The Essentials Part 2: The Sovereignty of God

 The Essentials Part 2: The Sovereignty of God

Today, we continue in our new series on “The Essentials.” Right after learning about the depravity of man, we see that without a Sovereign act of God giving the sinner a new heart, no one would want to be saved and no one would be saved. If God in His Sovereign will doesn’t change the sinner's heart, he or she will not come to Christ.

When I speak of the Sovereignty of God, I mean that God is elevated infinitely above the highest creature, and that He is the Most High, Lord of Heaven and earth. We mean that God is subject to none, influenced by none and is absolutely independent, that He does as He pleases, only as He pleases, always as He pleases, and none can thwart Him, and none can hinder Him. He is the Absolute Sovereign. Isaiah 46: 10 says: "My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure." He says again in Daniel 4: 35: "He doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?"

When I say God is Sovereign, I mean that God is God in fact, in name, and that He is on the throne, the throne of the universe, and according to Ephesians 1: 11, He "worketh all things after the counsel of his own will" as it pleases Him. The Sovereignty of God means He does not take man into His counsel, or consult man about what He does, but that He is supreme Monarch and Absolute Authority. 

This topic was once understood and believed by the churches and the ministry, but today you very seldom, if ever, hear the phrase used in the pulpit, or see it in print in Christian literature. In fact, a religious leader in the South said, "God is not the only one who is sovereign, but man is also sovereign." That statement is incorrect. There cannot be two voices of authority in the universe. Either God is Sovereign, and man is a servant of God or man is sovereign and God is subject to man. I am here to proclaim to you that God is Sovereign, and man is not!!!

Points to remember:

1. The word “sovereign” is not in the Bible, but the concept is, just like the Trinity.

2. If you don’t believe in a Sovereign God, you may be an atheist. 

Section 1: The Doctrine of the Sovereignty of God 

The Doctrine of the Sovereignty of God is the basic doctrine, or the foundational doctrine, of all the teachings of God's Word. All other teachings of the Word of God have for their foundation the Sovereignty of God. The Doctrine of Election is based on the Sovereignty of God. The Doctrine of Election is the foundation of the Doctrine of Blood Redemption. You cannot change that. All other doctrines have the Sovereignty of God or their foundation. 

When I speak of the Sovereignty of God, I mean the Supremacy of God, I mean the Kingship of God, I mean the Godhead in His Fullness, and according to Psalm 115:3, I mean that God is on the throne in Heaven and does whatever He pleases.  I mean according to Psalm 22:28, that God is "the governor among the nations," and that He sets up kingdoms, overthrows kingdoms, and determines the course of every nation. According to 1 Timothy 6:15, He is "the only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of Lords." I mean by the Sovereignty of God that He is absolute, irresistible and infinite; I affirm by the Word of God that He has the right to govern the universe which He has made or His glory and do it as He pleases. When I speak of the Sovereignty of God, I affirm according to God's Word in Romans 9: 20-22 that He has the right (as a potter over the clay) to fashion every individual He chooses, whether to honor or to dishonor He has a right to do as He pleases. Every individual who is ever saved comes to recognize the Sovereignty of God. 

Today in most churches, there is a lack of understanding and teaching on this subject. I have said many times that today "preachers" deify man and humanize God. The "god" of today is a helpless, effeminate being whom man can push round and bully as he pleases. The "god" of today's pulpit is an object of pity rather than a God on the throne, who inspires reverence and obedience in His creatures. The "god" today is a disappointed, dissatisfied and defeated being. It is like He is on the sidelines of a sporting event just hoping someone will "accept" Him or make "decision" for Him. No, that is not the picture of the Sovereign LORD! God is on the throne, and He does as He pleases and directs the universe according to His set plan and purpose for His Glory regardless of what man thinks about it.

Let me say from personal testimony that there is no attribute of God more comforting to me than the Sovereignty of God. My wife and I own a successful business and we are navigating challenging times due to inflation and interest rates since we are in real estate. Every day we acknowledge God's Sovereignty and Providence, and we submit to His Will and Purposes. The Sovereignty of God ordains our afflictions, severe trials, and whatever challenges we face. I take great comfort that nothing touches me that does not first pass by the throne room of Heaven where my LORD sits in glory. I believe and accept our Lord Jesus Christ my Master and Lord and I accept and embrace His right to sit upon the throne. That is shouting ground for me! Our God reigns and that includes the good and the not so good. 

On the other hand, the Sovereignty of God is the doctrine most hated by the world and unsaved religionists. Men will allow God to be everywhere except on the throne as Sovereign. They will allow Him to be a "heavenly grandfather" who dispenses gifts and favor and prosperity to everyone. They will agree that He love everyone. They will allow Him to order and sustain the universe, winds and waves. However, once the Sovereign Lord ascends the throne, the unsaved religionists will cry and gnash their teeth because they are not willing to bow to Him in dust and ashes of repentance and own Him as Lord of Lords and King of Kings. The unsaved demand to be in charge and refuse to acknowledge the LORD as the Sovereign Authority over them.

I say, "Thank God for His Sovereignty!"

Life Lesson: God’s Sovereignty is the soft pillow upon which we may rest our heads at night.

Section 2: Scriptural Examples of the Sovereignty of God

When we say that God is Sovereign, we mean that HE IS SOVEREIGN IN THE MANIFESTATIONS, OR THE EXERCISE OF HIS POWER. Matthew 28: 18 reads, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth." Psalm 62: 11 states: Power belongeth unto God." This means that God manifests His power as He wills, when He wills and where He wills. We see this fact throughout the entire Word of God, and when He puts forth His power it is irresistible. No man can stand before Him. Consider the following Biblical examples:

1.  Pharaoh tried to hinder Israel from serving God in the wilderness. God manifested His power, His people were delivered, and their enemies slain. In contrast, the Amalekites made war with Israel for the purpose of destroying them, however God did not manifest His power in their destruction. Instead, He said He would, "have war with Amalek from generation to generation." (Exodus 17:16)

2. When the Israelites faced the Red Sea, God supernaturally divided the waters so the Israelites could pass on dry ground. The LORD caused the walls of Jericho to fall down on His command. However, God never manifested His power in the overthrow of any other city after this manner. The Israelites had to take the cities by force in battle array.

3. God stretched forth His hand to deliver David from Goliath, Daniel from the lions' den, the three Hebrew children from the fiery; but in Hebrews we read: "And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented." Why the different treatment? THE ANSWER IS GOD IS SOVEREIGN, AND HE EXERCISES HIS POWER WHEN HE PLEASES AND ON WHOM HE PLEASES. 

4. God allowed Stephen to be stoned to death in Acts 7, yet He delivered Peter from prison (Acts 12). Why? Because God is Sovereign. God allowed James to be killed with a sword; John, his brother, died a natural death. David Brainard preached only seven years and died of tuberculosis before he was thirty. Charles Finney preached until he was ninety. Why the difference? Because God is Sovereign.

5. Methuselah outlived all his contemporaries. Samson was given supernatural strength. One man makes millions of dollars while another man lives in poverty. Deuteronomy 8:18 says: "But thou remember the LORD thy God: for it is He that giveth thee power to get wealth." Why does God let one man preach to millions, yet to another he preached to a handful? Why? Becayse God is Sovereign.

GOD IS SOVEREIGN IN THE MANIFESTATION OF HIS MERCY TO THE SOULS OF MEN.  No man deserves mercy. No individual has a right to God's mercy. Every person is wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked (Revelations 3: 17), and deserves to be so because man is completely depraved. We all deserved to be damned. Let that sink in! Ezekiel 18: 4 reads: "the soul that sinneth it shall die." Romans 3: 23 states: "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God."

God is Sovereign in the exercise of His mercy. God bestows His mercy upon whom He pleases. Look at the two thieves on the cross. One went to paradise, and one didn't. The sentence of death was passed on Moses for one act of disobedience. He asked God to remove it, but God in His Sovereignty said, "NO!" Look at Hezekiah who was sick unto death. He asked God to spare his life. God added fifteen years to his life (2 Kings 20: 1-6). Why did answer Hezekiah's prayer but not Moses' prayer? Because He is Sovereign. 

One day the Lord Jesus Christ was walking by the Pool of Bethesda, where a multitude of sick people were waiting for the moving of the waters. The first one in would be healed. In that large group was a man who had been cripple for many years. The Lord Jesus Christ healed him and told him to, "Rise, take up thy bed, and walk...." Christ healed that poor man. Why didn't He heal any others. The man He healed exercised no faith, did not ask to be healed and was not expecting to be healed. Why did Christ heal him? Because of the Sovereignty of God. 

Why did God pick out Naaman to be healed of leprosy, yet leave all the others to suffer? Because He is Sovereign. We need to grasp the idea that God does not have to show mercy on you. God only has to leave you alone for you to go to hell. We don't deserve to be saved. But PRAISE GOD THAT HE EXTENDS HIS GRACE TO YOU TODAY BY ALLOWING YOU TO HEAR THE TRUTH!

Life Lesson: When we trust in God’s Sovereignty it causes us to not compare ourselves with others and to endure hardships as He desires for us. We trust Him.

Section 3: God's Sovereignty in the Exercise of His Love

God is Sovereign in the exercise of His love. When I say He is Sovereign in His love, I mean that God loves whom He chooses. God does not love everybody. If He did, He would love the devil. Do you realize that no fallen child of Adam's race has anything that would attract the love of God? God loves whom He will and the cause of this love is found only in God.

Ephesians 2: 3 states: "We all...were by nature the children of wrath." According to John 8: 44, we are all the children of the devil, and according to Matthew 3: 7 we are all the offspring of vipers, and according to the 16th chapter of Ezekiel we are all illegitimate children born out of wedlock, dead in trespasses and sins, totally corrupt and discarded on the garbage heap of the world as fit subjects for hell. There is nothing in us that would be attractive to God in His Holiness.

Someone is surely to say, what about John 3:16: "For God so loved the world." In the preceding verse, we learn that the whosoever believes are the people being referenced in verse 16. Let me paraphrase, "For God so loved the ones that believe, that He gave...." The "world" in verse 16 are not the lost, but rather the ones that believe. The Scriptures call these people the "elect." God's love for the elect is traced to His Sovereignty. Follow me now, God does not love by rule. If God loved by rule, God would be under law; and if God were under law, He would not be supreme, i.e., Sovereign. 

God is a law unto Himself. Romans 9: 13 reads: "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. God said this even before they were born. He did that so we would know that His love was based on Himself and not the actions or will of Jacob or Esau. His love is manifested in the ones He selects and chooses to be the objects of His love. I have no understanding of why chose to shed His light into my heart. I didn't deserve it. I didn't want it, nor did I desire it. However, when the Holy Spirit awakened me to my sinful condition, I knew I had no hope but in the Lord Jesus Christ and I came running to the foot of the cross. He chose me, accepted me in the Beloved (Ephesians 1:6). He drew me with lovingkindness of an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3) and shed abroad His love in my heart by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). 

Listen to Ephesians 1: 3-5: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: having predestined us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will." The Father's election was "in love" before the foundation of the world. Before you ever were born, did one act or had one thought, the Father had chosen you. It was "according to the good pleasure of his will." Whose will, was it? Was it your will? No, it was the Father's will! God did not choose you because of some good in you. You get to take no credit with the true gospel message. 

To me this is one of the greatest, most comforting truths in God's Word--to think that I have been an object of His love before the foundation of the world, and that He knew me before I was ever born. This position takes all your pride away, it deflates your ego, and exposes your depravity. 

The justice of God demands the enforcement of God's law/ All have sinned and therefore all deserve death and hell. However, in a show of love, God has sent His grace into the hearts of many showing the bestowal of His grace upon the undeserving. 

Justice said: "I demand an impartial enforcement of the law.

Love said: "My elect must live."

The Second Person of the Trinity the Lord Jesus Christ said, "Father, I will interpose for Your elect; I will pay their sin debt. Our Lord Jesus Christ was successful in His mission: He was born a baby, grew to be a man, was crucified, died, buried, rose from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father. That is love! The Lord Jesus Christ sent the Holy Spirit to call out His chosen ones and to reveal to their hearts that they were corrupt, lost and headed to hell. The Spirit showed them their lost condition and the truth about their heart. He awakened them and brought them to Christ to see His sacrifice and the narrow way. The lost soul sees Christ as his substitute and his only hope. He clings to the Savior and becomes a new creation in Christ. 

That is God's Sovereign love for the lost. He would not leave His children to face judgment, but in love, chose them for salvation. You know you are among those chosen if you want Christ. How can I say that? Because the Scriptures tell us, He will never turn anyone away that comes to Him. That is how you know you are among the elect, because you want to be! 

Life Lesson: God’s Sovereign love for you will not change.

Section 4: God's Sovereignty and Evangelism

We learned last week that man is depraved. By this we mean that man will not come to Christ on his own. It takes the Holy Spirit awakening his heart. We are to preach without compromise because those who the Father has given to Christ will come to Christ. See John 6: 37. You don’t need to water down the truth to get a “decision” or a “profession of faith.” Preach the Word!

Life (Ministry) Lesson: Since salvation is of the Lord, we should never compromise the message knowing that apart from the LORD, no one will be saved. 

Conclusion

The truth about the Sovereignty of God does away with your "decision for Christ," your "profession of faith," or joining a church as a basis for your salvation. Those things will not save you. The greatest thing in the world is to be an object of God's love and an object of God's mercy and His grace. Think about how far you have pushed Him away, rebelled against His laws, denied Him and abused His Name, yet He still loves you! He does so because He Is Sovereign! Now, that is the God I know; that is the God I preach; that is the God I worship; that is the God of the Bible!

Is He your God?