May 31st, 2007
All Things Work For Good – Romans 8:28
This has come up in alot of conversations recently so I’ll just say it here too.
Ever heard that statement that all things work for good? Well, that in itself isn’t true. What is mostly overlooked is the second half of Romans 8:28. “to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” 2 Conditions (as with almost all promises in the bible!)
- You must love him
- You must be called by him
Of course, God can choose to bless the unfaithful BUT as the first part of Romans 8:28 says, “we know” that everything surely, without fail, undoubtedly, unmistakably works out for good for those who fulfil the conditions.
Well, the first one requires another verse to expound. Namely John 14:15. Enough said.. mousing over should show you the ESV version of the verse which should be clear.
Second one is a little more vague. Called to what? dinner? no.. It explains in Romans 8:30. Without going into details (which sometimes gets in the way of the big picture) it basically means born again christians. This article is an interesting exposition (I havent read the entire site, it might be herasy for all I know..okay nvm, the guy who preached, john piper is an evangelical and is abit off but not way off.. read about him at his wiki)
“According to his purpose” just means he’s the boss and things might (and usualy) don’t go your way.
Aren’t all the promises so much more interesting when its more specific and you know what you can do (by grace) to qualify for it?