Because God Is Good Series

September 2, 2012

Morning Worship

Text: Romans 8:28-39

Subject: Faith in God

Title: Because God is Good

I’ve been talking about having faith in God. In the process I have been telling you things like, “Our faith is not in our faith… Our faith isn’t in the bible, but in the God who wrote the bible… Our faith isn’t in prayer, but in the God who answers prayer…” Now that may seem like I am stating the obvious, but the truth is there are people and even preachers out there who believe that everything you need for a victorious life is to look within yourself and find the good that is in you and they never mention Jesus. “My faith is what makes a difference… I believe in prayer… People even believe that this book is holy and to be honored so they display it proudly on their coffee tables and never open it. Somehow their faith is in the book.

But Jesus said, “Have faith in God…”

Everybody say, “Have faith in God…”

1 Timothy 1:12, That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.

Now, Paul wrote, “I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.”

The Key… You know whom you have believed in… it doesn’t say, I know about God or I know I believe in God, it says I know the one that I have believed… it’s personal.

2nd key… and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day. What have you entrusted to Him? Your faith! Whatever He has said to you, whatever He has promised you in His word, whatever you believe Him for, I am convinced… that because I have entrusted my faith to Him, I don’t have to worry about anything, not cancer, not heart disease, not poverty, not danger, not oppression, not battles, not the enemy… He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him…

The reason we can believe that is because God loves you and because of this one characteristic that prevails over you life… God is good…

Turn over to Romans 8: 28-39… I want to walk you through this passage to show you that because God is good and He is good all the time, that you can be convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.

Do you believe this is God's Word?

Do you believe it is for you?

Do you accept it as your own?

Will you appropriate it to your life?

Why can you trust God?

Because He is Good!!!!!!!!

28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Now this verse does not say that God causes bad things to happen in your life. What it does say is that even when bad things happen to His children, He will turn it around and make something good come out of it. Why does God work all things for good? Because He is good.

Question: How does God want us to know Him? In the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve walked with God, there was a tree planted that was forbidden to them. It was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Before they ate of its fruit, what did they know? Only good! Why? Because they knew God. Now verse 28 says that HE works things for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to his purpose. Who is that talking about? It is talking about the redeemed – those who are saved by grace - those who love him… But I want to take this a step further. Is it just those who have accepted salvation? Can you really love God without being convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.

What I am trying to say is that if you really love God wouldn’t you trust Him to do everything that He has said He will do? You have been called according to His purpose. For what? Ephesians 2:10, For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. But you can’t do it on your own. You have to have faith in God that He will accomplish everything that He has promised. John 15:5, If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.