God Works...

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."
Romans 8:28 (NIV)

I've known this verse for a long time. It's one I've heard my mom say a thousand times. Behind John 3:16, it's probaby the second greatest promise made in Bible. That no matter what happens, what evil comes along, that there is a chance it will turn out for ultimate good. I say a chance only because there are conditions on this promise. This isn't just blanket, cover-all that everything that happens on earth is ultimately good. No, before the good comes, certain qualifications must be met. But before I get there, let's take a good look at the first part of that verse...

"And we know in all things God works..."

Some translations say "all things work for good". I like the New International Version best. It makes God the subject of the verb 'works' as apposed to 'things' being the subject. And anytime you make God the subject, I think it's a step in the right direction. The greek word for 'works' used there is 'sunergeo' which means, among other things, "be partner in labor". I think of it as, God working with us and through us to turn the evil in this world into good. It's not that the works themselves suddenly turn out that way, but that the creator of the universe takes an active role in working to turn things that are wrong right. To make things the way they ought to be.

"...for the good of those who love him..."

So here we find the first condition. That God only promises (but does not limit his helping) to those who love him. I remember growing up and asking how we are supposed to love God. 99% of the time I was answered with the verse John 14:15, "If you love me, you will obey what I command." This was to imply that doing good deeds, doing the things we are commanded to do is loving Jesus. But that simply isn't true. Jesus says, "If you love me..." meaning we would already love him to do the things he commands us to do. The love would already be inside of us and would manifest itself into action, but the action itself isn't love. The truth is, if we really want to love Jesus, if we really want to love the king of kings, we simply have to accept his gift. To really love Jesus is to say yes to his grace.

"...and have been called according to his purpose."

Here is the second condition. I'm sure there are many interpretations of this last part of the verse. Those on the Calvinist side of the debate would probably use this as a prooftext of predestination and those on the Arminianist side would probably say it's those that follow his will. Since I believe it's both, I can say it is certainly for those on his side of the fence. That while the action of good works isn't a substitute for love, our love can't exist without it. That if we do indeed love Christ, our deeds would reflect it according to his will.

So why the sermon? Because this verse has come to mean a lot to me in the past couple of weeks. As I type, my Grandma is laying in an ICU unit somewhere in Michigan. They just discovered the tumor they removed on Friday was cancerous. They don't know how much more is there. Sunday night she 'coded' which apparently means her heart stopped or was so weak it wasn't pumping blood to the necessary organs. And I have to say God is good.

My grandma is a kind soul. Even if I didn't always agree with their beliefs, they stood up for what they believed and humbly went about their business. She stood by my Grandpa as they started churches from Montana to Tennessee and many places in between. She has a great singing voice and makes a killer ham. How can cancer work for good? Because God's in charge. Because my Grandma understands eternal life doesn't start when you die. Because Jesus is enough good for everybody. It may sound hokey and it may sound trite. But He's either enough or he's not.

If He's not, then he doesn't promise us a thing.

And if He is, then we already know it's true.