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The Gospel Observer
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to
observe all that I commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to
the end of the age" (Matt. 28:19,20).
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May 2, 1990
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Contents:
1) The Providence of God (Tom Edwards)
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The Providence of God
by Tom Edwards
Though through our own wisdom, we cannot see even one minute into the
future, God has the stupendous ability to do so by His great
omniscience; and this He has proven through Bible prophecy itself. It
is
awesome to realize of this amazing attribute of God as seen throughout
the pages of Divine inspiration. For example, Jeremiah 29:10, 14 reads:
"For thus says the Lord, `When seventy years have been completed for
Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you
back to this place...And I will be found by you,' declares the Lord,
`and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the
nations and from all the places where I have driven you,' declares the
Lord, `and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you
into exile."' Did God keep His word? As always -- yes.
Israel's release from Babylonian bondage was granted seventy years
after Judah had been taken into captivity. It was Cyrus king of Persia
who had issued the decree that gave all of Israel permission to return
to their homeland and rebuild it, if they so desired (Ezra
1:1-3). Though the land in which these Jewish people dwelt had
been filled with many heathen beliefs and numerous inhabitants who did
not belong to God, the Lord was still able to bring about His plan to
fulfill this appointed liberation for His people.
Equally interesting is God's promise to King Hezekiah in which He had
guaranteed this dying man fifteen more years to live -- not three and a
half, five, eight, or nine, but fifteen years (2 Kings 20:1-22).
It would seem that many things could have possibly happened to Hezekiah
during this time, such as being fatally wounded in battle, assassinated
while ruling, having an accidental death, or developing a sickness that
would end his life, etc. But, nevertheless, God in His providence was
able to grant unto Hezekiah the amounted time that He had promised him.
Joseph is a well-known Bible character who understood of God's
providential care and was able to recognize it in his own life, even
when the circumstances had turned so harshly against him. After his
betrayal by his own jealous brothers in which they sold him as a slave
to some Ishmaelites going to Egypt; and after his two-year imprisonment
due to a false accusation of Potiphar's wife, Joseph could still see
all of this as being part of God's plan for the ultimate benefit of
many others. During the time of the famine when Joseph had finally
revealed himself to his siblings, he told them to "not be grieved or
angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before
you to preserve life" (Gen. 45:5). Though people generally feel more
prone to complain and question why the adversities of life befall them,
Joseph could see the hand of God carefully and wisely moving him as a
humble pawn on the Lord's great chessboard of life and knew he was
being positioned as a part in God's well-thought-out plan. Because of
Joseph's being in Egypt, a great multitude was saved from the
seven-year famine. God's providence cannot be thwarted by man:
no matter how menacing the intent of others, the Lord will still be
able to accomplish His objective. To his brothers, Joseph had said,
"...you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to
bring about the present result, to preserve many people alive" (Gen.
50:20).
Does not the story of Joseph remind you of the jealousy and hatred that
nailed Jesus to the cross? He, too, was treated unjustly by wicked men
whose abuse was ultimately manifested by their crucifying Him.
Certainly, they were not striving to help God fulfill His will, yet
that is exactly what resulted. For it was God's predetermined plan for
Jesus to die for the sins of the world, thus making the atonement that
could ransom every transgressor from the bondage of iniquity (Acts
2:23).
It's also interesting to note the great multitudes that made up heathen
nations, such as the Assyrians, whom God was still able to use, by His
providence, in order to bring about His purpose. It was in 721 B.C.
when Assyria had taken the Northern Kingdom of Israel into captivity
because of their sins. The book of Isaiah shows God referring to this
heathen nation as "the rod of My anger," which indicates that they had
become the Lord's instrument for afflicting His wrath upon His wayward
people. Isaiah 10:5-7 reads: "Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger and
the staff in whose hands is My indignation. I send it against a godless
nation and commission it against the people of My fury to capture booty
and to seize plunder, and to trample them down like mud in the streets.
Yet it does not so intend nor does it plan so in its heart, but rather
it is its purpose to destroy, and to cut off many nations." Notice
especially this last section: it was not Assyria's intention to attack
Israel in conjunction with fulfilling the Lord's will, but it did so
simply because it was a nation that had been given over to brutally
destroying other peoples.
Years later in 606 B.C., the heathen nation of Babylon took the
Southern Kingdom of Judah into captivity because of their rebellion
towards God. Again, this demonstrates God's use of a godless nation in
order to carry out part of His scheme.
These captivities, as well as Israel's liberation from bondage, were
prophesied many years before their actual occurrences. More remarkable,
however, than the mere predictions, is the mind-boggling way in which
God was able to bring them to pass by His providential usage of heathen
people; for these people were often oblivious to the fact that they
were being used instrumentally by the Lord toward the fulfilling of His
will.
During the time of the captivity, Haman had become so angered with the
Jewish people that he requested of the king that they be put to death.
On learning of this, Mordecai had sent word to his cousin Esther to
intercede on behalf of God's people and concluded by saying, "Do not
imagine that you in the king's palace can escape any more than all the
Jews. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance
will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father's
house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty
for such a time as this" (Esther 4:13,14)? The allusion Mordecai makes
is to the providence of God. He feels that perhaps that is the very
reason why Esther had superseded the former queen, Vashti,
and had been brought into the king's palace. By her request to
the king, the Jewish people had been spared.
The providence of God shows that the Lord can intervene in the affairs
of mankind without having to necessarily work a miracle. Experiencing
highly coincidental occurrences can often cause us to wonder about
God's providential care in our lives, but probably more often are the
times in which we had not been aware that God in His providence had us
playing an important role: it might have been just a few gentle words
or a small, kind deed that had been the need of the
moment.
One thing the providence of God cannot do, however, is save a person
who does not want to be saved. Though it is God's desire for all people
to come to repentance and none perish (2 Peter 3:9), still man must
meet the necessary conditions before salvation can result.
How will you be used in the providence of God? Let us not forget that
the brothers of Joseph and even the ones who had nailed Jesus to the
cross were actually fulfilling a role in God's scheme of
redemption. The wickedness they committed, however, they did by
their own will and were certainly not prompted or caused in any way by
the Lord to act so corruptly. The Bible teaches that God does not tempt
people to do wrong (James 1:13); but, rather, a person commits sin by
his own volition (James 1:14,15). Wouldn't you rather be used in the
Lord's providence as a faithful follower of Christ striving to fulfill
the gospel plan than to be on the same team as those who go through
life continually rejecting God? While living here below, you can have
it
either way, but only one way leads to heaven above. Which will
you choose?
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The Steps That Lead to Eternal Salvation
1) Hear the gospel,
for that is how faith comes (Rom. 10:17; John 20:30,31).
2) Believe in the
deity of Christ (John 8:24; John 3:18).
3) Repent of sins
(Luke 13:5; Acts 17:30).
4) Confess faith in Christ
(Rom. 10:9,10; Acts 8:36-38).
5) Be baptized in water
for the remission of sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4;
Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet. 3:21).
6) Continue in the faith;
for,
if
not,
salvation
can be lost (Heb. 10:36-39; Rev. 2:10; 2 Pet.
2:20-22).
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First published for the Tri-state church of Christ in Ashland,
Kentucky, at 713 13th Street.
evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards
tedwards1109@gmail.com
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