TCC–1334
1
HE HAS, HE IS, HE WILL
A. Introduction: We talk a lot about having an eternal perspective. An eternal perspective lives with the
awareness that the greater and better part of our life is in the life after this life. This view helps us keep
the hardships of life in perspective and lightens the weight of life’s challenges. II Cor 4:17-18; Rom 8:18
1. We’ve also talked about the glory that awaits us in the life to come. We’ll see Almighty God face
to face and be reunited with people we’ve lost to death. There’ll be, no more sorrow, pain, or loss.
a. But that brings up the question: What help is there for us now in this life? To answer this
question, in the last two lessons, we have been looking at one of the greatest promises that God
has made in regard to how He helps us in this life.
b. God has promised to work everything together for good. Rom 8:28—We know that all things
work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose (NKJV).
c. God’s purpose for us was given to us before we existed, before the world began. His purpose is
that we become His holy, blameless sons and daughters through faith in Jesus and live in loving
relationship with Him, as we show His glory to the world around us.
1. Eph 1:4-5—Before the foundation of this world (God) chose us to be, in Christ his children,
holy and blameless in his sight. He planned, in his love, that we should be adopted as his own
children through Jesus Christ (J. B. Phillips).
2. II Tim 1:9—God saved us and called us to be his own people (Good News Bible); that was
his plan long before the world began—to show his love and kindness to us through Christ
Jesus (NLT).
2. But this brings up questions. If God is good and loving, then why is there evil in the world? Why
does He allow it? Why doesn’t He stop all the suffering? We need to answer these questions because,
left unanswered or wrongly answered, these questions can undermine our faith and confidence in God—
especially when we encounter a major tragedy or loss. We have more to say about this tonight.
B. We’ve made the point previously that this world in its present form is not the way God created it to be
because of sin, beginning with the first man Adam. Adam chose independence from God through sin.
His action affected the human race resident in him and the earth itself. Gen 3:17-19
1. Human nature was corrupted and the material creation was infused with a curse of corruption and
death. We must daily deal with the effects of that corruption in this world. Rom 5:12-14
a. As a result, there’s no such thing as a problem free life in this sin damaged world. Jesus
Himself said that “in this world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration” (John
16:33, Amp). You can do everything right and things still go wrong because that’s life in a sin
cursed earth. (Many lessons for another night).
b. But this brings up another question. If God is Omniscient (All-knowing), He knew what Adam
would do and the effect it would have on creation (humanity and the earth). Why did God let
that happen? Why did He create human beings with the capacity to disobey Him?
2. God created human beings for a loving relationship with Himself. We are capable of loving God
because we are made in His image, with the capacity to recognize moral value and make choices.
a. God gave us the capacity to recognize someone or something as good and right. And we have
reason and intelligence that affirms that it is right to do good. This ability to make moral
choices (or freewill) is part of our personhood.
1. God is good and always does what is right, and we have the capacity to recognize the beauty
of His attributes. Almighty God wants us to recognize the beauty of His attributes, His
excellency, and then choose to serve Him, based on what we know about Him.
2. Human beings truly have the power of moral choice (or freewill). However, giving men and

TCC–1334
2
women the capacity to make moral choices opened up the possibility that they would make
the wrong choice, as Adam did. With choice comes the all the consequences of that choice.
3. Humanity’s broken relationship with our Creator (by our own choice) is the source of all the
disharmony, chaos, tribulation, and heartache in the world (many lessons for another day).
b. Almighty God is Transcendent, completely other than us. He is beyond our comprehension. If
He didn’t choose to reveal Himself to us, we couldn’t know Him. But He has chosen to reveal
Himself because He wants to be known by and have relationship with the beings He created.
1. God had been revealing Himself, calling men to Himself, since the beginning of time, going
back to Adam. God wants us to make the right moral choice for Him. He wants us to
freely choose Him, in the light of the revelation of God given to us by the Holy Spirit.
2. God’s clearest revelation of Himself is Jesus. Jesus is God Incarnate, God in human flesh.
If we want to know what God is like and how He treats people, we must look at Jesus.
A. When Jesus was on earth He said: When you see me, you are seeing the one who sent
me (John 12:45, Amp); (Jesus) is the visible image of the invisible God (Col 1:15); The
Son reflects God’s own glory and everything about him represents God exactly (Heb 1:3,
NLT).
B. Jesus is God’s fullest revelation of His love and care for humankind. God Incarnate
came to seek and save His lost family, and open the way for all who repent and believe
on Him to be restored to their created purpose as God’s sons and daughters. Luke 19:10
1. God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still
Sinners (Rom 5:8, NLT); God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that
everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16, NLT).
2. Motivated by love, God the Father sent Jesus, who in love, came to meet our greatest
need (deliverance from the guilt and power of sin) so that we can be reconciled to
God and have life after this life.
3. There is much mystery in God’s plan—aspects that are not fully revealed to us at this point in time,
including fully understanding the presence of continued suffering in this world.
a. But if we believe the revelation of Himself that God has given in Jesus—that He is good and
loving—then we can trust that God has chosen the best way to fulfill His plan for a family.
b. And, we can trust that what we do not yet know and understand about God and His purposes and
plans, will be as wonderful as what we do know. Note these comments about this issue.
1. Deut 29:29—The secret things belong unto the Lord our God; but those things which are
revealed belong unto us, and to our children forever (KJV).
2. Ps 131:1-3—Lord my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty. I don’t concern myself
with matters to great or awesome for me. But I have stilled and quieted myself, just as a
small child is quiet with its mother. Yes, like a small child is my soul within me. O Israel,
put your hope in the Lord, now and always (NLT).
c. This is what we do know. Right now, God is working salvation in the earth (Ps 74:12). He is
working to draw men and women back to Him, and He is able to use the hardships of life and
cause them to serve His ultimate purposes for good. This means that:
1. Nothing can come against you that is bigger than God who is All-Powerful (Omnipresent),
All-Knowing (Omniscient), and present everywhere at once (Omnipresent).
2. Nothing takes Him by surprise. Nothing is out of His control. Everything we face is
temporary. God is able to cause it all to serve His ultimate purposes for good. And He
preserves His people in the midst of it. He gets us through until He gets us out.
C. We need to answer this question: What does preservation look like in the midst of this broken world?

TCC–1334
3
1. When Jesus was on earth He revealed that God is a Father who is better than the best earthly Father.
(Matt 7:9-11). As am illustration in His teaching, Jesus talked about how the Father takes care of
the birds, and said that God’s sons and daughters matter more to Him than the birds.
a. In that context, Jesus urged His followers not to worry about where the necessities of life will
come from (food, drink, clothing) because we have a Heavenly Father who takes care of the
birds “and (you) are far more valuable to Him than they are” (Matt 6:26, NLT).
b. Jesus said: The very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more
valuable to (the Father) than a whole flock of sparrows (Matt 10:30-31, NLT).
1. But look at the verse just before that statement: Not even a sparrow, worth only half a
penny, can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it (Matt 10:29, NLT).
2. God cares about the sparrows, but sparrows still fall to the ground and die. In other
words, even though God cares, He doesn’t stop the realities of life in a fallen world.
2. Let’s get the full context of Jesus’ statement. He just told His original twelve apostles that, because
of their commitment to Him, they would be hated, suffer persecutions, be betrayed by family
members, and some of them would be killed. Matt 10:16-27
a. Then Jesus said: Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill you. They can only kill your
body; they cannot touch your soul (the inward part of you). Fear only God who can destroy
both soul and body in hell (Matt 10:28, NLT).
b. Fear of God doesn’t mean be afraid of Him because He might hurt you. Fear, among other
things, means to be concerned with what He thinks about you. (Fear of man is being
concerned about what people think of you and living to please them rather than God.)
1. Destroy doesn’t mean extinction. It means ruin and loss, not of being, but of well-being:
But rather be fearing him who has power to bring both soul and body to the condition of utter
ruin and everlasting misery in hell (Matt 10:28, Wuest).
2. Luke’s gospel says: But not a hair of your head shall perish. By your steadfastness and
patient endurance you shall win the true life of your souls (Luke 21:18-19, Amp). True
life is everlasting life with God our Father. Victory is staying faithful to God.
c. We quoted Jesus earlier. He said: In this world you have tribulation and trials and distress
and frustration. But be of good cheer—take courage, be confident, certain, undaunted— for
I have overcome the world. —I have deprived it of power to harm, have conquered it [for
you] (John 16:33, Amp). We pointed out last week that this means permanently harm you.
d. In a fallen world, sparrows fall to the ground and people die. God doesn’t (and we can’t)
stop life’s troubles. But life’s troubles can’t stop God’s ultimate plan for you.
3. Paul clearly spelled this out in the same place where he wrote that God works all things together for
good for those who love Him (are committed to Him) and who are called into His plan for a family.
a. Paul wrote: What then shall we say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us
(Rom 8:31, NKJV). Once again, the idea is permanently against us. Let’s get the context.
1. Rom 8:28-30—We know that to those who love God, who are called according to his plan,
everything that happens fits into a pattern for good. For God in his foreknowledge, chose
them to bear the family likeness of his Son…He chose them long ago; when the time came
he called them, he made them righteous in his sight, and then he lifted them to the splendor
of life as his own sons (J. B. Phillips).
2. Rom 8:31—What can we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who
can ever be against us? Since God did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us
all, won’t God, who gave us Christ, also give us everything else (NLT).
A. Everything else is the completion of the plan: Being fully purified and glorified (all
character flaws, shortcomings, and weaknesses gone) and having unending life with the

TCC–1334
4
Lord, first in Heaven, then on this earth renewed and restored. Rev 21:4—(At that time)
He will remove all of (our) sorrows, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying
or pain. For the old world and its evils are gone forever (NLT).
B. Notice that Paul’s certainty comes from the fact that God already demonstrated His love
and care for us through the Cross of Christ. God helped us with our greatest need
(salvation from sin) while we were rebels against Him. Why would He not help us now?
b. Paul went on to say: Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer
loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry or cold or in danger or
threatened with death…no, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ who
loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death can’t and life
can’t. The angels can’t, and the demons can’t. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow,
and even the powers of hell can’t keep God’s love away…Nothing in all creation will ever be able to
separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom 8:35-39, NLT).
1. At the end of his life, when facing imminent death Paul was able to say: II Tim 4:18—[And
indeed] the Lord will certainly deliver and draw me to Himself from every assault of evil. He
will preserve and bring [me] safe into His heavenly kingdom (Amp).
2. God doesn’t, and we can’t, stop life’s troubles. But life’s troubles can’t stop God’s ultimate
plan for us—life with Him, first in Heaven, then on this earth renewed and restored.
D. Conclusion: Why does a loving God allow evil and suffering? No one can fully answer that question
right now. But we can’t let what we don’t know undermine our confidence in what we do know.
1. A couple of weeks ago we talked about Job, a man who lost his family, his wealth, and his health.
Why? Because that’s life in a sin cursed earth.
a. James 5:11—The New Testament commends Job for his endurance (patience) and points us
to the end of Job’s story. Despite his trials, Job stayed faithful to God. And at the end, God
delivered Job and restored to him twice as much as he lost—some of it in this life and some
in the life to come (Job 42:10).
b. The Book of Job wasn’t written to explain why bad things happen. Job and his friends
asked why about twenty times and never got an answer. Near the end of Job’s ordeal, God
appeared to him in a whirlwind and asked Job a series of questions.
1. God said: Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words…Where
were you when I laid the foundations the earth…have you ever commanded the morning
light to appear in the east…have you given the horse its strength…are you as strong as
God (Job 38:2; Job 38:4; Job 38:12; Job 39:19; Job 40:9, NLT).
2. Job replied: I know that you can do anything…I was taking about things I did not
understand, things far too wonderful for me…I had heard about you before, but now I
have seen you with my own eyes. I take back everything I said (NLT, Job 42:1-5).
c. When Job saw the wonder, bigness, and power of God it made it made him realize: I can’t
figure out your plans. I simply have to trust you. Job is now in Heaven and has no regrets
2. None of this information lessens the hurt and sorrow that life in this fallen world brings our way. But
having this perspective gives us hope for the future and peace of mind right now. We know that all will
be well—some in this life. Ultimate victory, restoration, reunion, and recovery is in the life to come.
3. Why doesn’t God do something about the evil and suffering in the world? He has, He is, and he will.
Almighty God has invited us into His plan for a family. He has opened the way for us to be restored to
His family and our created purpose through Jesus. Right now, the Lord is gathering His family, and He
uses the harsh realities of life in a fallen, broken, sin cursed earth, and causes them to serve that purpose.
And He will get us through until He gets us out. More next week!