“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. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that we might be the firstborn amongst many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”
Romans 8:28-30

PAUL has already told us in these verses we are considering that we are called according to his purpose. It is because of this purpose that God foreknew us before time began, and so predestined us to life. We enjoy this blessedness of eternal salvation because of God’s purpose of grace towards us, and for no other reason. And it is a purpose of grace, because the only reason we have been called is because of God’s sovereign decision in grace to do so. There is nothing in any human being that demands merit or consideration from God. We are born enemies of God and this enmity is in our hearts, as Paul has told us earlier in this chapter (verses 6,7).

We saw last time that the purpose of God in this predestinating us is that we may conform to the image of his Son. We saw that this is that we may be like Jesus in his character, and so be fit for the presence of God. We saw also that such a character or image is the only proof of eternal salvation, and that unless we show some progress in holiness we can’t claim that we are predestined to life, even though we may claim to have faith and that we believe in Jesus. Unless there is evidence in our lives of the life of Jesus, his character, in our living, we have no claim to be inheritors of the Kingdom.

FIRSTBORN AMONG MANY BROTHERS.

This leads us to something truly wonderful, and which shows that the holiness must be the work which God purposes in us by his foreknowledge and predestination.

We are predestined to conform to the likeness of Christ so that we may be family members with Christ of God’s family. This is a most glorious exaltation. No higher honour, privilege and blessing could be conferred upon us. We hear often how special and honoured people feel in Great Britain when they receive one of the honours bestowed in the land by the Queen. Those receiving honours go to Buckingham Palace to receive the honour and when interviewed after the honour has been bestowed, we hear them eulogising over the honour they have received. But all this earthly honour is nothing compared with what God confers on his chosen ones. We have the honour of becoming God’s children, and brothers and sisters to Jesus. He is the firstborn, but he became the firstborn when he became flesh, gave his life a ransom for sin, and was raised from the dead in triumph for the completion of his work of atonement. He ascended to the heavenly glory as the second Adam to be the firstborn of the redeemed humanity who become members of the family of God. Jesus was the Son of God from all eternity. However this ascending to be the firstborn is something new, for it is the exalting of human nature to glory and into the family of God, and it is in this sense he becomes the firstborn of many brothers and sisters in the family of God.

There is nothing greater in honour than this. We are exalted to a new realm, to a new life which is eternal, and to the honour of being members of the family of God. Christ was made a little lower than the angels when he became incarnate, but he was exalted higher than the angels when he ascended victorious and made to sit on the throne of the heavenly glory, to reign over all. In Christ we are exalted to the honour of being raised to the royalty of heaven, and higher than the angels.

There could be nothing so humbling than this, for no one honoured in such a way can ever in this life not be filled with shame and unworthiness because of our sins. What amazing grace that we should be raised to such honour. The honour is also a blessed honour because if we are Christ’s brothers and sisters, and God is our Father, then we abide in love unimaginable in its ecstasy of joy. We are beloved, and we dwell in the presence of God and Christ. We shall dine at his table, and live in his presence. Christians may be despised by the world as their Saviour and elder brother was, but there is no one in the world who has higher honour and position than the believer in Jesus. Here is infinite love as John says in his first letter when he says “How great is the love the Father has lavished upon us, that we should be called children of God! And this is what we are.

HE ALSO CALLED.

“And those he predestined, he also called”. This is the next tremendous statement the apostle makes in these verses before us. Here is the execution of God’s purpose. Without the call of God the purpose of God in his foreknowledge and predestination would never be accomplished.

The fact is that everyone born into this world is born dead towards God, and dead in trespasses and sins, as Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:1ff. In these verses in Ephesians 2 Paul goes on to describe what every human being is really like, and this is true even though from the world’s perspective a person may be of excellent character and honourable. Paul goes on to describe what we are all like as born naturally into this world as he describes what a Christian is before he or she is called by God. Paul says, “you were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.”

Paul is describing the fact that through natural birth we are all born under the rule and dominion of Satan, and we are born dead to God, and are born sinner before God and under the just wrath of God against our sins. The point is that we are sinful at heart, and this causes us to live for the lusts of the flesh, and hate the things of God. In John chapter 3:19 this truth about humanity is described in this way “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men love darkness instead of light because their deeds are evil.” This is the truth about human beings. Although the light of God has shone into the world in Jesus Christ, this light is ignored, refused and rejected, because human beings prefer darkness and the ways of darkness, rather than light and the ways of God. In earlier verses in Romans 8 we heard Paul telling us that the natural condition of human beings is to be enemies of God and so hate God.

Because of this condition there is no way that anyone will be saved from this darkness, and the eventual wrath of God falling in judgement and executing the punishment of everlasting death. No one would be a Christian but for the foreknowledge and predestination in grace by God. It is also true that God’s purpose of grace would not be appreciated or received unless God acted to execute his purpose and this is begun by his calling us with an effectual call, so that we respond to it. Whatever our experience as Christians, we have come to faith because God called us into his life.

This call is a quickening as Paul describes in Ephesians 2:4. Paul tells us “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions -- it is by grace that you have been saved.” The call is effectual because God raises us to new life. We are reborn. Because of this new life we are able to appreciate and receive the light of God in Christ. Because of this life we have a desire for God and so embrace the forgiveness and cleansing He has provided through Christ and his death. This call is not a coercing of our wills, but making us willing in the day of his power when he works this redeeming and saving work.

Repentance and faith are gifts of this call into life. Without this call of God we would not desire to repent and would not be moved to repent, nor would we desire to place our trust in Jesus, or have the ability to trust him and him alone for forgiveness and acceptance before God. Although repentance and faith are actions that we do in time, and though it may be supposed that we do it by our own power and so in part our salvation is achieved by us; this is not so. The fact is that being dead in trespasses and sins we have no desire to repent of our sins before God, nor do we feel there is an need to repent. Neither do we see any beauty in Jesus or that Jesus can help us or that it would be of any value to trust him. The fact is that repentance unto life is granted by God, just as saving faith in Christ is a gift of God in grace.

This is made clear in Acts,chapter 11. Peter is describing why he baptised Cornelius and his family who were Gentiles, and received them as believing Christians. He told the church in Jerusalem how the Holy Spirit came upon Cornelius and his family just as it did on the Apostles and others in the upper room on the day of Pentecost. Peter pointed out that this is what John the Baptist had declared that Jesus would baptise with the Holy Ghost. This gift of the Spirit Peter declares was proof that God had worked his salvation in the lives of Cornelius and his family (v.15-17). Then we read in verse 18 this startling statement. “When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying “So then, God has even granted the Gentiles repentance unto life.

Here is a clear statement. Repentance is something that is given as a gift by God. The desire to repent and ability to repent is entirely a work of God’s Holy Spirit. In the same way the desire and ability to trust Christ as Saviour is entirely a work of the Holy Spirit. This is the baptism of the Spirit, and this is the way God calls us effectual into the experience of salvation that he has purposed in his foreknowledge and predestination.

This reveals the fact that salvation is entirely the gift of God’s grace. Paul asserts this in Ephesians 2:8 when he says “by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- not by works, so that no one can boast.

This raises questions in peoples minds which cause them to resent this teaching. People question this teaching because it is asserted that it takes away the freedom of the will. The fact of the matter is that freedom of the will is a fallacy. We have freedom of choice, but not freedom of the will. Or if we have freedom of will, our will is in bondage to darkness and so what we will is always darkness unless God in his eternal purpose predestines us to life and calls us in the day of his power.

Why it is the purpose of God to predestine to life only some of humanity we have no answer to. Paul’s attitude to this question is given in Romans 9. In this chapter he faces this question, and tells us that we can’t answer it, but that we have no right to question God. Romans 9:20 "But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, ‘why do you make me like this’”.

We have no right to question God. The amazing thing is that God saves anyone at all. He has no obligation to do so. We have all gone our own way. Our sins deserve divine justice and the punishment of eternal death. There is nothing in us that is beautiful to God, and nothing that demands any consideration or merit from God. If he saves some, then it is amazing condescension, mercy and grace. The amazing thing is that God should go to such lengths in the sacrifice of his Son in order that he may save those he does save.