Human plans & God's sovereignty

   The biblical book of "Acts" is a series of dramatic events.  We see two plots going on at the same time.  You could say there is a human-driven plot and a divinely driven one.  Or you could say that earthly events are being held together by the sovereignty of God the Holy Spirit.

   Consider just a few of the earthly, human-driven events that take place in this narrative.  Taken by themselves, we'd think this new faith is doomed:

• Religious leaders plot against the preacher Stephen and stone him.  This leads to the disciples in Jerusalem to flee elsewhere for safety as persecution intensifies.
• A man named Saul goes north to expand persecution into Syria.
• A ship's captain insists on sailing during hurricane season, leading to a shipwreck off the island of Malta.

   But the divine intentions and sovereign plan of God to work out the extension of his kingdom are also evident in every single chapter of this book:

• As the disciples flee from Jerusalem, they find people in the cities where they have found refuge who are willing to hear the gospel message.
• Saul is stopped from carrying out his plans to arrest believers by a dramatic encounter with the risen Christ.  He is recruited to become the greatest Christian missionary the world has ever known.
• All 276 passengers on the ship survive; the people of Malta hear the gospel for the first time and have three months of ministry from Saul, now known as Paul.  Eventually Paul makes it to Rome, where he's kept under the type of house arrest that allows him many freedoms, including visitors who come to hear him preach and teach.

   This account of events in the early church can remind us that the everyday sorts of things which we struggle with, or which may seem unconnected or even random, actually do work together for a greater purpose.  With eyes of faith, we may see them advancing God's grace in our lives and in the lives of those around us.

The words from Michael W. Smith's song "Sovereign Over Us" (2014) remind us:

Your plans are still to prosper

You have not forgotten us

You're with us in the fire and the flood

You're faithful forever

Perfect in love

You are sovereign over us

Even what the enemy means for evil

You turn it for our good

You turn it for our good and for Your glory

Even in the valley, You are faithful

You're working for our good

Your working for our good and for Your glory