The God Who Controls Everything

Because our God controls everything, he can ultimately do everything for our good, even those things that mean wrong to others. Theologians speak of their active will and their passive will. He actively works for our obedience, but he also works passively for our disobedience. , as in the case of Joseph’s brethren, who recognized that God had used what they wanted for evil in order to accomplish their good purposes.

Although God controls all things, those who do evil are always responsible for their sinful decisions. How is that possible? How can we be responsible for our decisions if God is sovereign? Divine sovereignty and human responsibility are parallel truths that we must support simultaneously. The Bible firmly affirms the total sovereignty of God and the free will of man. The same Jesus who said: “Can no one come to me if the Father who sent me does not bring him?” He also said: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Jn 6. 44; Mt 11. 28. , VIN). In our state of fallen sin, we do not have a natural disposition to go to God. Then God regenerates us and changes the temperament of our heart, and therefore, of our own will, which is now free from slavery, we have voluntarily responded to his call to come to him and be saved. If human beings could not make genuine and responsible decisions, then God would be unjust in punishing us for our sins. In fact, he even he would be responsible for the sin.

How our free will and God’s sovereignty can coexist is a mystery.
As the human and the divine intersect.
The paradox will emerge and our human boundaries will obscure how two seemingly contradictory points can be both true.
It’s good for us to face the paradox.
But if we let them look the other way and move away from a more relevant issue.
We’ll lose the really important thing.
And the question is: to what extent are you attached to the myth of your own sovereignty?.

To find an honest answer, consider four areas where we strive to control.

The way we relate to our bodies reveals much of our need for control. Taking care of our bodies is a matter of stewardship. They are not ours, they were given to us to keep them on healthy paths, but when we cross the line and enter the control of the sick, we go from stewardship to idolatry, which can take the form of an obsessive preoccupation with diet. and exercise, eating disorders, excessive fear of disease and germs, hypochondria, fear of aging, or simply vanity.

How do we know when we went beyond the limits of stewardship and took control?Certainly, because of the impact on our time, but also by the impact on our words and our wallets. When we want unhealthy control of our bodies, we talk about it all the time. Our methods, expectations and results can be included in our conversations and social media posts. We rationalize the final cost of any supplement, medical procedure, anti-aging cream or gym membership, deeming it necessary to achieve our target body.

In short, our need for control has a negative impact on our relationships, we judge those who do not follow our strict diet, disarming them as rebels in terms of health or neglected in their appearance, and we prioritize our free time and resources over others.

Like our bodies, our goods are destined for stewardship, not to do with them what we want. It’s not wrong to have things, it’s just wrong to worship them. When we cross the line and enter the control of the sick, we develop an obsessive concern to acquire, multiply and maintain what we have, this can manifest itself in the form of accumulation, compulsive buying, fear of using what you have, as it can be damaged or worn out, compulsive care of a property, financial thoroughness management or inability to lend or give things to others.

Does the fact that your car is meticulously preserved a source of pride for you?How we respond to property damage or loss reveals whether we have control issues in this area. Is accumulating debts to maintain a lifestyle rational for you?Something’s wrong with the way he sees its contents.

Every human relationship we have is ordained of God and is an opportunity to show preferential love to another person made in his image. Conflicts in relationships are always linked to control. A desire for unhealthy control in a relationship can manifest itself in the form of harassment or intimidation. manipulation (verbal, emotional, physical), characteristics of abuse Do we know what extremes are like?We see them in the papers at night or we’re sad to meet them in person. Most of us don’t fall into the category of “aggressors,” but that doesn’t mean we’re not controllers at some level.

Minor forms of control turn out to be an inability to admit that we are wrong, a need to have the last word, a need to be strict, an attitude of “accepting or leaving. “If we behave in this way with a child, a spouse, a friend, a colleague, exercise control in an unhealthy way.

No situation is more difficult not to exercise control behaviour than with those over whom we have legitimate authority. Parents, church leaders, and business leaders who like control too much will fall into a style of authoritarian leadership, leadership that makes rules more important than relationships. a position of authority means setting limits to preserve the relationship. That doesn’t mean setting boundaries that impede the relationship.

A friend once told me that when her children accused each other in the middle of a fight (an obvious battle for control), she asked, “who is the kindest. “What a smart question about any relationship conflict. Preferential love for others forces us to control our desire to control them. Do you allow the bad mood to make others walk on eggshells with you?Do you expect others to be able to read your thoughts when your feelings are hurt?Is there anything implied in your speech? Choose kindness over control and watch your relationships become healthy.

Life is uncertain. Although God knows the future, we do not know it and most of us do not handle ambiguity well, those who want to control circumstances try to protect themselves from any eventuality, plan too much, turning the simplest tasks into larger companies. control they perceive, more control show do they sit next to the driver, offer advice or help?unsolicited in projects and situations that do not involve them directly, are slavishly punctual when no one expects them and fights against a dominant will is the person who has the remote control. They know the best way to fill a dishwasher, to reorganize it, to secretly, when they think no one is watching.

They separate waste and recycle it when the party ends, regardless of delay or amount of waste, they cannot sleep until everything is actually done, they develop routines and rituals on which they depend for peace of mind. for everything from the order in which you have to eat the food on a plate to how to properly organize a sock drawer. If the mirror is bent on the wall, can you pass it without fixing it?If you can’t, take the time, to examine it while you repair it. I know I had to do that to develop these examples. Not everyone is right for me, but many of them are. No one would accuse me of being compulsively punctual, but I am well known for being a Pharisee in recycling and a legalistic dishwasher. You don’t need to be diagnosed with an obsessive-compulsive disorder to have control issues with circumstances and the environment. You just need to be a limited human being.

When we seek control, we declare our conviction that we, instead of an omniscient, omnipotent, omnipotent, and infinitely good God, must control the universe. Our control problems come from speculation, don’t they?Our inability to answer the question and whether it definitely causes anxiety?concern about the likelihood that our kingdom will come and that our will will be fulfilled. My husband always calms my anxiety by telling me an important question: what’s the worst chance?Talking about my fears about situations, relationships, possessions, or my body helps me calm down or, more precisely, helps me leave them at My Heavenly Father’s feet, it’s a form of confession, letting my mouth say what my heart is full of, expressing my uncomfortable fears, and giving my need for control It is a recognition that the kingdom belongs to God.

For you, Eternal, it is power, greatness, honor, victory, and majesty; for for thee is all that is in heaven and on earth; To you, Eternal, the kingdom, and you have been raised as the leader of everything. Wealth and glory come from you, you dominate everything, in your hand is strength and power; with you grows and gives strength to everything (1Cr 29. 11-12).

This is what King David told the King of Heaven and that’s what I say.

What am I in control of? With some very important things, my thoughts, which I can take captive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and if I can control my thoughts, I can also control my attitude: my body, my business, my relationships, and my situation. If my thoughts and attitude are under control, my words will be, as will my actions. The redeemed obediently submit their thoughts, words, and works to their heavenly Lord, entrusting uncertainty to those who do everything according to the counsel of their will. ? (Ephesians 1. 11). They move away from the throne, recognizing that they are completely disqualified from sitting on it.

How long will you fight your Creator?Jesus Christ has descended to the lowest so that you and I can have fellowship with God, so the Father exalted him. Then humiliate yourself, what could be more magnificently humble than giving up control?

The best storytellers of my childhood used a formula to succeed. Every good story echoes the best story of all. The Bible tells the story of a king whose right to the throne has been recognized from the beginning, but whose majesty and authority are only fully captured in the final pages when we finally see him crowned and reigning. His faithful statement announced from the throne says, “Behold, do I make all things new?(Revelation 21. 5).

“Is our God in heaven and all he wants?(Salt 115,3). And all you love is for our own good.

God is self-existing, self-sufficient, eternal, immutable, omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, sovereign, infinite, and incomprehensible.

We’re not like that. And that’s good, we were created with limits. We were not made to be God, but at the root of all sin is the rebellious desire to have attributes that belong only to God.

In this book, Jen Wilkin calls us to accept our limits as a way to glorify God and invites us to celebrate the freedom that comes from the rest of letting God be God.

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