I AM: Sovereign

“I am the LORD, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
I equip you, though you do not know me,
that people may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the LORD, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness,
I make well-being and create calamity,
I am the LORD, who does all these things.”
-Isaiah 45:5-7

God is Sovereign

Sovereign is one of those words that we “know” but don’t always fully understand.  When we use it to describe or define God, we may initially think we understand it, but the more we try to work out all of its implications, the more difficult it becomes.  In the passage above, God gives us insight into the meaning of His sovereignty.  So what does it really mean? 

God is able to do whatever He pleases, whenever He wishes, in accordance with His holy will.  

God tells us that there is no one equal to Him.  He created all things and equips all things.  He created light and darkness.  He makes well-being.  He creates calamity.  He is the LORD who does ALL these things. Everything is fully under God’s authority.  Just keep reading the rest of Isaiah 45 and you will get the picture.

But wait a minuet… did God just say He also creates calamity?  In the very same line God says the He brings both the good and the bad.  There is no hiding it. 

A lot of times we credit all the good things that happen to God.  But, when bad things come along we try to explain them away like it was an accident, or bad luck, or that God was tricked or surprised just like we were.  But this is not the case.  When we do this, it cheapens God’s authority and power.  This is what makes God’s Sovereignty so hard to understand and accept.  This is why it takes time for us to get a fuller understanding of God’s sovereignty so that we may come to fully accept it.  However, the more we go along this journey of understanding God’s sovereignty, the more this attribute becomes a comfort.

The Struggle with God’s Sovereignty 

As we gain more of an understanding of God’s sovereignty, two questions begin to jump out at us.  First, “How can God be sovereign and yet we have a free will?”  The Bible teaches that God is in control of everything, but it also teaches that we have some measure of free will.  Both of these are true.  God is sovereign and we can be confident in that, but God also allows us to make choices.  We will never fully understand how these truths work together until we meet God face to face.  This is one of the greatest mysteries of the Bible and we need to embrace that fact that this is a mystery.  We must accept that God and His plan are so far above us that we cannot fully understand Him.   But, we also need to focus on the things that God has revealed to us through His Word.

The Second question we often come to as we seek to understand God’s sovereignty is, “If God is sovereign, why does He allow bad things to happen to me?”  This is also a difficult question, but God’s Word gives us insight into this matter.  Pastor James Macdonald writes in his book, Gripped by the Greatness of God, “God’s love is not a pampering love.  It is a perfecting love.”  And Hebrews 12:6 tells us that “Whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives.”  If we are true followers of Christ, then we will experience trials.  We need to expect this. 

We are not in the place to shake our angry fists at God and tell Him what’s up!  God is so far above us and His plan is so much greater then ours!

“But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?”
–Romans 9:20-21

It is ok for us to ask questions of God.  This helps us grow in our faith as long as we find our answers in the truth of who God is and trust that God knows what He is doing.  We cannot pick which attributes of God we choose to embrace.  We must seek to know Him as He reveals Himself in the whole counsel of His Word. 

We know that God is love. (1 John 4:8)
We know that God is good. (Psalm 145:9)
We know God is merciful and gives grace. (Ephesians 2:4-5)
We also know that God does all things for HIS glory and OUR good (Isa. 48:9-11, Rom. 8:28).   

When God brings you through trials, He is allowing you to suffer for your own good and His greater purpose.   He knows that you are able to bear, through His power, trials that will be used to refine you and make you more like Him.

“Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.”
-Isaiah 48:10

This, my friend, is a gift.  God desires to use these trials to teach you and draw you closer to Himself.

Embracing God’s Sovereignty
God brought you through these trials because in the end He knows it is for the best.  Will you choose to trust that God has allowed this loss for His glory and your good?  Will you trust God even if you do not fully understand His greater purposes?  When God allows you to go through grief, or pain, or loss, you can choose how you will respond to His sovereignty. 

You will either become bitter and angry towards God, thinking that God took something from you or withheld what you deserve, or you will draw nearer to God, believing that His plan is greater than your own.

Will you choose today to fully embrace God’s sovereignty?  Will you choose to thank Him for His faithfulness in molding you into a greater likeness of Himself?  Will you choose to believe that the loss of your child is for a greater purpose and allow it to draw you closer to The One who is in complete control?  Will you believe that God’s plan for your life (and your child’s life) is greater than yours?

Knowing that God is sovereign gives meaning to our loss.  When we start to recognize the beauty of His sovereignty it brings healing and comfort and we find ourselves being drawn closer to the very heart of the creator and sustainer of this world.  Find comfort in the loving arms of a God who knows exactly what He is doing, always having His glory and your best in mind — even more so than you or I could ever have.   God is Sovereign, and that is a very good thing!

Jesse Schmidt is the Pastor of Student Ministries and Outreach at Harvest Bible Chapel in Loves Park, Illinois. Jesse and his wife Ashlee, have three kids on earth: Jayden, Micah, and Elian, and two little ones in Heaven: Simeon, and Odelle.