Systematic Theology Part 15-Who put Him in Charge?

A Ship Captain.

A Prison Guard.

A Lunch Lady.

A Lifeguard.

A Head Elf.

A King.

Why this strange list of individuals (and mythical creatures) here? Well, they all have something in common. Each of these people/mythical creatures has authority in a particular arena. They are the uncontested ruler of that arena. If you contest their authority or their rule then you will face consequences. You could even say that they are sovereign over that arena.

But, their sovereignty is limited. You won't find the lunch lady telling you to "only take one" in the dairy section of the grocery store. You won't find a lifeguard standing in your living room telling you to get out of the pool because it's "adult swim."

God's sovereignty, however, is unlimited. Let's start by defining sovereignty.

A sovereign is an unlimited and uncontested ruler, superior to all others in power, rule and authority.

In Revelation 19:16 God is defined as King of kings and Lord of lords. If there is anyone who is ultimately sovereign-superior to all others-it is God. Here are a few more verses you can look up that talk about God's sovereignty:

Acts 4:24; 1 Timothy 6:15; Revelation 6:10; Philippians 2:9-11; Psalm 59:13; 1 Chronicles 29:11; Colossians 1:16.

These passages make it clear that God is in charge; that he is sovereign. But why? Who put him in charge? Why is he the one who gets to be sovereign.

Could you imagine:

A mime as a radio dj?
A blind man as a brain surgeon?
A janitor that vomits at the smallest bad smell?
A Mob boss as a police chief?
A chef that can't taste or smell?
A lion tamer that looks and smells like a raw steak?

Of course not! Because there are specific characteristics needed for every position. Especially for the position of King of kings and Lord of lords! BAsed on his attributes, God is the ONLY ONE capable of absolute sovereignty.

We've spent 10 studies talking about the attributes of God because those attributes help us recognize and understand HOW God can and is the only true sovereign.

According to A.W. Tozer in his book The Knowledge of the Holy, "to be sovereign God must be all-knowing, all-powerful, and absolutely free...Were there even one datum of knowledge, however small, unknown to God, His rule would break down at that point."

God's sovereignty flows naturally from his infinity!

He is infinite in all his attributes. No one else is infinite so no one else can be King of kings. We can rule in certain arenas over certain groups of people, but only God is capable of ultimate sovereignty. Here are a couple more quotes to think about:

“Can we imagine the Lord God of Hosts having to request permission of anyone or to apply for anything to a higher body? To who would God go for permission? Who is higher than the Highest? Who is mightier than the Almighty? Whose position antedates that of the Eternal? At whose throne would God kneel? Where is the greater one to who He must appeal? ‘Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is not God.’” (Tozer, p171)

”Since God has created all that is, this means that God owns everything. Everything is God’s because God made it all. If some other god had made some part of creation, then that part of creation would belong to that god. But there are no other gods, and everything in creation has been made by the one true and living God. Since God created all things, then God (alone) is the rightful owner of all things. To take it one step further, we can see that since God created all that is, and since he, then, is the rightful owner of all that is, God also is the rightful ruler of all that is. Everything that God made is his, and he alone has rights to rule over it and use it however he wishes.” (Bruce Ware, Big Truths for Young Hearts, p63-64)

What does God do with this sovereignty that he has?

1. God provides
God always provides what is Good (James 1:17, Psalm 34:10, Psalm 84:11). But we have to eep eternal perspective in defining “good”. Remember that God is eternal and all-knowing.

God provides ultimate protection(Romans 8:31-32). Now and eternally in salvation. Even in the death of those who love and follow God ultimate good is provided.

God provides exactly what we need (Matthew 6:30-34). "The God who sees the needs in his creation is the God who will exercise his power wisely to provide for his creation.”(David Nelson, A Theology for the Church, p268)

This relates to something we all tend to do...a lot. Grumble and complain. God’s sovereignty as provider is the number one reason we should not grumble or complain.

”A grumbling spirit is sinful, because it fails to recognize God’s goodness and kindness in providing for us every good thing in life that we enjoy. Instead of grumbling, we should accept both what God gives us and what he chooses not to give us, because in both cases he does what is best for us.” (Ware, p69)

“The Lord Jesus Christ has shown an enormous degree of favor on us by providing for our every need, and to complain is to offend Him to the same degree.” (Ken Ham)

2. God Directs
"God has a plan for the world he made. he didn’t create the world wondering what might happen. He didn’t create the world and then leave it alone to run by itself. Rather, God created the world with a very complete plan for how the world would develop and what would be accomplished through it.” (Ware, p65)

In Daniel 2:21 we see God's sovereign direction in 3 areas.

A. God directs Nature
“He Changes the times and seasons”
Psalm 135:5-7; Psalm 29:8-10; 1 Kings 17:4

B. God Directs the Rulers of the Earth
“He removes kings and sets up kings”
Romans 13:1; Isaiah 10:5-13

C. God Directs YOU
“He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding”
1 Samuel 2:6-7; Galatians 1:15-16; Psalm 31:14-15



God’s sovereignty is total and complete: He rules over ALL! (Psalm 103:19)

So God is infinite in all his attributes and this demands his sovereignty. His sovereignty means he has complete rule over all of life. What does this mean for you in everyday life?

1. You can trust him fully
2. You don’t need to worry
3. You can be confident in his sovereignty even when we don’t understand everything.

Stay tuned as we tackle two of the "sticky" topics that always come up in a discussion of God's sovereignty: The problem of pain, evil and suffering and the human will.