By David ReayFriday 24 Apr 2020LifeWords DevotionalsDevotionsReading Time: 2 minutes
The Lord is king! He is robed in majesty.
Indeed, the Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength.
The world stands firm
and cannot be shaken. (NLT)
Like many parts of the Bible, this text seems to promise too much. God is in charge of things and the world can’t be shaken. Some might respond that the world is very shaken and that if God is in charge of things he ought to consider resigning!
It is here we need to be careful in using words. We often and rightly hear of the sovereignty of God, a truth expressed in this text. But just what does ‘sovereignty’ involve?
It does not mean God causes evil. He shows his sovereignty in allowing it and working good out of it. What that good may be and when it comes is another matter. He shows his sovereignty in assuring us he has the last word. His world may indeed be shaken for a time as the consequences of our rebellion against him shows itself in the disordering of the natural world. But his good purposes will finally prevail.
And he is sovereign in that nothing takes him by surprise. Not that he plans or causes all that happens, but he knows what will happen and weaves all not-so-good things into his good purposes. It seems he is the sovereign king but not a micro-manager. It seems his sovereignty does not mean immediate intervention to cure all ills. Any reading of Christian history tells us that.
And yet, he is not sitting in some remote place wringing his hands helplessly and complaining that things are out of control. From his perspective they are not. He is well able to not only work good out of evil but to diminish or demolish it. Our challenge is to cling to that belief that he can change things, and yet also cling to him when things do not change.
Blessings
David