All Things For Good: Chap. 9

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I'm only going to have this up very briefly, and then we'll get to the slides. Just wanted to give a rundown.

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This is our last evening, I promise, in the book

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All Things for Good by Thomas Watson. And basically what it has been has been a lengthy exposition of Romans 828, discussing each, each particular clause of that verse.

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And so I brought up the Kindle version. If you haven't had a chance to read it, 99 cents on Kindle, well worth it.

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And I just want to remind us of the chapters that we've covered. And so chapter one was that the best things work for good.

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Chapter two was the worst things work for good. Chapter three explained why all things work for good.

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And then chapter four was a love to God, which is it's not all things for good for everyone, but for those who love

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God. And then as we considered that topic, he went to chapter five, and that was the test of love to God.

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How do we know we love God? Following that was an exhortation to love

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God. Then effectual calling, which was the third clause of that.

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And now effectual calling, and then exhortations to those who are effectually called.

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And now chapter nine is concerning God's purpose. So this is what we've been going over for a number of months since last fall,

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I believe. Around August or September. So we'll begin here.

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Okay, so concerning God's purpose. This is a, it's a brief chapter, but perhaps we'll have some questions and comments.

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The last thing in the text, which I shall but briefly glance at, is the ground and origin of our effectual calling.

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In these words, according to his purpose, which is also we see in Ephesians 111,

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Anselm renders it according to his goodwill. Peter Martyr reads it according to his decree.

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This purpose or decree of God is the fountainhead of our spiritual blessings. It is the moving cause of our effectual calling, justification, and glorification.

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It is the highest link in the golden chain of salvation. What is the purpose that one man is effectually called and not another?

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It is from the eternal purpose of God. God's decree gives the casting vote in man's salvation.

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The casting vote? Wait a second. Oh, never mind. Well, he gives his vote, never mind. The fountainhead.

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Who knows what a fountainhead is? Where's my hiker?

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Mountains, rivers? What's the fountainhead? People are looking, who?

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What is he talking about? No, no.

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Perhaps. Oh, there's something busted with the fountainhead. Callista's raising her hand.

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Exactly right. The origin, right? That's where the fountain or the river, that's the source that it flows from.

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Of course. Jerry just wanted to give everyone else a chance. He feels like he's always participating.

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He wants to give other people. All right. We're just checking with our

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Puritans in there. Yeah, we don't often speak like that, but we understand. So God's purpose, and here, as all things work for good for those who love

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God, for those who are called according to his purpose. And so all these things are linked, and there are conditions that all things work for good.

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You know, the conditions are set by God. Let us then ascribe the whole work of grace to the pleasure of God's will.

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God did not choose us because we were worthy, but by choosing us, he makes us worthy. Proud men are apt to assume and arrogate too much to themselves in being sharers with God.

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While many cry out against church sacrilege, they are in the meantime guilty of a far greater sacrilege in robbing

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God of his glory, while they go to set the crown of salvation upon their own head. But we must resolve all into God's purpose.

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The evidences of salvation are in the saints, but the cause of salvation is in God.

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We still see that happening today. Is this just a problem that Thomas Watson faced?

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People taking credit for their own salvation? You know, God did cast his vote and Satan cast his, but guess who won the tiebreaker?

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You know, that's still something to boast of, right? And so he's making sure that we don't rob

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God of his glory. But he wants us to understand exactly what is at the root of our salvation.

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If it is God's purpose which saves, then it is not free will. Pelagians are strenuous assertors of free will.

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They tell us that a man has an innate power to affect his own conversion. But this text confutes it.

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Our calling is according to God's purpose. The scripture plucks up the root of free will.

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It is not of him who wills, Romans 9 .16 tells us. All depends upon the purpose of God.

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When the prisoner is cast at the bar, there is no saving him unless the king has a purpose to save him.

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God's purpose is his prerogative, royal. So, if it is

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God's purpose which saves, then it is not merit. Bellarmine holds that good works to do, expiate, sin, and merit glory.

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But the text says that we are called according to God's purpose and there is parallel scripture. Who has saved us and called us not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace.

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There is no such thing as merit. Our best works have in them both defection and infection and so are but glittering sins.

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Therefore, if we are called and justified, it is God's purpose brings it to pass. Let's see how far, because he mentions, all right, we'll get to the question and answer in just a minute.

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This is probably very familiar territory for most of us here. Are there any questions or comments about what he is saying here?

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Is there anything we don't understand? Anyone know who Bellarmine is? No? That's all right, neither did

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I. Bellarmine, Robert Bellarmine or Roberto, he was an

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Italian Jesuit and cardinal with the Roman Catholic Church. He lived in the 1500s, the 1600s, you know, over that period.

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And he was active in the Counter -Reformation. He was actually a very influential person.

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There's schools and universities that are named after him. He was also declared a saint. So we're on dangerous ground here opposing a saint.

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Interestingly enough, he participated in the attacks against Galileo and others like him. So just to give you a sense of when

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Thomas Watson brings him up, this is someone who, you know, people would have quoted as someone who's, you know, authoritative when it comes to scriptures and what it says.

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You can have some people who have high degrees, high intelligence, you know, and they've made quite a name for themselves.

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Doesn't mean that they're right. There's a lot of people out there today writing books, you know, in addition to blogs and videos and, you know, entire universities.

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But we don't just give them ground because of their following, because of their knowledge.

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We always have to compare it to scripture. And so we'll talk about the question and answer because he brings up, you know, one of the arguments that they would use.

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Objection. But the papist alleged that scripture, for merit, henceforth is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the

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Lord, the righteous judge, I missed that one. I'm pretty sure it wasn't fudge, shall give me that day.

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Did you? Did you edit this after? He was hungry that day.

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My goodness. The righteous judge shall give me that at that day, right?

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This is the force of their argument. If God in justice rewards our works, then they merit salvation.

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That can you see how they would make that argument? You know, you're earning something.

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You're getting reward. You don't get a reward for nothing, right? This was before the days of participation trophies.

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Just, you know, everyone gets a prize. Everyone gets a ribbon, right? So if you're getting rewarded, you must have done something to earn your reward.

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Would we agree with that statement? If someone said that, well,

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I was going to say, probably just, but thank you for that. Steve.

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Well, grace. Grace? We're saved by grace.

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So, a father comes home and sees something for his child and brings it home, even though the child didn't ask for it, the child didn't necessarily deserve it, but he thought of him and he, and he, so, you know, people always got stuff they didn't earn.

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mm -hmm sure God gives grace mm -hmm no yeah no and we would agree that we are saved by grace right and so while we agree with that and I say the vast majority of Scripture taken as a whole what clearly is on the side of the doctrines of grace when we see verses that people will cherry -pick and pluck out to say oh no no no but this says you know he's saying laid up for me a crown of righteousness crown of righteousness which is righteous judge will give to me

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I've merited righteousness was there another hand yes no there you go who wants to repeat what he said amen though true all right to this

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I answer God gives a reward as a just judge not to the worthiness of our works but to the worthiness of Christ God as a just judge rewards us not because we have deserved it but because he has promised it

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God has two courts a court of mercy and a court of justice the Lord condemns those works in the court of justice which he crowns in the court of mercy therefore that which carries the main stroke in our salvation is the purpose of God I don't know if you were here on Sunday morning talking about the

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Lord's Prayer I somehow meandered into this and and was talking about justice and mercy talking about the forgiveness of our of our debts and the way he phrased it does anyone have a problem with the way he phrased it does anyone track with him

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I was initially like that's not how I would say it on reading it through a couple times

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I get what he's saying so I'm not gonna say that he worded it poorly it's just I was thinking on a different track now you got to try to figure out what

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Watson is thinking and what McDowell was thinking I think we can merit rewards we can't merit eternal life is a big difference right eternal life is has to be a free gift we can't merit our own forgiveness because we're sinners and we can't pay for that but what we can do is be obeying to Christ which is what we should do so God in his grace actually gives us rewards for the things that we're supposed to be doing anyway right so when we when we do good works so to speak and we help help clothe the naked feed the hungry you know minister to the sick

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God rewards those things but those are things that we're supposed to do anyway mm -hmm so he's actually rewarding us for the things that we should do so those would be rewards for for what we've done but eternal life is a free gift of God even those good works are grace yes

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God gives us the grace to do them and then he graciously rewards us it really is all of grace

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Jason and then Jerry I'll answer that in one second

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Jerry did you have I was just going to say with regard to works at all works come out of the heart so it's going to be and even then well you know even then our what order do

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I want to answer this in all excellent points and Jason what you were pointing out about the the the court of mercy in the court of justice and condemning one and then crowning in the other you know

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I think of sometimes when people try to you know when they're talking about salvation they're like you know you don't want justice you want mercy so you know some people get justice and some people get mercy

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I'm like well wait on the other hand justice is always done you know the wages of sin is death you know the penalty is death and it must be paid in our case for those who get mercy

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God does not set aside justice does he does he just unilaterally say

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I I choose to forgive so I'm just wiping away your sins and nothing has to be done to deal with those sins he doesn't say that right this is an easy one bobbing it out there just making sure we're all awake right what has he done to make sure that justice has been met exactly right right and we just celebrated resurrection

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Sunday where God has demonstrated and made clear that the sacrifice Christ made on our behalf was accepted he raised him from the dead and his resurrection promises our resurrection that our debt has been paid and so we receive mercy

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Christ took the justice that we deserved right so there's always justice is always meted out and you know as we are offering the gospel to people we say you know someone is going to pay for your sins for all eternity it will be you if it's on you because it's gonna take you all eternity to pay back your sins against a an infinite

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God right or you can recognize and accept that Christ has paid for it on the cross and that punishment has been paid and you can have mercy so when he's talking about the works he condemns in the court of justice

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I'm not sure if he's talking about that which would we would be done you know on in unregenerate state because what does

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Isaiah say our righteousness is as filthy rags who's accepting filthy rags and giving you a crown of righteousness for it right he had mentioned earlier in you know just just momentarily earlier talking about our our works have a sense of defection in it an infection in it you know we recognize that our hearts aren't always right even when we're doing good deeds sometimes our motives aren't what they should be it doesn't mean we shouldn't do good deeds until we get our heart right we just have to keep repenting of the sin that's there but in his mercy as much as Christ is in those things as much as our heart is right to honor

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God those will be those will be rewarded and so as pastor

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Anthony was saying they can't earn you salvation because when God is repaying each one according to their deeds you can't try to tip the scales in your favor like oh if I do enough even when we're saved and we're doing good works they're not always as good as they should be and they certainly can't merit us salvation but in his grace he does reward us for walking obedience once we're in Christ the things that we are supposed to do he gives us the grace to do as Joelle said and then we get rewarded for it

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I mean God is truly gracious but we could just never ever earn salvation by doing good works yeah the purpose of God is our salvation not because he's going to talk about the foreseen which we still see today argued for let's go on there we go again if the purpose of God is the springhead of happiness then we are not saved for foreseen faith it is absurd to think anything in us could have had the least influence upon our election some say that God foresaw that such people would believe and therefore choose them just so they would make the business of salvation to depend upon something within us whereas God does not choose us for faith but to faith he has chosen us that we should be holy not because we were holy but that we might be holy we are elected the holiness not for any inherent holiness what could

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God foresee in us but pollution and rebellion if any man be saved is according to God's purpose right and so here we have a quote from Ephesians I often think of in Genesis when he's talking about having chosen

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Abraham he's actually uh he's saying should I hide from Abraham when

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I'm about to do he's about to go down and judge Sodom and Gomorrah and he goes should I hide from him seeing as I have chosen him

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I'm gonna make him a great nation and I guess I have chosen him that he might command his children after me not because Abraham I knew if I picked him he definitely would you know but he's giving him the ability to by the choosing is that clear

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I mean and we see that throughout scripture he's it's just it's hard to argue against but some people will some people they we talk about defending

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God's glory as if he needs defending but we want to make sure that we give him all the due credit and recognize

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God deserves all the glory we deserve none of it any part that you says that you say why you chose

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God and your neighbor didn't but whatever that small reason is it's still a reason to boast and scripture tells us it was him that we might not boast that we'd have no ground for boasting and I've never seen anyone to be able to answer that question but does it but no

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I wouldn't I don't post in that but you are though you know and so some people though while we're saying this is

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God's glory they think that they're defending the character of God you know that he wouldn't choose some people it's just it makes him sad and you got to realize but he if he didn't choose none of us would choose him and that's what the scriptures tell us so if man be saved it is according to God's purpose question how shall we know that God has a purpose to save us and we want to venture the answer before I before he gives it it's lots of ways you can answer but because he did because it says so well let's take it more to the how shall we know that God has a purpose to save us how do we know that God has a purpose to save us by being effectually called know what you said finding reasons for assurance how do you do that well you give diligence to make your calling an election sure we make our election sure by making our calling sure

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God has chosen you to salvation through sanctification by the stream we come at last to the fountain isn't that interesting

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Puritans brilliant if we find the stream of sanctification running in our souls we may buy this come to the springhead of election though I cannot look up into the secret of God's purpose yet I may know

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I am elected by the shining of sanctifying grace in my soul whoever finds the

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Word of God transcribed and copied out into his heart may undeniably conclude his election

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Wow I can't say it any better than that that's Puritans fantastic that makes sense is everyone tracking with that that stream of sanctification if we're seeing fruit of the fruit of salvation in our lives we're seeing the

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Word of God where it's in our hearts we're desiring to honor it to obey it when we recognize we fall short we keep going back in repentance right and at last we will come to that of that fountainhead and recognize of course right and so we can have assurance of salvation again contrary to the teachings of the

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Roman Catholic Church that would say that you're arrogant to imagine that you could know that you're saved for sure all right but we recognize it's not our merits that are keeping us saved and that's the problem that's for anyone you know we have brethren who don't hold to Roman Catholic doctrine and yet they believe they can lose their salvation which is essentially

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Roman Catholic doctrine you know and so they're constantly trying to make sure that they're earning their way and afraid that they're gonna lose it but if you could lose it well first of all you would right but if you could lose it then it's it's it was dependent on you to get it in the first place it's depending on you to maintain it so any questions or comments about that before we this whole thing the last two slides it highlights the difference between the

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Old Covenant and the New Covenant. All the Old Covenant could do was to prove you guilty right so in circumcision in the

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Old Covenant you were bound to the lawgiver spiritual circumcision for the

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New Covenant binds you to the lawkeeper so in one you're bound to the lawgiver and all it can do is prove you guilty the other one you're bound to the lawkeeper and all it can do is prove you innocent so in either case you're either going to be fully guilty or fully innocent yeah there's no middle ground unless you think and unless you think that you can keep the

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Old Covenant yeah yeah yeah you know when we're told well he who breaks one part is guilty of the whole thing

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I mean that's that's supposed to wake you up and say stop stop trying to think that you could earn your salvation you look to the grace of God that doesn't mean that we don't desire to keep the law of course we do but we recognize it's out of a heart full of gratitude towards God and desire to be obedient and to show our love to him that way not that we think that we are somehow earning our righteousness through that God's purpose is the ground of assurance here is a sovereign elixir of unspeakable comfort to those who are the called of God their salvation rests upon God's purpose the foundation of God stands sure having this seal the

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Lord knows those who are his let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity our graces are imperfect our comforts ebb and flow but God's foundation stand sure they who are built upon this rock of God's eternal purpose need not fear falling away neither the power of man nor the violence of temptation shall ever be able to overturn them amen yeah there's that's a lot of comfort there especially when we have a sober assessment of ourselves and how easily we can be faithless though he is faithful yeah and when we speak about God's purpose and the salvation of God's purpose

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God's purpose it should be for anyone who has this theology with a firm grasp should be comforted knowing that they can't lose their salvation knowing that God is holding on to them far tightly far more tightly than we could ever hold on to him all right we're guarded through faith and so when we want our faith even in our difficult times keeps pointing us back to Christ recognize that's a gift from him that's keeping us in relation with him but it's according to his purpose and his purpose can't be thwarted and that should be a source of comfort for us as we think about that and we think about the whole world you know we talked about elections being stolen and all these various things and people are filled with anxiety about what could happen what might happen right but God's purpose can't be thwarted you can't lose your salvation and no one can steal anything from God no one can get by anything from God we have people who wrong us take advantage but God is not surprised he's not thwarted he's like ah

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I had such great plans for that person but so -and -so came in and robbed them at the last moment sorry

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I'll get them next time no God is working all things for good the best things the worst things short one tonight

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I don't know if that makes up for the months where I went long but here's 15 minutes questions comments what

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I see a look back there I just caught the look

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I missed that the head shake like no no far more penance is needed for that like wait wait hold on a second all right questions or comments about that it's a short chapter it's brief but again this is pretty familiar territory for us and as we've gone through this entire book we've we've been visiting this topic and this understanding so you have examples are like you know

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Saints well I said you know like just bumping in with you mentor you know yep things in circumstances that happen in our life that helps us in our sanctification are they truly evil or though is that just our perspective let's say like being of sickness or certain you know loss is it truly or is it just our our thoughts towards it might depend on the on the particular thing if someone robs you you know or assault you or worse you know that's evil you know what

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Joseph's brothers did was evil and they meant it for evil you know like let's throw them in this hole and then we'll save ourselves from the famine later on don't worry it's all gonna work out no they they were being evil and they meant it for evil right and so sometimes you have those things happen where you know the crucifixion of Christ if they knew they would have never crucified the

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Lord of glory right so their intentions were evil and their act was evil getting sick getting cancer

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I mean these are the results of a of a fallen world so when you talk about the definition of evil you know under you know calamity you know this calamity come and the

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Lord hasn't brought it you know and in some translations it'll say has evil come and the

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Lord has not brought it so there can be evil things where actions of people there can be what we would call

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I don't know how many people because people shy away from the use of evil now anyway they reserve it for only the people that they really hate the most those people are evil but them and all their friends are if they're okay yeah no one after that after the few exceptions no one's really evil is just people who need better education or more love or you know another hug or something like that but these are things in a broken world you know you think about what happened to Job's family you know people came and took away his flocks a wind came and and collapsed the building that his children are in is a wind evil well

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Satan was behind it and he meant it for evil right and God was using it though and so for us you know weapon formed against us shall prosper so there can be there can be evil things that you can say objectively that's evil but God is working it for our good the worst things work for our good evil things work for our good yeah

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I mean we say yeah yeah I mean God is sovereign over all of it right and he has a purpose in it but from a divine heavenly perspective this is going to be how he works all things together for good the verse doesn't say all things are good it says all things are worked together so there's evil actions that man does and takes place in this world we see them all the time we help bring evil into the world unfortunately but for the for the believer

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God is intense and works that and the thing I love about this is the only way the only person who can make that promise is

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God like you've always you know I speak to so many people all don't worry it's all good it's all it's all gonna work out like you have no idea you just have no idea you can't guarantee me something's gonna work out the only one who can guarantee me that is

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God because he's sovereign over all things and for the people who don't believe that God is sovereign over all things how could you hold to that promise this is one of the most reassuring promises in all of Scripture and then you're gonna say no no you know

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God's you know God doesn't interfere you know with man's free will really how's he gonna make this work for my good yeah good luck with that amen

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Oh bunch of people want to jump in here I was just to say just to touch on what Michael was saying too

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I think it's important that we go back and remember the nature of God and his attributes and we remember that God is good right and so he can't go against that nature

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God is not the author of evil God is good all the things that God does is good but the perspective

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I think is important when you think about it from a worldly perspective there are evil actions out there and from God's perspective because he says he's got a moral or will if you lie that's evil

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God says it's easy but he can have a good intent and a purpose in that pastor

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Johnson yeah I think it's important I would recognize that there are evil actions mm -hmm

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God raised up Pharaoh for the day of evil mm -hmm and how do you know is evil because he was accomplished because he punished him for it yeah think about the

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Assyrians and Athenians yeah all right he said he raised him up mm -hmm for the purpose to punish

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Israel yeah then what did he do he punishes them because they didn't do it they did it for their own for their own good that means it's evil yeah absolutely yeah so you know the

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Babylonians the Assyrians you know these these examples you know exactly what he says he meant it for good he's punishing

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Israel he's you know using that as a means to try to bring them to repentance as he promised he would and then he goes ahead and punishes them because the evil in their heart you mentioned like you know sickness cancer and and stuff like that you know where it's not like someone has attacked you and assaulted you you just you have a tumor and it's it's killing you would we call that evil it's the result of evil

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I mean why did death come into the world because of sin sin brings sickness and death and when we see these things again we have to remember you know we have to define good and evil by God's definition not our own because we'll look at ourselves and we'll look at our neighbor we'll look at the things that we do like well

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I'm a good person I mean you go out and evangelize you try sharing with anyone who's going through a hard time and hear them defend themselves how they're a good person then they don't deserve this and why doesn't

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God stop the evil and that's one of my favorite things well if God was gonna remove the evil we're all gone right we are the mass importers of evil we brought evil in you know we're comparing ourselves to each other saying oh well they're more evil or they're they're badder than I am

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I'm I'm gooder I'm better right than they are but it's simply not the case we're just we're all we bring evil into the world and when we see sickness when we see cancer when we see these things it's a reminder to us a sober reminder that God punishes evil with death and we're we all die not all of us are gonna die of cancer some of us will die there's shootings there's