Good morning and thank you for your patience yesterday when I had to miss our blog time to go to the doctor to get treatment for a large outbreak of poison ivy. I've blistered and broken out even more overnight in spite of the shot and the other medicines I was given yesterday, so I desire your prayers for healing. There is no question of me taking any sick days this week because we are too short-handed, but I trust that with God's help and your prayers I will make it through. Today we learn that God is working all things out for our good, so that means He can even use my current discomfort to accomplish something worthwhile.
We concluded Sunday's study with the Apostle Paul speaking about how humans and the entire creation are waiting for redemption. He says as we pick back up in Romans 8, "For in this hope we are saved." (Romans 8:24a) In consulting several commentaries it would appear that a more accurate rendering of the original text would be, "For we are saved by hope." What hope does the Apostle Paul mean? Our hope in Christ, for He is the only hope we have. We believe in Him and so we wait for the day when all the things He has promised us will be fulfilled. We believe He has redeemed our souls; we believe He will redeem our bodies as well.
"But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." (Romans 8:24b-25) What gives us this hope? Our faith, as the Apostle Paul says in his letter to the Hebrews, "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) He's talking about a hope we can count on. He's not talking about the kind of hope we have when we say, "I hope it doesn't rain today.' or, 'I hope I got a good score on my test,' or, 'I hope I get that promotion at work.' He's talking about a hope that is already in our bank account, so to speak. We already have the assurance that the things Christ has promised us will be fulfilled, so our hope does not consist of wondering whether or not these things are going to happen. Our hope is an expectant, waiting type of hope such as, "It may be today, or it may be tomorrow, or it may be a thousand years from now. But Christ is going to do everything He says He's going to do. He is going to give me an eternal, incorruptible body like His. He is going to redeem the creation and make the world like Eden again. I accept on faith that these things are coming and I am able to rest securely in the knowledge that sooner or later these promises will come true."
Until the redemption of our bodies comes, God the Son helps us with the weaknesses we have in these mortal bodies. He helps us by giving us hope and by making intercession for us with God the Father. He also helps us by sending God the Holy Spirit to indwell us and guide us in our daily lives. "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 through wordless groans. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God." (Romans 8:26-27) Christ performs intercession for us for our sins, the Spirit performs intercession for us for the guidance of our lives. We don't always know what is best for us. We pray for things that are not sinful in themselves but that don't always line up with God's plans for our lives, so the Spirit prays for us in accordance with the will of God. If we are in Christ, then the Holy Spirit dwells within us, and the Holy Spirit prays for us. There have been many times I was so upset or confused that I had no idea what to pray for. I wasn't in any condition to pray. I can remember several times in my life when I've thanked the Holy Spirit for praying for me. I couldn't pray for myself. Even if I'd been able to put sensible thoughts together I wouldn't have known what to ask for. But the Holy Spirit knew and I was able to take comfort in the fact that He was praying for me.
Right now I'm praying earnestly about something that could be a big and exciting change for my husband and me. I don't yet know the Lord's will in this matter. I know what I want, but I don't know what God wants. The only thing I know for sure is that God knows best, so although He may not answer my prayers in the way I want, He's still my God. If He says "no" I'm probably going to feel sad and disappointed, maybe even angry (because let's be honest: sometimes we get angry at God), but He's still going to be my God. When He says "no" it's because He sees the future and He knows whether or not the thing we are praying for is going to be good for us, as the Apostle Paul points out, "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." (Romans 8:28)
Not everything that happens to us is what we would call "good". Disappointment isn't good. Being wronged by our fellow man isn't good. Suffering isn't good. Death isn't good. But God is able to use these things in our lives to bring about something that is good. If it weren't for some of the bad things that have happened to me, I wouldn't be studying the Bible with you this morning. If I hadn't been through things that led me to Christ, I would have no desire to study the Bible. If I hadn't experienced some of the things that have happened since I've come to Christ, I wouldn't love His holy word the way I do. If He hadn't helped me in my struggles, I wouldn't be here reminding you He will help you in your struggles. Some troubles came about because Satan wanted to harm me. Some troubles came about because other people wanted to harm me. Some troubles came about because I brought them on myself. But the Lord is able to use anything that is given over to Him---even our troubles and pain and disappointment---to do something good in our lives.
Joseph, the son of Jacob, would have been in full agreement with the Apostle Paul's words. Joseph was despised and betrayed by his brothers and sold into slavery. He was falsely accused and imprisoned for many years for an act he didn't commit. But the Lord used the bad things in his life for good. If Joseph had never gone through his struggles, he would not have developed the necessary character or the relationship with the Lord that later made him fit for a position of high leadership in Egypt. This is why Joseph said these words to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good." (Genesis 50:20) This is what we who love the Lord can say to any enemy or to any hardship that comes our way, "Your intention is to harm me. Well, the joke is on you, because God intends to use this for my good!"
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