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Sermon #3183

Working for Our Good

A Sermon on Romans 8:28-30

Originally preached Nov. 10, 1961

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Scripture

Romans 8:28-30 ESV KJV
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for 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, in order that he might be the firstborn among …

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Sermon Description

This sermon is for those who feel like life is spinning out of control, or question where God is when terribly hard things happen, and wonder if God is against them. In this sermon on Romans 8:28 titled “Working For Our Good,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones considers “one of the most remarkable statements in the whole of Scripture. The ultimate doctrine—written for our consolation and edification.” The apostle Paul wrote, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” This promise is not for everybody but for the Christian; all things are working together for their good. God is overruling everything in the whole cosmos for their good benefit. How can this be? How can things that seem to work against the Christian actually be working for their good? In this sermon, Dr. Lloyd-Jones answers the question with six compelling reasons that will reassure and strengthen the Christian’s soul throughout any future seasons of trials and sufferings.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The apostle Paul lays down a proposition in Romans 8:28 that "all things work together for good to them that love God."
  2. In verses 29-30, Paul proves and demonstrates this assertion.
  3. The statement in verse 28 is limited to only those who love God and are called according to His purpose. It does not apply to everyone.
  4. God is the one working all things together for good, not an automatic principle in life itself.
  5. "All things" refers to everything - good things, bad things, trials, troubles, tribulations, illnesses, accidents, disappointments, and even sin. These things are not good in themselves but God uses them for our good.
  6. These things work for our good by:
    1. Pulling us up and awakening us from spiritual slumber and routine. This makes us think and is good for us.
    2. Revealing our weakness, frailty, lack of understanding, and sinfulness. This humbles us which we need.
    3. Driving us back to God in dependence and prayer. This helps us discover more about God's character and grow in grace and knowledge of Him.
    4. Compelling us to realize the temporary nature of this life and think more of the glory to come. This loosens our attachment to the world.
  7. Through these things, we become "more than conquerors" as God uses them for our good and His ultimate purpose.
  8. An illustration of a watch shows how opposite and contradictory things can work together for a purpose under the control of the watchmaker. Likewise, God is in control of all things in our lives, even those that seem against us, and is working them for our good.

Sermon Q&A

What Does Romans 8:28-30 Mean According to Martyn Lloyd-Jones?

How does Lloyd-Jones explain "all things work together for good" in Romans 8:28?

According to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans 8:28 means that "God is overruling all things in such a way that they turn out for the good and the benefit of his people." He emphasizes that this promise is specifically limited to Christians - "to them that love God" - and does not apply to everyone. Lloyd-Jones clarifies that the things themselves are not inherently good, but rather God uses and overrules them for the good of believers. Even trials, tribulations, illnesses, disappointments, failures, and sins are transformed by God's providence to ultimately benefit His people.

What is the purpose of trials and difficulties according to Lloyd-Jones' sermon?

Lloyd-Jones explains that difficulties serve several important spiritual purposes:

  1. They "pull us up" and break our dangerous routines
  2. They make us think and pay attention to our spiritual condition
  3. They reveal our smallness, weakness, and frailty
  4. They humble us when we become self-confident
  5. They show us our lack of understanding and knowledge
  6. They reveal our sinfulness and wrong ideas about God
  7. They drive us back to complete dependence on God
  8. They help us discover deeper truths about God's character
  9. They detach us from worldly attachments
  10. They make us think more about eternal glory

As Lloyd-Jones states: "Anything that drives us back to God is good for us. That's how it works out."

How does Lloyd-Jones analyze the structure of Romans 8:28-30?

Lloyd-Jones provides this analysis of the passage:

  1. Verse 28 contains a proposition or assertion: "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God"
  2. Verses 29-30 prove the proposition and demonstrate the assertion
  3. Verses 29-30 elaborate on the final phrase of verse 28: "to them who are the called according to his purpose"

He views this as a new subsection in Romans 8, though connected to the previous discussion about the Spirit helping believers in their weaknesses. Lloyd-Jones describes this passage as containing "one of the most remarkable statements" and "from the standpoint of sheer statement of exalted doctrine, there is really nothing higher than this."

What illustration does Lloyd-Jones use to explain how contradictory things work together for good?

Lloyd-Jones shares an illustration from an old preacher about a watch. In a watch, different wheels turn in opposite directions (some clockwise, others counterclockwise), which might initially appear contradictory or chaotic. However, these seemingly opposing movements are all controlled by a main spring and designed by a watchmaker with purpose.

Similarly, in the Christian's life, things that appear to work against us (trials, difficulties) and things that work for us (blessings) are all being directed by God according to His purpose. As Lloyd-Jones explains: "All things, everything, every part and portion of it, everything that's happening to you is working together. God's made it like that... All is working together for our good, our immediate good, but still more our ultimate, our final good."

Why does Lloyd-Jones reject false optimism about life and the world?

Lloyd-Jones strongly rejects the false optimism expressed by poets like Browning who wrote "All's right with the world." He calls this "the false optimism of the world" that doesn't stand up to reality. Lloyd-Jones states: "All's not right with the world. All's wrong with the world. And that's why the Christian salvation has ever become necessary."

He prefers that people acknowledge life's hopelessness rather than be "lulled to sleep with a false kind of optimism." The Christian's hope is not based on a naive view that everything in the world is good, but rather on God's promise to work all things - including the difficult and painful - for the ultimate good of His people who are called according to His purpose.

The Book of Romans

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.