Now, the one phrase that always made me raise an eyebrow was near the beginning, where Paul says, “All things work out for good for those that love God.”
I believe that, but bad things are happening all the time.
How can all things work out for good?
All things can work out for good because Paul isn’t looking for hope in present reality. Instead, his hope comes from the promise of a future with Jesus in a sinless, glorified state of being.
In the midst of our calling and justification, there will undoubtedly be bad things, and even back in verse 25, Pauls tells us we can’t see our future glorification yet, but it will all work out for good because, in the end, we are glorified. There is a plan. There is a purpose. There is a beautiful, glorified future waiting for us.
In the illustration, I wanted to visualize something seemingly chaotic if you were in the middle. But, if you could step outside, you would see a clear path and a beautiful woven tapestry.
However, we can’t step outside and see right now, so what do we do? We take a cue from the author of Hebrews and look to Him patiently, who is the author and finisher, and we have faith that He who called and justified us will also glorify us.