If you have followed my posts for any length of time, you know this is a frequent topic of mine. I am convinced that unless we are convinced that God is in complete control (Sovereign), we can not have a proper Biblical/Christian Worldview. Without a proper Biblical/Christian Worldview, we are no different than the Church Pew or Sunday “[c]hristian” that James describes in Chapter 1:19-25 (AMP), note vs. 22-23:
19 Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving]; 20 for the [resentful, deep-seated] anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God [that standard of behavior which He requires from us]. 21 So get rid of all uncleanness and [e]all that remains of wickedness, and with a humble spirit receive the word [of God] which is implanted [actually rooted in your heart], which is able to save your souls. 22 But prove yourselves doers of the word [actively and continually obeying God’s precepts], and not merely listeners [who hear the word but fail to internalize its meaning], deluding yourselves [by unsound reasoning contrary to the truth]. 23 For if anyone only listens to the word [f]without obeying it, he is like a man who looks very carefully at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he immediately forgets [g]what he looked like. 25 But he who looks carefully into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and faithfully abides by it, not having become a [careless] listener who forgets but [h]an active doer [who obeys], he will be blessed and favored by God in what he does [in his life of obedience].
COMMENTS
I think most folks, when they think of their life in balanced order, believe they are in control. On the other hand, when things go very badly, we are quick to blame someone else for the chaos that surrounds us. This, of course, is stinkin thinkin, where we take credit for the highs of life and play the blame game for the lows. In reality, God is in control of all.
About a dozen or more years ago, there was an article in a Mobile, Alabama newspaper by an Episcopal clergy member that stated that God was like a “great jazz player.” He claimed that God was improvising, playing it by ear daily, and doing a good job, how sad! I replied to the article, citing scripture that exposes this heresy, and asked why anyone would worship a God who was not in complete control. I never got a reply.
STUDY
Biblical examples of God’s Control
Scripture presents God’s control through multiple dimensions—from the cosmic to the intimate. God accomplishes whatever He pleases throughout the heavens, earth, and seas (Ps 135:6), and none can restrain His hand or question His actions (Dan 4:35). This authority extends to human decision-making: the king’s heart rests in God’s hands, turning in whatever direction He chooses (Prov 21:1), while though individuals plan their paths, God directs their steps (Prov 16:9).
God’s control encompasses historical events and political powers. He removes and establishes kings (Dan 2:21), and He determined the appointed times and boundaries of nations (Acts 17:26). God nullifies the plans of nations while His own counsel stands forever (Ps 33:10–11). Even divine purposes that seem to involve human opposition ultimately serve God’s design—Herod, Pilate, and others plotted against Jesus, yet they carried out what God’s hand and will had predetermined (Acts 4:27–28).
The scope of divine control is staggering. God declares the end from the beginning, and His counsel shall stand (Isa 46:9–10). Not a sparrow falls without the Father’s knowledge, and even the hairs of your head are numbered (Matt 10:29–30). All things were created through Christ and exist in Him, held together by His power (Col 1:16–17). What others intended for evil, God orchestrated for good (Gen 50:20), demonstrating that even human malice serves His purposes.
God’s control also encompasses life’s circumstances: He brings death and life, poverty and wealth (1 Sam 2:6–7), and He determines physical abilities and disabilities (Exod 4:11). Nothing occurs without God’s authorization, and both adversity and prosperity proceed from His mouth (Lam 3:37–38).
Additional biblical passages reinforcing divine control include Ephesians 1:11, which states God works everything according to His will’s counsel and design, and Romans 8:28, affirming that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose.
LOGOS Bible Software AI-generated summary 03/18/2026
What Does the Bible Say About God’s Control?
The Bible presents God’s control as comprehensive and ultimate, operating across multiple dimensions of reality and human experience.
God’s sovereignty encompasses rule over the entire universe1, with none able to stay his hand or question what he does (Dan 4:35). God declares outcomes from the beginning and accomplishes all his purposes (Isa 46:9–10), while the Lord’s purpose—not human plans—ultimately stands (Prov 19:21). This extends to the most mundane details: though people plan their paths, the Lord directs their steps (Prov 16:9), and even a king’s heart lies in God’s hand, turning it wherever he wishes (Prov 21:1).
God’s control operates through his sustaining power. All things cohere and are held together in Christ (Col 1:16–17), and God gives life and breath to all people, and in him we live, move, and have our being (Acts 17:24–28). Not even a sparrow falls without the Father’s knowledge, and the very hairs of your head are numbered (Matt 10:29–31)—illustrating that divine oversight reaches into the particulars of creation.
Theologically, God’s sovereignty refers to his ultimate authority and power over all things, capturing the idea that God controls all things and possesses authority to bring about events achieving his purposes2. Yet theologians debate how this operates alongside human freedom. Some hold that God maintains general control while respecting human freedom, having general purposes he achieves through various possible routes rather than micromanaging every detail3. Others argue that while God possesses all power in principle, he voluntarily restricts its exercise to make room for human freedom, remaining fully sovereign through this self-imposed decision3.
Romans 8:28 assures believers that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose. Psalm 33:11 affirms that the Lord’s counsel stands forever, his thoughts enduring through all generations.
- 1Joshua A. Crutchfield, “Divine Sovereignty,” in Lexham Theological Wordbook, ed. Douglas Mangum et al. (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014). [See here.]
- 2Richard A. Holland et al., An Introduction to Philosophy: A Christian Guide to the Things That Really Matter (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2025), xi.
- 3John S. Feinberg, No One Like Him: The Doctrine of God, The Foundations of Evangelical Theology (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2001), 295.
LOGOS Bible Software AI-generated summary 03/18/2026
Here is a PowerPoint on God’s Sovereignty that I taught years ago.
DEVOTION
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