Question 1

Does God have a plan, or is everything just happening by chance?

Accepted Answer

Genesis 1:3Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.Hebrews 11:3By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.The Bible is clear that God made the universe and all that is in it. We did not happen by coincidence or chance, but by design of a loving Creator.1 Corinthians 2:7The wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.Ephesians 1:10This is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.Ephesians 3:6This is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children.God’s plan of redemption was established even before Creation itself. Jesus didn’t come by chance. God knew what would happen, and he made a plan to fix it from the very beginning. That’s how much he loves his people, his creation. God’s plan to save humankind included a provision for all people, both Jew and Gentile.Genesis 45:4-5“I am Joseph, . . . whom you sold into slavery. . . . But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives.”Romans 8:28We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.God used even the seemingly unjust treatment of Joseph by his own brothers to fulfill his plan. He promises that everything—the good and the bad, the fun and the difficult—works together for the good of God’s great plan for his people.Ruth 2:19-20“Where did you gather all this grain today?” Naomi asked. “Where did you work? May the Lord bless the one who helped you!” So Ruth told her mother-in-law about the man in whose field she had worked. She said, “The man I worked with today is named Boaz.” “May the Lord bless him!” Naomi told her daughter-in-law. “He is showing his kindness to us as well as to your dead husband. That man is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers.”Life had been difficult for Ruth. She had lost her husband and had to move to a foreign land with her mother-in-law where she was forced to work to provide for the two of them. Ruth might have felt like her life was a string of random events. God was working behind the scenes, however, leading and guiding Ruth to meet Boaz, who would later become her husband—and the two of them would be ancestors of king David, and eventually the Messiah. Even when things seems disconnected or chaotic, take heart that God is working in your life even now, guiding you to the day when you will see how he was working for your good.1 Samuel 6:7-9“Now build a new cart, and find two cows that have just given birth to calves. Make sure the cows have never been yoked to a cart. Hitch the cows to the cart, but shut their calves away from them in a pen. Put the Ark of the Lord on the cart, and beside it place a chest containing the gold rats and gold tumors you are sending as a guilt offering. Then let the cows go wherever they want. If they cross the border of our land and go to Beth-shemesh, we will know it was the Lord who brought this great disaster upon us. If they don’t, we will know it was not his hand that caused the plague. It came simply by chance.”After the Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant from Israel, they faced a horrible plague. The Philistines wondered if the plague was a coincidence or if it was really caused by Israel’s God. So they came up with a test: They put the Ark on a cart drawn by cows who had just had calves. Normally, the cows would follow their natural instincts and return to their newborns. The leaders figured that if the cows instead drew the cart toward Israel, then it meant that God was overpowering their natural instincts. Indeed, the cows headed down the road toward Israel, which meant that God indeed had caused the plague. It had not been a coincidence; God showed his power over the laws of nature and chance.Jeremiah 29:11“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”If all things happened merely by chance, it would point to either no God at all or a God who is impersonal and detached from the human race. What a hopeless view of life that would be! However, the Bible says that God is compassionate and deeply involved in his creation, so much so, that he has an eternal plan for it and for you. While you may not understand how certain life events fit into God’s perfect plan, you can be confident that God is watching over your life and guiding you—will you follow where he leads?

Question 2

Often things seem like they “just happen.” Where is God in that?

Accepted Answer

Ecclesiastes 9:11I have observed something else under the sun. The fastest runner doesn’t always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn’t always win the battle. The wise sometimes go hungry, and the skillful are not necessarily wealthy. And those who are educated don’t always lead successful lives. It is all decided by chance, by being in the right place at the right time.Sometimes life’s events do seem to be random. The fastest runner doesn’t always win the race; the most competent applicant doesn’t get the job. At times like that, remember that your life is part of a bigger picture—God’s master plan. Things that happen to you are not always about you, but instead are a piece in a puzzle that will only make sense from an eternal perspective.Jonah 1:7Then the crew cast lots to see which of them had offended the gods and caused the terrible storm. When they did this, the lots identified Jonah as the culprit.Acts 1:26Then they cast lots, and Matthias was selected to become an apostle with the other eleven.Proverbs 16:33We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall.You may try to leave your decisions or future up to chance by throwing dice or flipping a coin, but God already knows the outcome. Nothing can happen that he doesn’t allow.Genesis 42:21Speaking among themselves, they said, “Clearly we are being punished because of what we did to Joseph long ago. We saw his anguish when he pleaded for his life, but we wouldn’t listen. That’s why we’re in this trouble.”When faced with confusing, random, or chaotic circumstances you will try to determine what happened and why in order to understand to the situation. Sometimes no more can be said about a bad circumstance than that it happened because you live in a fallen world where bad things affect both good and bad people. But at times, there is a reason. Sin comes back to haunt everyone, even sins committed long ago. God may be disciplining you, or he may be trying to teach you something. Ask God for wisdom to walk through it with grace and openness to his will.Job 2:3Then the Lord asked Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil. And he has maintained his integrity, even though you urged me to harm him without cause.”Job was a man of integrity who lived obediently and pleased God. From Job’s perspective, his suffering must have seemed random—a chaotic and pointless mishap. However it was part of God’s plan to demonstrate to future generations an example of a godly person who trusts God despite present circumstances.Philippians 4:6-7Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.Face the uncertainty of chance events in life with the peace that comes from a strong faith; God is in control.

Coincidence