All Things

Q: What does the Bible say about God's providence?

God's providence governs all things, ensuring everything works together for His purpose. God's providence is a central theme in Scripture, emphasizing that He orchestrates all events for His glory and the good of His people. As seen in Romans 8:28, 'We know that all things work together for good to them that love God.' This indicates that every situation, whether perceived as good or bad, is under God's sovereign control and contributes to His divine plan. In 2 Corinthians 5:18, it is affirmed that 'all things are of God,' revealing that God is the ultimate source of everything that occurs, shaping the course of history and individual lives according to His perfect will.

Q: How do we know all things work for good?

We know that all things work for good because Scripture promises it to those who love God. The assurance that all things work for good is rooted in the nature of God and His promises. Romans 8:28 tells us that 'all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose.' This indicates that God's actions are driven by His love for His elect and His intent to fulfill His purpose for their lives. Believers can trust in this truth, knowing that God's providential hand is at work in their lives, molding circumstances for their ultimate good and His glory.

Q: Why is understanding God's sovereignty important for Christians?

Understanding God's sovereignty provides comfort and assurance in trials, reminding Christians that He is in control. For Christians, understanding the sovereignty of God is crucial as it shapes our worldview and how we respond to life's trials. God's sovereignty means that He orchestrates all events in accordance with His divine purpose, as emphasized in Ephesians 1:11, where it says He 'works all things after the counsel of His own will.' This understanding offers comfort in times of adversity, knowing that nothing happens outside of God’s control. In moments of hardship, believers can find peace in the knowledge that their struggles are part of God's perfect plan, leading ultimately to their good and His glory.

Q: What does it mean that all things are of God?

It means that everything in creation and salvation originates from God and for His glory. When we say that 'all things are of God,' we acknowledge that He is the source of everything that exists, as stated in 2 Corinthians 5:18: 'All things are of God.' This encompasses creation, providence, and salvation itself. Every aspect of life, from the grand design of the universe to the intimate details of our lives, is orchestrated by God’s wisdom. In terms of salvation, it underscores that every part of the redemptive process—from election to glorification—is executed by God’s grace and purpose, highlighting His sovereignty in the salvation of His people.

Q: How does God's control over all things comfort believers?

It reassures believers that God is in control, providing peace through life's uncertainties. The understanding that God controls all things is a profound comfort to believers, particularly in the face of trials and uncertainty. Knowing that nothing happens by chance, and that God has purpose and intention behind every event, allows Christians to rest in His sovereignty. This assurance is beautifully encapsulated in Romans 8:28, which proclaims that 'all things work together for good to them that love God.' Believers can face difficulties with the confidence that God is not only aware of their struggles but is actively working through them to achieve His divine will, thus offering peace that transcends circumstances.

Well, we just had a delightful
instruction time in gospel preaching. Brother David, thank you for
the message. I always look for any source
of good preaching material. I'm always in need. And I got
my outline for next Sunday, the Lord willing, from Brother David
when he first started. And I suggest that all four of
us preachers preach the same subject next Sunday. The title
of the message is going to be the sent one who came and went
forth. Christ Jesus was sent of the
Father as a bond slave to accomplish a specific work. He came forth
as a voluntary surety to perform that work. And he went forth
unto the Father, having fully accomplished it." That's good
preaching. That's good preaching. Thank
you so much for everything you've done this week and done over
the years. This congregation been dear friends
to Shelby and I for a long, long time. Thank God for making you
part of our lives. And we continue to covet your
prayers for us as we seek to serve our God together with you
and with his folks in Danville and other parts of the world.
So thankful God's given you a pastor after his own heart to feed you
with knowledge and understanding. So thankful. Open your Bibles
with me, if you will, to the book of 2 Samuel. Almost every week, I receive
a telephone call or several, emails or letters or visits from
some of God's children who are going through heavy, heavy trials
of faith. A broken-hearted pastor, a distraught
mother, a weeping father, a devastated wife or husband, weeping parents,
sons, daughters. We have many, many friends, many
faithful brothers and sisters in Christ who are going through
heavy, heavy trials. Our hearts ache for them. Some
of you are enduring great trials of faith in your composure, composure
you and Kathy have shown, God's given you. as he's put you in a furnace
of affliction. Yet he sustains you by his grace
in the midst of trouble and heartache, and gives you composure in the
knowledge of his adorable, wise, and good providence, and you
rest in Christ, in his goodness, his grace. And that peaceful
confidence he gives you in the adversity is an encouragement
to me. Some of God's saints seem to
have trials and temptations, one on the heels of another.
They usually, they who have the most difficult troubles, seem
to bathe them with the greatest composure. Have you ever noticed
that? I had a professor when I was in school, Brother Robert
Cox, one of the few men I had his
professors who knew God as far as I have any sense of confidence
concerning it. When he was 26 years old, he
was a strong, strapping man, over six feet tall. When I met
him, he was shorter than my wife. He was about that tall. And he
couldn't move his body without moving like this. Every move
gave him pain. He had crippling arthritis. When
I step off a curb, I see him winch with pain, but I never
saw him frown. Most pleasant man I've met in
my life. He's just a delightful man. He believed God and walked
with confidence in God's providence and God's goodness in the midst
of constant, excruciating pain. That makes me a little impatient
with folks who get bent out of shape when they've got a hangnail
or a dripping faucet. In recent days, I've thought
a lot about some friends and tried to pray for some friends
who are going through trouble. I've been directed, I believe,
of God to meditate a good bit on his providence and his care. Brother Winston asked me just
a little bit ago, is when you have adversity, trouble,
are you able to lean on the Lord? And I have to answer such questions
honestly, only when He makes me. That's just fact. Until He forces
me, I lean on the arm of the flesh and try my best to work
it out. And when I'm at my wits end, then I call on Him. And
that will be the same with you. He shuts us up to Himself and
graciously forces us to trust Him if we're His. When trials
come, when temptations assail our souls, nothing is more helpful
nothing more comfortable, nothing more assuring, nothing more peaceful
than the blessed knowledge of God's wise, good, adorable providence. And if he will enable me to preach
it, I've got a message for you today that it will be worth more
to your soul than buckets of gold if God will write it on
your heart. The title of the message is All
Things. All things. Those two words are
used throughout the scriptures together more than 200 times. Most of the time, they have reference
to God's providence and his grace and his goodness in the saving
of his people. All things. When God says all
things, he means all things. All things. He doesn't mean some
things. He doesn't mean all good things.
He means all things. Now, I know you hear preachers
tell you all the time. Now, you got to be careful. You
don't take that too far. Be careful you don't take it
far enough. You can't take what God says
too far. Did you get that? You can't take
what God says too far. When God says all things, he
means all things as far back as eternity past. All things
through the ages of time. All things through eternity yet
to come, if I can use such redundant language. All things in heaven,
all things in earth, and all things in hell. All good things
and all bad things. All things performed by men,
righteous and wicked, and all things performed by angels and
the demons of hell. All things. I'm talking now about
all things. All things. Look here in 2 Samuel
23. While David was dying, God's
servant looked over his life's history And oh, what a checkered
history his life was. We think our lives have their
dark sides and their light sides and their high points and low
points. David's life was a checkered,
checkered life. This man, after God's own heart,
was chosen of God and anointed to be king of Israel when he
was just a boy. He served Saul faithfully, but
was the object of Saul's constant hatred. Saul despised him and
tried repeatedly to kill him. This man David, once he was established
as king in Israel, proved himself the greatest king Israel ever
had as a nation. He was such a great king that
he stands constantly before us as a type and representative
of our Lord Jesus Christ. This man, David, when you read
through the Psalms of David, As you read David's Psalms, understand
now, David was writing what he really felt. David was expressing
what he really thought. But this one who is David represents
David's Lord, our Redeemer, and his great son. So that throughout
the Psalms, you see David speaking for Christ himself, because David
was an imminent type of Christ. He was clearly the greatest of
Israel's psalm writers. And this man, David, was despised
by his wife, Michael, because he worshipped God. Michael looked out her window,
John, saw David dancing before the ark, and hated him for it.
Hated him, because he worshipped God. That was all he did. He was a good husband, loved
her, and he worshipped God. So she hated him. She hated him.
He stole another man's wife, and had him murdered. This man after God's own heart. I just said to Winston Warlick,
he'd been a good friend for a long time, thank God for him, you'd
do the same thing today if God had let you. You too. And me too. So, what, do you think a believer
would do that? There's not anything a believer
won't do if God'll let you. Nothing. Nothing. David proves
it. As if you needed proof. Walter,
not one thing you wouldn't do if God let you. And you know
that's so. Whether you admit it or not, you know that's so.
You know it's so. How many times you could have
killed a fellow just like that if God hadn't stopped you? Just
like that. His son was slain, though David
prayed earnestly for him. And God gave him another son
named Solomon, beloved of the Lord. His son Amnon raped one of his
daughters. And Amnon was killed by his brother
Solomon, or Absalom. Absalom rebelled against his
father and sought to destroy the throne. And Absalom was taken,
and David loved Absalom. And then David, in an act of
horrible pride, numbered Israel. And because of his sin, 70,000
who followed him were slain. He had a checkered life. Those
are just a few of those things to let us know how varied his
experiences were. His pains and his pleasures,
his joys and his griefs, his happiness and his heartaches.
And yet, as he was dying and thought upon all the way God
had led him. That's something to think about,
David, all the way God had led him, all those things. He said
this with regard to what God had done with sweet composure. Look at verse five. Although
my house be not so with God Yet he hath made with me an everlasting
covenant watch this now ordered in all things and sure For this
is all my salvation and all my desire Although he'd make it
not to grow It's this all I want is just what God's done. I Oh, God, give me that. This is all I want, just what
God has done. That's all. David comes to his
death, his physical death, when he's about to enter into life
with joy in his heart to know that God had ordered the accomplishment
of his everlasting purpose and grace toward him in all things. in all things. What did it take for God to bring
David here at the close of his life? All those things. Everyone of them laughed. Everyone
of them. None accepted. Couldn't he have gotten by without
that Incident with Uriah No Nope Would have been best for David
Would have been best for the cause of Christ would have been
best for you and me That's how our Redeemer came into this world
Through Bathsheba Read the book She's the great-great-grandmother
of the Son of God our Redeemer. I Don't tell me it wasn't best
it happened. It didn't just happen because
God couldn't control it. It was brought to pass because
of God's goodness and His purpose of grace toward His people. So,
Brother Dodd, I don't understand that. There's not much about
God I understand. There's very little about God
I understand. He's bigger than me. He's bigger than me. These two words, all things,
I want us to look at 19 places where they're used in the scriptures.
I won't be long. I'm not going to do much preaching.
I'll just read the scripture to you and let it do its own
preaching. First, turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 5. And if you want to
try to keep up as we turn, that's fine. If you want to just jot
them down, I do recommend that you keep a record. Jot down the
references and look at them. 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse
18. Here the Apostle says and all
things are of God Now he didn't really mean that
did he Tell me did it mean or not all
things are of God all things all things in creation All things
were made by Him and without Him was not anything made that
was made. All things in creation. God made
this world. He created this world. He created
it as it is. He created it for His glory. He created it for His people.
And when He gets done with it, He's gonna burn it up. And it's
not gonna burn up until then. I get so tired of the frog-kissing,
tree-hugging society we live in. This is God's creation. And nobody's
going to destroy it till God destroys it. Not you, not me,
not anybody else. You mean Brother Don is all right
to use aerosol hairspray? If I see somebody out protesting,
I'm going to buy me a case of it and spray it like this. This is God's creation. He made
all things. Not only is creation his so that
he upholds all things and by him who is our Savior all things
Consist he holds it all together and he will destroy all things
in Providence all things are of God listen to the book for
of him and Through him and to him are all things Romans 11
36 what it says in it Of him, that's the source. Through him,
that's how they're accomplished. And to him are all things. Well, but what about the devil?
The devil is not God's rival, he's God's servant. You understand
that? God's not in competition with
the devil. Read the 14th chapter of Isaiah sometime. Lucifer said,
I will be God. God, step aside, I'm taking over.
I'm going to ascend to the throne of the Most High, and he huffs
and puffs and tries to blow the Lord's house down. And God's
response is this, oh no, what am I going to do? No. God's response in the ease of
absolute sovereignty says, this is the purpose that is purposed
in all the earth. This is the purpose that is purposed
in all the earth. You mean God purposed the fall?
Either He purposed it or took it by surprise, take your pick. Either God was in control or
Satan was in control, take your pick. I don't know what's wrong
with this crazy society that thinks of a God who's not God. God rules the universe. All things
are of him and through him and shall at last be down to his
glory in the end. And particularly in this text,
the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 5 18 is talking about salvation. In salvation, in the saving of
our souls, all things are of God. Now, salvation is a mighty
big package, mighty big package. We think about salvation, we
tend to think about the time when first we came to realize
what God was doing in us and began to realize what he had
done for us and began to realize what he's going to do with us.
But salvation is bigger than that. Salvation includes everything
involved in bringing a lost sinner from the depths of Adam's fall
to the heights of resurrection glory in the last day. So that
election and predestination and redemption, that's all God's
work. That's all God's work. Forgiveness
and pardon and justification, that's all God's work. Reconciliation,
regeneration and sanctification, that's all God's work. Repentance
and faith and conversion, that's all God's work. That's God's
work. Well, that's my faith. Well,
it is because God gave it to you. It is your faith because
God operates it in you. It is your faith because God
performs it in you. But this is God's work. We believe
according to the working of his mighty power. Preservation, resurrection,
glory, glorification itself, all this is God's work. Well,
Brother Don, that means the sinner doesn't do anything. Well, I
preached that pretty good, didn't I? You understood that. You mean
brother died there's not anything I can do to save myself You did
you get that? That's the way I intended you
to get it. That's the way this book intends you to get it Well,
if that's the case if God leaves you alone you're going to hell
That's all it takes that's all it takes for you for you to be
lost forever is for God leave you alone I For God, you'd be
wise to cry like Bartimaeus when he heard that Jesus of Nazareth's
passing by, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. Because
if he passes by you and leaves you alone, hell will be your
everlasting portion. All things are of God. Number
two, Proverbs 16. Proverbs 16, verse four. The Lord hath made all things
for himself, yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. I don't presently see what God's
doing in all things. I don't know why on earth we've
got the abominable wretch in the White House we've got in
there, but he's God's devil too. And I chose my words on purpose.
He's God's devil too. Because God says, when the ways
of a nation displease him, he sets over them the basest of
men. I don't understand why God does
most of the things I see going on when I read the newspaper,
do you? I don't understand most of what's going on in this world,
but I'm assured that in all things God is doing something wonderful. He's making for himself, as Isaiah
puts it, an everlasting and a glorious name. That's what God's doing. He brought
Israel out of Egypt. He sent them down there for 400
years so he could bring them out and bring them across through
the wilderness for 40 more years. And he brought them finally into
the land of Canaan and he planted them there to make himself an
everlasting and a glorious name. And that's why God made this
world. That's why God chose his people
out of a fallen race and sends them through the four corners
of the earth and scatters them that he might gather them and
bring us at last into heavenly glory to make himself an everlasting
and a glorious name. Number three, turn to Ephesians
chapter one. I want you to turn to this one.
Ephesians one. Here the Holy Spirit informs
us that all things are disposed of by God in time exactly according
to his own purpose of grace in eternity in divine predestination. Now, this is what the long and
short of that means. Everything that comes to pass
in time was purposed by God in eternity, nothing except it. Everything that is was predestinated. Everything that shall be was
predestinated before the world began. Look at Ephesians chapter
1 verse 10. That in the dispensation of the
fullness of times, he might gather together in one all things in
Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth, even
in him, in whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being
predestinated according to the purpose of him, what's this? What's this? Who worketh all
things after the counsel of his own will. He worketh all things. Russell,
nothing takes God by surprise. Nobody sneaks up on God's backside.
Nothing astonishes the Almighty. Nothing disturbs Him. He worketh,
constantly manipulates all things after His will. You mean, Brother
Don, that God absolutely manipulates the thoughts of men and the words
of men and the deeds of men? You mean God absolutely manipulates
everything? Of course he does. Of course
he does. Everything. Well, you folks charge
God with sin, you take that up with God and try it if you want
to. God Almighty is God Almighty. Either he rules everything or
he rules nothing. Either he controls everything
or he controls nothing. We're talking about God, not
some peanut, not a rabbit's foot, not an idol. We're talking about
God. Number four, look at John chapter three. John 3, verse
35. The Father loveth the Son and
hath given all things into his hand. Now, this is talking about our
Savior, not as God the Son, but as the Son of God, who is the
God-man, our mediator. As God the Son, nothing was given
to him. But as the God-man, our mediator,
our covenant surety, because of his obedience to the Father
as our surety, the Father has given all things into his hands. So that the Lord God said to
him, Ask of me, and I'll give you the heathen for your inheritance.
And our Lord Jesus comes to the end of his day, and he says,
Thou hast given him power over all flesh that he should give
eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. God then manifestly
restored to him the glory that he had with the Father before
the world was. You see, this was all done from
eternity. He's a lamb slain before the
foundation of the world. Hebrews 4 verse 3, the works
were finished from the foundation of the world. All the works,
everything. God's eternal. God's eternal. He doesn't dwell
in eternity. He inhabits eternity. He is eternal. God's eternal. There's with God
no such thing as tomorrow or yesterday. God's eternal. And
all His works were finished when He decreed His works from eternity. Finished from the foundation
of the world. And the glory which the Lord Jesus now has manifestly
given to Him was His with the Father as our covenant surety
when He struck heads with the Father and the work was done.
What's the point of all this? He who rules the universe is
God in my nature. He who rules the universe is
God in my flesh. He who rules the universe is
the God-man mediator who gave his life for me. Now, what do
you reckon he won't do for me? He who controls heaven, earth,
and hell, redeem me with His precious blood. What's hell going
to do to me? He who controls the thoughts
of every man is my Savior. What shall any man do to me?
You get that? You get that? The father loves
the son. and has put all things under
his hands. Soon all things shall be put
under his feet. God ordained in the creation
of man that all things be put under the feet of a man. I look at things and nothing's under my feet. I can't
control myself, let alone you. I control nothing nothing put
her in my feet. We see not yet all things put under his feet,
but we see Jesus crammed with glory and honor all things are
under his feet and Soon, they shall be put under my feet with
him and in him Go back to 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 again our
chapter 4 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 Verse 15 his fifth day Now hold on to your seat. If
this doesn't ring your bell, your clacker's broke. All things are for your sakes. He performeth all things for
me, David said. All things. He performeth all
things for me. But Brother Don, you don't know
what I'm going through. No, but He does, and He performed
it, Caleb, for you. Not to you, not against you,
not even with you. For you. For you. For you. Doesn't matter who brings it.
God performed it. Doesn't matter what anybody else's
intent was. God performed it for me, for me. Oh, what a Savior
we have. Now, look at Romans chapter 8,
verse 28. We, All who are born of God, taught
of God. We know. We know because we've
read this book and it says so. We know by the teaching of God
the Holy Spirit. Our guests work with us. It's
not a matter of Logical or theological interpretation of the Word of
God. It's not a not a part of a theological system. We know
Because we know God we know that all things all things all things
Remember take it as far as you can take it And when you've when
you've reached the utmost end of the height and length and
breadth which you can take it You haven't yet begun to commence
to get started understanding it all things We know that all
things work, look at that next word, together. Together. I'm not a mechanic, but some
of you fellows have worked with machinery all your lives, and
got cogs and wheels, and the thing that makes a machine work
is that all the cogs and wheels fit together. And if one of them's
out of joint, nothing works. Is that right? One of them's
out of joint, nothing works. You can take that Brand new pickup
truck you're driving, you're so proud of, so shiny and sparkly
and nice, and be running down the road 75, 80 miles an hour,
just listening to a little jazz on your radio with the sunroof
rolled back and air conditioner blowing in your face and chewing
on a cigar, smoking it, whatever you want to. And all of a sudden,
a U-joint falls out of the thing. Didn't have any more to run till
the wheels stopped rolling. Well, it's just a little old
U-joint. Cost nothing. Nothing to put it in, but you
can't run the truck without it. So it is with all things. All things work together. Together. And if you just pull one thing
out, well, what if that didn't happen? No possibility. What if he hadn't died then?
No chance that wasn't going to happen. What if that fellow hadn't
murdered those people? No possibility. You pull one
thing out of the machinery and the whole machinery is useless. Nothing comes to pass except
that which God works together. What's this? For good. For good. How many times have
you heard somebody speak to you to go through some difficulty? Darvin, I know most of your family,
most of them religious, but I'll guarantee you somebody said,
well, we know this is going to turn out for good. This is going
to turn out for good. No, it doesn't turn out for good.
That's not what this book says. Well, as luck would have it,
things, everything works out for good. That's not what the
book says. All things work together for good to them that love God. To them who are thee called according
to his purpose. so that all things in time work
together all the time for the good of God's elect, those who
are the called according to his purpose. And they love him because
they are called of him according to his purpose. All right, let's
look at another text here. First Corinthians 3 verse 21. Therefore that no man glory in
men for all things are yours first 23 and ye are Christ If you believe if you trust the
Lord Jesus This is God's Word to you personally Brother Warren, I guess I know
you better than I do anybody here. I haven't known you very
long. Do you trust the Savior? This is what God says to you.
All things are yours. All things temporal and eternal. All things carnal and spiritual. All things are yours. All things
are yours. For ye are Christ, and Christ
is God's. That means that all things heavenly,
the angels of God, the throne of God, the Son of God, all are
yours. All things eternal. You kids
quit playing now. That's enough. All things are
yours. All things are yours. And all
the glory of heaven. shall be yours forever, shall
be yours forever. Number eight, look at Matthew
22. Here's a text designed and intended specifically for you
who yet are under the wrath of God. The Lord Jesus commands saved
sinners to declare to lost sinners, all things are ready. Matthew
22, verse four, Again, he sent forth other servants, saying,
Tell them which are bitten, Behold, I have prepared my dinner. My
oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready. Come
to the marriage." Right where you are, right now, come to Christ. Come to Christ. But don't bring anything with
you. This is a marriage feast at which everything is provided
by the father of the groom. And nobody's allowed to come
who brings a gift. At this marriage feast, the bride
has no dowry. Everything is provided by the
groom. And all things are ready. Come
to the marriage. Come. Be married to the Son of
God. In Him is complete pardon. In Him is perfect righteousness. In Him is sure acceptance with
God. In Him is unconditional salvation. With Him is everlasting, absolute
security. Number nine, listen to this. By Christ, Acts 13, verse 39. All that believe are justified
from all things. Justified from all things. Now, we tend to give little cliches
to make things simple, and folks say justified. That means just
as if I'd never sinned. That's not what it means. That's
not what it means. To be justified, Brother Gordon,
means I've never sinned. means God's not just acted like
I hadn't seen he doesn't just pretend I haven't seen he put
away my sin So it looks it he shall never remember them against
me anymore But wait a minute. We just heard from brother David
accurately. God never forgot anything God never forgot anything
How is it that God, who never forgot anything, cannot remember
our transgressions? Because God, by the sacrifice
of His Son, put away our sins. And they are no more. That means
we're justified. Justified from all things. From all things. Y'all got a bulletin. See this
right here? See that left-hand margin? Back
years ago, when I first started writing bullet articles, we had
a little spirit mimeograph machine, spirit duplicator. It wasn't
even a mimeograph machine. And I'd write the articles out and
Shelby would type them. And then she'd take a ruler and draw a
line down this side over here, down the right-hand side. And
then she'd retype the thing and put spaces in it to justify the
right-hand margin. These days, we got computers
and we hit the J button and it's done. But that's what it means. See the left-hand side here?
To justify the right-hand margin is to make the right side exactly
equal to the left side. Brother Darwin, here's God's
holiness, God's law, God's perfection, God's demands, God's requirements,
everything. His absolute perfection. Here I am in Christ. Justified. Exactly equal to all that God
is. Exactly equal to all that God
demands. Number 10. Number 10. Matthew 19 After seeing the rich young ruler
go away sorrowful because he had much riches and The Lord
Jesus said to his disciples It's easier for a rich man to go through
a needle's eye Or for camel go through a needle's eye than is
for rich man dinner in the kingdom of heaven. I If you got one of
the Bible's been messed with you'll have a notation somewhere
telling you that needles I referred to a little slit in the wall
around Jerusalem that the camels could get through but they had
to stoop down and Just about crawl through to get through
there. That's not what it refers to When you read an eagle's eye,
what do you let a snake of? That little old bitty slit and
top of the needles you can't get thread through if you got
a magnifying glass and And our Lord said, it's easier for a
camel to crawl through that thing than it is for a rich man to
enter the kingdom of heaven. And that's just what he meant. That's
just what he meant. And the disciples said, well,
who then can be saved? Listen to this. With God, all things
are possible. If salvation depends on you,
nothing's possible. But with God, all things are
possible. There's no filth the blood of
Christ can't cleanse. There's no spiritual deformity
the grace of Christ can't correct. There's no nakedness of soul
the righteousness of Christ can't cover. And then in Mark 9, 23,
our Lord tells us, if thou can't believe, all things are possible
to him that believeth. A man brought his son to the
Savior, grievously vexed of devils. And he cried, Lord Jesus, have
mercy on me. And the Lord healed his son. Here's a man praying for a son
who would not and could not pray for himself. You've got a son
like that. And the Lord made his son whole
because his father believed him. That's what it says, isn't it? Is that what the book says? Now, I don't know what to make
of that. I'll be honest with you. I don't know what to make
of that, except all things are possible to him that believes
it. That's what it says. Brother Rex Bartley, one of the
men in our congregation, read Scripture for us and led us in
prayer several years ago. I hope I never forget what he
said. He said, Lord, we never find anywhere in Your Word of
any sinner begging mercy who didn't get mercy from You. And we never read anywhere in
Your Word of any father or mother Bringing their child to you for
mercy. Who didn't obtain mercy for their
child from you. All things are possible to him
that believe us. All things possible. So that
you can, if you just believe God, you can say to this sycamore
tree, fully grown sycamore tree, Be uprooted and thrown into the
sea. You can say to that mountain, y'all have a tough time picturing
that. You can say to the highest mountain, the highest mountain,
be leveled to the ground. Boy, I've got real faith. Watch
me uproot this sycamore tree. No, that's not what he's talking
about. He's talking about the deep-rooted sin of your depraved,
corrupt heart. The mountain of your iniquities.
believe God and are cast into the depths of the sea. Our Savior said, if thou wouldest
believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God. All things are
possible to him that believeth. Now listen to this. Now look
at it. 2 Corinthians 5. 2 Corinthians 5. When we were in the barbaric
stone age of cassette recorders and didn't use video disc and
digital recording, we used to have a button on the machines.
It was called R-E-W. That stood for rewind. Push the
button, go back to the start. How would you like to be able
to push a button, John, and start all over? with a clean slate,
with no possibility of ever messing it up. You just start all over. Oh,
would to God I could just start all over and erase all the past
and have no possibility of messing things up again. Will you listen
to this? 2 Corinthians 5, 17. If any man be in Christ, he's
a new creature. Old things are passed away. Though all the record, all the
corruption, all the filth, all the sin, all of the old man gone. And behold, all things are become
new. Well, but what about now that
I'm saved? Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute
sin. Won't do it. Well, you can't
tell people that and make them go out and live like they want
to. Don't you wish you could? Do you need some whip of the
law, Joe, to make you want to honor God? Oh, no. Nothing motivates to
godliness like gratitude for grace. Nothing. Nothing. Now, listen to this. Romans 8.32. He spared not his own son, but
delivered him up for us all. How shall he not with him also
freely give us all things? God gives his people everything
they need as they need it when they need it, both materially
and spiritually. both temporally and spiritually. He gives us all that we need
and withholds nothing. Withholds nothing. I've told
you this before, but it makes me sound so good and look so
good, I will tell you again. My son-in-law came back from
honeymoon. And first time they were at the
house, I fixed up some papers. We don't have any property, but
we have some insurance. I said, these are insurance papers.
And I gave him some keys. keys to the house, keys to my
toolbox, keys to the garage, keys to my truck, keys to my
car. And I said, this is everything I've got. It's yours. Take it
and use it however you want to. And you wouldn't do that. Well,
I had just given him my daughter. You reckon I wouldn't give him
a monkey wrench? I gave him the most precious
thing in the world to me. You reckon I'd hold back a hacksaw? God gave you his son. Now, what
is it you suppose he's going to keep from you? What is it
you imagine he might not give you? How shall he not with him
also freely give us all things? Proverbs 28 5 tells us that the
believer, the righteous man, understands all things. He understands
all things. He doesn't understand all physics.
He doesn't understand all astronomy. He doesn't understand all mathematics,
but he understands all things Because those things don't really
matter Those days don't really matter he understands what God's
doing in this world He understands how God saves sinners by the
sacrifice of his son he understands all things needful for his soul
and He understands all things that matter. He understands this
book. He understands it. You mean,
brother Don, you understand everything in this book? No. No, you can
ask me a lot of questions I don't understand, but I understand
the whole book. I understand the whole book.
I understand that Jesus Christ is the Son of God by whose blood
and righteousness alone sinners are saved and accepted with God.
Was there something else I needed to know? That's the whole message
of the book. It's all about Him. Ephesians
5 verse 20 tells us to give thanks for all things. I remember as a young man, young
believer, going through what I thought at the time was just
a devastating difficulty. I don't remember what it was
now. It wasn't too devastating, but at the time I thought it
was. And I was reading scripture, trying to find something to help
me, and I lighted on a passage in 1 Thessalonians 5 that said
this, in everything give thanks. For this, whatever it is right
now, Nathan, you're going through, this is the will of God in Christ
Jesus concerning you. This is God's will. And if it
wasn't God's will for you, you wouldn't be experiencing it.
Number 16. Give me your attention for just
a couple of minutes more and I'll be done. Luke tells us about a day called
the restitution of all things. In Acts 3, verse 21, the restitution
of all things. When Christ comes again in His
glory, He's going to gather up everything. Everything. Every creature, every
vent, everything in history, everything in heaven, everything
earth, everything in hell. And he's going to say, you see
how God's glorified in it all? And he's going to make everybody
understand. Everybody's going to understand.
You and me who believe and everybody, every demon of hell, Satan, everybody
is going to understand. This was for God's glory. God
glorified Himself in this. God performed His glory in these
things you thought so evil. And then in 1 Peter 4, 7, we're
told that the end of all things is at hand. Soon, the end. Soon, the end. And that can't be soon enough.
The end of all our troubles and all our struggles. The end of
all our toils and all our trials. The end of all our temptations.
The end of all our sins. The end of every sorrow. The
end of all work. The end of every opportunity. The end of all grace. Then cometh
the end. And one more thing, I want you
to look at this, Mark chapter 7. Mark chapter 7. When the end of all things has
come, when God has restored all things
to his glory so that everybody is made to acknowledge the glory
of God before the throne of Jesus Christ the Lord. Every creature
Every man every woman every angel every demon Every believer every
reprobate soul shall say He hath done all things well You see that they come to the
end of the day here mark 7 verse 37 and And they've seen all the
Lord's wonders in this day. And they are astonished. Everybody who saw what he'd done
is just astonished. Oh, wow. Man, did you see that? Oh, did you see that? He hath done all things well,
for he maketh both the dead to hear and the dumb to speak. And blessed be His name when the day is done and time
shall be no more. We will confess to wandering
worlds, He hath done all things well with me and mine. and with you and yours. Amen.

All Things

What does the Bible say about God's providence?

How do we know all things work for good?

Why is understanding God's sovereignty important for Christians?

What does it mean that all things are of God?

How does God's control over all things comfort believers?

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All Things

What does the Bible say about God's providence?

How do we know all things work for good?

Why is understanding God's sovereignty important for Christians?

What does it mean that all things are of God?

How does God's control over all things comfort believers?

Sermon Transcript

About Don Fortner

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