- Oct 11, 2019
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Luke 17:7-10: “When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, does his master say, ‘Come in and eat with me’? 8 No, he says, ‘Prepare my meal, put on your apron, and serve me while I eat. Then you can eat later.’ 9 And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not. 10 In the same way, when you obey me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’”
I’m a gas station attendant, and I have a serious question. I’ve been saved by the grace of God for four years now, have been reading the scriptures, and have come to the understanding that the Lord is sovereign over everything and can do absolutely anything he wants without anyone stopping him. This confuses me however, because I know that God is kind, and good. As a clerk, I believe I minister and speak to God everyday, through multiple people that he sends my way. Now, there are good interactions, and bad interactions, and I cannot help but attribute both to his will. For example, it is very easy to have a pleasant interaction with a customer, and attribute it to God. It is a lot harder, however, to think that God is behind the actions of someone throwing money at you, or yelling at you and your coworkers, being ungrateful or just acting without any manners. But I’m not one to deny God his free-will, and I’m not going to be one who denies that God created both the light and the dark. What happens in my heart when something good happens, is that I sometimes attribute it to the Lord, and give thanks for it. But when something bad happens, I become certain that it was God behind the actions, because I don’t want to be someone who attributes all evil to the Devil, knowing very well that humans have the awful capacity of being devils themselves. It reminds me of 2 Samuel 16:5-13 which reads:
“As King David came to Bahurim, a man came out of the village cursing them. It was Shimei son of Gera, from the same clan as Saul’s family. 6 He threw stones at the king and the king’s officers and all the mighty warriors who surrounded him. 7 “Get out of here, you murderer, you scoundrel!” he shouted at David. 8 “The LORD is paying you back for all the bloodshed in Saul’s clan. You stole his throne, and now the LORD has given it to your son Absalom. At last you will taste some of your own medicine, for you are a murderer!”
9 “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king?” Abishai son of Zeruiah demanded. “Let me go over and cut off his head!”
10 “No!” the king said. “Who asked your opinion, you sons of Zeruiah! If the LORD has told him to curse me, who are you to stop him?”
11 Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “My own son is trying to kill me. Doesn’t this relative of Saul have even more reason to do so? Leave him alone and let him curse, for the LORD has told him to do it. 12And perhaps the LORD will see that I am being wrongedc and will bless me because of these curses today.” 13 So David and his men continued down the road, and Shimei kept pace with them on a nearby hillside, cursing and throwing stones and dirt at David”
In that passage David postulates that perhaps it was the Lord who told Shimei to curse him. I guess my question is in the same vein. The line between free-will and God’s sovereignty is a thin one, as we are created in the very image of God. But because of these things, sometimes I am more certain that God is present when bad things happen, then when good things happen, knowing that God uses even that which is bad, for good at the end of the day. Is this wrong of me to think? Any thoughts? God bless!
I’m a gas station attendant, and I have a serious question. I’ve been saved by the grace of God for four years now, have been reading the scriptures, and have come to the understanding that the Lord is sovereign over everything and can do absolutely anything he wants without anyone stopping him. This confuses me however, because I know that God is kind, and good. As a clerk, I believe I minister and speak to God everyday, through multiple people that he sends my way. Now, there are good interactions, and bad interactions, and I cannot help but attribute both to his will. For example, it is very easy to have a pleasant interaction with a customer, and attribute it to God. It is a lot harder, however, to think that God is behind the actions of someone throwing money at you, or yelling at you and your coworkers, being ungrateful or just acting without any manners. But I’m not one to deny God his free-will, and I’m not going to be one who denies that God created both the light and the dark. What happens in my heart when something good happens, is that I sometimes attribute it to the Lord, and give thanks for it. But when something bad happens, I become certain that it was God behind the actions, because I don’t want to be someone who attributes all evil to the Devil, knowing very well that humans have the awful capacity of being devils themselves. It reminds me of 2 Samuel 16:5-13 which reads:
“As King David came to Bahurim, a man came out of the village cursing them. It was Shimei son of Gera, from the same clan as Saul’s family. 6 He threw stones at the king and the king’s officers and all the mighty warriors who surrounded him. 7 “Get out of here, you murderer, you scoundrel!” he shouted at David. 8 “The LORD is paying you back for all the bloodshed in Saul’s clan. You stole his throne, and now the LORD has given it to your son Absalom. At last you will taste some of your own medicine, for you are a murderer!”
9 “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king?” Abishai son of Zeruiah demanded. “Let me go over and cut off his head!”
10 “No!” the king said. “Who asked your opinion, you sons of Zeruiah! If the LORD has told him to curse me, who are you to stop him?”
11 Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “My own son is trying to kill me. Doesn’t this relative of Saul have even more reason to do so? Leave him alone and let him curse, for the LORD has told him to do it. 12And perhaps the LORD will see that I am being wrongedc and will bless me because of these curses today.” 13 So David and his men continued down the road, and Shimei kept pace with them on a nearby hillside, cursing and throwing stones and dirt at David”
In that passage David postulates that perhaps it was the Lord who told Shimei to curse him. I guess my question is in the same vein. The line between free-will and God’s sovereignty is a thin one, as we are created in the very image of God. But because of these things, sometimes I am more certain that God is present when bad things happen, then when good things happen, knowing that God uses even that which is bad, for good at the end of the day. Is this wrong of me to think? Any thoughts? God bless!
