Sovereignty: Does God Micro-Manage the Universe?

A hyper-extreme view of the sovereignty of God leads to nothing short of insanity.

How’s that for a provocative opening statement? But it’s true. Many have decided that to believe God is sovereign, leaves no room for anything to happen that ever happens anywhere, that is not fully and willfully put into action and directly caused by God. Proponents of this kind of thinking would say that every electron surrounding every atom in the universe, is put into motion and sustained in its orbit around its nucleus, by the active hand of God, so that if any atom ever breaks down, it is because God decided for it to be so, at that very moment. If an earthquake happens anywhere… every single time, God actively caused it. Every raindrop falls by His direct causation. If a bird poops on your head, it is a testimony to the impeccable aim of God. This view, in and of itself, is INSANE… and I haven’t even brought up the unthinkable evil that occurs on this planet, which they twist their brains into believing, God must cause.

Some of you think I am setting up a straw man. I assure you that I am not. Even now… some who hold this type of view are reading what I have written so far, and they are about to call me a Deist (someone who thinks God is not involved with creation, and just lets it all go). They would call ME a Deist... me, a conservative Southern Baptist pastor, who regularly preaches on the concept of sovereignty, who believes firmly that God initiates salvation, that He has a personal relationship with His children, and that He is there to comfort every hurt, and guide us through every difficulty…. And still, they would call me a Deist, if not a heretic. Why? Because I believe God allows some things to run their course (such as most natural disasters and your average rainstorm).

This is how crazy-extreme some have gone with their idea of sovereignty. They say either we believe God micro-manages every single thing that ever happens (including salvation and, oh by the way, EVIL), or we simply do not believe He is sovereign (putting us outside the camp of orthodoxy). Meanwhile, their view of sovereignty means that they do not believe in free will (which, in my view, puts them outside the camp). They believe every single thing that happens, is directly caused by God, and they will go so far as to QUOTE SCRIPTURE to prove that, yes, God is behind every mass murder. You think I am making this up? I am not.

These people typically call themselves Calvinists and/or Reformed, BUT I am here to tell you this is not Calvinism or traditional reformed theology. Rather, this is insanity.

Now, I am not a Calvinist (I affirm between 1 and 3 points, depending on interpretation); however, there are many self-labeled Calvinists who, after discussion, would find little upon which we disagree. On the other hand, there are others calling themselves Calvinists or Reformed thinkers today, who have completely lost their marbles. Their views are simply insane. Most of those views find their roots in a ridiculous view of sovereignty, as if God created a world, only so He could control every nuance of it.

No, I am not a five-point Calvinist, nor am I an Arminian. They were both right… and wrong. Oh my, I think I just made everyone mad. But look no further than every Calvinist’s favorite chapter, Romans 9 to see where they are RIGHT. Except, the thing is… you actually do need to look a little further... to Romans 10, if you want to see the whole picture. Romans 9 and 10 MUST be taken together. Romans 9 is all about God’s sovereignty in salvation. Romans 10 is all about “whosoever” has faith (believes). Some would completely suppress chapter ten, by saying, with one word or another, that God forces people to have faith (the latest wording I heard was that God “imputes” faith into those He chooses)… because we know that dead/unregenerate people simply can’t have faith unless God forces it upon them. This view, by the way, makes faith utterly meaningless (which might be the reason none of Calvin’s five points include a single word about faith). Others would utterly suppress Romans 9, saying that God’s choice means nothing other than an after-the-fact recognition of those who were somehow able to muster up faith without any help from God. Both of those positions are utterly flawed. (Personally, I believe in empowered faith, but not forced faith.) The funny thing is that the Apostle Paul never tried to reconcile these two doctrines (or even those two chapters), but every amateur theologian with a Greek dictionary tries to do just that (usually ending up cancelling out either sovereignty/predestination or free will/faith). It might help to read the end of chapter 11, where Paul winds up the whole discussion by pointing out that God’s ways are unfathomable to man. The two are simply both somehow true whether you and I can understand it or not.

My position is this: A biblical view of SOVEREIGNTY (or predestination when it comes to soteriology) means that it cannot cancel out FAITH (by making it anything less than a free-will response). I have said this a myriad of other ways, but the bottom line is that we must hold these doctrines in tension and never allow ourselves to destroy the integrity of one with our definition of the other. Any view of sovereignty that means a man no longer has a decision (response) to make, flies in the face of the whole of Scripture. “What Scripture???” says the hyper Calvinist. Open your Bible at random and see if you don’t find someone choosing to obey or disobey God of their own free will (i.e. not controlled by God). Having said that, God’s Sovereignty is also everywhere in Scripture! Any view of free-will faith, that means God is not the primary agent of salvation (and ultimately in control of the Universe), is equally flawed.

And see this is why it all comes down to whether it is biblical to hold an extreme view of the sovereignty of God. What does it mean to say that God is in control? Does it mean that He led Eve to the tree, and put words in the mouth of the serpent (Satan)? Some are saying, “Yes, absolutely.” [Those who hold this view have simply lost their senses. I won’t even debate with such a one. They are flat out nuts. They need to stop studying theology, and start reading their Bibles through.]

On the other hand, did God know all of this evil was going to happen? Yep. Did His plan take it all into account? Yep. When He created mankind, was He aware that it meant one day He would need to come and die on a Cross? Undoubtedly. And He loved us (from eternity), so much that He went through with creating us anyway.

By the way, which is a higher view of sovereignty? The view that God micro-manages everything, or the view that God allows some things to run their course, and yet somehow works it all out until ultimately His purposes are accomplished? Must God choose to micro-manage everything in order to be sovereign? Or is God sovereign enough to allow for free will… and still be sovereign? Which of those views lines up with the story of Scripture… the Gospel?

So here’s the deal. There are people out there (I find them especially on Twitter) who are off the deep end one way or another. Various labels are used, but the truth is that within those labels, the majority of us are not really that far off from each other. Wouldn’t it be great if we could stop jumping to extreme conclusions based on nebulous labels and find common ground instead? But this is difficult, because the internet gives powerful voice to people who have lost their minds. So what are we gonna do? Honestly, I am still trying to figure that out. I don’t know whether to start publicly refuting the insane tweets of others or not, but I am leaning toward mostly letting it all go, unless it impacts me directly. After all, God is Sovereign.

The Most Important Prayer

Thy will be done.

Those four words comprise the most important sentence you could ever pray.

Jesus told us to ask, seek and knock, and to expect God to give us what we ask for (Matthew 7:7-11). This principle is seen throughout Scripture. James also indicated that we do not receive, because we do not ask in faith. We are clearly instructed to seek what we desire from God. We are to ask and keep on asking. Jesus even told a parable to illustrate that begging God repeatedly for something is the best way to get it. Sometimes God absolutely WAITS to give us what we are asking for until we ask and keep on fervently asking for an extended period of time.

Preachers of the “Prosperity Gospel,” though heretical, are nonetheless correct in teaching the above half of the equation. Part of their error comes in not including the following warning: Sometimes, when God gives you what you asked for, it is not a good thing. Oh, it is absolutely true that God wants to give you what you want. He doesn’t like saying no to His kids. In fact, God hates saying no so much, that sometimes He says yes even when He knows you are going to be wishing you hadn’t asked in the end.

Wait, really? Yep. Keep reading.

When Jesus taught us to pray, He included the all-important sentence I mentioned above, “Thy will be done.” He also demonstrated this for us from the Garden, where, sweating drops of blood, He prayed, “Nevertheless, Thy will be done, not mine.” Jesus fervently and repeatedly asked for the cup of suffering to pass from Him, but not without including just as fervently, “Thy will be done.”

When it comes to prayer, there is no way to overemphasize the importance of those four words.

Ask the Israelites. When they wanted a king, they forgot to add these words. When they wanted meat in the wilderness, they forgot to add these words. Both times, God gave them EXACTLY what they asked for. In the first instance, they received their king, and it led to war and ultimately destruction. In the second instance, they received so much meat that it caused a plague and many died. God said, “I’ll give you enough meat until it is running out of your noses” (Numbers 11). Both times, their prayers did not line up with the will of God. Both times, all they could think about was what they wanted, and receiving it, they faced the consequences of their own lack of foresight. They forgot to pray, “Thy will be done.”

Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Some would take this as a sure-fire way to get whatever you want from God, like an algebra equation guaranteeing results. Do A and get B. They fail; however, to understand that when A is true, B is automatically changed. When you delight yourself in the Lord, the desires of your heart become conformed to His will. Why? Because when He becomes your delight, His desires become yours.

As a child of God, perhaps the most dangerous thing you could ever do is to ask God for what you desire without adding, “Thy will be done.” God said in advance that He is prone to give His children what they want most (Matthew 7:11). If what you want most is not His will, beware the power of prayer!

Scripture absolutely encourages the children of God to ask for the desires of their hearts. Do not take what I have written to mean you should skip the asking part and simply pray a blanket prayer for the will of God. Not at all! Keep on asking, seeking and knocking. BEG GOD for the desires of your heart! Spend large amounts of time doing this! But don’t forget to add the most important words to your prayer: “Thy will be done.” And don’t be surprised when His will and your will are no longer two different things.

Father, let Your will be done, and let every ounce of my will become Yours.