02 Providence: God Cares about You
Sermon Outline
- The World is not Fatalistic or Mechanistic
- Providence defined
- Good and in control
- Good defined (Gen 50:20, Dt 8:7, Ps 119:38, 73:1, 73:28, 84:11, Mk 10:18)
- Control illustrated
- In earthly matters, we plan to build and then plan to maintain the building.
- David did this with the Temple (1Chr 22-27)
- So also God does the same in his glorious creation (2Chr 20:6, 1Ti 6:15, Rev 17:14, 19:16, Ps 2:2-4) (Vandergroe, Vol 1, 151)
- God’s providence includes:
- Very small matters (Mt 6:26, 10:29-30),
- Chance events (Prov 16:33, Acts 8:26-39, Jn 4, Gen 24)
- Choices of men (Exod 11:3, Prov 21:1, 19:21)
- Questions asked (Beeke PT 169)
- How does God’s providence relate to the laws of nature? (Ps 136:25, 147:8-9, Mt 6:30-32)
- Laws of Nature have to do with Cause and Effect, consistency.
- Yet notice what the Word says about things like the weather – natural events: (Ps 147:8, Ex 9:23, Lev 26:4)
- Vern Poythress in his Work Redeeming Science (p18,21) reminds us that Natural Laws aren’t independent of God.
- How does God’s providence relate to the sins of men? See also Vandergroe 162
- God does not make anyone sin, we choose sin, (Jam 1:13-15)
- God Permits it (Psa 81:11-12)
- God Restricts it (Gen 20:6)
- God doesn’t let sin go any further than will fulfill his beneficial plan for his people.
- God Governs it (Rom 9:17, Gen 50:20)
- How can God’s providence permit the prosperity of the wicked? (Mt 5:45, Eccl 8;12-13, 1Tim 5:24, Rom 14:12)
- We are all wicked.
- Some wicked people, are adept at working the world systems, others aren’t.
- Remember that true prosperity has nothing to do with this world and the things of this world.
- Why do the righteous suffer alongside the wicked? (Eccl 9:2, Job 1:12, 2:6, Heb 5:8)
- There are 4 reasons shy the righteous suffer along with the wicked:
- First – There is a Spiritual Battle happening
- Second – We live in a fallen world with sickness and disease and death
- There are 4 reasons shy the righteous suffer along with the wicked:
- Third – We live in a fallen world where sinners do things and those things affect others.
- Fourth – We ourselves are sinners.
- In earthly matters, we plan to build and then plan to maintain the building.
- Application: We can be patient in adversity and thankful in prosperity (Vandergroe 167) (John 16:33, Acts 14:22)
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