The Sovereignty of God

God is sovereign over all created beings (Rev. 4:11). The term “sovereign” has to do with Jehovah’s right to exercise authority over all his creation according to the pleasure of his will (Psa. 115:3). The earth is his and the fullness thereof (Psa. 24:1).

Why did God put all this into motion? Creating the universe, man, everything…

First it must be understood that why God does anything is not for us to question. Job tried it and look at where it got him. (Job 38) We neither have the ability or intellect to understand God as He is God, and His ways are His own and not ours or for us to question. (Isa. 55:8-9) No one has a right to dispute with God about how he exercises his will (Isa. 45:9; Dan. 4:35). It is not for us to be pleased by Him but the other way around. This is one of the profound lessons from the book of Job (Job 38:2; 40:8). Moreover, the Lord’s ways are beyond human analysis as we are the clay and He is the potter (Rom. 9:20-21, 11:33).

To put it in simpler terms, do you explain to a young child everything you do for or to them and why?! Of course not. Neither is God required to explain anything and everything to us. Therefore, there will be some questions for which we will never have the answers to (or should we) while on this earth or even after if it be God’s will. Besides, what would, or could you do with the information if you had it? Why is it important for you to know something you could never have any influence or control over? Jesus didn’t tell the 12 everything because they would have never understood it.

Sufficient unto the day is the troubles thereof. (Mat. 6:34)

For example: Why did God create man? If one replies that God “needed someone to love,” why couldn’t he just have loved the angels? Whatever may be said about man could apply to them as well. If God already had angels, then why did he create us?

These questions are not original and have been entertained by many on occasion. A couple of things may be said in response. While on the surface this appears to be an intellectual inquiry, it is closer to that of a child asking why do people look different.

God Is Self-Sufficient

It is improper to argue a proposition that suggests God “needed” something. In his speech at Athens, Paul declared:

“The God who made the world and all things therein, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, dwells not in temples made with hands; neither is he served by men’s hands, as though he needed anything, seeing he himself gives to all life, and breath, and all things” (Acts 17:24-25).

God is completely self-sufficient. It is one thing to say that God created mankind because he is a God of love (1 Jn. 4:8), and it is quite another to suggest that he created angels and people because of a need to love. Jehovah’s love is simply intrinsic to his nature; “loving” was not a need that would not have been unfulfilled but for the creation of either angels or humans. The fact is eternal love prevailed among the members of the sacred Godhead long before either angels or men had their beginning.

Why? How?

One must recognize that it is not possible for finite human beings to understand all the purposes of God. We can only know what he has chosen to reveal (Dt. 29:29) in his sacred Word (biblical revelation). Reflect on Paul’s words:

“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? Or who hath been his counselor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and unto him, are all things. To him be glory for ever. Amen” (Rom. 11:33-36).

It is sufficient for us to know, based on well-reasoned evidence, that God exists, that he created us, and that he loves us. And further, that he has provided a plan whereby we may escape from the defilement of our sins, if we will but responsibly use the freedom of choice with which he has endowed us, and so, submit to his will.

God gave us all that we need to know and nothing more which is his sovereign decision, and we have no choice but to accept it. We should be happy with what He gave us! It is obvious that He gave us plenty because we struggle with getting what He gave us right.

Only Jesus can (and has) overcome that which has been set in motion by the introduction of sin into the world. It is up to us to follow His example; live like He lived and do what He said to ensure our salvation! (1Joh. 5:13)

Solomon for all his wealth and wisdom ended his book with this simple admonition:

“The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.” (Ecc. 12:13-14)

Jesus sums it all up with the admonition:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” (Luk. 10:27 also Mat. 22:37-40)

Spirituality Rests Solidly on the Sovereignty of God

1. Amid all of the discussion on the Genesis account of creation and speculation about the origin of the earth and the universe, one monumental truth stands out: God is Sovereign, the Creator of all we see.
2. Science notwithstanding is not opposed to faith and religion but rather confirms it.
3. He has the right, by creation, to determine our purpose, to set our course and define our destiny.
4. His designs should be the basis of our spiritual formation.
   1. We can avail ourselves of the same divine power with which He created the universe!
5. The first chapter of Genesis does not attempt to answer the many questions that trouble man.
   1. Questions about the age of the earth, process theories, geological stratifications, presence of dinosaurs or time calculations.
   2. The paramount point is that God is the Creator of the universe and nothing devised by man has ever been confirmed to deny it. All that we are is in His image and we are an accomplishment that no amount of time and chance can satisfy. Oh, and ‘time’, He created that too because He lives outside of it.
   3. God is the first and adequate Cause to explain the origin of the material world and the presence of all that is in the universe and upon the earth.
6. From the origin of the earth to the end of sacred revelation the one truth about the Sovereignty of God has subsisted, “You are worthy our Lord and God to receive glory and honor and power for you created all things and by your will they were created and have their being” (Revelation 4:11).

Spirituality Thrives on the Foundation Truths of Genesis One

The Genesis account of the origin of the earth and man continues to be a monumental document that promotes the spiritual formation of a man of God.

Any doubt concerning the message of this document spells problems on every succeeding page of the Bible. It serves as a foundation in eight ways:

1. Foundation for faith in God.
   1. A Creator God, as described in Genesis One, is seen as transcendent, independent of the earth, an adequate first cause for all that exists.
   2. He is omnipotent, omni-competent, omniscient and omnipresent. He is the explanation to all of the inquiries of all of the sciences. He is in full control of all the vast forces associated with the earth.
   3. If He can create the earth, a small part of a vast uncharted universe, He can certainly respond to every human need. If He created all we see and perceive exists, then all of His promises have a basis to be believed and counted on.
2. Foundation for faith in Scripture.
   1. If the first verse of Genesis is true then it is no stretch of credulity to believe in the lesser miracles recorded throughout the Bible, the multitudes of prophecies coming true and the entirety of the Scheme of Redemption.
   2. Critics know how decisive faith in a creation account is in paving the way for a robust faith in the rest of Scriptures and have done all within their power to resist it being believed.
3. Foundation for ultimate questions.
   1. The question of origin (Where did we come from?), the question of purpose (Why are we on earth?), the question of man’s nature (Of what do we consist?) and the question of destiny (Where are we going?) begin finding their answers on the first page of the Bible.
4. Foundation for moral accountability.
   1. A standard for human conduct, an accountability for behavior, and consequences for irresponsibility are defined from the beginning of human toil.
   2. Human beings are not given a democratic vote nor are they left to do what they may choose without consequences.
5. Foundation for trust in Jesus.
   1. Genesis One and its corollary passages place Jesus, the Incarnate Word, as having been present and active in the creation of the world.
   2. Knowing the Father, coming from and returning to His divine presence makes Jesus the one to be trusted in all He preached and in the purposes of His earthly coming.
6. Foundation for the worship of God.
   1. Creation alone, would make the Creator God a worthy object of worship and service.
   2. Pantheism, dualism, Gnosticism, deism, materialism and liberalism, all fall in shambles around Genesis One.
7. Foundation for Evangelism and Service.
   1. The God of Genesis One must be shared with all ages, nations and cultures. People need to know where they came from, what is their nature, why are they on earth and what is their destiny and how Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, their only hope of salvation.
8. Foundation for hope of eternal life.
   1. One’s certainty in creation, leads to one’s certainty in prophecy, strengthens one’s reliance on God’s promises, establishes a firm basis of faith in Jesus, in the Cross and in His resurrection.

Spirituality Finds its Vigor in the Creator-Creature Distinction

1. Second to the sovereignty of God that overarches all of the Creation, emerges a second, monumental truth: man is a creature.
2. The violation of this truth is the root of much evil.
   1. Adam longed to be something more and plunged us all into a world of trouble.
   2. All idolatry stems from worshiping the creature rather than worshiping a transcendent God.
   3. The deification of man or science or any philosophy is derived from forgetting the Creator and creature relationship.
3. Romans 1 outlines the immoral consequences of forgetting that man is a creature, responsible and accountable to the Creator.
4. Most every human sin committed from the beginning of time in the Garden springs from man ignoring God as Creator or forgetting man’s dependent nature on God.
5. Every positive step to moral living, serving others and reaching religious attainments in worship and service have come from a theology that recognizes and honors the Creator-creature relation.

Read: Isaiah 40:28-31; Acts 17:26-28; Romans 1:18-32; Hebrews 11:1-3.