Sermon

July 27, 2008
A-Pent 10
Romans 8:28-30
Pastor Robert Raasch

Christian, God has a Plan

1. A Plan Created in Eternity
2. A Plan Carried Out in Time

(Romans 8:28-30)  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. {29} For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. {30} And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

Tell me, what do you say to someone who has just received some really discouraging news?  Maybe a loved one just died, or a family member is getting a divorce, or someone lost their job, or are in danger of losing their house.  Maybe someone was hurt in a car accident or diagnosed with a mental or physical disorder—these are all things that can leave us wondering, “What do I say?  What word of encouragement can I offer them?

Well, I don’t know about you, but I often find myself saying, “Well, remember, the Lord has a plan.”  Maybe you’ve said that to others, or they’ve said it to you.  Certainly, there is a great deal of comfort in those words.  It’s comforting to know that God is not oblivious to what’s going on in our lives.  And yet, maybe you’ve found yourself thinking, “Yes, I know God has a plan—but I’d sure like to know what it is!  Because, to be honest with you, with all the bad news I’m getting, I’m starting to wonder whether God’s plan is such a good one.  I mean, really God, what are you up to?  What is your plan for my life?”  (Has that thought ever crossed your mind?) 

In our text for today, God is going to answer that question. He’s going to answer it through the words of the Apostle Paul, recorded right here in Romans, chapter 8.  Today we ask the Holy Spirit to guide us as we consider this most comforting truth:

Christian, God has a Plan
I. A Plan Created in Eternity
II. A Plan Carried Out in Time

Our text begins with some familiar words.  “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.”  Certainly, those words offer us a great deal of comfort—to know that God is somehow going to use what’s going on in my life to serve my eternal good. 

And yet, as I said before, sometimes we may find ourselves doubting those words.  We may find ourselves thinking, “How do I know that everything is going to turn out okay?  How did I know that’s not just a shallow platitude like “Every rain cloud has a silver lining?”  How do I know that I can trust that the God who says he’s all knowing, all powerful and all loving, is going to make good on his promise?  How do I know it?  How can you “know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him?”  You can know it by looking at God’s track record.  Or to put it another way, you can know it by looking at the various components of a much bigger plan that God has for your life.  A plan that was: I. Created in Eternity. 

Here in our text Paul speaks about some things that God had in mind long before you were born.  Paul writes in verse 29, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his son.”  Did you hear the prefixes in those verbs?  Those God foreknew, he also predestined.  Both prefixes refer to actions that took place ahead of time.  God foreknew you.  He predestined you.  So what does that mean?  It means that before time began, that is, before the world was created, before there were any human beings around, and certainly before you were a twinkle in the eyes of your parents, God already knew you.  In fact, the Greek word there means more than that God had a head knowledge of you, more than that, as an omniscient God, he knew that you would some day be born into this world.  Rather this word implies that God already had a relationship with you.  God made a connection to you.  It’s similar to how the Old King James Version of the Bible translated Genesis 4:1, “And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived and bare a son.”  Already in eternity, God knew you. 

But not only did he know you; Paul says that God also predestined you.  What does that mean?  Well, the Greek word there is Prohorizo.  You maybe hear in that word the English word, “horizon.”  The horizon is the line that separates the land from the sky.  Or to put it another way, the horizon draws a circle around the sky.  Well, that’s what St. Paul says that God has done for you.  He has drawn a circle around you.  He’s chosen you—ahead of time.  He’s predestined you to be his own.  

Now, just for a minute, I want you to think about what that means, that God has predestined you, he’s elected you.  First, it means that your selection by God has nothing to do with who you are or what you have done.  How could it?  God chose you before you were born!  It’s not like God waited around to see how you would turn out to decide whether he wanted you or not.  It’s not like God looked down from heaven and said, “There’s someone who’s honest and caring.  I’ll pick him.  Or there’s a true believer.  I’ll pick her to go to heaven.”  No, the Bible says that, before time began, God chose those who would be his own.  Do you realize what an act of grace that is, on God’s part?  It was purely God’s undeserved, unearned love that led him to say, “I choose you.”  How does St. Paul put it in Ephesians, chapter 1?  “In love God predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will--to the praise of his glorious grace.”

But now, I have to warn you about something.  If it’s true that God chose you purely by grace, and because he did, you’re now a believer, well, then your brain is going to want to draw the logical conclusion, “Well, I guess that means that if some people are not believers, it must be because God didn’t choose them.”  While that may be logically correct, it’s scripturally wrong!  1 Tim. 2:4 says, “(God our Savior) wants all to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.”  In other words, God doesn’t want anyone to not believe in him.  If people refuse to believe in Jesus as their Savior, it’s not because God didn’t choose them.  It’s because they rejected God. Remember what Jesus said to the people of Jerusalem?  “How I longed to gather you together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings—but you were not willing” (Matt. 23:37).  It’s not God’s fault that some people don’t believe in him.  It’s their fault.

But now, back to our text.  In this section Paul is really not talking to unbelievers.  He’s talking to believers like you and me.  His point is that our election is something that God planned out already in eternity.  That means that God’s not flying by the seat of his pants.  He’s not just winging it.  His plan is not something thrown together as he goes.  God’s plan was perfected crafted for you—before time began.

And yet, it must be said that even though God’s plan was created in eternity, the fact is, it’s being II. Carried Out in Time, that is, during the time of your life.  Here in our text, Paul speaks of three very important steps, three very important components of God’s plan for your life.  Paul writes, “Those God predestined, he also “called.”  That word, “called,” means more than to merely be summoned by name, as in “Robby, it’s time to come home for dinner.”  No, the word here refers to the Holy Spirit’s calling of us to faith in Jesus as our Savior.  At the moment of your baptism or when you first heard the gospel and realized that only Jesus could cover the filth of your sins, that’s when the Holy Spirit led you to put your trust in Jesus.  That’s when he made you a member of the Holy Christian church.  That’s when, as St. Peter puts it, “(God) called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). 

At that moment, the plan that God created in eternity began to be carried out in your heart and life.  From that moment on, you were adopted into God’s family.  And that moment, you were, as Paul puts it, “justified.”  Paul writes, “Those God called, he also justified.”  What does that mean?  It means that even though we are all once lost and condemned creatures, still at the time of our baptism, at the time of our conversion, God dressed us in Christ’s righteousness.  From that moment on, we stood acquitted in God’s eyes.  God said, “You’re all right with me.  I see your sins no more.” 

And really, it’s that new status in God’s eyes that prepares us for the last stage of God’s plan, namely, glorification.  Paul writes, “Those God justified, he also glorified.”  Paul is looking forward to the eternal glory that will be ours, as we gather with all the saints around the throne of God in heaven.  He’s looking forward to that time when there will be no tears, no pain, no hunger, no death.  That too, is a part of God’s perfect plan for our lives.

But now, maybe you’re wondering, “Why review all this stuff about my spiritual life?  I’m more concerned about what’s going to happen to me, like, tomorrow.  What’s God’s plan for my future on this side of the grave?  What’s God’s plan for my family, for my marriage?  What’s the point of even considering how God chose us before time, called us in time, and is now preparing us for eternity?”  What’s the point?  Well, first, if you and I fail to see the big picture, if we fail to appreciate that God has already created and carried out the perfect plan to turn sinners like us into saints, if we fail to appreciate the big plan, then we’ll never be able to appreciate that God has a plan for the smaller details in our life, too.  On the other hand, if, by the grace of God, we realize that God has already rescued us from the eternal fires of hell, then it’s much easier to believe that he can also rescue us from the temporary trials of job loss, marital strife, loneliness and uncertainty.  I mean, if we can trust God with our eternity, doesn’t it stand to reason that we can also trust him with our tomorrow?  Or to put it another way, if we’re concerned about what God’s short term plan is, let’s make sure we view it in terms of God’s long term plan.

And then, secondly, let’s not forget what the ultimate goal of God’s long-term plan is.  How did Paul put it here in our text?  “Those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his son.”  What’s the purpose of God’s plan for your life?  To conform you into the likeness of God’s Son.  In other words, to make you more like Christ.  How has God done that?  First, by calling you to faith and dressing you in Christ’s righteousness.  By the power of the gospel you have been recreated in the image of God.  The Bible calls that “justification.”  But God is not done with you yet.  He continues to use the events in your life to draw you closer to himself, to refine you, to mold you and make you even more Christ-like.  The Bible calls that “sanctification.”

So what does that mean for our lives?  It means that we need to view everything that happens to us through the lens that understands that God is going to use it all to serve his purpose, his goal.  And his goal is not simply to make sure that we are happy and healthy and pain free.  No, his goal is to make us more like Christ.  Was Jesus’ life always pain-free?  Are you kidding?  What does the Bible say?  “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering” (Isa. 53: 3).  And yet, through it all, what did Jesus do?  He trusted in his Father’s plan.  Even when he was in the Garden of Gethsemane, in the deepest throes of agony, even as he asked, in effect, “God, is this really your plan?”  What were Jesus’ final words?  “Not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42).  In other words, “Father, I trust you.”

Tell me, are there going to be times when we don’t immediately understand God’s plan?  Sure, there will be those times.  When the tractor rolled over on my dad and left my mom a widow, all alone on the farm, I found myself wondering, “God what is your plan here?  I mean, Dad was so full of life, such a devoted servant of the Lord—and now he’s gone?”

And yet, time and the Holy Spirit have allowed me to step back and see the bigger picture.  My father’s life had always been in God’s hands.  God called my Dad to faith through the washing of Holy Baptism, nurtured his faith through word and sacrament all the days of his life and then, when he determined the time was just right, God called Dad to heaven, quickly and painlessly.  That was God’s plan.  And in the years that have followed, God has given us many opportunities to rejoice that Dad is in heaven and even more opportunities to have our faith strengthened and supported by the promises that God has made to us who survive Dad.  That too, was a part of God’s plan.  And it was a good plan…just like all of God’s plans.

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