What is God’s Sovereignty?
In those few weeks between the end of fall and the beginning of winter, nature always begins to shift to prepare for the coming months of cold. The leaves fall from trees like a rainstorm and layer the ground. More days are covered with a gray and cloudy sky as chilled mist falls. And the birds migrate south to avoid the harsh winter.
Where I live, the black crows cover nearly every yard, every power line, and every bare tree you pass by during these chilly months. As they fly by overhead, it seems like the entire sky is covered in small black specks. For us, they are immeasurable. No one could possibly keep track of every single crow that flies by. Yet, Matthew 10:29 says that not even one bird falls to the ground without God’s consent or knowledge.
This is the expanse of God’s sovereignty. Not even the smallest detail of God’s creation is beyond His power and knowledge. And if it is true that He permits each individual crow to fly among the immeasurable sky, then He surely is in control of your life, too. So, let’s spend some time learning more about this incredible attribute of God.
God’s Sovereignty
A basic definition of God’s sovereignty is that God is in complete control over all the universe and therefore governs over all things. Another way to think about sovereignty is to think about God’s lordship over all creation. He is the King of Kings, and He therefore rules over all things in heaven and on earth. When thinking about God’s unimaginable power over all things, it might be tempting to think of Him as a domineering boss who controls and forces His employees to do everything He demands. Or you may even think of Him like an emotionless engine that simply runs the mindless machine of the universe. Neither of these views are true about God.
Though God is sovereign, He is also personable. His sovereignty not only means that He controls all of creation, but He also knows all of creation. Matthew 10:29–30 goes on to say that “even the hairs of your head have all been counted.” David echoes this sentiment in Psalm 139 when he says that there is not a single place that he could go where the Lord would not find him—would not know him. The Lord controls all of the universe, yet He knows the smallest detail of your life and the deepest emotion of your heart.
Ephesians 1:3–14 provides one of the most expansive discussions on God’s sovereignty in the Bible. In these verses, we learn that the Lord knew us all even before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4); that Christ’s death was predetermined for the restoration of God’s people (Ephesians 1:9–10); and that everything in all of Creation works together for His good purpose and glory (Ephesians 1:11–12).
So, in light of our God who is absolutely sovereign, powerful, and all-knowing, how do humans fit into His lordship in this world?
How Should We Respond to God’s Sovereignty?
In one of his sermons, Charles Spurgeon, the famous English preacher and theologian said, “There is no attribute of God more comforting to his children than the doctrine of Divine Sovereignty. Under the most adverse circumstances, in the most severe troubles, they believe that Sovereignty hath ordained their afflictions, that Sovereignty overrules them, and that Sovereignty will sanctify them all.”
In other words, God’s sovereignty is what gives you true rest. When the unspeakable happens, there is perhaps no greater comfort than knowing that God is in control of not only your life but of this entire world. Nothing happens in this world outside of His knowledge, but furthermore, nothing happens in this world outside of His control or permission.
This may puzzle us sometimes. We often can’t imagine that our good and perfect God could permit suffering. The book of Job—a righteous man who suffered incredibly—addresses this tension we feel at the knowledge of God’s sovereignty head-on. But what we learn from the story of Job is that we don’t always need to know why God allowed something bad to happen—we just need to remember who God is. And what do we know about God? He is good. He is gracious. He is compassionate. And He is sovereign over all.
So, how is that comforting? We can be comforted knowing that there is nothing we could do to hinder God’s control over our lives and this world. Furthermore, nothing can be done to you that is beyond God’s control. Our wills are not more powerful than God’s. If they were, He would not be God. Even though what you’re going through might be hard, it doesn’t make God any less good or in control of your life. Through His sovereignty, we learn that we can trust Him, that we can depend on Him, and that we can find comfort in His lordship. Only through His sovereignty can we truly learn how to lie our heads down at the end of the day. And I pray that in God’s sovereignty, you would be able to find true rest.
Verses About God’s Sovereignty
Colossians 1:16–17
“For everything was created by him,
in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions
or rulers or authorities—
all things have been created through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and by him all things hold together.”
James 4:13–15
“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.’ Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes.
Instead, you should say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’”
Matthew 6:26–30
“Consider the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add one moment to his life span by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Observe how the wildflowers of the field grow: They don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these. If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t he do much more for you—you of little faith?”
Romans 13:1
“Let everyone submit to the governing authorities, since there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are instituted by God.”
Psalm 24:1
“The earth and everything in it,
the world and its inhabitants,
belong to the Lord;
for he laid its foundation on the seas
and established it on the rivers.”
1 Timothy 6:15
“God will bring this about in his own time. He is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords.”
Sources:
“Divine Sovereignty.” The Spurgeon Center, May 4, 1856.
Additional Resources for Learning About God’s Sovereignty:
