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The Means of the Providence of God
Paul Jang  2008-03-24 16:20:41, hit : 5,428


The Means of the Providence of God

1. The Means Employed in the Exercise of the Divine Providence. (Edited from Henry C. Thiessen, Lectures in Systematic Theology)

Far be it from us to presume to understand all the mysteries of God's providence, for with Paul we exclaim: "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?" (Rom. 11:33, 34).

There are secret things which belong unto Jehovah our God; but there are also things which are revealed, and these are for us and for our children (Deut. 29:29). Let us note some of the means that are revealed that God employs in the government of the world.

(A) In the more outward affairs:

(1) He employs the laws of nature.

By means of these laws He has established the seasons and assured us of food for our subsistence (Gen. 8:22). By means of these He has also given man the instinct of self-preservation and the sense of moral responsibility (Rom. 1:26; 2:15).

(2) He sometimes supplements these laws by miracles.

Thus He delivered and prepared Israel by a miracle (Ex. 14:21-31); He provided relief in time of war (2 Kings 3:16, 17); He sent rain after a long period of drought (1 Kings 18:41-46); He delivered His servant Elisha (2 Kings 6:18); and He freed Peter for further ministry (Acts 12:1-19) by working miracles.

(3) He sometimes brings things to pass by uttering His powerful word.

When He speaks it is done; when He commands it stands fast (Ps. 33:8, 9). When He calls for destructive insects, they come (Ps. 105:31, 34); when He speaks the word of healing, sickness vanishes (Matt. 8:8, 13). And when the lawless one will come and for a time rule the world, Christ will appear and destroy him with His powerful word (2 Thess. 2:8; cf. Rev. 19:20, 21).

(B) In the more inward affairs of His government He uses a variety of means:

(1) In the first place. He uses His Word.

Men are frequently referred to the Scriptures for guidance and direction (Josh. 1:7, 8; Isa. 8:20; Col. 3:16). Kings as well as subjects are to be subject to the Word of God (Deut. 17:18-20).

(2) In the second place, God appeals to man's reason (Isa. 1:18).

And God's servants should consult reason in the solution of their problems (Acts 6:2). God's ways cannot be fathomed by reason, but they are not contrary to sound reason.

(3) In the third place, God uses persuasion.

God has instituted the ministry to instruct and persuade the people of the truth (Jer. 44:4; 7:13-14; Zech. 7:7). God entreats men by us to be reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:20).

(4) In the fourth place, God uses inner checks and restraints.

Paul was very sensitive to such inner indications of God's will (Acts 16:6-8).

(5) In the fifth place, God uses outward circumstances.

God leads by closed doors as well as by open doors (1 Cor. 16:9; Gal. 4:20). It is, of course, always possible that unauspicious circumstances may be a test of our faith rather than a providential hindrance to do a certain thing. Only prayer and careful study can determine which is the case in any given instance.

(6) In the sixth place. God inclines the hearts of men in one direction rather than in another (1 Kings 8:58; Ps. 119:36; Prov. 21:1; 2 Cor. 8:16).

He even inclines the hearts of evil men to do His will (2 Kings 19:28; Isa. 45:1-6; Rev. 17:17).

(7) And in the seventh place, God sometimes guides men by dreams and visions. Joseph (Matt. 2:13, 19, 20) and Paul (Acts 16:9, 10; 22:17, 18) were thus guided.

(C) In the more special agents of His government He uses a variety of means.

(1) In some of His providential dealings God employs special agents. These are the angels and the Holy Spirit.

(2) It appears as if the angels are used in the more outward administration of His government (2 Kings 19:35; Dan. 6:22; 10:5-21; 12:1; Matt. 28:2; Acts 8:26;_12:7-10) and the Holy Spirit in the more inward and spiritual part of His rule (Luke 4:1; John 16:7-15; Acts 8:29; 11:19, 20; 16:6, 7; Rom. 8:14, 26).

The former, of course, though great in power are not omnipotent; the latter, being Himself God, is both omniscient and omnipotent.


2. The Theories Opposed to the Doctrine of Providence.

Although the doctrine under consideration is one of the most precious to the child of God, it is, naturally, being denied by those who do not believe in the true God. Three theories opposed to it may be briefly noted.

(1) Naturalism.

Naturalism holds that nature is the whole of reality. Everything that occurs in the universe is due to the operation of the laws of nature. Man's happiness and chances of success are dependent upon his knowledge of and cooperation with these laws. Now while the Scriptures recognize the existence of the laws of nature, they do not teach that they operate independently,

They represent them as neither self-directive nor self-sustaining. God concurs in all the operations of these laws, both of matter and of mind, and sometimes he acts entirely independent of them. Thus the Christian explains miracles, for example, the miracles of the incarnation and resurrection of Christ.

(2) Fatalism.

Fatalism is to be distinguished from determinism. The former holds that all events are determined by fate, instead of by instead of natural causes, and that nothing man can will or do affects the course of events; while determinism holds that events take place of necessity, but that they are made necessary by events immediately preceding, to which they stand in a relation of cause and effect.

The fatalist may speak of the decreeing power as God, but it is certainly not the God of the Scriptures. Fatalism recognizes the inadequacy of naturalism to explain all that happens, and ascribes the events which take place in spite of natural law to the direct operation of fate. The chief objection to fatalism is that it makes the originating cause arbitrary and non-moral, usually also impersonal.


(3) Pantheism.

Since all pantheistic theories are necessitarian in nature, they have no real doctrine of providence.

(1) In the first place, since they are obliged to make the governing cause also the author of sin, they destroy all possibility of true morality. Man being a part of this pantheistic god, cannot help sinning.

(2) In the second place, they cannot explain miracles.
They may speak of "mutations" and "emergent evolution," but these ideas cannot explain the miracles of the incarnation and the resurrection of Christ; neither, indeed, any of the other Biblical miracles.

(3) In the third place, they deny the freedom of man. Being part of this world system, man, too, acts of necessity. Yet man feels that in a very real sense he can initiate action and that he is responsible for his conduct. He will not sacrifice his freedom to a logical process or a great mechanism of which he is supposed to be a part.


5

Providence of God
(Edited from Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology)

Christian theism is opposed to both a deistic separation of God from the world and a pantheistic confusion of God with the world. Hence the doctrine of creation is immediately followed by that of providence, in which the Scriptural view of God's relation to the world is clearly defined. While the term

"Providence" is not found in Scripture, the doctrine of providence^''nevertheless eminently Scriptural. The word is derived from the Latin providentia, which corresponds to the Greek pronoia. These words mean primarily prescience or foresight, but gradually acquired other meanings. Foresight is associated, on the one hand, with plans for the future, and on the other hand, with the actual realization of these plans.
Thus the word "providence" has come to signify the provision which God makes for the ends of His government, and the preservation and government of all His creatures. This is the sense in which it is now generally used in theology, but it is not the only sense in which theologians have employed it.
Turretin defines the term in its widest sense as denoting (1) foreknowledge. ^ Preordination, and (3) the efficacious administration of the things decreed. In general usage, however, it is now generally restricted to the last sense. A. Providence in General.

(1) The pantheistic view of divine providence.

Pantheism does not recognize the distinction between God and the world. It either idealistically absorbs the world in God, or materialistically absorbs God in the world. In either case it leaves no room for creation and also eliminates providence in the proper sense of the word.

It is true that Pantheists speak of providence, but their so-called providence is simply identical with the course of nature, and this is nothing but the self-revelation of God, a self-revelation that leaves no room for the independent operation of second causes in any sense of the word From this point of view the supernatural is impossible, or, rather, the natural and the supernatural are identical, the consciousness of free personal self-determination in man is a delusion, moral responsibility is a figment of the imagination, and prayer and religious worship are superstition.

Theology has always been quite careful to ward off the dangers of Pantheism, but during the last century this error succeeded in entrenching itself in a great deal of modern liberal theology under the guise of the doctrine of the immanence of God.



(2) The Objects of Divine Providence

A. The teachings of Scripture on this point. The Bible clearly teaches God's providential control:

(1) over the universe at large, Ps. 103:19; Dan 5:35; Eph 1:-11;
(2) over the physical world, Job 37:5, 10; Ps. 104:14; 135:6; Matt. 5:45;
(3) over the brute creation, Ps. 104..21.28, Matt. 6:26; 10:29,
(4) over the affairs of nations. Job 12:23; Ps. 22:28; 66:7; Acts 17:26;
(5) over man's birth and lot in life, I Sam. 16:1; Ps. 139:16; Is. 45:5. Gal. 1-15 16;
(6) over the outward successes and failures of men's lives, Ps. 75:6,7; Luke 1:52;
(7) over things seemingly accidental or insignificant, Prov. 16:33; Matt. 10:30;
(8) in the protection of the righteous, Ps. 4.8; 5:12, 63:8, l^:A Rom. 8:28;
(9) in supplying Ac wants of Gods people. Gen 22.8,14; Deut. 8:3; Phil. 4:19;
(10) in giving answers to prayer, I Sam. 1:19; Isa. 20:5,6; II Chron. 33:13; Ps. 65:2; Matt. 7:7; Luke 18:7,8;

(11) in the exposure and punishment of the wicked, Ps. 7:12,13; 11:6.

B. General and special providence.

◉ Theologians generally distinguish between general and special providence,

(1) the former denoting God's control the universe as a whole,
(2) the latter, His care for each part of it in relation to the whole.

◉ These are not two kinds of providence, but the same providence exercised in two different relations.

(1) The term "special providence", however may have a more specific connotation, and in some cases refers to God's special care for His rational creatures.

(2) Some even speak of a very special providence(providentia specialissima) with reference to those who stand in the special relationship of sonship to God. Special providences are special combinations in the order of events, as in the answer to prayer, in deliverance out of trouble, and in all instances in which grace and help come in critical circumstances.




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