All Things

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. ~ Romans 8:28

All things means all things.  Every last one of them.  From your headache last night to the early morning alarm.  All things means the tragedies and the victories.  All things include all things.  Abuse, disaster, house fires, loss, cancer, surgery, pain, arguments, bad grades, bad sermons, good sermons, happy times and sad times.  It includes sin, murder, lying, cheating, stealing, addiction, crime….even these.  God works it for good.

Spurgeon says it really well….There is nothing idle in God’s domain, “All things work together.”  There is no discord in the providence of God.  The strangest ingredients go to make up the one matchless medicine for all maladies.  “All things work together for good” – for lasting eternal good.

True the next part of this verse adds a conditioning statement…for those who love God.  But for all intents and purposes I’m going to declare that I love God and believe it to be true that ALL THINGS work together.  I have to….

These past 40 years of life have a bunch of good and bad and ugly and regretful and momentous moments that need the hope of working together for good.  I have to believe that the days of my youth, the poor decisions of my 20’s, the insisting upon my own way, the mistreatment against me, the loss of family, the premature loss of friends to death, the hurt, the pain, the arguments, the divorce, the bankruptcy, the scares, the tears….I have to believe that they work together for good and produce a victory!  If not then what purpose would it serve?  Just for pain and suffering?  Just to be used for shame and condemnation?  Just to bring misery and sorrow?  Tears and horror?  Just for Satan’s Glory?

No….ALL THINGS work together for good, for the Glory of God.  Because He meant you to be something great.  Something that no other someone can be and therefore in His mercy and Grace, God will do something great out of the not so wonderful. WE KNOW(read it here) God is faithful and we must trust that each and every one of the THINGS in our life that cause us uncertainty and just plain don’t make much sense, will be worked together for Good.

ALL THINGS, its true…ALL