So Good, They’ll Think It Was On Purpose

Length: 6 minutes

Sometimes we do things that aren’t sin. They’re just mistakes or indiscretions. You might forget to tighten something under the hood of your car. You might drop something fragile and expensive or make a mistake at work — things like this. But we don’t receive by our works, and that is a beautiful truth to understand in times like this.

Romans 8:28 (NKJV) And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

This verse only gives two criteria for God working all things out for our good. The first is that we’re “called according to His purpose.” This is saying that you are of God’s elect, which is automatically applicable if you’re someone who believes. The second is that we “love God.” Loving God in the Bible just means faith in Jesus (see our “Loving God” material). This is also applicable to every believer to some extent, but we can certainly grow in our faith.

All in all, this is saying that God works all things together for the good of those who will believe His Son. This doesn’t say things will turn out well if you don’t make any mistakes. It doesn’t say things will turn out well if you’re perfectly led by the Holy Spirit. It doesn’t say that your future looks bright because you didn’t make any silly decisions. It says all things work together for good for those that believe God’s Son.

Am I saying we want to make mistakes? Am I saying we want to sin? Not at all. Why would we want to do something unprofitable or destructive, just so God can turn it around for good? That’s like wanting to be sick so that you can be healed. No, I’m not saying we want to make mistakes, but I think most Christians already know that part. The part they don’t know is that “all things working together for good” is applicable no matter what we do, as long as we believe the Lord with that situation! 

You don’t receive by your works. Now, usually that only comes up when speaking about sin. “Not receiving by works” is certainly applicable when we sin, but it’s also applicable when we simply make a mistake. It’s also applicable when we make an error in judgment. God’s goodness doesn’t stop flowing because you made an error in judgment. God’s power doesn’t stop making things good because you made a silly mistake. We don’t receive by any of our works – whether that’s sin or just a blunder. 

When you know you don’t receive by your works, you no longer have to expect an outcome that is comparable to your actions. In other words, we do not have to expect things to turn out only as well as our performance. We can always expect things to work out awesome, no matter what we’ve done, as long as we keep our eyes on Jesus!

I’m not saying we shouldn’t use wisdom as we grow in the Lord, but when you make a mistake, you don’t have to expect the same backlash, repercussions, or consequences that the world will go through. If we always expect results akin to our performance, then aren’t we just receiving by our works, and not by the grace of God, in Christ? 

Preachers will call this “reaping what you have sown.” It’s their fancy way of saying, you’re going to get exactly according to what you do. That couldn’t be further from the truth and that is not the meaning of that scripture (compare Romans 8:6 and Galatians 6:8). As far as our actions are concerned, Jesus already reaped the bad results from what we had “sown.” Now we get to reap from what He has done!

If, when we make mistakes, we should expect the results that typically come with those mistakes, then why do we need Jesus at all? We could’ve done that without him. That is receiving according to our works. On the other hand, you know you are believing in Jesus when you start expecting better results than your actions can deserve or produce. That is a trust in Jesus!

The next time you make a mistake (because you will), and it looks like you screwed things up, see what kind of results you expect. That’s a good indication of whether you believe you’re receiving through Jesus’ work or your own. When you blunder, do you throw your hands up in frustration, and think of all the bad results you’re going to get now? That’s receiving according to your works. Rather, when you blunder, do you thank God for how awesome this is going to turn out because you trust in Jesus, not your works!? Not only will that mentality make your situation turn out better, but it feels a whole lot better in the moment too!

It’s true, we can trust God to do what’s profitable through us, to avoid mistakes to begin with. Of course, that is ideal. But as you grow in your knowledge, you will make mistakes. And when you do, you need to remember that you don’t receive by your works. You don’t receive only as much as your works deserve. You are receiving through the sacrifice of Jesus, through faith in it! So, get to believing instead of complaining!

God works mistakes out so well that people will end up looking back at what you did and think it was on purpose! This is biblical! That’s why it’s so important to make sure you never give credit to your mistake for how good things turn out. Never say, “Well, it’s a good thing I did that, because things turned out so well after all” No, it wasn’t your mistake that made things turn out well. It was the grace of God flowing, by the work of Jesus, that prospered you! Give glory to God!

David committed adultery with Bathsheba. He even killed her husband to cover up his sin. Was that wrong? Of course it was. Yet, God chose for Jesus to be born through the lineage of Bathsheba. What an honor! One could look at that and say “Well, good thing David married Bathsheba, because otherwise how would Jesus have been born?” No, it wasn’t David’s sin that made things work out so well. It was the grace of God working a bad thing out for good, because David chose to believe God, despite what he did. 

Likewise, God can work out our mistakes so well, it will looks like the mistake produced the good! That’s how well God works things out for us! But when that happens, you can assure people that it wasn’t the thing you did. All things work out for your good (even your mistakes) because you simply choose to love God (believe him).

If this article blessed you, share this with someone else!