August 20, 2012

Is God Always in Control?

by Clint Archer

A previous post, God’s prescience and providence in the Petra Anderson incident, begat an interesting insight from a commenter, who admitted…

If God planned the path of the bullet that didn’t kill Petra, then He planned the paths of the bullets that DID kill the other twelve. Not so comforting a thought to me.

This is a very important insight. We love to highlight God’s sovereign control over every detail, when extraordinary deliverances occur. But what about all the many times rescue from danger is not supplied? Tsunamis, earthquakes, crime incidents, epidemic diseases, political turmoil, car accidents…the list on this sin-cursed planet is literally unending.

Is God still in perfect control in those situations?

The Bible’s answer is unequivocally YES!

remote2God is never asleep at the wheel of His creation. He never overlooks a detail, misses a beat, or leaves events to chance. He is on His throne, ruling His kingdom with absolute authority. So when “bad things” happen, we need to filter them through the grid of acknowledging that God is not only in control but that He is good.

Here are some verses that demonstrate this biblical teaching:

Job 1:21 The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away; blessed be the name of the Lord.

Job 2:10  Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Dan 9:14 Therefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice.

Rom 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

 

Ps 115:3 Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

throne

Matt 10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.

 

This is what undergirded my response to the commenter, which I share with you:

You’re absolutely right, that is exactly what the Bible teaches. I find it very comforting to know that when anything happens to me, it is by God’s permission, in His will, for my ultimate good and His glory. If I thought for a second that bullets were outside of his control, I’d be a basket case! We don’t fear death when we know God is in command.

What would your response be?

in Theology with 12 Comments
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Clint Archer

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Clint is the pastor of Hillcrest Baptist Church. He and his expanding troop of Archers live near Durban, South Africa (and pity anyone who doesn't). When he is off duty from CGate, his alter ego blogs at Café Seminoid, clintarcher.com
  • Inclement Nimbus

    Clint,

    I think your response is a good one. I would disagree with Sam in that original post. I go back to Job. Satan wanted to attack Job but was only allowed to do so with God’s ok. This leads me to believe there is order in this universe of ours. We aren’t subjected to absolute chaos in these events. We have an Almighty Creator that ordains events.

    When it’s time to leave this world it may be old age, sickness or even a bullet that brings us immediately before the Lord. Nothing circumvents God’s will and for that I am grateful!

    • http://www.clintarcher.com/ Clint

      Good point IN. Thanks for checking in.

      • tricia

        If God is not always in control ,my nights would be sleepless, and the word would be in utter chaos

        • http://www.clintarcher.com/ Clint

          Very well said.

    • Daryl Little

      One small correction Clint. Satan wasn’t actually even noticing Job, until God pointed him out.
      I reads to me like God enticed Satan to try and mess with Job.

      As small difference, which doesn’t change your point at all. I just felt it was important.

  • csrima

    Haha, this post encapsulates perfectly what I’ve been trying to tell many friends, family, and random people for the last 10 months. Long story short, I was in a hunting accident, a single shotgun pellet shot from around 40 yards away entered my right eye. I no longer have viable vision out of that eye, but all of that has simply become a new normal and I have my last check up this Friday. I play basketball, drive, play catch, and occasionally run into people at church when I turn to my right too quickly (don’t worry, I’m slightly more careful when driving).

    I tell people the circumstances surrounding the incident and I constantly hear, “WOW! That is just so random!” But I immediately wonder if they heard anything I said at all. I think of just some of the little circumstances that led to the actual event occurring, including:

    The pheasant numbers being down last year, meaning the young man in our group was slightly trigger happy after not seeing birds all week.

    Me losing my eye protection in the field immediately prior to the incident.

    The pheasant getting up behind us, getting taken down, then evading capture, only to flush again in front of us before the shooter had gotten to a parallel position as me.

    The pellet entering my eye in the precise spot that eye surgeons enter the eye for complex surgeries, missing all areas of the eye that would make it physically obvious that anything had ever happened.

    Me being 25. I’ve been told that even if I was a few years older, the pellet would have just gone straight through and I’d have lost the eye completely.

    Being near Sioux Falls, a region known for eye care, and living in Minneapolis, where many of the most prominent eye surgeons in the world operate out of.

    All of these things didn’t convince me that God was sovereign and in control of every single moment of that day…but it was His Word that had already convinced me. His Word has protected me and shielded me from all doubt and all despair as my wife and I have traveled this road. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that God directed that pellet into my eye, and I see the fruit of it every day in a fresh vigor in my Seminary studies, a resolve to enjoy God’s small mercies (like the ability to see anything, at all, ever), and a trial that I can return to and remember God’s faithfulness, just as the Israelites are called to do in Joshua 4:5-6. It also seems quite fitting that my sister made me a jar with stones and a permanent marker in it and that verse attached to it around this time last year for my birthday, so that I could write down the trials that my wife and I go through during our life together and return to them to remember the Lord’s faithfulness.

    • http://www.clintarcher.com/ Clint

      Amazing testimony! Thanks for sharing it, and I commend you for seeing God’s attributes at work and on display in that incident.

  • Mumbles

    I was hoping for more twila paris

    • http://www.clintarcher.com/ Clint

      Sorry to disappoint!

  • mscouvert

    Hi Clint,
    Just wanted to share that anytime the sovereignty of God is being put on display, especially in relation to what man considers to be evil and problematic, it brings me great joy. I am thankful that you have taken the time to address our Lord’s control over not only the “good” times but also the seemingly “bad” times. Have a question though. When you responded to the commentor’s post, you mentioned that God “permits” things to happen to you (and I assume this means He permits lots of other related things in the world). I’ve noticed that when talking about God’s relation to the evil, sin, and calamity in the world, often we tend to use language that describes God “permitting” these things to take place. I know you can’t speak for everyone who uses that language, but from your use of it, what is meant by God permitting these things to happen? I ask because I’ve struggled to understand what I perceive to be a biblical view of God’s sovereignty with permission language that is used in fleshing it out with everyday occurrences. And I’ve always felt uncomfortable using that language, so I’m wondering your take on it. Don’t mean to jump on one comment, but noticed it and thought I’d ask. Thanks for the post and interaction.

    • http://www.clintarcher.com/ Clint

      That’s a really great question. The reason I use “permit” instead of “caused” when referring to the “bad things” that happen is to be clear that I am not insinuating that evil originates with God. God never sins nor is He tempted to sin, so when terrorists kill innocent people–though I understand God’s sovereignty in this situation–I want to be clear that it originated from sinful humans or Satan, as in the Book fo Job. Job shows us clearly how God is in control of what happens, without being the originator of the evil. He permitted (and limited) Satan’s activities, in order to accomplish a greater good and show His glory. I would be less stringent with the use of “permit” and “cause” in the case of earthquakes, tsunamis etc. God could well cause that, or it could be permitted by Him. Either way, nothing happens without God’s explicit oversight and involvement. I hope that makes some sense. It is a tricky thing to talk about these awesome matters with out finite vocabulary and understanding.

      • mscouvert

        Hi Clint,
        It seems as though the response has hit upon the “problem of evil” and God’s relationship to evil’s existence. I would agree that God does not sin (Scripture is repleat with His perfect holiness) nor is He tempted to sin (James 1:13). I think I understand your point by illustration with the terrorist and the book of Job; that though God is sovereign over evil He is not the originator of it. Just as a side note here, I think that it would be helpful to distinguish between causality and moral responsibility (like God’s sovereignty in election and reprobation, yet man’s moral responsibility to submissively respond to the Gospel). I’d be comfortable stating that everything that happens is according to God’s decretive will (Ephesians 1:11), though God is not morally responsible for the sin He wills.
        I guess that would be one of two questions I would have in follow up; do you think that God wills sin (in the sovereign/eternal sense)? Do you think that God has decreed all that will come to pass, including sin/evil? If these are so, then I’m not sure how to deny that sin “originates” (finds its ultimate or primary cause) with God. If these are not true, then where does evil and sin come from? I’m not asking as to their nature, like what is evil or what is sin, but where did they come from if God did not will them, but only permits them? And why do they exist if God does not want them to, but works in and through them permissively?
        The other question I still have is, how should we understand verses from Scripture where God seems to say that He has directly caused “bad things.” For instance in Isaiah 45:6 God states that He is Yahweh and there is no other. A verse later He states He creates both “darkness” and “evil.” In Deuteronomy 32:39 and 1 Samuel 2:6, the Lord is said to “kill.” Jehoram later confesses that God alone is the One who “kills” (2 Kings 5:7). Or the passages where God seems to be directly desirous of or initiating “bad things,” like: when God initiates conversation and turns Satan’s attention to consider Job (Job 1:8, 2:3) and 1 Kings 22:19-23 where God initiaties the evil spirit to deceive King Ahab unto death; or God’s inciting David to sin in the census (2 Samuel 24:1), causing Rehoboam to deal harshly with the people (1 Kings 12:15), or desiring to kill Eli’s Sons (1 Samuel 2:25)? I don’t list these all to overwhelm, nor do I expect a response for every one. But as a whole these verses seem stronger than permission on God’s part. How might permissiveness relate to these passages from God’s involvement?
        I too would agree that we must be careful in talking about these things due to our limited and finite vocabulary (not to mention understanding). And I’m sure if enough people read the responses they may find much to object with in regards to certain words I’ve used. But I hope I’ve been clear enough in presenting thoughts and questions to continue thinking this through biblically.