I had an interesting conversation with a friend the other day. We were speaking of life and who is in control. What easily came to our minds is what we hear as a general statement from believers. God is in control. It seemed totally acceptable and within the parameters of what God’s Word testifies to be true, and yet later that day I kept asking myself if I was missing something important.
I went back to Genesis and the garden of Eden. Sin was ushered into the life of Adam and Eve when they chose to disobey God. What resulted was a drastic change in the existence that they had known. They were forced from the garden, and from the presence of God. However, the earthly control that God had given to mankind through the first man Adam was still his to retain. But, with sin came separation from God. Not until Jesus came and took the keys to Hades and death, did man once again return to his place of spiritual authority. Through Jesus man now had the authority to tread on the heads of snakes and scorpions. The enemy was now beneath the believers’ feet, and those who were born again of the Spirit were reconciled back to the Father.
God is sovereign, and He can exercise His power into any situation that He chooses. We all agree on this point. My question is one of control. There is a distinct difference between the two.
If I examine what I believe has been spoken through the Word of God, then it is we who are in control. We have the authority to bless or curse with the words that we use, as we alone have control over our tongue. We have the Holy Spirit ready to assist us in all things, but we can choose to keep Him out. We can make decisions without His counsel as we have the freedom to choose. Finally, we can exercise the gift of free will that has been given to all mankind and use it in a controlling manner.
The Bible declares that there are plans laid out for us that are beyond what we can ever think or imagine. Jeremiah 29:11 in the Christian Standard Bible says, “For I know the plans I have for you, plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Once again we can choose to abide in God’s very best for us, or not.
As believers we live an abundant life when we live in agreement with God and His word. However, He will never force Himself on us. We can remain in control until the very end. Nonetheless, in this life it should not take long before we come to the realization that giving God control is one of the first steps in seeing our life transformed, and walking into our promised future with hope. It merely means making a decision to fully surrender to God.
Psalm 115:16 CSB The heavens are the Lord’s but the earth He has given to the human race.