If God Is For Us

July 12

I Chronicles 27-29

Psalm 79:9-13

Proverbs 17:23-24

Romans 8:18-39

If God Is For Us

“And in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the heart knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.  And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose….What then shall we say to these things?  If God is for us, who is against us?  He who indeed did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things? ….For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:26-28, 31-32, 38-39 LSB 

As I said yesterday, Romans 8 is one of, if not the most encouraging chapters in all of God’s Word.  It was hard to pick the verses to highlight because I could have easily used any of them.  No matter what we are facing this chapter provides the best answer to calm our fears, soothe our aching hearts and give us hope and strength to persevere.  I remember a couple of times as a kid when I was afraid.  The details aren’t important, but one time was on a boat in the Gulf of Mexico (at least that was what it was called at the time) off the coast of Mobile, AL.  I was afraid we were going to capsize and I just wanted to be next to my Daddy.  Looking back on that night, I’m not sure he could have saved me if we had an accident, but I know he loved me and I was and am confident he would have put his own life at risk to save mine.  But he was human and his abilities might not have been sufficient in the face of danger.  That is not the case with my heavenly Father.  His love for me is perfect, His goodness is sure and His abilities are limitless.  I am confident that He wants to help me, He is able to help me and He knows how best to help me.  With that knowledge, I do not have to fear.  When I do not know what I need, He does.  When I pray for something that is not going to be good for me, Jesus is sitting in heaven and He steps in on my behalf and asks God to intervene in the best way. 

God loves me so much that He was willing to sacrifice His Son on my behalf.  If He was willing to do that, how can I doubt that He will take care of me.  He may not give me what I want because He knows that sometimes what I want is not what is best.  Because He is omniscient, He can see into my future and knows exactly what is best.  He knows what my future holds and what I need to be prepared for it.  A wise, loving father raises children who are mature and walking in faith, not spoiled brats.  His job is not to make our lives easy and comfortable, but rather to train us in righteousness, to develop our faith and to prepare us for the life ahead. We can rest in the knowledge that because of His love for us, He will always have our back.  If He is for us, who can be against us?  Nothing can separate us from His love!