January 2020  by Sheologie

The God of All Control

R.C. Sproul wrote, “If there is one single molecule in this universe running around loose, totally free of God’s sovereignty, then we have no guarantee that a single promise of God will ever be fulfilled” (1).

God is in control of every single thing that happens in the world—even the worst thing that’s ever happened to you. Do you believe that? If you don’t, I believe you’re a practicing atheist, because for God to be God, He must be sovereign. Sovereignty simply means God controls everything, because He created everything.

The prophet Isaiah expounded on this theme in chapter 40 of his book, explaining how God is sovereign over places, princes, and people: “All nations before Him are as nothing, and they are counted by Him less than nothing” (v. 17). The UN currently recognizes over 190 nations, but to God, they’re all just a drop in the bucket.

In verses 22-23, Isaiah wrote, “It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers…. He brings the princes to nothing; He makes the judges of the earth useless.” All of history’s mightiest leaders—whether Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, Caesar Nero, or Stalin—are just blips on the screen to God.

Isaiah also described how God is sovereign over the sand, the sea, and the sky: “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, measured heaven with a span, and calculated the dust of the earth in a measure? Weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?” (v. 12). Speaking about the stars, in verse 26 he said that “[God] brings out their host by number; He calls them all by name, by the greatness of His might and the strength of His power; not one is missing.”

Did you know that the Milky Way is so big that if you counted all the stars in it at the rate of one star per second, it would take you several thousand years? And beyond the Milky Way are hundreds of billions more galaxies. Your God breathed out those stars and can measure the universe in the span of His hand. You think He’s in control of your life?

What’s amazing is that in the very next chapter of Isaiah, God said, “Fear not, for I am with you…. I will uphold you with My righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10). The same hand that holds the universe also cradles you. Your life may feel like it’s spinning out of control, but it’s not; He’s holding it together. He’s got you.

Isaiah 49:16 says that God has inscribed you—literally tattooed your name—on the palms of His hands. He counts the hairs of your head. He collects your tears in a bottle. The God who created and knows every star also created and knows you.

What’s stopping you from relinquishing control to Him today? When are you going to say, “You have a plan that’s bigger and better than mine; I surrender it all to You”? When are you going to stop looking down at your problems and start looking up at the Savior? Your pain is a pathway for God’s presence and a platform for His power. So stop fighting that pain and let the God of all control show Himself strong in the midst of it.

(1) R.C. Sproul, Chosen by God, Wheaton, IL, Tyndale, 1986, 26-27.