This week at Asbury we are looking at God's Sovereignty, especially from Psalm 33. We read in the Psalm verses like,
"For the word of the LORD is right and true; he is faithful in all he does" (33:4)
"The LORD foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples" (33:10)
"No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength" (33:16)
These are just a few verses about God's sovereignty, about how God is active and alive in the world. About how God's words stand true despite anything that stand against his plans and purposes.
The thing about these verses is that I should whole heartedly get behind theses words. I should be stirred by the greatness of our God. The thing is, when I read these words I usually am left asking myself how much I really believe in this kind of concept. I tend to be a hyper-Arminian in terms of God's sovereignty. I tend to see the human involvement in life, and the human choice in the actions of the nations and the individuals. Theses verses are redirecting me to think through this concept a bit. God is working in the world. I've been told my entire life that life is what I make it. Success and failure ultimately depend on me and my ability. This is the American dream- the self-made man who only had pennies to his name then became the wealthy and the powerful. This is a lie according to the Biblical narrative. The truth is that God is active in the world, and for the blessings I experience or the failures I experience I need to look to God. The Psalm declares that no one is saved by the size of his army, the same is true for us in terms of our own "armies." Those things we set up as safeguards against destruction: wealth, education, possessions, etc. I am not saved by these things. Saved here is not the eternal kind of salvation like most evangelicals talk about. Saved in this Psalm is the more temporal salvation. The salvation from destruction. The salvation from misery. The salvation from torment and tyranny. Salvation is the blessings in life. No "army" is going to save me, only the LORD.
1 comment:
i like where you landed here man. though I'm not entirely sure of how you got there... :-)
If I could wonder aloud here on your blog about how appropriate it is to use verses like these in the psalms to support sovereignty, which seems to be more of a doctrinal position than I think David intended when he was writing. David isn't writing systematic theology, he's writing himself into the story as he's experienced God.
But like i said, the questions you land on, plant yourself and us squarely into the story and our experience of God. Do we experience God in these ways, do we live in these ways etc seem to be far more valuable to a community than to tell them facts about God David may have never intended.
enjoying the blog man. Keep up the good work.
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