Why the Sovereignty of God Should Comfort All Believers

Why should the sovereignty of God comfort us in times of trouble?

What is Sovereignty?

Why should the sovereignty of God comfort us in times of trouble? To begin with, God is in complete control of all things…good and bad. We too have free will just as God does but God has planned, even from before our birth, what we would do, where we’d live and whether we’d trust in Jesus Christ or not (Eph 1, 2:10). Whatever happens, God intends it for our best and not harm (Rom 8:28). So what is sovereignty? A king is sovereign over the entire kingdom. He controls whatever happens and determines who does what and what goes where. The king is the supreme authority and his sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. This is even more so for God. God’s sovereignty is not just ruling a kingdom but it is His dominant power and supreme authority over all that is created. One pastor said, “Not a fly moves unless God approves” and He knows when even one tiny sparrow falls to the ground (Matt 10:29), so why should God’s sovereignty be a comfort to those who believe?

But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever

No Accidents

In God’s economy, there are no accidents. Around our house, I’m usually the one having accidents, but even these are ordained or allowed by God. Whatever is allowed by God is God’s will but we should never forget that bad things will turn out for our good (Gen 50:20), even if it doesn’t look like it at the time. One pastor recalled a time when he was about to be a guest speaker at a Christian conference; his first ever, but the evening before, he broke his leg by a freak accident. He was heartbroken but wait a moment! When he got to the hospital, they found out that there was a dangerous blood clot that was ready to break loose and possibly lodge in his heart. That would have been fatal, so this pastor’s “bad break” saved his life. That’s the way God works…wonderfully and mysteriously. We can trust Him even when the wheels fall off!

Complete Control

“Faith must trample under foot all reason, sense and understanding.” Martin Luther

The Bible shows that from beginning to end, God has been and still is in, total control. Yes, Satan and his demons are creating havoc right now, but even the Devil is God’s Devil, so said Martin Luther. The evil done at Calvary to Jesus was inexcusable, and yet God used that great evil to bring in many sons and daughters of God. Jesus’ shed blood opened the portal to heaven. He made the eternal kingdom accessible to us and made us subjects of His, the Lord of lords and King of kings. God wins. That’s what we read in Revelation. There was little doubt of that of course, but evil may seem to be winning…at least for the moment, but that too will be part of God’s comprehensive plan of salvation. And in the end, all death and sin and evil will vanish (Rev 21:4).

Divine Sovereignty

The Word of God is so powerful; especially those verses speaking of God’s complete sovereign control. How amazing it is that God “chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him” and “In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will” (Eph 1: 4-5). He did the choosing, not we. We were just as dead as Lazarus in our sins (Eph 2:1-5) and dead men cannot choose God. Lazarus couldn’t cry out for help before Jesus resurrected him, so God had to make the first move (John 6:44). He had to love us first before we’d ever love Him (1 John 4:10, 19).

Part of His sovereignty is using others as a means to save people. Someone must have shared Christ with us, right? So we too must make the first move or how else will they know without hearing the Word and if not us, then who (Rom 10:14-15)? One of the most potent Bible verses about God’s sovereignty that is overlooked is from Isaiah the Prophet who wrote, “I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me” (Isaiah 6:8). If it is not you or me, then who? We cannot ignore the Supreme Commander’s imperative command (Matt 28:18-20; Acts 1:8) to rescue the perishing (Jude 1:23-24).

A Mosaic

I remember seeing a beautiful mosaic done in fabric. It was so beautiful and real looking, but on the backside, it looked like chaos. The threads and colors were all mixed together and the back of the mosaic looked like an accident at a paint factory. In the same way, we can only see things through a dark glass or only in part (1 Cor 13:12). Our trust in God must override what we see with our eyes. We must learn to see with the eyes of faith and not by sight. Especially considering God is Spirit. What He is doing in our lives, no eye can see nor understand (Rom 11:34). He must be most precious to us (I plead guilty of it not being so in my life!). I think we’ve all fallen far short. Do what we can with our own hands and then trust God with those things we have no control over and we’ll be fine.

Conclusion

We must trust God even in the silence or what seems to be, absence of God. His silence is not His shunning. Never will He forsake His own children (Heb 13:5) any more than a parent would forsake their own children. God is faithful and will not abandon those who have trusted in the Son of God (John 6:37, 39). It is my prayer that you have already trusted in Christ. If not, I pray you will repent today and trust in Christ and be saved. If you do not, you must face God’s judgment after death (Heb 9:27), or at Christ’s appearance (Rev 20:12-15), whichever happens to come first.

Here is some related reading for you: What is the Sovereignty of God?

Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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