We are all, of course, familiar with the term “Providence”. It is often used as a shorthand for “If God permits”. But what do we mean by these terms? Do we really know? I fear there is much mental haziness and confusion at this point in the Christian landscape.

Defining Providence

As the 27^th article of the Heidelberg Catechism declares: 

God’s providence is his almighty and ever present power,¹ whereby, as with his hand, he still upholds heaven and earth and all creatures,² and so governs them that leaf and blade, rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, food and drink, health and sickness, riches and poverty,³ indeed, all things, come to us not by chance⁴ but by his fatherly hand.⁵

The rest of this article will unpack the first part of this definition and discuss the practical implications of the doctrine of God’s providence.

God’s providence is his almighty and ever-present power

The Catechism opens with a statement of the Almighty and ever-present power of God—which at once unequivocally asserts His active involvement in the cosmos. Let us consider the supporting scriptural passages for the statement above.

 “Am I a God at hand, declared the Lord, and not a God far away? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the Lord.” (Jer. 23:23-24)

Restated another way, God asks in this passage, “am I not both very near and very far away? Does the fact that I am high and lifted mean I am not involved in the daily affairs of the world?”

This question is, of course, rhetorical. It expects a negative answer. God is merely stating the obvious. However, many today hold that God created the world and then left it to run on some ‘natural principles’. In other words, God put some laws in place after creation and retired from running things on the earth. God is more like an absentee Landlord to those who hold this view. Still, others say man is in charge of things after God asked him to “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Gen. 1:22).

Who do you think holds the decisive sway over what happens on earth? Is man in charge, or God?

The following clause of the Heidelberg catechism goes on to affirm, “whereby, as with his hand, he still upholds heaven and earth and all creatures” and provides Hebrews 1:3 as proof:

“He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.”

Acts 17:24-25, 28 further amplifies this understanding. It declares:

“The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. For “in him we live and move and have our being;”

We see from here that 1) God is both creator and Lord of heaven and earth, and 2) He is in charge. He is the ruler.

A false understanding of Satan as the god of this world

Satan is sometimes called the ‘ruler of this world’ (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11) or ‘god of this world (2Cor 4:4), “prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2), a ‘cosmic power over this present darkness” (Ephesians 6:12).

Notably, during Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness, Luke records that, “The [devil] took Jesus up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you then, will worship me, it will be yours.” (Luke 4:5-7)

Based on this and the passages above, many well-meaning Christians today believe that Satan holds the decisive sway over what happens on the earth. But does he? Let us scrutinise the validity of this notion against the entire Scriptural teaching.

Satan’s claim to have been given the kingdoms of the world and that he has the power to give it to whom he will is only partially true. Yes, he at times manoeuvres an evil person to power but he only does so only to the degree that God permits him to do so.

The Bible clarifies who truly holds sovereign control:

Daniel 2:21: “[God] removes kings and sets up kings,”

Daniel 4:17: “The Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.”

Romans 13:1: “There is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.”

Furthermore, every king is subject to God’s Sovereign will:

Proverbs 21:1: The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.”

And when nations rise against God in rebellion, Psalms 2:2-4 says:

The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.’ He who sits in heaven laughs; the Lord holds them in derision”

Ps. 33:10-11 further declares:

“The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.”

We conclude from the overwhelming Scriptural evidence that while Satan may exercise a limited degree of influence, as permitted by God, he does not possess ultimate authority over the world. Satan and his demons do not operate outside the decisive providence of God. Moreover, let us not forget that Satan is a liar; he has been from the beginning (John 8:44). He was so bold as to promise to give the Son of God something that was not his to give in the first place, based on a false premise. But Jesus knew better and did not yield to him. Sadly, many in the church today continue to preach Satan’s lies that he is in charge of this world.  

The error of thinking God needs Man’s permission to act

We saw from Acts 17:28 that “[God] Himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything”. This verse alone refutes the notion that ‘God cannot do anything on earth without man’s permission’ as utterly unscriptural. This misguided teaching reflects a profound misunderstanding of God’s sovereignty and an inflated view of human importance. The apostle James directly addresses this arrogance in his epistle, calling it evil:

¹³ Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— ¹⁴ yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. ¹⁵ Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. (James 4:13-16).

James sharply rebukes those who talk as if they control the future. He reminds us that God holds sway over tomorrow, we don’t. His Sovereign will determines our next breath. If our very existence hangs on God’s will, how arrogant of us even to suggest that God needs our permission to act on earth? He is still God without us; we are nothing without Him!

The prophet Daniel drives this point home with profound clarity in Daniel 4:35:

‘All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?”’

Daniel’s verdict is, we are not impressive (we are counted as nothing!), God is. Repeatedly in Scripture, we see that God is intent on exposing the false claim that there are ‘powers’ in His creation that can stay His hand. In Isaiah 40:11, 15, 17, 22-23 and 28, we see that God’s condescension and exaltation go together. We better not take His condescension as weakness! Isaiah 14:27 declares, “The Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His had is stretched out, and who will turn it back?” (see also Isa. 46:9-10; cf. Isa. 43:13 and Eph. 1:11).

Once Job came face to face with God’s present and Almighty power, he declared,“I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.” (Job 42:2). 2 Chron. 20:6 affirms conclusively, “In your hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand you.”

Response and practical implications

I once heard the story of a man who approached his church for a prayer meeting and noticed someone crying outside. Curious, he asked, “Friend, what troubles you?” To his astonishment, the sobbing figure was none other than Satan. Through his tears, Satan lamented, “Listen to their prayers inside—they attribute to me even the deeds I haven’t committed.”

This doctrine calls us to savour the greatness and condescension of the God who created and sustains the entire universe yet knows us so intimately. It should give us great comfort to know that our loving Father holds the decisive sway over what happens in our lives and our world, not Satan. Let us stop giving Satan power he doesn’t have.

Jesus elaborates on this in Matthew 10:29-31:

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

Echoing this sentiment, the first article of the Heidelberg Catechism states:

Q. What is your only comfort in life and death?

A. That I am not my own,⁶ but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death,⁷ to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ.⁸ He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood,⁹ and has set me free from all the power of the devil.¹⁰ 

He also preserves me in such a way¹¹ that without the will of my heavenly Father not a hair can fall from my head¹² indeed, all things must work together for my salvation.¹³ Because I belong to Him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit he also assures me of eternal life¹⁴ and makes me heartily willing and ready from now on to live for him.¹⁵ 

We turn to the Belgic confession in closing. Article 13, speaking of Divine Providence, offers further reassurance:

We believe that the same God, after He had created all things, did not forsake them, nor give them up to fortune or chance, but that He rules and governs them according to His holy will,¹⁶ so that nothing happens in this world without His appointment;¹⁷ nevertheless, God neither is the author of, nor can be charged with, the sins which are committed. For His power and goodness are so great and incomprehensible, that He orders and executes His work in the most excellent and just manner, even then when devils and wicked men act unjustly.¹⁸

… This doctrine affords us unspeakable consolation, since we are taught thereby that nothing can befall us by chance, but by the direction of our most gracious and heavenly Father, who watches over us with a paternal care, keeping all creatures so under His power²⁰ that not a hair of our head (for they are all numbered), nor a sparrow, can fall to the ground without the will of our Father,²¹ in whom we do entirely trust; being persuaded that He so restrains the devil and all our enemies that, without His will and permission, they cannot hurt us. And therefore we reject that damnable error of the Epicureans, who say that God regards nothing, but leaves all things to chance.

Notes

1. Jer 23:23, 24; Acts 17:24-28.
2. Heb 1:3.
3. Jer 5:24; Acts 14:15-17; Jn 9:3; Prov 22:2.
4. Prov 16:33.
5. Mt 10:29.
6. 1 Cor. 6:19-20.
7. Rom. 14:7-9.
8. 1 Cor. 3:23; Titus 2:14.
9. 1 Pet. 1:18-19; 1 John 1:7-9; 2:2.
10. John 8:34-36; Heb. 2:14-15; 1 John 3:1-11.
11. John 6:39-40; 10:27-30; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 Pet. 1:5.
12. Matt. 10:29-31; Luke 21:16-18.
13. Rom. 8:28.
14. Rom. 8:15-16; 2 Cor. 1:21-22; 5:5; Eph. 1:13-14.
15. Rom. 8:1-17.
16. John 5:17; Heb. 1:3; Prov. 16:4; Ps. 104:9, etc.; Ps. 139:2, etc.
17. James 4:15; Job 1:21; 1 Kings 22:20; Acts 4:28; 1 Sam. 2:25; Ps. 115:3; 45:7; Amos 3:6; Deut. 19:5; Prov. 21:1; Ps. 105:25; Isa. 10:5–7; 2 Thess. 2:11; Ezek. 14:9; Rom. 1:28; Gen. 45:8; 1:20; 2 Sam. 16:10; Gen. 27:20; Ps. 75:7–8; Isa. 45:7; Prov. 16:4; Lam. 3:37–38; 1 Kings 22:34, 38; Ex. 21:13.
18. Matt. 8:31, 32; John 3:8.
19. Matt. 8:31; Job 1:12; 2:6.
20. Matt. 10:29–30.