Submitting to Sovereignty (Part 1)

Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry coming to you from Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. No Compromise Radio is a program dedicated to the ongoing proclamation of Jesus Christ, based on the theme in Galatians 2, verse 5, where the Apostle Paul said, �But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.

In short, if you like smooth, watered-down words to make you simply feel good, this show isn�t for you. By purpose, we are first biblical, but we can also be controversial. Stay tuned for the next 25 minutes as we�re called by the Divine Trumpet to summon the troops for the honor and glory of her King.

Here�s our host, Pastor Mike Abendroth.

Promo Code 1517 and the Reformation Anniversary

Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry. My name is Mike Abendroth, and somebody�s messing with my chair. Wrong size, won�t lean back. Bummer, man. Well, on No Compromise Radio, we try to talk about biblical subjects in a way that maybe goads us sometimes.

I think I�m getting nicer now that I�m older, I�m 55, but I might be ornery today if somebody�s messing with my chair. If you would like to order the book, Sexual Fidelity, there�s a little promo code that you could type in to save three bucks.

That promo code is 1517, 1517. And what is the significance to 1517? Maybe you say that�s Bart Starr�s number when he played football, number 15. And that is, who was number 17? Is anybody number 17 any good?

Johnny Unitas was number 19. Havlicek stole the ball. He was number, was it 17 or 18? I think I�m going with 17. So, 1517, Luther nails the 95 Theses to the Wittenberg Church�s doors, and it�s away we go.

In light of that, 1517, fast forward 500 years, 2017, Reformation 500 in mid-May in Wittenberg, Christian Andreessen from EBTC, he�s been on No Compromise Radio before, is hosting Reformation 500. Main speakers, John MacArthur, Steve Lawson, James White, Paul Washer.

Secondary, subsidiary, tertiary speakers, Mike Ebendroth. I think once I speak on something about the solas and preaching, and I also do a No Compromise Radio there. We�re going to record it live, but it probably won�t be played live back here since we record the show, but it�ll be pretty fast.

If you want to go with us there, I think we then might leave Wittenberg and head on down to Geneva and Zurich, at least that�s the plan. So start saving your money if you want more information, info at nocompromiseradio .com.

And once again for the book, you can write 1517 into the No Compromise Radio website where the book is, link on the right, scroll down a little, and you can save yourself three bucks. Speaking of which, there�s going to be a big blowout sale on things that go bump in the church.

I think you�ll be benefited by that book, Harvest House Book, but more to come regarding that later. Well, today, Fred, is not a rerun. No reruns lately. I don�t know when we�re going to start doing reruns, but they keep messing with me.

Oh, there�s the Pope. Solar Pope is giving me a little wave. He�s up in my window now. See, when I sat him on my desk, on the table here for the NOCO radio, this professional radio table, he didn�t wave, he didn�t bless, he didn�t do the hand thing, the hand jive.

Remember the hand jive? And now when he�s up by the sun, even though it�s kind of snowy out there today, it�s freezing cold, frigid cold. I want you, the listener, to embrace the sovereignty of God, not only as theory, not only as doctrine, not only as a hypothesis, but as something that helps you see the world, the biblical worldview.

The Practical Benefits of God's Sovereignty

There is a great catechism called the Heidelberg Catechism, and there�s a question, question 28, that gives me motivation, and maybe I�ll just use this as an outline, on how you should embrace the doctrine of God�s sovereignty and his providential care.

There�s pride that gets in the way, there�s bad teaching, there�s your old pastor, there�s bad study Bibles, there�s bad radio shows. People, many no-co listeners of course, embrace God�s sovereignty over everything, including salvation.

But some don�t. So if you don�t embrace it, this show is for you. And if you do embrace it, there are certainly people in your life that you have to talk into, argue with, debate with, suggest, put little tracks underneath the door, and this will help for you.

Now the Catechism, Heidelberg Catechism, question 28, what does it profit us to know that God has created and by his providence still upholds all things? What does it profit us? What is the benefit? Remember Hebrews 1, verse 2 and 3, the Son creates all things and upholds all things.

Present tense upholding, not bearing up like Atlas in the world, but going somewhere kind of holding up, a progression, a succession, driving to the consummation, which certainly includes and did include Christ�s substitutionary death on Calvary, his resurrection, upholds all things.

What does it profit us? Now here�s what the Heidelberg Catechism says, and this is why it�s important for you. Why is this doctrine practical? What�s the relevance? And remember, class, all the Bible, it�s not only inspired, authoritative, sufficient, inerrant, but it�s relevant.

But we don�t make it relevant. It is by nature relevant because what could be more relevant than God? It�s like word association, relevant, God. Who could say irrelevant when you think of God? And we see his person, his work, his nature, his character, as we read the Bible, and therefore, for a lot of other reasons, the Bible is relevant.

Now what we try to do when we teach the Bible, or even when we study the Bible, is we ask the question, how is this relevant? So you�re reading 1 Kings and 2 Kings, and over and over and over, what comes into your mind?

Nobody, no one, no how, nobody�s good. No king can fully and rightly fulfill the conditions for the Davidic covenant. David, the king, couldn�t even do it. We need a better king. We need another king.

Well, back to Heidelberg Catechism. Here�s what it prophets, �That we may be patient in adversity, thankful in prosperity, and for what is future, have good confidence in our faithful God and Father, that no creature shall separate us from his love, since all creatures are so in his hand, that without his will they cannot so much as move.

And that is so good. How would you like to have more patience in adversity? How would you, if you�re like me, you want that. How would you like to have more thankfulness and prosperity? How would you like to have a greater confidence in God, that if ever he loved you, he�ll love you forever, and that you are in his hand?

That is why we study the doctrine of providence and sovereignty, because God himself sovereignly loves people. And in light of that, even when I think of Romans 11, verse 33, after he talks about the sovereignty of God, there�s that interjection, �Oh�, translated �oh� in some translations.

�Oh, the depths and the riches, both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God. How unsearchable are his judgments and unfathomable his ways. As you know, when you look at natural revelation, Grand Canyon, for instance, it forces, if I can call Grand Canyon a her, it forces her onlookers to gape.

I�m positive that the amount of human drool that�s dropped over the rim of the Grand Canyon, if collected, could fill thousands of 55-gallon drums. The grandeur, the largeness, it beckons everything from you except a drawn-out yawn.

Why? Because revelation of God�s creation forces a response. Wow! If you go to the Niagara Falls, and you�re there, and you think, you know what, the mist of the water, and it soaks your face, and you hear the sound rumbling in your ear, I don�t care if you�re a senior citizen or a little kid, you are impressed.

When you�re in the labor and delivery room, I�ve been in there five or six times, well, more. Four for my own children, I used to work in the OR, and sometimes we�d have to go into the labor and delivery.

So, I don�t know, I think I only saw one other baby born that wasn�t my own. But when you�re in there watching that baby�s birth, I don�t care if it�s a C-section or it�s regular delivery, uncontrollable tears stream down the faces of every family member.

I mean, you just, wow! When the bride slowly promenades down the aisle on her wedding day, arm-locked on her father�s trembling arm, aren�t you just compelled to stand up, turn around, and remark, isn�t she stunning?

The revelation of God in nature obligates a response. And the same thing happens with God�s Word. Even more wonderfully, God�s Word, as we learn about who He is and what He does specifically, it causes you to praise Him.

It causes a reaction. Scriptures force a response. Heidelberg, at the beginning, guilt, grace, gratitude. That is the paradigm. And this doctrine, the sovereignty of God, is designed to poke and prod the awe out of you.

How�s that sound? That sounds good. That sounds good. Oh, the depths of the riches, both the wisdom and knowledge of God. What I particularly like about this doctrine is that it forces me to study God Himself.

The sovereignty of God makes you study who God is. I was reading Bovink last night on the goodness of God, and I know God�s good, but just to listen to him explain the goodness of God using Scripture, I was thinking it�s pretty good.

I was thinking it was great. I like Spurgeon when he said, �The proper study of a Christian is the Godhead, the highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy which can ever engage the attention of a child of God, is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom He calls His Father.

There is something exceedingly improving to the mind in a contemplation of the divinity. It is a subject so vast that all our thoughts are lost in its immensity, so deep that our pride is drowned in its infinity.

That�s what we�re after today. I know that when you start dealing with the sovereignty of God over everything from your skin color, to your DNA, to everything, you start saying, �You know what? What does that mean about people that God didn�t save

And it pushes buttons. It pushes a finger against your sternum. It is a pride crusher, and you need to understand the sovereignty of God. Why? Because you need more patience in adversity, because you need more thankfulness in prosperity, because you�d like to have a greater confidence in the faithful God when anything happens.

The answer is yes, yes, yes for me, and I know it�s for you as well. The sovereignty of God, Hebrews 1 .3, He upholds all things. That doctrine needs to be embraced. What�s the option? Clark Pinnock, we detect in this story, it�s not some dark predestinarian decree operating behind the scenes, making sure everything works out right.

What we do encounter is the freedom of God to respond positively and negatively to man�s freedom. God weaves into His plan for history the significant choices that we make. History is not a computer printout of programmed decisions set long ago or set long before by an all-determining deity.

It is much more like a dialogue between the Father and His human respondents. I have a question for you. How does that help me when things are going bad? How does that make me more thankful when things are going good?

That�s bogus is what that is. That�s a henno moment. Henno. We don�t do that. Or even Bruce Reichenbach�s essay, God Limits His Power, how do you like that for an essay title? That makes me want to have a drink of coffee here.

I got an email the other day from Janet Mefford�s people and I think it�s March 7th I�ll be on the show. So I don�t know when this show is going to air, but I think I�m going to be on her show at 1 central on March 7th.

How about that? That�s exciting. That�s exciting. Here�s what Bruce said, �Though God knows all truths, including truths about what free persons choose. He does not know what free persons would choose were conditions different from what they are or about the choice which would be made by possible but never existing individuals.

Pastor Steve was here, I only have one word for you, �forget you. Rather, Jesus upholds all things by the word of His power. He bears them up, He sustains, He guides. To use Weiss� translation, He propels all things.

He regulates. That�s what He does. It�s a sustaining regulation, driving everything perfectly to the appointed end that He has decided. Now, let me give you the helpers. If you like to be more patient in adversity, more thankful in prosperity, and have a good confidence in faithful God, that you can never be separated from His love, let me give you some exhortations.

Start and End with the Bible

That�s my 15-minute intro, how�s that? The show�s only 24 minutes, so I guess this is probably going to be part two, or there�s going to be a part two. These are helpers. These are like Tums. Because I know what you�re going to think, God�s sovereign over everybody, then why didn�t He choose everyone?

Why is anybody in hell? Does the will matter? Are choices real? What about the will? What about the agency of the will? And the list goes on and on and on. I have a little document, it�s not so little, from Kurt Daniel, and Kurt Daniel�s work is excellent regarding this, and so lots of stuff that I�m going to say, I�m using from him, kind of as a template.

I�ll say it in the Abendrothian style, but I want to make sure we give credit to people. Right? Kurt Daniel. Excellent. Number one, God upholds all things, and for you to submit to that doctrine so you could have more patience and adversity, more thankfulness and prosperity, and a good, calm confidence in who God is.

Number one, start and end with the Bible. Here�s your first helper. Remember hamburger helper? Do we ever have turkey helper? I remember. Hamburger helper. My mom didn�t use it much, but her cooking was essentially that.

I think she got to be a better cook as time went on, and now I�m spoiled because not only are my daughters great cooks, but my wife, when I first met her, I don�t think she could cook anything. I think maybe scallops she could cook.

That was about it. And now, crazy, we went and took a cheese tasting class the other day. We do that once a month, cheese tasting. They give you wine and alcohol to go with the cheese, sometimes meats, cheeses, chocolates.

It�s a nice class. It�s free, and I don�t drink alcohol because I drank too much of it in the past and did too many drugs, so I just figured I�d better lay off. Not because I�m one drink away, not because I think I have a disease, not because it�s a fundamentalism in my mind, but I just decided not to.

Well, anyway, a cheese class, how do we get there, how do we get to the cheese class? What was I doing in the cheese class? Maybe Jesus is applicable to the cheese class. I have no idea. What are we talking about?

Fred? Steve? Somebody help me. Why would I mention a cheese class? Oh, my wife is such a good cook, absolutely, so I don�t know what that has to do with anything either, but she�s a good cook. The problem is, I can�t hardly have any calories, so what do you do?

Just drink coffee, that�s all you do. If you want to more readily submit to the doctrine of God�s sovereignty, you�re struggling. There was somebody here at the church, they said they struggled for seven years with this doctrine.

So how could I help you when it comes to God�s utter, total, complete sovereignty over every molecule, over every atom, over every soul? Number one, start with the Bible. I know, it�s hamburger helper, this is kind of like doctrinal helper.

We finally made it back. Start and end with the Bible. Now, if you go by your feelings, opinions, polls, old pastors, current pastors, radio talk show hosts, the denominational standards, your confession, your intuition, you�re barking up the wrong tree, it�s not going to work.

It�s going to confuse you. Could I just, in a friendly way, say to you, that�s what you�ve been doing? If you cannot embrace the sovereignty of God over everything and everyone, heaven and hell, it�s because you�re putting these other things first.

Could I nicely, on no-compromise radio, tell you to stop doing that? Sometimes it works like this, there�s a loved one that we realize never, according Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior with a saving faith, and we know then therefore their destiny.

So we change things around and kind of extrapolate backwards so we can sleep well. Here we have to start with the Bible. Start with and end with revelation. You say, well, what about the free will of man?

That�s not where you start. What about predestination makes men robots? That�s not where you start. Well, forced love isn�t real love. That�s not where you start. The starting point has to be with God and His Word.

Period. Paragraph. How else are you going to have theology? I�ll just tell you, even if you say, yeah, but like five points, Calvinism, doctrines of grace, the solas, it�s hard for me to get those. It�s hard for me to get any of those.

It�s hard for me to get just some of those. Well, what we need to do is go back to the sovereignty of God from Scripture. If you can�t get one of the points of Calvinism, it�s directly related to your view of the sovereignty of God as you look at Scripture.

Start with it. Finish with it. You should be captive to the Word of God. Here�s a good prayer. Lord, help me to believe what Your Word says about who You are and Your sovereignty. Wouldn�t that be good?

Anybody could do that. There�s these days a famine in the land for hearing God�s Word, and instead we need to be people to the law and to the prophets, captive to the Word of God. Let me give you an illustration, and then we�ll talk more about this next time.

God Is Sovereign Even Over the Will

Revelation 17, verse 13 and following. When you go to Scripture, if you�re struggling with this, you already know verses that say, �Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. You get those.

You�re full of those. You�ve got those memorized. Those are your default knee-jerk responses. And of course, I believe those. But if you�re struggling with the sovereignty of God, then we need to go to passages in the Bible that say, �God is sovereign over everything, including the will.

Revelation 17, verse 13. These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings.

And those with him are called and chosen and faithful. See what happens when you have different translations. And the angel said to me, �The waters that you saw where the prostitute is seated are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages.

The ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire. Here�s the crutch. Here�s the clutch. Here�s the apex.

Here�s the linchpin. Here�s whatever. I don�t know. I�m just making up words now as we go. Norm Crosby, right? Norm Crosby. He was funny back in the 1670s, whatever happened to him. Revelation 17, 17.

�For God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast until the words of God are fulfilled. God puts it in their heart to execute his purpose, teaching the sovereignty of God.

They exercise their own wills to worship the beast and God sovereign over even that. I mean, here�s the text, �God put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose. There�s only one hope for you as you work through this, is to say to yourself, what does the Bible say?

So step number one, hamburger helper, how to have patience in adversity and thankfulness in prosperity, the Bible alone informs.

No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abendroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life transforming power of God�s Word through verse by verse exposition of the sacred text.

Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 1015 and in the evening at 6. We�re right on route 110 in West Boylston. You can check us out online at bbcchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.

The thoughts and opinions expressed on No Compromise Radio do not necessarily reflect those of WVNE, its staff or management.