“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
Every one of us experiences times in our lives when we wonder where God is and how He could let us go through such a situation as we are presently facing. During such times, many are tempted to ask wonder, “How could anything good come out of this?” Often we express our frustration: “If you really love me God, how could you let anything like this happen to me?”
In such times, we need to return to Romans 8:28 and meditate upon its meaning. Romans 8:28 is one of the best loved and most often memorized passages in the Bible. But far too frequently we have quoted the verse without really understanding the truths contained in it.
To begin with, every blessing and comfort in this verse is contingent on one thing: Is God sovereign over all that happens? I emphasize the word “all” because every Christian acknowledges the sovereignty of God in a general way, or over certain things, but most are not so sure that what is happening to them in their difficult moment is part of God’s sovereignly orchestrated plan for their lives. Romans 8:28 depends on the sovereign control of God over all things. If He is not sovereign of even one thing, how can we be sure of this great promise? Might it not be possible for one thing to not “work together for good”? This passage provides comfort for only one reason: God is in control of all that happens to us. He has a plan, He has a purpose, He is at work and will bring all things to work for good in our lives. Who but a sovereign God could ever accomplish us a complicated task?
1. God’s Promise
This passage comes to us as a promise from God of which every believer can be certain. Paul begins, “And we know.” Modern Christianity has a “watered-down faith” because it is dependent on experience rather than on truth. The great tendency today is to look at our experiences and wonder if God is really at work in them. Yet NT Christianity is not experience-based; it is truth-based.
In the experiences of life, we may be tempted to doubt God’s love for us in difficult situations, but we know. We may have serious questions about the outcome of our difficulty, but we know. Our faith is not dependent upon what we can see now; it is dependent on who God is and what He has promised. Paul had reminded the Romans just a few lines earlier that their hope was not based on what they could see–not on their present sufferings, but on God’s promise of future glory (see Romans 8:18-25). You will never experience victory over your circumstances as long as your eyes are on what you presently see. Such a vision can only cause discouragement and frustration. We must keep our eyes and our confidence on the promise of God. He keeps His promises (Numbers 23:19). He will work all things together for good. We have His promise on that.
2. God’s Project
Often the English rendering, “all things work together for good,” is misleading. Things do not work. Obviously the emphasis of this passage is that God is at work. Douglas Moo notes this distinction: “it is the sovereign guidance of God that is presumed as the undergirding and directing force behind all the events of life.” Even the order of the words in the Greek lean toward a translation emphasizing God’ active work in all things: “An we know that for those who love God all things he is working.”
This passage shows us the activity of God. He is not passive in the events of our life merely sitting back waiting to decide if He should intervene or not. Instead, God is at work orchestrating everything in our lives for His glory and for our good. We are His project! Or as Paul says in Ephesians 2:10: “We are His workmanship.” We can have confidence when facing difficulties because we know God is at work in every aspect and detail of our lives. Jesus reminded his disciples of the Father’s intimate care: “Not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge of it. . . . every hair on your head is numbered . . . . how much more does He care for you, O ye of little faith?” We are God’s project–He is at work in every detail of our lives!
3. God’s Plan
God’s plan is that “all things” that come into our lives work for good. This includes “good” things and “bad” things. Nothing that happens to a believer is outside of God’s plan. Donald Grey Barnhouse used to say, “Nothing can touch us unless it is first sifted through the will of God. In our lives, God allows both the good and the bad to happen as part of His overall plan for our lives. He is at work in everything that happens to us.
Far too often, we are ready to praise God for the good things that happen to us. But rarely do we recognize that even the bad things are just as much a part of God’s plan for accomplishing His will in and through us as are the good things. When Job’s wealth and family were all lost on one day, he “fell to the ground and worshipped.” When his wife told him to “curse God and die,” he responded, “Shall we indeed accept good from God and shall we not accept adversity?” He did not know what God was doing, he did not know how God could bring good out of it, but he knew that “all things” that happened to him were according to God’s plan for his life.
The problem is that we see the part, while God see the whole. We understand only the present, while God knows the future. We may feel the pain of the moment, but God knows the ultimate product He is producing in our lives. As believers, we can be confident that we are in His hands, and in His hands, nothing can touch us except it is ultimately according to the plan of God.
4. God’s Purpose
Finally, Romans 8:28 gives us confidence because God has a purpose in everything that happens in our lives. In verse 28, the apostle says all things work for good. In verse 29, he explains what God’s purpose is: that we might be conformed to the image of His son. To accomplish this, God uses many instruments: some to sharpen us, some to teach us patience; others to discipline and correct; but all to bring us to be more like His son.
Many images of this are found in the Bible. Jeremiah uses the idea of the potter working with his clay. To accomplish his task, the potter must spin, pound, poke, and take away much to produce a beautiful vessel. In Malachi 3:1, we find another image: the smelter sitting and watching over the ore as it is heated. This presents a beautiful picture of God’s watchfulness as He takes us through the process of purification. Just as the smelter sits and watches so that the ore might not be scorched by the fire, so God watches over everything that comes into our lives. In the smelting process, the heat causes the impurities to rise to the top so the smelter can skim them off of the surface. Only when he can see his own reflection clearly in the ore can the smelter be sure that the impurities have been removed from the ore. Likewise, when uses adversity in our lives to bring the impurities to the surface so He can remove them. That process will also continue until He sees His own image reflected in us.
Copyright Jim Ehrhard, 1999. You are permitted to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that: (1) you credit the author; (2) any modifications are clearly marked; (3) you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction; and (4) you do not make more than 100 copies without permission. If you would like to post this material to your web site or make any use other than as defined above, please contact
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