WEBVTT 00:00:00.520 --> 00:00:04.480 We're studying our confession of faith. Tonight 00:00:04.480 --> 00:00:06.719 we're gonna come to this topic of providence 00:00:06.719 --> 00:00:10.960 and I want to read a summary statement about 00:00:10.960 --> 00:00:14.859 God's providential care for all things in his 00:00:14.859 --> 00:00:20.140 church tonight from Ephesians chapter one, verses 00:00:20.140 --> 00:00:24.260 11 through 12. So let's turn to Ephesians one. 00:00:24.559 --> 00:00:30.059 We'll be there this evening for a little while. 00:00:30.410 --> 00:00:34.149 before we enjoy some wonderful food and fellowship. 00:00:36.390 --> 00:00:39.590 Ephesians chapter one, beginning in verse 11 00:00:39.590 --> 00:00:44.909 through 12, this is Paul's great doxology of 00:00:44.909 --> 00:00:48.609 encouragement to the Ephesian church, a church 00:00:48.609 --> 00:00:51.490 that really felt very marginalized and alone 00:00:51.490 --> 00:00:54.990 in the society in which they lived. And so he 00:00:54.990 --> 00:00:59.200 breaks out into this long run -on sentence. of 00:00:59.200 --> 00:01:02.399 praise to God and encouragement to God's people 00:01:02.399 --> 00:01:06.120 for all that he has done for them. And one of 00:01:06.120 --> 00:01:08.819 the things that he wants the Ephesians to know 00:01:08.819 --> 00:01:13.060 most of all is how God is working in all their 00:01:13.060 --> 00:01:16.859 circumstances. So let's hear that tonight, Ephesians 00:01:16.859 --> 00:01:22.780 1 verse 11. In him, that is in Christ, we have 00:01:22.780 --> 00:01:25.780 obtained an inheritance. having been predestined 00:01:25.780 --> 00:01:28.819 according to the purpose of him who works all 00:01:28.819 --> 00:01:31.659 things according to the counsel of his will so 00:01:31.659 --> 00:01:34.920 that we who were the first to hope in Christ 00:01:34.920 --> 00:01:40.840 might be to the praise of his glory. We're going 00:01:40.840 --> 00:01:46.829 to focus our time on that. phrase from verse 00:01:46.829 --> 00:01:48.750 11, who works all things according to the counsel 00:01:48.750 --> 00:01:52.469 of his will and following tonight. Our confession 00:01:52.469 --> 00:01:56.969 speaks of providence this way, touching on themes 00:01:56.969 --> 00:02:01.629 there from those verses. In Westminster Confession 00:02:01.629 --> 00:02:05.969 of Faith chapter five, section one, it says about 00:02:05.969 --> 00:02:09.530 God's providence that God, the creator of all 00:02:09.530 --> 00:02:14.740 things, doth uphold, direct, dispose, and govern 00:02:14.740 --> 00:02:19.699 all creatures, actions, and things from the greatest 00:02:19.699 --> 00:02:24.939 even to the least by his most wise and holy providence 00:02:24.939 --> 00:02:28.159 according to his infallible foreknowledge and 00:02:28.159 --> 00:02:32.120 the free immutable counsel of his own will to 00:02:32.120 --> 00:02:35.699 the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, 00:02:36.259 --> 00:02:41.860 justice, goodness, and mercy. Perhaps you've 00:02:41.860 --> 00:02:45.479 said something like this before. That's a God 00:02:45.479 --> 00:02:50.939 thing. Or that was providential. In fact, I've 00:02:50.939 --> 00:02:56.000 used those very words. You may think in terms 00:02:56.000 --> 00:03:00.860 of something happening that's rapid and say, 00:03:01.340 --> 00:03:04.819 well, somebody was looking out for me upstairs. 00:03:05.439 --> 00:03:08.719 Well, we say these things and we tend to believe, 00:03:08.719 --> 00:03:12.300 because we tend to believe, I think, that God, 00:03:12.300 --> 00:03:17.159 yes, intervenes in history, in current events, 00:03:18.120 --> 00:03:23.080 but practically, at other times, we believe that 00:03:23.080 --> 00:03:26.969 some things... are left to chance. Yes, God is 00:03:26.969 --> 00:03:29.110 at work and he's active, but there are other 00:03:29.110 --> 00:03:31.729 things that sort of are left to blind chance 00:03:31.729 --> 00:03:35.569 or to luck or to fortune or to fate or whatever 00:03:35.569 --> 00:03:40.530 mystical force is out there. So we need to see 00:03:40.530 --> 00:03:44.050 this scripture. We need to appropriate the truth 00:03:44.050 --> 00:03:46.590 of our confession, which is a summary of what 00:03:46.590 --> 00:03:50.750 scripture teaches. And we need to see that God 00:03:51.099 --> 00:03:56.840 is totally and sovereignly in control and operationally 00:03:56.840 --> 00:04:01.300 at work in all of the details of this world. 00:04:02.080 --> 00:04:05.340 It's a mystery. It's hard to understand. It leaves 00:04:05.340 --> 00:04:10.620 us with unanswered questions, which we have to 00:04:10.620 --> 00:04:14.039 trust that God has the answers to, and sometimes 00:04:14.039 --> 00:04:20.120 we don't. But if we're going to understand truly 00:04:20.120 --> 00:04:23.379 how majestic and sovereign our God is if we're 00:04:23.379 --> 00:04:27.300 going to have spiritual Stability that trusts 00:04:27.300 --> 00:04:30.459 God and praises God in every circumstance. We 00:04:30.459 --> 00:04:32.660 need to see the depth of what is in the scripture 00:04:32.660 --> 00:04:37.660 tonight Because God is actively governing and 00:04:37.660 --> 00:04:41.839 preserving everything because he's actively and 00:04:41.839 --> 00:04:44.360 actively preserving and governing everything 00:04:44.360 --> 00:04:49.279 he is completely worthy of all of our trust and 00:04:49.279 --> 00:04:53.720 completely worthy of all of our praise. We see 00:04:53.720 --> 00:04:58.819 in the scripture that he works all things. Our 00:04:58.819 --> 00:05:01.660 God works all things according to the counsel 00:05:01.660 --> 00:05:04.160 of his will. The first thing I want us to see 00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:09.199 is that nothing escapes His governing, his disposing, 00:05:09.300 --> 00:05:12.439 his direction, his upholding care, he is at work 00:05:12.439 --> 00:05:15.860 in all things and he's intimately connected with 00:05:15.860 --> 00:05:18.079 every thread of history, every thread of your 00:05:18.079 --> 00:05:20.660 life, every thread of Fairview's story down to 00:05:20.660 --> 00:05:25.139 the last detail. Charles Spurgeon puts it so 00:05:25.139 --> 00:05:29.819 beautifully and eloquently based upon scripture 00:05:29.819 --> 00:05:34.180 which we'll study in detail supporting this statement. 00:05:34.750 --> 00:05:38.930 But he says this about God's providential care. 00:05:39.170 --> 00:05:42.329 Listen to this. So beautiful from Spurgeon. I 00:05:42.329 --> 00:05:45.449 believe that every particle of dust that dances 00:05:45.449 --> 00:05:49.149 in the sunbeam does not move an atom more or 00:05:49.149 --> 00:05:52.250 less than God wishes. That every particle of 00:05:52.250 --> 00:05:55.970 spray that dashes against the steamboat has its 00:05:55.970 --> 00:05:59.339 orbit as well as the sun in the heavens. that 00:05:59.339 --> 00:06:03.000 the chaff from the hand of the winterer is steered 00:06:03.000 --> 00:06:06.360 as the stars in their courses. The creeping of 00:06:06.360 --> 00:06:10.439 an aphid over the rosebud is as much fixed as 00:06:10.439 --> 00:06:14.300 the march of the devastating pestilence. The 00:06:14.300 --> 00:06:18.600 fall of the leaves from the poplar is as fully 00:06:18.600 --> 00:06:24.699 ordained as the tumbling of an avalanche. Spurgeon 00:06:24.699 --> 00:06:28.339 is saying. God is actively at work governing 00:06:28.339 --> 00:06:33.160 and ordaining and ordering all things. And that's 00:06:33.160 --> 00:06:36.600 what Paul is saying here. And in fact, scripture 00:06:36.600 --> 00:06:40.360 shows us that over and over again throughout 00:06:40.360 --> 00:06:44.019 the story of God's redemption, we see that He 00:06:44.019 --> 00:06:47.459 is actively at work preserving and governing 00:06:47.459 --> 00:06:50.519 all His creatures and all their actions. We're 00:06:50.519 --> 00:06:52.480 gonna turn to some different passages tonight 00:06:52.480 --> 00:06:54.660 so it'll be helpful for you to have your Bible 00:06:54.660 --> 00:06:56.959 in front of you and I will read some as well. 00:06:57.399 --> 00:07:03.040 But we see that God determines the beginning 00:07:03.040 --> 00:07:05.980 from the end. That's one of the big things and 00:07:05.980 --> 00:07:07.699 one of the first things I want us to see tonight. 00:07:07.759 --> 00:07:09.759 God determines the beginning from the end. Daniel 00:07:09.759 --> 00:07:20.160 chapter four. Daniel chapter four verse 35. Keep 00:07:20.160 --> 00:07:39.259 one finger in Ephesians here. Daniel chapter 00:07:39.259 --> 00:07:44.639 four. This is Nebuchadnezzar's confession here. 00:07:44.899 --> 00:07:47.399 All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted 00:07:47.399 --> 00:07:51.370 as nothing. And he does, according to his will 00:07:51.370 --> 00:07:55.329 among the hosts of heaven, among the inhabitants 00:07:55.329 --> 00:07:59.209 of the earth, no one can say, stay his hand or 00:07:59.209 --> 00:08:04.790 say to him, what have you done? He does according 00:08:04.790 --> 00:08:08.629 to his will. Nebuchadnezzar also confesses elsewhere 00:08:08.629 --> 00:08:12.050 that God's purposes can't be thwarted, that he 00:08:12.050 --> 00:08:15.009 declares the beginning from the end. He orders 00:08:15.009 --> 00:08:20.529 also everyday ordinary events. All of the movements, 00:08:20.810 --> 00:08:22.870 all of the actions, everything that happens in 00:08:22.870 --> 00:08:27.329 our lives. Look with me at Proverbs chapter 16. 00:08:28.209 --> 00:08:31.649 Proverbs chapter 16 verse 9 puts it this way. 00:08:42.860 --> 00:08:45.399 I'm having us turn to these places because I 00:08:45.399 --> 00:08:48.740 think these are key texts that we need to remember 00:08:48.740 --> 00:08:50.919 and key texts that we need to learn where they 00:08:50.919 --> 00:08:55.000 are in order to understand the depth of God's 00:08:55.000 --> 00:08:58.539 providential care. Look at Proverbs 16 verse 00:08:58.539 --> 00:09:09.480 19. Or rather 16 verse nine. 16 verse nine, the 00:09:09.480 --> 00:09:12.840 heart of man plants his way, but the Lord establishes 00:09:12.720 --> 00:09:19.820 his steps. Acts chapter 17 verse 28 gives a similar 00:09:19.820 --> 00:09:23.299 idea where it says that in him we live and move 00:09:23.299 --> 00:09:27.080 and have our being. God orders our steps and 00:09:27.080 --> 00:09:31.639 in all of mankind, not just his people's lives, 00:09:31.700 --> 00:09:36.120 but in all of mankind, Paul speaks that everybody's 00:09:36.120 --> 00:09:40.600 life, all of his movements are ordered by, governed 00:09:40.600 --> 00:09:46.279 by, and directed by, in some way shaped by God, 00:09:46.759 --> 00:09:49.860 who is totally in control. Our God is sovereign 00:09:49.860 --> 00:09:53.940 over the free actions of men, even in our sanctification. 00:09:54.460 --> 00:09:57.899 As we are called to labor for God, God says He's 00:09:57.899 --> 00:10:00.500 also at work. You remember that scripture in 00:10:00.500 --> 00:10:04.019 Philippians chapter 12 verse 13, work out your 00:10:04.019 --> 00:10:07.309 salvation with fear and trembling for it is God 00:10:07.309 --> 00:10:10.830 who is at work within you both to will and to 00:10:10.830 --> 00:10:13.850 work according to his good pleasure. Yes, God 00:10:13.850 --> 00:10:17.590 is at work even in the very things he's called 00:10:17.590 --> 00:10:21.649 us to be responsible to do. God is at work in 00:10:21.649 --> 00:10:26.169 the natural world, in the details of the cosmos, 00:10:26.309 --> 00:10:29.230 in the details of the lives of ordinary animals. 00:10:31.350 --> 00:10:35.220 Psalm 147 verse four. God determines the number 00:10:35.220 --> 00:10:39.519 of the stars and he calls them by name Matthew 00:10:39.519 --> 00:10:43.840 chapter 10 verse 29 Jesus says are not two sparrows 00:10:43.840 --> 00:10:46.899 sold for a penny and not one of them will fall 00:10:46.899 --> 00:10:51.960 apart from your father Not one sparrow falls 00:10:51.960 --> 00:10:55.240 to the ground apart from God's will not not one 00:10:55.240 --> 00:10:58.779 star goes Missing because he calls them all by 00:10:58.779 --> 00:11:01.559 name the great things in nature and even God's 00:11:01.559 --> 00:11:05.870 smallest creatures are under His sovereign direction, 00:11:06.250 --> 00:11:12.570 control, provision, the weather. Job and the 00:11:12.570 --> 00:11:17.049 Lord have this great conversation, and God gives 00:11:17.049 --> 00:11:22.070 Job this further deepening understanding of His 00:11:22.070 --> 00:11:26.490 great sovereign majesty in Job chapter 38, where 00:11:26.490 --> 00:11:30.029 He speaks to Job. and says to Job, have you entered 00:11:30.029 --> 00:11:33.330 the storehouses of snow, or have you seen the 00:11:33.330 --> 00:11:35.690 storehouses of hail, which I have reserved for 00:11:35.690 --> 00:11:38.450 the time of trouble, for the day of battle and 00:11:38.450 --> 00:11:41.110 war? Yes, our God is in charge of the weather. 00:11:42.350 --> 00:11:44.029 You know, they don't know what the weather's 00:11:44.029 --> 00:11:46.009 going to be. It seems like the more they predict 00:11:46.009 --> 00:11:48.950 it, the less they can actually know. But God 00:11:48.950 --> 00:11:52.009 does, because he has the storehouses of snow. 00:11:55.210 --> 00:11:57.750 He's in charge of the times and the seasons. 00:11:58.590 --> 00:12:02.169 And what comfort it is in this day when we look 00:12:02.169 --> 00:12:05.169 out on the news and we see this conflict between 00:12:05.169 --> 00:12:07.289 this world leader and that world leader and this 00:12:07.289 --> 00:12:09.110 world leader said this thing about that world 00:12:09.110 --> 00:12:11.309 leader and these two got in a spat with each 00:12:11.309 --> 00:12:14.269 other and there's this constant seeming turmoil 00:12:14.269 --> 00:12:17.169 in the western world and with the eastern world 00:12:17.169 --> 00:12:20.509 now. What comfort it is to know that the Lord 00:12:20.509 --> 00:12:23.870 of the universe is in charge of even the rulers 00:12:23.870 --> 00:12:28.639 of this world. He says, in Daniel chapter two 00:12:28.639 --> 00:12:32.860 verse 21, that he removes kings and sets up kings. 00:12:32.899 --> 00:12:35.840 He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to 00:12:35.840 --> 00:12:39.360 those who have understanding. Even the very decisions 00:12:39.360 --> 00:12:42.960 that are being made right now in Washington DC 00:12:42.960 --> 00:12:46.879 or Beijing or London or Moscow or Kiev or wherever 00:12:46.879 --> 00:12:52.039 are not happening apart from God's sovereign. 00:12:52.930 --> 00:12:57.169 Design, the King's heart, Proverbs 21, is a stream 00:12:57.169 --> 00:13:00.090 of water in the hands of the Lord. He turns it 00:13:00.090 --> 00:13:05.570 wherever He will. Yes, God is in charge over 00:13:05.570 --> 00:13:09.350 the great ones and the little ones, even over 00:13:09.350 --> 00:13:12.850 calamity. And I think this is the hardest thing 00:13:12.850 --> 00:13:16.720 for us, isn't it? When we think about disaster, 00:13:16.960 --> 00:13:19.000 when we think about pain, when we think about 00:13:19.000 --> 00:13:24.440 evil, it is so hard sometimes for us because 00:13:24.440 --> 00:13:29.059 we continue to ask why. Sometimes the Lord just 00:13:29.059 --> 00:13:36.340 simply says it is so. Trust me. Amos 3 verse 00:13:36.340 --> 00:13:39.139 6, the trumpet is blown in a city and the people 00:13:39.139 --> 00:13:42.990 are not afraid. Does disaster come to a city 00:13:42.990 --> 00:13:46.230 unless the Lord has done it? Yes, God is in charge 00:13:46.230 --> 00:13:49.250 of the hurricanes, the earthquakes, the natural 00:13:49.250 --> 00:13:55.649 calamities. And as hard as it is and as incomplete 00:13:55.649 --> 00:14:01.710 as our knowledge is of evil, God is even at work 00:14:01.710 --> 00:14:07.850 ordering evil for the good of His people. overruling 00:14:07.850 --> 00:14:12.330 it, using it, directing it, disposing of evil 00:14:12.330 --> 00:14:18.889 forces for his glory and our good. Study the 00:14:18.889 --> 00:14:22.309 life of Joseph. Oh, study the life of Joseph 00:14:22.309 --> 00:14:26.370 the next time it seems like you are in a mess 00:14:26.370 --> 00:14:29.570 or in a pit that you'll never get out of. For 00:14:29.570 --> 00:14:33.090 he was in a pit, and then he was in another pit, 00:14:33.490 --> 00:14:37.039 and he was forgotten. Abandoned, given up for 00:14:37.039 --> 00:14:40.080 dead. So many things happened to him and his 00:14:40.080 --> 00:14:43.000 brothers knew that he had been wronged by them. 00:14:43.019 --> 00:14:45.600 They had wronged him so much and they were afraid 00:14:45.600 --> 00:14:48.159 towards the end of Joseph's story that he might 00:14:48.159 --> 00:14:51.159 do something to them for all the wrong that they 00:14:51.159 --> 00:14:53.899 had done to him. And how does he summarize it? 00:14:53.940 --> 00:14:56.700 Well, Joseph knows that God was at work. God 00:14:56.700 --> 00:14:59.860 was at work even in the evil that they intended 00:14:59.860 --> 00:15:04.360 towards him. God meant it. Genesis 50. Verse 00:15:04.360 --> 00:15:09.139 20, God meant it for good. Not even the demons 00:15:09.139 --> 00:15:14.399 escape God's sovereign control. Not even Satan 00:15:14.399 --> 00:15:20.220 is outside of his perfect plan. You remember 00:15:20.220 --> 00:15:24.580 when Satan came to Job or Satan came to the Lord 00:15:24.580 --> 00:15:28.179 seeking to afflict Job. Throughout that story, 00:15:28.179 --> 00:15:31.120 Satan is not allowed to go any further than God 00:15:31.120 --> 00:15:39.399 wills for God's purpose in Job's life. Even God 00:15:39.399 --> 00:15:43.600 sends these evil spirits into the prophets in 00:15:43.600 --> 00:15:48.330 1 Kings chapter 20 verse 22 through 23. I don't 00:15:48.330 --> 00:15:51.370 know how to explain all of that other than the 00:15:51.370 --> 00:15:53.990 scripture says it. You can look that passage 00:15:53.990 --> 00:15:56.889 up, but you have to see and you have to know 00:15:56.889 --> 00:16:01.830 that God was working out good ends through his 00:16:01.830 --> 00:16:05.629 glorious and perfect means, yet without sin, 00:16:06.049 --> 00:16:08.669 because God cannot sin, God cannot lie, God can't 00:16:08.669 --> 00:16:12.289 tempt anyone. Still, he was sovereignly in charge 00:16:12.289 --> 00:16:15.970 of the evil spirits using even their intentions. 00:16:16.490 --> 00:16:23.149 for his glorious ends. I think understanding 00:16:23.149 --> 00:16:31.909 God's providence in evil is best understood and 00:16:31.909 --> 00:16:34.769 best accepted, maybe not understood, but accepted 00:16:34.769 --> 00:16:37.070 when we look at the greatest evil ever perpetrated. 00:16:37.309 --> 00:16:39.250 And I want us to look at that together. So let's 00:16:39.250 --> 00:16:43.129 turn together to Acts chapter four, verse 27 00:16:43.129 --> 00:16:47.179 and 28. We're covering a lot of ground tonight, 00:16:47.240 --> 00:16:53.919 so we're flying at the speed of an SR -71 at 00:16:53.919 --> 00:16:57.740 about 60 ,000 feet, if you're a military type, 00:16:58.299 --> 00:17:01.139 but this is good for us because we are getting 00:17:01.139 --> 00:17:05.940 a bird's eye view of how God providentially is 00:17:05.940 --> 00:17:10.599 at work in all things. Acts chapter four, verse 00:17:10.599 --> 00:17:23.430 27 through 28. This is the apostles, they're 00:17:23.430 --> 00:17:27.369 summarizing what happened when Jesus was crucified. 00:17:27.849 --> 00:17:32.289 What was actually going on? Where was God? What 00:17:32.289 --> 00:17:35.250 was man's responsibility? How do we make sense? 00:17:36.470 --> 00:17:40.269 How did the apostles help the Jews to make sense 00:17:40.269 --> 00:17:42.329 of what happened there? Well, listen to what 00:17:42.329 --> 00:17:45.789 they say here. For truly, in this city, there 00:17:45.789 --> 00:17:48.740 were gathered. together against your holy servant 00:17:48.740 --> 00:17:52.079 Jesus whom you anointed both Herod and Pontius 00:17:52.079 --> 00:17:54.859 Pilate along with the Gentiles and the peoples 00:17:54.859 --> 00:18:00.539 of Israel to do whatever your hand had predestined 00:18:00.539 --> 00:18:08.059 to take place and so in that summary statement 00:18:08.059 --> 00:18:13.859 even the very wicked actions of Pontius Pilate 00:18:13.859 --> 00:18:16.700 and here let's not think for a moment that Herod 00:18:16.700 --> 00:18:19.880 and Pontius Pilate were acting righteously. No, 00:18:19.920 --> 00:18:22.559 theirs was the height of wickedness because they 00:18:22.559 --> 00:18:27.160 put to death the least deserving of death. They 00:18:27.160 --> 00:18:31.000 put to death the innocent Lord of glory. This 00:18:31.000 --> 00:18:35.559 is the worst crime ever committed. This is the 00:18:35.559 --> 00:18:39.339 greatest injustice ever done and God is the one 00:18:39.339 --> 00:18:44.339 who predestined it. God is absolutely in charge 00:18:44.339 --> 00:18:49.880 even over the worst of evil sometimes that doesn't 00:18:49.880 --> 00:18:53.960 satisfy our intellectual curiosity yet the Bible 00:18:53.960 --> 00:18:58.940 states it and so we must rejoice in it that God 00:18:58.940 --> 00:19:03.200 is in charge in all things he works all things 00:19:03.200 --> 00:19:06.960 after the counsel of his will he's at work in 00:19:06.960 --> 00:19:11.759 all things and he's working them for our good 00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:15.000 and he's working them after the counsel of his 00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:19.029 will It's good to know that our God is not capricious. 00:19:19.150 --> 00:19:22.470 It's good to know that our God takes counsel 00:19:22.470 --> 00:19:28.769 in himself and that he has a will that will be 00:19:28.769 --> 00:19:32.970 accomplished. His thoughts are not our thoughts. 00:19:33.529 --> 00:19:37.769 He is most holy, wise, and pure. He cannot lie. 00:19:37.829 --> 00:19:40.849 He cannot sin. He does not change his mind. Isn't 00:19:40.849 --> 00:19:43.170 it good to know that your Lord doesn't change 00:19:43.170 --> 00:19:47.730 his mind? He has a preconceived plan that he 00:19:47.730 --> 00:19:52.990 works out. Yes, man is responsible for his sin. 00:19:53.650 --> 00:19:56.130 Those things are held in tension in scripture, 00:19:56.470 --> 00:20:00.170 but God is governing this world totally and completely 00:20:00.170 --> 00:20:04.289 in a way that is suitable and doesn't require 00:20:04.289 --> 00:20:07.849 any outside influence because it's according 00:20:07.849 --> 00:20:12.650 to the counsel of his will. His will that's perfect, 00:20:12.890 --> 00:20:18.859 powerful, loving. holy and governs all His creatures 00:20:18.859 --> 00:20:23.119 and all their actions. He calls us to pray, He 00:20:23.119 --> 00:20:26.140 calls us to plead with Him, but He doesn't need 00:20:26.140 --> 00:20:31.539 our advice. He doesn't need our advice, no. He's 00:20:31.539 --> 00:20:35.099 going to carry out His plan perfectly from the 00:20:35.099 --> 00:20:38.339 sparrow that falls from the tree out there to 00:20:38.339 --> 00:20:45.789 the steps you take tomorrow morning. And may 00:20:45.789 --> 00:20:49.430 it encourage you, may it encourage you to know 00:20:49.430 --> 00:20:52.769 that as He is working all things after the counsel 00:20:52.769 --> 00:20:57.029 of His will, He is making all things beautiful 00:20:57.029 --> 00:21:00.690 in His time. Remember this grand story of redemption, 00:21:01.470 --> 00:21:03.069 that in the beginning there was a garden and 00:21:03.069 --> 00:21:06.710 there was man, and there was perfect communion 00:21:06.710 --> 00:21:11.049 with God, and then man fell into sin and everything 00:21:11.049 --> 00:21:15.210 went bad. And the rest of the story is how God, 00:21:15.549 --> 00:21:18.549 through a Redeemer, would put all things to right 00:21:18.549 --> 00:21:22.069 and bring His people into a renewed creation, 00:21:22.410 --> 00:21:26.130 into a garden city where things would be perfect 00:21:26.130 --> 00:21:30.190 without the possibility of falling or sinning 00:21:30.190 --> 00:21:34.609 again. That is the great goal for which God orders 00:21:34.609 --> 00:21:38.730 all things. He is not capricious. He is not whimsical. 00:21:38.970 --> 00:21:42.349 He has a purpose and a plan to make all things 00:21:42.349 --> 00:21:46.609 beautiful in His time and in your life as well, 00:21:46.930 --> 00:21:50.349 because you're part of that plan. His plans are 00:21:50.349 --> 00:21:55.259 for good. to prosper his people, to give them 00:21:55.259 --> 00:21:57.059 a hope and a future. Well, what does that future 00:21:57.059 --> 00:21:58.900 look like? Well, you see a little bit of that 00:21:58.900 --> 00:22:01.740 picture in verse 12. He is working all things. 00:22:01.799 --> 00:22:04.460 Let's look at verse 12. Back in, we've been on 00:22:04.460 --> 00:22:05.859 a little bit of a journey through the scriptures. 00:22:05.940 --> 00:22:09.000 Let's go back to Ephesians chapter one, verse 00:22:09.000 --> 00:22:15.380 12. Ephesians 1, 12. Who works all things according 00:22:15.380 --> 00:22:18.980 to the counsel of his will, verse 12, so that 00:22:18.980 --> 00:22:22.359 we who were the first to hope in Christ, might 00:22:22.359 --> 00:22:26.819 be to the praise of His glory. Ah, there's the 00:22:26.819 --> 00:22:31.220 goal with which He is ordering all things for 00:22:31.220 --> 00:22:34.640 the life of the Ephesians. There's the goal for 00:22:34.640 --> 00:22:37.079 which He is ordering all things in your life 00:22:37.079 --> 00:22:41.519 and in my life. For those who were the first 00:22:41.519 --> 00:22:46.980 to hope in Christ. See how He is working for 00:22:46.980 --> 00:22:51.410 our greatest good. He's provided a certainty 00:22:51.410 --> 00:22:55.829 of hope and secured that hope for you in Christ 00:22:55.829 --> 00:22:59.390 with His own blood so that now, Paul would say 00:22:59.390 --> 00:23:02.150 of you, you are seated in the heavenly places 00:23:02.150 --> 00:23:04.450 in Christ Jesus. You may be seated in these pews, 00:23:04.890 --> 00:23:07.609 but your life is also anchored in the throne 00:23:07.609 --> 00:23:13.039 room of the King. You've been predestined. You've 00:23:13.039 --> 00:23:15.339 been chosen before the foundation of the world 00:23:15.339 --> 00:23:18.460 your salvation story from the beginning to the 00:23:18.460 --> 00:23:23.240 end is decreed by God and all of the details 00:23:23.240 --> 00:23:28.339 That will get you from grace to glory all of 00:23:28.339 --> 00:23:31.460 those details. He's working out Right here right 00:23:31.460 --> 00:23:33.759 now because he's the one who orders your steps 00:23:33.759 --> 00:23:37.420 and in him you live and move and have your being 00:23:37.420 --> 00:23:41.789 Do not think tonight that you exist apart from 00:23:41.789 --> 00:23:48.670 His sovereign, loving, tender care. For we who 00:23:48.670 --> 00:23:50.970 are the first to hope in Christ might be, and 00:23:50.970 --> 00:23:53.529 here is the great goal to the praise of His glory. 00:23:53.890 --> 00:23:57.029 You see why He's doing what He is doing so that 00:23:57.029 --> 00:24:01.589 you would be an object of His glory. What higher 00:24:01.589 --> 00:24:05.210 standing, what greater delight could you have 00:24:05.210 --> 00:24:09.390 than to be an object of the King's glory? to 00:24:09.390 --> 00:24:13.230 give Him glory. What higher privilege could it 00:24:13.230 --> 00:24:16.670 be than to be a child of God called to hope in 00:24:16.670 --> 00:24:21.809 Him and called to praise Him forever? What a 00:24:21.809 --> 00:24:27.230 glorious thing it is to be a Christian. You exist 00:24:27.230 --> 00:24:32.589 as the apple of His eye, to be a star in His 00:24:32.589 --> 00:24:37.250 crown, to be a treasure to the praise of His 00:24:37.250 --> 00:24:41.440 glory. And that's why He's working all things, 00:24:42.000 --> 00:24:46.039 to bring you home, to be there with Him, to glory 00:24:46.039 --> 00:24:51.000 in Him, to enjoy Him forever and evermore. Think 00:24:51.000 --> 00:24:52.920 of that greatest glory you've enjoyed on earth, 00:24:53.299 --> 00:24:56.200 whether it was your honeymoon, or the day you 00:24:56.200 --> 00:24:58.680 graduated from something, or the time you got 00:24:58.680 --> 00:25:01.339 that car, or that promotion, or whatever that 00:25:01.339 --> 00:25:04.180 greatest joy is, it doesn't even compare, it 00:25:04.180 --> 00:25:07.900 doesn't begin to compare to the endless joy and 00:25:07.900 --> 00:25:11.200 delight that we were made for as we glory in 00:25:11.200 --> 00:25:14.460 Him and He delights in us. That's the end for 00:25:14.460 --> 00:25:16.640 which God is working all things according to 00:25:16.640 --> 00:25:19.140 the counsel of His will so that you and I would 00:25:19.140 --> 00:25:22.240 exist and be forever to the praise of His glory. 00:25:23.579 --> 00:25:25.500 And so that's what God is doing in your life 00:25:25.500 --> 00:25:28.619 right now. I don't know specifically what He's 00:25:28.619 --> 00:25:31.940 doing in your stories and those things are part 00:25:31.940 --> 00:25:34.819 of His secret counsel, Ecclesiastes chapter seven. 00:25:35.610 --> 00:25:39.609 says that man doesn't know what is to be, but 00:25:39.609 --> 00:25:43.470 there's still nothing left to chance. And though 00:25:43.470 --> 00:25:49.029 we do not know exactly what is next, we know, 00:25:49.329 --> 00:25:52.529 no matter what, what God is doing in what is 00:25:52.529 --> 00:25:56.710 next. He is working out His glorious purpose 00:25:56.710 --> 00:25:59.950 for your salvation so that you would be a treasure 00:25:59.950 --> 00:26:02.549 to the praise of His glory. And so what is that? 00:26:02.670 --> 00:26:04.769 do for us. Where does that leave us tonight? 00:26:06.109 --> 00:26:09.369 Tonight is I leave you, but tonight is the Lord 00:26:09.369 --> 00:26:14.190 doesn't leave you. It leaves us in a place where 00:26:14.190 --> 00:26:19.029 we once again can trust Him. If He really is 00:26:19.029 --> 00:26:21.309 working for this great and glorious end of our 00:26:21.309 --> 00:26:23.630 salvation, of our glory and joy and Him forever, 00:26:24.890 --> 00:26:30.769 then we really can trust Him all the way. We 00:26:30.769 --> 00:26:33.970 can't know the future, but we know that God is 00:26:33.970 --> 00:26:39.130 still at work bringing all things together for 00:26:39.130 --> 00:26:43.390 our salvation. So rejoice in that. We know that 00:26:43.390 --> 00:26:46.910 he has the best in store for us. Rejoice in that. 00:26:48.369 --> 00:26:51.089 He's destined us for holiness. Let's rejoice 00:26:51.089 --> 00:26:55.509 in that. His word and his mighty acts prove his 00:26:55.509 --> 00:26:59.589 utter reliability so we can trust him for our 00:26:59.589 --> 00:27:02.730 tomorrows because God has been our shepherd. 00:27:02.910 --> 00:27:05.250 Hasn't He been your shepherd all your life long? 00:27:06.250 --> 00:27:10.069 All the way? Hasn't your Savior led you? And 00:27:10.069 --> 00:27:13.250 because He's been faithful all the way to you 00:27:13.250 --> 00:27:15.029 and because He's been faithful to give you His 00:27:15.029 --> 00:27:18.609 greatest gift, His only Son, can't you trust 00:27:18.609 --> 00:27:21.650 that He will give you every other little thing 00:27:21.650 --> 00:27:26.869 that you need on Monday morning? Calls us to 00:27:26.869 --> 00:27:30.140 trust. And it calls us simply to praise him for 00:27:30.140 --> 00:27:34.079 his glorious grace. John Flavel says, Providence 00:27:34.079 --> 00:27:36.680 is like a curious piece of tap, I want you to 00:27:36.680 --> 00:27:38.220 listen to this, because this is a beautiful quote. 00:27:39.519 --> 00:27:42.259 Providence is like a curious piece of tapestry 00:27:42.259 --> 00:27:47.480 made of a thousand shreds, which single appear 00:27:47.480 --> 00:27:51.920 useless, but put together they represent a beautiful 00:27:51.920 --> 00:27:56.920 history to the eye. We don't know. Looking at 00:27:56.920 --> 00:27:59.099 all the threads of our life, how things fit together. 00:27:59.400 --> 00:28:02.420 But once God has done his handiwork, there is 00:28:02.420 --> 00:28:05.680 something beautiful to the praise of his glory. 00:28:08.019 --> 00:28:10.880 So painful at times and sometimes it's so hard 00:28:10.880 --> 00:28:13.420 to praise him in the midst of the sorrows and 00:28:13.420 --> 00:28:17.700 the tragedies. But he is the God of our triumphs 00:28:17.700 --> 00:28:20.960 and our joys as well as our tragedies and our 00:28:20.960 --> 00:28:25.039 sorrows. And not one person, not one power, not 00:28:25.039 --> 00:28:28.759 one event is left outside of his control, his 00:28:28.759 --> 00:28:33.200 care, his disposition and direction. His providence 00:28:33.200 --> 00:28:38.339 sustains and guides our every breath. He's working 00:28:38.339 --> 00:28:41.539 in us to make us like his son and to bring us 00:28:41.539 --> 00:28:45.180 home to be with him. That's something to sing 00:28:45.180 --> 00:28:49.579 about. That's something to rejoice in. So let's 00:28:49.579 --> 00:28:54.089 praise God. Because He gives you Himself and 00:28:54.089 --> 00:28:57.569 right now, right now where you are, He is working 00:28:57.569 --> 00:29:01.509 everything to accomplish His greatest good in 00:29:01.509 --> 00:29:03.609 your life. Let's pray.