The Chemistry of the Cross | Part 2

When we say God works all things for our good, what is good?

Listen to Adrian Rogers. Do you know what the good is that all things are working together for? Do you know what it is? Not to make you healthy, not to make you wealthy, not to make you happy, not to give you fun, but to make you like Jesus, to make you like Jesus. The good is that we be conformed to the image of God's Son, and how wonderful that is that you and I can be like the Lord Jesus Christ and be with the Lord Jesus Christ, be glorified with Him in eternity. What a blessing!

Welcome to Love Worth Finding, featuring the dynamic insightful teaching of pastor and author Adrian Rogers. The chemistry of the cross is that God can work bad situations for our good and His glory. This verse in the Bible reiterates the certainty and completeness of this ironclad, rock-ribbed promise of God. He works all things together for His glory and for our good. When we know this, we can appreciate the blessings that we would otherwise mistake as burdens. If you have your Bible, turn to Romans chapter 8, verse 28, as Adrian Rogers shares part 2 of The Chemistry of the Cross. Romans 8 and verse 28. And we know, K-N-O-W, that all things work together for good to them that love God and to them that are the call according to His purpose.

What an incredible verse that is! If you go to the pharmacy, you need some medicine. That pharmacist will take bottles from his shelf sometimes and powders and other things that may be by themselves noxious poison, but he mixes them together and makes medicine for us. And so many times God does the same thing. He takes situations and problems and things that in themselves look like they're bad and hurtful and harmful, and then God mixes these together in the crucible of His love and the crucible of His wisdom and the result is medicine for our souls, something good and something wonderful. This morning when I had my oatmeal, in that oatmeal, there was some salt. And salt is what?

Sodium chloride, a chlorine deadly poison, but put together they make salt necessary for life. And so I want you to see how God takes the situation of your life, the circumstances, and God by the chemistry of the cross makes these things work together for your good and for His glory. Now having said that, I want you to look at our text very carefully because we're just going to camp right here in Romans chapter 8 and verse 28. And as we think of the chemistry of the cross, the very first thing I want you to think about is the certainty of it.

Do you have that? The certainty of it. How does that verse begin?

Look at it. It says, and we know that all things work together for good. We know that all things work together for good. No ifs, ands, and buts about it. This is a promise of God. It is ironclad.

It is rock ribbed. No stutter, no stammer. You can say, I don't care what happens. I don't care how bad it may seem. I know that I know that I know that this is going to work together for God's glory and for my good.

F.B. Meyer was a preacher of another generation, but he said something so wonderful I copied it down. And this is what he said. He said, if any promise of God should fail, the heavens would clothe themselves with sackcloth.

The sun, moon, and stars would reel from their courses. The universe would rock, and a hollow wind would moan through a ruined creation, the awful message that God can lie. But, friend, He can't lie. He cannot lie, and He says that all things work together for good to those who love God. And so the very first thing I want you to get in your heart and in your soul today is the certainty of it.

Do you have it? Second thing. Not only the certainty of it, but I want you to see the completeness of it. Look at that verse again. And we know that all things work together for good. Not most things. Not some things. Not even almost all things.

But that big little word, I thank God that it is there. We know that all things, hallelujah, all things work together for good. The Bible means that when it says that all things work together, the sweet things, the sorrowful things, the satanic things, the sinful things, the simple things, the smallest things work together for good. It's amazing how God sits at master control. Pharaoh has decided that all the Jewish babies are going to be put to death. God takes a little baby, puts that little baby in the bulrushes, and Pharaoh's daughter comes by and decides she wants to bathe in the Nile. Can you imagine this princess who could bathe in her marble tubs?

Maybe she remembered the little swimming hole where she used to play as a kid. She decides she's going to go down to the Nile, and then the Bible says this. And the baby wept. Lo, the baby wept. You ever heard a baby cry?

A baby cried. And God took the cry of a baby and brought Pharaoh's mighty kingdom crashing down. The smallest things, the smallest things. God, God is the sovereign God.

The certainty of it, the completeness of it. Now I want you to notice the third thing as we look at Romans 8, 28. I want you to notice the cause of it.

How does this happen? And we know that all things work together for good, literally. Some translations give it this way. And we know that God works all things together. And put that with Ephesians chapter 1 verse 11. The Bible speaks of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. Now, if you think that what I'm saying today about all things working together for good to those who love God, if you think that's far stretched, do you know why you think it's far stretched? Because you just don't believe in a big enough God. You see, we know that God is the one who is working all things.

That's the cause of it. And sometimes we get our eyes off of that. Martin Luther was the mighty reformer. Martin Luther who led in the Protestant Reformation was a man of great, great faith.

But you know what? Martin Luther, like some of us, was given to fits of despondency and depression. And one day Martin Luther, in spite of his great faith, he just got depressed. He got his eyes on the circumstances and the situation rather than on God. And he went into his room, and there in his room he was brooding.

There in his room he was in a state of melancholy, looking at circumstances, looking at the situation, and he wouldn't come out. His wife's name was Katrina. He called her Kathy. She tried to coax him out of the room, but he wouldn't come out.

Then you know what Kathy did? Well, one day she put on a black dress. She put on a black hat. She put a black veil over her face. She put black gloves on and came into that room.

She was dressed for a funeral. He looked at her. He said, Kathy, who has died? Oh, she said, Martin, haven't you heard? God is dead. He said, what did you say? She said, I said, God is dead. He said, Kathy, that's blasphemy. She said, yes, and it's blasphemy for you to be living like he's dead. Martin Luther said, oh, God, forgive me.

God, forgive me. And Martin Luther got up and went out and began to live like God is not dead. God is alive. And he wrote, I guess my favorite hymn, a mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark, never failing, our helper. He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing, did we in our own strength confide our striving would be losing. We're not the right man on our side, the man of God's own choosing.

That's Jesus. And we know that all things work together for good. That's the cause of it. God is the cause of it.

Now, I want you to notice next, not only the cause of it, but I want you to notice the condition of it. This is not a promise for everyone. This is not axiomatic for everybody.

There is a condition to Romans 8, 28. Listen to it. And we know that all things work together for good to what? Do you see it?

Look at it. To them that love God. To them that love God. You can't put your initials by this unless you love God. Despisers of God cannot claim this promise. Haters of God cannot claim this privilege and this promise. And by the way, if you don't love God, there's something wrong with you.

It's well been said that somebody who does not love God is a beast with a man's head. You know what encourages me about this condition? I'll tell you what encourages me about this condition. Others may be able to give more than I can give. Others may be able to sing or preach or serve better than I can. But there's nobody on earth who can love God more than I can or you can or anybody else. I mean, the person next to you may have a lot more talent than you have. They may have a lot more resources than you have.

They may have more opportunities than you have. But my friend, there is nobody who has a monopoly on love. Isn't that wonderful? I mean, listen, you want to love God?

Just have at it. Anybody can love God as much as they want to love God, and that is the condition for having Romans 8.28 work in your life. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God. Have you ever thought about it, that you could put Romans 8.28 in reverse? All things work together for good to those who love God, and to those who don't love God, all things work together for bad?

Did you know that? Just put it in reverse. You say, well, I'm living high, wide, and handsome right now, but friend, it's working not for your good, but for evil in your life. All things work together for evil, let me put it that way, to those who don't love God. Let me show you how seemingly good things can work against you. For example, preaching can work against you. Did you know it's dangerous to come to church? If you don't love God, and you come and listen to me preach, and you have no desire to love God and don't want to know God, maybe you've come for whatever reason, I don't know, but you don't intend to love God. Did you know this sermon will do you damage?

It'll do you harm. The Bible says the gospel that we preach is a savor of life unto life, or death unto death. The gospel sword is a two-edged sword. Jesus said, when you go into a village to preach, if they hear you, wonderful, but he said if they won't hear you, he said shake the dust off your feet.

And then Jesus said, that dust will be used against them in the day of judgment. Somebody knocks on your door to invite you to Jesus Christ. You say, would you get out of here?

I don't want to hear that. Listen, you folks quit pestering me, and the door is slammed. There's the dust of the soul winner, right here. God says, angel, get that dust. Angel, get that dust. Now, put it in the vaults up in heaven. The final judgment comes.

You're there. You say, I didn't have an opportunity to hear God. God, you can't let me die and go to hell. Oh, God, you can't let this happen to me. Oh, God, have mercy upon me.

Oh, God, I never had a chance to be saved. God says, angel, get exhibit A. Angel comes out there, a little dust in the palm of his hand. You say, what is that? Oh, you see that dust?

That's the dust. That is a witness against you in the day of judgment. Now, preaching is good, but not if you refuse it.

It works together for bad. Think about Jesus. Is Jesus good or Jesus bad?

It all depends. If you receive him, he's wonderful, but if you don't receive him, he works together for bad. Did you know that? Did you know that Jesus is the door? I want to ask you a question. That piece of wood over there, is that the door or is the opening the door? How many of you believe that the opening is the door? Let me see your hands.

Come on. You're scared to death. How many of you believe the piece of wood is the door? Let me see your hand. How many of you say, I think you're trying to trap me and I'm not going to lift my hand?

All right. What is the door? What is the door? Is the door the opening that you come through or is the door the piece of wood that closes the opening? Which is the door? Well, if you didn't have an opening, you couldn't have a door. Can you have a door without a shutter or a close or a piece of wood in it? I guess so, but if you went down to the hardware store and said, I want to buy a door, they couldn't sell you an opening. They'd just sell you a piece of wood or metal or whatever it is. What is the door?

Friend, you're both right. The door is what lets you in and the door is what keeps you out and his name is Jesus. He'll either let you in or he'll keep you out. You see, listen, to those who love him, he's the way in, but to those who refuse him, his righteousness and his holiness say, you cannot come in here. All things work together for bad to those who don't love God.

Did you know that the wicked pluck death from the tree of life? And if Jesus is not your Savior, listen to me, he'll be your judge. You're going to meet Jesus.

I mean, you have a date with deity. You will meet Jesus and you will bow the knee to Jesus. You will bow either to him as Savior and Lord or you will bow to him as judge and executioner, but you will bow the knee to Jesus Christ.

As I lift, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me and every tongue shall confess to God. Now, think of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Is the resurrection of Jesus Christ good? You better believe it's good. But what about if you're not saved? Is it good?

No. In Acts chapter 17, the apostle Paul preaching on Mars Hill said this, God has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurance unto all men in that he raised him from the dead. Now, what does that mean? It means that the assurance of judgment is the resurrection of Jesus.

Why? Well, you can't hold court if the judge is dead and you can't hold court if the defendant is dead. But what Paul wrote here, but what Paul is saying is this, that the same God that raised up Jesus Christ is the God that will raise you up and you will come to judgment. What he is saying is this, and listen very carefully, you cannot crawl up in the grave and pull the dirt over your face and hide from God. The resurrection of Jesus Christ seals your doom. I've never been able to understand why unsaved people will put on the glad rags and celebrate Easter. I'm glad they come because I can shoot them full of Jesus. I'm glad they come, hoping they'll get saved. But if they don't intend to get saved, why should a person celebrate the day that seals his doom?

God hath given assurance unto all men that there will be a judgment in that he raised Jesus from the dead. Oh, my friend, the condition of Romans 8, 28 is that you love God. If you don't love God, Romans 8, 28 goes into reverse for you. All things work together for bad to those who don't love God. But to those who love God, all things work together for good.

That's the condition of it. Now, let's come to the best part and the final part. I want you to notice the consequences of it.

What are the consequences? What is the good? What is the good that it all works together for? You know, sometimes we trivialize this verse. We're driving down the road and we have a blowout and we say, oh, well, all things work together for good.

I guess there's a sale on tires somewhere. No, that's not what this verse means. That's not what this verse means. Listen, in verse 28, I'm going to tell you something profound. It's followed by verse 29. Now, look in verse 29. For, and that word for is a preposition which means unto.

It moves towards something. For, because whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son. Do you know what the good is that all things are working together for?

Do you know what it is? Not to make you healthy, not to make you wealthy, not to make you happy, not to give you fun, but to make you like Jesus. To make you like Jesus.

The good is that we be conformed to the image of God's Son and how wonderful that is that you and I can be like the Lord Jesus Christ and be with the Lord Jesus Christ, be glorified with him in eternity. What a blessing. What a blessing.

Let me tell you something. God's not finished with you yet. God is not finished with you yet.

He who hath begun a good work in you will perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ. Now, if you're not saved and everything is going good for you right now, you're healthy, you're happy, you're wealthy, but you don't love God. And so you're sitting here and you say, I don't need his God.

I don't need his Savior. The Bible says in Judges chapter 5 and verse 20, the stars in their courses fought against Sisera. Sisera didn't love God and the whole universe was against him. And God has programmed the whole universe against you. And I don't care how good things are right now, one of these days it's going to cave in for you because all things work together for bad to those who don't love God and you're going to die and drop into hell because you don't love God. Let me tell you about the devil. The devil always gives the best first. The bread of deceit is sweet, but afterward a man's mouth will be filled with gravel. Let me tell you about Jesus. Jesus always saves the best for the last. Remember the wedding feast?

A man said, I don't understand it. People generally put out the best wine first, but you've saved the best for the last. He always does. Do you know what the consequences of loving God are? That friend, one day we'll be glorified with the Lord Jesus Christ.

We'll be made like him. This is what God is working for in your life and in your life. All things work together for good to those who love God and that good is that you'll be like Jesus. And when the purpling dawn of eternity is mingled with the setting sun of your life, when all of the things that you've dreamed for and schemed for have gone and you see him and you're like him, you say hallelujah in Romans 8.28.

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God who are the call according to his purpose. Amen? Father, we thank you for your word in Jesus' name.

Amen. Now if you have questions regarding your faith in Jesus, we would love to offer you an insightful resource. Go to our website and click the Discover Jesus link. There you'll find answers you may need about your faith.

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Mention the title, The Chemistry of the Cross. This message is also part of the insightful Back to the Basics series. For that complete collection, all 18 powerful messages, call that number 1-877-LOVEGOD or go online to order at lwf.org slash radio. Or you can write us at Love Worth Finding, Box 38600, Memphis, Tennessee 38183. You know, many of the messages in this series are also featured in our new resource, What Every Christian Ought to Know.

Utilize this study tool at lwf.org slash radio. Do you believe your circumstances are there to make you look more like Jesus? Spend time in Scripture today so you can gain your perspective on all things, the sweet, the sorrowful, the satanic, the sinful, simple, and small. He is working them for our good. We're so glad you studied in God's Word with us today. Tune in tomorrow for more timeless truth right here on Love Worth Finding. Recently, a listener reached out to say, I'm currently reading the Discover Jesus book.

It is so helpful to me. He, Dr. Rogers, was truly anointed to teach God's Word. Thank you so much for keeping his ministry alive.

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