Dear Church Family,
On March 18 I wrote about Westminster Shorter Catechism Question 11. It asks and answers:
Q. What are God’s works of providence?
A. God’s works of providence are His most holy, wise and powerful preserving
and governing all His creatures, and all their actions.
Q27 of the Heidelberg Catechism on Providence has a similar statement. It follows with this question, “How does the knowledge of God’s creation and providence help us? Read slowly and joyfully this delightful and comforting answer:
“We can be patient when things go against us, thankful when things go well,
and for the future we can have good confidence in our faithful God and
Father that nothing will separate us from His love. All creatures are so completely
in His hand that without His will they can neither move nor be moved.
Kevin DeYoung writes about this help simply, “There are no accidents in your life. Every economic downturn, every phone call in the middle of the night, every oncology report has been sent to us from the God who sees all things, plans all things, and loves us more than we know. Whether it means the end of suffering or the extension of suffering, God in His providence is for us and not against us.” I have a hard time not adding multiple exclamation points after that!!! [ I could not resist ]
Part of the fruit of the Spirit is patience. Isaiah 40 reminds us that we can wait on the Lord knowing that He will restore us and give us strength. Noah waited 40 years for God to send rain. Joseph wondered what God was doing as he sat in prison for a crime he did not commit after earlier being sold into slavery by his brothers. Moses fled from living grandly as a prince in Egypt to 40 years as a shepherd. These heroes and many more waited patiently for the God of Providence while things were going against them. We can enjoy that same patience with godly confidence.
“In everything give thanks” [1 Thes. 5:18] has to be one of the hardest commands for us to follow and even believe God expects us to do. Yet we can be thankful at all times for we know by faith and the history of God’s providence that God is at work for His glory and our good. We can “Praise God from whom all blessings flow” 24/7 when we remember that all we have comes to us because of His grace. We deserve no good thing, but God’s blessings overflow to His people.
During this time of crisis we wondered what will happen in days, weeks, months and years to come. The virus has caused great fear. Dr. Anthony Fauci, who serves on the President’s advisory panel said a few days ago, “You don’t make the timeline, the virus makes the timeline.” From a fatalistic human viewpoint that makes some sense while providing only gloom and doom. The Bible counters with the fact that nothing can or will separate from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Where is your hope for the future? In a virus? Or in the holy God?
I trust your hope is in our faithful God. All things are in His hands – even viruses. Oh, and certainly by faith in Christ you are in His hands. There is no better place to be.
With thanks to Penelope Welch, I leave you with a link to a song by Elvis Presley that reminds us that we are to put our faith in “One Pair of Hands.” The key words are, “Those hands are strong, so when life goes wrong, Put your faith into one pair of hands.” You can sing along with Elvis at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ok044WkHeE
Pastor Gillikin