The Sovereignty of God

High School Sunday school Lesson – 4/19/2020 – By: Dan Manson

From our study in James 1, we saw that God is good all the time and from every angle.  There is no shadow of turning, vs 17.  There is no dark side of God.  Even His wrath is good.  The evidence of His goodness in vs 18 is that by “the exercise of His will He brought us forth by word of truth.” 

This brought up God’s sovereignty.  I will include the notes we already covered so that you will have the whole study rather than jumping into the middle of it here. 

Sovereignty: we defined as autonomous supreme power. Autonomous is a compound word from Greek. Auto is the pronoun for self and nomos is the word for law. Self-law or self-governing. Gods power is entirely self-existent.  It is not derived from any higher power.  So then, we landed on the definition of sovereignty as “underived supreme power.”  His Sovereignty is over all things, and not just the stuff, but the people, powers and their authority.

We will look at one example from Scripture, Colossians 1:15-18, 

• Vs 15, “firstborn” or preeminent.  It belongs to Him.
• Vs 16, He created all things.  Not only the visible stuff but the invisible as well.
  • Thrones, or seats of power, positions.
  • Dominions, or boundaries of power.
  • Principalities, the people or beings in power
  • Powers, or anything not covered previously
• Vs 17, He is before all things that is self existent, or underived.
  • All things are derived from a source but eventually you get to the ultimate source.  There cannot be two ultimate sources because then neither would be the ultimate source. You cannot have two Gods. He does not share His glory, Isa 48.11. 
  • The underived ultimate source is preeminent over all and holds all things together. 
  • THINK: as Jesus died on the cross, Jesus was still holding all things together. 
• Vs 18, Having died on the cross, Christ is head over the church and everything, Philippians 2:10-11. As a human being, his dominion is not just over the earth but all things. 
• Vs 19-20 he reconciled all things in heaven and on earth to Himself. 

We want to look at 3 aspects of Gods sovereignty.

• Decree
• Providence
• Concurrence

1. Decree.  “All of God’s providential actions in time conform to a fixed purpose that precedes time. That fixed purpose is none other than God’s eternal decree.” – Mike Riccardi
   1. Isa 46.8-13, terms used for decree.
      1. Vs 10, “declaring” this is not simply a foreknowing, but a declaration or decree. 
      1. “My purpose” in vs 10.  There is sound reason and intention in His decree. This is NOT fatalism.
      1. “Good pleasure,” vs 10. His decree is good, Psalm 135:6
      1. Vs 11, “purpose,” again
      1. “Have spoken,” or declared
      1. “Have planned it,” the eternal counsel of His will
   1. The New testament also uses these terms
      1. Eph 1:11 “counsel,” or purpose of “His will.” 
         1. The Greek words boule, “counsel” is the purposeful aspect
         1. Thelema, “will” is the volitional aspect
         1. Eudokia, “kind intention” in Eph 1:5,9 literally means “good pleasure” as in Phil 2:13.
      1. When you see these words think God’s decree.
   1. The nature of the divine decree is one. It is not a series of decrees or purposes. These terms are found in the singular. 
      1. We sometimes speak of God’s decree in the plural. His decree has many particulars. Therefore we might refer to them as His “divine decrees.” But really it is just one.
      1. The oneness of His decree follows from God’s nature. 
         1. His knowledge or omniscience is immediate and simultaneous. His comprehension is complete. 
   1. Isaiah 46 and the characteristics of the divine decree:
      1. It is founded in divine wisdom vs 9, “I am God and there is no other.”  There is nothing arbitrary nor anything irrational in God’s Decree. 
         1. Eph 3:10-11, “manifold wisdom… in accordance with the eternal purpose…” 
         1. Prov 3,19, “wisdom and understanding,”
         1. Eph 1:8-9, it is determined with “all wisdom and insight.” 
      1. It is eternal vs 10, “declaring the end from the beginning…” 
         1. Psalm 139:16, our days were determined before there was one of them. 
         1. Eph 1:4, our election was before the foundation of the world.
         1. Eph 3:11, “eternal purpose”
         1. 2Tim 1:9, “before time began.”
         1. This eternal purpose governs all of God’s actions, Eph 1:11.
      1. It is unconditional vs 9, “there is no other…”  His decree is not influenced by any other force, power, principality or person. 
         1. Rom 11:33-36,”who has become His counselor?” “who has first given to Him that it should be repaid to him?” 
         1. Ps 115:3, “He does whatever He pleases.”
         1. Eph 1:11, “works all things according to the counsel of His own will.”
         1. Dan 4:34-35, “He does according to His will… no one can ward off His hand.”
      1. It is immutable (unchangeable) vs 10-11, “declaring the end from the beginning,” “My purpose will be established,” “I will accomplish all My good pleasure,” “I have spoken, truly I will bring it to pass.  I have planned it, surely I will do it.”
         1. Num 23:19, “has He said and will He not do it?  Or has He spoken an will He not make it good?”
         1. Ps 33:10-11, “the counsel of the LORD stands forever.”
         1. Job 23:13-14; 42:2, “what His soul desires, that He does.  For He performs what is appointed for me.”  “no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.” 
         1. Isa 14:27, “for the LORD of host has planned and who can frustrate it?  AS for His outstretched hand, who can turn it back?”
         1. Isa 43:13, “I act, who can reverse it?”
      1. It is exhaustive (all comprehensive), vs 10, “declaring the end from the beginning” There is nothing His decree does not cover.
         1. Eph 1:11, “all things…”
         1. John 19:11 
         1. Acts 4:27-28, “to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur.”
         1. Includes our salvation
            1. James 1:18
            1. Eph 1:4-5
            1. 1Pet 1:1-2
            1. 2Thes 2:13
            1. Rom 8:28-33
            1. Rom 9:11-12

Our election is founded in wisdom, eternally, unconditionally, immutably as part of an all comprehensive plan! Think about that as you work out your salvation with fear and trembling for it is God who is at work in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure, Philippians 2:12-13.

• Providence: the exercise of God’s divine power according to His divine decree whereby He preserves and governs by operation all that comes to pass, directing all things to their appointed ends. 
  • Eph 1:11, “works all things…” providence; “according to the counsel of His will.” Decree.
  • Ps 103:9, He rules “over all” or it could be rendered “over the universe.”
  • over the physical world
    • Job 37:1-3
    • Ps 104:10-14, “He sends forth…” providence, is according to His purpose to feed the animals and satisfy the earth. 
    • Ps 104:30, life and death.
    • Mt 6:26, the birds of the air.
    • Mt 5:45, the sun and rain. 
  • Over the affairs of nations
    • Job 12:23 He makes them great and destroys them.
    • Ps 66:7
  • Over man’s birth and lot in life and death
    • 1Sam 16:1
    • Isa 45:5
    • Gal 1:15-16
    • Luke 1:52
  • Over seemingly insignificant things
    • Prov 16:33, lot cast
    • Mt 10:29, sparrows 
    • Mt 10:30, the hairs on our heads
  • Over preservation of life in general
    • Neh 9:6
    • PS 127:1 It takes the Lords providence for anything to happen, James 4:15
    • Ps 145:14-16 
    • Acts 17:28
    • Col 1:17
    • Heb 1:3
  • Over the special preservation and protection of His people
    • Ps 5:12
    • Ps 63:7-8
    • Rom 8:28
    • Ps 107:9 He satisfies the longing of the soul.
    • Ps 121:3-4
    • Isa 40:11 a shepherd
    • Isa 43:13, immutable preservation

These doctrines of God’s decree and providence have immense practical application. 

• James 1:18, God has “brought us forth…” brought us to faith out of the world.
  • He did this according to “the exercise…” His providence.
  • “of His will.” His decree
  • “so that…” it is purposeful. He always brings about fruit for His glory. 
  • Here in James 1 God’s kind and good purpose in trials is to produce endurance in us, vs 2-4, 12. The temptation to sin in such trials is on us, vs13.  
• 1Cor 10.13 another view of endurance. 
• Isa 43:1-7, trust in God, “do not fear…” vs1
  • His providential protection in vs 2 is according to His decree in vs1, “I have called you by name”
  • Vs 3-4, He kindly reminds us who He is and His love for us.
  • Vs 5, again “do not fear” the command. The practicality, which is trusting His sovereign providence according to His decree.
  • Vs 7, His purpose is graciously given for He does not have to tell us, “whom I created for My glory.” 
• Luke 21:10-19 Jesus warns us of things to come
  • Vs 13, be looking for what He has for you in it. What is His purpose?
  • Vs14, we have to set it in our minds to trust Him for wisdom, James 1:5.
  • Vs 15, be looking for His provision in any circumstance.  We won’t see it if our eyes are on ourselves instead of looking to Jesus for His purpose and trusting Him for wisdom.
  • Vs 16-17, don’t be surprised.  He is still in control even to “death.” 
  • Vs 18, It is not outside of the providence of God. 
  • Vs 19, “by your endurance…” here endurance IS to trust His sovereignty and His providential hand

In the face of the worst affliction we trust God because His providence is detailed to the hairs on your head. 

3.         Concurrence: this doctrine “seeks to explain the reality that God and man both act at the same time so that the Lord’s plan is fulfilled and our choices are really truly our own.” – RC Sproul

            That is to say that two or more parties, or agents, can act in the same event, or action, and produce a given outcome without all agents having the same intent. 

• One Action, two or more agents

We have seen that God, by an all wise, eternal, unconditional, immutable, and all comprehensive decree has ordained whatever comes to pass. In doing so, God is by no means the author of sin nor has no fellowship with any sin therein, Gen 18:25, James 1:13, 1John 1:5. Also, there is no violence given to the will of the creature. Neither is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established. That is a paraphrase from the 1689 London Baptist Confession of faith. 

In explaining this, we use terms of ultimate and secondary causes.

• Ultimate cause – God’s decree
• Secondary causes
  • Efficient cause – the one doing the act
  • Proximate cause – the agents between the efficient and ultimate causes

This is all through Scripture. Let’s look at some examples

• 2Sam 24:1 David sins by taking a census of the people. The intention of David and Satan is to sin, but the intention of God is to punish Israel. To confirm or establish David’s willingness to sin, Joab tried to talk David out of it.
  • Efficient cause: David
  • Proximate cause: Satan “moved David to number Israel,” 1Chron 21:1.
  • Ultimate cause: the LORD “moved David to say ‘go number Israel,” 2Sam 24:1
• Gen 37:26-28, 45:5-9, 50:20 the selling of Joseph into slavery. The intention of the brothers was evil, but “God meant it for good,” Gen 50:20.
  • Efficient cause: Joseph’s brothers
  • Ultimate cause: God, Gen 45:8, “it was not you who sent me here, but God”
• Isa 10:5-7 God sends Assyria to punish Israel. Then He punishes Assyria for the king’s evil intention, vs 12.
  • Efficient cause: Assyria for evil intention.
  • Ultimate cause: God to punish an ungodly nation.
• 2Cor 12:7-10 Paul’s thorn in the flesh. 
  • Efficient cause: messenger 
  • Proximate cause: “from Satan”
  • Ultimate cause: the Lord allowed it “for My strength is perfected in weakness.”
• Acts 22:22-23 Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost says that Jesus was “delivered up…”
  • Efficient cause: the Roman soldiers, “by the hands of godless men”
  • Proximate cause: the Jews, “you nailed to a cross…” 
  • Ultimate cause: God, “by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God…”
• Acts 4:27-28 the believers, praying for confidence to speak, confessed God’s sovereignty over the situation beginning with the crucifixion of Jesus. 
  • Efficient cause: the Romans, “gentiles” 
  • Proximate cause: Herod, Pilate, Israel
  • Ultimate cause: God’s providence, “Your hand,” and decree, “and purpose predestined to occur.”
• Other examples are Job 1; Judges 14 Samson taking a wife from the Philistines; Zech 11 God raises up a bad shepherd.
• Phil 2:12-13, in this passage a miracle has taken place. Our evil hearts have been changed so that our intention is in line with God’s intention.  This is something that cannot happen outside of God’s providential hand.  Where God’s decree establishes motives for human action, evil hearts bring about evil deeds for His good.  But here He has changed our hearts to establish our motives in salvation. This cannot come from an evil unregenerate heart, 1Cor 2:14. This produces in us “fear and trembling” while working out our salvation “because it is God who is at work in us both to will and to do” providence; “for His good pleasure,” decree. 

In each of the examples above, people did what they wanted to do.  God did not force them to do what they didn’t want to do. Their freedom wasn’t taken away.  If there was a contingency, meaning the outcome was contingent on whether or not someone acted in a certain way, it was not taken away.  Instead, their freedoms and contingencies were established by God’s decree.

Let’s take a look at that by working through a passage of scripture, Acts 27:21-32 Paul’s shipwreck.

• Note vs 23, the decree of God through an angel, “God has GRANTED you all those who are sailing with you.” That is going to happen and cannot fail to happen.
• Vs 25, Paul believes God’s word
• Vs 30-31, some were, by their free choice, trying to leave the ship on a life boat. 
• Vs31, does Paul’s declaration to the Roman soldiers invalidate verse 23?  No.  Is Paul lying?  No.  Is the contingency real?  Yes.  IF the sailors left the ship THEN everyone would die. Did Paul just sit back and say, “do whatever. God is sovereign?”  No.  Paul gave them a warning with real consequences to their free actions like God does with us in Scripture.  Did Paul’s word have its effect?  Yes.  Does God’s warnings in His Word have its effect on you?  I’ll let you answer that. 

In this example did God force or coerce anyone to do what they did not want to do?  They had real decisions to make with real consequences.  Did anything happen that was outside of God’s decree or providence?  The actions of men concurred with God’s eternal purpose and the outcome was exactly as the angel said it would be in verse 23.  God’s providence according to His decree (sovereignty) stands over AND works in and through the actions of men to accomplish all His good pleasure.  An event can be at the same time an act of free creatures and an act of God. This is the doctrine of concurrence. 

Opponents to the doctrines of the sovereignty of God like to accuse us of fatalism or making men into preprogrammed robots.  This is simply not the case from the Bible.  The problem is, they don’t get their doctrines from the Bible.  They bring their philosophies to the Bible and make it fit over the Bible.  Some people do this their whole lives. Don’t find yourself in your 50’s, 60’s or 70’s kicking against the sovereignty of God.  It will shipwreck your faith. 

They also like to accuse us of making God the author of evil.  The answer to this is in the verses that we have looked at.  The Scripture is clear that God is not the author of evil, James 1:13, 1John 1:5.  Also, the Scripture is not shy when it comes to God’s sovereignty, even over evil.

• Isa 45:7, “I form the light and create darkness.  I make peace and create calamity.  I, the LORD do all these things.”  The Hebrew word for ‘calamity’ is the same word for ‘evil’.  
• Lament 3:37-38, “who is there who speaks and it comes to pass unless the LORD commanded it?  Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that both good an ill go forth?” Literally in the Hebrew “From the mouth of the Most High does it not go forth, both evil and good?”
• Amos 3:6, “if a calamity occurs in a city has not the LORD done it?” Notice that it doesn’t say the Lord “allowed it”, it says the lord has “done it.” 

In the Old Testament “evil” includes natural disasters, accidents and wars as in the verses above.  As I have noted, God’s action is not simply allowing these things, but He is actively doing these things.  What about the evil actions of His creatures?

• 1Sam 16:14, God takes his Spirit away from Saul and, “an evil spirit from the LORD terrorized him.” The Bible does not allow for us to accuse the author of 1Samuel of making God the author of evil.
• We looked at Joseph’s brothers who sinfully sold Joseph into slavery and Joseph said, “it was not you who sent me here, but God,” Gen 45:8.  God did this with intention, Gen 50:20, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good…”again not simply allowed it for good but intended it for good.  In the concurrence of one act there are two intentions, one is evil and the other is good.

How, then, can God be sovereign in concurrence over evil actions and not be the chargeable cause of evil?  First, the answer is in secondary causes.  Clearly, in all of the examples given, each person did what they wanted according to the intention of their heart.  In the example of Joseph’s brothers, they did what they intended which was evil and God did what He intended for good.  In fact, in all of the verses we have looked at in this study, what was God’s intention?  It is always for good.  God never decrees that evil events take place for the sake of evil.  It is always for good.  

Secondly, evil is not a thing created but an intention of the heart.  

Finally, the wages of sin is death.  Every single one of us is a sinner.  In all of these passages, God is dealing with sinful man.  So, in His dealings with sinful man, anything less than death is an act of grace. If God sends an evil spirit to torment Saul in 1Sam 16, and he does so as a punishment for sin, we must remember that it is not his full wrath, which is what Saul deserved.  What about Joseph?  Did he deserve to be sold into slavery by his brothers?  Well, was Joseph a sinner?  Yes.  Then what did Joseph deserve as the wages of sin?  Ultimately God can do what He pleases with sinners. He owns our souls, Ezek 18:4.

Part of the answer to the question of the sovereignty of God and the existence of evil is found in the divine decree itself.  We have seen that God’s decree is characterized by all wisdom and insight, Eph 1:8, kind intention, Eph 1:9, with purpose, Eph 1:9,11, after His all knowing, all powerful, kind, good and all wise counsel of His will, Eph 1:11.  You can add meticulous to that.  Our purposes are not always kind, nor always good.  We grade righteousness on a curve.  We all, somewhere along the line, balk at God’s sovereignty.  We are not in the same category as God as to judge Him, Isa 55:9.  At some point in this discussion, BEFORE we bring accusation or judgement against God, we are to shut our mouths, Rom 9:19-21, but seek and answer, Rom 9:22-24. 

We need to look at Romans 19-24.  I have repeatedly stated that God’s intention is always good in all things.  What is the good that God intends? The answer is His glorification.  You must read the whole chapter but we will pick it up in verse 18.

• Vs 18, Paul’s conclusion to his argument of God’s sovereignty in salvation is, “So then He has mercy on whom He desires and hardens whom He desires.”
• Vs 19, Paul anticipates an objection to the fairness of God, “you will say to me then, ‘why does He still find fault?  For who resists His will?’” Think about the objection. It is in the category of law, not grace.  When we call into question what is fair or not fair, there must be a standard that determines fairness.  With respect to God, that standard is the Law.  When we bring our accusations of unfairness to God, He points to the Law and all of the sudden we switch categories and beg for mercy and grace.  We do not want to drag God into the courtroom.  We will lose that lawsuit.
• Vs 20, Paul’s answer to the objection is, “you shut your mouth right now!”  That’s a paraphrase.  When we find ourselves in judgement against God, it is time to repent and seek Him for answers to our honest questions.  It is okay to question God.  It is not okay to judge God.  There is a fine line. 
• Vs 21, God’s right over us is as a potter over the clay. 
• Vs 22-23, there is and answer for those who truly seek God.  God wishes to display some things about Himself to a particular group of people, “…upon the vessels of mercy.” Namely, His wrath and His power to everybody in order to make known the riches of His glory to that particular group.  The display of His wrath and power is required for that particular group to know the riches of His glory.
• Vs 24, that particular group is the church made up of Jews and Gentiles.

This display of God’s glory is not a narcissistic self glorification.  God doesn’t need to glorify Himself.  He does it for us.  John 17:3, Jesus says that eternal life is, “that they may know You the only true God and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”  He glorifies Himself so that we will know Him.  Not just to know about Him, but to know Him personally, to love Him, to follow Him.  That is why we cannot separate the confession of the mouth with the believing in the heart, Rom 10:10.  We cannot say we believe in Jesus and not obey His commands, John 14:15, James 2:17.  The highest good of the creature is to know God and enjoy Him forever.  God decrees the existence of evil for our highest good.  Otherwise we would not know His attributes fully and therefore we would not attain to our highest good as the bride of Christ. 

We need to get to know our Lord personally.  That is why we emphasize the Bible so much because therein we find the heart of our God.  The more we get to know Him, the more we trust in Him, the more we love Him, the more we know we will be with Him.  Don’t let anybody rob you of that with philosophies of men or doctrines contrary to this.  If God were not sovereign, there would be no certainty in anything.  The doctrine of God’s sovereignty is the very foundation of one of the greatest promises in the Bible, Romans 8:28, “and we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” 

When we get back together, will look at this and bring it back to our study in the book of James.  It was good to see you guys in the Zoom meeting!  We love you.  Stay safe.