Dear Church,
Power over chaos. That’s a pretty good biblical definition of sovereignty, except that the power to overrule chaos is always personal in the Bible, attributed to the Triune God of the Bible, creator, sustainer, God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The truth of Scripture reveals that God is sovereign. There is nothing beyond His power. Nothing out of His control. Nothing that corners Him. Nothing that happens is above His ability to overrule it, transforming it for His glory and the good of His children.
While the concept of sovereignty is too hard to spell and too practically distant for most of us, it is far more relevant and practical than you likely realize. While thick scholarly books and seemingly endless discussions have approached and applied the subject from many angles, the daily reality of this aspect of God’s character is potent and imminent. Today, I’d love for you to read Psalm 93. Without using the word sovereignty, it is a song all about just that. It’s only five verses, so you can easily read it through multiple times. Try seven times. Sounds biblical doesn’t it?
As you read, you’ll notice several references to water, floods and the sea. This is important, because in the ancient near east, chaos was deeply connected to the unforgiving, dangerous and mysterious ocean. Heavy rains, lightning, thunder, floods and great storms were extensions of this personified chaos, which in many pagan mythologies was a major player in their pantheons. Recall Genesis 1. There the Spirit of God is positioned as sovereign to the primordial chaos: “and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.” This theme is prevalent in Job, the Psalms and many of the pictures and contexts of both Old and New Testament texts.
But what about you? Where is chaos creeping into your life? Your Monday? It is just in that very place - a situation where you feel completely hopeless or lost, a relationship that you can’t understand, a problem you can’t solve in your own strength - where God wants to put His sovereignty on display. His wise, unstoppable power is, in my opinion, the answer to one of the two most asked questions. The first is WHY? God’s answer is usually, “Trust Me.” The second question, HOW? - is usually answered by “Watch Me.” How will I make it through this? How will this be healed? How long? These questions are fertile soil for God’s sovereignty to be demonstrated.
“The LORD reigns, He is clothed with majesty; The LORD has clothed and girded Himself with strength; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved.” Psalm 93 starts here. In fact, these two short verses would be a great memorization project. Recite them as worship when you feel the chaos creeping back in. Then hear your Father say it again. “Watch Me.”
I love you church.
Scot |
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