Many of us are familiar with and can quote Romans 8:28, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (ESV). This marvelous promise reminds us that God is at work in this world, and specifically that He is at work for good.
The question is: how does this promise work? All too often we find ourselves in difficult situations in life where everything seems to be going wrong. Verses like this one often seem to bring more frustration than help. The key is that we need to make sure we understand what God is promising us, and what He is not.
There are 4 clues that can help us understand this verse:
(1) First of all, God wants to remind us that He is in complete and sovereign control of this entire world in which we live. He is fully able to “work all things together for good” simply because He is God. Verses like this one point us inevitably to the power and greatness of God. With Him, there are never any frustrations or things outside of His control.
(2) At the same time, God never tells us that everything in life will be easy or good. Ever since sin first entered this world, we are broken people living in a broken world where there is much evil and suffering. What God promises us here is that He will work all things together for good, including many evil and difficult things that are definitely not good.
(3) There is an important qualifier here that is a key to applying this verse: this promise is specifically given “for those who love God.” This idea is so important that Paul repeats this thought later on in this same verse where He uses a different word picture and tells us this promise is “for those who are called according to his purpose.” Here the idea is one of God’s calling or inviting people into a relationship with Himself. In other words, this is a promise given particularly for those who are God’s children. God never promises anywhere in Scripture that things will work together for those who are not His people. The Bible focuses on God’s message to His people—and to those whom He is even now drawing to Himself.
(4) God also gives us His definition of what is “good.” Many of us have our own definitions of what is “good,” namely those things that make us feel good and comfortable and fit into our own preconceived plans. But God tells us in this verse that this promise is qualified by the phrase, “for those who are called according to his purpose.” Ultimately it is “His” plans and purposes that count, not ours. What is His purpose for our lives? The very next verse, verse 29, goes on to tell us: “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.” Quite simply, God’s purpose for our lives as believers is that God is creating a people for Himself. In particular He is creating a people for Himself who will become more and more “conformed to the image of his Son.” In other words, God is at work in this world through all the circumstances and situations in life shaping and molding us to become more like Jesus. What could be better than becoming those men and women God originally created us to be?
God is actively at work in this world, working all things together for the good of His people in order that we might look more and more like Jesus Christ. May this become increasingly true in each of our lives. As we pursue our relationship with God, verses like Romans 8:28 will give us fresh hope and joy in all the various situations we may find ourselves in.