Recently I was talking with a good friend about the whole concept of God's Sovereignty and it got me thinking. I wondered what you guys thought. So read this and tell me what you think.

God's Sovereignty means His authority over all of creation (like a "king" or a "sovereign"). My friend was telling me about a time when someone close to him was in the hospital. He was praying for them to pull through as a man next to him was praying for their loved one to pull through as well. Later on, my friend got the news that his loved one was going to make it. Shortly (like minutes) after that, the other guy found out that his loved one was not going to make it. They were going to die. Why did one get to live and the other die? The Sovereignty of God.

At some point, God determined that it was best for one person to live and not the other. In a sense this is the most normal thing in the world. You see, even though my friend's loved one made it, they are not going to "make it" forever. Someday, they are going to die (unless Jesus comes back). The question here isn't "Why did one die and one live." We are all going to die and so what does it really matter when or how? The question to me was, "How did God decide?"

What leads God to decide the things He does? On what basis does He make His decisions? As I thought this through, I had a couple of thoughts.

Isaiah 46:10 says, "I make known the end from the begining, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please."

1) God is working with a far bigger picture than I am. He not only deals with what we see now, but also what has been before and what will come next. He sees the present, the past and the future equally clearly. Obviously then, He sees things I cannot possibly know (and that He is under no obligation to reveal to me, although sometimes He will). This knowledge must be a factor.

2) God has a purpose. There is a reason behind everything that He ever does. He is moving all creation and all history toward a goal. That plan is good (because He is good). So then, the decisions He makes are always strategic. This strategy must be a factor.

3) God has the power. He will do all that He pleases. There is no one who can stop Him or stand up to Him. His power must also be a factor.

Put all this together and what we end up with is a fundamentally good, all powerful God, who knows everything and is moving history toward something. I can't prentend to understand all of his decisions. Frankly, it would be the ultimate arrogance to question any of His decisions. Do I think I know better than the Being I just described? Am I going to point something out to Him that He didn't know? Am I going to think of something He didn't? DUH! Of course not.

So, I guess His sovereignty isn't scary or mean but really comforting. Because everything that happens is moving us forward towards His good purposes. I know that we are waging a war with the forces of Darkness, and that God has (for some reason) let people choose sides. Furthermore, not everyone will choose His. I also know that war means casualties and pain. But I also know how this war turns out. I know that God's purposes cannot be stopped. And I know that I am on the side that wins.

And that is comforting. Even when I don't understand every little decision. I know the trend and I can trust my God.