Sovereignty…….we don’t talk about it much, probably because it is in our nature to reject the concept……..or, at least, to bend it to our purposes. Perhaps we should go back to the basics. Just what is sovereignty?
Sovereignty is absolute control. The sovereign makes the rules. The sovereign makes the decisions. The sovereign decides where everything is going. The sovereign decides who will live and who will die. Sovereignty is absolute. It covers every object, every living thing, every idea, every thought. There are no exceptions. There is no “happy place” where you can set God’s sovereignty aside and rest for a while. Perhaps the most important feature of sovereignty is that nobody gets to second guess the sovereign. Nobody gets to criticize the sovereign. Nobody has veto power over the sovereign.
In its pure form, sovereignty is complete. There are no exceptions.
God is sovereign. Jesus and the Holy Spirit are manifestations of God. Even Jesus honored God’s sovereignty in his prayer at Gethsemane.
So……the first and most obvious trait of a sovereign is that he is the decision-maker. He decides where he is going. He decides where his people are going. He tells us what we must do……and what we cannot do. In a word, the sovereign makes the rules.
The second trait of a sovereign is less obvious but more far-reaching. The sovereign defines everything in the universe. Because our sovereign is also the creator, this means that God defines the physical makeup of everyone and everthing. God defines every object. God defines every act. God assigns a value and a meaning to every thought. God has a plan. As creator, he builds the universe to suit his plan.
We see glimpses of God’s plan. But, we are not privy to the entire plan. This means that much of God’s plan…….perhaps most of it……makes no sense to us. And that is where we get into trouble.
We see some act……or thought…..or person……or object. We apply our limited fund of knowledge to it. And we conclude that it is wrong.
We conclude that God is wrong. Maybe we decide that God made a mistake. Maybe we conclude that he is not paying attention. Maybe we go so far as to deny the existence of God. This is the world of the secular humanist. This is the culture…….the environment…..that we live in. This is our society……which rejects God’s sovereignty:
God was wrong…….when he gave me breasts…….I have a better plan…….I am a man.
God was wrong……..when he said don’t lie…….liars get ahead.
God was wrong…..when he said don’t steal……stealing gets me good stuff and I don’t have to pay for it.
God was stupid…..when he said don’t murder……..killing your enemy stops him from interfering with your plan.
God doesn’t exist…….creation and life itself is a physical/ biochemical accident.
The ultimate act of rejection of God’s sovereignty?
My plan has primacy over God’s plan.
The rejection of God’s sovereignty……the usurpation of God’s sovereignty…..is the root of every failure in our culture. It is the root of every failure in my life.
Rejecting God’s sovereignty creates distance between us and God.
Rejection leads to distance…….distance is sin…….sin leads to spiritual death.
God is sovereign.
Ergo, God, by definition, is right.
God is not mocked.
When we disagree with God and what he is doing, we act out of ignorance.
Everything in creation is as it should be……until we interfere with God’s sovereignty.
Everything in my life is as it should be until I try to enlarge my little slice of sovereignty by denying……by stealing……God’s sovereignty
And I do this……every day.
I take my little slice of stolen sovereignty and I run with it. I enjoy it……because it allows me to take the things that I want. I like the power that it gives me. I want more. And, if I pursue this thought to its ultimate conclusion?
I can end up trying to seize all of God’s sovereignty.
This strategy works……for a while………but there is a problem. I’m going to die……soon. At that point, I will transition into God’s spiritual realm.
What will happen to my little slice of sovereignty…….when I meet God?
I don’t know.
But, I have to believe that my little slice of sovereignty will be completely……..or almost completely……..overpowered by God’s absolute sovereignty.
From where I stand today……..that is scary. I really enjoy my morning cup of coffee. What if God doesn’t approve of coffee? The list of things that I may have to surrender goes way beyond Starbucks. I worry about the pleasures that I enjoy here that may not exist there. I worry that my latte may be replaced by a harp and a cloud.
Here is what I believe:
I believe that the pleasures of the physical/temporal world will be replaced by experiences in the spiritual realm that I cannot even begin to conceive:
Living in close proximity to the ultimate source of love.
Experiencing the blend of absolute justice and absolute mercy.
Living in a perfect body forever.
Having an itimate relationship with my creator.
Ultimately…….God defines good and being close to God will be the best……..by definition.
It is not God’s definition of good that must be corrected.
It is my definition of good that must be and will be corrected.
Time to get started.
“All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?'”
Nebuchadnezzar’s epiphany about the sovereignty of God, Daniel 4:35, ESV