God's Providence

God’s Active Work throughout Time

Appearances as the word we know: Acts 24:2

Acts 24:2 (KJV) And when he was called forth, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying, Seeing that by thee we enjoy great quietness, and that very worthy deeds are done unto this nation by thy providence,

Acts 24:2 (NASB) After Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying to the governor, “Since we have through you attained much peace, and since by your providence reforms are being carried out for this nation,

Acts 24:2 (NKJV) “And when he was called upon, Tertullus began his accusation, saying: “Seeing that through you we enjoy great peace, and prosperity is being brought to this nation by your foresight,”

Its root word is used other times and always is dealing with man’s provisions for things. Rom. 12:17; 13:14; 2 Cor. 8:21; 1 Tim. 5:8

Romans 12:17 “Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.”

Romans 13:14 “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”

2 Corinthians 8:21 “providing honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.”

1 Timothy 5:8 “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

This is a Bible subject; not directly stated, but frequently taught.

What do we Mean by “Providence”?

Meaning: "foresight; attention; providence”

The word implies a future end, goal, or purpose with a plan for attaining that end.

Rational beings make plans, set goals, and then display planning, forethought, and preparation to attain this end —this is providence.

God has done the same planning from the beginning of the world, and it behooves us to understand that providence defines the MAJORITY of his actions toward us.

From the Garden of Eden to the Flood, we have no record of supernatural intervention.

From the Scattering of the People to the Exodus, very little direct supernatural intervention.

In the span of Genesis (2500+ years), we can point to only 3 major events: Creation, the Flood, and the Scattering of the People.

The entire story of Joseph is a testament to the providence of God.

Thus, the clear majority of the Bible is not characterized by constant miracles and supernatural intervention; rather, God in His foresight lays out His goals ahead of time, and uses the freewill choices of mankind of achieve them.

Basics of God’s Providence

If I believe that God is absolute in knowledge, wisdom, and power, understanding providence becomes easy. Ps. 18; Luke 16:17-19

Psalm 18 NKJV

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David The Servant of the Lord, Who Spoke to the Lord The Words of This Song on the Day that the Lord Delivered Him from the Hand of All His Enemies and from the Hand of Saul. And He Said: I will love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies. The pangs of death surrounded me, And the floods of ungodliness made me afraid. The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called upon the Lord, And cried out to my God; He heard my voice from His temple, And my cry came before Him, even to His ears. Then the earth shook and trembled; The foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken, Because He was angry. Smoke went up from His nostrils, And devouring fire from His mouth; Coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down With darkness under His feet. And He rode upon a cherub, and flew; He flew upon the wings of the wind. He made darkness His secret place; His canopy around Him was dark waters And thick clouds of the skies. From the brightness before Him, His thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire. The Lord thundered from heaven, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire. He sent out His arrows and scattered the foe, Lightnings in abundance, and He vanquished them. Then the channels of the sea were seen, The foundations of the world were uncovered At Your rebuke, O Lord, At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils. He sent from above, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, From those who hated me, For they were too strong for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, But the Lord was my support. He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me. The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; According to the cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord, And have not wickedly departed from my God. For all His judgments were before me, And I did not put away His statutes from me. I was also blameless before Him, And I kept myself from my iniquity. Therefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands in His sight. With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful; With a blameless man You will show Yourself blameless; With the pure You will show Yourself pure; And with the devious You will show Yourself shrewd. For You will save the humble people, But will bring down haughty looks. For You will light my lamp; The Lord my God will enlighten my darkness. For by You I can run against a troop, By my God I can leap over a wall. As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him. For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? It is God who arms me with strength, And makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of deer, And sets me on my high places. He teaches my hands to make war, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You have also given me the shield of Your salvation; Your right hand has held me up, Your gentleness has made me great. You enlarged my path under me, So my feet did not slip. I have pursued my enemies and overtaken them; Neither did I turn back again till they were destroyed. I have wounded them, So that they could not rise; They have fallen under my feet. For You have armed me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me. You have also given me the necks of my enemies, So that I destroyed those who hated me. They cried out, but there was none to save; Even to the Lord, but He did not answer them. Then I beat them as fine as the dust before the wind; I cast them out like dirt in the streets. You have delivered me from the strivings of the people; You have made me the head of the nations; A people I have not known shall serve me. As soon as they hear of me they obey me; The foreigners submit to me. The foreigners fade away, And come frightened from their hideouts. The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let the God of my salvation be exalted. It is God who avenges me, And subdues the peoples under me; He delivers me from my enemies. You also lift me up above those who rise against me; You have delivered me from the violent man. Therefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the Gentiles, And sing praises to Your name. Great deliverance He gives to His king, And shows mercy to His anointed, To David and his descendants forevermore.

The power that David understood about God is in His Son as well.

Luke 6:17-19 “And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed. And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.”

Thus his foresight, forethought — the preservation and care He uses to bring about a desired end is His Providence.

If He can do all these amazing things, surely He can use humanity’s decisions to achieve His ends!

God's ability to exercise providence: Eph. 4:6; Phil. 4:4

Ephesians 4:6 “one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”

"Above all" - Transcends and controls.

"Through all" - Pervades and sustains.

"In you all" - Close, near at hand, ready to guide and help, especially for the saints.

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

Areas of God’s Providence

Creation. Rev. 4:11; Heb. 1:3; 11:3; Gen. 1:1-3; Col. 1:16-17

Revelation 4:11 ““You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.””

The universe existed in providence before its creation.

Hebrews 11:3 “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”

Genesis 1:1-3 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.”

God, who was able to create this universe, also controls it through His providence. This world is not “governed by the laws of nature, but is governed by God according to the laws of nature. We can’t make a “god” out of the laws of nature.

Hebrews 1:3 “who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,”

Colossians 1:16-17 “For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”

Thus the destiny of this universe not left to chance.

In the kingdoms of men. Rom. 13:1; Dan. 4:17,25-26; Matt. 21:25

God controls them and uses them to fit into and contribute to the achievement of his overall purposes.

Romans 13:1 “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.”

Daniel 4:17 “‘This decision is by the decree of the watchers, And the sentence by the word of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, Gives it to whomever He will, And sets over it the lowest of men.’”

Daniel 4:25-26 “They shall drive you from men, your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make you eat grass like oxen. They shall wet you with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses. “And inasmuch as they gave the command to leave the stump and roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be assured to you, after you come to know that Heaven rules.”

Matt. 21:25 - “from heaven or from men?” Heaven rules over mankind! God’s authority sounds forth and it behooves us to obey!

Christ and His Kingdom. Matt. 28:18; Rev. 1:5; Eph. 1:3-15; 3:8-11; 1 Cor. 2:7

Matthew 28:18 “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”

Revelation 1:5 and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood

The plan of redemption Is the result of purpose, forethought, etc. -that is providence!

Ephesians 1:3-15 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him…”

Ephesians 3:8-11 “To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord,”

1 Corinthians 2:7 “But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory,”

Note "foreordained," "predestined," etc

The lives of individuals. Esther 4:14

Joseph - the story of divine providence in the life of a man according to God’s purpose.

Events in his life are but links in a chain of God's divine providence.

Yet can't attribute every act in his life to divine providence.

Some caused by evil in men and women, and not by God.

Sold Into slavery by brothers;

Temptation of Potiphar’s wife;

Thrown into prison

Yet we can say that his life as a whole was a life of providence.

Moses

Esther

Esther 4:14 ... And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?"

Thus we can say that God has controlled the destiny of kingdoms, conditions, and individuals; yet never invaded nor violated the sanctity and sovereignity of human will.

When does Providence touch our Lives?

There is a general providence that God gives to the world. Matt. 5:45; Job 1:21

Matthew 5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

This providence is something God gives for all. It is the echoed statement of Job:

Job 1:21 And he said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

There is also a special providence for the saints. Matt. 6:33; Job 42:2-6; James 1:3-4

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

God looks after his saints through his foresight and forethought; that is his providence.

Note that Job’s statement is true for saints as well. But perhaps his later statements are best to describe the saint’s experience in God’s providence.

Job 42:2–6 “I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak; You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’ “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.”

God’s providence for the saints includes the fact that we are promised nothing, and everything we get is based upon God’s grace.

The difference between the saints and the world? We know we deserve much worse than the manifold blessings we receive.

The providential use of trials.

James 1:3-4 “knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

Through trials, perfection or full-growth is attained.

When we go through troubles in our lives, we as saints take that opportunity to grow and improve in Christ’s Kingdom.

Prayer and Providence for All. Lk. 18:1-8; James 5:13-15

Two extremes are often presented.

Pray, and leave to "blind fate.”

Pray, and every action is "miraclous”

God does work through providence.

But does not necessitate a miracle (Luke 18:1-8)

Luke 18:1–8 NKJV

Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ” Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”

Prayer is offered

There was no miracle; but there was a response.

Exhortation for the Saints in face of Troubles - James 5:13-15

James 5:13–15 NKJV

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

This is answer to prayer in conjunction with the use of natural means at one’s hand.

No miracle is involved.

James 5:17-18 - illustration indicates no miracle. The rain came from clouds. It was in response to prayer; was from God; was through natural means.

Prayers work in conjunction with an active, all-powerful God!

Revelation 8:3-5 “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand. Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake.”

Our prayers must be addressed to God, and asked in faith, expecting God to hear and answer according to his divine will, purpose, and forethought. This is the providence of God. It has been called "cooperative" providence.

CONCLUSION:

Providence is God's foresight and forethought which provides for his answering his saints according to his eternal will and and purpose, and for man's good.