Sunday – October 11, 2020 Book of Acts – Acts 23:12-35 “HOPE His Operatiing Providence in Everything”

Sunday – October 11, 2020

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Word On Worship – Sunday – October 11, 2020

Acts 23:16-18
But the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush, and he came and entered the barracks and told Paul. Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, “Lead this young man to the commander, for he has something to report to him.”

You’ve probably heard people say “Some people have all the luck, but not me!” Or, “If I didn’t have bad luck, I would not have any luck at all.” Perhaps you’ve even said or thought something similar yourself at times. But all of those declarations are at odds with biblical truth, because each statement goes against the truth of God’s providence. There is no such thing as luck or pure chance. If we have a bad day, it is because the Lord ordained these circumstances for our benefit. Bad days don’t just happen! “Whatever will be will be” reflects a view of our circumstances as being caused by impersonal fate.

The word “providence” does not occur in the Bible, but the doctrine is stated and illustrated as a major theme throughout Scripture. As you probably know, it is the theme of the Book of Esther, which never mentions God directly. And yet His providential hand is behind the twists and turns of the story, preserving His chosen people from destruction.

Deists deny God’s providence by asserting that He created the world, but He is no longer actively involved in it. Others say that God is active in the events of the world, but that He is not sovereign over evil. Rather, evil is the result of free will. But the Bible teaches that God is actively controlling or directing even evil events and evil people in such a way as to accomplish His sovereign will, and yet He is not the author of evil and is not responsible for it (Eph. 1:11). But no evil person or act changes or thwarts God’s sovereign will

The doctrine of God’s providence is very practical and comforting on a daily basis. If we live in a world of random chance, then we have every right to be afraid.  You never know what bad things might happen to you or your loved ones, and so all you can do is hope for “good luck.” Sadly, many Christians believe God is not sovereign over evil, so when terrorists fly airplanes into the World Trade Center or a gunman kills your loved one, it can only be called a tragedy.  But if that evil event was under God’s providence, then we know that He can work it together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). Those who lost loved ones can know that those wicked men did not in any way thwart God’s sovereign plan. Rather, those evil men were inadvertently carrying out His sovereign plan for history and they will face God’s judgment.

 

Sunday – November 3, 2013 Judges 3:5-31 “No Guts, No Gory”

November 3, 2013 – Read the Word on Worship

“No Guts, No Gory” Judges 3 verse 5 to 31 from Sunrise Community Church on Vimeo.

God primarily moves in two ways. God can work in spectacular ways where His Spirit comes upon somebody, miraculous things happen and everybody knows it was God in action. As wonderful as these instances are, I do not think they occur as often as God’s providential work. When I read the story of Ehud leading the people against Eglon, I see many circumstances outside the realm of mere chance coming into play. I see the sovereignty of God in all the details of this story, even the small ones.
Join this week in our study of the Book of Judges and see why the stories of these judges have been included in the Scriptures for our encouragement, correction and training in righteousness. We pray you will learn from Othnoel, Ehud and Shamgar as we look at “No Guts, No Gory”.


Word On Worship – November 3, 2013 Download / Print

Judges 3:26-28
Now Ehud escaped while they were delaying, and he passed by the idols and escaped to Seirah. It came about when he had arrived, that he blew the trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim; and the sons of Israel went down with him from the hill country, and he was in front of them. He said to them, “Pursue them, for the Lord has given your enemies the Moabites into your hands.”

God primarily moves in two ways. God can work in spectacular ways where His Spirit comes upon somebody, miraculous things happen and everybody knows it was God in action. As wonderful as these instances are, I do not think they occur as often as God’s providential work. When I read the story of Ehud leading the people against Eglon, I see many circumstances outside the realm of mere chance coming into play. I see the sovereignty of God in all the details of this story, even the small ones.

Consider all of the events that had to take place: The fact that all members of Eglon’s private security detail were out of the room for an extended period of time. Consider that Ehud was able to smuggle an 18-inch sword into the king’s chamber undetected. And then the delay of Eglon’s security as they waited to act thinking their boss was taking an extended bathroom break. The odds are simply impossible if you were only considering the human element of the story. The point is God is every bit in control of these behind-the-scenes issues with Ehud as He was with Othniel. Even though this story seems so bizarre to us, God has still orchestrated all the details to achieve His purpose — Eglon is killed, the Moabites are defeated and the Israelites have peace.

I think what God is telling us in the story of Ehud and Eglon is something that is critical for us to understand: God is in control, even when we don’t know it. God had strengthened the hand of Eglon and the Moabites. And if we lived in the land of Israel during this time we would have been wondering where is God in all of this? And our text tells us God is every single detail of this story. He is the One who is sovereignly in charge of everything; even the smallest details that we miss.

We are living in a time where circumstances seem to be out of control. We see the stock market going up and down, the economy seems so uncertain, and the constant threat of terrorism here or abroad. This text tells us God is in control. God is in control of who is running our nation and He is in charge when leadership will change next. He is in control of international politics and He will bring about what He has covenanted to do. And what God has covenanted to do is to save His people.