"Sovereignty. God's sovereignty, is one of the most difficult things for people of faith to live out in everyday routines. But we have no choice: God is Sovereign. God rules... Yet not much in our daily experience confirms it. Impersonal forces and arrogant egos compete for the last word in power. Most of us are knocked around much of the time by forces and wills that give no hint of God. Still, generation after generation, men and women of sound mind continue to give sober witness to God's sovereign rule. One of the enduring titles given to Jesus is, 'King.'" (Peterson, Intro. to 1 & 2 Kings)
"But until He came - I am referring, of course, to My Son; He is always My heart's delight - I would permit the power of evil to run the world. Only as My people felt its crushing power would they be humbled enough to hear the good news my Son would bring. My plan was to release evil, though containing it within boundaries that I set to guard My purposes until it gathered its full force in an attempt to ruin the life of the Man in whom I would place all My hope. When you understand My plan, you will tremble as you stand on Mount Calvary, knowing what happened there." (66LL)God does have a plan. During these times of the kings of Judah and Israel, there were many prophets who God used to reveal His plan. You'll notice references to them in 2 Kings. Here's what Habakkuk was saying about the Babylonian invasion:
I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the field produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights. Habakkuk 3:16-19As we conclude the Books of Kings, know that we're not yet finished with the stories of these men. There's more to tell that God wants us to know. Here are some questions I'm pondering and would love to hear your thoughts:
Do I believe God is sovereign? Do I believe that "the power of evil cannot stop it"? Do I live in God's sovereignty even when my daily experience doesn't confirm it? Am I living in the hope of God's plan? How is Jesus my strength as I "wait patiently", like Habakkuk?
4 comments:
You know, I say that I believe God is sovereign, and I think I really do. But I don't think I live it out very consistently. So what does that say about my beliefs???
It's easier for me to believe that God is sovereign as I watch the nightly news - tsunamis, tornadoes, conflict in the Middle East. For some reason, it's more natural for me to believe He's in control of all of the things that seem so out of control.
But in my own little life? That's a lot more difficult as I get wound up by different circumstances. I am asking Jesus to be my Strength, in particular as I wait for news on our adoption. That's an area that I know God is absolutely sovereign - it's totally out of our hands - but my emotions are still all over the place as I wait on His timing.
But being in the Word daily has been incredibly helpful in keeping my perspective on God's plan. Plus, I've been in a study on Daniel for the past few months, which has kept my focus on God's sovereignty as well. Apparently, God thinks I need a lot of teaching in this area!
On a lighter note, check out this link for a laugh. It's not the right book, but it's all about what we've just finished reading. I actually might remember all the kings names now!
http://www.jellytelly.com/video/bentley-brothers-2-chronicles/
Trusting in God's sovereignty is a tough one for me. Yikes. What I realize about myself is that I have a hard time trusting His plan is best and ultimately, that He is good. I begin to doubt His character and His love for me when things are hard in my life. Or when I see what seems like unreasonable suffering in the lives of those around me.
Yet as we finish 2 Kings, I see how He is there all along, guiding and directing, using sinful men in leadership positions for His glory. Even in the midst of so much evil and false god worship.
I am thankful that He is in control, He is truly sovereign and I can release all aspects of my life to Him: my marriage, my children, my parenting style, my children's future education and my dreams and hopes for them, my family members who don't know Jesus, my friends and neighbors who don't know Jesus...all of it, I can release to the Lord (yet continue to pray!) and trust in His sovereignty and goodness.
We've finished 2Kings :)
Wow, what a rollercoaster ride.
It's crazy how it's all coming together. I just found out in the past few days that I've been listening to and accepting the lie that I can be conquered with sin. It's a lie. Because my God is truly sovereign, which also means He has authority over ALL THINGS-even evil. And through Jesus Christ, we are given the authority over all things- through His name. I've been clinging to this truth and its been empowering me to know that I can not be conquered because I am a daughter of God :) And I'm loved right now with all of His love, not just some of it and I'll earn more of it when I conquer more sin on my own or grow more mature- but right now, I am LAVISHED with ALL HIS LOVE. Nothing can make Him love me more or less. This is truth and its sinking deep into my heart.
I'm learning through Kings that God is pretty angry with the many many sins and failures- but all this ANGER is taken out on His son on the cross when He became our sin. So- it isn't the same story now- there's good news to come. And more and more each day I truly believe and trust in God's sovereignty. He is more powerful than Satan!! Satan is not God! Our God is greater!!! I pray that this truth sinks deep into all of our hearts- in Jesus name, this I pray!!! His Word is such a powerful sword for us to fight against lies-the enemy-evil. Thanks Jesus :) Thanks blog community, my friends :)
Your questions bring me to the thought that Scripture interprets Scripture. Thinking about how the NT --- Phil 2:12-13 --- interprets 2 Kings 23. Need Him so as we close 2 Kings and I close a couple of weeks where life was unspeakably hard financially. Speaking of Sovereign...a friend shared Jer 23:23-24 w/ me that God was not far off but near then the call came with $2,000 in cash for health insurance due in one more day.
This isn't about building evidence to believe Him but about surrendering to a Sovereign Savior. All about transformation not information. Col 1:29 ~ The Energy of Christ so sovereign so powerful at work in you and me.
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