A Dreadful Encounter
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What should the Christian worldview be of God’s involvement in our life? How should we view God’s hand in our life? Is God simply there as a gracious Father to help us when we need it? Is he really sovereign and in control of everything?
Intro
Intro
Many of us claim that God is in charge, but our actions don’t really support that claim. Many of us live just like the world.
The Christian Worldview should be that based off of Scripture and not off of the reasoning of the world.
Problem: Christians have adopted the worldview of the world when it comes to providence.
Latin
Pro - before
vid - see
Foreknowledge or to see beforehand. Many have this view. That God simply can see into the future and knows the choices we will make and therefore reacts to those choices.
The problem with this is this view of God isn’t the Biblical view.
Let’s look at what Jesus says about God’s involvement in the Christian life:
Drama
Drama
John lacks in some detail in this story
Matthew and Mark - full of action and more detail
While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him.
Matt
Luke includes a disciples question to the attack
And when those who were around him saw what would follow, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?”
Jesus and His disciples were in what seemed to be a dreadful situation
The human response to a dreadful situation
Jesus response
Jesus knew what was going to happen
Jesus has his disciples buy swords
Why? to fight? no
to fulfill scripture
And they said, “Look, Lord, here are two swords.” And he said to them, “It is enough.”
How did He know? He is God
Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?”
Completion of the seven “I Am” statements by Jesus
Bread of Life -
Light of the World -
Good Shepherd -
Resurrection and the life -
the Way, the Truth and the Life -
The true Vine -
“I Am” -
He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ”
God refers to himself as THE I AM - the one who is
No need for explanation
Jesus uses this same term for himself, taking on the identity and very name of God
Names are important - the names of God are important
It is how he reveals himself to us
The names of Jesus are important, it is who he reveals himself to be to us
He is God
SO, what seems a very common and basic response was actually very profound.
Then he seeks to be in line with the will of the Father
Puts himself before his disciples
This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken: “Of those whom you gave me I have lost not one.”
John 18:
To preserve the church, the men who would be used by God to witness the unfolding events of Redemptive History
Peter’s response
Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)
Used the sword bought prior for protection
Was obviously different
John 18:
Self preservation and self defense - physical defense
This is us - we often seek to preserve self over all things
Jesus response was one of obedience because he knew that God the Father was providentially making all things happen
So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?”
It is my role and responsibility to carry out the will of the Father
Even to be captured and brought before the authorities and led to his own death
Doctrine
Doctrine
Divinity of Jesus
“I Am” - ego eimi
Jesus equates himself with God the Father through this simple term
Providence
God the Father orchestrates and ordained everything that led to Christ’s death
He uses Scripture to attest to the work He was doing through Christ
He moved all persons involved to fulfill His plan
God is working through us and our actions to fulfill his will and plan for us and for His glory
The Westminster Confession of Faith: Edinburgh Edition Chapter V. of Providence
GOD, the great Creator of all things, doth uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures, actions, and things,b from the greatest even to the least, by his most wise and holy providence, according to his infallible foreknowledge,e and the free and immutable counsel of his own will, to the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, goodness, and mercy.g
God is in control of all things. We don’t live in a closed system that excludes God. We live in a world that HE has created and ordered.
“I Am” - ego eimi
The Westminster Confession of Faith: Edinburgh Edition Chapter V. of Providence
II. Although, in relation to the foreknowledge and decree of God, the first cause, all things come to pass immutably and infallibly; yet, by the same providence, he ordereth them to fall out according to the nature of second causes, either necessarily, freely, or contingently.i
First causes and second causes are both under God’s providence and His control.
As Horton puts it this is God’s stage.
The Westminster Confession of Faith: Edinburgh Edition Chapter V. of Providence
III. God in his ordinary providence maketh use of means, yet is free to work without,l above, and against them,n at his pleasure.
God is free to rule and do as He wishes.
WCF “to His own Holy Ends.”
Doxology
Doxology
Joseph
His Brothers sold him into slavery because of Jealousy
Yet, he ends up in the Pharaohs court and a trusted advisor
Then in the drought the brothers come for help and find out it is him they become scared and feel guilt
Joseph’s response
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.
We should Praise God for his providence
It should be a comfort for us - God is in control
We should live our life this way
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
James 4:13-17
We should seek to walk by faith and trust in His providence as Jesus did in this very passage
So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?”
John 1