There is a delightful little story of two angels who stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy family. The family was rude and refused to let the angels stay in the guestroom. Instead they were given a small space in the cold basement.
As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw a hole in the wall and repaired it. When the younger angel asked why, the older angel replied, “Things aren’t always what they seem.”
The next night the two angels came to rest at the house of a very poor, but very hospitable farmer and his wife. After sharing what little food they had, the couple let the angels sleep in their bed where they could have a good night’s rest.
When the sun came up the next morning, the angels found the farmer and his wife in tears. Their only cow, whose milk had been their sole income, lay dead in the field.
The younger angel was perplexed and asked the older angel, “How could you have let this happen? The first man had everything, yet you fix a hole in his wall. The second family had little but was willing to share everything, and you let the cow die.”
“Things aren’t always what they seem,” the older angel replied. “When we stayed in the basement of the mansion, I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall. Since the owner was so obsessed with greed and unwilling to share his good fortune, I sealed the wall so he wouldn’t find it. Then last night as we slept in the farmers bed, the angel of death came for his wife. I gave him the cow instead.”
You see, things aren’t always what they seem. The Bible promises us that “all things work together for good, to those who love God and are called according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28). Surely you can trust the Lord to work things out for your good during this strange season of craziness in our topsy-turvy world!
Just remember, things are not always as they seem.
(Rom 8:28-30) God’s help is an enduring promise; He has the ability to work all things for good and to see us through to glorification.
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
a. And we know that all things work together for good: God’s sovereignty and ability to manage every aspect of our lives is demonstrated in the fact that all things work together for good to those who love God, though we must face the sufferings of this present time (Rom 8:18). God is able to even make those sufferings work together for our good and His good.
b. God is able to work all things, not some things. He works them for good together, not in isolation. This promise is for those who love God in the Biblical understanding of love, and God manages the affairs of our life because we are called according to His purpose.
c. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son: The eternal chain of God’s working is seen in the connection between foreknew, predestined, called, justified, and glorified. God didn’t begin a work in the Romans simply to abandon them in the midst of their present suffering.
i. “Paul is saying that God is the author of our salvation, and that from beginning to end. We are not to think that God can take action only when we graciously give him permission.” (Morris)
ii. “Of course I believe in predestination, since it’s plainly taught in the Scriptures. The doctrine could be assumed, even if the word was never explicitly used. It’s a thrilling truth that doesn’t upset me at all. The fact that He chose me and began a good work in me proves that He’ll continue to perform it. He wouldn’t bring me this far and them dump me.” (Smith)
d. To be conformed to the image of His Son: However, our participation in this eternal plan is essential, reflected in its goal: that we might be conformed to the image of His Son; and this is a process that God does with our cooperation, not something He just “does” to us.
e. The reason for this plan is expressed in that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. God has adopted us into His family (Rom 8:15) for the purpose of making us like Jesus Christ, similar to Him in the perfection of His humanity.
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