Notes on Romans 8:28-30

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V 28-30

1. “We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called, and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”

2. Controversy is abounding in this particular text.

   1. I’ll simply mention the issues with brief comment. First there is question as to the exact reading of v 28. The greek is a little ambiguous in some points.

   2. The particle at the beginning of the verse which is translated “and” in some versions may also be translated “but.” The word itself could go either way. Those who would say that it could be translated as “and” do so on the basis of this exhortation being one of many exhortations that are given to believers as they are considering the many sufferings that abound in their lives. In other words, we are encouraged knowing our future glory, knowing that the Spirit intercedes, and knowing of God’s ultimate plan to bring about our glorification.

   3. Conversely those who believe it to be translated “but” would say that what follows is actually in contrast to the preceding verses. In other words, we groan within ourselves and have great difficulty in prayer, but we know that God works all things for good.

   4. The former is to be preferred because of the overall development and context of the passage. The goal is to encourage believers to know how God is at work in all aspects of their suffering. It is not necessarily to draw attention to their weaknesses, which is what a contrasting “but” would serve to do. God is at work in every area of the believer’s plight and this is an encouraging thought, is it not?

   5. Some have also decided to leave the particle out of their translation all together. But I believe this to be an error, especially because the addition of it adds to the overall flow of the argument. Paul is continuing to build a case for the encouragement of those who are suffering. He heaps one thing upon another, one glorious aspect of God’s grace to believers after another. Consider the preceding verses,

      1. In vs 18-25, he says that we groan and we despair in our “present distress.” There are difficulties abounding all around us.

      2. We can be encouraged knowing, that the severity of our difficulties is absolutely nothing in comparison to the greatness of our future glory. Our future glory should bring us great hope in order to persevere under whatever distresses we may encounter.

         1. Creation also groans. Creation is longing for the day when we will be set free, for when we are set free, then it will be set free. The coming of the new heavens and new earth are tied with or own redemption, after the return of the Lord.

      3. In vs 26-27, he comments on how these difficulties sometimes make it hard for us to pray. Often we find ourselves confounded by issues that are too great for us. And we know that we should pray, but are unable to.

         1. Have you ever found yourself at a time like that? You are in the midst of hardship and trial. But you don’t know quite how to pray about it. Your theology tells you that God has a purpose in this, but you have no idea what it is. Your theology tells you that there is no test given by God that is too great for you to bear, but you feel completely overwhelmed and exhausted by it. You know that you need to pray but haven’t the slightest idea how to pray.

      4. Well, we are to be encouraged knowing even when we don’t know what to pray for, the Spirit whom God has made to dwell within us intercedes for us, according to God’s will. We may not know what to pray for, but the Spirit within us knows what to pray. It may be that we need to persist in this trial for a time or it may be that we need to be rescued from the trial. Whatever our need, the Spirit knows and intercedes for us, according to God’s will.

      5. And not only has God given us the hope of glory and His spirit to intercede for us in prayer; He has also given us His word that He will bring us to glory. That we have hope of glory is a great hope indeed. But it is made all the greater knowing that it is a hope that God has secured for us. This is something that we should “know” for certain. In John 10, Jesus spoke of those who are in Christ also being in the Father’s hand. And one who is in the Father’s hand can never be plucked from it. It says “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My father who has given them to Me is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one” (John 10:27-30). Peter also mentions this in saying that we are “kept by the power of God through faith, for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (I Pet 1 ). Our God and Father is great over all, and will bring to pass His plans for His elect and so it follows that this exhortation would be the climax of his argument. [reword]

1. 1. 1. 1. Our God is a great God. He is a God of infinite power. He is a God of infinite wisdom. He has infinite resources at His disposal to bring about His plan for those whom He has elected. And that should bring us great comfort in the midst of any plan or scheme of man, satan or any other thing that should befall us.

   2. Our God is a great God. He is faithful and His lovingkindness endures upon those whom He has chosen. As he continues, Paul is very particular in his wording in this verse, for next he says literally that “we know that the ones who love God, all works for good.”

      1. Again, commentators have found issue with the construction of this verse, in particular, if God should be inserted as the One who works all things for good, and exactly how those things are worked for good. The literal wording of the verse does not necessarily lend to that insertion, though most translations will add God as the one who is at work, bringing all things together for good.

      2. Regardless of how one translates the verse, the overall context demands that the believer understand God to be the one at work in his situation for good. After all it is directed to “the ones who love God…and are called according to His purpose.” In citing that they are those who specifically “love God” and who are “called” limits the scope of those in view to believers only. And if to believers, then God must be at work.

      3. For there is no force in heaven or earth greater than God, nor greater than God’s love for His elect. Paul elaborates on this later in vs 31-39. These are the ones who are identified with Christ, the Son of God. They are identified with the blood that Christ spilled on their behalf, according to God’s will. They are the ones who Christ Himself intercedes for at the right hand of God.

      4. There may be a myriad of enemies surrounding the one who is called of God, there may be an overwhelming draught of pressures and difficulties surrounding this one; and yet none of them are greater than God. God is God over all. God has all power and authority in His hand. And those whom He has called, do love Him and He them. And so there is no greater force at work to bring the lover of God to his good. And there can be no greater good for the lover of God than His glorification. And again, Paul will bring us to this point in the next few verses.

         1. It must be noted too that the things to which this verse points to are most likely issues of external distress for the believer. They are not necessarily internal sins which beset the believer, though I believe this is not beyond the scope of all things. The believer is to be constantly walking “in the Spirit” and in doing so also “putting to death the deeds of the flesh.” That is necessarily true of the believer. The course or pattern of their life should be characterized by increasing sanctification and a shedding off of the old man. We are being led by God into obedience to His will in all things and to submission to His will in all things, and especially to our fleshly desires.

         2. Furthermore, though it is not directly said, v 17 suggests to me that the struggle of believers to shed sin is a part of the suffering that is mentioned. Indeed, just as the righteous soul of Lot suffered in the city of Sodom, so do our righteous souls suffer in war that is waged daily in our flesh. Peter says in 2 Pet 2:7-9 “and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men for by what he saw and heart that righteous man, while living among them ,felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds…” Daily we are at war against the members of our flesh, and its desire to master us, particularly in this increasingly perverse society. Certainly our desires originate from within, but they are often increased greatly by external temptations and circumstances.

         3. One might wonder if it is meant that God uses our sins for good, and thereby conclude that we should continue to sin. Paul has already emphatically answered this in chapter 6, may it never be! For we are dead to sin and ought to be putting to death the deeds of the body. Furthermore, in this verse, he speaks of those who “love God.” And those who love God are those who would keep His commandments. And so it would be inconceivable for a person who loves God to continue in sin.

      5. It should be a comfort for believers, to know the end of the story. We are reminded by the “all things” in this text that distresses are included. The life of a lover of God is not intended to be without difficulty. Jesus said “in this life, you will have tribulation.” Paul said later “all who desire to live godly will face persecution.” However, whether it be external distresses or an internal struggle, the end is still the same. God is over all. And His grace in salvation is sufficient over all. No matter the source of the distress. He will bring to pass His plans for His elect.

1. Now, I mentioned before that God’s intended purpose or goal in this passage is the believer’s glorification. This, we observe from the following verses.

2. “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”

3. We are certain of God’s promise in the aforementioned verse, namely that He ultimately causes all things to work for good to those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose. But what is the basis of that? These verses give us the foundation for that truth. It is enough for us to know that it is. However, Paul, guided by the Holy Spirit, tells us that the basis for our confidence is found in God’s eternal and effectual purposes.

4. Of course, these verses are not without issue. For those who have sought to understand God’s sovereignty have interpreted various words in this verse to mean completely different things.

   1. Some would speak of God’s foreknowledge as a little more than the word suggests, namely that God knew something before hand about the individuals to whom this passage speaks. Since salvation is on the basis of faith, they would say that God predestined them on the basis of His fore-knowledge of their faith. In other words, God, from eternity past knew that and/or what believers would believe and it was that group of people that He predestined to be conformed to His image. This theology flows from an attempt to reconcile God’s sovereignty with the free will of humans. Specifically that humans must be free to choose. Since humans are free to choose (and there is debate as to the nature of human freedom), God takes note of their choices and plans His salvation accordingly.

   2. Another view would understand God’s foreknowledge as a relational knowledge of those individuals that He intended to foreknow. Specifically because the verse doesn’t say what is known about the person. It merely says that they are known. In other words, His foreknowledge is synonymous with His election of them. He knew them relationally. From eternity past, there was a group of individuals that He purposed for salvation and these people He also predestined to that end.

   3. It seems to me in evaluating the flow of both verses, that v 28 should be looked at as an overview of what is in particular set out in v 29. In other words that “He predestined them to be conformed to the image of His Son” is a broad statement that is more carefully delineated in v 30.

      1. The foreknowledge seems to be linked with “for” to the previous phrase in which it was spoken of God’s purposes. In other words, the foreknowledge of God has to do with His eternal purposes. No one should contend with the notion that God’s eternal purposes were “fore-known” to Him. The purposes of God, are eternal and therefore static. They cannot be thwarted. And so to say that some are foreknown to Him, merely means that they are a part of His eternal purposes. That seems pretty clear to me. Foreknowledge doesn’t have to mean any more or less than that. Those who were a part of His eternal purposes, are known to Him, and those are predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.

      2. Furthermore they are to be conformed “so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren.” It would follow that this “so that” was a part of God’s eternal purposes. If that is so, then it makes sense that God would choose some to suit that end.

      3. The purposes of God are completely of His own design. It baffles me that there are some who would suggest that the plan of salvation would in any way be dependent upon the nature and decision of man. Even if faith were not a work, there are some who suggest by their understanding of this passage, that their faith is a necessary component of God fulfilling His eternal purposes in His Son being one among many brethren. In other words, in order for God to do this, He had to see who would choose Him. In attempting to reconcile their need to speak of man’s freedom, they have diminished the purposes of God by suggesting that they are dependant upon man.

      4. Clearly there is danger in this. And furthermore the goal of the passage is to encourage believers in the midst of difficulty and suffering. And to assure them that God indeed works things out for good. How can one find encouragement in knowing that God works things out for good when in fact He needed man’s permission before predestining them for salvation?

      5. There is quite a bit more to the argument on both sides. Suffice it to say, for me it seems pretty clear that the eternal purposes of God is what is in view here. Those whom He foreknew – according to His purposes – He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.

   4. Again, where it says in v 30 “those whom He predestined” I would take to be parallel with the same word in the previous verse and “being conformed to the image of His Son” I would take to be parallel with the rest of verse 30.

      1. For to be called, justified and glorified is to be brought in conformity with Christ. The call must be given and they must be justified from their sins. The call, here is an effectual call, since they are in fact predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ.

      2. The call, in other words, is to believers. If the call is effectual then it necessarily leads to justification through faith in Christ. Those who are called (in this passage) necessarily believe in Christ and are therefore justified.

      3. Finally, those who are justified are glorified. And all of this, it seems is what it means to be conformed to the image of the Son.

   5. God’s plan for the salvation of believers is something that He has planned from the beginning. It is something that He planned from the beginning to bring about His purposes; and it is currently being worked out so that it will bring about His purposes in the end.

   6. And so again the basis of the believers encouragement in v 28 becomes abundantly clear. Those who “love God” and who are “called according to His purpose” may rest in spite of whatever “things” they encounter because the end has already been established. And the end is conformity to the Son of God. And this end, itself, is greater than the believer and anything that can beset him. For it is the Father’s intent to have His Son as the firstborn among many brethren. It is a goal and purpose that has its birth in the will and desire of God concerning His Son. It is not in any way dependant upon the choice of human beings and so cannot possibly be thwarted by those same human choices.

   7. For sure there are many who do not choose God and so the believer might be tempted to think that it is possible for this one to in some way alter or affect God’s ability to bring about His intended purposes. But in light of this verse, one would have to conclude the utter foolishness of that thought.

   8. God has purposes that He is bringing about in the world that He created. Those purposes can no more be thwarted than could the Son cease to perfectly obey His Father. The purposes are totally of God’s origin. And they are totally within the realms of God’s infinite power and as such will necessarily come to fruition.

   9. The point of this passage is not to illustrate the particulars of salvation for the encouragement of believers. But rather to illustrate the particular wisdom and efficacy of the author and perfecter of salvation. He is God. And He is for us.