GOD IS IN CONTROL OF EVERYTHING
EVERYTHING IS EQUAL TO EVERYTHING: Divine Sovereignty, Human Justice, and the Search for Truth
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
— BIBLE, KJV, Romans 8:28
When we look at the great dilemmas of humanity—whether it is the rigorous assurance of truth in earthly courts or the understanding of God's sovereignty in eternity—we perceive an invisible thread that unites all things. As the reflection that everything is equal to everything aptly summarizes, the laws governing moral, spiritual, and legal justice share the exact same essence: the irreducible pursuit of truth, integrity, and love.
This profound parallel becomes even clearer when examining recent international legal discussions, such as the constitutional comparative analyzes published by MINDD in the article "Equal Justice Under Law, Da Mihi Factum" . In these debates, veteran American jurist Scott Erik Stafne —drawing upon fifty years of professional practice—raises a vital constitutional question regarding whether modern courts are fulfilling their foundational duty to act as impartial fact-finders rather than yielding to systemic and structural failures.
Below, we connect the dots between the constitutional concerns raised by Scott Erik Stafne regarding due process and the profound spiritual message delivered by Rev. André Mendonça —a renowned Presbyterian minister and Justice of the Brazilian Supreme Federal Court (STF)—based on Romans 8, including the full, unedited transcript of the sermon at the end with direct KJV verse links.
1. The Earthly Tribunal and the Heavenly Tribunal
In law, there is an ancient maxim guiding jurisdiction: Da mihi factum, dabo tibi ius ("Give me the facts, and I will give you the law"). The premise requires courts to act impartially as true fact-finders before applying the law.
However, as highlighted in legal analyzes by scholars like Scott Erik Stafne, when justice systems fail structurally—whether in the United States or in Brazil—driven by economic interests or systemic corruption, citizens find themselves helpless against tyranny disguised as legality. It is precisely at this point that the spiritual perspective brings us comfort and clarity: in the divine dimension, God is the supreme judge who never fails .
While human justice often attempts to condemn or silence the innocent, the Word reminds us: "If God be for us, who can be against us? [...] It is God that justifieth" ( Romans 8:31 / Romans 8:33 ).
2. The Illusion of Humanism and the Danger of Greed
Both in the deviations of the judiciary and in the existential crises of human beings, the fundamental error lies in humanism without God and in control by mammon (the worship of money and power).
- In legal disputes, we witness laws being shaped to favor corporate groups to the detriment of public safety, justice, and property rights—an erosion of legal certainty that experts like Scott Erik Stafne have extensively exposed.
- In the human soul, we witness humanity's attempt to sustain itself through its own rationality, generating guilt, self-accusation, and ruin.
Against this current, the Trinity operates in favor of humanity. While the Holy Spirit intercedes for us with unutterable groanings ( Romans 8:26 ), Christ stands at the right hand of God as our true defense advocate ( Romans 8:34 ), shielding us against the false accusations of the world.
3. The Thread: Victory as a Consummated Fact
Rev. André Mendonça highlights that when analyzing the chain of predestination in Romans 8— "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate... moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called... and whom he justified, them he also glorified" ( Romans 8:29-30 )—the verbs are in the past tense. This teaches us a liberating truth: the victory of God's people is not a statistical uncertainty or a mere possibility; it is a consummated fact in eternity.
Whether fighting for the integrity of laws on earth, defending the prerogatives of the legal profession following the warnings of Scott Erik Stafne, or facing the storms of personal life, the principle remains the same. In the end, all things work together for the good of those who love the truth and divine purpose.
Conclusion
Earthly justice and divine justice demand the same courage: refusing submission to corruptible powers and anchoring life in that which is immutable. As the Apostle Paul concludes, nothing—neither death, nor life, nor principalities, nor the structures of power in this world—shall ever be able to separate us from the love of God ( Romans 8:38-39 ).
Everything is interconnected. And whoever is firmly rooted in the truth of God has already won.
Full Transcript of the Sermon (Integrity of the Message) — Rev. André Mendonça
Bibliographic Reference:
BIBLE. NT Romans. English. The Holy Bible: King James Version . London: 1611. Available at: < https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Romans-Chapter-8/ >.
This video features a biblical reflection led by Rev. André Mendonça, based on Romans 8:26-39. The central theme is that God controls all things and provides constant care for His followers through the Trinity.
Key Takeaways:
The Trinity Intercedes: The preacher explains that God the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit actively intercedes for the Christian's life. He highlights that the Holy Spirit intercedes with "inexpressible groanings" (0:26, 9:31-15:32).
Divine Protection: It is emphasized that believers are not left to chance. Even amidst tribulations, anguish, or persecution, God assists and protects those who love Him (4:46, 17:02-19:23).
Freedom from Guilt: A major focus is the invitation to abandon feelings of self-accusation and condemnation. The preacher reinforces that, in Jesus Christ, the believer is justified, and there is no more condemnation for those chosen by God (20:21-27:26).
The Process of Victory: Victory is presented as a guaranteed reality from eternity. The process involves being known, predestined, called, justified, and glorified by God (28:18-34:26).
The Inseparable Love of God: The message concludes by reinforcing that nothing—neither death, life, powers, nor any circumstance—can separate the believer from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus (36:34-38:06).
At the end of the video, there is a ministerial prayer moment where the preacher leaves the pulpit to pray for the congregation, inviting them to cast away their fears and surrender their burdens to God (39:39-42:24).
🔗 Watch the official video: "GOD CONTROLS ALL THINGS" — REV. ANDRÉ MENDONÇA
Sermon by André Mendonça, Pastor and Justice of Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF)
Let us read Romans chapter 8, beginning with verse number 26. The Word of God says: Likewise, the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us exceedingly, with inexpressible groanings. And He who searches hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because it is according to the will of God that He intercedes for the saints.
We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, for those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He might be the firstborn among many. And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified; and those whom He justified, He also glorified.
What, then, shall we say in view of these things? Repeat with me: If God is for us, who will be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, will He not also graciously give us all things with Him? Who will bring an accusation against God's elect? It is God who justifies them; who will condemn them? It is Christ who died—who died, or rather, who rose again—who is at the right hand of God and who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or danger, or the sword? As it is written: For Your sake we are delivered to death all day long; we have been considered sheep for the slaughter. In all these things, however, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us, because I am quite certain that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Let us bow our heads and seek God in prayer. God, thank You, thank You for this Word, so rich, so precious. Thank You for Your Gospel; thank You for Your revelation; thank You because Your Word is alive and it speaks to us. God, we now intercede for this very special moment, which is the moment of the Word. Speak to the heart of Your Church, to every life present here. In spite of the preacher, use me solely through Your mercy, so that Your Word may reach hearts, minds, and lives, so that Your name may be glorified. It is in Christ Jesus that we pray. Amen.
My brothers and my sisters, I have said this a few times already, but it is because the Word of God says it several times: we go through and will go through tribulations. If we go there to verses numbers 36 and 35—let us go to 36 first—“As it is written: For Your sake we are delivered every day, all day long; we have been considered sheep for the slaughter.” This is the life of the believer. The devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, wanting to devour us. And we have, in the light of this Word, the certainty that God is governing our lives, that you have not been left to your own fate in the face of situations, adversities, illnesses, persecutions, and, often, the lack of hope. This is in light of the human and existential reality in which we find ourselves, as it also says in verse 35, in its second part, that we will go through tribulation, perhaps distress, perhaps persecutions, perhaps hunger, perhaps nakedness—to the point of not having the resources to clothe ourselves—perhaps danger, perhaps the sword.
Faced with this reality, if the human being trusts in himself, he is left to his own fate, he is left to his own agony, in deep agony. And various theories of this world try to say that the human being can do it by himself, can do it through his rationality, can do it through his resources, can do it through science. This is humanism, a humanism without God, a rationalism without reason, because what is reasonable for man is not what is reasonable for God; what is reasonable for God is madness to man. On your own, you are left to your own fate. With God, in the light of this Word, you are under God's assistance, protection, and care.
Calvin says, based on this text, when commenting on this text, that God has full authority and governs all things. And it is in the light of this key, of care—which has an essence—that we ask: How does God govern all things? There is a principle in the text, which is love. God governs your life because He loves you. God governs the universe because He loves us, because it is the work of His creation. And the key to these texts about love is there in verse 36: that we are delivered to tribulations and persecutions, like sheep for the slaughter, for the love of God, for the love of You, we are delivered like sheep for the slaughter, it says.
But more than that, verse number 28: “We know that all things work together for the good” of whom? Of those who love God. Again, verse number 35: “Who will separate us from the love” of whom? Of Christ. Verse number 37: “In all these things, however, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Verse number 39, the second part: “Nothing, neither height, nor depth, nor anything else, will be able to separate us from the love” of whom? Of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. The key to God's care for your life is God's love for you. You are not a work of chance; that is why your story is not subject to chance events.
Having said that, God governs your life. In the light of this text, what I was able to draw from it takes three forms. First, God, in the Trinity—God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit—intercedes for you, intercedes for your life. This word “intercession,” in Greek, is in the text; it is related, there in verse number 26, to an intercessory prayer—not only how to pray, but what to pray. The Holy Spirit, it says, intercedes for us exceedingly, with inexpressible groanings. Some of us prayed on our knees here in this service. I am certain that none of us managed to reach this level of intercession, of praying to God exceedingly, with inexpressible groanings. It is a capacity for communion with God; it is a capacity to seek God, to plead before God, in a unique way.
But it is not only the Holy Spirit, with His power, with His dynamis, who intercedes for us. Christ also intercedes for us. Verse number 34: "Who will condemn us? Christ Jesus died—or rather, rose again—who is at the right hand of God and also intercedes for us." Look, here, in verse number 34, the Greek root is different from the one used in verse number 26. They are two expressions used to designate prayer. In the context of verse number 36, besides being an intercessory prayer, it involves approaching, making a petition for you, bringing your name and your cause to the throne and before the throne of God. We are not capable of doing this for ourselves.
But more than that, in the light of verse number 34, Jesus interceded for us in two ways. This intercession in eternity—He who is at the right hand of God—is as though, in an intimate conversation, God was at the center and Jesus at His right hand. Try to imagine the scene: one beside the other. "My Father, I present José's cause; I present Maria's cause. I intercede for them." The contact is direct, it is divine, it is heavenly. But in the first part of the text, there was another kind of intercession that Jesus made for you: Christ Jesus, who died and rose again for you. At the command of the Father, through the providence of the Father, through the calling of the Father, He came into the world for the love of you—not only of you, but especially for you.
But it is more than that. God the Father is also interceding. Let us now return to verse number 27. And I spoke of the intimacy of Jesus with God. Let us now speak of the intimacy of the Holy Spirit with God, and of God with the Holy Spirit. “And He who searches,” verse 27, “hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is.” God knows the mind of the Spirit. They are one person, in three. God, who searches your heart, knows what the mind of the Spirit is. That is why the Holy Spirit intercedes, in full communion, for you and for me, together with God.
But more than that, He intercedes not according to our will, because the Spirit also knows—according to that part of the text, verse 27—the Holy Spirit also knows the mind of God. It says: “Because it is according to the will of God that He,” He the Spirit, “intercedes for the saints.” The Trinity intercedes for you. You are not a work of chance. And it is interesting: the Spirit knows the mind of God, God knows the mind of the Spirit, and Christ and they know one another mutually, one with the other, reciprocally. And I return to the point: the key is love.
Therefore, the mentality of God's governance and care over your life is the mentality of God, whose essence is love. That is why, that is why He renounces any government that involves acts of ungodliness, that involves corruptible or empty things. I say this, my brother and my sister, because sometimes we expect this government of God to come in a form as if He were to cast fire, a bolt of lightning, and burn what needs to be burned. But that is not the essence. That is not the essence. He intercedes for me and for you in love, out of love, and will do what must be done with the essence of love, with the mind of God. Because, after all, the greatest intercession He could make for us He has already made: He sent us His Son, in love, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
Second, besides interceding for you, the Trinity assists and protects you. It cares for you, it cares for you, in two ways. But before speaking of those ways, the Trinity cares because there, through the Holy Spirit, verse number 26, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. He is not our assistant. This assistance is not an expression designating something that is there to advise us. No. It is the Holy Spirit of God. This assistance is the assistance of care, of preservation, of giving a helping hand, of being the help. This assistance involves supporting you when you are falling, when you have no strength: He sustains you. This assistance involves grabbing you and pulling you out of the mire of sin, and sometimes pulling you out of persecutions—preservations and care that many times we cannot even imagine.
How many things, accidents, preventions God has carried out for us, of which we have no idea! Try to imagine, those of you who have had children, that small child who began walking and crawling, putting a finger into an electrical outlet, touching a fire, falling from a place, climbing somewhere dangerous, and the parents are there, just watching and taking care. We are those children, being cared for by God. We are sometimes unaware of the danger, but God is there caring for each of us.
But it is not only the Spirit who protects and assists us; Christ and God also do. Let us devote ourselves to verses 31 to 34. There are two keys to care here: care in the face of an accusation; care in the face of a condemnation. And these two keys: verse number 33, “Who will bring an accusation against God's elect?” Verse 34, “Who will condemn them?” Sometimes you are accused; sometimes they try to condemn you. And this accusation and this attempt at condemnation I will divide into two perspectives, as I said: the human perspective and the spiritual perspective.
The human perspective: at first, we always remember someone accusing us of something. But let us take one step back. There is a worse accusation than that: when we accuse ourselves, when we impose upon ourselves a guilt, a guilt that sometimes we do not even have. It is demanding more of yourself than you should demand; it is accusing yourself beyond what you should accuse yourself of. This too is a false accusation. This feeling of guilt of yours, which perhaps you have carried for years, accusing yourself, this feeling of guilt—I want, in the name of Jesus, for it to be buried here today, for you to stop sabotaging yourself. Because the devil uses this against us: us accusing ourselves and sabotaging ourselves. We already wake up defeated by ourselves; we already go into battle defeated, because we have already defeated ourselves. Stop that in the name of Jesus.
Reading some books during this vacation period, I read Francis Schaeffer, and he talks a little about this feeling of guilt. It is the individual sabotaging himself. And he says there is a psychological feeling of guilt in this human being, in this person, without there being any real guilt. You have done nothing, but because you think, you already condemn yourself, accuse yourself, and condemn yourself. My brother and my sister, free yourselves from this psychological feeling of guilt. Schaeffer says that many times feelings of guilt are present when, in truth, no guilt exists.
But there are situations in which there is guilt. Let us now speak of this second situation. If there is guilt, what happens? Let us see what the text says. "Who," verse number 33, "who will bring an accusation against God's elect? It is God who..." If there is guilt, in the name of Jesus, God justifies you tonight. God forgives you. Confess your guilt, and God justifies you. Justification means delivery, an acquisition. When you bear true guilt, God in Jesus Christ died for us, rose again for us, and with Him our sins died, and with Him someone justified, regenerated, a new person, rises again. André is no longer André; he is a new André. Janei is no longer Janei; she is a new Janei—I am referring to my wife. And you are no longer yourselves; you are new in Christ Jesus.
God protects you. God does not allow accusations made against you to prosper. God does not allow attempted condemnations against you to prosper, in the human perspective. But now I also say, in the spiritual perspective: because the devil presents himself before God: “Look there, André is not perfect. Did You see what he did? Did You see what he failed to do?” No. But the Word is the same: it is God who justifies us. Before this accuser, there at the right hand of God is Christ Jesus, our defender, our advocate, interceding for us, defending us. "Father, I have already died for André. Father, I have already died for Maria, for José, for Mariana, for Antônia, for Antônio. I have already died for them." God justifies you. There is no longer any condemnation upon me, upon you. God in Christ Jesus forgave our sins, rescued us.
And it is interesting, I return to Calvin, to the comment he makes on this text. Calvin says that whoever wishes to condemn us will have to kill Christ Himself again. It is no longer possible. Therefore, do not condemn yourself. Therefore, do not accept the condemnations, or the slanders, and the denunciations against you. Whoever does this is as if he were trying to kill Christ Himself again. Look at the key: if you condemn yourself, if you accuse yourself, it is as if you yourself wanted to be condemning Christ again. Remove the guilt from yourself. Follow the path God has prepared for you.
And now let us see, third, what that path is or where that path will lead. God, the Trinity, gives you and me victory. We are going to focus our efforts on verses 28 to 30. But first, I draw attention to verse number 37: “In all these things we are more than conquerors.” That is the essence; but here it is the result. Let us see, in verses 28 to 30, the process of victory. We know, verse 28, “that all things work together for the good of those who love God.” All things: not only life's victories, but also defeats; not only the yeses, but also the noes and the “waits”; not only the doors that open, but also the doors that close. All things work together for the good of those who love God.
But before saying, “All things work together for the good of those who love God,” the apostle, inspired by God, could have said that; but that was not the inspiration. There is an expression before it. How does the verse begin? “We know.” Do you know? Have you—or, to speak here in Pentecostal terms—taken possession of this? Take possession, my brother! Know it; put it into your consciousness: all things work together for the good of those who love God, for those who are called according to His purpose. And how does that happen? There is a calling; there is a purpose.
And now let us work on this point.
For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified; and those whom He justified, He also glorified.
And beforehand comes the sequence: He predestined you. He established, in His omniscience, in His omnipotence, what the course of your life would be. At the same time, this predestination, considering that God governs all things, is not something fixed. We talk a great deal about algorithms today, don't we? Companies transform algorithms according to their own convenience. What is artificial intelligence compared to the intelligence of God, my brother and my sister? Know that all things work together for your good because God intervenes in history. If necessary, He changes the algorithms; He changes everything. Sometimes it is a matter of your leaving ten seconds late or ten seconds early because of a sudden impulse that God gives you, and you are spared an accident, a situation.
God is not a slave to circumstances. You are not a slave to circumstances, whether man or woman, because in God all things work together for your good. You were known; you were predestined. Now, there is an essence to this predestination. Verse 29 tells us: You were predestined for what? To be a businessperson, to be a judge, to be a teacher, to be a doctor, to be a nurse, whether man or woman? For what does the text say? “He predestined them to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He might be the firstborn among many brothers.” God predestined you to be the image and likeness of Christ Jesus on earth. That is the essence; that is the purpose.
But verse number 30: “Those whom He predestined, He also called.” If you have not yet felt called, I call you today in the name of Jesus, my brother, my sister. You are called because you were loved, you were known, and you were predestined to be the image and likeness of the living God on the face of the earth. Receive your calling! “And those whom He called, He also justified.” Remove the guilt, the accusations, and the condemnations. “And those whom He justified, He also glorified.” Receive the victory! This is the process in love: you were known, you were predestined, you were called, you were justified, and you were glorified.
There is something interesting here: you were, you were, you were... He called, He justified... The verb is in the past! Why is the verb in the past, if it is something that is going to happen, something has already happened, but there are things yet to happen? Because the victory has already been given, my brother! It is not an uncertainty, it is not a possibility; it is only a declaration of something that has already happened in eternity, in the name of Jesus.
And if there is hope, if there is this process of victory, my request and my prayer are that you rest in this process of God and do not surrender to self-accusations and self-condemnations, because in man there is no hope, but in God there is hope. And here I conclude by saying that faith is not a leap into the dark. Faith is a leap into the arms of God. A leap into the dark is trusting in yourself. It is a leap of hope and it is a leap of victory, because if God is for us, who will be against us?
That is why I exhort you to have faith, to have patience. Understand the process; understand the essence of love. And here I finish with verses 38 and 39, because I am quite certain—and look at the size and the dimension of the victory—that neither death nor life (you can die, but you live in Christ), neither angels, nor the angels of God nor the powers of the enemy, neither things present, nor human circumstances, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Take possession of this Word! What are your tribulations?
What accusations weigh, or weighed, upon you? I want to ask you to cast them away.
Cast away your anxieties; cast away your fears. And besides that, what are your dreams and your purposes for which God predestined you on this journey in which we pursue being the image and likeness of Christ Jesus? Entrust them to God—or better, entrust them to the Holy Spirit, so that He may intercede exceedingly, with inexpressible groanings, before God.
Entrust them at the cross of Christ, the One who is seated at the right hand, so that He may intercede for you, so that He may present not only your name but, together with your name, your causes. And have faith and have living and secure hope.
I want to pray for you. I want to invite you to stand up. If you want to come forward, I invite you to come forward. Meanwhile, the worship team, which will lead us in the hymn...
If I may ask that we also sing “Castelo Forte” (“A Mighty Fortress”) again, in addition to the hymn you have prepared, that you come forward; I am going to come down here to pray with you. God bless you, God bless you, my sisters. God bless you, God bless you.
Come here, my brother... Let us pray: Father, here are our brothers, our sisters. At this hour, God, we want to cast away every accusation, every attempt to defeat us, whether from ourselves or from third parties.
We trust our cause to You, Father;
we place our circumstances and our trials before You.
We cast them away, Father, to receive Your blessing, Your care, to ask that the Lord intercedes for us, that the Lord protects us and cares for us, that the Lord gives us victory, not through ourselves, but in Christ Jesus, in love and in the power of the Holy Spirit of God.
Bless Your Church, Father; bless your people.
May this year that presents itself before us be a year of victory.
May it be a year in which the Lord is ruling over us, in which the Lord is caring for us, for our home, for our work, wherever we may be, for the honor and glory of His holy name.
It is in Christ Jesus that we pray. Amen.
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