TEXT: Romans 8:28

SUBJECT: Divine Cordial #3

Tonight, with God’s help, we’ll continue the Puritan study we started thee weeks ago. The author is Thomas Watson. The title is A Divine Cordial. The topic is Encouragement.

Our text is divided into two parts:

First, we have a promise—"All things work together for good…" Note carefully, it does not say all things are good. Sin is not good; sickness is not good; death is not good. These things—though bad in themselves—are mixed by God in such a way as to turn out for our benefit. That’s the promise.

The recipients of the promise are—"Those who love God, the called according to His purpose". Here we have two ways of describing Christians. We’re called by God’s Grace to salvation; we prove we’re saved by loving Him. If you read the whole Book of Romans, you’ll see these people are not perfect, they’re not even mature. But they are believers. And to all believers the promise is made—"All things work together for good".

After expounding the text, Watson goes on to divide his book into two parts. First, we have The Best Things Work for Good to the Godly, and then, part two, The Worst Things Work for Good to the Godly.

Last time, we saw the attributes of God working to do us good. Everything God has is for us. His power is for us; His wisdom is for us; His goodness is for us. That’s why Paul could say a few verses later,

The implied answer is: It doesn’t matter who’s against us—the Almighty, All Wise, and All Loving God is for us.

That’s the review. Now, lets’s move another of the Best Things that work for our good. The Puritan says,

What are the promises of God? It’s easy to give examples of them, but what exactly are they? Thomas Watson tells us. He says

He uses an old fashioned word. We’d say they’re God’s checks. When an honest man writes a check, he’s got money to cover it. When God makes a promise, He’s got the grace and power to make it good. Unlike some of our checks, God’s promises never bounce!

Do the promises of God always come true? Yes they do. The Bible says so, Numbers 23:19, II Corinthians 1:20,

If the promises of God come true, we next have to ask, Do they do us any good? Once again, the Bible says they do, II Peter 1:3-4,

Thus, the promises of God are true and they do us good.

But just how do they do us good? A check is not the same as money. And a promise is not the same as the thing promised. When they come true, of course, the promises of God do us good, but what about until then? For example, no living man has obtained the promise of heaven. Yet that promise does him good in the here and now.

Here’s how it works:

• The promises of God strengthen faith. Watson says, "The promises are food for faith and that which [nourishes] faith works for good".

• The promises of God produce joy. "The promises are as cork to the net, to bear up the heart from sinking in the deep waters of distress".

If the promises of God increase your faith and raise your level of joy, the must "work together for your good". Even when they’re not yet fulfilled.

All the promises of God are good for us, but Watson names four that are especially helpful to us in times of trouble.

`The LORD merciful and gracious’. God is more

pardon. `He keeps mercy to thousands’. The

The quote is so good, it’s hard to follow up. What more can I say? The Lord promises forgiveness to everyone who wants it. And unlike Peter who was eager to limit forgiveness to "Seven times", God is happy to extend it to "Seventy times seven".

If grace is free, you don’t have to earn it. If it’s infinite and eternal, you can have all you want any time you want it.

Did you ever go to someone’s house for dinner only to find your host a real tightwad? He invited you over and has food for you, but there’s not much of it, and he doesn’t seem too eager to serve seconds. That happened to me and my wife once. A couple invited us for dinner and had three pork chops (mostly bone, gristle and fat) for four people! We had to stop by Burger King on the way home from dinner!

The Lord is not this way at all! When it comes to forgiving grace, He’s got more than you want! At His house, David says, "My cup runs over". Isaiah invites us to come to God and make pigs of ourselves!

God is more willing to forgive us than we are to ask Him to. When it comes to the remission of sin, let it never be said of us,

How many sins does God promise to forgive? All of them. There’s a promise of God that surely "works together for our good".

promise working for good. `I will heal their

backslidings’. God will not only bestow mercy,

The promise of forgiveness is fairly easy for me to believe. When I confess my sins to the Lord, I feel relieved. I know that promise is true.

But what’s harder to believe is His promise to sanctify me. Sometimes, the bad thoughts I’m confessing to the Lord are creeping back up on me even while I’m confessing them! Every sincere Christian knows how Paul felt,

Yet I have the Promise. "The Lord will give grace and glory. No good thing will He withhold from him who fears Him".

When I believe it, it does me so much good. The stubborn sins I’ve battled all my life—and lost to so often—will not get the best of me! Because God has promised.

Knowing this gives the believer hope. And hoping for holiness makes you holy. And so, another promise of God "working together for our good".

that works for our good—‘I will be with Him

in trouble’. God does not bring His people

Note carefully, God does not promise to keep us out of all problems. Or to make our problems quick, easy, or painless. The promise is that He’ll join us in our problems. And enable us to bear up under the strain.

His help is often obvious. Think of the men in the fiery furnace or the prophet in the lion’s den. But the help is not also so obvious. At times, God seems to leave us when we need Him most. Job felt that way. But, in the end, he knew better. As he cried and raged and demanded God to help Him, the Lord was there all the time. In the end, he found out

The Psalm is right. God is our Refuge and Strength, a very present help in trouble. We have the Promise of Help. It’s there for us when we need it. The promise "works together for our good".

`Those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good

thing’. If it is good, we shall have it.

Many Christians live in great fear of not having enough. An old friend of mine had grown up in a wealthy family and made a good living, but was terrified of running out of food! Many people live in this fear—though not always of starvation. We have bills to pay—can we pay them? We have a mortgage to keep up—can we keep it up? We have a job to hold on to—can we hold on to it?

The Lord does not promise to give us everything we want and when we want it. What He promises is to provide for our needs. He does it in many places, the best known of which is Matthew 6:25-32.

In the verses just read, note the contrast—"All these things the Gentiles seek" (or, worry about). Why do they worry about them so much? Because their gods don’t care about them. But our God does! He’s our Father who never lets His children do without the things they truly need.

That’s the promise. And it "works together for our good".

The big checks of a wealthy man will clear the bank. But they’re no good to the bearer unless he cashes them. God is the bank. His promises are the checks. We’re the bearers. Faith cashes them in!

Like everything else—good and bad—the promises of God

Know the promises of God. Meditate on the promises of God. Live on the promises of God.