Sometimes in life you might be tempted to wonder if God is really in control. When we see tragedies unfold on the world scene, not to mention the trials of our own personal life, we can be tempted to despair. We might question God’s goodness, or we might question his power. If God is good, why doesn’t he change my circumstances? Or, is it because he doesn’t have the power to?
Regardless of what you might be facing, it probably pales in comparison to what Job endured in the Old Testament. He was a righteous and godly man, yet the Lord allowed him to be tested in numerous catastrophic ways. He lost his money. He lost all of his children. And eventually, he lost his health. Yet through it all his thoughts about God remained accurate. Though he may have questioned why some things happened, he never doubted who was really in control. In Job 42, he cried out to God saying, “I know that You can do all things, and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.” (Job 42:2 NASB)
Satan inflicted great harm upon Job, but Job knew, just as Scripture teaches, that Satan does nothing without a sovereign God allowing it. This might cause you to ask why God would allow evil things to occur. But once again the Bible teaches us by reminding us that God can even take things that are evil and use them for good. (see Romans 8:28)
The best example of this can be seen in the cross of Jesus Christ. Certainly everyone would agree that the public execution of an innocent, indeed a perfect man is evil. Yet the crucifixion was a part of God’s perfect plan to pay for sinners who would turn to him in repentance and faith. The Pharisees meant it for evil. The Romans meant it for evil. The Devil meant it for evil…..but GOD used it for good. And after all, it is HE and no other…who is really in control.
Have you come to the place in your life where you believe this? Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ in repentance and faith? He and no other, has the power to forgive sins and eternally save. He and no other can change your heart from dirty to clean. Because it is of him and no other that we can truly say: “no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.”