God Is In Control

    There is a great truth in the Bible that will be of comfort to you and give you hope.  God is sovereign.  God is in control.  God rules  over all.  While there are powerful and serious forces at work in our world that bring what is for us a crisis and an emergency, whether personal, national or global, God is still in control.  Nothing takes God by surprise nor is he ever caught off-guard.  God ordains and maintains.  He causes things while other things he allows and permits.  I don’t understand the ways of God.  How he rules and reigns is a mystery (Isaiah 55:8-9; Romans 11:33-36).  But make no mistake, the Bible teaches that God reigns.  He is the sovereign King of the universe and of our world.  The Psalms say,
“The LORD reigns; let the earth rejoice” (97:1) and “The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!” (99:1).  

    In the midst of any difficulty or disaster, let’s not forget the abundant blessings of God.  The sun shines, the rain falls and the crops grow.  Remember the mercy and kindness of God revealed in the wonders and grandeur of creation and its continuance.  Don’t forget God’s goodness to humanity reflected in the wisdom and capabilities given to us.  Most of all, ponder God’s great gift of salvation in Christ and how Jesus is the supreme revelation of his love. 

    God is sovereign because he is omnipotent.  He is all-powerful.  God’s presence and power, not to mention his control over all things, is shown in the creation.  But we are weak and frail.  We don’t have the power that God possesses.  So we often become afraid and beset with anxiety.  But we should be moved to acknowledge him, trust in him, obey him, and cry out for his help and mercy.  While things may be out of our control, nothing is out of God’s control.

    While the theme of God’s sovereignty permeates and saturates all of Scripture, I would like to focus on one means by which God reveals his sovereignty, as well as his goodness, love, mercy and grace.  God especially shows his sovereignty and supremacy through his Son, Jesus Christ.  Please read Psalm 2.

    While the nations of the world reject God’s rule over them, God’s plan to install his King, Jesus the Messiah, on Mount Zion will happen.  God’s plan will not be thwarted.  In verses 1-3, the nations are described as raging and rebelling against God and his anointed servant.  They don’t want God and his servant to rule over them.  God’s response comes in verses 4-6.  God, who sits on his eternal throne in the heavens, will laugh at them in contempt.  How foolish the nations are to think they can rebel against God and thwart his plan for this world. They don’t know God’s sovereignty and supremacy.  In verse 6, God speaks and announces his response to the rebellion of the nations and his determination to install his King on Mount Zion.  In verses 7-9, Jesus the Messiah speaks and reveals what God the Father has said to him.  Jesus will reign because it is the will and plan of God the Father.  The language used is that of the coronation ceremony when a new king is being installed and granted the right to rule.  Verses 10-12 urges all to fear the Lord’s Anointed for their own good.  See how the early church quoted from Psalm 2 in Acts 4:23-28.  With persecution coming against the church, Christians found comfort and inspiration in the sovereignty and supremacy of God.

    From the prophecies and promises of the coming Messiah in the Old Testament to his arrival in the New Testament, God is in control and his plan is moving forward and is unstoppable.  God gave his instructions to Mary and Joseph so that his will was done.  God protected Jesus from the evil schemes of King Herod, who tried to kill the Messiah.  God’s plan called for Jesus to be crucified and raised form the dead.  God was actually in charge at the cross.  What happened was ordained and willed by God.  Nothing was out of his control. When Jesus did not answer Pilate, the governor, being frustrated, said to Jesus, “Do You not know that I have the power to crucify You and the power to release You.” Jesus said to Pilate, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above” (John 19:10-11).   I will tell you who was in control at the cross.  It was not Pilate, not the religious authorities, not the mob, not the Roman soldiers, not the the devil nor the power of death.  God was in charge!  And the resurrection of Jesus announces the sovereignty and supremacy of God. “Him [Jesus] being delivered by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death” (Acts 2:23-24).

    At the present time, God is building his church and the gates of hades will not prevail against it or overpower it (Matthew 16:18).  Indeed, Jesus is even sovereign and supreme over death and has defeated our worst enemy.  The last enemy that will be destroyed is death (1 Corinthians 15:24-26; Hebrews 2:14-15; Revelation 1:18).  

    God’s sovereignty and supremacy is shown in the Bible in the announcements of the coming reign of Jesus.  We know God’s plan and his goal for human history, which is “His-story”.  All will be brought under the supreme lordship and sovereign rule of Jesus the Messiah.  “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and he shall reign forever” (Revelation 11:15).  Jesus returns in power and glory and is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16).  From the creation of all things to the consummation of all things, God is in control. 

    This God who is sovereign and in control is our heavenly Father.  He knows our needs (Matthew 6:31-32).  Not a sparrow falls to the ground without his knowledge and consent and all the hairs of our head are numbered (Matthew 10:29-31).  He loves us and has proven the depths of his love by sending his Son for us (1 John 4:9-10).  The Apostle Peter writes and says, “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7).  Let’s rest secure in God and hope in him.  While things may be out of our control. Nothing is out of his control!