Sunday, November 20, 2011

Sovereignty


Two months ago we began a new semester of GAP classes with the focus for our Bible study being God's nature...the characteristics and names of our Triune God.  A new attribute is studied and shared each week with the desire to "know God better" by the time we have completed nine months of classes and Bible study together.  I know I must state this every year...so it is not a new thought....but I do realize every time that I open God's Word to teach others that the primary student-learner is myself.  I count it an ongoing privilege and honor that God has entrusted me to teach His Word, but even more so that He finds me capable of learning from Him first in order to do so.  My constant prayer is that I remain teachable and that He allows me to share His Word with others in a simple, yet truthful way that reaches hearts and transforms lives.
We have covered a variety of attributes in the past ten weeks, beginning with the foundational truth of One God in Three Persons, what we term the Trinity. We also, (as for each and every class that is taught), have focused the lessons entirely on God's Holy and inerrant written Word as the final and only authority for our lives.  (More on that in another post to come!)  We have seen God is CREATOR, God is ETERNAL, God is ALMIGHTY, Jesus is THE WORD, Jesus is THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD, but the one attribute that has continued to impact my own mind and heart is that God is SOVEREIGN.
Sovereignty is not something that I tend to meditate on or think about very often.  It is a word most frequently used in politcal or world events (which I am often not involved personally) or in deep theological debates (ditto).  The word itself can be defined as "the supreme rulership of God" and it is expressed in multiple ways and events throughout scripture. As I looked at God's Word and a handy concordance, I began to see one principle of sovereignty...of God's sovereignty...throughout my study.   The two books that God led me to with the most frequent use of the phrase "Sovereign Lord" (which is what our study is focused on) were the Old Testament prophets Ezekiel and Amos.  Ezekiel was written to God's people during a time of captivity; Amos to His people during a time of prosperity. Lots of hours of study later, I boiled that principle truth down to this: God is sovereign over, in and through all--regardless of place, time, person or circumstance, in captivity and in prosperity.  We may not understand or like the circumstances we find ourselves in at times; they may be created from our own poor choices or given straight from God's hand to us, but there is one thing we can know for certain--God is sovereign
A phrase that is often heard around the GAP "campus" came to my mind and has taken on new meaning since my study of God's sovereignty.  One participant in particular can discuss a topic, whether a positive one or a negative one, and conclude with the expression, "Hey, it's all good!"
And because God is sovereign.....it is.