe you've not been like Alexander.

But you've had unfortunate circumstances.

Like you've had cavity at the dentist.

Like Alexander.

Or like Alexander, your mom takes you to get new shoes.

And you're thinking, yes!

Except they're the ones you don't want.

And they're uncomfortable.

And to cap it all off, you've probably never had to eat lima beans for dinner.

I don't really understand that one.

I love lima beans.

And then you're forced to wear train pajamas.

Oh man.

Maybe you like trains.

Maybe you like lima beans like me.

Maybe you don't really care if you sing poorly or off-key.

Or forget numbers at all.

But you've probably had a bad day.

Right?

You've all had them.

Now whatever those circumstances look like in your life, I can't know.

But the Lord knows.

But maybe you've not had a bad day.

But you've had a bad week.

You've all had those as well.

Maybe a bad season of life.

Maybe a bad year.

You've missed out on success.

You've not gotten the promotion that you were owed that you thought you deserved.

You don't have that relationship yet.

You're not married.

You don't have a boyfriend or girlfriend.

Maybe you've lost someone that you love.

Family.

A friend.

Maybe you've missed out on riches.

Maybe your mom forgot the lunch.

Or the dessert that was supposed to go in your lunch.

Whether they're trivial or great.

You've all had bad days.

Bad seasons.

Bad years.

Maybe you've inherited something.

Not riches.

But you've inherited the misfortune of your family name.

Maybe you've gotten the short end of the stick.

And you wonder how much more you can bear.

Lord, if this keeps going on, I don't know what I'm going to do.

I see no end inside.

I see no relief.

Lord, are you even there?

Do you care?

As I struggle with sin again and again.

Maybe it's suffering.

A bad diagnosis.

Of pain.

Of darkness.

Of fear.

Of failure.

Again, God reminds us that whether it's a bad day, a bad season, a bad year, whether it's trivial or great, that what?

He still reigns.

That's what Paul is reminding us in this text.

He reigns in these circumstances of life.

And he reigns also over the things that are most important.

Salvation.

But he reigns still.

And this morning, we're going to look at this text under those two headers.

If you're a Bible reader, this is a text that you're not unfamiliar with.

You might even have it posted on your mirror.

Because this is one of those texts that is familiar and brings comfort.

And if I'm honest with you, this is a topic about which I am most sure.

Now, as pastors, we get asked all kinds of questions all the time.

Whether it's from our own kids, people on the street, our neighbors.

And I will tell you, there are two things that I am extremely sure about.

One is God's word is true.

And the other is this text this morning.

It's at the heart of this text that God reigns.

First, let's look at the circumstances.

Remember that this verse, even if we have it plastered on our mirror or on a calendar in our kitchen,

those aren't bad things.

But it comes with some context.

There's something that goes before it and something that comes after.

And oftentimes, when we write it on a yellow sticky note or we put it on a scene, maybe in a calendar,

we lift it out of its context and it gets a little difficult.

It also gets difficult because this speaks to something that Alexander knows well,

that our own hearts know well, of whether it's a bad season, a bad day, or life is difficult.

It's something that we all know from experience.

It's something that we have experienced today, this week,

and we experience all the time when something doesn't go well.

And Paul says that as well.

He says about his own spiritual life.

Think about how far we've come in Romans.

As I mentioned, we're marching on in Romans,

and we've come to this point where Paul has been wrestling with his own internal sin,

not the circumstances out there, which we'll get to in a moment,

but the circumstances of life, how creation groans,

how sin affects all of life.

And until that point, when we are transformed, we wait with certain hope.

We wait for glory because we know it will come to pass, as Scott prayed.

And we've been given his spirit until then.

And in the midst of all of that difficulty and darkness and horrible, no good, bad days,

it makes us question the certainty of this hope.

It makes us question, does God really know?

Or is Thomas Jefferson and all those people that helped found our nation,

whether they had faith in Christ or not,

that God sets everything up and then walks away?

Paul has a very different view of that.

He says he reigns over all things in all circumstances.

Look with me at verse 28.

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, when we look at this verse, there's two things that we have to keep in mind.

There's two kind of distinguishing marks.

The first is our status.

Status before God.

Not in the eyes of this world, but in God's economy.

Paul is clear from the outset that our relationship to God matters.

Love for God is kind of the dividing line in this verse.

He says, for those who love God, right?

All things work together for good.

Paul makes a big point that the condition of your heart and how we relate to him matters.

And that makes sense, right?

Because he spent the last couple chapters marching through the difference

between those who think they're justified by keeping the law

and those that are justified because God has revealed and opened their eyes to the gospel

and they love him in response.

And Paul is pulling forward this idea

that those who trust in God are marked by love for him.

Just as we read in the Old Testament, known by God and loving God are very, very similar.

Think back, even in Romans itself.

We see all this present suffering is transformed by what?

A future orientation to glory.

That only makes sense if we're adopted into God's family.

That future glory, that certain hope transforms what happens in the here and now.

And that's why Paul is calling it out.

There's wrestling with it, yes,

but we can't lose sight of what will happen in the future.

And it only makes sense if we love God.

Now the question is, do you love God?

Well, perfectly, of course not.

But do you love God?

Do you love him because he saved you?

Because you see the beauty of Christ dying on the cross

and the hope of the resurrection,

and in response, you love him?

If so, Paul is talking to you.

If not, Paul is not talking to you.

I know that seems really stark,

but the reality is it leaps off the page at us.

And he's going to qualify it here in a second

and say it's not just love for God,

but something further.

Now that's the first thing that we have to keep in mind

when we're talking about circumstances.

The second thing is the nature of these circumstances working together.

If that's true, that those who love God relate to all these circumstances differently,

then we have to look at how God rules over all these circumstances.

That doesn't change.

So what does Paul say here?

He does not say everything is easy for a Christian.

In fact, he kind of says the opposite.

He does not say success is your watchword.

He does not say that if you're a Christian,

if you put your faith in Jesus,

that you'll be wise and wealthy in the eyes of the world.

That your kids will never disobey.

That you'll be rich.

That you'll be famous.

That you'll be praised in the streets.

And yet, some of us think that.

And yet, that's pervasive in our day.

Because there's a version of Christianity,

and I would argue not Christianity at all.

In fact, Paul's experience is very much the opposite.

He's not wealthy, wise,

prison in all the streets, and all that stuff.

Right?

What does he get?

Not that.

There's a version of Christianity that says

if you put your faith in Jesus,

all of that will happen.

And the witness of Scripture is very much not that.

To be honest, that ceases to be Christianity at all.

But how does that help us for those that love God?

Instead, Paul says that all these things,

good things, fun things, sad things,

hard things, horrible things,

things that we don't want to say have happened,

all of those work together for good.

Now, they might not be good in and of themselves.

We talked about that in Sunday school this morning,

right before worship.

God uses things that are evil

for good,

for your growth and holiness,

for your dependence upon him as a father,

to increase your love for him,

to loosen our grip on this world

and all those things

that our hearts really, really want.

And seeing glory

is more important

than the thing that waits for us

after this world.

Now, if we're honest,

that's something that we see time and time again

in Scripture.

That God uses these things.

God uses difficult circumstances

for his own purposes.

Think of the example of Job as a person, right?

He loses all this stuff,

all these tragedies befall him.

And suffering is not isolated

to the wicked as his friends think,

but it comes home

to him, the righteous.

And that's where his friends struggle.

And that's where we struggle if we're honest.

We can't see through all the suffering

to the question

that our hearts really want to ask.

Why is this happening, Lord?

That example of Job is helpful,

but another one should come to mind

when we think about God

ordering all these things for good.

Think of the example of Joseph.

Joseph, yes, the son of Jacob.

He's thrown or sold into slavery in Egypt,

and he's falsely accused

and thrown into prison.

And instead,

not like the county of Monte Cristo

who wants to get his revenge,

what does he do instead?

He has reason to respond with revenge,

but instead,

God uses all of that evil

to do what?

We get this in Genesis 50.

As for you,

he's speaking to his brothers

who come groveling to him,

thinking that he's going to destroy them.

As for you,

you meant evil against me,

but God meant it for good.

That's not saying

Joseph going to slavery in Egypt

is good,

but in the ultimate cosmic sense,

his grand design,

he's accomplishing his purpose

and using it in Joseph's life

and the life of Israel,

his people.

That even when it's evil,

God uses it for good.

And Paul echoes that same idea

here in Romans 8.

We should reflect Romans 8

when we think about our own lives.

It's not that these isolated actions

are all good

and we just paste over it

with the veneer of happiness

and smiling.

No, we can cry out

that this is not good,

but we have to know

that God uses it

for his purposes,

for the good of those

who are called

according to his purposes.

Now, is that different

than those who love God?

No, it's kind of like

a parenthetical phrase

that he's saying

those who love God

are also those

who've been called

according to his purposes

at the end of verse 28.

Paul's not describing

a different person.

He's describing the same person

called for his purposes.

That's the lived experience

of a Christian.

Loving God

is kind of the subjective

description of it.

But from God's perspective,

he's called them

into his kingdom,

into his purposes.

If you think about it,

that follows the pattern

that we see in the life of Jesus.

He's always calling people.

Now, when we hear

the word calling,

we think,

I'm going to pick up the phone.

Well, I'm showing my age

by even picking up

the phone like that.

Maybe it's more like this, right?

But I pick up the phone,

and what happens?

Either that person answers,

or they hit ignore.

And we think of calling

like that,

that it can be ignored.

But instead,

we need to have the idea

of calling of Jesus

saying to Lazarus,

and come forth,

and calling him

is something happening.

It's not calling

and being dismissed.

It's calling

and it coming to pass.

Just as Jesus calls forth

Lazarus,

his disciples,

he calls them

to follow him.

Now,

I don't know where

that finds you this morning.

If you've got drug in here,

my friend,

and you're like,

man,

those Presbyterians

are always talking

about how God reigns

and calls people.

But again,

this is straight

from the text,

and it's really,

really clear.

There's a call

in each of us,

to each of us,

that cannot be ignored.

There's a call

to put your faith

in Jesus

that we must obey.

And when we do,

all of those things

work together

for good.

Follow the call

of Jesus this morning.

In the call of Jesus,

there's this pattern

of transformation.

And when we look at it,

we see

that lives change.

That Joseph's life,

his circumstances,

don't necessarily change,

but God uses them

to accomplish

his purposes

for his people.

And the same

is true for us

as individual Christians.

We're not called

to ease.

We're not called

to avoid suffering,

even though that's

what we want to do.

But God

transforms it

for good.

And that's why

we can speak

with certainty

that whatever

comes to pass

in our individual lives

is certain

because of God.

And we'll return

to that in a moment.

Now,

that doesn't change

the fact that

that's really

stinking hard.

But Paul means it

as a comfort

in our lives.

So why,

then,

do we struggle?

We struggle

because maybe

we don't believe that.

We struggle

against sin

in our own hearts.

Or maybe we're

like Alexander

where we can slip

into complaining

and discontent.

But when we do so,

we deny

a fundamental truth

of doctrine.

We deny the fact

that God

is reigning

as a king

over all these things.

And what happens

is we get

a view of God

that's not king,

but he's a school janitor.

He's just kind of

cleaning up

all of our messes.

That is not the view

of God

that Paul gives us.

The picture here

is definite,

deliberate,

and ordered,

a king ruling

over all things

and people.

The second thing

we can't forget

is that life

is hard.

Circumstances

and things that happen

are often evil

and the result

of sin.

And the Christian

life is hard.

We know that enough

from what Paul

has said so far.

He struggles

internally with sin,

but he has a sure

and certain hope.

The other thing,

and this is really

popular in our day,

we often want

to avoid sin

because we think

if we're a Christian

we will not suffer.

Paul tells us

that's not true.

But there's this voice,

really it's a recovery

of this voice,

that says suffering

is the purpose.

It's kind of this recovery

of this modern stoic idea.

Suffering is not the goal.

The goal is glory.

There's some truth,

some common grace truth

in this,

that we should work hard

and do things like that

in stoicism

and these other voices.

But suffering

is not the goal.

Paul reminds us

the goal

is glory.

And suffering

is transformed

when we keep

that in mind.

So God reigns

over circumstances,

transforming them

from things

that just seem

random

and inconvenient

or evil.

And Paul tells us

he uses them

for good.

What else

does God reign over?

He reigns

over salvation.

Now I said earlier

that when we lift

Romans 8.28

and the following

verses out,

we often shed

29 and 30.

We don't put

29 and 30

on a calendar

in our kitchen

and we often

don't put that

on a sticky note

on our mirror.

And when we lift

it out of context,

I love this line.

An angry pastor

has argued

that we remove

the teeth

of this promise.

We hold on

to the comfort

but it doesn't

feel comforting

because we don't

bring the oomph

with it.

The oomph

is from 29 and 30.

And we neglect

the great theology

that should hold

us fast

in 29.

This is what

Paul says.

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.

Now you might say

if you got drug

in here this morning,

you Presbyterians,

you Reformed people,

you Protestants

are always talking

about God reigning

in predestination.

Again,

it's here in the text.

Now inevitably,

I won't say

everything that there

is to be said

about this verse.

The good news is

Romans 9-11 does

and we're going

there soon.

This is a movie trailer.

It's a little snippet.

It's a teaser

of what's to come.

That God is working

not just in circumstances,

but in the most

important arena

in salvation

of our souls

and our own lives.

And he begins

this verse

with a reaffirmation

of foreknowing.

If you were paying

attention to our

Old Testament reading

this morning,

we talked about

God knowing.

God knowing

and God loving

are very closely related.

But what did it say

when it talked

about Israel?

God didn't love them

because they were

great and mighty.

He didn't love them

because they would

do the right thing.

He loved them

as one has said

even though

they were deaf,

even though

they were dumb,

and disobedient.

It's not as if

God looks to the future

and says,

man,

you're deaf,

dumb,

and disobedient.

I love you.

And of course

that's what he says

because he loves them

not because of

what they've done

or will do,

but because of

his action.

We are deaf,

we are dumb,

and we are disobedient.

God knows that

and God loves them.

God knows that

about us

and loves us

anyway.

That's what he means

by predestined.

Because if we're up

to us,

the deaf,

dumb,

disobedient ones,

we go our own way.

We trip and fall

over our own shoelaces

in the cosmic sense,

in the big things

of life,

in the little things

of life.

Now what is not

meant by this verse?

It's not meant,

as many have done,

and many tried to do,

in saying that God

sees all these things

in the future

and loves you

because of all these

things that you will do

in the future.

No,

he loves you

even though

you're all those things,

deaf,

dumb,

and disobedient.

He doesn't look forward

and say,

you put your faith

in Christ

and that's why

I love you.

Instead,

he loves you

because he's God

and loves you

and knows you.

He doesn't look forward

and say,

on account of your faith,

because you chose him.

No,

that's not what

this verse says.

There have been many

who've tried to do justice

to that idea

by kind of reworking

the language.

And this is really clear.

And it's really clear

because if we're up to Paul

or up to you

or up to me,

we would fail.

Unless we think

in this broader context,

Paul is talking about

the certainty

that's secured

by God himself

of this future glory.

The future glory

that transforms us

from this earthly body

into one

that is like

the image of his son.

That's what he says.

that Christ might have

many brothers.

The firstborn

of many brothers.

It's secured by Christ

and we're transformed

to look like Christ.

That's the driving point

of verse 29.

That's the driving point

of Romans 8.

That there's a future glory

that's coming

that's been secured

by God himself.

And it doesn't depend

upon you

because

you're not really trustworthy.

I'm not really trustworthy.

because I often love sin

more than I love

Christ.

But what greater privilege

is that

to be counted

as brother

to Christ?

Think about that.

The great hope

that we have.

The certain hope

that will be transformed

into the image

of his son

has been secured

by God himself.

It's not simply

God moving

as a first mover

in the transformation

of his children

and then we pick it up

all along.

What does he say?

In verse 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.

It begins

at his choosing

and then he calls

not like on the phone

for a call

that we can dismiss.

But he beckons us

from death

to life.

What he starts

he completes

and it lands

at glorification

being made perfect.

No more sin.

No more darkness.

No more sadness.

If you notice

in all of this

who does it depend on?

Not you.

Not me.

Not our neighbor.

But it depends

on God.

All of this.

God is the one

who's doing the work.

He predestined.

He called.

He justified.

He glorified.

That's an important

reminder for us

that our lives

are not really

about us.

It's about God.

And a story

of salvation

is no different.

That he is the one

walking out

these purposes.

Because if it were

up to us

we would fail.

my life

my salvation

is not about me.

Your life

is not about you.

It's about God.

The most important

things in our lives

the most important

thing

is God

and the work

that he's doing.

Now Paul

is not saying

this as a corrective.

It's really important

here.

He's saying it

as a comfort.

As a reminder

of the hope

that we should have.

Because when we

deny this

and we think

back to Romans

8 28

and we don't

have God

as reignings

sovereignly

over circumstances

in our salvation

everything that

we walk through

becomes

not just a trial

but a double trial.

We're wrestling

with did I make

a mistake here?

Yes you made a mistake.

That always the answer.

But should I have

done something

differently?

Did I mess up

God's plan?

No!

God reigns supreme

and when we lose

sight of that

we kind of

lose sight

of all

of these things.

But God

has promised

to us

he's called

each of us

to worship him

and follow him

in faith

in the midst

of circumstances

that he's

working together

for our

good

his glory

but he provides

us comfort

in the midst

of that.

Comfort

because he

has secured

that future

glory.

That's the

reminder he

gives us.

Often

in our worship

we remind

our hearts

with the words

of not

the shorter

catechism

but the

Heidelberg

catechism

and ask this

question

what is your

only comfort

in life

and in death

that I am

not my own

but belong

body and soul

in life

and in death

to my faithful

Savior Jesus

Christ.

He has fully

paid for all

my sins

with his

precious blood

and has set

me free

from the

tyranny

of the devil

and he watches

over me

in such a way

that not a hair

can fall

from my head

without the will

of my Father

in heaven

in fact

all things

must work

together

for my

salvation.

God reigns

and he reigns

now.

Let's pray.

Lord we're

thankful for

the reminder

from your word

even when things

are difficult

that you're

working all

things together

for good

for those

that are called

according to

your purposes

Father

me remind

our hearts

in the midst

of discomfort

in the midst

of trial

and suffering

that I

have

have

that I

have

that I