In our Romans passage we have some of sayings from Paul, that
are often misused and misunderstood, because they are taken out of context and
thus removed from Paul’s logic and purpose: Paul wishes to assure us that God
loves us and has us no matter what, and not that we will always be “victorious”
or have total understanding of the meaning (if any) of a moment of suffering.
The first saying is “all
things work together for good.” Note, not all things are good, but work
together for good, but what is usually missed in the quotation of this verse is
the good to which Paul is referring. The
good here is our place in Christ, our being brought back into relationship with
God.. The good is the restoration of our humanity in Christ and through the
Spirit.
This is what we continually find as we look at these passages
so often quoted but so often disconnected from Paul’s preaching of the Cross
and Resurrection. The point resting in
the assurance of the means of the restoration of our humanity, so that we can
be who we were created to be, in relationship with God and in that relationship
image God.
This is our predestination. What we are predestined into is
the same as we were created to be in the Garden of Eden -, to know and to image
God. It is in Jesus Christ that our humanity is restored, and through whom we
can know and image God.
Thus, when Paul rhetorically asks, “If God is for us, who Can
be against us?” This is about our restored humanity, not some statement about
how God will bless anything we put our hands too (Though, with the Psalmists we
can and should pray that God bless the work of our hands, but that’s not Paul’s
point or focus in Romans). Paul says that the Gospel shows us that through
incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Christ God is for our
full and true humanity. No matter who or what seeks to rob us of our deepest
and truest selves, God is there without reserve and without qualification,
saying “I’ve done and am doing everything needed to be in relationship with you
and to free you to image me.” This is our victory in Christ, it is living into
our created, predestined and restored humanity in Christ, that we are more than
conquerors.
This should make a difference in our daily lives as we are
buffeted by our own temptations to sin and our own sins, or the cruelty,
oppression and indifference of other human beings, or just the suffering that
comes from death and illness. But the difference isn’t that God has planned
every detail and everything that happens is caused by God. And it also isn’t that God simply because of
one’s faith in Christ, causes everything we put our minds to, to be successful.
But we can be assured that whatever life circumstance come our way, success or
failure, health or sickness, freedom or oppression, that this doesn’t alter our
humanity nor our purpose in God, nor that we are images of God made to be in relationship
with God.
This is so much deeper and has so much more breadth and depth
than, that God ensures that those with faith in Christ will succeed, and that
we can be assured that God is working some temporal and fleeting good from
everything in our lives good or ill. Our victory is the restoration of our
humanity which God accomplished in the incarnation, which was sealed in the
crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ.
In Jesus Christ, God demonstrated that there is nothing that
can separate us from the Love of God, and thus there is absolutely nothing that
can separate us from our truest selves, our full humanity: to know and be known
by God and to be God’s image.
Paul in this passage is basking in the Glory of God’s work in
Jesus Christ, and seeking to assure us that once we enter into and embrace that
reality, there’s nothing more, there’s no addition to this, no other work to be
done. Thus, we can have no fear, in
Christ we know who we are, and we know God’s love. A love that was there from
all eternity, that was hid from us by our sin, by the devil and by death. God
in Christ shows us our true humanity, and overcomes sin, death, and the devil.
There is now no one to judge us, no one to tell us we are
unworthy, there is only God’s witness to God’s intentions and love, in the
person of Jesus Christ. Nothing can or will change that, nor ever could. God
has always loved us, God has always wanted to be known by us and for us to be known
at the depths of our being.
Yes, we are more than conquerors! Yes, God works out this Good in and through all things, even death on a cross! Yes, we have been predestined for
this relationship with God! Yes, nothing can ever separate us form God’s love!
No matter what any life circumstance might bring, no matter who accuses you, no
matter your own temptations or sin! God has shown us God’s love in Christ, and
accomplished in Christ all that needs to be done for us to have this restored
relationship.
Now you know the way, simply walk in it! Walk in the light of
God’s love. Walk in the world as an image of God. Walk as one who knows and is
known by God. Do this, no matter what may come!
Amen.
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