For our scripture reading tonight, let's turn together to Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8 as we read verses 18 through the end of the chapter, 18 through 39, with a particular focus on the familiar words of verse 28 in connection with article 13 of the Belgic Confession, which is found on page 75 in the back of the Psalter hymnal. Romans chapter 8, verses 18 through 39. And Belgic Confession, article 13, on page 75. In the back of the Psalter hymnal. We now give our attention to the reading of God's most holy word. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what He already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness, we do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. 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. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called. Those He called, He also justified. Those He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also along with Him graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is He that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died more than that who was raised to life, is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble, or hardship, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, for your sake we face death all day long. We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. Knowing all these things, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Beloved of the Lord, a number of years ago there was a statement made popular by a song, I believe it had maybe a Jamaican tune, but a statement that many people adopted for themselves or they adopted as a way to encourage others. The statement said, don't worry, be happy. Don't worry, be happy. In other words, don't let things get you down. Don't let the trials and the troubles and the storms of life cause you anxiety and grief. Just don't give it any consideration. Close your eyes to it. Don't worry. Just be happy. Now, of course, even as believers of any age, even as boys and girls, we wonder, well, how is this possible? How can we not worry, for example, when we have to figure out how we're going to pay for those braces? How can I not worry when I have a test that I really don't feel ready for? How can I not worry when my job situation is uncertain? Or when we might have to move away from all of my friends and from my school and from my home, which I'm so comfortable with. How can I not worry when I struggle with sin and temptation? How can I not worry when I have been diagnosed with some disease that surely will take my life? How can I not worry when I'm getting too old to care for myself and I'm facing the hard fact of nursing care? How can we not worry? In truth, many people cannot find a reason in the midst of the uncertainties and failures and struggles of life to not worry and be happy. But as trite and flippant as that phrase may sound, believers have a reason, the only reason to have confidence and comfort in all of life, and that's because of what the Bible teaches and we call providence. God's sovereign providence. Providence deals with God's relationship with all that He has made. Now, the word providence is not found in Scripture, but summarizes in one word what Scripture teaches, again, concerning God's relationship with His creation, with all that He has made. And that teaching is that the Creator cares for the work of His hands. As children, we used to sing, I don't hear it much anymore, but we used to sing, He's got the whole world in His hands. The big things, the little things, the little tiny baby, you name it, he's got it in his hands, which of course meant more than we could have ever imagined as children. You see, only the truth of God's providential care over all things gives strength to face the challenges of daily life. Dr. P.Y. DeYoung in his commentary on the Belgian Confession called the Church's Witness to the World says of the Church's Confession of Providence, All the statements which the church here makes are pure gold refined in the crucible of her own struggle and sufferings. You see, it's only sometimes in the midst of struggle and sufferings that we see this as pure gold, he's saying. And of course, this is especially true of the time in which the Belgic Confession was written, the time of the Reformation. And then notice, to whom the doctrine of providence is a comfort, Dr. DeYoung says only the Christian who lives by God's Word can understand and believe and trust what is here affirmed. And that's what Paul makes clear as well in Romans 8.28. Those who love Him, that is God, who have been called according to His purpose. You see, only those who are in Christ Jesus by faith can make sense out of and can understand and can find comfort in God's providence. And once again, we find a beautiful summary of the teaching of Scripture in Article 33, this time obviously regarding the providence of God and His government of all things, if you care to follow along. We believe that the same good God, after He had created all things, did not forsake them or give them up to fortune or chance, but that He rules and governs them according to His holy will, so that nothing happens in this world without His appointment. Nevertheless, God neither is the author of nor can be charged with the sins which are committed. For His power and goodness are so great and incomprehensible that He orders and executes His work in the most excellent and just manner, even then when devils and wicked men act unjustly. And as to what He does surpassing human understanding, we will not curiously inquire into farther than our capacity will admit of. but with the greatest humility and reverence adore the righteous judgments of God which are hid from us, contenting ourselves that we are pupils of Christ to learn only those things which He has revealed to us in His Word without transgressing these limits. This doctrine affords us unspeakable consolation since we are taught thereby that nothing can befall us by chance but by the direction of our most gracious and heavenly Father who watches over us with a paternal care keeping all creatures so under his power that not a hair of our head, for they are all numbered nor a sparrow can fall to the ground without the will of our Father in whom we do entirely trust being persuaded that he so restrains the devil and all our enemies that without his will and permission they cannot hurt us and therefore we reject the damnable error of the Epicureans who say that God regards nothing, believes all things to chance. Now, we must admit, beloved, that when it comes to our daily experience of life, as far as when things are going well, when money is plentiful, when food is in abundance, when health is good, when temptations seem scarce, then we really don't think much about providence, do we? Oh, we give lip service to it. We confess that God is the giver of every good and perfect gift, but we really do not understand the gold nugget of God's comfort in providence when everything is going well. You see, it's when the effects of sin attack us, when sickness comes, when we as believers struggle to make ends meet as we watch the wicked prosper, or when disaster and tragedy strike, when wars are being fought, or when a child dies suddenly. It's then that we need, in our minds, the confidence of God's providence. Of course, the Heidelberg Catechism beautifully reminds us that this confidence is to be for all of life. As the believer's response to God's providence is that we are to be patient in adversity, thankful in prosperity, and have confidence for the future. And that's because God is in control of every moment of my life and of every detail, every minute detail of my life. Now the confession speaks of the error of the Epicureans who say that God regards nothing. In other words, He simply doesn't care. But He leaves all things to chance. Or there is deism that says that after God created the heavens and the earth in the beginning, that He now simply stands back with His hands off. He watches, He lets creation run its course through the laws of nature. The idea of being kind of like a, that creation is like a toy top that spins. And as that top spins, it spins slower and slower until it stops. And when creation is done spinning out, as it were, you remember those planes, those little balls, those wood planes with a propeller and a rubber band? We would spin them up and the rubber band would get real tight, sometimes too far and snap. And when that, you let it go, it flies. and when the rubber band was all spun out, it was done. Well, that's what deism says in essence that God is doing with creation. Or there is the error called open theism, which is alive and well today that even some in the Reformed camp are grabbing onto. And that says that God doesn't really know what's going to happen in your life and in my life from moment to moment and from day to day. You see, He doesn't know what choices you and I are going to make that affect the course of our lives. He simply doesn't know. But as it happens, then His providence, His providential care kicks in. Then He deals with it and He helps us to deal with it, whether it's good or bad. Now, against these false views, the church has confessed and confesses today the truth of Scripture that the Almighty and gracious God preserves and governs from moment to moment the world and all that it contains. God doesn't simply let the chips fall where they may as the saying goes. Proverbs 16, verse 33 says, The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord. Boys and girls, another word for lot is diadice that we talk about. It's cast in the lap, but it's every decision, it's not by chance, is from the Lord. God did not, as the confession says, forsake that which He created, or give them up to fortune or chance, but that He rules and governs them according to His holy will, so that nothing happens in this world without His appointment. Beloved, God is at work. As far as creation in general, God maintains and preserves what He has made. The existence of all things, especially living things, continues because of God's providing and preserving hand. The psalmist in Psalm 145 says, The eyes of all look to you and you give them their food at proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. And I believe it's Psalm 104 where we read about the fact that He provides the trees for the nests for the birds in the heavens and the beasts wait for Him to give them their food in due season. Last week we quoted from Colossians 1, verse 17 that says, In Christ all things hold together. But God is also at work governing, leading, governing to an appointed end every creature and every situation for a purpose. God has a plan, and He has had it from eternity. The ultimate end of His plan is His eternal glory. Remember from this morning in Isaiah 43, verse 7, the Lord speaks of those created for His glory. And praise God, His glory includes the salvation of His people, and that means that God the Creator is at work in a particular way for His people. Paul, again, speaks of God's providence in that 28th verse. 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. Now, first of all, we need to understand that the NIV translation is not the best translation on that verse. Virtually all of the other translations that we might use, the King James, the New King James, the New American Standard, and others, more faithfully translate the Greek as, and we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Notice the difference. The NIV has that, in all things, God works for the good. And the more faithful translation, according to the Greek, says, all things work together for good. Now, to their credit, neither of them say all good things work together for good because that's not true is it it's not just all good things it's all things now some have felt the need in translations and there is some limited textual support but some have felt the need to make it more clear as we have it here that that god is doing the work again the preferred reading according to the literal greek is all things work together for good but in the end what is to be understood is what the NIV tries to make clear and that is that it is God at work making all things work together for those who love Him. See, that's the teaching of Scripture. That's Paul's teaching in other places. For example, in Ephesians 1 verse 11 where Paul says, in Him we were also chosen having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will. You see, beloved, the confidence of God's providence is that God is at work for us and on our behalf. And He is at work in all things, in all situations, and in all the details of life. And we can be confident of this because that is the teaching of God's Word. And we can also be confident that this is for our good. How can we know? Well, not only does Paul say that directly in verse 28, But in verse 31, he says, God is for us. He said, well, if God is for us, as if to say, and God is for us. But the mystery here is the in all things, isn't it? That's the mystery. Again, going back a little bit, as we said a moment ago, it's easy for us to confess our belief in providence when we are at peace, when we are enjoying contentment and prosperity. But beloved, God is at work even in war times, in terrorist times. He is at work even in times of sudden, tragic death. He is at work even in your and my personal crisis. He is at work even in the midst of sin and temptation. He is at work, young people, when things are not going my way or the way that I think that they should go. God is at work. Now the context of Romans 8 seems to be somewhat limited to the suffering that believers are called upon to endure for the faith. As we read, Paul speaks of their present sufferings and that believers groan along with creation waiting for the final redemption of all things. He speaks of believers not being able to pray in their weakness and at the end of the chapter he talks about those things that try to separate us from the love of Christ. Verse 35, verse 35 and 36, Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written, For your sake we face death all day long. We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. And jumping to 38, For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. See, the suffering that we experience in this life seems to contradict the doctrine of providence. After all, providence means to provide for, to care for, to preserve, and to govern. Well, how can suffering and difficulty fit in with that? Those of you who read the Outlook magazine, and if you've read the most current one, there's an article in there, I just read this afternoon from Reverend Rich Kukin, one of our pastors in Pompton Plains, New Jersey. And he retells a story, a familiar story, that many of us have heard about the pastor visiting the widow who was busy weaving that tapestry. And as they were talking, they talked about the fact that the underside, where all the threads and all the tangles and all the knots are, that's what we see at times. Isn't that true? That's how we view our lives at times. Nothing makes sense. It's a jumbled mess. And you turn it over and you see the print. You see the pattern. You see the beauty. That's what God sees. That's God's plan for your life and for my life. See, the beauty here is that God uses that suffering and those difficulties and those disappointments for our good. And then what's more amazing and even more mysterious is the place of sin in God's providence. Again, as the article says, Nothing happens in this world without His appointment. Nevertheless, God neither is the author of nor can be charged with the sins which are committed. For His power and goodness are so great and incomprehensible that He orders and executes His work in the most excellent and just manner, even then when devils and wicked men act unjustly. Mankind, and I'm talking now about believers and unbelievers alike. We are all responsible for our sin. Yet God is still sovereign over it. Man's sin, and the believer's sin included, is against God's revealed will. It's against God's commands. But it is a part of God's plan. In other words, man's sinful actions are not a surprise to God, but fit into His eternal plan and are somehow used by God. Mysteriously to us. Used by God to carry out His plan. Again, we cannot fully understand this, but the confession calls us to, in humility and with reverence, take God at His Word. And really to be content with what Deuteronomy 29, 29 says. The revealed things belong to us. God has given them to us, but the secret things belong to God. And we are to be content with that. But the Bible teaches this and gives demonstration of this over and over again. God controls the sinful acts of men and He overrules the evil that the wicked desire and that they intend to perform and He overrules it by the good end which He has purposed. One of the clearest examples of this is Joseph's words to his brothers, you intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. Acts 2 verse 23 is a clear example as well of God's sovereignty and man's responsibility Peter says, this man, talking of Jesus, was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge. And you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. You see, there Peter makes it clear that God predestined the death of Christ. We see that throughout the Old Testament. We're even given a glimpse as to how he was pierced for our transgressions. Yet man is charged with sin. And we could quote text after text showing how the sinful acts of men and even how sinful men were appointed by God for His purpose and His goal, namely His glory and the good of His people. It was God who hardened Pharaoh's heart, which resulted in the immediate suffering of His people. But ultimately, God glorified Himself through His demonstration of power and the forever release of His people from the bondage of Egypt. It was God who spoke of using the enemy, King Cyrus of Persia, for the good of God's people. Some 200 years before he was even born, and many years later, even as Ezra writes some 200 years later, Cyrus was used to help with releasing the captives and rebuilding Jerusalem. God turned Cyrus' heart to help God's people. As the Proverbs says, the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water. He turns it wherever He pleases. You see, beloved, the focus and the center of God's love is His church. And that's why as we consider the truth that the Creator cares for the work of His hands, we can also enjoy the consolation of God's providence. Paul says it so simply, in all things God works for the good of those who love Him. God's plan for you and me as believers is for our benefit. For our ultimate delight. Not for our downfall. Not for our misery. Not for our shame. And that, beloved, you can take to the bank. You can be confident of that. It's a guarantee. See, boys and girls, you are never too young to learn that even the hard times, the sad times, and the disappointing times that we go through in this life, They are all planned by God. And He uses those hard and sad and disappointing times for something better for us. He is our Heavenly Father who cares for every detail of our life. And Article 13 quotes the words of Jesus that not a single strand of our hair, and He knows exactly how many there are, and not one tiny sparrow can fall to the ground without the will of our Father. You see, when Paul says all things, he means all things. Prosperity and adversity. Health and sickness. Joy and suffering. Happiness and sadness. And all these things are like one package or we might say are all like a piece of a puzzle and the puzzle isn't complete without any one of the pieces and every piece is necessary in God's plan for each of us. Let me give a personal example. When I needed to have chemotherapy, research studies at that time had shown that a certain combination of four drugs, there were, I think I was told, some 90 drugs at that time, of which there are countless number of combinations, possible combinations, but that a certain combination of four drugs was the most effective to cure Hodgkin's disease. Each of those was necessary and the package altogether is what the Lord used to cure me. And then, of course, that entire experience was a part of the package of my life and of my wife's life and of our children's lives at that time. A part of the package of my life, making me what God intended me to be and leading me where He intended for me to be led. Again, Paul is talking primarily about suffering, working for the believer's good. And again, to be honest, those who most understand the providence of God are those whom He has brought through these present sufferings. And as they look back, we say hindsight is 20-20, as they look back, they now see the resulting good brought about by the hand of God. And they can confess the truth of Isaiah 43, 1-3, as we read this morning. It's true what the Word of God says. It's true when you go through the fire, when you go through the water, when you go through the waves. They won't destroy you. The Lord says, I will be with you. Yet even, even as many of us are, even if we are spared from terrible suffering, even if we are spared from falling into grievous sin for a season, We are to believe by faith what Paul says in Romans 8, 28. We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him. We are to believe by faith what Scripture teaches that God does maintain, preserve, and govern all that He has made including us for His glory and for our good. Like Job, the Lord may allow Satan to have his time, his way with us for a time. But also like Job, it will be to strengthen our faith and trust in God. It will be to draw us closer to Himself that we might see His hand of mercy and give glory to God. And it will be for our salvation. You see, the storms and the trials of life may not be good in themselves. In fact, sometimes they're just downright rotten. But God harmonizes them together for the believer's ultimate good because God's goal is to bring His people to perfection in His presence. Colossians 1, verse 22 says, But now He has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight without blemish and free from accusation. You see, beloved, the troubles of this life do not hinder salvation for the child of God. But there are helps to it. Even as we confess, all things must be subservient to my salvation or work for the benefit of my salvation, as question and answer one of the catechism says. You see, if we only look at this life through our own eyes, then this life doesn't make sense. Then indeed, it's full of contradictions and things don't fit like the backside of that tapestry. It's a muddled mess, a jumbled mess full of tangles and knots. It lacks meaning. And it's filled with an endless string of whys. Why this? Why that? Why the other thing? Yet when we consider this life and God's providence for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord, then we may know and we may have confidence that God's aim, God's purpose is our good and the means He uses to get us there is the very best that could happen to any one of us. And when you know that to be true, then you must say with those like the late Dr. James Boyce, as we have heard before, if God sends something your way, would you really want to change it? By nature, we want to say, oh yes, Because I know what's best for me. I know what I need. But in truth, our answer must be no. No. Because it's a part of God's perfect plan for me. And you see, beloved, that puts excitement into the Christian life. Our greatest zeal and our greatest joy must flow from knowing that all of God's activity is for our good and no one, no one can set His glorious purpose aside. And that's why by God's grace we can rise above those things that He brings into our lives like times of testing and even hurt. Things that we would never choose, would we? We would never choose them. We have consolation and we have comfort that He has our best in mind. And do you know what? And I've said this to some of you in times of grief. God makes no mistakes. And there is always a reason to praise the Lord. Even in the midst, for example, of tragic death, it seems needless. There's always a reason for us to praise the Lord. We might have to look a little bit hard to see it sometimes, but it's there. And what an opportunity to witness. Have you ever thought about that? Because the world is absolutely baffled by believers who enjoy that peace that passes understanding. It's absolutely confusing to them and they just want to say, how can you be happy? How can you be content? How can you not be angry going through what you're going through? And as God's people, we with confidence can look them in the eye and say, because the joy of the Lord is my strength. And I know that He's got it all in control. We might say it with tears in our eyes, but God has it in control. In the midst of all the uncertainties of life, what a comfort to know, beloved, that when we wake up in the morning, that God is in control. Not you, not me, not Satan, not some evil force, not some political power. No matter who God gives us for a president, He is still in control. That doesn't take away our responsibility for voting responsibly, does it? Because He carries out His will through various means, even through you and me. Boys and girls and young people, it must be comforting for you and me to know that God's purpose is what's good for my child. It must be comforting to believe and confess, as the Heidelberg Catechism says in Lord's Day 9, I trust Him so much that I do not doubt He will provide whatever I need for body and soul and He will turn to my good whatever adversity He sends me in this sad world. Can you say that? Can you say that I trust Him so much? Is that your confession? If it is, then you can live confidently that God is in charge and you don't have to be in fear of any situation of life, but you can confidently live as God's calling card to the world that He does have the whole world, including my life, in His hands. Beloved, that good that we trust God to turn the bad things to for us, that good includes breaking us off from sin. Maybe not all at once, maybe little by little. When we sin, God does not allow those with true faith to be content in that sin, but He arouses our conscience to understand how we have offended God and by His Holy Spirit He works a godly sorrow in our hearts unto repentance. That's for our good, isn't it? And that good includes drawing us nearer to God. You see, the sufferings of this life cause God's children to look for relief from the only one who can give it. He brings us to our knees in humble dependence upon Him. That good includes separating us more and more from the world as we are brought to recognize how anti-God or godless, really, the world is. And how much Satan wants us to rot in hell. And that good ultimately includes preparing us and fitting us for heaven. The cleansing of sanctification is not always a pleasant thing. Boys and girls, sometimes we have to scrub hard to get the dirt off our bodies. And that scrubbing can hurt. It can turn our skin raw. but the end result is wonderful. The cleansing, sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit sometimes hurts as He knocks big chunks off and then polishes and polishes and polishes. It can hurt, but the end result is wonderful. And that's what God has in store for each one who turns to Him in repentance and faith for Jesus' sake. By faith, we see God's providence clearly in Jesus Christ. He is the fulfillment of God's promises throughout Scripture. In Him, God's sovereignty and justice and righteousness and love are revealed providentially, we might say. Because we know that our salvation is secure in Him. Because we know that we are more than conquerors in Him. Because we know that because of His perfect work, in all things God works for the good of those who love Him. Because we know all of those things by faith, we can then be patient in adversity, facing adversity in the strength of the Lord and His care. And we can be thankful in prosperity, praising God that all that we enjoy comes from His hand. And we can have confidence for the future that all things, all powers, and all situations are in God's hand. Guido de Bray, the author of the Belgic Confession, enjoyed that confidence by God's grace, so much so that he could write these words to his wife from prison on April 12, 1567 as he faced certain death at the hands of the enemies of the gospel. You and I think we have it bad sometimes. He knew exactly what was coming. Listen to these words. My very dear Catherine Ramon, my precious and most loved wife and sister in our Lord Jesus Christ, you know well enough that when you married me, you married a mortal man whose life was not sure for a single minute. Yet it has pleased our good God to give us about seven years together and five children. If the Lord had wanted us to live together longer, He has the means to make it happen. But it is not His pleasure. So His will be done, and that be sufficient to you. Remember, too, that it was not by chance that I fell into the hands of my enemies, but through the providence of my God. And then he includes a prayer in here. My God, you have let me be born at a time and hour determined by you, and through all the time of my life you have preserved and protected me in the face of unimaginable dangers, and you have fully delivered. And now, if that the hour has come in which I must leave this life in order to go to you, your will be done. And he goes back to writing to his wife. Especially, forget not the honor which God has shown to you by having given you a man who was not only a minister of the Son of God, but also a man so esteemed and privileged by God that he honored him with the crown of martyrdom. I am joyful, and my heart rejoices. I lack nothing in all my troubles. I am filled with the overflowing riches of my God. I had never thought that God would be so merciful to a poor creature as I am. Adieu, Catherine, my dear good friend. Amen. Dr. DeYoung wrote, Only in the measure in which they, that is believers, confide in the sovereign and gracious rule of the Heavenly Father will their lives be free from worry, fear, and doubt. Beloved, don't worry. Be happy in the Lord. Only in Him can you truly confess, Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, It is well with my soul. Amen. Shall we pray? Father, even though so many things remain a mystery to us, it is no mystery that our lives are in Your hands, that You are in control, that You have a plan, You have a purpose, And all things will be accomplished exactly as you have ordained for your glory and for our good. May we live in that contentment each and every day of our lives, whether we enjoy good times or whether the tears are rolling down our faces. May we have confidence only in the Lord. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for this precious truth of your providence. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thank you.