The God of Absolutely All Things
A Study by: Art Licursi – 12/26/05
Is the Lord God really God over “all things”? Realize that “all things” must, by definition, include being God over all of the negative and all evil as well as the good and righteous?
If you are a regenerated believing Christian, I am sure we’re already persuaded of the Lord’s Sovereignty, righteousness and holiness. Now, in that light please consider the following verses taken from the KJV Bible. It is purposeful that we understand God’s relationship to all things, including evil.
Isaiah 45:7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil (evil in Greek is “ra,” see Strong’s definition below): I the Lord do all these things.
Amos 3:6 Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil (ra, see below) in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?
In order soften the word translated “evil” here, many other translators found it necessary use the word “calamity”, as if the Hebrew word “ra” used here only refers to the negative physical happenings in the earth’s environment, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, etc. Most then say God “permits” these happenings, and they do not consider that the permitting of something makes the one who does the permitting to the greater than, or over the happening. We should now consider the definition of “ra” (seen below), as taken from the Strong’s Concordance.
“evil” - ra`, Hebrew 7451, Strong’s - ra`, rah; from Hebrew 7489 (ra`a`); bad or (as noun) evil (natural or moral) :- adversity, affliction, bad, calamity, + displease (-ure), distress, evil ([-favouredness], man, thing), + exceedingly, × great, grief (-vous), harm, heavy, hurt (-ful), ill (favoured), + mark, mischief (-vous), misery, naught (-ty), noisome, + not please, sad (-ly), sore, sorrow, trouble, vex, wicked (-ly, -ness, one), worse (-st), wretchedness, wrong. [Including feminine ra`ah; as adjective or noun.]
Notice, here by definition, the extent of “evil”. I underlined “natural and moral”. None would argue that from Isa 45:7 that the Lord is the creator of darkness. Yet these same folks cannot bear to have God the creator of natural and moral evil. We should note that “evil” here is in contrast to “peace” which is the Hebrew word “shalom.” A better and prime definition of this word peace, as seen from Strong’s is taken from Heb 7999 “shalam,” meaning “safe.” Thus, it means, “all is well.” This is in contrast the “evil”, by which all in not well.
Evil happenings in nature may well provoke the evil in immoral fallen mankind. A calamitous evil event could be described as a hurricane, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, flood, etc. If the hurricane led to a flood by storm surge, and the earthquake resulted in a fire, this is awful, but these may also bring out the worst of immoral mankind, exhibited his self-loving sinful nature in hoarding, stealing, or even murder; can we say then that God is the source of these terrible manifestations of the immoral sin nature in man? I think not. However, God did play a part in this occurring by “permitting” the evil event. From Scripture we can see that evil as in calamitous events such as these “natural” events do come by the hand of God (i.e., Noah’s flood); and they often do provoke or stir the sin nature in man to come forth, to be exhibited or manifested; as seen in the New Orleans hurricane and flooding of 2005 that resulted in theft, murders, and rape. These evil acts are of the evil sin nature that was already latent within every person born into this world, this then the potential source of acts of evil sin. Scripture makes it clear that the “sin nature” that born into mankind came via their foster father – the Devil (Eph 2:2-3, John 8:44, Mark 8:33).
Then we must ask the logical question, where did the Devil come from? The Devil is God’s creation. Is not God the Creator of all things (John 1:3) also the creator of Lucifer? Lucifer was in fact made perfect (complete), yet within him was the potential to sin. Scripture writes of Lucifer, called the “father” of sin and lies (John 8:44), saying, “iniquity was found (Heb. matsa, present) in thee” (Ezek 28:15). Sin was already there, latent, but became exposed or actualized when he said “I will be as the Most High” (Ezek 14:13-14). Until that time sin and evil were only a “potential” as the opposite of righteousness and good. Lucifer was the first sinner and liar (1John 3:8).
Ezekiel 28:15 Thou (Lucifer) wast perfect (Heb, tamiym, “undefiled”) in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity (Heb., evel) was found in thee.
So, what about Satan?
Can we say God created Satan as a sinner? We know that Lucifer (The Devil, Serpent, Dragon, Satan, that Evil One) is an angelic being, created by the hand of God. Lucifer was created superbly, but he was not created without the potential to sin. He had been given the ability to make choice by free will. Lucifer was the first being to actualize that potential and commit acts of sin.
“Ezekiel 28:12-18 Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God; “Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. [13] Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. [14] Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. [15] Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity (Heb, evel) was found in thee. [16] By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. [17] Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. [18] Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.”
Lucifer’s free will choice was to declare that he would be as the most high God.
Isaiah 14:12-17 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! [13] For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: [14] I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. [15] Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. [16] They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; [17] That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?
We also know that one-third of the angelic beings fell from heaven with Satan when he fell and was cast from heaven. Those angels also made a choice to follow Lucifer.
Free will must be part and parcel in the realm of angels and also of mankind that God created. For man to be in God’s image must include the mark of free will, since we must recognize that God, Himself, is the ultimate free will – for He can do all things according to and of His own free will.
Actually, I believe that God uses all the evil happenings, and also the evil one himself for the ultimate good, working toward His eternal purposes. Nothing is wasted in God’s economy, even the evil that transpires.
- In the case of those of fallen mankind, who will never choose to receive the Lord’s salvation, they are used by Satan to provide the negative impetus in the world; they are used to provide the negative that may be used by God to push others, whom He knows will receive the Lord, to receive His salvation that is in Christ – and that by free will. The very same negative comes upon all mankind on the earth; coming upon some, it makes them more evil, yet for others, it persuades them to turn their heart to the Lord unto salvation.
Thus you can see that the Devil is God’s devil, a tool in the hands of the Father. Once the genie of Sin is out of the bottle, God uses it to the good.
How can you say God is Sovereign over evil and uses evil for the good?
I would simply point them to the Book of Job. Look at the discussion between God and the Devil (Job 1:7-12). Here we see that the Devil required God’s permission before he was permitted to touch Job, his family, and Job’s possessions, bringing death and destruction. Now that is “evil”, and God chose to permit it. Yet, we read that the end of Job was “great”; he had more family, herds, etc. than before. It worked for the good because through these circumstances Job came to know the Lord more intimately, and loved and trusted the Lord.
Some would say God could never or would never create sinful evil. I believe God did not create sinful evil, but He did create creatures that had the free will potential to actualize evil or good (not God’s level of righteousness), those creatures being angels, Lucifer, and mankind.
Why does God have evil to exist at all, what possible purpose does it serve to have evil in existence?
1. Evil that is of the Evil One (the Devil) exists to work in accord with God’s desire, which is to have a love relationship with those whom He foreknew since before the world began, He knew they would choose to love Him by their free will. Genuine love could not exist apart from free will. If we had no choice in the matter, and were mere puppets or robots, or the Lord forced us to love Him, then it really would not be genuine love. True love grabs our hearts by seeing the unconditionality of God’s love.
2. The prime reason evil was made to exist at tall is that its presence, in contrast to good, permits man to make that free will choice (See the writer’s paper “The Dialectical Principal”). The world exists with opposites all around us. Consider these contrasting items, cold/hot, up/down, in/out, sweet/sour, positive/negative and good/evil, to name a few. Apart from sour we could not know sweet. Apart from knowing the negative we cannot make the clear distinction and choice of the positive. White chalk requires a dark board to best be seen. Apart from the “blackground” of evil we would not know and appreciate good and righteousness. Having the visibility to see evil in the world and even in myself, and then see good by God revealing His loving grace and salvation that is in Christ, I am persuaded and choose to turn to the righteous one, to cling to and trust Him as my all. Apart from having both the negative and positive poles on our battery the automobile would not start. No power is transmitted except by there being both the negative and positive. The negative has a part on empowering us to make the right choice.
If we understand the foregoing, we see that evil is actually working for the ultimate good.
Is God Lord Over “ALL” Things?
We see below from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance definition we see that, “pas” is the Greek word for the word “all.” “All” is used in these verses, meaning, “all, as absolutely all encompassing.”
“All” Defined: Strong’s Definition: “All” - pas, Greek 3956, Strong’s - pas, pas; including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole: - all (manner of, means), alway (-s), any (one), × daily, + ever, every (one, way), as many as, + no (-thing), × thoroughly, whatsoever, whole, whosoever.
We must note, however, that in proper Biblical exegesis that the term “all” may mean either “absolutely all,” as seen above in the Strong’s definition, or just “all of a class,” and this difference is determined by the context in which it is spoken.
- Example: In 2Cor 5:17-18 we see that the context is of a class defined as those who are “in Christ” as “a new creature in Christ” and who is “reconciled to God by Jesus Christ;” and so “all things” here are thus interpreted in this limiting way, to include “absolutely all things for this class of people”, who are made new creatures in Christ.
- In Rom. 8:28 we see the context is that ALL things are working for the good to them who “love God and are called according to his purpose;” so all things here is thus interpreted in this limiting way, to include “absolutely all things …concerning only this class of people.
Thus, “all” means “absolutely all”; all things at all times by all means; the good and the bad included.
“All Things” is a phrase the Apostle Paul uses many times, assigning to God “all things,” as the ultimate sovereign. Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, whose Gospel is applicable today in the age of the dispensation of the grace of God, says the following concerning the sovereignty of God in “all things”.
Romans 8:28 And we know that all (Greek, pas) things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Romans 11:36 For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever.
1 Cor. 8:6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
2 Cor. 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
2 Cor. 5:18 And all things are of (“of”, ek, from and with the sender) God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
Ephes. 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Col. 1:16-18 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
Considering the oft quoted Romans 8:28 And we know that all (Greek, pas) things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose; we must note that all things is not just the good things; it includes “all”, both the good and the evil. There was a time in my early years as a Christian that I assumed “all things” meant all the good things. Since that time my definition of “good” has changed. I had thought if something was prosperous, it was good and conversely, if it was not prosperous, it was not good; I thought if it was healthy it was good, conversely if it was no healthy it was not good; I thought if something was pleasant it was good, but if it was unpleasant it was bad. Now I truly believe that “all things work together (Gk, sunergeo, co-operating) for the good”. The work together here seems to acknowledge that more than one thing is working, it is a multifaceted working; I believe it is the working of “good and evil” together.
Paul’s View of Suffering at the Hands of Evil
The Apostle Paul also saw “all things” being of God. The Apostle Paul saw through to God via his Roman imprisonment under Caesar. Paul considered his imprisonment to be “of the Lord” when he writes, Ephes. 4:1 “I (Paul) therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called.” Paul here was bound in prison under Cesar. No doubt Caesar was an expression of the evil in the world; Cesar was of the Devil whom God had created. This happening was in Paul’s mind, part and parcel of being bound to his calling, and as the will of the Lord in his life.
Reading Paul we see that he was at rest, trusting God, according to his knowledge concerning the God of ALL things. Philip. 4:12 I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. Romans 8:28-29 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Paul also wrote this.
Philip. 4:11b …I have learned to be content (Gk, autarkes, self-complacent, not anxious) in whatever circumstances I am. (NAS)
Let me will explain how it is that the Apostle Paul could possibly be without anxiety in every state of being or every circumstance that he suffered and endured. It was through adversity that Paul learned to trust God.
2 Cor. 6:4-5 But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings; 2 Cor. 1:8-10 For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;
Paul suffered these things and yet did not react to these circumstances out of self-reliance; rather, he learned that he must trust that God was involved in each happening.
A New Mindset
Philip. 2:5 Let this mind (phroneo, mindset) be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
This verse causes us to ask, what was Jesus’ mindset?” Jesus had a human Body like ours, and yet Jesus’ mindset was set upon obeying and doing the will of the Father. The extraordinary thing is that Jesus of Nazareth, who walked the earth, was very much a man; He had the same sin nature latent in His flesh body as we, as all who walk the earth in human bodies. How can I say this? Because, He received his flesh body from His mother Mary (Gal 4:4) who was a descendent of Adam. Yet Jesus never actualized an act of sin (2Cor 5:21). He was always obedient to the will of the Father (John 14:10). He lived by the life of the Father in His spirit; being one with the Father, He overcame His sinful flesh. We each are born with latent sin as the nature in our body members, and we soon actualize it since it as our adopted nature, then being the “children of wrath”. This sin nature in all human bodies is active and powerful until we receive the “the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus”, by which we may overcome the sin that is still latent in our flesh (Rom 8:10, Gal 5:16, 18, 25). This is necessary until the day that we exchange our physical bodies for new, sinless, spirit bodies (1Cor 15:53-54) at the rapture.
Over these past 37 years I’ve come to adopt a new mindset; I consider it a key to living in rest and peace, in view of all the evil in the world we live in. Paul says we need a new mindset. Romans 8:6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace (NASB). I recently had conversations with some born-again Christian’s in which an important difference in understanding was discussed. I expressed the “rest and peace” that I’ve come to enjoy by trusting the fact that God is my loving Father, that He is in control of ALL things that come my way in life, including ALL the circumstances and situations that come upon me; and … that no matter how bad or good these happenings may be, I know they are working for my eternal good. Sadly, these Christians then replied, “I don’t think God cares about your little situations and decisions concerning all the small details of your life.” Well, I believe My Father knows all things and cares for all things in my life; He is the sovereign, omniscient, omnipresent, almighty Lord. I believe He rules over ALL with justice, wisdom and grace, flowing out of a heart of pure love, desirous of a mutual love relationship with us, individually.
The Sovereign God
The term “the sovereignty of God” expresses the supreme rulership of God. Sovereignty is not an attribute of His character; it is His due prerogative or right of choice. He is not bound by any restraint external to Himself. All forms of existence, spiritual and physical, are within the scope of His dominion. Believing this to be true is part of our proper conception of God. This is the great confidence of God’s people, and it is widely declared throughout Scripture as seen in these few verses.
Psalm 66:7 He ruleth by his power for ever; his eyes behold (observe) the nations …
Psalm 93:1 The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the Lord is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world (tebel, the inhabited earth, its people) also is stablished, that it cannot be moved.
Isaiah 40:15 Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance…
Isaiah 45:7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.
Romans 11:36 For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
2 Cor. 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ …
1 Cor. 8:6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
Ephes. 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
1 Tim. 6:15 Lord … who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
God is the supreme dispenser of all events and yet the only thing God will not do is violate or abridge the free will choices of mankind directly. The circumstances and situations, which He brings into our lives, however, may well come to bear upon us and be used to help us to see and change our mind and our ways, and have an opportunity to turn our heart to receive and trust Him. Man has the power to say no to God – by not receiving God’s provision, for our reconciliation, salvation, and the new life to be had by receiving His Son’s (Christ’s) indwelling life. This is clearly seen in that He does not hinder man’s moral freedom and even man’s rebellion toward Himself. Men are the arbiters of their own destinies. God saw fit to create creatures that have the power of choice between good and evil. Adam and Eve, though deceived, had the power to make a choice to eat of the Tree of Knowledge, thus bringing about the fall of the entire race of mankind. Though God is sovereign, we have a fallen corrupted world as result of man’s making, being under the dominion and influence of Satan’s deceptions, and his indwelling sin spirit and nature, which is at work in the children of wrath and disobedience (Eph 2:2-3). Paul writes of his struggle versus that indwelling fallen nature in his flesh boy members as follow. Romans 7:18-21 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
Jesus said, John 12:25 He that loveth his life (psuche, soul or self life) shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life (Zoe, spirit) eternal. When we make the singularly greatest free will choice that any human can make, which is to say “yes” to receive God’s reconciliation in Christ and the gift of His Son’s life to dwell within as our new life, then we have irrevocably given up the right to self-rule in our life. We will sooner or later see and receive Him as not only Savior, but also as Lord (Greek, kurious, controller) of our daily living.
Paul also writes of “Christ who is our life” (Col 3:4a), who has been dispensed into our spirit (Col 1:27, 1Cor 6:17). Given the foregoing facts, Christians then have our life entirely within His prerogative and the loving care of God as our Father.
Let us consider, “Does the sovereign God rule Himself by His own prerogative” Yes, of course! Since we’ve given up our right of self-rule in our life, and since now “Christ is our life,” our life then is one with His life, … then all that concerns us is ruled by His loving hand, at His prerogative. We, as His loved offspring, are not clones, just as our physical offspring, our children, certainly are not our clones. We however do live under our almighty Father’s divine providence at work in our lives. Philip. 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
God’s Sovereignty and Man’s Free Will
As Christians, we still have free will expressed by choice, but it is a choice within the circumstantial handiwork designed by our loving Father. We can be certain that after receiving Him into our lives and our living, He has done just that; He will never leave us nor forsake us. We are still free to choose in every situation, but when we make a wrong choice, as His child, He is there at the end of that wrong choice, still loving us, while we may suffer the consequences of our independent wrong choice. Christians and non-Christians alike will suffer consequences to their free will choices Col. 3:25 “he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.” but we will not lose our salvation. 1 Cor. 3:15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. Our Father will make the consequences suffered as result of our wrong choice “work for the good” for us, in the view of His eternal purpose for us. Romans 8:28-29 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 29For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
If the “good” is to be according to His purpose, we must ask then, what is His purpose for us? We must see His purpose in “all the things,” circumstantially, that go on in our lives. We clearly see His purpose for us stated in v29; it is that we might “be conformed to the image of His Son”. Why? “that he might be the firstborn among many brethren”. We can deduce from this verse that God’s desire is to have an increase in His family – more of Christ’s brethren. Ephes. 1:5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, Oh, the love and wisdom of God.
Good happenings obviously seem good, but can evil work for good? I know that the sufferings of my life have worked for the eternal good. Paul tells us of the good that was purposed to come when he was befallen with the pressured situations of his life. 2 Cor. 1:8-10 For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: 9But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that (so that) we should not trust in ourselves, but in God: This trust in God is good, and Christ-like.
Casting Doubt Upon God
Many regenerated Christians apparently think our Heavenly Father is too busy to care about their situations, and only concerned with big things. They apparently think their lives are to be navigated by themselves, or by following the principals they can learn from Scripture, and all the while they live by their self-strength, independent of Him within, His governing, oversight, guidance, and care. This is reflective of the original sin of man – self-dependence – to be like God, through knowledge (Gen 3:5), apart from an intimate relationship with Him. They obviously miss the point. This view serves to reveal that such Christians do not really know their loving Father, in the relationship He procured for them, not only by the offering of His dear Son for their reconciliation, but also in the provision of His indwelling Son as their new and overcoming life (Gal 2:20, Col 1:27).
To not trust His love and absolute sovereignty by “seeing through” situations, to see His hand at work, as being in all things, is to say or imply one or more of the following.
1) God is Not Sovereign
2) God is Not providentially involved in our lives,
3) God is Negligent
4) God is not almighty
5) God just does not care so much about us and the happenings of our lives on this earth.
These folks then may beg the question saying – “Do you believe God really cares about the little issues of our life - what you buy, where you go, or what you do, what you say, even when they are not particularly sinful things?” To this I say yes!
Why would God, who knows the number of hairs on our heads, being as involved as that, not care about us in such detail of our lives? By this I do not mean that He tells me every detail of what to do; no, I’m simply free to live and do until I inwardly sense His restraint. I do know that He lets me know when I’m about to go wrong, and what not to do. How does He do this? He does this by giving me the inner sense in my spirit. I will then sense a knot in my gut or an obstruction within. Otherwise, I’m free to live spontaneously, even without a consciousness of His leading. Philip. 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. After all, He is now my life (Col 3:4). I can assume my leading is His leading, unless I become aware otherwise by His inner constraint. I do not seek or wait for a “Thus saith the Lord” to know His will, that is of another dispensation when God did not indwell His believers as their very life.
Our conscience, part of our human spirit where Christ dwells, is only at work when we have done, or about to do, wrong. So we are to simply live; and traverse life’s situations, knowing and trusting Him who lives in us, that He is fully capable of communicating a midcourse correction to us, at just the right time. This is to walk according to spirit, Galatians 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Galatians 5:25 If (since) we live (have life) in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Once again, Paul often uses the term “all things” in his writings, but I cite only a few to substantiate my trust in His involvement in all the happenings of my life. But, before I can do that we must do some word study concerning the two little words, “all” and “of”, as “in all things are of God,” which we see in 2 Cor. 5:17-18 Therefore if any man be in Christ… 18And all things are of God.
Absolutely everything that impacts the life of a Christian who loves God may be seen as being “of God” our Father and for our “good”. This means ALL our relationships, jobs, sicknesses, our finances, and unpleasant happenings are part of the absolutely ALL things permitted by the hand of God, to touch our lives for our good.
Our Father, of course, is absolutely purposeful in all of this, as we’ve seen in the verse that answers the “purpose”. Rom 8:28. Romans 8:28-29 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 29For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Here we see that ALL things are good (whether pleasant or not) in that they work to mold or conform the Christian’s soul (mind, emotion and will) to the image of His very Son that they may be “meet” or “well suited” to express the life of Christ who indwells our spirit.
All Things are FROM & WITH God
Now let us consider the little preposition “of.” From the Louw & Nida Greek Lexicon we can see what it means when “ek” (plural) or “ev” (singular) is the Greek word used for the word “of.” They denote both a marker from which the thing emanates (the source of something), and … also the very substance that comes from that source.
Of - “ek,” 89.142 dên; Pðüe: markers (plural) of the substance of which something consists or out of which it is made - ‘of, consisting of, out of, made of.
EXAMPLE: As used in Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” KJV
This verse says it is not only that Christ lives in the believer as the believer’s life, but also Christ lives in the believer as the faith by which the believer lives. So, Christ is both the marker (source) and the substance (the faith) indwelling the Christian. Here, this little word, “of”, is very significant. If you do not have a KJV of the Bible, “faith of the Son of God” has likely been changed to say “faith in the Son of God,” which entirely changes the meaning. Such a change thereby puts the monkey of having sufficient faith upon your back. The KJV agrees with the original text (Christo pistis) where we see that the Christian lives by the all-sufficient faith of Christ, not our own weak human faith. Similarly se see this in Ephes. 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: << Again, faith is the gift of God!
Of - 89.141 “ev”: a marker (singular) of that of which something consists - ‘in, of, consisting of.’
Ex: Ephes. 2:15 “Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;” Again we see again that “of” is both a marker (of twain, Jew & Gentile), making them the substance the material of one new man.
Of - “apo,” 90.14 ðáñÜd (with the genitive): a marker of the agentive source of an activity, though often remote and indirect - ‘from, by, of. Example: John 4:9 “Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.” This verse simply says the woman came from Samaria as a marker of her source.
By contrasts, above we see another word for “of.” It is the Greek “apo.” “Apo” simply marks the source of an activity, without offering the substance of the sender. It could be seen as if God would send you something that is not part of His own self – like a fish, or a car, etc. Contrast this; the “faith of (ek) the Son of God” as seen in Gal 2:20, which is not only from Christ but it is Christ’s own actual faith working in us. I hope by now you appreciate the distinction that may be seen in the Greek word “ek” for “of.”
My New Mindset Says, “It’s A God Thing”
Many of us who have come to enjoy His rest by seeing that our Father is involved in every situation and happening in our lives have come to adopt a little saying to describe the difficult situations of our lives, saying, “Well, It’s a God thing.” When we say this we are acknowledging the fact that He not only loves us but also is involved in all aspects of our life and daily living. But not only so, we are also saying He is actually to be found “in all those things”, and He meets us with His peace and rest in the midst of our situation, … if we will turn from our earthly situation, to see through to Him who is “All and in ALL” (Col 3:11). Paul says He is the “Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”(Eph 4:6).
Paul tells us that God, in Christ, as the Spirit of life, is the supportive life in us; He is our substantial supply, to be found in the midst of all the situations of life – “all things are of (of = ev, meaning “from and also with”) God” (2Cor 5:18), our Father. Noting that the definition above for “of”. permits us to see that God not only is the source of all things in our lives but He is in the substance of ALL things in our lives. Thus, we are not alone in the situations of life. In all the situations of life we may find Christ. If we trust Him in all things then we may overcome in. He then is manifested as “peace” in the midst of the disturbing situations we face. By such encounters we find His sufficiency, and by these situations He causes us to turn within and find Him. Often when we face an insurmountable situation we are reduced to what is key and important in our life – to know Him and the uplifting power of His resurrection life, which is now our indwelling life and hope of glory. Ephes. 1:17-19 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: 18The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
With this understanding, you may reconsider “all things” as seen in the following verses. Romans 8:28-29 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 29For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
I thank the Lord that nothing is wasted in our lives, our past or our present, our successes or our failures. It was and is all being used for our good, according to His eternal purpose that He purposed in Christ Jesus.
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