Allowing God to be God Part II

Ever had that moment when you were doing something with a lot of people observing but not making sense of what you were up to, but you knew very well what you were doing and that it will all turn out great? Well, in the previous post, we spoke about things that God will ask you to do that do not make sense. In this post, we are going to look at the things that he will do that will not make sense to you. While the previous post comes mainly from the problem of human being’s obsession with control over “their” lives, this post is about the human being’s need of being certain/sure about the future.  We all want to be sure that our future is secure.  This is evident in us paying for insurance, should anything happen; we know we are covered.  This need becomes a problem when we meet Christ because, unlike insurance companies; He does not follow our template of how life should go.  This requires us to understand a truth which may seem “unfair”, but is essential for us to understand in order live in harmony with our LORD Jesus Christ.  God’s will, not yours; will always prevail. If you do not understand this truth, you will forever be angry at God for not doing what you asked Him to do for you. You cannot twist God’s arm into doing what you want, even if you fill a bucket full of tears; the Lord’s will shall prevail, not yours. 

Because of Israel’s rebellion of worshiping false gods, God sends Jeremiah to announce Babylon’s invasion in Judah and their 70 year long reign over Judah (Jer. 5:15 – 17). When we read this text, we find out that God does not hide the fact that He has willed this.  He openly says “I am bringing a distant nation against you …” Now to the Israelites, this does not make sense because everyone knows that Israel is God’s chosen nation.  If the enemy wins, it would weaken the testimony of a God who once opened the red sea for the Israelites to walk on dry ground.  People will think that the God of Israel is dead and cannot defend them anymore.  To the Israelites this does not make sense because according to them, this is not how the story should go; the children of God cannot be suffering and worst of all, be slaves to a foreign nation again. It seemed as if God had lost control, but they did not know that even though life and everything around us can be uncertain, God is never uncertain and is always in control.  God never loses control of any situation, even when it does not seem like it. We know this because this is what God says in Jer. 29:10 – 11 “when seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come and fulfil my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future”  I imagine the Israelites rolling their eyes at these words saying “yeah right”. Some of us probably know how the story goes. Israel is invaded and captured by Babylon for 70 years. God speaks to the Israelites through Ezekiel through visions like the valley of dry bones, assuring them of restoration.  At the end of it all, Israel is restored and God fulfils his promise to his people.  He had been in control all along, even in their captivity He was God and nothing had changed about His sovereignty.

Shadrack, Meshack and Abednigo; like Jesus Christ, understood that only God’s will must prevail regardless of how senseless and “unfair” it might seem.  Before Shadrack, Meshack and Abednigo were thrown in the burning furnace, they uttered these words: “If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the fiery furnace. He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if he does not do it, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”  These were men that understood that God’s will must prevail, not theirs. They understood that crying and sulking will not change the fact that His will prevails.  In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus is about to be captured and he also utters words that affirm His father’s will: “Father, remove this cup from me. But please, not what I want. What do you want?” The message.  If it were up to Jesus, the suffering that he was going to go through was just too much, so he would rather opt out. But because of the big picture which included you and I being a part of his Father’s kingdom, He opted to be the sacrifice for our sins; which was planned by His father a long time ago. God might seem like a unloving father for letting his son die a brutal death on the cross when he had all the power to strike everyone with lightning and instantly kill them. It might have seemed as if he lost control of the whole situation, but in the end; Jesus rose from the dead, conquered death and because of his obedience we are called children of God.  Regardless of all uncertainty surrounding us, God is always certain and HE NEVER LOSES CONTROL!!!!

God Bless and Thanx for reading.