0:00:00 - 0:00:21 Romans 828 is a common verse. It's a popular verse. It's well known. But um I have a feeling that the things I'm gonna share with you today are ideas that you haven't heard before. And they're very valuable to me. And I hope that they're helpful to you in the King James, which in this particular verse 0:00:20 - 0:00:43 , you'll find that other translations are quite similar, it says, and we know that all things work together for good to them, that love God to them who are called according to his purpose. Well, um many verses, you can get a clearer indication of the meaning of the words used by looking them up in the 0:00:43 - 0:01:08 Hebrew or the Greek. Uh in this case, uh because this is a new Testament scripture, you'll find um that the, the oldest versions we have are in Greek and looking at these words. Um I won't say that uh what I'm about to share will just sort of fall out of what you find. But um these are meanings that 0:01:08 - 0:01:34 I was led to by the spirit. And I think that you'll find that they're justifiable in the meanings of the words that were used. So let's go through this in literal Greek. Um The, the order of this sentence is different. And what it says is we know now that to those loving God, all things works together 0:01:33 - 0:01:59 God for good to those according to his purpose called being. So there are three pieces of this. The first is uh who this applies to, which is those loving God. The second is what this verse promises to them, which is all things works together. God for good. Then the third piece is an echo of the first 0:01:59 - 0:02:26 , which is another description of the people to whom this applies those according to his purpose called being. So that's the first key is that this is a kind of a triangular verse where A and C are the same idea and B applies to the people described in A and C. So um I promise this isn't gonna get too 0:02:26 - 0:02:52 technical, but once we get through the details, I think it'll all make complete sense. It'll be a very simple idea but extremely powerful in your life. So I hope you stay with us for just a, a little while. OK. So the first thing we need to talk about is part A. Um So actually, I'm gonna change that 0:02:52 - 0:03:13 . What we're gonna talk about first is part B, we're gonna talk about the promise that's here and then we're gonna peel apart who it applies to. So um all things works together God for good. Now, if I were to ask you, what does it mean that, you know, going back to the King James, uh that all things 0:03:13 - 0:03:40 work together for good. What would you say? Because I think most people would say something like in the end, everything works out, but that's not actually what that says. So let's, let's uh dig in a little bit so we need to define, work together and good. So work together. Uh that word in Greek. I'm 0:03:40 - 0:04:00 not sure if I'm pronouncing it right? Is synergy. And if you were to look at the word and maybe even from my butchered pronunciation, maybe you're connecting it to what the equivalent word in English is because it's not together together, falls flat. It doesn't convey the same meaning as the Greek word 0:04:00 - 0:04:19 that Greek word is synergy. It's the same word as synergy. So if you were to look at the definition of synergy because this is one of many English words where a lot of people say, yeah, I know what that means. I've heard that before. I'm familiar with it. But the definition they would give is short of 0:04:19 - 0:04:41 the actual definition of the word. Some senses are lost. So this is right from the internet. Synergy means the interaction or co-operation of two or more organizations, substances or other agents to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects. So in plain English, for something 0:04:40 - 0:05:08 to be synergistic or for a set of things to be synergistic, it has to be the case that their, their total combined effect is greater than the sum of the effects of each part. So for example, in a good marriage, that couple together is much greater than the sum of each person individually. What they bring 0:05:08 - 0:05:28 to the table together is greater than what they could bring together by summing them apart. Does that make sense? So now uh we'll talk about what it means to be good? That word good in is another one where if you ask someone to define the word, they'd be able to say something. They use the word every 0:05:28 - 0:05:52 day. What does it actually mean? And this one, we could get into a little bit greater disputation about. But in the, in the plainest sense, in the scriptural sense, what the word good means, especially in Greek is. So anywhere in the New Testament where you see the word maximal benefit and both of those 0:05:51 - 0:06:17 ideas are essential, but benefit is improvement. It's better than it was. That's what good means. But you have to tie it to this idea of maximal because if it's not the best, it's actually not good, it's less than good maximal benefit. So maximal improvement, the most improvement that could ever be given 0:06:16 - 0:06:46 the situation, right? So that's good. So let's put these things together, all things works together. God for good. What that means? The promise here is that those who fulfill the conditions of this promise can rest assured in 100% confidence that absolutely everything, everything that happens to them 0:06:45 - 0:07:21 is exactly what would lead to the greatest possible benefit for them. This is a profoundly enormous promise because anyone who truly believes this would have to one conclude that they are on the path to and already receiving the greatest outcomes that could ever be for them. Also, it means that you would 0:07:21 - 0:07:47 have to have, if you truly believe this, you would have to have untouchable peace in every facet of your life. No matter how challenging what you face is, no matter how brutal what you suffer is, no matter how negative whatever you're going through may seem to be, you have to conclude that it is the 0:07:47 - 0:08:14 absolute best thing possible for God to put in your life here and now and not only that, but it leads to even greater things than you have right now. It's an amazing, amazing promise. And incidentally, I think for a child, if you were to ask a child, what God, if he were all powerful and all knowing 0:08:13 - 0:08:36 and all loving, what would he put into your life given, you know, subject to limitations of vocabulary and, and uh cognitive ability. This is exactly what the child would imagine. If you believe in an all powerful, all knowing all loving creator, you would expect that every single piece of your life 0:08:36 - 0:09:00 would be absolutely the best thing that he could possibly engineer for you and guess what? That's exactly what this says. So that's amazing because what it means is anytime it doesn't seem that way, if you're fulfilling the conditions that we're about to get into, it means that it's just your perception 0:08:59 - 0:09:24 that's off. And that's an amazing thing because it gives you complete freedom from the limitations of your understanding of your value system, of your, any other limitation that you might have in the accuracy of what you can see and feel. And it means you really can lean completely into God and have 0:09:23 - 0:09:49 full joy in doing that, full peace, be completely and vulnerable to what life can throw at you. And now Jesus, he promised that he would give those that love him, peace, peace, that the world can't touch. And that's exactly what this says. He said, he overcame the world and that all those that follow 0:09:48 - 0:10:09 him and love him, he'll lead in the same path. And that's exactly what this says. So let's get to the conditions. So the conditions I told you the first and last part of the verse, when you look at the order in Greek, these two chunks are describing the same thing. It's a parallel, it's a mirror. He's 0:10:09 - 0:10:25 describing it from one facet and then he's describing it from another just so we cannot possibly get it wrong. It's not laid out that way in the English they're combined. But in this, it's, it's very clear that these things are parallel and there are two descriptions of the same idea. So we can't get 0:10:25 - 0:10:47 lost. So let's get into it. So to make sense of this one, we need to understand what love is. Um No, no big challenge there. And then we need to understand what it's what it means to be uh called according to his purpose. Um quoting a king James, the Greek is slightly different to those according to 0:10:47 - 0:11:19 his purpose called being. Um OK, so love, we're gonna keep it super simple. This is agape is the word. Um love is to prefer above all else in this case, that's what it means. So to love God is to prefer Him above all else. Have no other gods before me. Love God with all your heart might mind and strength 0:11:18 - 0:11:44 . Priority number one in all things and not just that it's not out of obligation or fear, it's out of desire to desire God above all else. Now, it's a funny thing in modern Christianity. It's not hard to find people who think that uh at the same time, they can occupy two mutually exclusive positions 0:11:44 - 0:12:05 that they can do what we just said, love God above all else and, and yet not love what he does and how he does it and why he does it and how he feels about it more than anything else. Now, these things, they all go together, they're two different ends of the same stick. If you pick up one end, you're 0:12:05 - 0:12:27 gonna pick up the other. And if you don't have one end, you don't have the other either. If you truly love God, you love everything he sends you, you love exactly who he is and how he is. And you try to be the same way yourself in all things and, and by try, I don't, I don't mean effort. You do, you 0:12:27 - 0:12:52 do what he does as far as you understand in all things. That's what it means to love God. And if you don't do that, you don't prefer him above all else, you prefer whatever you're doing instead, which isn't from him. It's from somewhere else. Now, that's the, that's the first part we know now that to 0:12:52 - 0:13:22 those loving God, what about to those according to his purpose called being, which is the echo. So we can't get it wrong. This one is very rich. That word purpose in Greek. It's prothesis, prothesis, pro means uh before and thesis is purpose. So it's to set a purpose before you. So, um what does that 0:13:21 - 0:13:42 mean? Well, we have a clue in what this word is used for in the New Testament. It's not just used for, for words that are translated to purpose, even though literally, that's, that's a, a big chunk of what it means. There's another chunk and that is uh found in, in the fact that it's used for the show 0:13:41 - 0:14:08 bread. So the the Greek word used where you see showbread in some places. Like for example, I think there's one in Matthew, it's not bread, it's purpose. It's this word prothesis to set the purpose before. Isn't that a weird thing to call a piece of bread? Well, why it's called, that has to do with what 0:14:08 - 0:14:40 that bread represented. What does a bread represent in the Tabernacle or the temples have followed? That bread represents Jesus Christ. So he said in John 633 for the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven and giveth life unto the world. John 648. He said, I am that bread of life. Now, what 0:14:40 - 0:15:07 does it mean that he's a demonstration of purpose is the setting forth of purpose. It means that the life he lived that we have recorded all these stories recorded about in the New Testament. That's our demonstration of how we're supposed to live. So part of his being the bread of life and giving life 0:15:07 - 0:15:40 to the world was showing us how to live to have eternal life. In John 651 he said, I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever. And the bread that I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world. And that's exactly what he 0:15:40 - 0:16:23 did to be called according to his purpose. That's to have his life demonstrated to us, which we do, we have it. But what do you do with it? Do you eat it or do you just throw it aside is the thing that's worthless. Because if you do, you don't love him, but he loves you and he's calling you to his purpose 0:16:22 - 0:16:56 . He's inviting you to live according to the demonstration that he gave. And if you do that, you will live forever. And part of the quality of that life, that eternal life is this promise that we started with that all things will work together for your good. Because the path that you walk in that he 0:16:56 - 0:17:33 demonstrated the example you walk in that he gave us in that path. Everything is perfectly architected for your greatest possible benefit. He is our example. He is the architect of our faith. He's a creator of the way and he's the fulfillment of the way. So putting all this together, you could render 0:17:32 - 0:18:11 Romans 828 as follows. We know that God arranges all things to work in synergy for the greatest possible benefit of those who love him, which are those who align themselves to his purpose by following his example in all things. I hope you go and do what this scripture invites us to do and I promise you 0:18:10 - 0:18:20 that as you do that all things will work in synergy for your greatest possible benefit.