The Believer's Security is grounded in the Providence of God
The Glory of the Gospel: Studies in the Book of Romans • Sermon • Submitted
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· 4 viewsGod assures His children that He will complete their salvation
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God give us the Holy Spirit to intercede for us in prayer (Romans 8:26-27)
God give us the Holy Spirit to intercede for us in prayer (Romans 8:26-27)
Explanation: Paul continues the emphasis found in this chapter on God’s gift of assurance to His children. He moves from discusses the present sufferings in this life and our need to hope with patience to the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s life. Yes, we groan and suffer with fallen creation, but we are not left to deal with these issues on our own. God comes to us Himself in the indwelling of the Spirit and He, the Holy Spirit, comforts us through the ministry of prayer.
God reveals a great truth through the Apostle’s pen when He tells us that the Holy Spirit Himself intercedes for believers in our prayer life. Paul gives two reasons why this is so. The first reason is that we are ignorant in much of our prayer life. The text declares that “we know not what to pray for as we ought (v. 26).
Illustrate: Give a 3 or 4 year old the choice between a shiny gold $1 coin and a wadded up and crumpled $20 bill, and the child will take the coin. He or she is ignorant of the values involved and will ask for the lesser thing.
Argument: We are often unaware of God’s will, and often focus on our own individual life. While our life is indeed important, we are not the center of the Universe and God is working out His will on a grand scheme. This is why the Spirit “maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. Douglas Moo provides helpful insight on this issue when he says, “This does not, of course, mean that we should not strive to understand the will of God for the circumstances we face, or that we are in the wrong to make definite requests to God; but it does mean that we cannot presume to identify our petitions with the will of God.” Douglas J. Moo, The Epistle to the Romans, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1996), 524.
Example: praying for the physical healing of a loved one with cancer. Is it God’s will for her to be healed or for God to bring Glory to Himself through the sickness, even if it results in physical death?
Application: What a gift to know that we don’t have to have it all figure out - we can just trust the Spirit to intercede for us in those matters which we do not understand. We can pray for God’s will to be accomplished and trust that He will do exactly that.
God Sovereignly works all things for His glory and our good (Rom 8:28)
God Sovereignly works all things for His glory and our good (Rom 8:28)
Explanation: Paul moves from the Intercessory prayer ministry of the Spirit to the Sovereignty of God in fulfilling His will in the lives of His children. The Father and the Spirit are in perfect harmony in the matter of the Divine Will, and God reveals another comforting truth to His children: He will accomplish His desires in our lives in order to accomplish His purpose.
Argument: This verse has been used to bring comfort and assurance to millions of people as they have been faced with overwhelming circumstances. What a treasure God has given to believers with this Truth! There are some important points to note when considering this great truth:
The promise is given only to those who love God. Who are the ones who love God? Those on whom He has placed His divine love: “we love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19)
The promise is for those who are called according to His purpose. This is another way to refer to believers - we who have responded to the Gospel message with repentance and belief; we who have responded to His call.
The promise includes ALL things that He allows to enter into the lives of His children - even the sorrow, pain and disappointments.
Application: We may not understand the WHY of what He is allowing, but we can trust that He will sovereignly work it out for His glory and our good. God has our best interests in His plan. We can’t see it, but we can trust Him because of who He is. God is Good - All the Time, and All the Time God is Good!
God gives us the Assurance that His children will be conformed to the image of Jesus (Rom 8:29-30)
God gives us the Assurance that His children will be conformed to the image of Jesus (Rom 8:29-30)
Explanation: These next two verses are an expansion of v. 28. God has just declared that ALL things will work together for good . . . to them who are the called according to His purpose” (v. 28) and then He proceeds to give an incredible treatment of the Eternal Assurance that has been given to those who are called.
Paul gives the reader five verbs that provide an overview of God’s working in the lives of the Elect from Eternity past all the way to Eternity future. In rapid sequence we are told that God foreknew His children, and those whom he foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ, and those whom he predestined He also called to Himself, and then He justified and glorified them. Each of the verbs is presented in the past tense as a completed action, including our glorification. Our future with God is so secure, He describes this as something that has already happened.
Argument: This sequence has been called the Golden Chain of redemption and it gives witness to the unshakeable confidence for the believer. Paul gives the Philippian Christians this same ground of assurance when he tells them of his confidence that “he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil 1:6)
What a powerful assurance that God gives to His children. In His providence we have the ministry of the Holy Spirit, His sovereign promise to work all things for our good, and then He declares that we will be conformed to the image of Jesus.
Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
Application: We who are In Christ are assured of our future glorification with Him. This truth gives us confidence to live for Him in this life. We do not yet attain to full conformity to Christ, but we can strive with the Spirit’s help to be more like Jesus.
CLOSE and move to the Table:
We are going to end this service at the Table. Communion is a vivid reminder of the price God paid to include us into His forever family. We are told that “as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till He come” (1 Cor 11:26).
Participating in the Lord’s Supper is an affirmation of the confident Hope we have that Jesus will indeed Return for His bride and set up His Kingdom. As we live “between the times” we can maintain that confident Hope by reflecting on the truths He gives us in His Word!