Reflecting Sovereignty

Reflecting Sovereignty

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.

Genesis 50:20

IN WORD We aren’t sovereign. As much as we try to control our environment—and we really try hard sometimes—all it takes is one little catastrophe to prove to us that we can’t. So if our calling is to reflect God’s attributes, and God is sovereign, how can we fulfill our calling? Should we try all the harder to exert control over our world?

Of course we can’t do that. It’s true that God gave us authority over aspects of His creation (Genesis 1:26), and He also sent us out into the world with His authority to make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). But our responsibilities are always under His authority. We may be stewards of His sovereignty in some limited ways, but we can never really exercise it. Sovereignty implies ultimate authority, and when it comes to that, God stands alone. He is the only Being who is entirely free to exercise His own will.

So how do we reflect His sovereignty? We live like we believe in it. We refuse to worry, even when worry seems like the natural thing to do. We refuse to let our fears and anxieties rule us. When circumstances are confusing, when life isn’t fair, when someone has treated us badly, we can trust that there’s a sovereign God. We do that by not working things out on our own or manipulating our circumstances for our shortsighted purposes. We can take the promises of God for the certainty that they are. He can live up to them because He is sovereign.

IN DEED Joseph is the classic example of someone who reflects an understanding of God’s sovereignty. His brothers’ treachery that landed him in Egypt was inexcusable, and the deceit of Potiphar’s wife that landed him in jail was heinous. But Joseph saw the bigger picture—a God who was working things out for His own good purposes.

Can you do that? If you’re going through a difficult time, it’s hard to see the big picture. But it’s there, and it’s good. The sovereign God is in control.

The great Maker of the will is alive to carry out His own intentions.

—CHARLES SPURGEON