God’s Sovereignty is like . . .
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
We were talking about what it means for God to be in control. We cannot look at scripture without seeing the assertions of God’s sovereignty- the fact that he reigns and rules. The question we all struggle with is what does it mean for God to be sovereign?
Trying to answer this question too definitively implies that we fully understand God, life, the world’s history, the interaction of God with people, the extent of our ‘free will’ and choices, and on and on. No, we don’t understand all this because God’s revelation is that he is sovereign without explaining everything that this revelation means.
My view might be poorly illustrated as follows (poorly because the analogy I use is very
limited). Rather than being a chess player moving pieces about on a board (strict determinism that provides for plenty of control but little room for human choices), perhaps God is more like a referee during a game. He rewards good play, penalizes infractions, and as all good referees, controls the game. The game doesn’t get out of his control. He isn’t determining the plays that each team runs, but he is the ultimate authority in the game. He’s not a referee that misses a call, makes the wrong call, or is unfair.
limited). Rather than being a chess player moving pieces about on a board (strict determinism that provides for plenty of control but little room for human choices), perhaps God is more like a referee during a game. He rewards good play, penalizes infractions, and as all good referees, controls the game. The game doesn’t get out of his control. He isn’t determining the plays that each team runs, but he is the ultimate authority in the game. He’s not a referee that misses a call, makes the wrong call, or is unfair. Now, this analogy breaks down seriously because I believe that God is much more involved in human history than the analogy of a referee would imply. God also teaches us how to play, has come and played with us, and inspires good play so that we exceed how we could preform if we were completely on our own. But our “bad” plays are the ones we call despite God’s revelation through teaching, example, and inspiration.
If it is good, it is of God. If it is bad, it’s our bad.
