ISBE on Providence
OT & NT Compared (9/21/02)
The Testaments agree on the particulars of Providence, but the emphasis changes and expands in the New Testament. This is especially true regarding three facets of that doctrine.
God's Fatherhood and Love
In the OT, God is generally seen as the Sovereign King, He who is to be obeyed. Omnipotence and holiness are at the forefront. In the NT, He is seen more as the loving Father, who cares for His children with perfect foresight. His holiness remains prominent, but is now accompanied by His love. We must keep both views in mind. He is a loving Father, and a Sovereign Ruler. He is worthy of our loving adoration and our awe filled reverence. He rules, and He rules from His love.
Christ and the Holy Spirit
Where the OT showed the unity of God's nature, the NT sees the distinction of His persons. However, at least in the case of the doctrine of Providence, we cannot apply the adage: "the Father plans, the Son executes, and the Spirit applies," for this would leave the Father out of the picture. Christ tells us that the Father also works, or executes His plans.
Jn 5:17 My Father is working until now, and I am also working.
Col 1:16-17 By Him all things in heaven and earth were created, both the seen and the unseen. Every throne, every dominion, every ruler and authority has been created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and it is in Him that all things hold together. Here, Paul shows us Christ as the One working in creation. As much as He has been involved in all of God's work of creation, it is especially in the realm of redemption that we see His hand. The salvation and perfection of man is the whole point of providence, and this is Christ's own peculiar ministry, where He alone mediates.
Moral and Spiritual Blessings
In the NT, all temporal matters are pushed into the background. Man's eternal concerns are brought front and center, alongside the issues of God's Kingdom and His righteousness. Establishing that kingdom in the hearts of men is the purpose for which the children of our Father are expected to labor. "To be holy in heart and useful in life, to love and obey God as a Father, to love and serve men as brothers - this is the ideal and the end for which [] men should work and pray." This is the goal of providence.
The Doctrine of Providence
Different Views of Providence
- The Atheistic View
- Atheism denies that there is a God, and finds the atoms to be the sole possessors of eternality. Having denied God, they must also deny that there can be any sort of divine providence.
- The Pantheistic View
- Pantheism sees everything as God. They view God as the impersonal soul of the universe. They see providence as the 'evolution of impersonal deity.' While the words are different, this is in essence the same message the atheist delivers, that there is no divine providence.
- The Deistic View
- Deism acknowledges God as Creator, but not as Sustainer of life. They see the material world as operating under unchangeable laws, requiring no further divine intervention, while man is left to his own free will, equally independent of God's sustaining work. The deist must deny the miraculous intervention of God in the affairs of man, must deny the supernatural completely. Prayer, to the deist, is a matter of convincing oneself, for God, if He hears, certainly doesn't answer. Nature is God's law to them, and only in the laws of nature can Providence be defined. All thought of a 'special providence' is gone from the deist's thinking.
- The Theistic View
- God is both Creator and Sustainer of everything that is. The operation of the universe demands the presence of an omnipotent and omnipresent Being. It is He who governs by the laws of nature, not the laws themselves which govern. Law is powerless in itself, except there be an Authority to enforce it. Cause cannot exist without will. He is the true power, the true cause. Our created wills can have limited impact, but He remains the source. While our acknowledgment of His constant involvement, and His miraculous intervention on occasion, distinguish us from other viewpoints, we must not allow ourselves to stop seeing His presence in the natural order of things as well. We mustn't '[exaggerate] His transcendence at the expense of His immanence.' God is as present in the natural as in the supernatural.
Divine Immanence
Creation emphasizes God's transcendence, but Providence emphasizes His immanence. Only the Theistic view teaches both aspects of God in balance; pantheism denies the former, and Deism denies the latter. He is transcendent: distinct from and above nature. He is immanent: in nature as well as over it. Nature's continued existence depends on Him. We could view this universe as an act of continuous creation on His part. Immanence is more than just omnipresence, for omnipresence does not indicate Him as the cause of what is. Immanence does so indicate. Immanence insists on God as being necessary for continued existence, and sees the laws of nature as being totally without effect if God is not acting through them. He is not only omnipresent, but eternally active in both the natural and the spiritual. No atom, no organism, no soul, can exist apart from Him. He both creates and preserves.
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New Thoughts (9/22/02)
It's interesting to see that the authors of the New Testament were concerned with shifting the focus from our present condition to our eternal condition. They were, as a rule, far less concerned with position and possession in this life, and far more concerned with settling the matter of salvation, of eternal life with God. In our present culture, this tendency has largely reversed itself. It's interesting that we consider ourselves to be 'New Testament' Christians, or 'Full Gospel' Christians, and yet, we are almost wholly caught up in providing for this life, not the next. Our concern over salvation largely stops at our own conversion, with perhaps a bit of applause if we happen to learn of somebody else that's been saved.
But notice something, here: Two primary goals have been shown for God's providential work in our lives. He has been working for the salvation and perfection of man; not just this particular man, not man exclusive of women, but mankind in general. That is what His providence seeks to accomplish. If I say that He has accomplished, or at least begun to accomplish that purpose in me, if I assert that my salvation is sure, and that He is even now working to perfect me, there are certain things on my part that must follow. If He is seeking to perfect me, I must also be seeking that same goal. If He is truly working in me, I must be getting better at obeying His commandments. I may not be doing so as well as I could or should. I may never obey Him fully in this life. But salvation must bear fruit. The presence of the Holy Spirit working within me cannot help but display itself outwardly.
If I claim to have a part in the first purpose of His providential work, I must also joyfully take up my own labor in the second purpose of His providential work. Just as much as He has sought to establish His kingdom in my heart, His rule in my life, He seeks to see that same kingdom rule established in those around me. He desires that no man be lost to His kingdom, and He desires that we take up our purpose in His purpose. He has worked our salvation so that we may join Him in the work, that we may be used by Him to establish His kingdom in the hearts of others. This is the expected reaction of the saved to salvation. This is the fruit that He should have from His labor in our lives.
Are we all called to witness to the lost? Probably, yes. However, as God has made us each uniquely, and as He has uniquely prepared those good works that we in particular are intended to do, I must accept and believe that this may not be so. He prepares good works especially for each one of us. This is a key concept to grasp. Does this mean that I shouldn't witness unless I feel particularly led to do so? I suppose the answer to that must depend upon how well I have learned to hear His commands. If I have learned to remain attuned to His Spirit at all times, then I would say that yes, if I don't feel a particular leading, then I should refrain from witnessing. If I have not done my homework in learning to hear Him, then that should probably be my priority.
I would also suggest that there are other areas in which this labor operates. There are ministries of support, providing for those who go forth to the fields. There are ministries of discipleship, providing for the continued growth of those in whom the work is just begun. There are ministries within the Church, but here, we must be careful to remember the purpose for which the Church was provided by God. The Church is to equip the saints for service, not to entertain, not even necessarily to comfort, but to equip. The saints should be perfectly capable of entertaining and comforting each other. The primary ministry of the Church should be the ministry of discipleship. Of course, God has also provided for fellowship, for support. These are purposes of the Church as well, and rightly so. But the focus should remain on the primary purpose.
Lord, I must ask. Am I working in the purpose for which You worked upon me? It's all too easy to make excuses not to go out and confront people with the kingdom message. It's all too easy to sit back in a supporting role and let others take the heat. But, is it necessarily wrong? I don't know. There are times when I feel like I'm failing You miserably. Yet, if nobody looks to the support of the workers, the workers must fail eventually, right? Or, is that just a reflection of me not having grasped the full scope of Your providential activities yet?
Father, I want to be where You want me to be. I want to be doing the things You have in mind for me to do. I feel as though I am doing at least reasonably well in that. I know beyond every shadow of doubt that You have led me into this present study. This is not a question in my mind at all. I know You call me to testify of the work You are doing in my life. I know many would like to see that testimony reflecting the things You have done to provide for me in this life, but I know that focus is wrong. I admit it is exciting to see You working things out in this present time, but it's so much more exciting to see You working on the things that will matter a century or more from now, when this life is over and gone.
Yet, I am reminded that there was that caution not to get so focused on the supernatural aspect of Your works that we lose sight of what You do here and now. That is the balance that needs to be struck. Give me the words, Lord, and I will speak them out in the presence of Your people. Give me guidance, Lord, that I may live out Your presence in the sight of all people.
God is as present in the natural as in the supernatural. I remember when I did not accept that nature had anything to do with God. I remember when I did not accept that anything had anything to do with God. Funny to think how I could look at a sunset and see nothing more in it than pretty colors. I could not appreciate the fact that Somebody had worked hard to create that view, to put beauty into this world around us. Somebody still works very hard to maintain the beauty of this world in spite of our fallen condition. God has worked wonders all around us. God presents us with a constant flow of reasons to stand in awe of Him. This is what led Paul to say that we cannot claim the excuse of ignorance before God's charge of guilt.
We may deny Him, but we can't claim we did so because we saw no sign of Him. Deists will not be able to make any excuse for their refusing to see His hand at work in His world. Pantheists will not be able to make any excuse for refusing to recognize that He is so much greater than the world He made. Truly, He is omnipotent. We have not more than scratched the surface of understanding this universe, yet He understands it most fully. He designed it. He created it. And, He keeps all its parts working every moment of every day of every life that ever was or ever will be. Who can compare!
He is also immanent. He is an integral part of what He has created. If God were removed from His creation, as the Deists would like to believe, then His creation would cease to be. This is as true for each part of creation as for the whole. It is true for you and I. If God removes His very present self from me, I will cease to be. He is life and breath. There's a song which, if I remember correctly, speaks of Him being life and breath to me. It would be easy to view that as no more than a figure of speech, as no more than a declaration of ardent desire. But, in reality, it is a simple statement of the truth. He is life and breath to me, to every man, to every creature, whether they choose to accept that or not.
Yet, there is more. He is also intimate. We are not the product of His cosmic cookie cutter. He has not simply stamped us out in His mold. He has worked intimately with each one of us, making each one of us a unique creation. And, while the purposes of His providence that I noted earlier apply to every one of us, there remains a uniqueness to the purposes He has in mind specifically for you, or for me. The psalmists knew that God had known every facet of their body before they were born, before they were even conceived. He was intimately involved in creating you. He was intimately involved in bringing about the circumstances that led to your conception and birth. He has been intimately involved with the circumstances of your life. He continues to be intimately involved with the continuing circumstances of your life.
And there is one thing more that His providential care seeks to accomplish. He seeks to have us return that intimacy that He shows towards us. He seeks to share an intimate relationship with the man He has created. He longs for conversations like He had with Adam in the Garden. It is that very intimate sharing that will embolden and empower us to do the works He has prepared. It is that very intimate sharing that will bring us to the place of hearing His voice without fail. It is that very intimate sharing that will keep us happily situated in the center of His perfect will for us. It is that very intimate sharing that will keep us unstained by this present life, even as we enjoy the life He has given us.
Omnipotent, immanent, and intimate. This is our God! Who is like Him, who can compare? There is no other. Consider the wonders of His creation. Consider the beauty of His doctrines. How awesome are His works among man! How awesome are His works in creation! Who can begin to imagine the wonders of His works among the heavens? Holy, loving, sovereign Lord, I praise You. I rejoice in You. I bow my soul before You, and I ask that Your will be done in this life as it is in heaven, without hesitation and without question. Amen.
