THE GUIDING HAND OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE

 

By Gary Ray Branscome

 

          God not only created the world, He is actively involved in it, like a hand in a glove guiding, sustaining and directing the course of events. If sin had never entered the world, all things would work together perfectly. However, because of sin God withdrew some of His sustaining power. And, even that was an act of His love, aimed at making us aware of our sin, and need of His mercy.

          The words, “Cursed is the ground for your sake,” tell us that the struggle for survival that we now endure is for our “sake” or benefit (Genesis 3:17). And, the words, “In the sweat of your face you will eat bread, till you return unto the ground; for out of it you were taken: for you are dust, and to dust you will return,” tell us that the struggle for survival should be a constant reminder of our mortality, and need for God’s mercy (Genesis 3:19).

          The words, “You [God] sustained them [Israel] for forty years in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes did not grow old, and their feet did not swell,” give us an idea of how much better the world would be if man had never sinned (Nehemiah 9:21). While the words, “Your Father who is in heaven… causes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous,” tell us that God has not withdrawn entirely, but is still at work in the world, providing food and water for all, even those who hate Him (Matthew 5:45). And, the words, “He did not leave himself without witness, in that He has shown kindness, and given us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, satisfying our hearts with food and gladness,” should remind us that no matter how hard we work to provide food, if God did not create the plants and give rain there would be no food (Acts 14:17).

          The words, God “Has made of one blood all nations of men to live on all the face of the earth, and has determined their appointed times, and the boundaries they live in; So that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him, and find Him, although He is not far from any one of us: For in Him we live, and move, and have our being,” tell us that God, by His providence, has determined the boundaries of the nations, in the hope that they might seek Him and find Him (Acts 17:26-28). The words, “You make springs send water into the valleys that run among the hills. They provide drink for every beast of the field: the wild donkeys quench their thirst. Beside the waters nest the birds the air, who sing among the branches. You water the hills from your palace: the earth is satisfied with the fruit of what you do. You cause the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate: so that he may get food from the ground; And wine to make the heart of man cheerful, and oil to make his face shine, and bread which strengthens him,” tell us that many of the things that we take for granted, and assume just happen, only continue because God is at work (Psalm 104:10-15). And the words, “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, like the rivers of water: He turns it whichever way He wants,” should remind us that God is in control (Proverbs 21:1).