Committed to the Cause

13 Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 14 By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.

15 You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains, 17 but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— 18 may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus. – 2 Timothy 1:13-18 ESV

Even while imprisoned in Rome, Paul took a keen interest in the affairs of the many local congregations he had helped to start. He wrote a great many of his pastoral epistles while under arrest, using his time to encourage the church of Jesus Christ, providing doctrinal instruction, relevant application of Jesus’ teaching, and an occasional admonishment aimed at false teachers and all those who had been swayed by their words. 

But Paul also took advantage of his confinement by penning this letter to his young friend and disciple, Timothy, attempting to bolster his faith and strengthen his commitment to his calling as a minister of Christ. Paul knew from firsthand experience the kind of opposition Timothy was facing. He also understood the constant pressure his young friend was under to compromise his message and discredit his calling.

Timothy was a young man and yet, he had been thrust into a high-intensity role with responsibility to oversee the growing flock in Ephesus. He was the God-appointed shepherd to the sheep placed under his care and Paul knew that his young friend was struggling. Even Paul’s imprisonment had left Timothy wrestling with questions and doubts about the future. After all, his mentor had been arrested and accused of crimes against the state. And Paul’s enemies had used his arrest as an opportunity to undermine his work and destroy his reputation. But Paul encouraged Timothy to “not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner” (2 Timothy 1:8 ESV).

Paul assured Timothy that there was only one reason behind his imprisonment: His preaching of the gospel. He wasn’t an insurrectionist or an enemy of the state. He was simply a “preacher and apostle and teacher” (2 Timothy 1:11 ESV), who had been faithfully fulfilling his God-ordained responsibilities. So, for him, confinement in prison was a badge of honor, a symbol of his alignment with the sufferings of Christ. And Paul wanted Timothy to have the same mindset.

Timothy had become part of Paul’s entourage, traveling alongside the apostle and watching him preach the good news of Jesus Christ all throughout the Roman Empire. And he had witnessed the sheer power of the gospel message as countless individuals from all walks of life had placed their faith in Christ. He had seen small congregations spring up in the most unlikely of places. Gentiles who had grown up in pagan cultures worshiping a pantheon of false gods had discovered the truth about Yahweh and His Son. They had turned their backs on idolatry and been restored to a right relationship with the one true God, through a relationship with Jesus Christ.

And Timothy must have found all of this incredibly encouraging to his faith. He had enjoyed a front-row seat experience to the gospel’s transforming power and to Paul’s obvious calling as an ambassador of Jesus Christ. And he was compelled to follow Paul’s example – until things went south and Paul was imprisoned. But Paul didn’t want Timothy to lose heart. So, he challenged Timothy to quit focusing on his imprisonment and to remember all that he had taught him.

Hold on to the pattern of wholesome teaching you learned from me—a pattern shaped by the faith and love that you have in Christ Jesus. – 2 Timothy 1:13 NLT

Paul’s circumstances had done nothing to alter the gospel message. His imprisonment had not confined the good news any more than Jesus’ death had prevented His resurrection and ascension. The sovereign plan of God was alive and well and Timothy had a responsibility to continue the work of spreading the message of salvation through faith alone in Christ alone.

Confined to prison, Paul passed the responsibility of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles to Timothy and warned him to “carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you” (2 Timothy 1:14 NLT). And he was to do it “through the power of the Holy Spirit” (2 Timothy 1:14 NLT). Nothing had changed. Paul’s imprisonment was not a problem for God. It had not caught the Almighty by surprise or left Him desperately trying to develop a “Plan B.” It was all part of God’s divine strategy and Paul wanted Timothy to know that he had been chosen by God for this very occasion. He had been called, gifted, and empowered by God. He had been sent to Ephesus by Paul. And he was right where he was supposed to be in order to accomplish what God had for him to do.

Paul wanted Timothy to understand that his role was not up for debate. He may not have liked the circumstances surrounding his life, but he had no choice but to embrace the gift of grace bestowed on him by God.

God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. – 2 Timothy 1:9 NLT

And to ensure that Timothy remains faithful to his calling, Paul brings up the actions of two individuals named Phygelus and Hermogenes, who had used Paul’s imprisonment as an excuse to abandon him. Evidently, these men had played a leadership role among the churches in Asia and their treatment of Paul had negatively impacted those under their care.

In contrast, Paul points out the efforts of Onesiphorus, someone who had chosen to remain faithful to Paul and his ministry in spite of his imprisonment. Paul points out that this individual and his family “often visited and encouraged me. He was never ashamed of me because I was in chains” (2 Timothy 1:17 NLT). Onesiphorus had even made a special trip to Rome in order to locate Paul and encourage him. And Paul expresses his gratitude by asking the Lord to show special kindness to this man and his family.

Paul wants Timothy to model his life after Onesiphorus, not Phygelus and Hermogenes. He wants his young friend to embrace a mindset of selfless service and sacrificial love, refusing to allow the circumstances of life to deter him from his mission or to distract him from his calling. The gospel does not need fair-weather friends who bail at the first sign of trouble. Paul wanted Timothy to know that his job was going to be difficult but not impossible. He would face trials, but he was not alone. And Timothy was going to need to embrace his role as non-negotiable and fully binding. In fact, in the very next lines of his letter, Paul will call Timothy to “share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:3 ESV).

And, as a soldier of Christ, Timothy was obligated to serve faithfully and obediently. That’s why, in his first letter to Timothy, Paul had provided him with some strong words of instruction.

But you, Timothy, are a man of God; so run from all these evil things. Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses. – 1 Timothy 6:11-12 NLT

Paul may have been in jail, but Timothy was free to spread the good news of Jesus Christ and to continue the work of building up the body of Christ. There was no time to doubt and debate the efficacy of God’s strategy. There was work to be done and Paul wanted Timothy to know that he was the man for the hour. And his young age, inexperience, feelings of inadequacy, fear, and reservations were no match for God’s divine calling and Spirit-empowered gifting for the task at hand. Timothy needed to remain committed to the cause and ready to be used by the one who had called him to begin with.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Called By God.

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying,“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” But the Lord said to me,

“Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you,
declares the Lord.”

Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me,

“Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” – Jeremiah 1:4-10 ESV

The verses above contain the conversation Jeremiah had with God concerning his calling to be a prophet. They reflect Yahweh’s sovereign selection of Jeremiah and Jeremiah’s reluctant response to the news. It is easy to read these words and miss the significance of the fact that Jeremiah was talking with God Almighty. We are not told how Jeremiah received this news from God. The text simply says, “Now the word of the Lord came to me” (Jeremiah 1:4 ESV). Was it in the form of a vision? Was it an audible voice? Did an angel appear? We don’t know. But suffice it to say, that Jeremiah was probably a bit surprised to hear from God, no matter how it happened. And, when he heard what God had to say, it obviously caught Jeremiah by surprise. Jeremiah was probably as young as 16, and no older than 20, when he heard this call from God. Which explains Jeremiah’s response: “I am only a youth” (Jeremiah 1:7 ESV). Hearing God speak to him was shocking enough, but when he heard what God had for him to do, Jeremiah was understandably dumbfounded. He was just a kid. What was God thinking? He didn’t have what it took to be a prophet. But God opened up his conversation with Jeremiah with a statement that should have brought the young man comfort.

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.” – Jeremiah 1:5 NLT

Notice what God says. He tells Jeremiah that He knew (yada’) Jeremiah before gestation. The Hebrew word provides a glimpse into God’s incredible omniscience and sovereignty. He knew, had an awareness of, Jeremiah long before he was even conceived. This was not some last-minute selection process where God looked down from heaven and spied Jeremiah and determined he would make a good candidate for a prophet. No, God had pre-ordained Jeremiah’s birth and his ultimate appointment as a prophet. Jeremiah had been created by God for his role as a prophet. In speaking of Jeremiah’s appointment, God used the Hebrew word, qadash. It most often gets translated as “sanctify” and it usually means to consecrate or set apart as sacred. God was telling Jeremiah that he had been set apart by God for His use. He had been created by God for a specific purpose. He was not a cosmic accident or a byproduct of random chance. He had been fore-ordained and set apart to be God’s divinely appointed spokesperson. And that word “appointed” is the Hebrew word, nathan, which most often gets translated as “give”. God was giving Jeremiah to the nations as a prophet. Jeremiah belonged to God and was being sent by God to minister to His people.

And yet, Jeremiah responds to this astounding news by telling God, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth” (Jeremiah 1:6 ESV). All God’s talk of Jeremiah being preordained and created specifically for this role fell on deaf ears. To Jeremiah, this all sounded like a case of mistaken identity. God must have gotten him confused with someone else. So he attempted to inform God that he was too young and too ill-equipped for this assignment. But what Jeremiah failed to comprehend was that the God who had set him apart even prior to his conception, knew things about Jeremiah he didn’t know himself. God hadn’t just made Jeremiah for the job, He had equipped him to accomplish it. Within Jeremiah’s DNA were all the qualities and attributes he would need to do what he had been created to do.

God rejected Jeremiah’s attempt to use his young age as an excuse. God was not going to be limited by what Jeremiah believed to be a chronological deficiency. And his inability to speak was not going to be a deal-breaker either. God had made Jeremiah specifically for this job. He was perfectly suited for the assignment. He just didn’t know it yet. So, God simply told Jeremiah, “you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you” (Jeremiah 1:7 NLT). The only thing Jeremiah had to worry about was obeying God. He was going to be told where to do and exactly what to say. Jeremiah wasn’t going to have to come up with a criteria or agenda. He wasn’t going to have to write any speeches. God had all the details pre-planned, down to the very words Jeremiah was going to say. Not only that, God knew how it was all going to turn out. Which is why He told Jeremiah, “And don’t be afraid of the people, for I will be with you and will protect you” (Jeremiah 1:8 NLT). At this point, Jeremiah had no idea what it was that God was going to have him say. He wasn’t even sure where he was being sent. But God knew. And God was fully aware of how Jeremiah’s assignment was going to turn out. All Jeremiah needed to know was that God had created him for this role and that the outcome was completely up to God.

God touched Jeremiah’s lips and told him, “I have put my words in your mouth” (Jeremiah 1:9 ESV). This symbolic gesture was designed to assure Jeremiah that the words he spoke would be the words of God. Yahweh would be using Jeremiah’s lips to deliver His message to the nations. He would be speaking on behalf of God. And Jeremiah’s assignment was “to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant” (Jeremiah 1:10 ESV). In these words we have a synopsis of Jeremiah’s message. He was going to tell the people of Judah about God’s plan to bring judgment upon them in the form of the Babylonians. They would be destroyed because of their disobedience and unfaithfulness to God. But one day, they would return to the land and be restored to God. God would rebuke, but He would also redeem. He would punish, but He would also pardon. 

Jeremiah didn’t need to doubt his calling. He didn’t need to worry about his qualification. He didn’t even need to worry about whether he would be successful or not. God had it all under control. From beginning to end, this was all part of God’s sovereign plan. There were no loose ends. There were no aspects of the plan that had not been taken into account. No matter how Jeremiah felt about his qualifications or how he might later view the success of his efforts, God knew what He was doing and had already determined exactly what was going to happen. All Jeremiah had to do was go and speak.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Chosen, Called and Commissioned.

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior;

To Titus, my true child in a common faith:

Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. – Titus 1:1-4 ESV

As the title of this letter reflects, Paul was writing to Titus, another one of his young disciples in the faith. This letter, like the ones Paul wrote to Timothy, are intended to encourage and instruct Titus as he ministers on behalf of the gospel. As we will shortly see, Paul had left Titus in Crete with the task of ministering to the faithful there. He had given Titus clear instructions to “put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you” (Titus 1:5 ESV). Now, Paul was writing to this young man with further words of encouragement and instruction. But before Paul addresses Titus, he sets up his letter with a salutation or greeting. This was a common feature of most letters during that day. Unlike our letters, where we sign our name at the end, ancient letters began with a formal introduction of the one from whom the letter was being sent. All of Paul’s letters begin this way, with some featuring longer salutations than others. This is a particularly long one and is far more than simply a greeting or introduction. In it, Paul provides a summation of what he is going to be dealing with in the main content of his letter.

Paul begins with a dual description of himself as the servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. Both of these designations are intended to support Paul’s authority and divine commission. The Greek word he used for servant is doulos and referred to a bond-servant or slave. Paul, a former Pharisee, was well-versed in the Hebrew Scriptures and would have been very familiar with the use of this term in association with some of the great men of God of the past. Moses, David and Elijah were each referred to as servants or slaves of God. This was a designation of honor, not infamy. Each of these men had been chosen by God for His service. In essence, they belonged to Him. They were His servant and each of them saw this role as a privilege, not a burden. And Paul was claiming to have that same kind of relationship with God. He had been hand-picked by God and commissioned to accomplish the will of God on this earth. He served God, not man. He answered to God, not man. His was a divine calling, complete with authority and power given to Him by God Himself. 

Secondly, Paul was an apostle of Jesus Christ. The Greek word is apostolos and it refers to a delegate, messenger or one sent forth with orders (“G652 - apostolos - Strong's Greek Lexicon (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible). Paul was not only a servant of God, he had been delegated by Jesus Christ as His representative and had been given a very specific task to perform. We have the exact words of that commission recorded for us in the book of Acts. They are part of Paul’s testimony regarding his salvation experience on the road to Damascus.

“I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” – Acts 26:15-18 ESV

And Paul further clarifies for Titus the purpose behind his role as a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ.

I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen and to teach them to know the truth that shows them how to live godly lives. – Titus 1:1 ESV

In his role as servant and apostle, Paul had been sent to proclaim the message of salvation by faith in Christ so that all those whom God had chosen could hear it. And when those so chosen by God had placed their faith in Christ, Paul was obligated by God and His Son to teach them the truth, so that they might live godly lives. In other words, Paul had a dual responsibility: To play a role in the salvation of the lost, but also in the sanctification of the saved.

And one of the things Paul firmly believed and expressed to his young friend, Titus, was the doctrine of God’s election. He uses the term, “God’s elect” in order to refer to those who come to faith. The Greek word is eklektos and it means “picked out or chosen” (“G1588 - eklektos - Strong's Greek Lexicon (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible). In The New Living Translation, verse one reads: “I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen.” In Paul’s understanding of the gospel, God was the acting agent behind salvation. He did not leave anything up to chance. Just as God had chosen Paul for salvation, so He has pre-ordained all those who will come to faith in Christ. Paul played no role in his salvation. He was not seeking Christ. In fact, he was busy persecuting and eliminating all those who claimed to be followers of Christ. And yet, God had chosen him for salvation. And Paul believed that was true for everyone who came to faith in Christ, past, present or future. 

The doctrine of divine election firmly establishes the believer’s eternal security. God has not left the believer’s assurance of salvation captive to changing feelings or faltering faith. Rather, the faithfulness of God demonstrated in his divine election secures the believer’s salvation in the will and purposes of God himself. – Thomas D. Lea and Hayne P. Griffin Jr., 1, 2 Timothy, Titus, p. 265

For Paul, salvation, godliness and eternal life were all the work of God. None were possible without Him. And all of them were pre-ordained and promised by God “before the ages began” (Titus 1:2 ESV). And the message regarding salvation, godliness and eternal life was given at just the right time, through men like Paul, so that the elect might come to faith through the preaching of the good news.

Suffice it to say, Paul saw himself as a man with divine authority and a providential responsibility to spread the gospel so that others might come to faith in Christ and to ensure that those very same individuals grew in godliness. And he saw Titus as a sharing in that very same responsibility and calling. This young man, whom Paul saw as his child in the faith, was also carrying the heavy burden of ministering the gospel to the people of Crete, carrying on what Paul and others had begun. And in the rest of his letter to Titus, Paul will provide him with much-needed guidance and encouragement for the task that lay before him.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Called According To His Purpose.

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. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. – Romans 8:29-30 ESV

All things work together for good. That's a promise given to us by Paul, but provided through him by the very Spirit of God. So we have God's word of assurance that our circumstances will always, ultimately, work according to His divine plan for our lives. Paul writes, “all things work together for good,for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28 ESV). You see, God has a purpose, a plan, and a program that He is bringing about. This is not some fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants, make-it-up-as-you-go-along affair. It may feel that way at times. We may wonder if God has a plan in place or whether that plan has somehow left us out. But God would have us remember that He is in control – at all times. The message of these two verses is plain. God did not look down the corridors of time and somehow see who it was who would accept His Son as their Savior. This isn't a case of God's foreknowledge of what we would do, but of what He would do for us. He predetermined or pre-ordained our salvation through His Son long before any of us were even born. Even before the universe had been spoken into existence. And the divine purpose of God was not just for our salvation, but our transformation. His plan was and is complete. It has a beginning and an end. He foreknew us. He predestined us. He called us. He justified us. He glorified us. All of these words are in the past tense. They are as good as done. His plan is complete, even though His work is not yet done. As Paul has made clear, we do not yet have glorified, redeemed bodies. We still battle with our fallen flesh and our old sin nature. We endure suffering of all kinds in this life. But our ultimate outcome has been predetermined by God. We are being conformed to the image of His Son. “For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!” (2 Corinthians 4:17 NLT). We have been justified, made right with God. While at one time we were sinners, condemned and destined to an eternity separated from God, we have been declared innocent, sinless and righteous by God. We stand before Him completely forgiven and entirely covered by the righteousness of Christ. And our future, glorified bodies are as good as ours – right here, right now. That is part of God's plan and God's plan for us is unstoppable and unchangeable.

This whole process of our salvation is the work of God. He is the one who foreknew, predestined, called, justified and glorified. This was His plan, from beginning to end. And because it is His plan and not ours, it is without error and totally independent of our effort or input. That is why ALL THINGS work together for our good. His plan cannot be stopped, altered or ignored. He WILL conform us to the image of His Son. He will do for us all that He predetermined to do. He has an end in mind and He will not stop until His plan is completely fulfilled. That is why we must learn to look past our circumstances and focus our attention on the future promises of God. Paul tells us, “So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT).

We must never forget that we have been called according to His purpose, not ours. He is out to accomplish His will for us, not ours. While we may suffer from tunnel-sightedness at times, we must constantly remind ourselves to see our circumstances through the lens of God's full redemptive plan. He IS conforming us, whether we see it or not. He IS glorifying us, whether we feel like it or not. “And the Lord--who is the Spirit--makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image” (2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT). From “one degree of glory to another” as the English Standard Version translates it. God didn't simply save us and leave us to somehow make it on our own. He didn't redeem us and then leave us to fend for ourselves. His plan included sending His Son to die for our sins, as well as providing His Spirit to comfort, guide and empower us while we live out our days on this planet. Then one day He is going to send His Son again. He will complete the work His Father gave Him and finalize the plan of God. God promised it and we can count on it. 

And We Know…

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. – Romans 8:28 ESV

This is one of the most frequently quoted verses in the Bible; but, sadly, it is too often one of the most misquoted and misused verses in the Bible. It seems to be the one verse we all bring up when we encounter someone who is struggling or suffering. We reach into our Bible Band-aid Box and pull out what we hope will be something to soothe the pain of our brother or sister in Christ. The problem is that this verse can end up sounding hollow and empty when quoted to someone who is knee-deep in difficulty. What it says may be true, but that doesn't mean that it will bring comfort to the individual who is smack-dab in the middle of a difficult situation. While we may mean well when we throw around this verse like some kind of secret elixir or cure-all, we can actually end up aggravating rather than alleviating someone's pain and suffering. Our efforts can do more harm than good.

Part of the problem is that we lift this verse out of its context. Paul has been talking about “the sufferings of this present time” (Romans 8:18 ESV). He describes us as groaning inwardly “as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies” (Romans 8:24 ESV). He tells us we are weak and do not know what or how to pray. But he says, “The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (Romans 8:26 ESV). We are surrounded by suffering. We have to constantly battle our own sin nature and “put to death the deeds of the body” (Romans 8:13 ESV). We have to remind ourselves daily that we are children of God and heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16). And our very existence as sons and daughters of God puts us at odds with this world and with Satan, the prince of this world. And while “the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18 ESV), they are still real and difficult to handle at times.

But as we suffer and pray, struggling with uncertainty and seeking to understand God's will in all that is going on around us, Paul tells us “we know…” We know what? That “God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them” (Romans 8:28 NLT). This does not mean that everything works out perfectly. It does not mean that God removes all our pain, heals all our diseases, or eliminates all our suffering. It means that our pain, sickness and suffering have a divine purpose behind them, because God is in control. He is sovereign. This is not to say that He is the cause behind our pain, sickness and suffering, but that God is not thwarted by or somehow limited by them when it comes to accomplishing His good in our lives.

The phrase “all things work together” is all-encompassing. It means ALL things – the good, the bad and the ugly. We may not understand how good can come out of the bad experiences of life, but the Holy Spirit is there to remind us that God is sovereignly at work in our lives, using each and every moment of life to accomplish His divine will. There is a story in the Old Testament that speaks of this very truth. Joseph had been sold into slavery by his own brothers. They hated him and were jealous of him, so they pawned him off on some slave traders then told Joseph's father that his son was dead. Joseph ended up as a slave in Egypt. His life is one of constant ups and downs. There are incredible highs followed by unbelievable lows. At one point he gets falsely accused and imprisoned. But the next thing he knows, he finds himself occupying the second-highest position in the land, subject only to Pharaoh himself. And when his brothers arrive in town and discover that their long-lost brother is not only alive, but in a position to punish them for all they did to him, they panic. But Joseph tells them, “now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life” (Genesis 45:5 ESV). He surprises them by saying, “it was not you who sent me here, but God” (Genesis 45:8 ESV). And then he drops the bombshell, “you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20 ESV).

God had worked “all things” together for good – not only for Joseph, but for the people of God. He took all the bad things that happened in Joseph's life and used them to accomplish His divine will. God didn't just turn Joseph's apparent bad luck into good luck. He orchestrated the whole affair, having sent Joseph ahead of time into Egypt in order to preserve life. And everything that happened from the moment Joseph arrived in Egypt was part of God's plan. But sometimes we don't see His plan until we have the opportunity to look back in retrospect. It's then that we perceive the sovereign hand of God in our lives.

You see, God had a bigger plan in store for Joseph and for the people of Israel. And He has a bigger plan in mind than just our own comfort and personal convenience. God is pushing all things toward the ultimate fulfillment of His divine plan for mankind. Yes, we must suffer for this present time. But there is a time coming when all our suffering will make sense to us. Yes, we have to live in these bodies of flesh, but there is a day coming when we will receive new bodies. Yes, we have a lot to cry about right now, but we have been promised an eternity with no more tears, sorrow or pain. Yes, we have to daily struggle against our sin nature, but there is a time coming when sin will be no more. All things will work together for good. If not in this life, in the one to come. There is a reason for our suffering. There is a purpose behind our pain. And if nothing else, it should drive us to Him for comfort and teach us to trust Him for a good and godly outcome.

The Work of God.

1 Corinthians 1:18-31

God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. – 1 Corinthians 1:30 NLT

After warning the Corinthians about the danger of division within the body of Christ, Paul reminded them that the work of salvation had nothing to do with man. Paul, Apollos and Peter were nothing more than messengers of the Good News. Their role was to tell what God had done through Christ on the cross. Paul made this point quite emphatically when he wrote, "Has Christ been divided into factions? Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not!" (1 Corinthians 1:13 NLT). Salvation was not man's idea, but God's. In fact, left to their own devises, mankind had not been able to come up with a way to restore their relationship with God. No amount of good works, sacrifices, worship or religious rituals had ever fixed the problem created by the sin of mankind. So God had come up with His own plan, and it appeared as nothing less than foolish from man's perspective. God chose to send His sinless Son to die on a cross for the sins of mankind. And to those who are lost, "The message of the cross is foolish" (1 Corinthians 1:18 NLT). It appears ridiculous. It sounds far-fetched, too hard to believe. To the philosophers, scholars and the brilliant debaters of this world, the message of the cross sounds like superstitious nonsense – the creation of pathetically simpleminded people.

"But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God" (1 Corinthians 1:24 NLT). To those who humbly accept the message of Christ's substitionary death on the cross as real and life-transforming, the power of God is self-evident and non-debatable. It is clear that the work of salvation is the work of God – from beginning to end. Man has nothing to do with it. God chose us. God called us. God united us with Christ. And it was Christ who made us right with God. It was He who made us pure and holy. It was He who freed us from sin, not Paul, Apollos or Peter. So there is no reason for anyone to boast – either in themselves or any other human being. Salvation is God's work and He accomplished it through the death of His own Son. The only role we played was that of the foolish, powerless, helpless, despised and sin-enslaved human being. We brought nothing of value to the table. We had no worth or merit in God's eyes. God didn't look down from heaven and select the best and the brightest. He didn't choose the rich, famous or successful ones. He wasn't impressed with anyone's talents, efforts, resume or attempts at self-righteousness. Because in God's eyes, all men were sinners. All men were separated from Him. All men were deserving of His wrath and destined to spend eternity being punished for their rebellion against Him. But God had a plan. He had a solution to man's problem that didn't involve man at all. It was His work. It required the death of His Son. It was His plan and "this foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God's weakness is stronger than the greatest of human reason" (1 Corinthians 1:25 NLT). So there is nothing for us to boast about, except in the fact that God has chosen us. We need to boast about God. We need to brag about Him. We need to constantly remind one another that, without His plan of salvation – as foolish as it may sound – none of us would have any hope.

Father, thank You for Your incredible plan of salvation. Without it, I would have no hope. I would have no future. But because You sent Your Son to die on a cross in my place, and You chose to open my eyes so that I could see the futility of my situation and the reality of salvation made available through His death, I now stand as right and righteous before You. I have nothing to boast about, except You. Don't ever allow me to make it about me again. Don't allow me to make more of anyone than I do of you. Amen.