Romans 8:29

Paul next explained God’s calling in terms of His foreknowledge and predestination. It is a mistake to conclude that God knew beforehand who would believe on His Son and then predestined those individuals for salvation. Foreknowledge is a term that specifically describes God’s decision to elect, to choose to bless someone (cf. ch. 9; 1 Peter 1:20). Notice that it is only those whom He foreknows that He predestines, not everyone. This indicates that a "limited" foreknowledge is in view, not just general knowledge of everyone and everything, which God possesses. Foreknowledge here does not mean simply knowledge that precedes an event. If God knows that something will happen before it does, He is in some sense responsible for making it happen since He is sovereign (cf. Romans 11:2; Acts 2:23; 1 Peter 1:2). Yet, as mentioned above, the Bible does not regard Him as the direct cause of all that happens or blameworthy because bad things happen. The reason for God’s choice of the elect was not human merit (Ephesians 1:4), or even the faith of the elect, but God’s love and purpose (Romans 8:28; cf. Deuteronomy 7:6-8).

"Theologians rightly point out that prior to knowledge must be the divine decree. Unless God determines in some sense that something will happen, he cannot ’know’ that it will. For God to foreknow requires an earlier decree." [Note: Mounce, pp. 188-89.]

"Predestined" means that God determined the destiny of the elect previously, specifically, before Creation (Ephesians 1:3-4). That destiny is conformity to Jesus Christ’s image, much more than just deliverance from sin and death. God accomplished this goal partially through believers’ justification. He is presently accomplishing it partially through our progressive sanctification, and He will accomplish it completely through our glorification.

"This blessed hope-that believers will be conformed to the image of His own Son-explains God’s dealings with them as His chosen sons in this present age. He is ever at work to reproduce the moral image of Christ in them. All that now comes into their lives He uses for their good to further that glorious goal. His aim for them now is not to make them happy, materially prosperous, or famous, but to make them Christlike. He now uses ’all things,’ the sad as well as the glad, the painful as well as the pleasant, the things that perplex and disappoint as well as the things they eagerly strive and pray for, to further His eternal purpose for them. In His infinite wisdom He knows what is needed to bring about that transformation. For some of His own He may need to use hotter fire and strike with harder blows than in His dealings with others to effect the formation of Christ’s image in them. This may be because some believers may be more resistant to His moulding activities or are more prone to insist on their own efforts." [Note: D. Edmond Hiebert, "Romans 8:28-29 and the Assurance of the Believer," Bibliotheca Sacra 148:590 (April-June 1991):182.]

The Son became as we are (Romans 8:3) so that we could become as He is. In this respect we are brothers of Jesus Christ. "First-born" refers to Jesus Christ’s relation to resurrection (cf. Colossians 1:15), the event that inaugurated His entrance into the glorified state that we will share with Him eventually.

"This distinctive designation of Jesus Christ expresses His position of priority to and preeminence over all the other members of the family." [Note: Ibid., p. 183.]