Introduction

God has decreed all things that come to pass, and He carries out His decrees in two distinct, yet related ways. The first is creation, God’s external work of initiation. The second is providence, God’s work of continuation. In this session, we will cover divine providence in general, and next time we will look at a particular act of God’s providence in relation to the first man in the Garden.

Question

Q. 14. What are God’s works of providence?

A. 14. God’s works of providence are His most holy, wise, and powerful preserving and governing of all His creatures and all their actions. (Psalm 145:17; Psalm 104:24; Isaiah 28:29; Hebrews 1:3; Psalm 103:19; Matthew 10:29-31)

Exposition

A. The Meaning of Providence 

That which God brought into being through creation, He upholds in being and governs through His providence. By His infinite power, God ensures that all He has made continues to exist, and that the course of history is directed in accordance with His infinitely wise will. Next, consider the character of God’s providence. 

B. God’s works of providence are most holy, wise, and powerful. 

This statement flows logically from what we have already established in our contemplation of God and His attributes. Consider the following linear argument. 1) Those things which are essentially holy work in ways that are holy. 2) God is essentially holy. 3) Therefore, God works in ways that are holy. Providence is one of God’s works. Thus, God’s work of providence is holy. The same logic and argument structure applies to His providence being wise and powerful. Put simply, as God is most holy (1 Samuel 2:2), wise (Psalm 147:5), and powerful (Dan 4:35; Job 42:1-2), so also are His works, which include His works of providence. 

C. God’s works of providence include His work of preservation. 

God’s work of providence includes His preserving or upholding those things which He has made. Such a notion is required by reason. That which does not possess existence within itself requires that something which does possess existence within itself to give it existence not only initially, but also continually. God alone possesses existence within Himself. He is the only self-existent being. Thus, all that God has made requires both His initial creation, and His continual providence to continue in existence. Holy Scripture also bears witness to God’s upholding providence in Hebrews 1:3, “[Jesus] is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” 

D. God’s works of providence include His work of governance.

God’s work of providence includes His ordering, governing, ruling, and controlling of the things He has purposed and made for the accomplishing of His own holy and wise ends. Does God generally order, govern, rule, and control what He has made? Yes. David sings, “The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all” (Psalm 103:19). Moreover, Psalm 66:7 says, “[God] rules by his might forever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations—let not the rebellious exalt themselves.” 

E. God’s work of providence extends to all His creatures and all their actions. 

God’s providence extends to all things that exist and their actions. God alone stands as uncaused and self-existent. All other things owe their initial and continual existence to them. The universal nature of His government and providence is proclaimed in Psalm 103:19,which I stated earlier. Hebrews 1:3 says as much about Christ as God the Son: He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

It extends to inanimate things. 

One such example is God’s dominion over the stars in the heavens. God declares His government when He poses rhetorical questions to Job. He asks, “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loose the cords of Orion? Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season, or can you guide the Bear with its children?” (Job 38:31-32). Moreover, God controls the weather. Jeremiah says as much when He says, “Are there any among the false gods of the nations that can bring rain? Or can the heavens give showers? Are you not he, O LORD our God. We set our hope on you, for you do all these things” (Jeremiah 14:22; Cf. Psalm 148:8).

It extends to lower animated life. 

The Lord Jesus alludes to this fact when He encourages His disciples not to be anxious over food or clothing. God provides the birds with their food, He arrays the lilies with their beauty, and He clothes the grass of the field. (Matthew 6:25-34; Cf. Psalm 147:9). 

It extends to higher animated life. 

Angels and Demons are under God’s sovereign rule. Consider Job, the Angel who destroyed the firstborn of Egypt, and the ones who destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Moreover, consider what Hebrews 1:7 says: “He makes his angels winds and his ministers a flame of fire” (Hebrews 1:7; Psalm 104:4). 

God also sovereignly sustains and governs the lives of men. Paul says as much when He proclaims in Acts 17:24-29:

^“24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, ²⁵ nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. ²⁶ And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, ²⁷ that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, ²⁸ for 

‘In him we live and move and have our being’; 

as even some of your own poets have said, 

‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ 

²⁹ Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.” (Cf. 1 Peter 5:7; Psalm 33:18-19; 34:7, 10; Ps 56:8; Hebrews 11:34; Psalm 23:5; 1 Kings 17:6; Job 14:5).

God reigns over societal affairs and even the hairs on your head (Psalm 75:7; 1 Samuel 11:13; Dan 2:21; Matthew 10:30). 

He reigns over the actions of men. Solomon proclaims this to be the case: “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). The same can be seen in Acts 17:28: “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “ ‘For we are indeed his offspring’” (Cf. 1 Kings 22:34). 

God even reigns over the sinful acts of men (Habakkuk 1:12; Isaiah 45:7). He permits sinful actions for a time, such as allowing the nations to walk in their own ways (Acts 14:16). God restrains them as Asaph says, “Surely the wrath of man shall praise you; the remnant of wrath you will put on like a belt (or restrain)” (Psalm 76:10). He also over-rules them to good. Joseph, when faced with the evil of his brothers, did not remain bitter but says, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:20).

In the case of Joseph’s brothers, we see that in God’s providence, man behaves with creaturely freedom doing as he desires, while God works in and through those things to accomplish His perfect and good will. Since sin is a corruption of something created, it can only reside in—and be authored by—the creature. By definition, God as pure and immutable self-existence, cannot sin. That said, the relationship between divine sovereignty and human responsibility—of divine will and human will—is deep and beyond our comprehension. Nevertheless, the Scriptures are clear on two principles: (1) God is sovereign over all things; (2) Man makes choices and is accountable for those choices. 

Uses 

1. God’s people are safe even among all their enemies and in every hardship. 

2. Pray for God’s help to trust and see His providence at all times. 

3. Rest in and submit to God’s sovereign control. 

4. Fear not, for God is with you and for you. 

Conclusion

Q. 14. What are God’s works of providence?

A. 14. God’s works of providence are His most holy, wise, and powerful preserving and governing of all His creatures, and all their actions. (Psalm 145:17; Psalm 104:24; Isaiah 28:29; Hebrews 1:3; Psalm 103:19; Matthew 10:29-31)

God’s providence includes all things, good and bad. It includes the means to accomplish His holy, just, and wise ends. It also includes the salvation of His people. Through God’s sovereign control, the promised Messiah came and accomplished the work that brings about our redemption. God’s providence is rarely understood except for in hindsight, and is not meant to be the basis by which we order our lives. Instead, we look to His commands and exhortations in the Holy Scriptures as our sure guide. What should we do then in the light of God’s providence? We should trust in His Son, repent of sin, and proclaim Christ to all men.