I was so blessed by the book
Trusting God by Jerry Bridges a few years back and still continue to refer to it. In his book he talks about how God always does two things when it comes to His sovereignty and providence: making sure it brings His greatest glory and His children's
greatest good.
This last week I was reminded, gently, by God that this is how He operates. I was filled with peace and confidence.
This (LONG) excerpt from his book was too good to just paraphrase so I hope you can take time to
read it.
The Amazing Providence of God
Is God in control? If so, what does it mean to say that God is
in control? These are two very important questions because the answers
affect how we view God, how we view the world, and how we view
ourselves. The answers are found by examining the Biblical teaching on
the Providence of God. God's Providence--sometimes called His
sovereignty--simply refers to His preservation of creation and His
control over creation, which He does for the purpose of bringing about
the greatest glory to Himself.
Preservation, the first aspect of Providence, is the activity of
God whereby He preserves all created things in existence. In other
words, it is his moment by moment activity of keeping the universe in
existence. Hebrews 1:3 says Christ "upholds all things by the word of
His power." Colossians 1:17 says that "in Him all things hold
together." The universe only continues in existence because Christ keeps
it in existence. If He were to cease His preserving activity, everything
would cease to exist.
The second aspect of Providence is what answers the question, is
God in control and what does that mean? A proper understanding of this
aspect of Providence can be a rock of strength in suffering, a source of
humility in godliness, and a blazing fire of amazement in worship.
Therefore, we will examine the Biblical teaching on this in detail.
After examining this truth, the third aspect of Providence should be
clear--that God is directing history towards the goal of His greatest
glory and His people's greatest good.
God's purposes are unstoppable
The first thing we need to understand about God's rule over the
universe is that none of His purposes can fail: "I am God, and there is
no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient
times things which have not been done, saying, My purpose will be
established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure'" (Isaiah
46:9-10). It is absolutely certain that God will achieve everything that
He wants in His creation. Nothing that God wants accomplished will be
left unfulfilled--that is what God means when He says He will
accomplish
all of His "good pleasure" because His "purpose will be
established." Thus, it also follows that nothing can ever happen which
would ultimately keep God from fulfilling everything that He wants.
Some say that God does not have any unstoppable purposes in
regards to human history, because this would entail that humans are not
in control of history. Scripture, however, poses no such limitation on
God. In fact, in the very next verse God applies His purposes to the
realm of human activity: "Calling a bird of prey from the east, the
man of My purpose from a far country" (Isaiah 46:11).
Furthermore, it would be of almost no meaning for God to say that none of
His purposes can be thwarted if His purposes had nothing to do with one
of the most important areas of the universe--human history and human
decisions! The impossibility of God's purposes failing is significant
and revealed in the Bible precisely because it applies to our very lives.
Many other verses confirm that God's purposes in regards to human
history cannot fail. "The Lord nullifies the counsel of the nations; He
frustrates the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the Lord stands
forever, the plans of His heart from generation to generation" (Psalm
33:10, 11). God has not given control of history over to humans.
Instead, this verse is clear that God takes action to frustrate human
plans whenever He desires--which means whenever they are not in line with
His plans. Since God's counsel must "stand forever" and since God will,
as Isaiah says, accomplish all of His "good pleasure," He will frustrate
all
human plans that will not lead to the fulfillment of
His
plans. From this it follows that the only things which He will allow to
happen are things which will ultimately contribute to the fulfillment of
His plans.
So, while the plans of human beings fail, God's purposes cannot
fail because they must "stand forever." And since God's plans are always
accomplished, He never changes them--they endure "from generation to
generation." There are no plan B's with God.
Proverbs 19:21 confirms that while the plans of human beings are
not always accomplished, God's plans always succeed: "Many are the plans
in a man's heart, but the counsel of the Lord, it will stand." Clearly,
"There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the
Lord" (Proverbs 21:30). The great Biblical character Job, after his
extreme trials and great suffering, learned the great lesson that "Thou
canst do all things, and that no purpose of Thine can be thwarted" (Job
42:2). Similarly, the apostle Paul asks rhetorically in Romans 9:19,
"who resists His will?" The answer, of course, is no one.
God's purposes are specific, not only general
It is clear that God can accomplish whatever He wants. But how
specific are his plans? Does God simply have general plans that will be
fulfilled, or does He have specific purposes in regards to every detail
of life? The answer seems to be that God's purposes are specific--His
Providence is in the details.
First, if God "can do all things" and "none of His purposes can
be thwarted" (Job 42:2), then if follows that for anything that occurs,
God could have prevented it if He had wanted to. Thus, if God allows
something, it must be because it was part of His plan. For whenever one
is able to prevent something that he wants to prevent, he will prevent
it. The objection that God in many cases might want to prevent something
but does not so that He does not violate our "free-will" fails because
Scripture is filled with instances of God causing people to do His will
(Ezra 1:1; Daniel 1:9; Exodus 14:4; Genesis 39:21), and because if God is
our Creator He can, as Thomas Aquinas has said, cause us to act without
doing violence to our wills. Thus, God only
permits what He has
purposed--what He wants, in some sense, to occur.
Second, God must control the details of life in order to ensure
that His general plans will be fulfilled. If there is even the slightest
and most insignificant thing outside of God's control, it would have the
ability to mess up God's "bigger" plans. Who has not been amazed at how
the difference of a few "insignificant" seconds, for example, can
sometimes mean the difference between the significant issue of life and
death?
Third, and most importantly, Scripture is clear that God's
purposes are specific and very detailed. Job 14:5 says that man's "days
are determined, the number of his months is with Thee, and his limits
Thou hast set so that he cannot pass." God has determined how long each
person will live; you cannot die until God's purposes for you on earth
are finished. This is good news, for it means that if you are alive, it
is for a reason.
John the Baptist informs us that, "A man can receive nothing,
unless it has been given him from heaven" (John 3:27). Everything you
possess is a gift from God. Every meal you are provided with, is because
God decided to give it to you. Every shirt you have, friend you have,
and talent you have is ultimately a gift from God. If God had not
decided to give it to you, you would not have it.
God causes people to be favorable towards us (Daniel 1:9;
Genesis 39:21) or to not be favorable towards us (Exodus 14:7). He
determines who will be rich and who will be poor: "The Lord makes poor
and rich; He brings low and He also exalts" (1 Samuel 2:7). He gives
children (Psalm 127:3) or withholds children (1 Samuel 1:5). A woman
cannot conceive unless God decides that she will (Ruth 4:13).
God controls the affairs of nations: "He makes the nations
great, then destroys them; He enlarges the nations, then leads them away"
(Job 12:23). "For the kingdom is the Lord's, and He rules over the
nations" (Psalm 22:28). The land boundaries of each nation and their
period in history are all determined by God: "and He made from one, every
nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined
their appointed times, and the boundaries of their habitation" (Acts
17:26). Not only that, God also determines which specific individuals
will be the leaders in each country: "And it is He who changes the
times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives
wisdom to wise men, and knowledge to men of understanding" (Daniel
2:21). "The Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, and
bestows
it on whom he wishes..." (Daniel 4:17). God made it absolutely clear
to King Nebuchadnezzar that he was not ultimately in charge, rather "it
is Heaven that rules" (Daniel 4:26). Paul even tells us that the wicked
Pharaoh at the time of the Exodus had been "raised up" by God so that He
could show His power in defeating Him (Romans 9:17).
God has not even left the issue of salvation ultimately in the
hands of humans. The Apostle Paul tells us that God "has mercy on whom
He desires, and He hardens whom He desires" (Romans 9:18) and that
salvation "does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but
on God who has mercy" (Romans 9:16). Thus, God determines who will be
believe in Christ: "And as many as had been appointed to eternal life
believed" (Acts 13:48). Jesus told His disciples, "You did not chose Me,
but I chose you" (John 15:16).
God controls the wind and lightning (Psalm 135:7), the snow and
the rain (Job 37:6-13), and directs the stars in their courses (Job
38:32). Forest fires, hail, and storms are all under his command: "Fire
and hail, snow and clouds; stormy wind, fulfilling His word" (Psalm
148:8). The sun does not simply rise on its own each day, rather God
"causes His sun to rise" (Matt. 5:45). Neither does the grass grow on
its own, but God "causes the grass to grow" (Psalm 104:14). God feeds
the animals (Matthew 6:26; Psalm 104:27-29) and indeed controls even the
most seemingly insignificant death of a sparrow (Matthew 10:29). God
sends rain and withholds rain (Amos 4:7-10). There is nothing in the
universe left to chance: "The lot is cast in the lap, but its every
decision is wholly from the Lord" (Proverbs 16:33). Nothing in all
creation--the weather, the stars, the plants, the animals, the affairs of
nations, the role of dice, and the specific details of our lives--is
outside of the sovereign control of God.
God controls everything
If God's plans never fail, and if His plans are specific (not
just general), then it follows that God literally controls every detail
of our lives and every detail of the universe. This is exactly what
dozens of verses directly and explicitly teach.
First, the Scriptures are clear on who is not in control.
Jeremiah said, "I know, O Lord, that the way of human beings is not in
their control, that mortals as they walk cannot direct their steps"
(Jeremiah 10:23, NRSV). Humans are not in control. In fact, we do not
even have ultimate control over our slightest actions, for "mortals as
they walk cannot direct their steps." But if humans do not direct their
steps, who does? Proverbs 16:9 tells us: "The mind of the man plans his
way, but the Lord directs his steps." It is God who is in control! And
his control is specific, not just general because it extends to the very
steps of
individuals. Every move you make, every step you
take has been determined by God. Proverbs 19:24 says "man's steps are
ordained by the Lord, how then can man understand his way?" Further,
even the very words we say are controlled by God: "The plans of the
heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord"
(Proverbs 16:1).
Ephesians 1:11 tells us that believers have "been predestined
according to His purpose who works
all things after the counsel of
His will." Everything that happens is in accordance with God's
unstoppable will. Or, put another way, God's purposes extend to all
things. The word translated "works" indicates that God "brings about"
everything that happens; the verse adds that this is done according to
His own sovereign will--not our will. Thus, God both decides what will
happen and then acts to bring it about. God "brings about all things"
and these are the things that He determined to do on the basis of "the
counsel of His will." As John Feinberg has said, "This verse, then,
indicates that what occurs is fore-ordained by God, and nothing external
to God such as the foreseen actions or merits of God's creatures
determines his choices. God deliberates, chooses and accomplishes all
things on the basis of his purposes."[1]
Daniel 4:35 is another very clear verse that God controls all
things. "And all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing,
but He does according to his will in the host of heaven and among the
inhabitants of earth; and no one can ward off His hand or say to Him,
`what hast Thou done?'" First, notice that God is not just
able to
do His will, but
actually does His will both among the angels (the
"host of heaven") and with human beings ("the inhabitants of earth").
Thus, all of God's creatures are under His control. Second, notice that
nothing can prevent God's will from being accomplished ("no one can ward
off His hand"). Scripture knows nothing of God limiting his control so
that humans can have ultimate self-determination. This verse (as well as
all of the others we have seen) teaches the exact opposite--the will of
God is always done. Third, Nebuchadnezzar found that God's sovereign
majesty was good news. We should share his attitude: "Now I
Nebuchadnezzar praise, exalt, and honor the King of heaven, for all His
works are true and His ways just, and He is able to humble those who walk
in pride" (v. 37).
Romans 11:36 says, "For from Him and through Him and to Him are
all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen." This is another clear
verse that God is controlling ("bringing about") all things according to
His plan. John Reisinger explains this verse very well: "There are
three different Greek prepositions in that verse. They show the truth of
God's absolute and total sovereignty. The verse states that all things,
without any exception are: 1. from (The Greek is
ek and means
`out of, or out from') God; 2. all things are through (The Greek is
dia and means `by means of, or because of') God; and; 3. all
things are to (The Greek is
eis and means `into') God. In other
words, all things have their source in God's decrees or purposes, and all
things that happen do so only because God's power has brought them to
pass, and finally, everything that God plans and then brings to pass will
ultimately bring glory to him since they all move into him or unto him as
their final end. Now that is the Biblical truth about our sovereign
God. That is acknowledging that `God can do any thing He wants to do, any
time He wants to do it, any way He wants to do it, for any purpose He
wants to accomplish.'"[2]
The next verse we will look at is Proverbs 21:1: "The king's
heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it
wherever He wishes." Jerry Bridges elaborates on this verse: "In
Solomon's time the king had the most absolute of all wills...There was no
legislature to pass laws he did not like or a Supreme Court to restrain
his actions. The king's word was the last word. His authority over his
realm was unconditional and unrestrained. Yet this Scripture teaches
that God controls the king's heart. The stubborn will of the most
powerful monarch on earth is directed by God as easily as the farmer
directs the flow of water in his irrigation canals.
The argument,
then, is from the greater to the lesser--if God controls the king's heart
surely he controls everyone else's."[3] This becomes even more
significant when we recognize that from the heart flow "the springs of
life" (Proverbs 4:23). The deepest depths of every single individual and
every decision they make are controlled by God.
Psalm 139:16 makes a very similar point: "In Thy book they were
all written, the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was
not one of them." This verse not only teaches that God has ordained how
long you will live, but the Hebrew word translated "ordained" suggests a
much stronger meaning. The meaning is that of being shaped, or formed.
"David is affirming that God wrote the script of his life in the great
book of God's intentions before the actual events began to unfold,
indeed, before David was even born. And, mixing his metaphors, David
also says that the days of his life were formed or shaped, suggesting the
action of a potter shaping the clay. He means that his life, considered
not only as a whole but also right down to his daily experience, was
determined (what other word fits?) ahead of time."[4]
Lamentations 3:37 asks rhetorically, "Who can speak and have it
happen if the Lord has not decreed it?" (NIV). The answer expected is,
no one. There is nothing that comes to pass through human agency unless
God has ordained it to happen. If you say to your friend, "Let's go to
Burger King for supper," it will not happen unless God has ordained it to
occur. If someone threatens to hurt you, take courage, for it cannot
happen unless God has ordained it.
God is sovereign over sin and evil
God's control over all things raises many questions for us.
Perhaps the biggest one is in regards to evil. Does God ordain evil as
part of His plan? In light of the verses we have examined above, the
answer must be yes. If God controls all things, then it must be that
evil is a part of His plan. There are also many specific Scriptures which
make it clear that God controls evil.
Psalm 105:25, speaking of the Exodus, says of the Egyptians that
God "turned their heart to hate His people, to deal craftily with His
servants." After a time of unfaithfulness, Israel asked God, "Why, O
Lord, dost Thou cause us to stray from Thy ways, and harden our heart
from fearing Thee?" (Isaiah 63:17). In Revelation 17:17 it is said that
the wicked kings who will wage war against Christ (which is sin) will
ultimately be doing the purpose that God had put in their hearts: "For
God has put it in their hearts to execute His purposes by having a common
purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God
should be fulfilled." Lamentations 3:37-38 is a direct statement that
God decrees not only good things, but also bad things: "Who is there who
speaks and it comes to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it?
Is it
not from the mouth of the Most High that both good and ill go
forth?" God says that He is "the One forming light and creating
darkness, causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the Lord who
does all these" (Isaiah 45:7).
When all of Job's children were killed, he acknowledged the
sovereign control of God behind the evil situation. Job did not say that
"The Lord gave, and Satan took away." He said "The Lord gave and
the
Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21).
Some argue that God is not ultimately behind the bad circumstances in our
lives, and therefore Job was wrong to attribute his calamity to God.
However, the author of the book, who was inspired by God and therefore
infallible, affirms Job's statement: "Through all his Job did not sin nor
did he blame God" (v. 24). At the end of the book we once again see the
author's agreement with Job. When describing Job's restoration, he says
that Job's friends came and "consoled him and comforted him for all the
evil that the Lord had brought on him" (Job 42:11). The book of Job
makes it clear, however, that God's control over evil does not deny the
activity of Satan and the reality of wickedness in human hearts.
Further, God never does evil and cannot be blamed for evil. However, God
has not left the sources of evil to simply do as they please. He has
them on a leash and they can only act if God specifically decides to
allow it. Since the evil that Satan causes is only by the specific
permission of God, then it is correct for Job to ultimately attribute his
suffering to God's plan.
The evil spirit that tormented Saul was said to be "from the
Lord" (1 Samuel 16:14). In punishment for David's sin, "The Lord struck
the child that Uriah's wife bore to David, so that it was very sick" (2
Samuel 12:15-18). If natural or man-made disaster occurs, it is
ultimately because God had planned it, for Amos 3:6 asks rhetorically,
"Does evil befall in a city, unless the Lord has done it?" Physical
infirmity and disease are not outside of God's plan either: "Who has made
man's mouth? Who makes him dumb, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it
not I, the Lord?" (Exodus 4:11). As Donald Barnhouse has said, "No
person in this world was ever blind that God had not planned for him to
be blind; no person was ever deaf in this world that God had not planned
for him to be deaf--If you do not believe that, you have a strange God
who has a universe which has gone out of gear and He cannot control
it."[5]
Perhaps the clearest example that God ordains sin is the
crucifixion of Christ. It was sin for the Jews and Romans to crucify
Christ, for He was the innocent Son of God. Yet, what Christian would
deny that the crucifixion of Christ was brought about by God? Scripture
is clear that "It was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to
suffer" (Isaiah 53:10). Acts 2:23 says that Jesus was "delivered up by
the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God" even though it was "by
the hands of godless men" that He was put to death. The acts of Herod
and Pontius Pilate, the Jews and Gentiles, in crucifying Christ were
sin. Yet Scripture says that "Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the
Gentiles and the peoples of Israel [did] whatever Thy hand and Thy plan
predestined to take place" (Acts 4:28). John Piper has said it well:
"People lift their hand to rebel against the Most High only to find that
their rebellion is unwitting service in the wonderful designs of
God."[6]
The holiness and goodness of God
The sovereignty of God over evil raises many questions for us.
First, how can a holy, good God ordain sin? Very simply, God does not
ordain sin for its own sake, but in order to bring about a greater good.
For example, God did not will the crucifixion simply for the sake of
bruising His Son, but because it was the means for bringing salvation to
the world. Another example is the case of Joseph being sold into
slavery. It was sin for Joseph's brothers to throw him in the well and
then sell him into slavery. But many years later when Joseph finally
encountered his brothers again, he said "And now do not be grieved or
angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before
you to preserve life...Now, therefore,
it was not you who sent me
here, but God" (Genesis 50:5, 8). Joseph being sold into Egypt was not
simply allowed by God, but was actually brought about by God as part of
His plan. This does not make God sadistic nor does it excuse Joseph's
brothers of their sin. Why? Because God's intentions were for good, but
Joseph's brother's intentions were for evil. "And as for you, you meant
evil against me, but
God meant it for good in order to bring about
his present result, to preserve many people alive" (Genesis 50:20). This
is a necessary truth in order to properly understand God's Providence.
When God ordains bad things to occur, it is not because He delights in
suffering and evil in itself, but it is because He is working to bring
about a greater good.
John Piper gives a helpful illustration here. God has the
capacity to look at any event through two lenses, a wide angle lens and a
narrow angle lens. When God looks at an evil act through the narrow lens,
He sees it for what it is in itself and abhors it. But when God steps
back and looks at that event in the wide angle lens, He sees it in
relation to all the events flowing up to it and flowing out from it. He
sees it in relation to the good that He plans to bring out of it and its
overall place in His wise plan. It is in this sense that He wants it to
occur and thus decrees it.
Thus, God's control over all things is good news, not bad
news, because God is good, loving, and just and is therefore working all
things for the greatest good. God's Providence is not random, but is
directing all things toward a goal--His greatest glory and His children's
greatest good. Thus, God's Providence is something we can trust and
rejoice in. It is good that we are not in control of history, for surely
God knows better than we do!
Human responsibility
The second question that God's sovereignty over sin raises is,
does this take away human responsibility and put the blame on God for
evil? The Bible is clear that the answer is no. God cannot be blamed
for sin, and humans are responsible for the sins that they commit. God
stands behind good and evil in different ways. God is behind good in
such as way as all of the credit for it goes to Him. But He is behind
evil in such a way that, though it is part of His sovereign plan, none of
the blame for it is chargeable to Him. We do not need to understand how
these truths can fit in our minds, but if we are going to believe the
Bible must believe them both.
For example, God used the wicked Assyrian nation to carry out His
judgements, yet judged them for sinning because their intentions were
evil (see Isaiah 10). The case of Pharaoh is another example. In Exodus
7:2 God tells Moses to command Pharaoh to let Israel go. But God also
says that He will harden Pharaoh's heart so that Pharaoh will not let the
people go (v. 3). God, however, does not regard this as taking away
Pharaoh's responsibility, because when Pharaoh refuses to let Israel go,
God judges Egypt for this sin (vv. 14-25). Some say that Pharaoh
hardened his heart first and that God only acted in response to this.
But this view misunderstands the whole narrative of the Exodus. God says
that He hardened Pharaoh's heart so "that I may multiply My signs and
wonders in the land of Egypt" (Exodus 7:3), not because Pharaoh hardened
his heart first. Further, God's promise to harden Pharaoh's heart
(Exodus 4:21) comes long before we find Pharaoh hardening his own heart
(which we read of first in 8:15).
In 1 Chronicles 21:1 we read that "Satan stood up against Israel,
and moved David to number Israel." The parallel passage in 2 Samuel
24:1, however, tells us that God incited David to take the census.
David, however, is regarded as responsible for his sin, saying "I have
sinned greatly in what I have done" (2 Samuel 24:10). His responsibility
is further shown in that God judged him for this sin (24:15). "In this
one incident the Bible gives us a remarkable insight into the three
influences that contributed in different ways to one action: God, in
order to bring about his purposes, worked through Satan to incite David
to sin, but Scripture regards David as being responsible for that
sin."[7] If we are to remain faithful to the Bible, we must hold these
two truths together: humans are responsible for their sins, yet every sin
committed was allowed by God as part of His plan. For those who are
interested in taking a prayerful look at how these truths are consistent,
see my article
The Consistency of Divine
Sovereignty and Human Accountability. For those interested in
how God controls sin without being the author of it, see my article
The Sovereignty of God Over Evil.
Objections
There are perhaps three remaining objections. The first
objection is that God's Providence means that our choices are not real
and that they do not make a difference. But our choices are real and
genuine because
God says they are. And they make a difference
because God brings about His will
by means of our choices, not
in spite of our choices. Our choices are important, they make a
difference, and therefore we should always seek to make good, holy, and
wise choices.
The second objection is that, since God often commands us to do
things in Scripture and calls us to make choices, He cannot be ultimately
in control of our decisions. This objection, however, cannot account for
all of the verses we have seen that God does control all
things--including our decisions. The Bible views commands--and the
crucial importance of us to obey them--as perfectly consistent with God's
control over our choices. For example, in 1 Chronicles 28:9 David
commands Solomon to serve God with a whole heart and a willing mind.
This shows his responsibility to choose to follow God. But does this
mean that God has ultimately left it up to Solomon to follow Him or not?
No, because in the next chapter we see David acknowledging that it is
ultimately God who gives a person a heart to obey, for He prays "give to
my son Solomon a perfect heart to keep Thy commandments" (29:19). There
would be no use in asking God to cause Solomon to obey if God had
ultimately left the choice up to Solomon. In light of all that we have
seen, it seems best to conclude that since God controls all things, He
causes us to make willing choices so that His will is always done,
yet
these choices are genuine, and we are accountable for them.
Again, we do not need to necessarily see how these truths fit together,
but if we are going to believe the Bible, it seems that we must believe
them.
Finally, do not conclude that the Providence of God should cause
us to be passive and indifferent. This is not a crippling doctrine, but
a very freeing one. The same Scriptures which teach God's absolute
Providence also teach that we are to act and choose wisely and
righteously. In fact, the Scriptures use God's Providence as an
incentive to action, not a
decentive (Judges 7:9;
Philippians 2:12-13; Hebrews 13:21). We should never sin, as it will
always harm us and others. And we should always seek to obey, for this
is what pleases God and what He will bless. If we gain our belief in
Providence from the Bible, we will not draw conclusions that the Bible
rejects. See my article
If God is Sovereign,
Why do Anything? for a more in-depth analysis of this issue.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are many wonderful applications of the
Providence of God. They include a joyful trust in God, deep comfort in
adversity, and overflowing gratitude for all good things.[8] Perhaps the
main application is to give us an attitude of adoring worship. J.B.
Moody has said, "True worship is based upon recognized greatness, and
greatness is superlatively seen in sovereignty, and at no other footstool
will men really worship."[9]
Notes
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture is from the New American
Standard Bible.
1. John Feinberg, "God Ordains All Things," in
Predestination and
Free-will: Four Views (Downer's Grove, IL: IV Press, 1986), p. 30.
2. John Reisinger,
Our
Sovereign God, delivered at
the International Baptist Conference in Toronto in 1988.
3. Jerry Bridges, "Does Divine Sovereignty Make a Difference in Everyday
Life?" in
The Grace of God, the Bondage of the Will, Thomas
Schreiner and Bruce Ware, ed., (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1995),
vol. I, p. 208.
4. Raymond C. Ortlund, Jr., "The Sovereignty of God: Case Studies in
the Old Testament," in
The Grace of God, the Bondage of the Will,
vol. I, p. 32.
5. Donald Barnhouse, quoted in "Does Divine Sovereignty Make a
Difference in Everyday Life?" p. 211.
6. John Piper,
Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist,
(Portland, OR: Multnomah Press, 1996), p. 37.
7. Wayne Grudem,
Systematic Theology (IV Press and Zondervan
Publishing, 1994), p. 324.
8. For a detailed explanation of the applications, see my article
The Importance of Providence.
9. J.B. Moody, quoted in
The Sovereignty of God, by A.W. Pink,
p. 190.
MP
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the
New American Standard Bible, copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1977, by the Lockman Foundation.
