God is in control! There’s an active effort by Him to make all things work together for our good.
The Concept of Divine Providence (Rom 8:28)
Providence can be said to mean the foreseeing care and guidance of God over the creatures of the earth and human affairs.
In other words, it is God’s wise directing of the affairs of the earth. The closest word to providence is provision, which means to “take care of something” or “see to something”.
The concept simply means that God in His divine benevolence is in control of the affairs of the earth.
Divine providence is one of the fundamental concepts lost in Christianity. Paul affirmed the concept of providence as something commonly held among the apostles—a firm conviction, assurance or confidence that God was in control of affairs—and worked all things (good or bad) together for their good.
This is encapsulated in Rom 8:28–31, and summed up in their greeting: God for us.
A distortion has gained momentum in the world on the issue of control, sadly perpetuated by the faith movement and others in charismatic circles.
Three possible spheres of control:
[1] You in control
[2] Nothing in control: things happen by Chance, Accident, or Luck
[3] God in control
These three are mutually exclusive—if one is true, the other two are false.
The biblical view from the story of Joseph and all that happened to Him is that God is in control. The series of events that happened to Him which eventually culminated in the preservation of the nation of Israel, from whom the Messiah came, admits no other conclusion other than that God is in control—the unseen hand orchestrating all things.
Nothing happens on earth outside God’s control. If anything can operate outside His control, then He is not God.
Even if people are unwilling to ascribe this control to God because of the disasters and evil that occur in the world, none can dare say He had no power to prevent them. Therefore, in such circumstances, it can be concluded that He permitted it. The reasons may be incomprehensible to humanity, but His control is indisputable, nonetheless.
Everything you are, have, your family, advancement, progress in life, achievements, you owe to God’s providence. Not your intellect, hard work, wisdom, or power. Think about it: many are better than you on these fronts, yet have achieved less success.
This concept is first seen in the story of Abraham in Genesis 22, when God asked him to sacrifice his only son. Isaac. Abraham was sure of God’s ability to provide when Isaac asked him for the sheep for the burnt sacrifice Gen 22:7-8.
From that episode, the word JEHOVAH JIREH which is widely taken to mean “God our provider” emerged. However, the original meaning of JIREH is “see”. Therefore, the concept of JEHOVAH JIREH means God will decide and see to the issue based on His determination and foreknowledge. God sees to the situation irrespective of you; God is taking care of the situation even before you find yourself there!
Two concepts that illustrate this: The concept of sustenance of creation and the concept of concurrence.
The Concept of Sustenance of Creation
The Hebrew word for creation is “Bara”, and it means “to create and preserve”. God creates and preserves what He creates. God didn’t just create the earth, He created it and He sustains it. The earth keeps revolving around the Sun because of this; because He is in control. God put gravity within the context of His plan. It’s illustrative of God’s providence that He sustains whatsoever He creates (Philippians 1:6, Acts 17:25-28)
The Concept of Concurrence
As human beings, we have free will and make our decisions based on that. However, the things we do based on our seeming free will fall in line with God’s plan. It can be likened to two rivers coming from two different directions, meeting at a point, and going in the same direction from that point. This explains the concept of concurrence. Even though your sins, mistakes, wrong decisions and choices may attract consequences, they do not frustrate God’s purpose and plan for your life. Judas’ betrayal of Jesus did not. The Jews killing of Jesus did not—it all fell in line with God’s set purpose. (Acts 2:23,4:28,13:27)
These two foregoing concepts are vital in understanding the concept of providence i.e God ultimately being in control and constantly working out all things for our good.
The system of the world today has tried to replace the knowledge of God with chance. But there’s nothing like chance in the dealings of God. Chance is a probability; a mathematical concept and doesn’t possess the power to do anything.
Nothing happens outside of God’s control. You are not in control. You do not determine what happens to your life. In whatever situation you are, find out why God would have you in that situation and make the best of it.
The concept of providence is fundamental to us as believers and we must, therefore, imbibe it.
As we live our lives, we must acknowledge that God is ultimately in control and that all things work together for good for those who love God and who are called according to His purpose.
Pastor Samuel Nwanze