We are Sure

Des grab our bibles and turn to Romans chapter eight, Romans eight. If

you don't have a Bible with you, just raise your hand and keep it

up, and we will find you. We're passing those out right now.

Also, bulletins will be helpful, so just raise your hand and keep it

up if you need a bible or a bulletin, and turn with me to

Romans chapter eight. We're gonna be in verses thirty one through thirty nine.

Romans eight thirty one through thirty nine. And as you turn there, let

me just remind you we will have our message this morning, and you will

see how this passage concludes with praise. And so that's where we're gonna go

from here. We will have our time in Romans chapter eight, and then

we will spend the rest of this morning in praise of our Lord. So

open with me in Romans chapter eight, verses thirty one through thirty nine for

the once you come and read for us Romans eight thirty one through thirty nine,

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us,

who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son,

but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with

him graciously give us all things. Who shall bring any charge against God's elect

It is God's who. It is God who justifies, who is to condemn

Christ. Jesus is the one who died, more than that who is raised,

who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for

us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ, shall tribulation or

distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger or sword,

as it is written, for your sake, we are being killed all

the day long. We are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered. No,

in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor

rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor

height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate

us from the Love of God in Christ, Jesus, our Lord a man,

This is the word of the Lord Amen. A few decades ago,

the American author and theologian Brennan Manning was interviewing an Irish minister who had been

through a lot of suffering in the conflict between Northern Ireland and Ireland, and

and that mister described how through all of the suffering that he experienced, he

could point to the ways in which God used it to make him more like

Jesus. And also he went on to explain to Brennan how despite his character

flaws, despite his ongoing struggle struggles, despite especially his shortcomings earlier in life,

he was one hundred percent sure of God's love for him. And when

Brennan Manning pointed this out, he said, oh, yes, the Irish

minister said, God is very fond of me. He's very fond of me.

This is a man who is sure of God's love, sure of God's

love. Let's see if I can make this work. Hey, here we

go for sure. Being sure of God's love is what our passage this morning

is all about. Paul gets there by saying, we can be sure of

God's love despite suffering. In fact, we rejoice in suffering because we know

that God is using it to do something in us. And we can be

sure of God's work because He is working in us through an unbreakable chain of

his initiated action, from foreknowing to predestining, to calling, to justifying to

glorifying. He's gonna get it done and we can be sure. We can

be sure. And so he structures this passage with a bunch of rhetorical questions,

who can condemn, who can be against us? What will be with

held from us? The whole passage culminating in praise that starts with four,

I am sure. Are you sure of God's love in Christ? You are

meant to be sure about God's love for you, to be sure of God's

generosity toward you, to be sure of God's protection over you, to be

sure that He has no judgment for you. In Christ. He is very

fond of you. I would make one caveat this morning that this passage is

about the sureness that we have of what we have in Christ. This passage

is not about being sure that you are in Christ. Sort of the typical

question of assurance we're actually going to dive into that next week from first John,

how do I know that I'm in Christ? But this passage is about

what we can be absolutely sure of if we're in Christ. And I would

put it in a sentence like this, if I was gonna just boil it

down to a sentence of what I think our message from God's living word is

for us today, it would be this. The gospel means, we are

sure nothing can undo God's saving love. We'll walk through this passage this way.

Here's what we'll see. No one can be against us. Nothing will

be withheld from us. No one can condemn us, and no one can

separate us from God's love. No one can be against us. Nothing will

be withheld from us. No one can condemn us, and no one can

separate us from God's love. And with each of those truths, each of

those four truths, I'm gonna make a point to suggest ways in which we

can live out those truths. So beyond the lookout on each of those four

I'm gonna say, hey, here's a way I think we can live out

this truth. We should live out this truth. So let's get started.

No one can be against us, That's what he says in verse thirty one.

Look at it. What then shall we say to these things? These

things being the fact that we we suffer and we trust that God is doing

something with it, the fact that God is absolutely unbreakably doing his work in

us. What shall we say to these things? If God is for us,

who can be against us? It's a funny thing to say. He's

already said that there's plenty against us. He's already said we rejoice in our

sufferings. He's about to get to tribulation and distress and persecution and famine and

nakedness and danger and sword. So who can be against us? Yeah?

A lot of people and a lot of things. And if history is any

indication, Christians suffer get trampled. I think if h football teams read that

passage in context, they would be more reluctant to paint it in their locker

room. God is for us. Who can be against us? I mean,

just think he's writing this to the church in Rome, where emperors like

Nero and Dimission dip Christians in tar and light them on fire as torches for

their garden parties, feed Christians to lions. So Paul does not mean we

won't lose our lives. He does not mean we won't lose our property,

or that our community won't turn against us, or that our country won't turn

against us. Of course, even in Rome, we ended up seeing a

surge of faith amongst the people eventually over centuries, but it wasn't because if

Christian's political maneuvering or some show of military strength from the Christians. But because

of their transformed lives and the kindness that they showed to their opponents, the

truth of the Gospel was on display. So even if people refuse to see

the truth, even if people in fact trample us ultimately and finally, the

thing is God is for us. No one can be ultimately and finally against

us. He will bring his work to completion, and He will bring us

to glory. Who can get in the way of that? No one?

Not really, So if no one can be against us, how do we

live out that truth? Can? I suggest these two words? Don't panic?

As our culture, at least for right now, squares up more aggressively

against what we believe is right, what we believe is good, and in

many ways squares up against us. Do not panic. By all means,

participate. We have political and civic ways to participate in the conversation and to

point to Jesus while we do it. Participate, but do not panic.

Panic is a trap. Fear of man is a snare. The devil would

love to trick you into pointing to Jesus in a way that looks and sounds

nothing like Jesus. The devil loves panic driven hypocrisy. He would love to

twist God's word to God's people and whisper. You should repay evil with evil.

You should repay reviling with reviling. Don't suffer for righteousness. You need

to panic. Really, if heaven is our home, if this world is

our harvest and not our haven, if we fight against the gates of hell

and not against flesh and blood, if the lost are not the enemies,

but are in fact the POW's Every lost politician not your enemy, but the

pow that we're called to rescue. Every influencer peddling a different type of sin,

that's a pow. We need not panic over worldly opposition. In the

end, every knee, will bow, and every tongue will confess that the

slain Lamb is That's who you belong to, the slain Lamb, and he's

for you. You are his co heir, and we suffer with him in

order that we may also be glorified with him. And we are sure,

we are sure no one can be against us because God is for us.

We're sure. What else are we sure of? Well, we're sure nothing

will be withheld from us. Nothing will be withheld from us. Look at

verse thirty two. He who did not spare his own son, but gave

him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give

all things. He's gonna give us all things. And He's proven it.

Like Abraham proved his devotion to God by not sparing his son, he was

willing to give up Isaac, God, in a stunning role reversal, proves

his devotion to us by actually giving up his son. He didn't spare him.

He has proven the lengths to which He will go to give you whatever

you need. He will graciously give you all things, like all things,

whatever we need. And some people struggle with understanding, like there's a lot

of promises like that, like just believe that you've received what you're asking for.

You have not because you asked them. He will graciously give us all

things. What does God mean by that? I think that one of the

best illustrations I've heard about God's promise in this way. I heard from a

friend of mine named Josh Waltz. He's a pastor in Denver, and he

said, it's like this. It's like when I took my daughter and dropped

her off at college. Her mother and I went to campus and we went

to freshman orientation and we got her all settled in the dorm room, and

you know, she's crying. I'm not crying. She's crying. And I

say to her, Honey, if you need anything, just ask anything you

need, if you need anything, just ask anything. Well, his daughter

knows that that promise was made in the context of a mission and a relationship.

She's at college, she knows her mom and dad. She knows that

her mom and dad will provide her with anything that she needs, as has

always been the case. But because of that mission and because of that relationship,

she's not gonna call her dad and say, Dad, you said anything.

I'm feeling like I need a Tesla and some more handbags and a fake

ID. It's college anyway. No, she's not gonna do that. That's

not what that promise means because she understands it in the context of a mission

and a relationship. But if she calls and she says, Dad, i

am I'm short on gas money, I desperately need a tutor for calculus,

and I'm lonely. Could you send mom up for a weekend, the answer

is yes. Yes, and yes, We're not going to withhold anything from

you. You're on a mission, you're our daughter. We are going to

generously give you all things. Nothing will be withheld from you, nothing will

be with help. He's proven it. He's already given up his son so

that you would be his son, so that you would be his daughter.

You can count on the fact that nothing is going to be withheld from you.

How do we live it out? How do we live out that truth?

Well, I'd give you these three words, pray and risk. Pray

and risk. He's proven the lengths he'll go to. So pray for the

strength to do it, and then step out and forgive that person who hurt

you. He's proven the links that he'll go to. So pray that God

would reveal himself to that friend of yours, and then open up your mouth

and explain the Gospel. Offer to read the Bible with them. He's proven

the links that he'll go to. So pray for the stamina, pray for

the wisdom, and then go play up that church. He's proven the links

will go to. He's proven the links still go to. Nothing will be

withheld from you. And we are sure what else are we sure of,

We're sure no one can condemn us. No one can condemn us. Look

at Verses thirty three and thirty four. Who shall bring any charge against God's

elect It is God who justifies who is to condemn Christ. Jesus is the

one who died more than that who was raised, who is at the right

hand of God, who indeed is interceding, is praying for us. No

one can condemn us. When condemnation comes, we reject it. If your

own thoughts, or the enemy or some accuser comes against you to condemn you,

to say, here is something in your old life, or here is

something because of your ongoing struggle, you should be judged. This should be

judged. You rejected the response. How do we respond to condemnation? We

respond to those who were his. We respond as to condemnation as one who

is Christ's We talk about what he's done. He died for it, It's

paid for it, he rose, The payment's done, and he is continuing

to pray for me that my faith will hold. And if he prays for

me that my faith will hold, my faith will hold. Do you remember

what Jesus said to Peter before his arrest? Is it Peter Satan has demanded

to sift you like wheat. Can you imagine? All right? So do

I get like angel bodyguards? You've told me Satan has demanded to come after

me like could I have a very thorny hedge of protection? Please? What

does Jesus say to Peter, I've prayed for you that your faith will not

fail. If Jesus prays for your faith, it will hold, and he

ever lives to make intercession for you. We respond to condemnation as those who

belong to Christ. And he's talking about condemnation, not conviction, And sometimes

those things get confused. Condemnation is the sense that something in your life should

be judged, maybe your old life, maybe the ongoingness of a struggle and

your own thoughts, or someone else or the accuser comes and says this should

be judged, and we respond to condemnation as those who belong to Christ.

We reject it. Conviction is the sense that something in your life should be

changed. I need to change the way I talk to my wife. I

need to change the way I'm handling Netflix. And we respond to conviction as

one who belongs to Christ. We repent right respond to condemnation as those who

belong to Christ, we reject it. Respond to conviction. As those who

belong to Christ, we repent. But when can condemnation comes, here's how

we respond, Here's how we live it. We don't. We don't.

Ah, okay, here's a mistake. We don't justify ourselves. That never

works. When the accuser comes and says this in your life should be judged,

we don't respond, well, well, I well, I will,

I will, I well, I didn't and I haven't and I shouldn't and

I don't, and I do, and I do, and I do and

I do. It's a treadmill. The response of condemnation is he did,

he did, he rose, He prays. No one can condemn us because

of him, And we are sure. We are sure. What else are

we sure of? That? No? No one can separate us from God's

love? For sure, no one can separate us from God's love. Look

at verses thirty five and thirty six. Who shall separate us from the love

of Christ? Shall tribulation or distress, or persecution, or famine or nakedness

or danger or sword? As it is written, for your sake, we

are being killed all the day long. We are regarded as sheep to be

slaughtered, sheep to be slaughtered for that in the locker room, sheep to

be slaughtered. Paul is picking up Psalm forty four. Here he's referring back

to that psalm to say this, it is nothing new for the faithful people

of God to suffer for the sake of God's name. It is nothing new.

And that's what we see in Psalm forty four crying out to God,

God, would you be our rescuer, because though we are faithful, we

suffer. And so to answer the question for anyone in that Roman church who

might say, look are we suffering? Are we opposed? Because God has

simply taken his favor off of us? And Paul says, no, that's

not true. Now that wasn't true then, and he'll here's Psalm forty four

to show nothing, this isn't new. God is doing something with this suffering.

God is doing something with this. And then he goes on thirty seven

and following, No, God hasn't taken his favor off of us. No,

this isn't punitive. In all these things. We are more than conquerors.

This is headed to our glory through Him who loved us in Christ,

He is working all of these things to our good and our glory in Him.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor

rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor

height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation we'll be able to separate

us from the love of God in Christ, Jesus our Lord, that you're

already ready to sing. Nothing and no one can separate us from God's love.

But you have to notice. You have to notice where the sureness is

centered his love, not your love, not your enthusiasm, not your devotion,

not the strength of your faith in Christ, Jesus our Lord, in

Him, not us. It reminds me of the illustration I once heard from

Da Carson, and it's just so fitting I have to share it with you.

Here of two hebrew Men on the night before Passover, the night of

Passover, you know, God had instructed the Hebrew people. I want you

to take a passover land, and I want you to mark your doorway tonight,

and over the course of the night, judgment will pass over your house.

If you have marked your doorway as I have instructed, and you have

two hebrew Men who go out at the same time, to mark their doorway's

neighbors, and one of them is enthusiastic. He is strong in faith,

he is devoted, and he says to his neighbor, this is awesome.

Watch and see God deliver us. Judgment is gonna pass over us. We're

gonna be rescued from the Egyptian's hands. This is awesome. This is the

beginning of a new time for God's people. I can't wait. What about

you and his neighbors? Like I guess so? I mean, I want

to believe all that. I do believe all that, But I struggle.

I struggle with I mean, We've been here for generations. I've seen things

I was hopeful about fall apart. Our families have been abused and mistreated and

crushed for generations. And now I am stepping out in faith and I am

marking this doorway. But you're excited about this. I I'm inspired by your

enthusiasm. I believe help my own belief. And they mark their doorways,

and that night, which family is saved, both of them. Because God's

redemption isn't centered on your enthusiasm, or your strength of faith or your devotion.

God's salvation and redemption and love is sure because of him, not you,

not because of your love. Because of his love that you will not

be separated from. That's the truth. How do we live it out well?

In this case, I'll just offer this one word, praise. Praise,