The Harmony of God’s Providence and its Uniform Designs

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

When God allows severe trials and afflictions come into our lives, as feeble human beings, they test our faith in God. Are trials and afflictions in fact  privileges of God’s children ? From the scriptures, it is clear that God is  always on the His throne and in control. He does what He purposes for His Glory.  He acts out of His sovereign will.   The redeemed belong to Christ, He bought them by His own blood. Everything that comes into our lives does not come by chance but is all a  manifestation of God’s fore knowledge and special care for his children, all them who loved God and are Christ’s redeemed.  Christ  promised that He will never leave His sheep. In our journey of life as sojourners through this earth , all providences come about for the good of those that are Christ’s. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

In this embedded clip  is a moving testimony of Brady, a young boy who was diagnosed with brain cancer at age of 10.  It was then God shined the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ into his heart.  He was transformed  and showed great joy through the 4 years of living  and suffering with this terminal illness. His testimony before all people who came into contact with him showed that he had a great hunger for God showing  much faith and joy in knowing that God was at work in him. Through it all, the testimony of his parents showed that their lives and that of their other two children were drawn much closer to God through the experience that Brady underwent. We may not have the answers now as to why God allowed experience such as this to come to Brady  but we can trust that such  seemingly sad experience worked for His purpose and for His Glory. God ensured that all things worked together for good for Brady and his family.

In Matthew Henry‘’s commentary on Rom 8:28:
The privilege of the saints, that all things work together for good to them, that is, all the providences of God that concern them. All that God performs he performs for them, Psalms 57:2. Their sins are not of his performing, therefore not intended here, though his permitting sin is made to work for their good, 2 Chron 32:31. But all the providences of God are theirs – merciful providences, afflicting providences, personal, public. They are all for good; perhaps for temporal good, as Joseph’s troubles; at least, for spiritual and eternal good. That is good for them which does their souls good. Either directly or indirectly, every providence has a tendency to the spiritual good of those that love God, breaking them off from sin, bringing them nearer to God, weaning them from the world, fitting them for heaven. Work together. They work, as physic works upon the body, various ways, according to the intention of the physician; but all for the patient’s good. They work together, as several ingredients in a medicine concur to answer the intention. God hath set the one over against the other (Ecc 7:14): sunergei, a very singular, with a noun plural, denoting the harmony of Providence and its uniform designs, all the wheels as one wheel, Eze 10:13. He worketh all things together for good; so some read it. It is not from any specific quality in the providences themselves, but from the power and grace of God working in, with, and by, these providences. All this we know – know it for a certainty, from the word of God, from our own experience, and from the experience of all the saints.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me. Psalms  57:2

God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.” 2 Chron 32:31

In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him. Ecc 7:14

Come, people of the Risen King

Come, people of the Risen King

Come, people of the Risen King,
Who delight to bring Him praise;
Come all and tune your hearts to sing
To the Morning Star of grace.
From the shifting shadows of the earth
We will lift our eyes to Him,
Where steady arms of mercy reach
To gather children in.

REFRAIN
Rejoice, Rejoice! Let every tongue rejoice!
One heart, one voice; O Church of Christ, rejoice!

Come, those whose joy is morning sun,
And those weeping through the night;
Come, those who tell of battles won,
And those struggling in the fight.
For His perfect love will never change,
And His mercies never cease,
But follow us through all our days
With the certain hope of peace.

Rejoice, Rejoice! Let every tongue rejoice!
One heart, one voice; O Church of Christ, rejoice!

Come, young and old from every land -
Men and women of the faith;
Come, those with full or empty hands -
Find the riches of His grace.
Over all the world, His people sing -
Shore to shore we hear them call
The Truth that cries through every age:
“Our God is all in all”!

Rejoice, Rejoice! Let every tongue rejoice!
One heart, one voice; O Church of Christ, rejoice!

Words and Music by Keith and Kristyn Getty and Stuart Townend
Copyright © 2008 Thankyou Music/ Copyright Control

Related Post: Sung by Kristyn Getty  Come, people of the Risen King

Christians Upset and Bitter About Trials

"Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul." Job 7:11

Warren Wiersbe

“Our values determine our evaluations. If we value comfort more than character, then trials will upset us. If we value the material and physical more than the spiritual, we will not be able to `count it all joy.’ If we live only for the present and forget the future, then trials will make us bitter, not better”

(Be Mature, [Wheaton, Ill.: Victor, 1978], p.23 by Warren Wiersbe).

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. James 1:2-4, 12

As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.  Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful. James 5:10-11

Related Posts:

Sovereignty of God: My Grace is All Sufficient Through Deep Waters I Asked You To Go

Job: When the Righteous Suffer, Part 1 by John Piper

Job: When the Righteous Suffer, Part 2 by John Piper

Sovereignty of God: My Grace is All Sufficient Through Deep Waters I Asked You To Go

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

We often do not understand why God allows trials and testings to come into our lives. We have to trust God and look beyond to a time when we shall  meet Him face to face  and then we will  have all the answers to our perplexing questions we now face while undergoing trials and testings. In the book of James, it clearly says that God allows  trials to come into our lives, to test our faith in order to produce steadfastness in us. In going through trials, we learn to trust less in ourselves  and we learn to turn  to, trust in and rely upon God. Our faith in God then becomes steadfast, it becomes enduring and constant. God wants every child He receives to grow and  to be mature in our walk with Him and our worship. When we trust God and we remained steadfast in our faith, we are blessed. Our love for Him is proved, when we look beyond our present sufferings and pains by  trusting that God’s ways are the best because He is  always compassionate and merciful to His children.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. James 1:2-4, 12

As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.  Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful. James 5:10-11

Josiah Grauman, a believer who experienced tremendous trials and sufferings in his life starting at an early age. Even when he is actively  pursuing God’s will for his life and serving God in obedience, the God of the bible still has a purpose to work out through him, by allowing the many challenges to confront and test and strengthen his faith.  Through all the  many trials and testing, Josiah Grauman has learned to trust firmly in the sovereignty of God to do and purpose as He pleases. The embedded clip is  a video testimony of Josiah Grauman.

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

(Hymn: How Firm a Foundation)

How Firm a Foundation

Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind! Psalm 31:19

How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said,
You, who unto Jesus for refuge have fled?

In every condition, in sickness, in health;
In poverty’s vale, or abounding in wealth;
At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea,
As thy days may demand, shall thy strength ever be.

Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

Even down to old age all My people shall prove
My sovereign, eternal, unchangeable love;
And when hoary hairs shall their temples adorn,
Like lambs they shall still in My bosom be borne.

The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.

Words: From A Se­lect­ion of Hymns from the Best Au­thors, by // John Rip­pon, 1787; at­trib­ut­ed var­i­ous­ly to John Keene, Kirk­ham, and John Keith. Music: Protection, from A Com­pil­a­tion of Gen­u­ine Church Mu­sic, by // Jo­seph Funk (Win­ches­ter, Vir­gin­ia: J. W. Holl­is, 1832) Source: www.cyberhymnal.org

Job: When the Righteous Suffer, Part 2 by John Piper

In life, all Christians will go through suffering and pain in varying degrees. As Christians we are urged to be steadfast under trials, tribulations and sufferings and to consider those examples in scriptures like Job, who remained steadfast in faith and triumphed.

In this second sermon from the Book of Job, John Piper urged us to study the Word of God carefully, discover and acknowledge God’s Sovereignty over our lives. Our lives are totally in His hands: “man proposes and God disposes”. The God of the Bible is good, He is not capricious. God can be trusted, we must put our faith in Him.

As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful. James 5:10-11

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. Jas 1:12

For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. Job 19:25-27

Then Job answered the LORD and said:”I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.  ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you make it known to me.’ I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you;  therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes. Job 42:1-6

For a transcript of this message by John Piper, follow this link  Job: When the Righteous Suffer, Part 2

For the first sermon (1 of 2), visit this earlier post : Job: When the Righteous Suffer, Part 1 by John Piper

Job: When the Righteous Suffer, Part 1 by John Piper

Watch Pastor John Piper in this excellent sermon from the Book of Job on the Sovereignty of God in the sufferings and pains of God’s children. In the lives and affairs of God’s children, while Satan intends to do evil  through sufferings and destroy faith, God intends for the same sufferings to do good and build faith in His Children and for God’s glory to come through.

For a transcript of this message by Pastor John Piper, follow this link
Job: When the_Righteous Suffer Part 1 by John Piper

The Good Shepherd: Looking at, Turning to, Resting in, Listening for, Following after

The Good Shepherd - "The catacombs are full of Christ"

‘Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.’  Heb 13:20-21

“In Christianity the Lord Jesus Christ is all and in all. “

“THE catacombs are full of Christ. It was to Him that the Christians of the age of persecution ever turned: it was on Him they rested - in gladness and in sorrow; in sickness and in health; in the days of danger – and these were sadly numerous in the first two centuries and a half – and in the hour of death. It was from His words they drew their strength. In the consciousness of His ever-presence in their midst, they gladly suffered for His sake. With His name on their lips they died fearlessly, joyfully passing into the Valley of the veiled Shadow. On the tablet of marble or plaster which closed up the narrow shelf in the catacomb corridor where their poor remains were reverently, lovingly laid, the dear name of Jesus was often painted or carved.”

“The catacombs are full of Christ,” the Dean of Gloucester repeats in the clause succeeding that above quoted from his book. He then goes on to tell that in those “first days” “the Good Shepherd” was “the favourite symbol of the Christian life and faith.” And he adds: “A great and eloquent writer (Dean Stanley) does not hesitate to speak of what he terms the popular religion of the first century as the religion of ‘the Good Shepherd.’ He says they looked on that figure, and it conveyed to them all they wanted. And then he adds sorrowfully that ‘as ages passed on, the image of the Good Shepherd faded away from the mind of the Christian world, and other emblems took the place of the once dearly loved figure.’” Yes, in those bright days the thought of the personal and living Christ “conveyed to them all they wanted.“

The Church is the flock, and Ministers are to be “ensamples to the flock” – the Lord’s own provision of shepherds until the Chief Shepherd shall appear. He is the Chief Shepherd with reference to the under-shepherds. He is the Good Shepherd, because He cares for the sheep, and gave His life for them. And as brought up again from the dead He is the Great Shepherd. The significance of the imagery of the Lord’s words in (John 10) was familiar to the Hebrew Christians of Palestine, but we are apt to miss it. Within the fold, sheep have no need of the shepherd’s care. But when he leads them out to pasture they look to him for guidance, and they run to him for safety whenever danger threatens. What intensity of meaning this must have had for those early saints in days of persecution! “  Sir Robert Anderson -Types in Hebrews – Chapter 14 – CHRISTIANITY IS CHRIST

So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. John 10:7-9

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. John 10:11

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. John 10:14-15

And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. John 10:16

Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” John 10:25-30

Raging Financial Storm: Jesus, Do You Care ?

We are now in a midst of a frightening global financial storm in a scale never seen before ,  billions of dollars disappear as the stock market continue to slide downward. Suddenly, no one has absolute confidence in their banks anymore.  When you could not trust your bank anymore, you suddenly demand politicians you don’t trust to provide guarantee to your banks . As believers, God’s word is clear we do not pursue and long after worldly things (Matt 6:18-19). We should  fixing our eyes upon Jesus (Heb 12:2) and knowing that God will take care of us and we should not lose faith that He is in control of our lives, as the storm rages on and on, many personal fortunes including my own savings from years of frugal living and prudent investment evaporated into thin air, we often think within ourselves: Does Jesus Care?

In the Gospels, we have an account of another storm raging in the Sea of Galilee. Jesus asked his disciples to get into the boat, they obeyed Him and set sail to cross the lake.  Jesus, weary from the day activities, left the disciples to themselves and rested at the stern of the vessel. Just then, the weather turned adversely and quickly into a “windstorm”: very strong winds and raging seas.  The boat was swallowing up water and tossed from side to side and was in real danger of sinking, the disciples were hanging on to their dear lives as they fought the risk of drowning in this storm.

Mar 4:35-41
“On that day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took Him with them in the boat, just as He was. And other boats were with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on the cushion.”

At that point, they looked to their leader for direction and when they saw Jesus sound asleep, they  woke and questioned Him: “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” Mar 4: 38. RC Sproul commented, “Their question was not really a question. It was an accusation. The suggestion was thinly veiled. They were actually saying, “You don’t care if we drown”, they were charging  the Son of God with a lack of compassion. This outrageous attack on Jesus is consistent with mankind’s customary attitude towards God. God has to listen to complaints like these from an ungrateful humanity every day. Heaven is bombarded with repeated charges of angry people. God is called “unloving” “cruel”, and “aloof”, as if He has not done enough to prove His compassion for us.” (page 51 – The Trauma of Holiness, The Holiness of God).

Was God not aware that the storm was raging and His disciples greatly feared for their lives ? Was God the Father also “aloof” and “unloving”  thus did not ensure that His elect will be cushioned from the going through storm? “And He awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”  We see our Lord Jesus woke up and merely told the wind: stop ! The “wind ceased” and the sea stopped raging and “there was a great calm” However  Jesus appeared to be disappointed with the level of faith that His disciples had in Him: Where is your  faith?

Without faith, it is impossible to please God (Heb 11:6). It can be inferred that Jesus telling us through these verses : Do not look at the raging storm, have faith, turn and look at me ! I am in control. You are my sheep, I am the good Shepherd. I have already laid down my life for my sheep, I will take care of you. I am in control. Just let go and trust me fully.

Can we take comfort from Jesus’ miracle of calming the storm and His rebuke and heed His disciple , Peter’s exhortation: “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” 1 Peter 5:7. Does Jesus Care ?

Does Jesus care when my way is dark
With a nameless dread and fear?
As the daylight fades into deep night shades,
Does He care enough to be near?

Oh yes, He cares, I know He cares,
His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.

Do you not care that we are perishing?