"And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to his purpose." (Rom. 8:28)

      How often quoted is this passage, and, how often misquoted, and also misapplied! It does not say that everything works for good. Often people comfort themselves and one another in losses, misfortunes, sufferings--sometimes even in their sins--by saying "Well, I guess it's all for the best." But that is far from the truth, and neither does this passage say so. What it says is that all things work together combining, co-operating, for the ultimate good--the great final blessing--of a certain class of people, namely those who love God; and this class is further defined as those who have been called according to His purpose. Let us note here first, who these are that are said to love God; and then let us see how they are called, and according to what purpose; and thirdly let us see how they came so to love God.

WHO ARE THEY THAT LOVE GOD?

      Now those that love God are known by three outstanding marks. [327]

      1. They keep His Commandments. "If ye love me," said the Lord Jesus, "ye will keep my commandments"; and "he that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me." (John 14:15, 21.) "For this is the love of God," said John, "that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not grievous." (1 John 5:3.)

      2. Those who love God are a people who love not the world. "Love not the world," John writes again, "neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." (1 John 2:15, 16.)

      3. Those who love God show it in the fact that they love the children of God. "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen cannot love God whom he hath not seen. And this commandment have we from him, that he who loveth God love his brother also." (1 John 4:20, 21.)

      These then are three identifying marks of those who love God: (1) that they keep His commandments; (2) that they love not the world; and (3) that they love the children of God.

THE CALL AND THE PURPOSE

      If now we inquire further about their being "called according to his purpose"--we find no difficulty as to the nature of the call, nor what is the purpose of God back of it "He calls you," says Paul, "through our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Thess. 2:14.) There you have both the call, and the purpose of it: the call came by the gospel; and God's purpose was that those so called should share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. This agrees perfectly with the context of our passage. "For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained to be conformed to the image of his Son; that he might be the first-born among many brethren: and whom he foreordained, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified." (Rom. 8:29, 30.) It is the purpose of God to bring many sons unto glory (Heb. 2:10)--and the glory will be this, that they shall be like Him when He shall be manifested. (1 John 3:2.)

WHY DO THEY LOVE GOD?

      There is a glorious future awaiting those who love God; and the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed toward them. But who are they that love God in such manner? How did it come that they so love God? Was it because of their love of God that God called them? Or, was their love of God due to the call? Not the former but the latter. God loved them [328] first, and called them first, before ever they knew Him or loved Him. God's love ever takes the initiative. "Herein is love," says John, "not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." (1 John 4:10.) And then he says flatly, "We love because he first loved us." (1 John 4:19.)

      This then is the secret of their love for God, as also of their love for the brethren--it was begotten in their hearts by the love of God. Therefore they love Him, because He first loved them. No one loves God, no one can love God, unless first he has heard and known and tasted and received God's love for him. But then he can and will. Instead of straining to work up love for God we do well sometimes to drop everything and go back to God's love for us, to realize again the forgiving love of God, the love so great and faithful, which does not fluctuate with our feelings, nor does it depend on our worth. He loves you because it is you; and He loves you as His own child because you have come to Him through Jesus Christ His Son. Thenceforth it is yours to love God.

      And to them that love God, all things work together for good--good things, bad things, sorrows or joys; gain or loss; friends or foes; sickness or health; honor or reproach--the kindness of friends, the malice of enemies; the blessings of peace, the horrors of war; dark hours and bright--all are woven together, and not a thread too many or too few, to make up the pattern of God's design--namely, the good of them that love God, who are the called according to His purpose. These are some of the things which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.

[ATWTFG 327-329.]

      The electronic version of R. H. Boll's "All Things Work Together For Good" has been produced from the 90th Anniversary Issue of The Word and Work, Vol. 92, No. 11 (November-December 1998), pp. 327-329. The essay is reprinted from its earlier appearance in the magazine, Vol. 39, No. 7 (July 1945), pp. 160-161. Thanks to Alex V. Wilson, Editor of Word and Work, for permission to publish the essay as an electronic text.

      Pagination in the electronic version has been represented by placing the page number in brackets following the last complete word on the printed page. Inconsistencies in spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and typography have been retained; however, corrections have been offered for misspellings and other accidental corruptions. Emendations are as follows:

            Printed Text [ Electronic Text
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 p. 327:    Les us note [ Let us note
 

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 1 October 2000.
Updated 21 June 2002.