Four Great Blessings from God

The sermon begins by sharing that each believer has Bible passages of special meaning in their spiritual life. The pastor points out that Romans 8 is considered one of the most important and precious passages for those who believe in God. Rather than delving into complex theological issues, the sermon aims to encourage and strengthen God's people through four promises, four blessings of utmost importance and practicality for the new year. These four assurances are absolutely unchangeable by any circumstances, illnesses, or losses.

The first assurance is freedom from condemnation or judgment. The word "condemnation" (katakrima) appears only three times in the New Testament, all in Romans, and refers to accusation or condemnation because of transgressions. According to Scripture, all people must die once and then face judgment. However, all debt of sins has been fully paid by Christ's blood shed once on the cross, not only for past sins but also for present and future ones. Believers are justified and reconciled with God through Christ. The second assurance is intercession by both persons of the Godhead. When facing difficulties, illness, or loss, God's people desire to pray and ask God to listen. The sermon reminds that not only church members or pastors intercede, but the Holy Spirit and Christ himself always intercede for us through sighs too deep for words and through intercession from the right hand of God. The third assurance is that nothing can separate us from God's love. Every person in life desires to be accepted and loved. However, human love is usually conditional, based on beauty, talent, or wealth. Conversely, Scripture teaches that God loves us when we are still sinners, and Christ died for our sins. Once saved, as God's children, nothing—whether from within our inner life or from external circumstances—can separate God's love from us. The sermon lists five questions about what might separate us: if God helps us, who can be against us? He did not spare his own Son, so what would He not give us? Who will bring charges against God's chosen? Who will condemn them? The answer is nothing, absolutely nothing. Despite our internal failings and wickedness, God still loves us. Those who abandon God midway are those who were never truly called by God. Scripture affirms that nothing—including death, life, angels, rulers, present things, future things, powers, height, or depth—can separate us from God's love in Christ Jesus. The fourth assurance is that all things work together for good for those who love God, that is, those called according to His purpose. Notably, the pastor points out that we do not know what we should pray for as we should, yet we know for certain that all things work together for good. The sermon clarifies that "all things" include both what we desire and receive as well as what we do not want and lose. These four assurances all have a condition: the person must be a child of God, one who truly believes in Christ Jesus as the Savior of their life.

The sermon also clarifies two common misconceptions. The first is that because all things are predetermined, people can simply surrender to fate without personal responsibility and become passive. The second is that humans have no freedom of choice because God has predetermined everything, leading to pessimism and blaming God. Both are wrong. Scripture teaches that each person has freedom to choose, decide, and act according to their own will, and consequences depend on those choices. However, the teaching in Romans 8:28 shows that even with mistakes, stumbling, and failures, believers can confidently trust that all things work together for good. This is God's boundless grace. The pastor shares the story "A Sound of Thunder" by Ray Bradbury to illustrate the interconnectedness of all historical events, then uses personal examples from his life to demonstrate that things seemingly small and unimportant also have moments when God opens our eyes to understand their true causes and purposes.