God is in Control: God's Sovereignty.

Examples of God’s Sovereignty

First we are going to look at the life of Joseph.

Second, we will look at the life of Job.

As we study both of these men’s lives we will look at God’s sovereignty over their lives and their situations.

Next, we will talk about a few other places in Scripture we see God at work.

Lastly, we will talk about how knowing that God is in control can help us everyday.

JOSEPH

Genesis 50:15–21 (ESV)

When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him.” So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, “Your father gave this command before he died: ‘Say to Joseph, “Please forgive the transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you.” ’ And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. His brothers also came and fell down before him and said, “Behold, we are your servants.” But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.

Let’s talk about what brought Joseph and his brothers to this point.

Joseph was his father’s favorite.

His brothers hated him because he was the favorite.

His brothers through him in a pit and sold him into slavery.

He worked as a servant in Potiphar’s house.

Potiphar’s wife took a liking to him that did not honor God.

Joseph rejected her, so she lied to her husband about Joseph and had him put in prison.

While in prison, Joseph started interpreting dreams through the power of God.

Because of God interpreting dreams through Joseph, Joseph was able to interpret for the Pharoah.

The Pharoah honored Joseph for this by putting him in second command of all Egypt, so he could see to it that everyone was taken care of during the famine.

Joseph’s brothers and family were starving during the famine and had to go to Egypt for food.

Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him.

Joseph was able to work it so his father, brothers, and family were all able to come to Egypt.

This brings us to our passage of Scripture.

After Joseph’s father died, the brothers knew they had done Joseph wrong.

They felt Joseph would do wrong to them now that their father was dead.

Instead, Joseph honored God. He knew the truth about God. That God is always in control and has a plan that will be fulfilled. That is why he was able to say,”what you meant for evil. God meant for good!”

(Now, let’s look at the life of Job.)

JOB

Job 1:1–16 (ESV)

1-3There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. He possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east.

6-12Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

(Before we talk about what happens next, let’s talk about what we do know)

We know that there was a meeting in Heaven with the sons of God and God.

God asks Satan what he has been doing.

Satan says going to and fro about the earth.

Who brings up Job? God does.

And, from the way God we read the conversation. Satan has been going about seeing who is righteous and faithful to God. That is when God asks Satan,”Have you considered my servant Job.”

Satan responds to God that the only reason Job is faithful to Him is because of how abundantly God has blessed Job.

God grants permission then to Satan for Job to be tested.

First, we need to recognize that there are things that go on in Heaven that we do not know about, nor understand.

Did God ask permission from Job to be tested? Did God ask Job what he thought about the situation? No

Some people say,”This doesn’t seem fair.”

The truth is, there is a lot of life that just isn’t fair.

God never promised us that life was fair.

Really we don’t want life to be fair. We can’t get upset when life is not fair.

The most unfair thing that has ever taken place was the Gospel.

The One who knew no sin, became sin, took our place on the cross, died, and rose again so we could have forgiveness for sin. To be freed from sin.

Jesus took our places on the cross.

Jesus satisfied the wrath of God by man being punished for sin.

So, we cannot talk about fair and unfair.

When we choose to follow Jesus we choose to give up we want in order to honor God with every aspect of our lives, even suffering unto death.

We are called to be faithful to Him.

Second, we need to understand that Satan cannot do anything without God’s permission.

People say Satan is out to get me.

Satan made me do it.

Scripture does tell us that he is our enemy, and that he is seeking out whom he may destroy.

However, if you have Jesus, then greater is He that is in you than he that is in this world.

God promises you His strength to overcome through the Holy Spirit.

You can do all things in His strength.

If you are tempted with evil, God will provide you a way out.

These are all God’s promises.

(Now, let’s talk about what happens next.)

Satan kills and takes away just about everything Job, has except for his wife.

Then he gets sores all over his body.

His friends turn against him, and tell him all of this is happening to him because Job has sinned against God.

Was this true? Is that the reason? NO

His wife complains and tells him to just curse God and die.

Job is absolutely miserable, but he remains faithful.

Eventually, God has a talk with Job.

Job 38:1–7 ESV

Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

(God continues to answer Job for three more chapters. Then Job responds, let’s listen to Job’s response to the Most High God.)

Job 42:1–6 ESV

Then Job answered the Lord and said: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you make it known to me.’ I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

(Finally, we see how God blesses Job for his faithfulness.)

Job 42:10–11 ESV

And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and ate bread with him in his house. And they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him. And each of them gave him a piece of money and a ring of gold.

Job 42:12–17 ESV

And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. He had also seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first daughter Jemimah, and the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-happuch. And in all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job’s daughters. And their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers. And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. And Job died, an old man, and full of days.

Throughout Scripture we see God’s sovereignty over all things.

Birth of Moses

David and Goliath

Daniel and the Lions Den

Jonah

Shadrach, Meshach, & Abednego

This is not just an Old Testament thing. We also see God’s sovereignty in the New Testament!

Jesus- His birth, when all the baby boys were to be killed and they fled for safety

Peter- In Acts, Peter escaped from prison. The doors were unlocked and he walked out passed everyone without being seen.

Just like we see all through Scripture, we can also learn to take comfort in knowing that God is sovereign and in control. The Bible tells us that God never changes. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

God loves us, and He has a plan for each of our lives. Our plans may not look like what God has planned for us or how we think it should be. But, that is why we need to change our way of thinking. We need to have the understanding that God is God, and I ain’t. Since God is God, His plan is far better than anything I can think of or imagine. That’s what Paul said. Did you know that Paul said this knowing that He eventually was going to be put to death for following Jesus?

There are going to be times in your life that happen when you will have absolutely no control over the situation. These are times when you need to be prepared ahead of time. If you already understand that God is in control of every situation, then when things happen you can say,”God I know you got this!”

Let me tell you about one of my good friends, Steve Reynolds. Some of you may have known Steve when he was pastoring in Cuba, New Mexico. After his family left Cuba, they started working with us at the Baptist Children’s Home in Portales. Steve and his wife had two children, a boy and a girl. At the time , he was around 34 years old. He went to a doctor’s appointment where they told him he had cancer. The cancer was not in its beginning stages. It had been missed. Steve could have been angry, depressed, … There are many ways Steve could have handled his cancer diagnosis. Instead, Steve handled it like this. He started a blog where everyday he talked about what God was teaching him during this time of his life. He told me,”God is sovereign. He is in control. He was not surprised by me getting cancer. There is a reason. I have no idea what that reason is, but I don’t have to know. All I know is that I want to remain faithful to God through this season of my life.” Guys if for no other reason, God used Steve getting cancer to strengthen my faith in God. Watching him remain faithful and trusting God like he did showed me that this is the way we are to conduct ourselves as those who have a hope in Jesus. Whether we live or whether we die, we are still in a constant relationship with Him. How close we are to God in that relationship is up to us! But Scripture does tell us that if we will draw near to God, then He will draw near to us!

So, what about you today? Do you trust that God is in control? Are you trying to control everything? If you are trying to control everything, that doesn’t leave much room for God to be God does it?

(At this time if Bro. Craig and the band will make their way up. We will start preparing our time of response to God.)

I don’t have any idea what is going on in any of your lives. You may have cancer or a disease that you don’t understand. You may have someone close to that does or is going through hard times that you don’t understand. Maybe you have had someone close to you pass away that you are struggling with. Maybe you struggle with the thought of death all together.

Will you take comfort today in knowing that God is in control. He will never leave you or forsake you. He loves you. Will you respond to him today?