Providence is mysterious in such a way that we shortsighted souls are not able to catch the spectacle of God’s distant ends. God does not focus on the present advantage for himself and his creatures, but his eye is to his own glory in all, even to the very last ages of the world. God discloses grand designs in small things, and noble mysteries are hidden in the least of his acts.

For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.1 Corinthians 1:21
Because the ways of God are beyond human comprehension, much of what he does seems counterintuitive to us—yet it is always right. His grand designs are disclosed in small things, and noble mysteries are hidden in the least of his acts. We rarely understand the process, but God never fails to bring the results that are required for his glory and for our good.
As providence is universal, so it is mysterious. God’s throne is in the dark. Who can trace the motions of his eyes as they race? In moving about the earth, “he makes the clouds his chariot” (Ps. 104:3), and as he rides on the wings of the wind, his providential speed makes it too quick for us to understand. His ways are beyond all human reason and wisdom. His most diligent servants cannot decipher the full extent of his works because the swift motion of God’s eyes is too quick for ours.
John the Baptist is so astonished at the strange condescension of his Savior to be baptized by him that he forbids it at first: “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (Matt. 3:14). Men and women are weak creatures and cannot trace or comprehend the wisdom of God.
The mystery and darkness of providence cast a luster on it, just as precious jewels are set in ebony so that the stark contrast of the dark background heightens their brilliance and beauty.
God’s Ways Are above Our Ways
Providence is mysterious because God’s ways are above our human methods. Dark providences are often a smoldering groundwork laid for some excellent design that God is about to reveal.
God keeps Sarah childless and then brings forth the root of countless descendants from her womb. He makes Jacob a cripple and then a prince to prevail with God, first wounding him and then giving a blessing. God sends Christ and the gospel at a time of high intellectual achievements to confound the reason and the wisdom of the world, which is not able to discern the knowledge of God: “Since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe” (1 Cor. 1:21).
God’s Ends Are Higher Than Our Aims
God’s ends have a higher objective than human aims. Who would have thought that the military forces of Cyrus, which he ignited against Babylon to satisfy his own ambition, would be a means to deliver the Israelites and restore the worship of God in the temple? This was God’s end, which Isaiah prophesied and Cyrus never imagined: “I am the Lord . . . who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose’; saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’ and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid’” (Isa. 44:24, 28). This was spoken long before Cyrus was born.
Pharaoh sent Israel away at the end of four hundred and thirty years, the time appointed beforehand by God. He could not keep them any longer because of God’s promise, and he would not keep them because of God’s plagues. God’s aim was to glorify his truth by fulfilling his word. Pharaoh had no desire to accomplish God’s will but only to be delivered from God’s judgments.
We can easily observe how God’s ends are far different from human ways by looking at Augustus and his plan to tax the world (Luke 2:1–4). Acting out of pride, Augustus was eager to count those under his reign. In Tarragona, Spain, in 26 BC, he proclaimed that a census would be taken of the whole empire. Soon after his announcement, resistance arose from various groups, and Augustus deferred his resolution to a more suitable time—the very time of the birth of Christ. Now we see God’s wise disposal of things in changing Augustus’s resolution and deferring it until Christ was ready to come into the world!
Christ, the seed of David, was to be born at Bethlehem, the town where Jesse had lived and David had been born. The census decreed by Augustus made it necessary for Joseph and Mary to come from Nazareth, where they lived and where Jesus had been conceived, and to journey to Bethlehem. Mary, being great with child, likely would not have made this journey for any reason short of the emperor’s edict. How wisely does God order human ambition and pride to fulfill his own prophecies and to publish the truth of Christ’s birth, for the names of Joseph and Mary were found in the records of Rome in Tertullian’s time.
God’s Actions Have Multiple Ends
God accomplishes multiple outcomes through a single action. Jacob is oppressed by famine, while Pharaoh is enriched with plenty. Joseph’s imprisonment is intended for his father’s relief and Pharaoh’s wealth. Joseph is wrongly accused, and his chastity is rewarded with incarceration. This later serves to further his advancement: he moves from being imprisoned to being highly favored and honored by Pharaoh.
What is God’s end in all this? To preserve the Egyptian nation, yes, and also Jacob and his family. But this was not his only purpose. By these means, God lays the foundation for his future designs to be carried out in an age to come. Jacob is brought into Egypt and leaves his posterity there, making a way for God to be glorified as he works future miracles for the deliverance of Jacob’s descendants. This is such an act that it should continuously ring throughout the world as a type of spiritual deliverance by Christ for all to remember.
God’s Ends Are for His Glory
Providence is mysterious in such a way that we shortsighted souls are not able to catch the spectacle of God’s distant ends. God does not focus on the present advantage for himself and his creatures, but his eye is to his own glory in all, even to the very last ages of the world. God discloses grand designs in small things, and noble mysteries are hidden in the least of his acts.
Though intended to die, Isaac was delivered from his father’s sword and thus set forth to the world a type of Christ’s resurrection. Meanwhile, God caused a ram to be entangled in the thickets, appointing it for the sacrifice, and thus it set forth a type of Christ’s death.
God uses the captivities of the people to increase the boundaries for the spread of the gospel. The wise men were guided by a star to find Christ, King of the Jews, and pay homage to the infant. Where was the foundation of this remarkable event laid? Probably in Balaam’s prophecy: “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel” (Num. 24:17). This was likely handed down through tradition to the wise men, perhaps renewed by Sibilla Chaldea, and further confirmed in their minds by the Jews as they spoke with the Babylonians while in captivity. Thus the mystery of providence stands.
Many ages before, God purposed to prepare his people for the coming of Christ and determined when he should be born. Scripture does not tell us what the wise men were seeking, but their gifts were a means to preserve our Savior, Joseph, and Mary from the rage of a tyrant by allowing them to support themselves in Egypt, where God ordered them to flee for security.
When an officer of the king scoffed at God’s promise of miraculous provision, the prophet Elisha assured him that he would indeed see the provision come to pass but would not taste it (2 Kings 7:1–2). The next day, the king put his captain in charge of the gate, and when food prices dropped as dramatically as promised, the people, hungry and crowding through the gate for provisions, trampled the officer to death, thus carrying out the prophecy without any intentions of doing so. See how God orders second causes naturally to bring about his own decree!
Study Questions

Why can’t human beings fully understand God’s providence?
Read 1  Corinthians 1:18–30. What distinction is there between God’s providence and the “wisdom” of the world?
Charnock uses Joseph as an illustration of how God can accomplish multiple ends with a single event. Can you think of other examples from Scripture that illustrate this point?

Excerpt taken from Chapter 4: The Mystery of Providence, Divine Providence: A Classic Work for Modern Readers by Stephen Charnock and edited by Carolyn B. Whiting. A new edition will be released on September 21, 2022 by P&R Publishing. Used with permission.
Related Posts:

Social media tempts us to believe that we can be like God in His omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence (sort of). Social media—and the cultural pressures that often come with the way we use it—tell us we should know everything that is happening at all times, in all places. But knowledge is not enough. With the knowledge of what is happening comes the pressure that we should do something about everything that is taking place all around the world.

Don’t worry—this blog is not going to tell you that social media is evil or that you should get off social media entirely. I will caution you, however, not to fall victim to a significant lie social media can tempt you to believe. What is the lie? That you can be like God.
Our desire to be like God has plagued humanity since the beginning. The very first temptation offered to our original mother was laced with the lie “you will be like God” (Gen. 3:5). Fast forward to an era following worldwide destruction for our sin, and we find ourselves again tempted by the allure to reach into the heavens and make a name for ourselves (Gen. 11:1-9), things that are reserved for God Himself. On and on through human history, we find evidence of this desire lurking in the heart of every man and woman. We desire to take on that which only the Divine can. Often advancements in technology come with poisoned promises that we can be like God. Social media is one of the latest culprits to come on the scene that tries to convince us we can take on godhood.
Social media tempts us to believe that we can be like God in His omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence (sort of). Social media—and the cultural pressures that often come with the way we use it—tell us we should know everything that is happening at all times, in all places. But knowledge is not enough. With the knowledge of what is happening comes the pressure that we should do something about everything that is taking place all around the world.
Allow me to illustrate with a personal example. One day, when I was trying to wrap up my dissertation, I blocked out a day for writing. I went into my office, locked the door, and turned off all access to the outside world. LAN line–off, cellphone–off, internet on my computer–off. It was a very productive day. That evening, when I turned my phone back on, I had a text from a friend which read, “Can you believe what is happening at the Capitol?” My curiosity was piqued, so I asked, “What is happening at the Capitol?” I was afraid to ask which Capitol because that would betray an even deeper level of ignorance. He sent back a Twitter feed related to riots that were taking place in Washington, D.C. The date was January 6, 2021.
At once, I began to feel guilt over my ignorance. I began to think, “I should have known!” “I should have done something!” “Should I go there?!?!”
Those questions point directly to the temptation. When our engagement with social media begins to cause us to think, “I should have/need to/ought to…know/have known, do something, or be someplace,” it is tempting us to believe we can be like God. Only God can be all places and know all things, and only God has the power to do something about everything. Any hint in our thoughts, feelings, or desires that we could take on those capacities is an acknowledgment of our desire to be Godlike.
Psalm 131:1 declares, “O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me.” King David—giant slayer, Philistine conqueror, nation of Israel ruler and expander, psalmist, and man after God’s own heart—wrote these words. David is certainly not saying that we should never try to accomplish great things or do mighty deeds.
Read More
Related Posts:

Church history will help you live the Christian life and be faithful to Christ. It will provide you with clarity in an era of confusion. It will help you be consistent while many others waver. The faithful examples and arguments of giants from the past gives you credibility when other people doubt you. The courage displayed by other soldiers of Christ exhorts us to not be ashamed of the Gospel.

At the conclusion of his epistle, the author of Hebrews exhorts us, “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the Word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith” (Heb 13:7). The author calls Christians to remember what they heard in the past from faithful leaders. Leaders with proven faithfulness give us examples worthy of emulation. Many of us can look back to the examples of faithful pastors and Christians who have discipled us and shaped our theology.
This corresponds with Hebrews 13:7: “Obey your leaders and submit to them.” The command here calls for obedience to present leaders. So, based on these passages, leaders from our past should continue to direct us as well as those presently leading us in the church. We remember and imitate past leaders and obey present leaders.
Learning from the past benefits our Christian life. In the reading and study of church history, we remember the teachings and deeds of faithful Christians and leaders. Church history helps us in a myriad of ways to follow Jesus our Lord. In a previous post I shared some ways church history helps us live a life of godliness. This post offers more ways church history aids us in having clarity, consistency, credibility, and courage.
Church History Helps Us Have Clarity
Church history presents a rogue gallery of false teachers and heretics who have threatened the church. From Arius to Joseph Smith to the modern prosperity preachers, many wolves have stalked Christ’s sheep. Faithful Christians have responded to their heresies with clear articulations of Biblical teaching.
The creeds of the ancient church clarify such important doctrines as the trinity and the humanity of Jesus Christ. The confessions which emerged after the Reformation provide churches and Christians with articulate summaries of Biblical doctrine. These creeds and confessions contain very careful wording to help us understand and explain the teachings of the Bible. Numerous Christian leaders labored together in the study and discussion of God’s Word to produce these helpful documents. Use the creeds from church history as tools to know the truth and contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints (Jude 3).
Referring to the Second London Confession of 1689, Spurgeon wrote, “This little volume is not issued as an authoritative rule, or code of faith, whereby you are to be fettered, but as an assistance to you in controversy, a confirmation in faith, and a means of edification in righteousness. Here the younger members of our church will have a body of divinity in small compass, and by means of Scriptural proofs, will be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in them.”
Church History Helps Us Have Consistency
We need to be cautious when others suggest new interpretations of Scripture. Especially if these seek to alter commonly accepted/held doctrines. If no one else has ever held a new interpretation, it may be right, but it’s probably wrong. Church history shows us we’re not the only people who have read, studied, and interpreted the Bible. It provides helpful guardrails to keep us from veering far afield from the original meaning/teaching of Scripture.
The Reformed interpretation of election and predestination was held by Augustine, then Luther and Calvin, then many of the Puritans. Many different Christians codified these doctrines in confessions like The Belgic Confession (1567), The Westminster Confession of Faith (1646), The London Baptist Confessions of 1644 and 1689. These consistent statements on specific doctrines help us remain on a steady and faithful course in our teaching, preaching, and discipleship.
Church history provides us with a legion of Bible commentaries written throughout the centuries. Here we can read and consider the interpretations and applications of Christian leaders from the past. In a lecture to his students, Charles Spurgeon says, “In order to be able to expound the Scriptures, and as an aid to your pulpit studies, you will need to be familiar with the commentators: a glorious army, let me tell you, whose acquaintance will be your delight and profit. Of course, you are not such wiseacres as to think or say that you can expound Scripture without assistance from the works of divines and learned men who have laboured before you in the field of exposition.” Notice he calls those who have written about God’s Word “a glorious army” that will lead to your “delight and profit.” Spurgeon also rebukes those who think themselves wise enough to handle the Scriptures without aid.
Read More
Related Posts: