Thankful the Lord gave you that
scripture. Because we come into the text
in Romans that every believer here has been waiting on us to
get to. Romans 8.28. Romans 8.28. And this goes right along with what
brother Kevin just read. Romans 8.28. And we know, and we know that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them who are the
called according to His purpose. This verse is one that every
true believer knows and gains great, great comfort from. It's
great comfort to us. But this verse is so misquoted
and it's so misapplied by men when they come into any kind
of tragedy or any kind of trouble or something goes wrong. One
thing that's pretty popular this day, especially amongst younger
people, is to say, well, all things happen for a reason. That
came from this verse. That's a terrible, inaccurate
paraphrase of this verse. That's not what this verse says.
That's not what this verse says. That's leaving things to blind
faith, blind reason. All things happen for a reason.
God works all things. And He works all things for a
particular people. And He works all things according
to His eternal purpose. That's what this verse says.
Others will say, well, all things work together for good. We just
sing a song. And I don't like how the song
quoted it because it misquoted it, but at least the song does
go on and talk about God working the thing. Though it doesn't
apply to who He works it for enough for my liking, but you
got to go with what you got. But they'll say, well, all things
work together for good, but that leaves out to whom this verse
applies. And it leaves out that providence
is according to God's predestinating purpose. Others will go a little
further. Well, all things work together
for good to them that love God. That still leaves out the qualification
that determines who it is that loves God. And it leaves out the fact that
it's only the called according to God's purpose. You all may
have heard the story. I don't think you would mind
me telling it. It's been retold many times. But the first time
that Ralph Barnard came to Pollard Baptist Church in Ashland, Kentucky,
Brother Henry Mahan was a 20-something year old Armenian free will preacher. And I don't know how they ended
up inviting Ralph Barnard to preach there. But there was a
whole bunch there and all different denominations and everything.
And Ralph Barnard got up and he asked Brother Henry to stand
up and quote Romans 8.28. And he stood up and he said,
And we know all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called. And I think he said, we know
all things work together for good to them that love God. He
sat down, he said, stand back up. Quote it again. He said,
and we know all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called. He sat down. He said, stand back
up. Give me the verse. He said, all
things work together for good to them that love God, to them
who are the called, according to His purpose. And Ralph Barner
shouted to the top of his lungs, purpose, purpose. Everything is according to God's
eternal predestinating purpose. That which comes to pass is providence. That's God working everything
He purposed from the beginning. That's what we have in this one
verse. We have providence, We know all things work together
for good to them that love God, to them that are the called.
And we have God's predestinating purpose. It's all according to
His purpose. Every bit of it. Both in this
one verse right here. It begins and it says, and we
know. I like how it begins with the
word and. In addition to everything else
that's been stated in this chapter. In addition to the fact there's
now no condemnation. In addition to the fact that
we know this because the Spirit's delivered us from the law of
sin and death, in addition to the fact that the Spirit quickens
us so that we don't have to depend on our flesh, He mortifies our
flesh, in addition to the fact that we know that He ministers
to us and bears witness that we're sons of God, in addition
to the fact that He fills us with the fruits of the Spirit
and makes us hope for that day when Christ will return and redeem
our bodies, in addition to the fact that He puts the will of
God in our heart with words that can't even be uttered so that
we pray according to God's will and God will actually hear us,
in addition to all that. And we know that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them that are the
called according to His purpose. We know. We know. We know by
God's Word. This is what God shows us throughout
His Word. We know it because the Spirit
of God has purged our conscience and written His Word on our heart
so that we know now spiritually. This is not a we're guessing
on it or we just have a good idea that this is so. We know
this with a firm persuasion by the Spirit of God revealing this
in our heart. And we also know this by experience.
Romans 5.3 says, we glory in tribulations also, we glory in
trials also, knowing, knowing that tribulation works patience
and patience experience maturity and experience works hope and
hope never makes us ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad
in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us. So we know
We know by the Word, we know in the court of our conscience,
and we know by experience. By experience. Now, here's what
we know. We know that the true and living
God is so holy, so powerful, so wise to save His people that
He works all things together in providence for His people
according to His eternal predestinating purpose. We know this. If you're
a child of God, born of God, this hour, you know this. If you have an unction from the
Holy One, you know all things and you know this. God's people
know this. First of all, we know what God's
doing in all of providence. Providence is simply what's coming
to pass. Everything that's coming to pass
is God's providence. What's He doing in everything
that's coming to pass since the first second of this world? What's
He been doing? Verse 28 says, And we know that
all things work together for good. That's what He's been doing.
All things includes everything. All persons in the Godhead, the
Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, they work together for good. All things that come to pass,
good, bad, it all works together for good. The fall into sin and
death in Adam, that looks bad, doesn't it? That was bad, but
it's worked together for good. The devil, sin, death, that's
all worked together for good. Affliction, temptation, when
we suffer desertion, betrayal, that's all being worked together
for good. All things that make us happy,
all things that make us sad, all things that come to pass,
great and small, all things work together for good. All things in God's grace and
salvation. Look down at verse 29 and let's
read down verse 31. Here's what this thing's all
about right here. It's about God's salvation, about
God's grace. We know that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them who are the
called according to His purpose, because who God did foreknow,
who He did elect, who He did ordain, He also did predestinate. to be conformed to the image
of His Son that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called. And whom
He called, them He also justified. And whom He justified, them He
also glorified." Did you see in there anywhere where we did
anything? It was all He did. He did it
all. That's providence. That's His
purpose. He does it all. In all our salvation,
it's all worked together for good by God. All of it. All of it. All things He says
here work together. All things work together. You
see these opposing forces, and opposing people, and opposing
parties, and opposing countries, and all this, and they're just
fighting, fighting, fighting, but they're working together.
They don't know it, and they'd hate to hear that, but they're
working together, because God's working it together. It doesn't
just magically bump into each other and it somehow all works
together. God works it all together. God's working it all together.
Psalm 115.3 says, God is in the heavens. He hath done whatsoever
He hath pleased. What is that? Everything is coming
to pass. Daniel 4.35, All the inhabitants
of the earth are reputed as nothing. He doeth according to His will
in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth,
and none can stay His hand or say unto Him, What doest Thou?
Job 23, verse 13, He is in one mind, who can turn Him? What
His soul desireth, even that He doeth. You see, this is what
makes God, God. Men who make up a God and write
their word of their God, they don't ever have a God like this.
Why? Because man can't do this. And He don't make a God that
can do this. Because then His God would be in control rather
than Him being in control. This is the God who does what
He will. The Lord bringeth the counsel
of the heathen to nothing. He makes the devices of the people
of none effect. You see some party gathered up
on the shore and they're fixing to fire off nuclear weapons or
they're fixing to send all their army over here and do something
to us, I can guarantee you, I don't care how well they've planned
it, what they've planned out, if it's not God's will, it's
coming to nothing. The counsel of the Lord standeth
forever, the thoughts of His heart to all generations. And
then it says here, all things work together for good. For good. The good that God is speaking
of here is not necessarily our temporal good, it's not necessarily
our physical good. We need to understand this. There are preachers out there
saying, well, if you get a disease, or you fall into poverty, you
don't have enough faith, it's your fault. That's works religion. It's telling you to do something
so you can be prosperous and God will bless you. That's health,
wealth, prosperity religion. That's just free will works religion.
God has poor people in this world who God made poor. God has people
in this world who have diseases who God gave the disease. God
has people who suffer great trials and persecutions and even cruel
deaths. Go read Hebrews 11. And God gave
them that suffering. But even all that is for our
good. Our spiritual, eternal, everlasting
good. That's the good we're talking
about. Our eternal, everlasting, spiritual good. Our salvation. I'll give you an example. Adam
fell by disobedience and he made all his people sinful. Now God's
not the author of sin. Man sinned. God let Adam do what
Adam would do and he sinned. In a perfect environment, with
upright, knowing no sin, he still disobeyed God. You see, God's
creatures are made by God and we're dependent upon God to keep
us. It doesn't matter if we're sinless or not. You still depend
upon God to keep you. And God permitted you to just
do what you would do. Look what Adam did in that environment
and in that state. Now what do you think you'll
do as a sinner in a sinful, cursed world? What do you think you'd
do if God let you do what you will? But he did that and that
was a bad thing that happened to all people, even to God's
people. And yet it was for the spiritual,
eternal good of God's people because it manifests the last
Adam. It was a picture of the last
Adam. Christ Jesus by whose obedience we're saved and God's glorified. You see what I'm saying? It may
be bad, but it's for good and God's going to bring good out
of it. All the evil things that the devil and his seed, his children. Scripture speaks of the devil
and his seed. There's the devil and he has
a bunch of children, men and women in this world. Every wicked,
evil thing they've ever done throughout history was all permitted
by God. He simply let wicked men do what
was in their heart. And yet God ordered it and worked
it together and arranged it all for God's glory and the salvation
of God's people. Every bit of it. The rest of
the evil, God restrains. Psalm 76 10, Surely the wrath
of man shall praise thee, the remainder of wrath shalt thou
restrain. If you see it and it's wicked
and it's evil and it's terrible, the only reason God allowed it
to happen is because it's bringing glory to God and it's for the
good of His people. That's the only reason. That's
the only reason. The worst act that the devil
and sinful wicked men ever did was to put the Prince of Life
on a cross to crucify the God of Glory. That's the worst thing
ever happened in history. The worst thing that ever happened
in history. And the only thing men were doing is what God predestinated
and purposed before to be done. Acts 2.23 says, Him being delivered
by the determinate counsel and for knowledge of God, ye have
taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain. God determined
it before. It was according to His eternal
counsel, His purpose, His predestinating decree. That's why it came to
pass. That's why providentially God
allowed it to come to pass and made it come to pass. The kings
of the earth stood up. The rulers were gathered together
against the Lord and against His Christ for of a truth against
the Holy Child Jesus whom thou has anointed both Herod and Pontius
Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel were gathered
together. There's all things working together. Israel, Gentiles, Romans, Jews,
Gentiles, all working together for good. for to do whatsoever
thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done." Now, if that's
the case and you see the good that came out of that, you see
how evil and wicked that was by the men who did it. They did
it with wicked hands. And yet you see the good God
brought out of that. then know everything else is
coming to pass. No matter how wicked and evil
it is, God's working it all together for good. Every bit of it. And
you know, He does this for our everlasting good and we need
everything to be worked together for our good. Just imagine if
God gave you nothing but sorrow. You would fall away in despair
if He gave you nothing but sorrow. But He mixes that sorrow with
happiness and joy. But imagine if He just gave you
all joy and all happiness. We'd get so lifted up in pride
and arrogance and like we don't even need God. So He mixes them
together and gives you some sorrow, gives you some joy. Because that
keeps us right where we need to be. Right where God will have
us to be. See, He's working all things
together for good, for the good. For the Lord God, He's doing
this for His people, knowing what to bring each of His children
for our good. That's what's amazing. I think
I told you that what Spurgeon said one time about God's people,
our children, you know, if we have a house full of kids, some
of them at some point is going to have to be on the outer circumference
because we can only deal with one at a time. Not God. All His children are the center
of His attention all the time. And He knows what each and every
one of us need, so He works it together for our good. Everything
that comes to pass. Everything that comes to pass.
The Lord God is a sun and a shield. The Lord will give grace and
glory. No good thing will He withhold from them that walk
uprightly. No good thing. It might not look
like a good thing to you and me, but it's a good thing. There
shall no evil happen to the just. It might look evil, but it's
not evil. Not to those He's justified,
but the wicked, oh, they'll be filled with it. They'll be filled
with it. That sounds like God made everything
and everybody for Himself. It sounds like God made everybody
and everything for Himself to bring glory to Himself. That's
exactly right. Scripture says, "...the Lord
hath made all things for Himself, yea, even the wicked, for the
day of evil." In the day of judgment, when He casts out the wicked,
that's going to be to bring glory to God's justice and His righteousness. We've seen this in King Nebuchadnezzar. He's an example. There was a
proud king that thought he was God and thought that nobody could
tell him what to do. God made him a madman. Put him
on all fours out in a field like a beast. And then when God was
ready, God returned his sins to him. And he says, Now I, Nebuchadnezzar,
praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all whose works
are truth. In His way's judgment and those
that walk in pride, He's able to abase. Aren't you glad? We wouldn't have any understanding
of salvation if He had not abased these proud rebels that you and
I are. Isn't that right? God's ways are not our ways.
We certainly wouldn't do things the way God does them. Thank
God He doesn't allow it. But God's ways are always truth.
And His ways are always judgment. And His ways are always good
for His people. Always. You see the wisdom of God in
that? You see the power of God in that? Look over at Romans
11, 33. Proud boasters say, why does
God allow evil things to happen in this world? Well, now you
know. Now you know. He's working them
all together. for the good of His people. It's
called God's providence. Look here, Romans 11, 33. Oh,
the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of
God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding
out! For who hath known the mind of
the Lord? Or who hath been His counselor? Or who hath first
given to Him? It will be recompensed unto Him
again. If you can find one person that first gave anything to God,
God says, I'll recompense it to him. You can't find anybody
that first gave anything to God. How come? Because of Him and
through Him and to Him are all things to whom be glory forever. Amen. Isn't that right? Now look at this second thing.
Go back to our text. Secondly, to whom is God working all things
together for good? It's for His particular people.
Verse 28, And we know that all things work together for good
to them that love God, to them who are thee called. Now, we
cannot make the statement, and if you're doing this, going around
doing this, stop doing it. We cannot go around and make
the statement, well, all things work together for good. You can't
do that. We can't say that. Because that's
going to apply to everybody without exception. And this does not
apply to everybody without exception. God's clearness can be on it.
This does not apply to everybody without exception. The sinner
who passes through his entire life hating God, hating Christ,
hating his people, hating his gospel, God has never done one
good thing for that man. Not one. He might have been the
richest man on this earth. All God was doing was fattening
him up for the slaughter. He wasn't doing anything good
for him. The only good that's done is spiritual everlasting
salvation. That's the only good that's done.
The reason that concept may come across to us as being confusing,
that God doesn't do good for the rebel, is because we consider
good to be things that make us happy in this life. That's not
the good he's talking about. The good he's talking about is
salvation. And God hadn't done anything to save a man that goes
through his life rebelling against God and passes into eternity
that way. Because if you say God was trying
to do something for him and failed, you make God a failure. That's
not the God we're talking about in this passage, is it? This
God don't fail. Not at all. Maybe God allowed
him to learn some true doctrine. did that and he sued his conscience
with it, made himself think he was God's child, but he all the
while walked contrary to God's Word. God didn't do anything
for him. He didn't do a thing for him.
God didn't give him that doctrine. The devil gave it to him and
God let the devil give it to him to sue his conscience on
his way to hell. I don't care if it's true doctrine.
There's going to be a lot of straight... I mean, Calvin is
straight as a shotgun barrel and twice as empty in hell. I
guarantee you. God works all things together
for good to them that love God. And He tells us who they are
to them that God Himself has called. You see, if God only
said to them that love God, every sinner in this world would apply
that to themselves. Oh, I love God. The God that you have in
your mind, and that God you can control, yeah. But see, God here,
He doesn't leave it there. He qualifies it. And He says,
it's only those that God Himself has called. We read there in
verse 29, whom he did foreknow. That word foreknow, that's not
just, first of all, he doesn't say what he foreknew. I don't
want to preach this text because I want to preach it later, but
he doesn't say what he foreknew, he says who he foreknew. And
it's who he foreknew as in who he foreordained, who he elected. And those he chose and he knew,
he predestinated. be conformed to the image of
Christ, so that Christ get all the glory. And them that He predestinated,
what did He do? He called them. He called them. And them that He called, He justified.
Now all of this is in the Aorist tense. That means it was all
done and nothing could be added to it. That means when Ephesians
1, Paul says in heaven, when He chose us in Christ, He blessed
us with all spiritual blessings. All that was finished from the
beginning. Everything you just read there
was done from the beginning. And there wasn't a possibility
that God in His providence wouldn't bring it all to pass in time.
And He did. And that's who we're talking
about here. This God who's in control. This God who foreordained
it and predestinated it and called us and justified us. That's the
God we're talking about here. And this was the people that
He glorified. He gave them that glory, Christ
gave them that glory so we can behold Him and behold the truth
and know Him. He crossed our path through this
gospel and He brought us to Him in faith to submit to Him. And
He did it, irresistibly, sovereignly, He did it. And for you who have
been called by God's free and sovereign grace, He says to you,
God only works good. That's all He does, is work good.
He only works good. You take about the worst sin
you've ever committed, whatever it is that bothers you, that
troubles you to this day. Let me help you with that. There
were some people who were at the bottom of that cross, who
were crying out, crucify Him, crucify Him, that Christ was
laying down His life for. And they have no sin now by what
Christ accomplished on the cross. They have a perfect righteousness
now by what Christ accomplished for them. The same as a man who's
done any other thing. We've all rejected Christ. We've
all cried crucifying in our rebellion. But my point to you is this.
You may think of some sin you committed in the past and think,
oh, that's so terrible. It ain't half as... It's way
worse than you think it is. I promise you that. You don't
even know the half of how bad it is. You think you're bad?
You don't know nearly how bad you are. You've crucified God
and I have too. But Christ laid down His life
and put that sin away for His people. And then He called us
and let us know about it and taught it to us and showed it
to us. And He put the love in our heart to love Him. We saw
this Thursday night. That love that God puts in the
heart, read that article I wrote, Charity Never Faileth. The love
He's talking about, Christ said, I pray, John 17, He said, I pray
that the love wherewith thou, Father, hast loved me might be
in them. It's God's love for Christ that
God puts in us. That's how come it don't fail.
Isn't that amazing? I'm not saying it's the fullness. If it was the fullness of it,
we'd bust. He's given us of His Spirit. Not to full measure. Christ had to full measure. He's
given us of His Spirit, of that love. But that love in itself
is perfect. And it's perfected in us. He
brings us to the end where you love Christ, you love your brethren,
you love your gospel, and you hunger and thirst and this is
our food, we got to have this right here. And so we help each
other, love each other, do what we can for one another because... I'm mad at the preacher, I don't
like what he said. Do you believe God works all things together
for good to them who love God, to them who are the called? Hold
him up to God. He's just a man, he's just a
sinner. Everybody that comes and talks to him has a problem.
And he never gets to talk to anybody about anything good.
Just trouble. Just trouble. And try to help
others. Raise him up to God. And say, God, teach him, help
him, correct him. I trust you. You're sovereign.
God will do it. He'll do it. And you won't even
have to lift a finger or say a cross word. Same with our brethren. See a brother in trouble? See
a brother fallen? You believe God's sovereign? But when we get mad and fall
out and part ways, you know what we're doing? We're betraying
our heart. I don't really believe He can
do it. That's what we're saying. Whether we want to or not, that's
what we're saying. I don't believe God can do it. Well, God can
do it. Has He done it to you? Has He
brought you to hear the gospel? Has He brought you in submission
to God? He can correct. And if He doesn't
correct, That's okay, He's working that together for good too. He's
still going to provide for you that are His and still keep you
under His gospel. And some of you have experienced
that. Maybe He removes somebody that need to be removed, but
He still kept you under His word, kept you under submission to
Him. See, He's working all things
together for our good. Listen to this, He puts the love
in our heart Himself, and He tells us now, from the greatest
thing to the very least thing. Even the very hairs of your head
are numbered, He said. And listen to what He says. I
want you to look at it. Psalm 91. See this. Psalm 91.1, He that dwelleth
in the secret place of the Most High. Where's that? Anybody here
know where that is? Where's the secret place of the
Most High? It's Christ. The world don't know about this
place. It's Christ. It's a secret place. You dwell
in Him and you shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Verse
11, For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee
in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their
hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread
upon the lion and adder, the young lion and the dragon shalt
thou trample under feet. Now get this now, let me say
this before I read the next verse. He called us. He put the love
in our heart that we didn't have and wouldn't have unless He had
done this work of grace in us. He did the work in us. He sustains
the love in us. And then look what He says. Because
He had set His love upon me. Talking about a believer here
that abides in Christ. Because He set His love upon
me, therefore will I deliver Him. I will set Him on high because
He's known my name. He shall call upon me and I'll
answer Him. I'll be with Him in trouble.
I will deliver Him. I'll honor Him. With long life
will I satisfy Him and show Him my salvation. Has He not done
that for you, brethren? You have long life that He's
given you. Eternal! And He's showing you
His salvation now and He's never going to stop showing it to you.
Isn't that amazing? He gave the love and He says,
now because you set your love on Me, your love and your affection,
you set it on Me. And we wouldn't have it if He
didn't give it to us. Isn't that grace? Now lastly, go back to Romans
8. All this He's doing according
to His purpose. according to His purpose. We've
been looking at God's providence. Now here we see God's providence
is carried out because of God's eternal purpose. God's purpose
is God before the foundation of the world predestinating everything
that's going to come to pass and everything that He's going
to do for His people. That's God's purpose, God's counsel. Predestination. Let me simplify
it for those that don't understand what predestination is. You got
a destination way out yonder. It's God setting that destination
for His people prior to the world ever being made. It's predestination. That's an active thing God does
only for His people. He predestinates what's going
to come to pass for His people. And everything He works in time
is providence. And everything He's working in
time is fulfilling that purpose. And it's all worked together
by God for good, for them that love God, for them He called,
all according to that purpose before He ever made anything. an amazing God? Have you ever,
have me and you ever predestinated something and made it come to
pass exactly like we said we'd do it? Have you ever done that?
There's always been something that I'd have done a little different. If anything comes to pass like
I wanted it to at all, it's always something that didn't quite work
out just like I wanted it to. Not God. It's all working out
just like God determined it would. That's the difference between
God and this little peanut that men are worshipping all over
the world and calling God, and calling Allah, and calling whatever
they're calling it. That's a peanut that you can
stomp and crush with your foot. This is God. This is God. This is God. The Lord of Hosts! That means... The Lord of Hosts
means Everything is at His disposal. Everything is His to use however
He wants it. The Lord of hosts has sworn,
saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass. That's
what predestination is. That's what purpose is. It's
as God has thought. So shall it come to pass, and
as I have purposed, so shall it stand. He said in Isaiah 14.27,
For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? His
hand is stretched out. Who's going to turn it back?
He said in Isaiah 46.10, I declare the end from the beginning, from
ancient times, things that are not yet done, saying, my counsel
shall stand. I'll do all my pleasure. I'll
call a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth
my counsel from a far country. He wanted King Cyrus to come
in and destroy a nation. This ravenous bird that didn't
know God. And he called him in and used him to destroy a nation.
He said, I'm going to use you, you don't even know me, but afterwards
you're going to know me. And he did that and worked all
that using an earthly king and gave us a beautiful picture of
Christ our king who came from a far country and worked God's
will. Isn't that amazing? How could he do that? He said,
yeah, I've spoken it, I'll also bring it to pass. I've purposed
it, I'll also do it. Since He purposed it, it was
done from eternity. But He always does in providence
what He purposed. God's elect fell in sin with
the rest of the world according to God's purpose. God justified
His elect from our sin according to God's purpose. Christ crossed
our path with the gospel and the Spirit of God regenerated
us to faith in Christ according to God's purpose. And in Him
we've obtained an inheritance being predestinated according
to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel
of His own will. Now let me apply this to all
of us. Romans 8, 31. What shall we say then to these
things? If God be for us, who can be against us? Huh? Next time you're going through
the fire, if you're wearing a piece of gold or a piece of silver,
You look at that piece of gold and that piece of silver. Next
time you're in a fiery trial and it's hard and it's hurting
you and you're suffering, you look at that piece of gold and
you look at that piece of silver. And remember, he didn't get to
be that pretty without going through the fire. The dross had
to be removed. But we just sang it. He said,
all I'm doing is I'm just removing the dross and I'm just refining
the gold. He's not going to lose you. He's just going to make
you prettier. That's all. So look at your gold
and look at your silver. Remember, I'm just going through
the fire to make me shine. That's all. That's what He's
doing. I want to end with this. I want to read you this familiar
song that we all know by William Cowper. God moves in a mysterious
way His wonders to perform. He plants His footsteps in the
sea and rides upon the storm. deep and unfathomable minds of
never failing skill. He treasures up his bright designs
and works his sovereign will. You fearful saints, fresh courage
take. The clouds you so much dread
are big with mercy and shall break in blessings on your head. Judge not the Lord by feeble
sense, but trust him for his grace. Behind the frowning providence,
he hides a smiling face. His purposes will ripen fast,
unfolding every hour. The bud may have a bitter taste,
but sweet will be the flower. Blind unbelief is sure to err
and scan His work in vain. But God is His own interpreter
and He will make it plain. Alright, Brother Art, let's sing,
Be Still My Soul.