Proverbs 21:1
The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord,
like the rivers of water;
He turns it wherever He wishes.
We are much more comfortable with the idea of free will than we are with the sovereignty of God. We would rather think that our choices are our own, rather than believe that God has a great master plan that is being fulfilled regardless of our will. It is disconcerting to some to think that God's hand is in everything and on everything, not necessarily a hand of approval, but absolutely a hand of direction.
Consider the river. Every river has a source, and from that source the water flows in a path it has carved for itself from the earth. When rain falls or snow melts, adding water to the river, the current carries more soil and sediment away, making the river wider or deeper. When the waters are low, the sun bakes and dries the earth which is then blasted by the winds, infiltrated by flora and fauna alike, and changes continually occur to the river. Some say the Grand Canyon is merely the result of millennia of these kinds of changes. What once flowed up on the flat land now rushes thousands of feet below in a bed it has carved for itself.
And yet the Bible seems to teach us that God doesn't even let the rivers have their own way. They are in his hand too, and they flow as He wishes. Science would tell us that the river carved its own place through the sand. God tells us it was His finger that started the river on its path, and it goes where He wants it to go.
We make our choices. We do our thing. We go where we want. We do what we want. It's our decision, after all. Right? Everything that happens is a result of my free will. Right? Except that the Proverbs teach us that God holds all things in His hands, even the hearts of kings, and He turns them as He desires.
Consider the river. Every river has a source, and from that source the water flows in a path it has carved for itself from the earth. When rain falls or snow melts, adding water to the river, the current carries more soil and sediment away, making the river wider or deeper. When the waters are low, the sun bakes and dries the earth which is then blasted by the winds, infiltrated by flora and fauna alike, and changes continually occur to the river. Some say the Grand Canyon is merely the result of millennia of these kinds of changes. What once flowed up on the flat land now rushes thousands of feet below in a bed it has carved for itself.
And yet the Bible seems to teach us that God doesn't even let the rivers have their own way. They are in his hand too, and they flow as He wishes. Science would tell us that the river carved its own place through the sand. God tells us it was His finger that started the river on its path, and it goes where He wants it to go.
We make our choices. We do our thing. We go where we want. We do what we want. It's our decision, after all. Right? Everything that happens is a result of my free will. Right? Except that the Proverbs teach us that God holds all things in His hands, even the hearts of kings, and He turns them as He desires.
Take Pharaoh, for instance, the Egyptian king who opposed Moses 3500 years ago. Pharaoh resisted the will of God in Egypt, because the will of God was for Pharaoh to let God's people go freely, of His own choice. And yet before Moses ever said the famous line, God told him that Pharaoh's answer would be no. His heart would be hardened. But Pharaoh was still an instrument in the hands of God for the fulfillment of God's eternal plan.
Pharaoh, Moses, us--we all have our role in the unrolling blueprint that will eventually show us all the big picture. Personally, I find it much more reassuring to know that God has my life in His hands. I may not always do His will; that is the result of my free will, my ability to choose. But never am I out of His control. And even when things don't go my way, I rest easier in knowing that God is sovereign and has His way of making all things work together for my good and His glory.
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