"Since the call is infallibly effective because of God’s sovereign power, Paul is able to say, “Whom he called he also justified.” All the called are justified, because all the called have faith, because the call creates the faith.1 TO WHOM IS THE PROMISE OF ROMANS 8:28 MADE? Here we come to the center of the foundation of Romans 8:28. Notice that Romans 8:28 is not true for everybody. The verse says “that God causes all things to work together for good… to those who are called.” The beneficiaries of this promise are people who are not left to their own resources to get qualified for the promise. They are people whom God calls. And we have just seen that this call is no mere invitation that might fail, but an infallibly effective work of faith-begetting creation. Here’s the center of the foundation of Romans 8:28. Those who are called by God can be sure that God will work all things together for their good because their calling guarantees their justification; and their justification, in turn, guarantees their glorification; and glorification is the ultimate fulfillment of Romans 8:28—endless ages of seeing God make everything in the universe serve our holy joy in him. WHO RECEIVES THIS FAITH-CREATING CALL? But Paul is not content to stop with these two pillars in the foundation of Romans 8:28. He pushes on back to ask, “What is this calling of God founded on?” Or, “Who are the ones who experience this sovereign call of God?” And he answers: “Whom [God] predestined, these He also called.” That’s foundational pillar number three. God’s act of calling is based on his act of predestining. This is just another way of saying what Romans 8:28 says in the words, “called according to His purpose.” “God causes all things to work together for the good of those…who are called according to his purpose.” “According to [God’s] purpose” means “according to the goal of God’s predestination.” In other words, God did not call us without a specific aim or purpose in mind. He had a “destiny” in mind for us and he called us “according to [that] purpose.” Those whom he thus predestined, he called. And the “purpose” or “destiny” is spelled out plainly in Romans 8:29. “He also predestined predestined [us] to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.” So the foundation of our calling is the purpose of God to have a people who will be morally and spiritually like Jesus, and will exalt him as supreme. Our calling is as sure as God’s ultimate purpose to glorify his Son. When we add pillar number three to the foundation under the promise of Romans 8:28 it looks like this: Since our final glorification is the ultimate fulfillment of Romans 8:28, we can be utterly sure it will happen, because our glorification is guaranteed by our justification, and our justification is guaranteed by our calling, and our calling is as solid and sure as the predestination of God—that is, the eternal purpose of God to make us like his Son and to exalt his Son as Supreme—to the praise of his glory. “He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ…to the praise of the glory of His grace” (Ephesians 1:5-6). Pillar after pillar of past grace gives unshakable grounding to the future grace of Romans 8:28."

Piper, John (2009-10-21). Future Grace (Kindle Locations 1972-2001). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

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