The Wicket Gate

Good Morning! This week is the halfway mark of this project! I have thoroughly enjoyed going deeper into each of the chapters so far, this week we will examine chapter ten. I haven’t said this in some time, but I want to make sure to thank Brian Borgman for writing Don’t Waste Your Breath. Each chapter is enjoyable, but this week is especially insightful. This chapter only covers three verses but is full topics to consider. 

Consider the work of God, For who is able to straighten what He has bent? In the day of prosperity be happy, But in the day of adversity consider— God has made the one as well as the other, so that man will not discover anything that will be after him. I have seen everything during my lifetime of futility; there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his wickedness. Ecclesiastes 7:13-15 NASB95

This morning I heard John Piper preach that right (orthodox) interpretation and of the Bible and therefore doctrine is designed by God to send our affections higher toward God. I agree wholeheartedly, as we come to understand and appreciate our place as creatures in creation, the more we can enjoy God- who is in control of all things. Today’s subject, primarily God’s sovereignty, is a subject that when taken in by a contrite heart, sets affections ablaze with love and adoration for our God who is in control of all things in His creation. 

As Piper pointed out in his sermon – Factual knowledge of God is not the endgame, we increase our knowledge and study because study draws us closer to Him and increases our desire to know more about Him. Study focused on orthodox interpretation stirs within the Christian a longing to be with Christ, much like Paul in Philippians, “To live is Christ to die is gain” and “My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Philippians 1). We should note however also in this chapter, Paul is clear that he will stay in the flesh, “I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus because of my coming to you again” (Philippians 1:25). Understanding how glorious and wonderful our God is, was, and will be, generates joy within our hearts- emotion generated by orthodoxy. This joy in God places Christians one foot in the door and one foot out the door for the rest of their life, longing to depart while earnestly contending for the faith in this vaporous life. 

The foundation of orthodox doctrine is a God who is in control of all things. A God who works all things to His glory, including good and evil. Ecclesiastes 7:13-15 informs us that our God “makes crooked”  and that He makes the days of joy and adversity. So how do we react to this information? The Teacher in our short section of Ecclesiastes “exhorts us now to do two things (1) consider the work of God and (2) accept the work of God” (114).  

So when we discuss God making things crooked and ordaining times of adversity and joy- what are we considering? First, we must look at scripture pertaining to His control over all creation. 

“The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the Lord who does all these.” Isaiah 45:7  

“Is it not from the mouth of the Most High That both good and ill go forth?” Lamentations 3:38

“If a trumpet is blown in a city will not the people tremble? If a calamity occurs in a city has not the Lord done it?” Amos 3:6

“But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” Job 2:10

Is God the cause of evil… is God evil? By no means! His sovereign hand guides all, nothing is out of his control. We need to see this in action within the Holy Scripture. An example would be story of Joseph, illuminated by Joseph’s statement to his brothers after his father had passed away. “ As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:20). Joseph’s brothers had thrown him into the pit out of envy, which caused Joseph to near death, slavery, and prison. Joseph’s brothers did not throw him into the pit to glorify God, yet God was working through their sinful actions. God’s intentions were good, the brothers were led astray by their own sinful desires.

God was not making the best of a bad situation; He was in control the whole time. The brothers did not have the bigger picture, God did and does, we can only see providential action in hindsight, never in foresight. The First London Baptist Confession interprets God’s culpability- “neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin.” James 1:13-14 is also clear, “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.” God cannot be the origin or first cause of sin, and yet he is working all things to greater glory. 

“The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God, so far manifest themselves in His providence, that His determinate counsel extends itself even to the first fall, and all other sinful actions both of angels and men; and that not by a bare permission, which also He most wisely and powerfully binds, and otherwise orders and governs, in a manifold dispensation to His most holy ends; yet so, as the sinfulness of their acts proceeds only from the creatures, and not from God, who, being most holy and righteous, neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin.”1^st LBCF 5.4

Another example would be the murder of our Lord and Savior. The Roman guard that brutally tortured and crucified our savior did not do so to glorify God- and yet without their sinful actions we would not have salvation by His blood. We can see this plainly in 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, “But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” Not crucify the Lord of glory. No hope, God’s promises unfulfilled, unthinkable. Christ’s sacrifice was necessary, the knowledge of what he endured for us before and on the cross brings tears and sorrow. But the decree to save sinners, to save a remnant, Abraham and Christ’s spiritual posterity required blood, and that required sinners committing torture and murder of the innocent Son of God. Considering the work of God, what a mystery! Accepting the work of God? This can be quite a task for the creature. 

Going back to my initial thoughts about joy from right knowledge of God. Accepting the work of God, all his plans, creates joy within our hearts. I do not want this to sound straightforward. There are many terrible things that befall us in this life, naturally and at the hands of others. A couple of posts ago we discussed the wrongs in the world seen today written about in Ecclesiastes a millennia ago. Wrongs that will potentially not be answered or until judgment. God will judge, vengeance is His He will repay. We must remember that this is not all there is, this is not the end- for those in Christ the suffering and sorrow will end in glory. For those outside of Christ this world is not the end either, eternity in torment awaits. This thought should always be accompanied by the words of Jesus himself; “Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand” (Matt. 4:17). There are many things in history and at the present that make us go “how does this play into God’s plan?” “how can I accept this horrible situation as part of God’s plan?” Mankind may not know for thirty years, or a half a millennium how all is working together toward the fullness of time. Biblical examples would be the Israelites in slavery for 400 years, or the thousands of years that brought forth our Savior in the fullness of time. What happens moment by moment is a mere fraction of all the actions making up God’s plan. 

Let’s not lose sight of Ecclesiastes 7, “Man will not discover anything that will be after him.” The future is intentionally withheld from our sight because 1)we are creatures in creation, our duty is to consider and accept the work of God 2) we as creatures are incapable of understanding all the threads God is weaving 3) we have no ability to change anything more than God allows us to. These things we can change are out of a new nature given to us by God, and the indwelling Spirit of God. As creatures we cannot act outside of our nature or our moment. In recent years we have seen plenty of discussion regarding eschatology, Premill/Amill/Postmill. Ecclesiastes informs us we only have our moment; in fact it says God does not let us see outside our time intentionally. Things may get worse in our time, and better in following generations. We see that in the Old Testament, we see that in the last 2000 years of church history. I would encourage a positive, joyful outlook to the future, others may feel different, trust in the Trinitarian Fullness of God to bring all things to finality in the fullness of time. 

Why trust in the Trinitarian Fullness of God? Because he controls the winds and the waves, the storms and the calm, wartime and peace time. We know that nothing can separate us from God because He is in control of all things and is working all things (Romans 8). Again- God is not sinful, we are enticed and led away on our own, however all of our sinful actions as well as the fruits of the Spirit we produce are a part of Gods plan to glorify himself. “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? May it never be!”(Romans 6:1-2), “And why not do evil that good may come? as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just” (Romans 3:8). We cannot go on sinning and claim that it is working the will of God, Christians are called to repent and strive manfully onward against the desires of the flesh. In conclusion to this part of the blog, joy from right doctrine, this right doctrine takes digging into the bible and studying. The beginning of all right doctrine is God’s sovereignty over creation- including ourselves. God is not holding onto the reigns of a wild creation barely keeping it under control. He is in complete control, ordaining the means by which his attributes are displayed and understood by His creatures. Let’s dig deeper into how God is working, especially with regards to “days of prosperity and adversity.” How should we address the ups and downs of life in light of God’s sovereign hand? 

God’s sovereign hand- His providential work- His working all things after the counsel of His will. I appreciate Borgman using the Heidelberg Catechism question twenty-seven regarding providence. I want to use the Second London Baptist Confession 5.1 regarding providence as well. See below. 

“God the good Creator of all things, in His infinite power and wisdom does uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures and things, from the greatest even to the least. by His most wise and holy providence, to the end for the which they were created, according unto His infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of His own will; to the praise of the glory of His wisdom, power, justice, infinite goodness, and mercy.” 2LBCF 5.1

Question 27. What dost thou mean by the providence of God?

Answer: The almighty and everywhere present power of God; whereby, as it were by his hand, he upholds and governs heaven, earth, and all creatures; so that herbs and grass, rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, meat and drink, health and sickness, riches and poverty, yea, and all things come, not by chance, but be his fatherly hand. Heidelberg Catechism Q. 27

Amen and amen. God is in control, that brings comfort to believers. He is in control of the glorious, good days as well as the tumultuous heart wrenching days. Be joyful when the moment is present, have no fear of the days of adversity to come. Example, our CO-OP just came back from its semi-annual camping trip. Three beautiful days on the Guadalupe River, walking trails, sitting back, and cooking for the family. Truly joyful times where a man can lean back, take a deep breath, see and feel joy brimming over. Camping is an interesting example, because there are times of adversity always mixed in with the joy. Yet the joy is still there, peace and taking it slow. The time of joy can also be interrupted by moments of impending doom, having to go back to civilization, go back to work and the near nonstop hustle bustle. I am guilty of this to the uttermost, I will let what’s to come ruin what is right in front of me. At the minimum, light attitude anomalies. At the maximum, standoffishly argumentative. I sometimes let my mind overtake my joy in the moment. God is in charge of all, there is no need to fret about the ebb and flow of prosperity and adversity- he will see us through it all. No matter how dark it may become, paradise will be bright, no tears and no sorrow. 

“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” Isaiah 12:2 

These moments of quiet and peaceful joy at home, church, campsite, or work may not look the same on every Christian. Some may be jubilant and talkative; others may just wear a glistening eye while they quietly write, paint, or work. These moments are gifts from God, pray for grace to enjoy them without fear of the future days of adversity.  Without the moments of adversity how could we interpret the moments of joy? I do have a book to recommend, What about Evil? A Defense of God’s Sovereign Glory by Scott Christensen. This book is quite thick, but is available on Audible (I combined the paper version with Audible narration and that is what I recommend). Be prepared if you do read, it is eye opening. The eye-opening leads to greater enjoyment of the joyful moments, and deeper reliance on God during the days of adversity. He is working all things, He will see us through. My last encouragement is that this section of scripture lead you as a Christian to live moment by moment, bowing the knee to Christ the King, living under His authority, patiently enduring, leading your biological and ecclesial families according to his will, looking forward to eternity with Him. Glorifying God by enjoying Him forever. 

 “Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot. Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God. For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart.” Ecclesiastes 5:18-20