brianzblawg

People say this quite a bit and they mean well. I know this because I’ve said it myself a million times over the years and meant it to be comforting and encouraging to someone in a tough spot. The sentiment is true, but really I don’t know that it’s absolutely true in reality. I believe God is sovereign, but he’s not always in control.

Obviously this a theological question and I’m obviously not a Calvinist. I’m not even a theologian. I love Calvinists. Some of my best friends are Calvinist. But I’m not one, not even a soft one. To say that God is in control of every situation strikes me as a staunch Calvinist pov. If God really is in control of every situation then he is responsible for all the sin in the world and I have a difficult time squaring that idea with the Bible. I could be wrong, but that’s my pov.

The Bible is replete with examples of people who disobey God and those who attempt to thwart God’s will. History is full of people and churches and nations that have made choices against the wisdom and purposes of God. He wanted them to make choice A but they made choice M, or Q, or Z.  Like the father of the prodigal son the Father waits patiently for people and churches to return to plan A and do what he wants. Sometimes they do, many times they do not. It’s their choice (all my Calvinist friends just cringed. :) ).

Sometimes this antipathy toward God’s will is conscience and the Bible calls this wickedness and the spirit of anti-Christ. Most of the time though we work against God unconsciensely; we compromise our integrity toward righteousness through weakness or ignorance and this is called sin. We’re all sinners. Every day I thwart God’s will and do the opposite of what he wants me to do to some degree. And this is why “Amazing Grace” is still my favorite song of all-time.

God is not in control, but God is sovereign. And that’s part of what makes him God, so utterly different than humanity. In spite of our repeated attempts in large and small ways to circumvent the purpose of God he is able to move inexorably toward the realization of his goals. Nothing can stop him. When we do what God doesn’t want us to do it doesn’t ruin his plans. Through his infinite wisdom and foreknowledge he is able to work around any obstacle we throw at him and keeps time, history, the church, and eternity marching forward to his ultimate end.  He’s God, and nobody can stop him. That’s the sovereignty of God.

This is comforting. This makes him dependable, trustworthy, and idiot-proof. As an idiot I am encouraged.