The Romans 8:28 Promise in the Book of Proverbs

“The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.” (Prov 16:4)

Sounds a little like Roman 8:28, right?  Think about some of the things God used purposefully, that man should be surprised by: a burning bush for Moses’ good, a talking donkey to restrain Balaam, a great fish to protect Jonah from himself, or a selection of five fish and two loaves for a multitude of people.  

The psalmist is not saying, “Well, I God knows what he is doing.” Paul says those who love God will see all things work together for good. How does that work? Let me illustrate.

There are some who attend funerals and memorial services and find very little good. They are there because something terrible has happened – death. Some people come because they have lost a loved one or close friend and their absence is an awful reality, and they cannot imagine that anyone could see good come out of such a loss. But for the one who loves God, to be absent from the body is to present with the Lord (II Cor 5:8). For the one who loves God, precious is the death of His saints (Ps 116:15). For the one who loves God, death has no sting (I Cor 15:57). For the one who loves God, he can face or look at death and find good.

The person who doesn’t love God can’t make much sense out of death. Only God can make death good. God synergizes all things to cooperate in our lives for good. He doesn’t say good comes out of us, but that God works good out of us and even our evil.

My Grandpa Pack once wrote in his diary, “You may not be able to see the end result now; it may take time to see it. How does God make all things work together for good? Because He knows the end from the beginning. When God does go to work, things get done and it will not be randomly put together. It will work … perfectly.”

God doesn’t make a mistake or cause an accident. He never says everything is good this side of the Fall, but God can most certainly bring good out of it.