Devotion 14 – Faith in God’s Sovereignty
Devotion 14 – Faith in God’s Sovereignty
If God is in control, then why is there so much
suffering, so much pain, so much injustice and so much heartache in the world? These
are questions many of us will continue to struggle with throughout our faith
journey unless we settle the issue of God’s Sovereignty in our hearts.
Many believers
have a huge dichotomy between our head and our heart. We may confess and
profess with our mouth that God is love, God is good, God is in control, etc,
etc, but in our heart of hearts, there is no real faith in the love and goodness
of God. Subconsciously, we actually believe that though God
is powerful and just, He is also hard and demanding, without compassion,
distant, uncaring, even ruthless and vindictive. When
trials and tribulations happen, we often question His integrity and feel that God
only had His glory in mind, and human beings are merely pawns in His chessboard, made to accomplish His desire and purposes
on this earth. Can we truly trust God wholeheartedly? Is God trustworthy?
In order to trust God, we must know him in an intimate and personal way. We
need to know His character and nature. The Bible teaches us that God does all
things for His glory and for the good of His people. He never pursues His glory
at the expense of the good of His people, nor does He ever seek our good at the
expense of His glory.
Scripture also affirms both divine sovereignty and
human responsibility. Though we may not understand how they correspond to each
other, we must accept both sides of this truth. As His rule is invincible, so
it is incomprehensible. We can make plans, but those plans can succeed only
when they are consistent with God’s purpose. No King and no governments can
make anything happen unless the Lord decreed it.
Lam.3:37 – “Who is he who speaks
and it comes to pass, when the Lord has not commanded it?”
1 Chro.29:12 – “You reign overall. In Your hand is power
and might; in Your hand it is to make great and to give strength to
all.”
The sovereignty
of God is the exercise of His supremacy. God is the high and lofty One;
no one is greater than He or equal to Him. That means God has the
absolute right and the freedom to do whatsoever He pleases, whenever He
pleases, however He pleases, without being answerable to anyone. Who are we to question the omniscient and omnipotent God? God knows all
things and God can do anything. God must be trusted unquestioningly to remain
in charge of everything, without interference or accusations from His creation.
If He is not sovereign, He would not be
God!
Scripture does not answer all our questions. But we know from His Word
that God is utterly sovereign, He is perfectly holy, and He is absolutely just.
Admittedly, these truths are hard for the human mind to embrace, but Scripture
is undeniable and indisputable!
Jn.19:10-11 – “Pilate said to Him, “Are you
not speaking to me? Do you not know that I have power to crucify you, and power
to release you?” Jesus answered, “You
could have no power at all against me unless it had been given you from above.
Therefore, the one who delivered me to you has the greater sin”.
Pilate thought that he has sovereign control and Jesus
was at his mercy. However, Jesus
acknowledged God’s sovereign control over Pilate’s life.
John the Baptist’s disciples complained that Jesus was
baptizing more people than him. His reply was: “A man
can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven” (Jn.3:27)
The mighty Roman soldiers cannot crucify Jesus unless
God wills it. It is our sin that put Jesus on the cross, not the Pharisee, Sadducees
or betrayal of Judas, etc.
Jn.10:18 - “No one takes it from me, but I
lay it down myself. I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it
again. This command I have received from My Father.”
God’s Sovereignty over Peter and James
God’s sovereignty is not easy to embrace or accept. We
need absolute faith and trust in His nature and character. In Acts 12, James
was killed while Peter was spared.
Peter’s wife can rejoice over God sovereignty over her
husband, but what about James’ wife? She too must trust and rest in God’s
sovereignty. Trusting in God does not
mean that we cannot suffer grief, or our heart does not ache. It just means
that amid all these, we honour God by trusting Him.
We need to settle in our heart of hearts that the
all-seeing and all-knowing God knows what is the ultimate good for our lives
and we can rest in the sovereignty of His goodness!
Prov.21:30 – “There is no wisdom or
understanding or counsel against the Lord.”
Prov.19:21- “There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless
the Lord’s counsel—that will stand.”
The sovereignty of God is an invincible truth our heart
must cling to. The circumstances that surround our lives are no accident; they may
be the work of evil, but evil is still subject to Him and evil cannot touch us
unless He permits it (Job.1:12;2-6). God is the Lord of all human history and
of the personal history of every member of His redeemed family.
Matt.10:29-31 – “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your
Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear
therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”
If God controls the circumstances of the
almost worthless sparrow, how much more will He control the circumstances that
affect us. Though His love for us does not protect us from pain and sorrow, all
our pain and sorrow are definitely under His watchful eyes.
Ps.121:3 – “He will not allow
your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold,
He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep”.
Ps.138:8 – “The Lord will perfect that
which concerns me…”
God never sleeps nor slumbers and no detail of our life is
too insignificant for our heavenly Father’s attention. No one can frustrate
God’s purpose for our life, He will fulfil His purpose for us as we abide in
Him and walk in obedience.
“When you
go through a trial, the sovereignty of God is the pillow upon which you lay
your head”
-
C.H.
Spurgeon
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