Groans to Glory

But I'm super humbled to be here.

Um candidly.

Uh I I I feel very lucky.

Uh in my summation, Romans is like the diamond of the New Testament, and specifically Romans 8 is like the diamond of Romans.

So I'm humbled by that opportunity.

I'm a bit intimidated by that opportunity, uh, but encouraged that the truth is that that I uh I'm called to be faithful to the text, and the Holy Spirit will do um everything else.

And and we are gonna navigate some things today that are uh difficult to reconcile.

I know personally I have had trouble um coming to an enthusiastic excitement about some of these truths, but that doesn't make them untrue.

It doesn't make them not good, it makes me uh not God, thank thankfully.

Um so I just want to I kind of want to set the stage a little bit, um, and and I'd like to start just by recapping where we've been.

Um Romans is um again one of my favorite books in the whole Bible, and up until now, um Paul has has led us through kind of uh a picture of what it looks like to be a follower of Christ.

We we've talked about what it looks like to have our identity in Christ, what it looks like to wage war against our sin, um, what what it looks like to be in this process of sanctification as believers, um being being made to be more like Christ every day as we're now justified, um, what we're saved from and what we're saved to, um and how we live as a result of that.

Um then finally, um that in Christ, uh with with the whole or through the Holy Spirit, we're we're made uh sons and daughters of God, and that we're actually made to act um like sons and daughters uh of God.

That we that we were then moved to take actions of that sonship.

And so today we're gonna move to um uh a bit of uh some head and heart is how I like to put it.

So the first part of our scriptures today are gonna uh they're gonna be lots of assurance.

And and for those of you that that love to be reassured, that's gonna be awesome.

Um but then the second part is gonna be a lot of uh processing, a lot of understanding how it works and why we can absolutely have that assurance.

So those of you that really like to process things and understand the structure of things, you're gonna be great too.

But they have to, they have to have each other.

You you can't enjoy that assurance without really understanding how it was secured for you.

And if you don't have that that love and gratefulness for uh that that security, you're you're not, you might be tempted to make uh things like predestination or foreknowledge a fight or an argument or a hill that you die on.

Um but if we if we marry these two together, uh we're moved to a gratitude and uh a gratitude for for how beautiful this is and what God um has done.

We're gonna talk about things, a concept of uh already but not yet.

And and and uh that can be hard for some to really grasp.

And and I would liken it to, I've never had a house built, um, but I would liken it to um you you've you're building a house and um it's paid for, uh, you've got it all designed, you've got furniture picked out, and you can imagine what life is gonna be like, uh, but you're distracted right now because you've still got noisy neighbors uh in your apartment building.

It's not that you're not gonna get that house.

You're you're going to thrive and and and love living in that house.

You're there, it's guaranteed.

You've paid for it, it's done.

Just you're not there yet.

And so I would, I would, I would encourage you to look at some of that, uh, some of this today in that light.

Um and and for those, going back a little bit, for those of you that are um uh kind of the the feelers that that you kind of naturally feel assured by God's presence.

Um there are those of you that that need to understand.

I've I've got three sons, like Justin mentioned.

Um I've got one son that uh just my presence helps him to feel safe.

Knowing that I'm in the house, he's gonna sleep okay.

He knows I'm there and that's enough.

Um I've got another son who uh understands that I'm there, but he needs to he needs to understand, okay, what steps have you taken just to make sure we're safe?

And so I explained, like, we picked a safe neighborhood and uh we take security measures.

We lock our doors and we lock our windows, and when that's not enough, it's like, well, dad's got a gun.

So uh we we I promise things I I've done everything I can, and so understanding what steps have we taken to make sure we're safe.

And and the beauty of this is Paul covers both of those in just in this uh specific uh uh set of scriptures.

And um we're gonna see that that Paul layers um things on uh together and in on top of one another in this section, just like he has up until this point.

It's just I'm rambling because I love this book.

So um let's let's just move to the main idea uh today.

Uh the main idea um of this entire 18 through 30 passage um is as heirs with Christ, we're carried from our groanings to our glorification.

Uh that that part of the reality of of where we are in uh in in the fall or post-fall is that we're we're going to suffer, we're going to be uncomfortable, we're going to be uh we're we're things aren't perfect.

Um things are hard at times.

Um, but we can be assured that God is uh pulling us in the direction um and we can be confident in in the hope that we have in that.

In the call to worship.

Um those those the things that God has uh given us will come to us.

I mean that that that's a that's a confidence that we can have.

Um and and and Paul's gonna remind us of that.

So by no means is this gonna be exhaustive.

There's a lot to cover today, and I hear I only have two hours, so we need to get on it.

Um so let's start with verses 18 through uh 25.

And I would summarize um 18 through 25 as in the spirit, we can eagerly await our future glory.

Eagerly await our future glory.

And this can be difficult.

Um, it can be it can be difficult to uh to eagerly await something that um that that we don't know when it's coming.

Um maybe it's easy to eagerly await it because you're going through real misery right now.

Um up until chapter eight, Paul has given us so many assurances, things that we can count on.

Um and I I thought it would be interesting just to look at the assurances that he's given us just in chapter eight, verses one through seventeen, um, leading up to this point.

And so um I've just wrote written them down.

Um verse one, there's no condemnation in Christ.

We can be assured of that.

We can be assured that we're free from the law in verse two.

We can be assured that Christ has accomplished everything on our behalf in verses two and three.

In verse four, we can be assured that the requirements of the law have been fulfilled.

In five and six, we can be assured that peace is found as we set our mind on the spirit.

In verses seven through nine, we can be assured that we can't please God in the flesh, but in Christ, we're indwelled by the Spirit.

And then in verses ten and eleven, another assurance that the Spirit who raised Christ Jesus will raise us as well.

12 through 14, we can be assured that life is found in the Spirit and death as a result of the flesh.

Verses 15 and 16, we can be assured that we're adopted sons and daughters of a father that we'd warred against.

In verse 17, as adopted sons and daughters, we have an assured inheritance awaiting us.

Also in 17, we can be assured that we'll suffer, as did Christ.

And then finally, verse 17, we can be assured that we'll be glorified with Christ.

All those assurances, just so far in chapter 8, and and they all they're all really good, and then but kind of snuck in here, and then in verse 18, too, or 18 through 25, we've got this idea of suffering.

It's like, did you have to assure us of that too?

How about just the good stuff?

Um, but it's it's it's okay.

Um, and it and it's it begs the question: why would Paul be addressing suffering in the midst of so much good news?

Why are we talking about suffering?

And it's good to remember who he's writing to.

So these are these are first century Christians in Rome.

Um, and that was not a good place to be if you were a Christ follower at that time.

You could be sure that you would likely face persecution, um, you would likely face um beatings, lynchings, um, if not worse, death.

And so he's he's writing to these Christ followers in Rome, uh, reminding them that, look, you're suffering, but that doesn't make God not good.

You're suffering that doesn't mean it's going to last forever.

Um, you're you're suffering that doesn't mean we can't or shouldn't trust in God's plan, that that suffering now is is going to result in a future glorification, future glory that you're you can be assured of.

So um let's look at uh kind of what's happening uh and why, and we'll break this into a few different sections.

And you're gonna notice that we're gonna kind of go back and forth, and that's just the way Paul Paul is kind of seeming all over the place.

Um, but there's a beauty to how he's constructed this.

And so we're going to start diving in at verse 19, then we're gonna jump back, and then we're gonna jump forward.

Um I'm gonna try to keep up with myself, so good luck to you keeping up with me.

Um, verses 19 through 20, and then 22 through 23, we see that creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.

For the creation was sub subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it in hope, and then we'll jump to, for we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, grown inwardly as we wait eagerly for the adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.

And so we see Paul saying that uh creation, but also us.

So he's covering all of creation, but he's also covering us as individually.

And I don't I don't know that I need to convince anyone that that there's there's there's pain going on.

This groaning, this word uh groaning is a groaning of pain.

Not not I mean, I don't know, we use we groan.

Um we groan when um uh our favorite player misses a free throw.

Um we groan um to uh to even the best Tim dad jokes, we groan uh to those.

Uh but this is a this is a groan in pain.

And so I don't think we need to have much convincing that that there's a lot of pain.

We can we can look around.

Um we're we're just exiting a pandemic.

Um we see things like um uh decaying environment.

Um our bodies are actively decaying.

I I know at 37 I I can uh I can tell you I don't feel 17 um anymore.

Um and I heard it only gets worse, so that's exciting.

Um but but this pain can look a lot of different ways.

Um and we can be assured that we will face uh suffering.

And this doesn't this doesn't always mean agony or misery.

Um it can be uh we we suffer with jealousy, uh we suffer with insecurity, um, we suffer with loneliness.

And these aren't just, you know, someone cut my leg off and it hurts, uh, or I've lost the person closest to me.

Those are that's obviously suffering.

Um but we suffer in all kinds of ways, and they're all um kind of covered uh with this.

And and this shouldn't be uh a real surprise.

Um let's look back at Genesis chapter 3, verses 16 through 19.

Genesis 3:16–19

To the woman he said, I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing.

In pain you shall bring forth children, your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you.

And to Adam he said, Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, you shall not eat of it.

Cursed is the ground because of you.

In pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life, thorns and thistles it shall bring forth to you, and you shall eat the plants of the field.

By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken, for your dust, and to dust you shall return.

And we can see right away.

We see um Paul hearkening back to this Genesis passage.

We can we can feel the undertones of futility to it all.

You're gonna work hard, and it's just gonna continue to produce thorns and thistles.

You're gonna you're gonna have conflict with your wife, that that you're gonna work hard and you're just gonna end up dust again.

We see the pain in childbearing um idea.

And oddly enough, I've never uh carried or bore a child.

Um, but I've witnessed it happen, and and it's quite uncomfortable from what I could gather.

And and uh all the moms in here can attest to that.

Um but what we see Paul doing, and I think this is just so cool, the pains of childbirth, the pains of childbearing, that that though it's miserable at times, though it's agonizing at times, though it's inconvenient at times, there's something beautiful being cultivated, something beautiful happening that results in something miraculous.

And that's what that's what we're talking about here.

That that in the in the in the right now, it's painful, but but God's building to something glorious that we can look forward to.

So that's what's happening.

What's happening is uh sin by uh just with Adam and Eve entered, and if it hadn't been them, it would have been us, it would have been me or you.

We do it, uh we invite it in our lives, and and so they don't just get to um you know take all the blame.

We we we participate as well.

That's what's happening.

Um, but the why.

Let's um let's look at verse uh at verse uh let's look at verse 20.

Um lost my place.

For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it in hope.

So we we see that that we were subjected to it by uh by him, and that would be God.

We didn't willingly say, all right, um we messed up, uh, let's suffer.

Um we deserve this, let's suffer.

No, we we said we were subjected to it, this futility, this emptiness, this nothingness.

We had fullness of presence with God and every good thing that he could offer us, and we squandered it.

Uh to and we traded it for nothingness.

And and the reason that this is happening is because God rightly judges our sin.

God righteously judges our sin, and uh now we suffer the consequences of that.

And and like I mentioned, it could look like a lot of different things.

Um, but what we tend to do is offer futile responses to this pain and suffering.

Um, sometimes we we try to redeem our suffering, and and um and and we do it through maybe social activism or environmentalism or political activism.

These are ways in which we're trying desperately to redeem the things that we see are wrong absent of Christ.

We can offer futile responses to avoid or appease our suffering, and this could be um addiction or infidelity or um endless ways to modify our bodies to reflect this idol of image that we desire.

Again, ways that we try to appease our suffering outside of resting in the assurances that these scriptures say that we can have.

And that's our story, that we settle for counterfeit glory.

I should say this is the story of 18 through 25.

Um, we settle for counterfeit glory, that these are all ways to appease momentary light affliction without pointing to and longing for and hoping in the eternal weight of glory.

We're looking for these empty respites that will leave us empty in response.

And and I just want to pause and just say that we're undoubtedly called uh to care for God's creation.

I'm not saying environmentalism is a bad thing.

Um I think that what we need to be careful of is seeing those things as salvific.

That that we won't find salvation in um eradicating fossil fuel uh necessity.

We're not gonna find salvation though we ought to uh fight tirelessly against it.

Salvation doesn't come through the eradication of something as as uh as as big as uh child trafficking.

Okay, these are worthy causes to fight against and to take the gospel to, but we need to know that we could eradicate all these bad things, and Christ is still going to come and bring us to the actual glory that we're looking for.

So we need to see that our salvation is in Him and eternal glory while we wrestle on behalf of the gospel to make an impact on things that we see are obviously unjust.

So I just I don't want to be misunderstood that those things are are uh ought not, I think the church ought to lead the charge in those things, uh, but we ought to be doing it with the name of Christ boldly from our lips first.

Um so instead of pursuing these futile responses or or respites, how are we to respond instead?

And so now we'll jump back um to verse uh to verse 18, and that's um we need to see our suffering rightly.

That that juxtaposed, so Paul's saying it's not even worthy of comparing, so juxtaposed against eternal glory.

Our suffering right now is uh, as we've seen previously in scripture, it's it's it's but a momentary light affliction.

Your suffering could be huge to you right now.

But the good news is the glory that awaits is gonna be so big that we're gonna spend eternity praising God.

We're gonna spend every moment forever praising the goodness of our King.

That's how that's how big and mighty and amazing the glory is that awaits for us.

And so that's not to minimize your pain or your suffering or your circumstances, it's to give you a hope to look forward to.

And then verse 19 uh something else that we ought to do is hold to a sure hope.

That we that we can have this eager longing, and this is where this already not yet has.

It's that it's that home that you know is being built that you will sleep well in, but you're just not there yet.

It's it's the the wedding day that you're planning for, that that that now you're in this engagement, and you've got this life with the girl of your dreams waiting for you, but you're not there yet.

It's she said yes, uh, the preacher's scheduled, um, everything's done, but the vows.

So this is the the already not yet that we're in, and that can be uncomfortable and it can be painful, and we could suffer.

Um and and this is a good time to remind you, Paul's saying all this about suffering as someone who suffered greatly.

Um he's not he's not telling us this as someone that doesn't get it.

Paul, who was imprisoned and beaten, beaten, um suffered.

Um so so don't take this as some flippant flippant um posture from someone that just doesn't understand what we're going through.

Um we can have further assurances.

Let's look at verses uh 21 and then 24 through 25, that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

For in this hope we were saved.

Now, hope that is seen is not hope.

For who hopes for what he sees?

But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Again, this hope is this confident looking forward.

It's not uh I and I think I mentioned this uh a few sermons ago.

It's it's not, I hope the weather's good today so we can go to a picnic.

It's not um, I hope in these little things.

This this hope is I am confident that this is coming.

I am confident that it's mine, I am confident that I'll get there.

It's faith looking forward, as I've heard it said.

That will be set free, that we'll obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

These this is this is really good news.

And so for those of us that are the feelers in the room, feel this.

Feel it.

Let that let that give you peace.

Let it bring you comfort right now.

And what's what's cool is we had this promise of hope going back to.

Even back to Genesis 3, where we just were.

Let's look at Genesis 3, 14 and 15.

Lord God said to the serpent, Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field.

On your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.

I'll put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring.

He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.

In the very beginning of time, we were promised that evil would not prevail, Satan will not win this, and that Christ would reign.

Christ is the hope that we're we're hearing about, even back to chapter three of the first book of these good scriptures.

And so if you're suffering today to any degree, know that it's not just temporary, but that you're not abandoned.

You're not alone right now.

That God has never and will never abandon you.

Let's look at Matthew 27, 46.

Actually, I don't know that I have a slide on that because I needed to limit myself.

I think I had like 45 slides, so I needed to cut it down.

Matthew 27, 46 is where Jesus is calling out to his father saying, Why have you forsaken me?

Why have you left me?

And in the in the in the in the pinnacle of his suffering, he was alone.

And so don't just take comfort in that your suffering is temporary.

Take comfort that you're not alone.

Because, and we can be confident in this, that we're not abandoned because Jesus was forsaken on our behalf.

Jesus walked that for us.

So this isn't just temporary suffering.

You're not alone in your suffering.

But we're also told that we can be patient with this.

And patience is hard.

And so Paul's going to now transition us from all of the assurance to some of this more uh heady stuff.

Stuff that I just want to throw out there is um uh kind of hard to reconcile, but also kind of can be hard to understand.

And so my hope is that um where we might lack confidence in our understanding, then we would be confident in God's work through this.

And so we're we're gonna transition now into verses 26 through 30.

Now that uh Paul has shown us all the assurances that we have, everything that we can cling to and be confident in.

We're now gonna learn why we can have so much confidence.

For those of you that need to understand it, you need to see how it's all built, understand the architecture and how it's so secure.

This is gonna be really satisfying for you.

So, verses 26 through 30, I would summarize as uh we can hope with patience because our future glory has been secured on our behalf.

Have you ever had uh anxiety over something that that's upcoming?

You just you just dwell on it, and and you just make it the I've got I've got a son who does this a lot.

He imagines the the worst case scenario, thinks it's going to be the worst thing ever, and then once we get through it, he looks back and it's like, oh wow, I wish I had had a different perspective.

I wish I had known that uh before.

I think we all can relate to that to some degree, and I think we all know people that uh that that that's every day.

Um that we have this anxiousness.

Wouldn't it be great if we had God's perspective?

How much better would we rest if we had God's perspective?

How much less conflict would we have, or how much less difficulty would we have reconciling our feeble minds to these really hard truths if we had God's perspective, but we don't.

And it's good to keep that in mind as we start marching through these next several verses.

So uh it feels good um to know that we're not alone or permanently suffering, but let's let's start understanding um how this is accomplished.

And and before we do, let's just be honest about some of these verses though, too.

Um we're we're gonna we're gonna tap into some verses that are uh often misused to offer empty um comfort, um flippant comfort to those that aren't in Christ and those that are in Christ.

Verse 28 is gonna be really clear about who he's talking to.

Um and then we're gonna talk about things like foreknowledge and predestination, like Justin mentioned.

And these are things, these are verses and ideas that have been used to create tension and conflict.

Instead of exalting the name of Jesus, we quarrel over these things.

So I just want to, we're navigating into some deep water and and some verses that have been misused quite a bit.

Um, but if we navigate this rightly, I think we'll be inspired to not find reasons to differ with one another, uh, but to see God's sovereign, loving plan for us and just be really grateful.

Um so let's look at it at verse 28.

This is like a proclamation by Paul, um, often tattooed on ourselves or others, often proclaimed in the midst of suffering for others.

Um for those who love God, for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purposes.

So um, this does not say that all things are good.

This does not say that you will experience less suffering or discomfort in your life.

It does get used flippantly.

I I would encourage you that if you are walking with someone that is suffering, that you don't just right away offer them, well, just remember, um, all things work for your good and for God's glory.

Um far too often we jump to things like this instead of just sitting and suffering with our brothers and sisters.

We want to offer them these these promises to expedite them out of their suffering and dismissing the opportunity to love them well.

So this is true that for those who love God, these things work together for a good.

Um, but I would I would say this this needs to be married to a commitment to community and long-suffering with each other.

Um and it does say that all things work together.

This is the good and the bad for the ultimate good for us, which is glory, glorification that we will not obtain here fully.

So all of this good is working together.

The bad things and the good things, we can be comforted knowing that they're all sanctifying us as we look toward our glorification.

Remember in 2 Corinthians 4, um, this is momentary light affliction, like I mentioned before.

Let's keep that in mind as we look forward to a greater glory.

And and um you know, you may not see, who knows how long the suffering goes.

And that's that's also hard.

It's hard to not know when this will pass.

It's hard to not know when I'll feel more confident again, when I'll feel the presence again, when I'll feel relational peace again.

It's hard to sit in that.

And and the the hard truth is um we have been preceded by uh many a martyr who didn't see an emergence out of their suffering.

They suffered until they died for this faith that they had.

And so the hard truth is you might suffer a long time, you might suffer until the day you die, but the comfort is that we're suffering in preparation for something greater.

I mean, we think of Job, who suffered in anguish for months.

We we think of Joseph, who suffered for nearly two decades before he saw any sort of respite.

So, how can Paul proclaim that all these things are working together for good?

Um, and I would say the first, um, the first reason that he can proclaim this, we can find in verses 26 and 27, and it can be summed up by this: that God's will prevails.

We can see that here, we can just read through it together.

Verses 26 and 27.

Likewise, the spirit helps us in our weakness.

For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the spirit himself intercedes for us with the groanings too deep for words, and he who searches hearts knows what is in the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

And this is something that um I didn't understand growing up, um this work of the Holy Spirit specifically, um, that as we're as we're praying to God, and and it's not just simply when we don't know what to pray to God, okay?

But it's this idea that if we, when we pray for pray to God, there's there's this intercessor of um, like this monitor of all the things that we're praying for.

And miraculously and sovereignly, the Holy Spirit intercedes and says, All right, I know we're asking for this, or he's asking for this, or she's asking for this, she's praying for this outcome.

I'm gonna repackage it and I'm gonna ask that it be this, because I know God's will.

This should be comforting to us that we can't mess this up.

And this would, this also lends to our perspective.

If we had God's perspective, we would pray for a lot of different things.

I know I would.

But in even in lacking that perspective, the Holy Spirit is so good.

God is so good that He steps in and says, Your will be done.

And in 1 John 5, 14.

We can have confidence that what we ask according to his will, he hears us.

God always says yes for what we ask in his will.

Always.

We can't get in the way of this, we can't mess this up.

We can ask for things that we don't get.

Praise be to God.

That's hard.

The other reason that we can be uh the that that Paul can confidently proclaim this, and this is verses 29 and 30.

Um, this is what's referred to as God's golden chain of salvation.

This is when it gets fun for all of us theology geeks, and uh where it gets um really important that we that we that we explore this um faithfully.

Um many are conflicted about this, many hyper-focus on this.

Please know that we will not exhaust these ideals uh in full.

There's no way.

Uh we're gonna dive deeper into this in chapter nine, um, but I it's really important that we understand these uh this concept, this golden chain concept, um, so that we can have the assurance in full of verses 18 through 25.

Um R.

C.

Sproul said that it's perhaps the single most important biblical text in understanding how God comes to save us.

Um it's also called the Ordo Salutis, kind of the order of salvation.

And it's it's it the the structure is these five um active verbs, these uh the the these five uh things that God has accomplished or done on our behalf.

So we see um that he foreknew, um, that he predestined, that he called, that he justified, um, and that he glorified.

And so let's just start with uh with this idea of foreknowledge.

Um have have have uh posited that that this foreknowledge is really just God looked ahead in time, could see those that would choose him, and then called them, putting the onus on us, saying that we're the ones that moved the mighty hand of God to save us.

That that God just saw those that would be faithful to him and responded to us.

Um and that's certainly not the position of us at sacred mission.

Fair?

Yeah, okay.

Just gotta I gotta stay in line here.

Uh John Piper defends against this by paint uh pointing out that for this to be true, Paul would have had to say uh whom he foreknew would believe in Jesus, he called.

Or he also predestined.

And that's not what it says.

We we'd have to add to scripture for that.

What he says is whom he foreknew, he predestined.

And there's lots of examples in the scriptures to uh to support that we didn't cause this, we didn't save ourselves, we didn't move the hand of God.

Um but it's also helpful to understand foreknowledge for what it is.

Um it's not just a cognitive knowing, because God knows everybody.

God's aware of everyone in existence.

But this foreknowledge is really like a uh it's like a proactive love for the believer.

It's a proactive, he for loved us uh in a way that was favorable in ways that were different for the non-believer.

And and this can be, this is something that people are uncomfortable, a lot of people are uncomfortable with, that God chooses, that God has chosen some.

But but if we're looking at the scriptures, um there's example after example of God choosing.

And just because we can't stomach it doesn't make it wrong.

Just because we have trouble reconciling it or understanding it doesn't make it not good.

And um I'll admit that I have trouble with that.

I've I have trouble like with guilt that God chose me, and then there's people that won't be in heaven.

It's like, gosh, I struggle with that.

So I'm just trying to be transparent.

I'm I'm talking to you guys about this stuff and I wrestle with it.

But at the end of the day, I have to trust that I serve a good dad who loves me and knows way better than me.

I'll mention my kids again.

Like if they only knew some of the reasons behind what we do, they would have a whole lot less trouble.

I remember uh when we were moving back to Cincinnati from Cleveland, and uh we had established such a beautiful community there, um, including some wonderful friends uh for my oldest son.

Now we knew that the best thing, the wisest thing for our family was to move from Cleveland back to Cincinnati.

We knew that, and there were lots of reasons, reasons that our children would never understand.

But it was the hardest thing to see my son go through that.

It was the hardest thing for him to navigate, to know that he was leaving his friends, that he absolutely loved.

And one day as an adult, I think he'll understand fully why we didn't.

If we had not made the decision to move, that it would have been way worse.

But these are things that we just we can't really grasp right now.

And so I also, it it's it also frustrates me that the this beautiful design that God has laid out, that he's done this on our behalf, that he's been misconstrued as a monster.

That he's somehow, his uh taking away our choice, his making it his choice is like rape.

Have you ever heard that before?

That God is a that God is this cosmic rapist of our will.

God save us.

That's a misrepresentation of the design that God has laid out.

Thank God it wasn't on us.

That ultimately God chose and it's not based on anything that I did or wouldn't have done.

And for the believer, this is really, really good news.

So if we understand what this foreknowledge is, this favor for the believer, the rest are really, they're a lot easier to understand and a lot easier to reconcile.

So for those who he foreknew, for for those that he loved in advance in a way that was favorable over others, the believer, he also predestined.

And the Greek word for this is literally to determine the eternal destination beforehand.

Which makes sense.

That if you've if you've chosen a people, you're gonna create a place for them.

You know, I'm creating a space for my children.

I think every parent would understand that.

That for those that God loved in a way that he didn't love everyone, he ensured that they'd be eternally safe.

And so this this ought to be an encouragement and a comfort to us that you're secure.

That God hasn't just loved you, but he's also created a place for you.

And and so if he's predestined a place for you, he then calls you to it.

It's like it's like you build this awesome room for your kid.

You make their room awesome, and then you never invite them to sleep in it.

No, God's created a place for us with him, that he's determined that he loves us, he's created a space for us, with him forever, and that he's now calling us to it.

And those that he foreknew, he predestined, he also called, and those who he called, he also justified.

And what Paul's already established is that through this faith, which is preceded by the calling that we just talked about, we're then justified.

Romans 5, 1 says we're justified, we have peace with him.

It's our right standing with God, before God, blameless, cloaked in Christ.

And you'll you'll recall that those who are justified are also actively being sanctified, being made to be more like Christ every day through the good and the bad that we were just talking about.

And that the sanctification is that process of being conformed to his image for our good, and the ultimate good is our last verb, last part, glorification.

So that we're we're ultimately glorified.

It's the culmination of God's work on our behalf.

The favoring and the choosing of you, the wooing of you to himself, the justification and the sanctification of you to his likeness, the delivery of you to your ultimate good and glory with him.

This is the good that we're talking about, the ultimate good that we're talking about in verse 28.

He's not just saying all this is going to work to your good right now or in a few days, that all of this is sanctifying you until you join me.

When all of his own are with him, all of his creation is renewed, eternity with our Father, absent of all the suffering we've been talking about.

New bodies.

These are all past attempts.

These are done.

You were foreknew.

You were predestined.

You were justified, you were called.

And we're glorified, and this is the already, not yet.

That we're being sanctified.

The glorification is secure, we're just yet to realize it and enjoy it.

But these are done.

Again, feel good about that.

It's not going anywhere.

These are done.

And the also, notice the also.

It's it's it you can't have one without all of them.

So, so those that he foreknew, he also, also, also, also.

They all go together.

So it's not that he pre- it's not that he forenew us and then might predestine us.

It's done.

So just recapping, in the spirit, we can eagerly await our future glory.

And we can await our future glory because it's been secured by the Almighty, all loving, all knowing, all powerful God of the universe for us, heirs with Christ as his adopted sons and daughters.

We can feel really good about that.

But our

Story tends to be something different.

Our story in this context is that we we often hide in the garden from a God that's rescued us from the condemnation that we fear.

Any of you ever feel that way?

Do you know you're secure in Christ, but yet you have this anxiety or fear or you condemn yourself?

You walk in shame day to day.

We know that we sin, so we fail to rest in this assurance of what's been done on our behalf.

We condemn ourselves and then we resort to these false comforts.

We appease this suffering that we feel in numerous ways.

We retreat from community and shame, as opposed to walking in the light, gratefully and boldly claiming the titles that have been afforded to you, instead of the title of sinner, walking in that, walking in the titles of for loved one or favored one, title of predestined one as a favored son or daughter, walking boldly in the title of called one, as justified one, who can stand rightly before the Lord, cloaked in the work of Christ Jesus, the title of glorified one, with the glory yet to be fully enjoyed, but knowing that it's fully secured and awaiting us.

Walk in the light of those.

That's who you are, believer.

And this is our gospel conviction that in Christ's resurrection we have the guarantee of our future glory.

Who doesn't like a guarantee?

I love a guarantee.

I love knowing that it's gonna work out, or if it doesn't, I can just take it back.

It's not a sequence of potential, this is done.

And our gospel vision is this in the Spirit, through Christ Jesus, we rejoice in our sufferings, eagerly await the renewing of creation and the redemption of our bodies.

And so I'll um I'll finish uh with this.

If you're here and you're not a believer, um I'm glad that you hung through all that.

Um I'm glad you're here.

Um and I would just encourage you to explore and maybe reflect on what landed you here today.

Is it possible that you're being wooed to this spot?

Is it possible that there's a work going on that you're not aware of?

I'm glad you were here to hear all this and ultimately know that as a believer, um, we have a confidence that we can hope in beyond what is offered here in the momentary.

And then for the believer, more than anything today, um, I want those of us in Christ to not leave here with like this giant call to action, um, but more than anything to take a big sigh of relief and enjoy knowing with confidence that the work of the cross is finished and the grave is empty.

I I've had conversations uh with others.

Um I remember being a kid going to VBS or um you know, whatever event at church.

And like, you know, every night there's like a call to salvation.

And every night raising my hand just in case it didn't take the night before, just in case I'm not really saved.

I better raise my hand again.

And then the next year doing the same thing.

Um feeling that that anxiety.

Like, what if I'm not really saved?

What if it didn't really work?

Believer, I want you to know that you are.

Those in Christ are secure and safe.

So that's first and foremost, um, that we would take this finished work and confidence in future glory, um, but not take this framework that we have, because this also happens.

We've got we take this framework of what God's done, that we don't, you know, that's not the work that we do, and so we sit on our hands, knowing that God's doing it all.

So what am I doing?

What do I have to do with this?

That we would leave the toiling and the laboring um to others to fix things and let God do the work on uh on the hearts of those that He would call.

Um, I would just say we can't do that.

Um, my favorite theologian, um Charles Spurgeon, said this, and it's one of my favorite uh quotes.

If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our dead bodies.

And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay.

If hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.

Let's labor.

Let's contend for this for this gospel.

Let's take it to our neighbors, let's take it to our families.

Let's take this assurance and this hope we have and proclaim it to a world that needs it.

Let's remind ourselves of it daily.

Let's pray.