What is Wrong with ‘Prosperity Gospel’?

On the onset let me say that I know some true and sincere believers who have bought into ‘prosperity gospel’ for various reasons. Some of these are personal friends and I know that this post will break them. I, strongly, do pray that it breaks you not because I have written it, but because the Word of God contained in it, powered by the Holy Spirit, has come with full force in your life to break you and thereafter mold you according to God’s will revealed to us in Scripture alone. Now here we go:

What is wrong with ‘prosperity gospel’? Before answering the question, it is good to put the record straight that ‘prosperity gospel’ is no gospel at all. The Bible is clear that there is only one Gospel (Galatians 1:6-8)and if I were to take at least one verse that summarizes this Gospel, I would go for John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” This is the Gospel. Anything that adds or subtracts from it is no gospel at all.

In light of this, Apostle Paul warns us of ‘other gospels.’ His words in Galatians 1:8, 9 echo with great emphasis: “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed” (ESV)

Now, what is wrong with ‘prosperity gospel?’ First, it misses the mark on God’s chief plan for a sinner. It emphasizes that one should come to Christ in order to get material blessings not what is big in God’s plan of salvation namely eternal life.

God gave his Son, Jesus Christ, to live a perfect life on behalf of a sinner like me and die on behalf of a sinner as me and later rose from the dead so that every believer should have eternal life. Therefore, God’s chief plan in redemption is that man should be saved from sin and death and not to prosper materially. If that was the case John 3:16 would read: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him should be healthy and wealthy.”

Secondly, ‘prosperity gospel’ robs God of his Godhood and renders Him as a vending machine. If one takes a closer look at ‘prosperity gospel,’ they will notice that it emphasizes on faith as means of obtaining blessings from God. So, God becomes a vending machine and the currency for buying on this vending machine is faith. You put faith in this vending machine and out comes a very big mansion. You slot in faith, and boom you have a top-notch job. You push faith in and the machine gives you an ‘all-eyes-on-me’ car. The moment you slot in faith, the vending machine spits out good health. If you a bachelor or spinster, you just have to put in faith, and the vending machine will give you a beautiful wife or handsome husband and a happiest marriage as a bonus.

So, people become followers of God because He is like a vending machine that gives them their wants and not because they have experienced His true and amazing love and grace in their lives. It is similar to what Christ experienced while on earth. In John 6:1-71 we read that after Jesus miraculously fed 5000 men, He withdrew to a lonely place and later at night walked on the sea and joined His disciples as they crossed over to the other side of the lake.

The next day, when some people noticed that Christ was not among them, they got into boats and followed Jesus to the other side of the sea. Upon meeting them, Jesus rebuked the people because their motive for seeking Him was wrong. He said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you” (26, 27 ESV).

In other words, Jesus is telling these people and us today that we should not follow Him because we want to prosper. Doing that is missing the mark. Rather we should follow Him because He is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:16). Jesus is not the vending machine that dispenses out material blessings at our will. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29).

Material possessions, not matter how huge, cannot satisfy us. It is God who satisfies. King Solomon explains this outstanding truth very well in the book of Ecclesiastes. King Solomon was a very prosperous man in every way (1 Kings 10:14-29). However, despite having all those riches, Solomon still felt that life was useless and was like chasing after the wind because he did not allow God to satisfy him.

Eventually, God enabled him to realize that silver and gold cannot satisfy but only God and Solomon confessed and said: “All has been heard, here is the conclusion of the matter: fear God and keep his commandments for that’s the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13 NIV). We should realize that only Christ and not the riches of this world can satisfy us. For sure, “Our hearts will remain restless until they find rest in Christ” (St Augustine).

Thirdly, ‘prosperity gospel’ robs God of his sovereignty. By God’s sovereignty, we basically mean that God is in full control of what happens in heaven and on earth. He carries out all that he wills and nothing can stop His plans. In other words, when we say that God is sovereign, we mean that God is God.

Now do proponents of ‘prosperity gospel’ recognize God’s sovereignty in the lives of his people? No, they don’t because they teach that if you are a Christian you should prosper and be rich. By such emphasis, they usurp the place of God and start determining the destiny of God’s people. They teach that it is God’s will for you to be rich.

Now, is it true to say that it is the will of God that every believer should be rich and prosper materially? Turning to the Bible, which by the way is a final rule of faith and practice for Christians, we find so many examples of believers who were very dedicated to God but were not materially rich including Jesus himself who reminds us : “The poor you shall always have,” (Mark 14:7).

Does this mean that Christians should always be poor? No, that’s another extreme which the Bible does not teach. Instead the Bible calls on Christians to work hard and trust God for their both spiritual and physical needs. In the model prayer which Christ taught His disciples and is also commonly known as the Lord’s prayer, Jesus teaches us to trust God to provide for us and He encourages us to ask: “Give us this day our daily bread” (Luke 11:3 ESV). God knows our needs; we should trust him to meet such needs one day at a time.

Jesus also warns us of focusing our eyes so much on riches that we are blinded to the fact that God is the sole provider and sustainer when he says: “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).

Another warning comes to us through the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 6:6-10:

“Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desire that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs” (ESV).

Apostle Paul continues with the word of admonition regarding focus more attention on riches than God in 2 Timothy 6:17: “As for the rich in this present age, charge then not be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy” (ESV).

And what is this ‘everything to enjoy’? Is it big mansions, expensive cars, and excellent jobs? No, it is Jesus! Jesus is everything that a Christian needs to enjoy. Jesus is the greatest provision that God has made for his children far richer than material blessings which are temporal. That’s why a Christian should echo the words of the Psalmist and say, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:25, 26, NIV).

God-Centered Worship: Songs

In my previous post, last week, I began discussing God-centered worship. Today, I would like to continue by looking at God-centered worship in the songs we sing, especially, in the service of worship.

Songs are one of channels which man uses to worship and glorify God; however, we need to be very careful because songs can also easily do the opposite. Songs that are not God-centered draw our focus away from God to other people or things. Although such songs might contain some elements of Christianity, in reality, they take our attention from God and do not honor Him at all.

For instance, there is this chorus, in Chichewa, which goes:

Zungulizunguli pamakwelero anzanga

Aye, ena adzatsala popita kumwamba.

Eeh, ena adzatsala ayee

Ena adzatsala popita kumwamba

(Meaning: Going around the rudder to heaven, some won’t make it to heaven)

This is one example of songs that are not God-centered. The beat of the chorus sounds great but the message is not God-centered. In the chorus, the singer seems to rejoice that some people won’t enter heaven. Does this honor and glorify God who doesn’t want anybody to perish (1 Peter 3:9)? Now imagine singing that song as part of your worship.

The above example illustrates how some of our songs can defeat the purpose of honoring and glorifying God. All Christian songs should lead us to focus our attention on God not on ourselves or anything else. This is what it means to have God-centered worship in songs, hymns and choruses.

God-Centered Worship

Question number one of Westminster Shorter Catechism asks: What’s the chief end of man? The answer is: the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

This is indeed the summary of the Bible’s teaching concerning us. God created us to glorify him or to worship him (1 Corinthians 10:31). But here we need to guard against a certain teaching which suggests that if we don’t worship God, God is incomplete. This is a very serious fallacy.

God is still glorified even if we don’t worship him. In theology, the glory of God is categorized into two namely intrinsic and ascribed glory. Intrinsic glory refers to the glory which God has always have had from eternity past and will always have forever. Even if we don’t worship him, God is still glorified. Ascribed glory refers to the glory we give him through our worship.

Therefore, we should never think that God needs our worship for him to be complete. Never! He is complete even without us worshipping him. Our worship is a response to His intrinsic glory. When we truly know God, we always marvel at his glory and His glory leaves us with no any other choice but to bow down in adoration.

But sadly sometimes, in our churches, we have ‘worship services’ that are not God-centered hence don’t qualify to be called ‘worship services’ in the first place. God willing, in a couple of weeks coming, I will take time to cite examples of some activities in our worship services which are not God-centered. To God alone be the glory!

God Opposes the Proud…

The Bible is very clear on the sin of pride. God hates pride. One of the reasons why God resists pride is because it blinds ones eyes to the fact that only God deserves all the glory and honor. This fact is demonstrated clearly in the life of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.

The detailed account of King Nebuchadnezzar’s life is recorded in the book of Daniel chapters 1 through 4. As you ransack these chapters, you will find out the devastating consequences that pride can bring in ones life. Nebuchadnezzar was too proud to acknowledge that God is exalted above his creation and has no equal in this world.

God, at first, showed his greatness to Nebuchadnezzar when the Lord, through, Daniel was able to tell and interpret the dream which Nebuchadnezzar had one night. All the magicians in Babylon who were also the servants of the gods of Babylon failed to tell and interpret the dream. But Daniel after praying to his God, the Lord revealed the dream and its meaning to Daniel. After seeing this, the king acknowledged; “Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings.”

However, due to pride, Nebuchadnezzar failed to live according to his confession. Some time later, he set up an image which he forced everybody in Babylon to worship. But the three friends of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, refused to worship. Nebuchadnezzar was furious with what the three did; he ordered them to be thrown in a fiery furnace. But the Lord saved them; they never got burnt by the fire. Nebuchadnezzar again acknowledged that The Lord is the most high and great are his signs and wonders.

But pride was still at work in the king’s life, and God send a warning to him in a dream (Daniel 4:4-17). In interpreting the dream, Daniel advised Nebuchadnezzar to repent of his sin of pride. The king was, further, advised to swallow his pride and admit that there is no one like the Lord in the whole world. Contrary, to the warning, Nebuchadnezzar continued to be puffed up with pride.

Then came a pay day for the king. A year after Daniel’s advice to the king, Nebuchadnezzar was walking on the roof of his palace and was praising himself for setting up a great kingdom. “What a mighty and great kingdom I have built with my own hands,” he thought. As he was doing that, a voice came from heaven and told him that because of his pride, God would humble him by driving him away from the people to live with wild animals. He would eat grass like cattle until he would acknowledge that God is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.

This really happened. For seven years Nebuchadnezzar ate grass like a cow, his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird. After the seven years, God restored sanity to Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar’s kingship was restored too.

Nebuchadnezzar then praised God and admitted: “Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the king of heaven, because everything he does is right and his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble,” (Daniel 4:37).

One major lesson stands out in this story of Nebuchadnezzar. God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5). May we learn from Christ the Savior true humility. May God’s grace be sufficient for us to know our place and humble ourselves before him for all the glory and honor belongs to Him and Him alone.

Blessings through SMS?

One Thursday evening while home my mobile phone beeped indicating I had received a new message. I did not know the number of the sender but the message read:

“Jesus loves you. Send it to seven people. Believe me after seven days your wish will come true but if you ignore it. You will be on your own seven years. Please do it with faith because it works.”

At first the message seemed nice and spiritual but my theological antennas sensed something amiss. The message suggests that my wishes will be granted by forwarding the message to seven people.

This means that Jesus will answer my prayer because I have sent short message service (sms) to seven people. If I don’t, he will punish me with a lonely life for seven years.

I have also received similar messages in my email inbox. Usually, they are forwarded messages asking me to also forward them to at least seven people and then God will bless.

Do we have biblical backing for this? Doesn’t Scripture tell us to pray in Jesus name for our needs and wishes? Has prayer become less powerful that God is now in the business of blessing people through sms? These are some of the questions that sprout in my mind.

I also wonder if this is not another form of idolatry. It should be a different god (and not the Father of my Lord Jesus Christ) who blesses people only because they have forwarded an email or an sms. What about those who don’t have cell phones or computers. How will he bless them? This kind of God for sure in not the one we find in Scripture.

Any way, back to my story, I called the sender and told him that I don’t need to send sms to seven people for God to bless me and I can’t be on my own not even for a single second because God has promised in his Word never to forsake me (Hebrews 13:5).

God also promises: “Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving; present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6, 7).

The Church Should Embrace Gays?

Recently, some people including some Christians have urged the Church in Malawi to embrace and tolerate gays. Even some church leaders have also added their voice to this call. Of course, in most cases this call has remained hazy to me in the sense that these people have not come out very clear on what they really mean by ‘the Church should embrace and tolerate gays’. Do they mean that the Church should extend the love of Christ to gays or that the Church should condone homosexuality and lesbianism under its roof?

If by ‘embracing gays’ they mean the former, then I don’t have any problem with that. Actually, that’s what the Church is there for namely to love the sinner and lead them to Christ the Savior who alone is able save from sin. Christ already made this clear. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest,” he calls in Matthew 11:28. Christ also says “I have come to seek and save the lost.” So, if by saying that church should embrace gays they mean leading them to Christ the Savior then this is already the core objective of the Church.

However, if by ‘embracing and tolerating gays’ they mean that the Church should welcome gays as they are and let them continue to practice homosexuality and lesbianism in Church, then I have a big problem with that. In fact, it is not really about me having a big problem with it, but Scripture has a big problem with it. Throughout Scripture, we find that the Church ought to be a haven where a sinner can run to for salvation but not a roof under which sin flourishes. Some examples in scripture come to mind right now.

First, in John 8:1-11, we read a story of a woman caught in adultery. Some scribes and Pharisees brought to Jesus the woman and asked Christ to affirm the punishment of death by stoning. However, Jesus wisely protected the woman and later told her to go and sin no more. This is what Scripture says: “Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.” (10, 11).

Jesus did not only tell the woman to go but also ordered her to sin no more. I believe that this is what the Church should do. The Church should not condemn gays just like Christ never condemned the woman caught in adultery; however, the Church should not just stop there. It should go further and help gays, thorough the saving power of Christ, to go and sin no more. The gays should also be willing to forsake their sin by the grace of Christ. If they, deliberately, refuse to go and sin no more, then they should not be in Church.

If one, willfully, refuses to allow Christ help them forsake their sin, then they should not be allowed in Church because to borrow the words of St. Augustine, “If Christ is not the Lord of all, He is not the Lord at all.” You cannot say that Jesus is your Lord yet you, intentionally, refuse to obey him in some areas of your life.

Secondly, the word of God in 1 Corinthians 5:1-13 warns the church of tolerating someone who says they are Christian but they openly and willfully live in sexual immorality. The Scripture goes further to tell us not to allow such people to come and fellowship in church. The word of God in this passage is very clear and it needs no further commentary.

“I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people – not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of the brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler – not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. ‘Purge the evil person from among you.’” (1 Corinthians 5:9-13 – Underlining added)

Thirdly, the word of God does not leave Christians in the dark in regard to how we should treat those who are living in sin like gays. It clearly tells us:

“But you beloved, build yourselves up in your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh,” (Jude 20-23).

God tells us to continue building ourselves in our faith by his grace and mercy. He then tells us that we should have mercy on those who live in sin, in this case, gays. And while showing them mercy, we should hate their sin and not tolerate it.

Homosexuality or lesbianism just like any other sin breaks the heart of God. God sent his beloved Son, Jesus Christ to the world to keep all the commandments of God on our behalf, pay the penalty of our sin on our behalf and completely defeat and destroy sin so that when we believe in him we should no longer live under the slavery of sin.

Therefore, if the Church allows sin to flourish under its roof yet the head of the Church, Jesus Christ came to destroy sin then the work of Christ is rendered useless. In the process, the Church loses its saltines and light. In the end, the Church is no longer a beacon of hope for those in darkness and are heavy laden with sin but just any other club where one can go and come back week after week while remaining enslaved to sin. That’s a pathetic ‘church’ which I pray that I should never belong to.

The Beauty of Christianity

Recently, I was studying the lives of the twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. One thing that struck me in my study was the inclusion of Matthew also called Levi and Simon the Zealot in the apostolic band. How was it possible for these two gentlemen to come together like that?

In case you are wondering. Let me provide some important background. Matthew was a tax collector. The taxes he was collecting were remitted to the Romans who then had colonized the Jews.

The Jews never liked the colonization hence hated to pay taxes to Romans and any Jew who was a tax collector was regarded as an enemy by fellow Jews. The Zealots were Jews who openly showed their hatred for Romans and all those associating with Rome. The Zealots were willing and ready to kill Romans and any Jew connected to Rome in order to liberate Israel from the Roman bondage.

But, here we are! Matthew who was a tax collector is working hand in hand with Simon the Zealot in serving Jesus. What a scene!

Believe you me, had it not been that these men were transformed by the love of Christ, Simon would have killed Matthew right away. Is it not then amazing to see how the differences of the two evaporated into thin air because of their love for Christ?

“Here is one of the greatest of all examples of personal enmity destroyed by common love of Christ. If Matthew and Simon could live at peace within the apostolic band, then there is no breach between men which cannot be healed when men love Christ,” (William Barclay author of The Master’s Men).

Christianity is indeed beautiful! In Christ, we all come together as one irrespective of our differences in interests, tribes or races. For the love of Christ we are able to say as St. Augustine said “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, love.”

Africa the Hope of Christianity???

I remember while in Bible college, my Church History and Systematic Theology professors (both of them from the West) used to reiterate that Africa is the hope of Christianity. The Church History professor could go further and foretell that a time is coming when missionaries from Africa will go and evangelize the West reversing the trend of having Western missionaries coming to evangelize Africa.

Their observation was mainly based on what is happening in Africa where more people are being converted to Christianity unlike in the West where Christianity is not growing very much and in some parts it is slowly dwindling into oblivion.

All along I have believed my professors’ observation but now I have started having second thoughts because the main issue is not just having many Africans becoming Christians but what type of “Christians” are these people becoming. Indeed, Christianity is growing in Africa but what type of ‘Christianity’ (if I may use that word) is growing roots among us Africans.

I stand to be corrected, Christianity in Africa stands at the crossroads today because despite that we have some people who are preaching the Gospel as given to us in Scripture, there are also others who are advancing Liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy. It is sad that many Africans, knowingly or unknowingly, are buying into Liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy as pure Gospel.

But what do I mean by Liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy. Allow me to use the word ‘Biblical Christianity’ to define better Liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy. Biblical Christianity recognizes and teaches that the Bible is God’s Word. But Liberalism teaches that the Bible is man’s word about God. In other words, the Bible is not God’s word. Neo-Orthodoxy, on the other hand, teaches that the Bible is God’s Word only in the passages that speaks to you the rest is man’s word.

Now, on first glance, many of us would dismiss the fact that liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy are growing roots among some Christians in Africa but when you take a closer look, you will be greatly surprised.

Is it not in our churches today where people can stand up and say something like: “Well, the Bible says … but that was then, things have changed let’s do it this way.”

Again I ask: Is it not in our churches where statements like: “I know the Bible says… but I have received a new and special revelation, God wants us to do….” are made?

Don’t we have some people within our churches who stand in authority over God’s Word and we tend to believe what they say and teach more than Scripture?

I can go on and on; however, the truth I am endeavoring to put across is that if we keep on compromising on Biblical Christianity and let Liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy rule in our churches then we should forget of Africa being the hope of Christianity. If Liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy have killed and continue to kill Christianity in the West, should we believe that they will revive and grow Christianity in Africa?

The number of conversions to Christianity should not deceive us and cause us to take our eyes off the ball. We need to be sure of what type of Christianity these people are being converted to. If it is not Biblical Christianity then Africa cannot be the hope of Christianity and we will never see African missionaries going to evangelize the West. What message will they take there?

I always pray that God in His greatness and grace will open the eyes of Christian leaders in Africa to see and realize how evil and destructive Liberalism and Neo-Orthodoxy are. It is my prayer that God in His mercy and grace will raise Christian leaders who do not shrink from declaring the whole counsel of God. I pray for leaders who pay careful attention to themselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made them overseers, to care for the church of God (Acts 20:27, 28). If this can happen, then, for sure, Africa is the hope of Christianity.

Please Lord, help and bless Africa to contended for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3). In that way, we will become the beacon of hope. All this to your glory alone. Amen!

We Celebrate Easter

It is that season once again when we celebrate the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We celebrate and not mourn because Jesus’ death paid the penalty for sin of all believers in Him. We can now confidently declare that “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ” (Romans 8:1).

We also celebrate Easter and not weep because although Christ died, death could no longer hold him. After three days in the grave, he rose from the dead and right now he is at the right hand of God the Father. His resurrection defeated death that was the penalty of our sin (Genesis 2:17; Romans 6:23).

We, indeed, celebrate because the penalty of our sin was paid by Christ’ death as Scripture affirms: “While we were enemies (of God) we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son” (Romans 5:10).

We, surely, celebrate Easter because Christ’s resurrection signified the defeat of death hence all believers in him are assured of everlasting life. “Thanks to God! He gives us victory (over death) through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57 ). Jesus also says, “I am the resurrection and life. Whoever believes in me though he die, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).

We celebrate and we shall forever celebrate Easter because the work of saving sinners was completed. The old hymn writer put it better when he wrote “Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain; he washed it white as snow.”

This is the essence of Easter. We miss these truths, Easter loses its meaning. Happy and joyous Easter to you!

God is sovereign, so what?

There is a song that was done by one of our local musicians, Lucius Banda. In the song, the musician asks this question: “You who believe that God ordained everything that comes to pass in this world, tell me, did God really ordain that we should suffer?”

I believe that many share this musician’s concerns. Of course, we may understand that God is not the source of the evil that goes in this world, but we still wonder why He allows evil in this world.

This is the same struggle that Prophet Habakkuk experienced. He knew that God is sovereign. By saying that God is sovereign, we, basically, mean that God is in full control of what happens in heaven and on earth. He carries out all that he wills and nothing can stop His plans. In other words, when we say that God is sovereign, we mean that God is God.

Now it is easier to say and believe that God is sovereign when things are going on alright but in hard and difficult times, our theology is tested. Habakkuk also struggled with the truth of God’s sovereignty when his nation, Judah, experienced evil and violence.

It is believed that the book of Habakkuk was written just before the people of Judah were taken into captivity in Babylon. It was written at the time when one of the evil kings of Judah, Jehoiakim was ruling and this is believed to be between 609-598 B.C. During this time, the kingdom of Judah experienced moral and spiritual decay. People were breaking the Covenant law of God as they willed. Everyone did as he pleased. Violence and injustice prevailed in the land and Habakkuk cried to the Lord in 1:1-4:

O, LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will you not save? Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; strife, and contention arise. So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth; for the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted.

In other words, Habakkuk was saying, God you are good and sovereign, but why do you allow evil, injustice, violence and destruction to occur in this land. How long should I cry for help, Lord?

Then the Lord gave a response in 1:5-11. In summary, God tells Habakkuk that He is not just sitting idle looking at evil in the land of Judah rather He is raising up the Chaldeans or the Babylonians whom He will use to punish the Kingdom of Judah.

Now, the mere mentioning of Chaldeans or Babylonians did not please Habakkuk because these people were even more evil than the people of Judah. Habakkuk did not hesitate but to question God’s wisdom regarding this development. He reminded God that He is too holy to look at evil, why would he then allow an evil nation of Chaldeans to punish God’s own people of Judah?

It is interesting that God did not answer all the questions of Habakkuk. God just told Habakkuk that after He has used the Chaldeans to punish Judah, He would later destroy the Chaldeans and turn their glory into shame (Habakkuk 2:16). God also assured Habakkuk that through what He would do to Judah and the Chaldeans the earth would be filled with the knowledge of His glory (2:14).

After this response from the Lord, Habakkuk was humbled by God’s greatness. He learned that God’s ways are not our ways. He also reaffirmed, in his heart, that indeed God is in full control of whatever goes on in heaven and on earth hence he turned into prayer and worshipped God (3:1-16). Again, notice that Habakkuk worshipped God even though all his questions were not answered. Towards the end of his book, Habakkuk shares with us what a true understanding of God’s sovereignty will do in our lives.

First, an understanding that God is sovereign will bring joy in our lives even though we are passing through hard times. Hear what Habakkuk says in 3: 17, 18:

Though the fig tree should not blossom Nor fruit be on the vines, The produce of the olive fail And the fields yield no food, The flock be cut off from the fold And there be no herd in the stalls, Yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

This is what the realization of God’s Sovereignty does in our life. It brings us joy in the midst of hardship because we realize that God is bigger than our challenges. We can rejoice in the midst of those harsh times because in all things, God works the good of those who love Him and of those who are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).

This is the uniqueness of Christianity. The joy in our hearts does not depend on what is surrounding us but it comes from our faith in God. The storms may rage, but our joy remains steadfast because God perfectly holds the whole world in his hands.

Secondly, when we understand that God is sovereign, we are filled with strength. This is what Habakkuk says in 3: 19:

GOD, the Lord, is my strength. He makes my feet like the deer’s; He makes me tread on my high places

While some people when they hear that God is in control of everything in heaven and on earth tend to believe that then there is no need to do anything but just seat and watch what God is up to, those who fully understand God’s sovereignty are filled with strength and have a reason to spring into action because they know that God is guiding their steps and He will use them to achieve His intended purpose.

God is in full control. Let this truth give us a reason to go on in life without being discouraged. Let’s know that as God’s children we are not lost in the midst of confusion or hardship we may find ourselves in. Rather, we should be courageous and strong by knowing that even in that confusion and hardship, God’s strong hand is leading us as that Hymn writer wrote:

Sometimes ’mid scenes of deepest gloom,
Sometimes where Eden’s bowers bloom,
By waters still, o’er troubled sea,
Still ’tis His hand that leadeth me.

He leadeth me, He leadeth me,
By His own hand He leadeth me;
His faithful foll’wer I would be,
For by His hand He leadeth me.

I would like to wrap up with the story of a man named William Cowper. This man was a Christian poet and a composer of hymns but he often struggled with depression. One day at the age of 32, he struggled with a very serious depression and he thought of committing suicide. He took poison, but it didn’t work. He then tried to fall on a knife, but the blade of the knife broke. Two weeks later he tried to hang himself but was rescued before dying.

Then one morning, not knowing what to do, Cowper turned to the Bible and read the entire book of Romans. After reading it, he composed the famous hymn, God moves in a mysterious way. I would like you to pay so much attention to what the third and fourth verses of the hymn say:

You fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds you so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

That’s our sovereign God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Behind a frowning providence, he hides a smiling face. This is why I love the fact that He is sovereign.