11 Things We Can Learn from Romans 8:26-39 Joyce Meyer

11 Things We Can Learn from Romans 8:26-39 Read Romans 8:26-39. Now, let’s walk through this passage, verse by verse, and really think about what God is saying in His Word. Remember: the Bible is absolute Truth. We simply have to take God at His Word to practically experience the promises He gives us. 1. The Holy Spirit strengthens us in our weakness. Verse 26 says, So too the [Holy] Spirit comes to our aid and bears us up in our weakness…. We all have weaknesses, and when we come to God for help, the Holy Spirit, who is always with us, will come to our aid and give us His strength when we are weak. 2. The Holy Spirit teaches us to pray accurately. The second half of verse 26 says, For we do not know what prayer to offer nor how to offer it worthily as we ought, but the Spirit Himself goes to meet our supplication and pleads in our behalf with unspeakable yearnings and groanings too deep for utterance. At times we wonder if God hears our prayers and we feel like we’re just not doing it right—saying the right things or praying long enough. It’s true that in ourselves, we’re not worthy to come before God and we don’t know how to pray worthily. But this verse clearly shows us that when the Holy Spirit lives in us, through our faith in Christ, He hears our prayers and helps us to express them to God. 3. The Holy Spirit prays perfect prayers for and through us. With Christ in our hearts and the presence of the Holy Spirit always with us, we have God’s help in everything we do—even prayer! Romans 8:27 says, And He Who searches the hearts of men knows what is in the mind of the [Holy] Spirit [what His intent is], because the Spirit intercedes and pleads [before God] in behalf of the saints according to and in harmony with God’s will. The Holy Spirit knows what’s in our hearts and He knows the perfect will of God. When He prays through us, His prayers are according to and in harmony with God’s will. 4. All things work together for my good as I pray, love God, and want His will. Do these three things—pray, love God, and want His will—and everything in your life can work together for your good. Verse 28 says, We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [ftting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose. We have the assurance that when we go through hard things—hurts, disappoint- ment and discouragement—God is with us and He can cause all things to work together for our good. 5. We are destined to be molded—transformed and changed—into the very image of Jesus Christ. What an amazing truth this is! Check it out in verse 29: For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the frstborn among many brethren. God loves you and His destiny for you is to mold you into the image of Jesus so you can share inwardly His likeness. You can be like Jesus—from the inside out! 6. God is for us! Romans 8:31 gives us another astounding promise: What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?] Is anyone or anything greater than God? Of course not! So, if God loves us and is for us, who can keep us from living in victory in Christ? 7. God provides EVERYTHING we need. It’s true. See for yourself in verse 32: He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] thing Because of His great love for us, God gave His best—His only Son. And that is just the beginning of everything He has for us. We can trust that He will freely and gra- ciously give us all other things. 8. Condemnation is not from God. This is one of the most amazing miracles of having new life in Christ: all of our sins are forgiven and we are free from guilt and condemnation. Verses 33 and 34 confrm it: Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect [when it is] God Who justifes [that is, Who puts us in right relation to Himself? Who shall come forward and accuse or impeach those whom God has chosen? Will God, Who acquits us?] Who is there to condemn [us]? Will Christ Jesus (the Messiah), Who died, or rather Who was raised from the dead, Who is at the right hand of God actually pleading as He intercedes for us? We need the Holy Spirit to convict us of our sin so we can ask God for forgiveness, repent and then receive His forgiveness. But we should not live in condemnation, because God justifes us and puts us in right relation to Himself through our faith in Jesus. So when the enemy says, “You’re guilty!” respond to him, saying, “No! I’m officially forgiven and acquitted by God Himself!” 9. Nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Nothing literally means NOTHING. Verse 35 is living proof: Who shall ever separate us from Christ’s love? Shall suffering and affliction and tribulation? Or calamity and distress? Or persecution or hunger or destitution or peril or sword? God loves you! He desires to have an intimate relationship with you, and when life is hard, He’s always with you and will bring you through it all, no matter what the challenge or suffering may be. 10. We are more than conquerors through Christ who loves us! The words “more than” are so exciting here. We don’t just barely survive or get by in this life. As believers in Christ, verses 36 and 37 tell us: Even as it is written, For Thy sake we are put to death all the day long; we are regarded and counted as sheep for the slaughter.Yet amid all these things we are more than conquerors and gain a surpassing victory through Him Who loved us.11. Be deeply rooted in the love of God. This is the key to it all. Let verses 38 and 39 fully convince you: For I am persuaded beyond doubt (am sure) that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things impending and threatening nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to sepa- rate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. The love of God is unconditional, constant and greater than anything else—death, life, angels, principalities, things impending and threatening, powers, height, depth—that exists! Remember each day that God loves you and nothing can sepa- rate you from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.