Is it really true to say that God is in control?
I’d like to challenge your thinking on this a bit. I wonder if the phrase ‘God is in control’ has become a cliché, often used merely for comfort during difficult times, rather than reflecting a deeper understanding.
Could it be that this belief is preventing the world from seeing God’s love? If He is in control, why is everything such a mess?
Is it a true representation of God’s character to say that He is in control?
“The earth is the LORD’S, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters.” Psalm 24:1-2 NKJV
Every time people say ‘God is in control’ when they are in a difficult situation, I feel a stirring in my heart. The word ‘control’ often carries a negative connotation, especially where it leads to harm and it could also place a person in a position of passivity.
As a counselor, I’ve worked with individuals trapped in controlling relationships and I’ve seen how it can cause severe trauma and a feeling of helplessness.
God’s nature is not that of control. Jesus demonstrated the Father’s nature. He came as a servant leader, washing the feet of His disciples. He gave up His life for us. His life on earth was an example of true leadership.
He told Peter that he was going to deny Him three times and Jesus didn’t reject him because of it. He warned Peter to prepare him for what was about to happen. He also encouraged him that He prayed for him and after his failure, Jesus restored him completely.
“But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.” Luke 22:32 NKJV
To start brainstorming, let’s first look at the meaning of ‘control:
Control is to exercise dominating influence over someone to get them to do what you want. It is an attempt to assert power over others in order to maintain control in a situation.
Saying God is in control, contradicts the fact that He gave man dominion over the earth. He is a loving Father, that gave His children free will. He doesn’t control or force us to do things. His heart is that we partner with Him so that He can bring the restoration of all things to fulfillment. He leads us through His Spirit, but we can choose to follow His ways on not.
He knows what is best for us and following Him will keep us from harm’s way as Psalm 91 says.
But if we cannot hear Him properly or see what He is doing, how can we follow and how can He protect us the way He would like to? If we ignore Him, the same thing.
I want to leave a statement here and then dig deeper into what I see from Genesis 1.
God is in charge, but He chose not to control everything because He gave man dominion over all the works of His hands.
God is sovereign, but He is not a controlling God because He doesn’t control man. He gave man free will to make his own decisions. Most of what is happening around us are the result of man’s free will. God doesn’t override our choices. But in His mercy, He works it out for our good when we make wrong choices.
“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God …” Romans 8:28 NKJV
God gave man dominion over everything He created
According to Genesis 1:26, God’s original intent for man was to rule and reign, but when Adam took the bait from satan that he will be like God, which according to verse 26 he already was, he lost that position of dominion. But by God’s grace, that position was restored through the cross.
“Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Genesis 1:26, 28 NKJV
In the verse above we can see God’s original intent for man to have dominion. In Christ, the Father restored us to a better position than before.
“Christ’s resurrection is your resurrection too …” Colossians 3:1 TPT
“We are co-included in his resurrection. We are also co-elevated in his ascension to be equally present in the throne room of the heavenly realm where we are co-seated with him in his executive authority. We are fully represented in Christ Jesus. (We have wasted so much time trying to get there, when “there” is where we are to begin with! Our joint position in Christ defines us; this can never again be a distant goal to reach through religious devotion or striving, but our immediate location. See Ephesians 4:8-10, Colossians 3:1-3.)” Ephesians 2:6 Mirror Bible
“but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” Revelation 12:8-12 NKJV
The issue is that many interpretations of the book of Revelation are still from the perspective that it still has to happen, despite the fact that so much of that book has already been fulfilled. In the verse below, we can see where satan is now:
Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.” And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Revelation 12:8-12, 17 NKJV
Jesus gave the following promise that shows our position of dominion has been restored:
“Jesus replied, “While you were ministering, I watched Satan topple until he fell suddenly from heaven like lightning to the ground. Now you understand that I have imparted to you my authority to trample over his kingdom. You will trample upon every demon before you and overcome every power Satan possesses. Absolutely nothing will harm you as you walk in this authority.” Luke 10:18-19 TPT
“Love has been perfected among us …. as He is, so are we in this world.” 1 John 4:17 NKJV
The question is, do we really know who we are?
The world is waiting eagerly for God’s sons to step up into position to do what the Father has called us to do. This calling is the message of reconciliation and the restoration of everything back unto Christ. It is part of our individual and also corporate calling. But to accomplish this we are supposed to step into position to rule and reign with Christ as sons of God.
“For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.” Romans 8:19 NKJV
“The entire universe is standing on tiptoe, yearning to see the unveiling of God’s glorious sons and daughters!” Romans 8:19 TPT
I like how it reads in the Mirror Bible: “… can you hear the drum roll?”
Jesus came that we might have life (zoe – the God-kind of life) [John 10:10]. God’s “original-intent” kind of life.
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” John 14:12 NKJV
“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” Romans 8:14 NKJV
Are we fulfilling our purpose of dominion, or are we using it the wrong way?
“Do you not know that when you continually offer yourselves to someone to do his will, you are the slaves of the one whom you obey, either [slaves] of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness (right standing with God)?” Romans 6:16 AMP
“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;” Deuteronomy 30:19 NKJV
The chaos around us; is the result of man’s choices and a lot of what’s happening is because many are not taking up their individual callings.
If everyone takes up their God-given calling, we will collectively bring restoration and change and destroy the works of darkness.
You have a sphere of influence
Are you fulfilling God’s purpose for your life in your sphere of influence?
The circles you move in are influenced by who you are and what you do. You are a vessel. This applies to everyone on the planet. A vessel that is not surrendered to God can be a very dangerous vessel. You either carry light or you carry darkness. But wherever you are, what you carry is what you bring to the table.
If you are not fulfilling your purpose, it has an impact on that sphere. What happens in that sphere is determined by what you do or do not do.
Fulfilling your purpose is very important in God’s overall plan. Only you can carry out what God has placed in your heart. You have a unique purpose. Nobody else can do what you have been called to do. Every person has a part to play.
The meaning of the word “sphere” according to the dictionary is: an area or range over or within which someone or something acts, exists, or has influence or significance.
God wants to restore everything back to His original intent. As a son of God, you are part of His plan to restore everything back unto Christ, the second Adam.
“For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God through faith.” Galatians 3:26 AMPC
Your sphere of influence will suffer if you do not fulfill your purpose. It will hinder the process of restoration because you are to be part of this process. The restoration process begins with you.
God desires to restore everything in your life so that what He has invested in you can effect change in your sphere of influence.
Change starts with hearing God’s voice and seeing what He is doing
If you cannot hear God’s voice, you will not be able to fulfill His calling for your life.
Our senses need to be trained so that we can step into everything God has for us.
Just like we have five physical senses in the natural; hearing, seeing, smelling, and touching, tasting, we have five spiritual senses.
You are physically impaired if you are deaf or blind in the natural world. It is the same in the spiritual.
The word impaired means: being in an imperfect or weakened state or condition: such, diminished in function or ability: lacking full functionality
That means you are not fully functional as a “son of God” to fulfill His purpose for your life if you are unable to hear Him or see in the realms of His Kingdom.
The key to the restoration of all things is to do what you are called to do. We are like Jesus supposed to only do what we see our Father doing. But we can only do what the Father shows if we can see what He is doing.
“So Jesus said, “I speak to you eternal truth. The Son is unable to do anything from himself or through his own initiative. I only do the works that I see the Father doing, for the Son does the same works as his Father.” John 5:19 TPT
God desires that all five of our spiritual senses be restored so that we can experience Him fully. He wants to speak to us through all of them in order to help us fulfill our life purpose. If you cannot experience God through all five senses, you are spiritually handicapped.
According to the Bible, our senses must be trained. It places the responsibility on us to get to where our senses are sensitive enough to experience the Father through them. It is also a sign of maturity.
“But solid food is for the [spiritually] mature, whose senses are trained by practice to distinguish between what is morally good and what is evil.” Hebrews 5:14 AMP
“This is the nourishment of the mature. They are those who have their faculties of perception trained as by gymnastic precision to distinguish the relevant from the irrelevant. (The mature are those who know the difference between the shadow and the substance; between the futility of the law of works and willpower to work righteousness, and righteousness revealed by the faith of God in the finished work of Christ.) Hebrews 5:14 Mirror Bible (https://app.mirrorword.net)
Everything you need to fulfill God’s plan for your life is already within you. You only have to live out who you are. But how do you live out your calling if you struggle to hear or experience God? You need God’s direction to know what to do.
If you would like to improve your ability to hear God and see what He is doing, follow the link below:
I also want to encourage you to watch the redemptive gifts training series of Arthur Burke.
The YouTube video below is session 1. Understanding your gifting will help you to understand your role in the restoration process, as well as the roles of others.
There are 8 sessions based on the grace gifts mentioned in Romans 12:5-8. They can all be found on YouTube.
Who you are, has to become revelation knowledge so that you can fulfill God’s purpose for your life.