All Things Working Together for Our Good
By Ps Vernon Quek
One of the most challenging parts of Romans 9-11 was wrestling with how God sovereignly deals with Israel and all of mankind throughout history: He is the Potter, we are the clay. He has mercy on whoever He wills, and He hardens whomever He wills[1].
How have you personally responded to God’s control over all things? Has this been difficult for you to accept?
Personally, the single most helpful thing that has helped me not only accept, but rejoice that God is sovereign is that Romans 9-11 comes after Romans 1-8. Remembering exactly how merciful and loving God is – as Romans first shows us that He is our loving God who desires to save sinners[2] – this is key to trusting His sovereignty and control over all!
So if that is how we look at our Sovereign God’s control over all things… then we can begin to grasp the heights of Romans 8:28:
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
All things. If we know God’s love for us first and so love Him in return, then every single thing that we will go through in life is purposefully being done by God for good – including the challenges and the low points in our life. Do we believe that? Have there been times when the LORD has led us through valleys and difficulties, and we’ve been able to look back now and see that He worked good through those hard times?
How about now as a church family? As we go through a difficult season in less-than-ideal circumstances[3], are we healthily trusting that our loving Father is working all of this for good? Are we rightly looking upwards to Him, acknowledging Him and giving God His rightly place, seeking His will to be done?
We should keep in mind the verses that come after:
29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.[4]
Let’s wait on the Lord to see exactly how this season will lead to both our God’s and our own glory. In all our interactions and in the way we journey together, let us make it part of our culture to lift our eyes prayerfully and patiently to the bigger picture – to seek ways to be conformed not to the way the world around us might do things, but to be transformed and conformed more and more to the image of our King Jesus who sacrificed Himself for His Body the Church[5].
I’m grateful to many in our church family who have already been doing exactly that, and eagerly await what the Lord will do in us in the coming months and years. May we see the good that our God is surely working in this period of Zion Bishan’s history!
[1] Romans 9:18-21
[2] Romans 3:23-26, 5:6-8 etc
[3] If you are unaware of what I’m referring to, please do approach your CST so we can share more.
[4] Romans 8:29-30
[5] Romans 12:1-2
