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THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
By Arthur W. Pink
Chapter 10
OUR ATTITUDE TOWARD GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY
"Even so, Father: for so it
seemed good in Thy sight"
(Matthew 11:26
In the present chapter
we shall consider, somewhat briefly, the practical application to ourselves
of the great truth which we have pondered in its various ramifications in
earlier pages. In chapter twelve we shall deal more in detail with the value of this doctrine, but here we would confine ourselves to a definition of
what ought to be our attitude toward the sovereignty of God.
Every truth that is
revealed to us in God’s Word is there not only for our information but
also for our inspiration. The Bible has been given to us not to gratify an
idle curiosity but to edify the souls of its readers. The sovereignty of God
is something more than an abstract principle which explains the rationale of the Divine government: it is designed as a motive for godly fear, it
is made known to us for the promotion of righteous living, it is revealed in
order to bring into subjection our rebellious hearts. A true recognition of
God’s sovereignty humbles as nothing else does or can humble, and brings
the heart into lowly submission before God, causing us to relinquish our own
self-will and making us delight in the perception and performance of the
Divine will.
When we speak of the
sovereignty of God we mean very much more than the exercise of God’s
governmental power, though, of course, that is included in the expression.
As we have remarked in an earlier chapter, the sovereignty of God means the
Godhood of God. In its fullest and deepest meaning the title of this book
signifies the Character and Being of the One whose pleasure is
performed and whose will is executed. To truly recognize the
sovereignty of God is, therefore, to gaze upon the Sovereign Himself. It is
to come into the presence of the august "Majesty on High." it is
to have a sight of the thrice holy God in His excellent glory. The effects of such a sight may be learned from those scriptures which describe the
experience of different ones who obtained a view of the Lord God.
Mark the experience of
Job—the one of whom the Lord Himself said, "There is none like him in
the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth
evil" (Job 1:8). At the close of the book which bears his name we are
shown Job in the Divine presence, and how does he carry himself when brought
face to face with Jehovah? Hear what he says: "I have heard of Thee by
the hearing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth Thee: Wherefore I abhor myself,
and repent in dust and ashes" (Job 42:5, 6). Thus, a sight of
God, God revealed in awesome majesty, caused Job to abhor himself, and not
only so, but to abase himself before the Almighty.
Take note of Isaiah. In
the sixth chapter of his prophecy a scene is brought before us which has few
equals even in Scripture. The prophet beholds the Lord upon the Throne, a
Throne, "high and lifted up." Above this Throne stood the seraphim
with veiled faces, crying, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of
hosts." What is the effect of this sight upon the prophet? We
read, "Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a
man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips:
for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts" (Isa. 6:5). A
sight of the Divine King humbled Isaiah into the dust, bringing him,
as it did, to a realization of his own nothingness.
Once more. Look at the
prophet Daniel. Toward the close of his life this man of God beheld the Lord
in theophanic manifestation. He appeared to His servant in human form
"clothed in linen" and with loins "girded with fine
gold"—symbolic of holiness and Divine glory. We read that, "His
body also was like the beryl, and His face as the appearance of lightning,
and His eyes as lamps of fire, and His arms and His feet like in color to
polished brass, and the voice of His words like the voice of a
multitude." Daniel then tells the effect this vision had upon him and
those who were with him—"And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the
men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon
them, so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was left alone, and
saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my
comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength. Yet
heard I the voice of His words: and when I heard the voice of His words,
then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the
ground" (Dan. 10:6-9). Once more, then, we are shown that to obtain a
sight of the Sovereign God is for creature strength to wither up, and
results in man being humbled into the dust before his Maker. What then ought
to be our attitude toward the Supreme Sovereign? We reply,
1. One of Godly fear.
Why is it that, today,
the masses are so utterly unconcerned about spiritual and eternal things,
and that they are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God? Why is it that
even on the battlefields multitudes were so indifferent to their soul’s
welfare? Why is it that defiance of heaven is becoming more open, more
blatant, more daring? The answer is, Because "There is no fear of God
before their eyes" (Rom. 3:18). Again; why is it that the authority of
the Scriptures has been lowered so sadly of late? Why is it that even among
those who profess to be the Lord’s people there is so little real
subjection to His Word, and that its precepts are so lightly esteemed and so
readily set aside? Ah! what needs to be stressed to-day is that God is a God
to be feared.
"The fear of
the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Pro. 1:7). Happy the soul
that has been awed by a view of God’s majesty, that has had a vision of
God’s awful greatness, His ineffable holiness, His perfect righteousness,
His irresistible power, His sovereign grace. Does someone say, "But it
is only the unsaved, those outside of Christ, who need to fear God"?
Then the sufficient answer is that the saved, those who are in Christ, are
admonished to work out their own salvation with "fear and
trembling." Time was, when it was the general custom to speak of a
believer as a "God-fearing man"—that such an appellation has
become nearly extinct only serves to show whither we have drifted.
Nevertheless, it still stands written, "Like as a father pitieth his
children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him" (Ps. 103:13)!
When we speak of godly
fear, of course, we do not mean a servile fear, such as prevails among the
heathen in connection with their gods. No; we mean that spirit which Jehovah
is pledged to bless, that spirit to which the prophet referred when he said,
"To this man will I (the Lord) look, even to him that is poor and of a
contrite spirit, and trembleth at My Word" (Isa. 66:2).
It was this the apostle had in view when he wrote, "Honor all men. Love
the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king" (1 Pet. 2:17). And
nothing will foster this godly fear like a recognition of the sovereign
Majesty of God.
What ought to be our
attitude toward the Sovereignty of God? We answer again,
2. One of Implicit
Obedience.
A sight of God leads to
a realization of our littleness and nothingness, and issues in a sense of
dependency and of casting ourselves upon God. Or, again; a view of the
Divine Majesty promotes the spirit of godly fear and this, in turn, begets
an obedient walk. Here then is the Divine antidote for the native evil of
our hearts. Naturally, man is filled with a sense of his own importance,
with his greatness and self-sufficiency; in a word, with pride and
rebellion. But, as we remarked, the great corrective is to behold the Mighty
God, for this alone will really humble him. Man will glory either in himself
or in God. Man will live either to serve and please himself, or he will seek
to serve and please the Lord. None can serve two masters.
Irreverence begets
disobedience. Said the haughty monarch of Egypt, "Who is the Lord that
I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord; neither
will I let Israel go" (Ex. 5:2). To Pharaoh, the God of the
Hebrews was merely a god, one among many, a powerless entity who
needed not to be feared or served. How sadly mistaken he was, and how
bitterly he had to pay for his mistake, he soon discovered; but what we are
here seeking to emphasize is that, Pharaoh’s defiant spirit was the fruit
of irreverence, and this irreverence was the consequence of his ignorance of the majesty and authority of the Divine Being.
Now if irreverence
begets disobedience, true reverence will produce and promote obedience. To
realize that the Holy Scriptures are a revelation from the Most High,
communicating to us His mind and defining for us His will, is the first step
toward practical godliness. To recognize that the Bible is God’s Word,
and that its precepts are the precepts of the Almighty, will lead us to see
what an awful thing it is to despise and ignore them. To receive the Bible
as addressed to our own souls, given to us by the Creator Himself, will
cause us to cry with the Psalmist, "Incline my heart unto Thy
testimonies. . . .Order my steps in Thy Word" (Ps. 119:36, 133).
Once the sovereignty of the Author of the Word is apprehended, it will no
longer be a matter of picking and choosing from the precepts and statutes of
that Word, selecting those which meet with our approval; but it will
be seen that nothing less than an unqualified and whole-hearted submission
becomes the creature.
What ought to be our
attitude toward the Sovereignty of God? We answer, once more,
3. One of entire
resignation.
A true recognition of
God’s Sovereignty will exclude all murmuring. This is self-evident,
yet the thought deserves to be dwelt upon. It is natural to murmur against
afflictions and losses. It is natural to complain when we are deprived of
those things upon which we had set our hearts. We are apt to regard our
possessions as ours unconditionally. We feel that when we have prosecuted
our plans with prudence and diligence that we are entitled to
success; that when by dint of hard work we have accumulated a ‘competence,’
we deserve to keep and enjoy it; that when we are surrounded by a
happy family, no power may lawfully enter the charmed circle and strike down
a loved one; and if in any of these cases disappointment, bankruptcy, death,
actually comes, the perverted instinct of the human heart is to cry out
against God. But in the one who, by grace, has recognized God’s
sovereignty, such murmuring is silenced, and instead, there is a bowing to
the Divine will, and an acknowledgment that He has not afflicted us as
sorely as we deserve.
A true recognition of
God’s sovereignty will avow God’s perfect right to do with us as He
wills. The one who bows to the pleasure of the Almighty will acknowledge His
absolute right to do with us as seemeth Him good. If He chooses to send
poverty, sickness, domestic bereavements, even while the heart is bleeding
at every pore, it will say, Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right!
Often there will be a struggle, for the carnal mind remains in the believer
to the end of his earthly pilgrimage. But though there may be a conflict
within his breast, nevertheless, to the one who has really yielded himself
to this blessed truth, there will presently be heard that Voice saying, as
of old it said to the turbulent Gennesareth, "Peace be still"; and
the tempestuous flood within will be quieted and the subdued soul will lift
a tearful but confident eye to heaven and say, "Thy will be done."
A striking illustration
of a soul bowing to the sovereign will of God is furnished by the history of
Eli the high priest of Israel. In 1 Samuel 3 we learn how God revealed to
the young child Samuel that He was about to slay Eli’s two sons for their
wickedness, and on the morrow Samuel communicates this message to the aged
priest. It is difficult to conceive of more appalling intelligence for the
heart of a pious parent. The announcement that his child is going to be
stricken down by sudden death is, under any circumstances, a great trial to
any father, but to learn that his two sons—in the prime of their manhood,
and utterly unprepared to die—were to be cut off by a Divine
judgment, must have been overwhelming. Yet, what was the effect upon Eli
when he learned from Samuel the tragic tidings? What reply did he make when
he heard the awful news? "And he said, It is the Lord: let Him do
what seemeth Him good" (1 Sam. 3:18). And not another word
escaped him. Wonderful submission! Sublime resignation! Lovely
exemplification of the power of Divine grace to control the strongest
affections of the human heart and subdue the rebellious will, bringing it
into unrepining acquiescence to the sovereign pleasure of Jehovah.
Another example,
equally striking, is seen in the life of Job. As is well known, Job was one
that feared God and eschewed evil. If ever there was one who might
reasonably expect Divine providence to smile upon him—we speak as a man—it
was Job. Yet, how fared it with him? For a time, the lines fell unto him in
pleasant places. The Lord filled his quiver by giving him seven sons and
three daughters. He prospered him in his temporal affairs until he owned
great possessions. But of a sudden, the sun of life was hidden behind dark
clouds. In a single day Job lost not only his flocks and herds, but his sons
and daughters as well. News arrived that his cattle had been carried off by
robbers, and his children slain by a cyclone. And how did he receive this
intelligence? Hearken to his sublime words: "The Lord gave, and the
Lord hath taken away." He bowed to the sovereign will of Jehovah.
He traced his afflictions back to their First Cause. He looked behind the
Sabeans who had stolen his cattle, and beyond the winds that had destroyed
his children, and saw the hand of God. But not only did Job recognize God’s sovereignty, he rejoiced in it, too. To the words,
"The Lord gave, and the Lord bath taken away," he added, "Blessed
be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21). Again we say, Sweet
submission! Sublime resignation!
A true recognition of
God’s sovereignty causes us to hold our every plan in abeyance to God’s
will. The writer well recalls an incident which occurred in England over
twenty years ago. Queen Victoria was dead, and the date for the coronation
of her eldest son, Edward, had been set for April 1902. In all the
announcements which were sent out, two little letters were omitted—D. V.—Deo
Volente: God willing. Plans were made and all arrangements completed for the
most imposing celebrations that England had ever witnessed. Kings and
emperors from all parts of the earth had received invitations to attend the
royal ceremony. The Prince’s proclamations were printed and displayed,
but, so far as the writer is aware, the letters D. V. were not found on a
single one of them. A most imposing program had been arranged, and the late
Queen’s eldest son was to be crowned Edward the Seventh at Westminster
Abbey at a certain hour on a fixed day. And then God intervened, and
all man’s plans were frustrated. A still small voice was heard to say,
"You have reckoned without Me," and Prince Edward was stricken
down with appendicitis, and his coronation postponed for months!
As remarked, a true
recognition of God’s sovereignty causes us to hold our plans in
abeyance to God’s will. It makes us recognize that the Divine Potter has
absolute power over the clay and moulds it according to his own imperial
pleasure. It causes us to heed that admonition—now, alas! so generally
disregarded—"Go to now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go
into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It
is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and
do this, or that" (James 4:13-15). Yes, it is to the Lord’s will we
must bow. It is for Him to say where I shall live—whether in
America or Africa. It is for Him to determine under what
circumstances I shall live—whether amid wealth or poverty, whether in
health or sickness. It is for Him to say how long I shall live—whether
I shall be cut down in youth like the flower of the field, or whether I
shall continue for three score and ten years. To really learn this
lesson is, by grace, to attain unto a high form in the school of God, and
even when we think we have learnt it, we discover, again and again, that we
have to relearn it.
4. One if deep
thankfulness and joy.
The heart’s apprehension
of this most blessed truth of the sovereignty of God, produces something far
different than a sullen bowing to the inevitable. The philosophy of this
perishing world knows nothing better than to "make the best of a bad
job". But with the Christian it should be far other wise. Not only
should the recognition of God’s supremacy beget within us godly fear,
implicit obedience, and entire resignation, but it should cause us to say
with the Psalmist, "Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within
me, bless His holy name". Does not the apostle say, "Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ" (Eph. 5:20)? Ah, it is at this point the state of
our souls is so often put to the test. Alas, there is so much self-will in
each of us. When things go as we wish them, we appear to be very
grateful to God; but what of those occasions when things go contrary to our
plans and desires?
We take it for granted
when the real Christian takes a train-journey that, upon reaching his
destination, he devoutly returns thanks unto God—which, of course, argues
that He controls everything; otherwise, we ought to thank the
engine-driver, the stoker, the signalmen etc. Or, if in business, at the
close of a good week, gratitude is expressed unto the Giver of every good
(temporal) and of every perfect (spiritual) gift—which again, argues that He directs all customers to your shop. So far, so good. Such examples
occasion no difficulty. But imagine the opposites. Suppose my train was
delayed for hours, did I fret and fume; suppose another train ran into it,
and I am injured! Or, suppose I have had a poor week in business, or that
lightning struck my shop and set it on fire, or that burglars broke in and
rifled it—then what: do I see the hand of God in these things?
Take the case of Job
once more. When loss after loss came his way, what did he do? Bemoan his
"bad luck"? Curse the robbers? Murmur against God? No; he bowed
before Him in worship. Ah, dear reader, there is no real rest for your poor
heart until you learn to see the hand of God in everything. But for that, faith must be in constant exercise. And what is faith? A blind credulity? A
fatalistic acquiescence? No, far from it. Faith is a resting on the sure
Word of the living God, and therefore says, "We know that all
things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the
called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28); and therefore faith will
give thanks "always for all things". Operative faith will
"Rejoice in the Lord alway" (Phil. 4:4).
We turn now to mark how
this recognition of God’s sovereignty which is expressed in godly fear,
implicit obedience, entire resignation, and deep thankfulness and joy was
supremely and perfectly exemplified by the Lord Jesus Christ.
In all things the Lord
Jesus has left us an example that we should follow His steps. But is this
true in connection with the first point made above? Are the words
"godly fear" ever linked with His peerless name?
Remembering that ‘godly fear’ signifies not a servile terror, but rather
a filial subjection and reverence, and remembering too that "the fear
of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom," would it not rather be strange
if no mention at all were made of godly fear in connection with the One who
was wisdom incarnate! What a wonderful and precious word is that of Hebrews
5:7—"Who in the days of His flesh, having offered up prayers and
supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save
Him from death, and having been heard for His godly fear" (R.
V.). What was it but ‘godly fear’ which caused the Lord Jesus to
be "subject" unto Mary and Joseph in the days of His childhood?
Was it not ‘godly fear’—a filial subjection to and reverence for God—that
we see displayed, when we read, "And He came to Nazareth where He had
been brought up: and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue
on the Sabbath day" (Luke 4:16)? Was it not ‘godly fear’ which
caused the incarnate Son to say, when tempted by Satan to fall down and
worship him, "It is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and
Him only shalt thou serve"? Was it not ‘godly fear’ which moved Him
to say to the cleansed leper, "Go thy way, shew thyself to the priest,
and offer the gift that Moses commanded" (Matt. 8:4)? But
why multiply illustrations? [1] How perfect was the obedience that the
Lord Jesus offered to God the Father! And in reflecting upon this let us not
lose sight of that wondrous grace which caused Him, who was in the very form
of God, to stoop so low as to take upon Him the form of a Servant, and
thus be brought into the place where obedience was becoming. As the perfect
Servant He yielded complete obedience to His Father. How absolute and entire
that obedience was we may learn from the words, He "became obedient
unto death, even the death of the Cross" (Phil. 2:8). That
this was a conscious and intelligent obedience is clear from His own
language—"Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My
life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it
down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it
again. This commandment have I received from My Father" (John
10:17, 18).
And what shall we say
of the absolute resignation of the Son to the Father’s will—what,
but, between Them there was entire oneness of accord. Said He, "For I
came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that
sent Me" (John 6:38), and how fully He substantiated that claim all
know who have attentively followed His path as marked out in the Scriptures.
Behold Him in Gethsemane! The bitter ‘cup,’ held in the Father’s hand,
is presented to His view. Mark well His attitude. Learn of Him who
was meek and lowly in heart. Remember that there in the Garden we see the
Word become flesh—a perfect Man. His body is quivering at every nerve, in
contemplation of the physical sufferings which await Him; His holy and
sensitive nature is shrinking from the horrible indignities which shall be
heaped upon Him; His heart is breaking at the awful "reproach"
which is before Him; His spirit is greatly troubled as He foresees the
terrible conflict with the Power of Darkness; and above all, and supremely,
His soul is filled with horror at the thought of being separated from God
Himself—thus and there He pours out His soul to the Father, and with
strong crying and tears He sheds, as it were, great drops of blood. And now
observe and listen. Still the beating of thy heart, and hearken to the words
which fall from His blessed lips—"Father, if Thou be willing,
remove this cup from Me: nevertheless, not My will, but Thine be
done" (Luke 22:42). Here is submission personified. Here is
resignation to the pleasure of a sovereign God superlatively exemplified.
And He has left us an example that we should follow His steps. He who was
God became man, and was tempted in all points like as we are—sin apart—to
show us how to wear our creature nature!
Above we asked, What
shall we say of Christ’s absolute resignation to the Father’s will? We
answer further, This,—that here, as everywhere, He was unique, peerless.
In all things He has the pre-eminence. In the Lord Jesus there was no
rebellious will to be broken. In His heart there was nothing to be subdued.
Was not this one reason why, in the language of prophecy, He said, "I
am a worm, and no man" (Ps. 22:6)—a worm has no power of
resistance! It was because in Him there was no resistance that He
could say, "My meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me"
(John 4:34). Yea, it was because He was in perfect accord with the Father in
all things that He said, "I delight to do Thy will, O God; yea,
Thy law is within My heart" (Ps. 40:8). Note the last clause here and
behold His matchless excellency. God has to put His laws into our minds, and write them in our hearts (see Heb. 8:10), but
His law was already in Christ’s heart!
What a beautiful and
striking illustration of Christ’s thankfulness and joy is found in Matthew
11. There we behold, first, the failure in the faith of His forerunner (vv.
22, 23). Next, we learn of the discontent of the people: satisfied
neither with Christ’s joyous message, nor with John’s solemn one (vv.
16-20). Third, we have the non-repentance of those favored cities in which
our Lord’s mightiest works were done (vv. 21-24). And then we read, "At
that time Jesus answered and said, I thank Thee, O Father, Lord
of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise
and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes" (v. 25)! Note
the parallel passage in Luke 10:21 opens by saying, "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank Thee" etc. Ah, here was
submission in its purest form. Here was One by which the worlds were made,
yet, in the days of His humiliation, and in the face of His rejection,
thankfully and joyously bowing to the will of the "Lord of heaven and
earth".
What ought to be our
attitude towards God’s sovereignty? Finally,
5. One of adoring
worship.
It has been well said
that "true worship is based upon recognized GREATNESS, and
greatness is superlatively seen in Sovereignty, and at no other footstool
will men really worship" (J. B. Moody). In the presence of the
Divine King upon His throne even the seraphim ‘veil their faces.’
Divine sovereignty is
not the sovereignty of a tyrannical Despot, but the exercised pleasure of
One who is infinitely wise and good! Because God is infinitely wise He cannot err, and because He is infinitely righteous He will not do wrong.
Here then is the preciousness of this truth. The mere fact itself
that God’s will is irresistible and irreversible fills me with fear, but
once I realize that God wills only that which is good, my heart is made to
rejoice.
Here then is the final
answer to the question of this chapter—What ought to be our attitude
toward the sovereignty of God? The becoming attitude for us to take is that
of godly fear, implicit obedience, and unreserved resignation and
submission. But not only so: the recognition of the sovereignty of God, and
the realization that the Sovereign Himself is my Father, ought to
overwhelm the heart and cause me to bow before Him in adoring worship. At
all times I must say, "Even so, Father, for so it seemeth good in Thy sight." We conclude with an example which well illustrates
our meaning.
Some two hundred years
ago the saintly Madam Guyon, after ten years spent in a dungeon lying far
below the surface of the ground, lit only by a candle at meal-times, wrote
these words,
"A little bird I am,
Shut from the fields of air;
Yet in my cage I sit and sing
To Him who placed me there;
Well pleased a prisoner to he,
Because, my God, it pleases Thee.
Nought have I else to do
I sing the whole day long;
And He whom most I love to please,
Doth listen to my song;
He caught and bound my wandering wing
But still He bends to hear me sing.
My cage confines me round;
Abroad I cannot fly;
But though my wing is closely bound,
My heart’s at liberty.
My prison walls cannot control
The flight, the freedom of the soul.
Ah! it is good to soar
These bolts and bars above,
To Him whose purpose I adore,
Whose Providence I love;
And in Thy mighty will to find
The joy, the freedom of the mind."
ENDNOTES:
[1] Note
how Old Testament prophecy also declared that “the Spirit of the Lord”
should “rest upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the
spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the
fear of the Lord” (Isa.11:1,2).
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