Let us call upon the name of our covenant God together in congregational prayer. Our Father, which art in heaven, how we thrill to the sound of our Savior's voice, and how we are made glad by the sweet psalmist of Israel as he lifts up thy praises in the midst of the great congregation. As we hear our Lord declare, Lord, thee I'll praise with all my heart, thy wonders all proclaim. What a thing for us creatures of the dust to hear the great King of Kings and Lord of Lords proclaim thy praise. We thank thee for the comfort of our Savior in the midst of many heathen foes, who opposed Him, and who sought to advance the cause of man over the cause of Thy greatness, Thou who art the Most High. We thank Thee for our Savior's comfort in the midst of that conflict, as He confessed that His foes were backward turned, and fell and perished at Thy sight. We thank Thee for the great truth of the gospel that Thou didst maintain Christ's right and cause, and sat on Thy throne judging right. And for the sake of Thy right judgment of Jesus Christ, and the vindication of His cause, which is Thy cause, we are saved, and we are blessed forevermore. For Thou wilt also a refuge be for all that are oppressed, a refuge wilt thou be in times of trouble to distrust. We thank thee, Father, also that we may place our confidence in thee, that thou hast not forsaken us. We thank thee that thou dost come to those who are lowly and humble, that is, to those who are nothing and empty, to those who are the poor in spirit and have nothing to bring to thee, to those who are the meek and have no name and no right in this earth, to those who simply, according to themselves, should not be heard by thee. But thou dost come to thy people, thine elect people, in thy sovereign grace, and in thine everlasting mercy, and dost turn thy ear to our cry, and dost set thy face upon us. And thou dost do all this for the sake of Jesus Christ. We thank thee, Father, for him whom thou, from the gates of death, hast raised up again, that he in Zion's daughter's gates may all thy praise advance and that he may rejoice always in thy deliverance. We thank thee that for his sake we also are raised from death and brought into Zion's daughter's gates in order to praise thy name in him. We thank thee, Father, for the worship of our Lord, that his worship has been completed that He has finished all the worship of Thy name and has done this on our behalf so that now our entering into Thy gates is not to see if we might do something unto our salvation or to see if we can accomplish something unto Thy fellowship, but that through Jesus Christ we might enter into Thy rest and Thy peace and Thy covenant fellowship and life. We pray that thou will bless us in this evening, then, as thou hast assembled us here, wilt thou give unto us grateful hearts, wilt thou fill us to overflowing with the Savior and all his work, all his finished work, that our eyes might behold him who gave himself in our behalf, that our ears might hear him who speaketh from heaven the glad tidings of great joy which shall be to all people, and who binds up our wounds, and who gives us for our wounds his own, in which wounds of our Lord we find all manner of consolation. We pray to that end that thou will open thy servant's mouth, that he might say, thus saith the Lord. We thank thee, Father, that just as much as our singing and our worship does not depend upon us, so also the preaching of the gospel does not depend upon a man. We thank Thee for the Lord Jesus Christ who gives His Word and who gives His Spirit. And we beseech Thee that Thou wilt cause us to hear the voice of our Savior by His Word and Spirit this evening. Wilt Thou teach us the comfort of Thy providence? Wilt Thou show us the glories of that providence as they are revealed in the face of Jesus Christ? We pray, Father, then that in all things, in sickness and in health, in times of drought and plenty, that we might trust ourselves to thee, and in prosperity be thankful, in adversity be patient, and in all things which shall hereafter befall us place our firm trust in thee, that nothing can separate us from thy love, for all creatures are so in thy hand that without thee they cannot so much as move. Will thou lay these truths upon our hearts and comfort us by them. We pray that thou will continue to look upon us as a congregation in our life together. Will thou remember the catechism classes, bless the lambs of the flock as they are instructed week by week in the truths of thy gospel. We pray that thou will lay these truths upon their hearts and their youth. that they might be instructed in these days in Jesus Christ and might see the importance already in their youngest years of the Savior and of all things that the Savior has done. We pray that thou wilt feed thy lambs through the preaching of the gospel not only, but through the catechism instruction of the church as well. We pray also that thou will remember us in our plans for a lecture, that thou will use this means to send forth the glorious gospel of the active obedience of Jesus Christ. We thank thee, Father, that thou hast revealed this truth to thy church through thy word, that thou has shown us what Christ has done for us and in our stead. And we pray that thou will cause those glad tidings to redound through the earth. that thou will cause many to hear, as many as thou hast decreed and determined. For this good news is the great news, the only good news in all of the world. And as men busy themselves and exhaust themselves trying to make good news and trying to build a kingdom here and a kingdom there, And as men exhaust themselves for this candidate or that candidate for office, and find that regardless of their agreement with this man or that man, that there is no good news in building the kingdom of the world, wilt thou cause men to find refreshment and peace and joy everlasting in the Savior and in His kingdom, and in His perfect work, and in His passive and active obedience, for the salvation of thy church. We pray then that thou wilt strengthen us as a congregation as we prepare to sound forth this message. Wilt thou cause that not only the lecture might go near and far, but cause that also the preaching of thy word might be disseminated widely. We know that this too is in thy hands, and this for us is a great comfort, because we know not where to find thy people, but thou knowest them. Thou knowest every one of them. Thou hast marked them and sealed them, and no man shall pluck them from thy hand. And so we beseech thee, Father, that thou wilt cause thy word to be sent forth to them wherever they might be. We pray also that thou will remember us in this season of family visitation, Will thou remember the elders and deacons as they go out on these visits. We pray that thou will remember us as families. Will thou cause these visits to be for the spiritual profit of the congregation as each family is built up in the holy gospel. We pray that we as a congregation together might enjoy the unity of the spirit and the bond of peace We beseech Thee, Father, that we might be nourished and fed in the green pastures of Jesus Christ, and that our souls, in the midst of all the tumult and upheaval of this world, might lie down in green pastures and be led beside still waters through the gospel of our Savior. We pray that we might have the peace that passeth all understanding, the peace that no man can comprehend, the peace that simply cannot belong to the ungodly that is the reprobate ungodly, the peace that cannot come from man and all his efforts, but the peace that comes from thee. So that in the midst of suffering and death, in the midst of being led as sheep to the slaughter and dying daily, we nevertheless are able to say truly, but we have peace and we have rest and we want nothing for the Lord is our shepherd. We pray thy blessing also upon the Christian school that thou hast given us. We thank thee for this school. We thank thee for establishing it and maintaining it. For as we consider what this school is, we realize that no man could ever build it. It simply is beyond the power of men. If we were in charge of distributing gifts here and there and everywhere in the congregation, that there might be a school, we would fail utterly and miserably. If we were responsible to establish the school and found it upon ourselves and our wisdom, then the school would perish in a moment, though it stood for all ages, and nevertheless would perish being founded on the wisdom of man. We thank Thee, Father, for Jesus Christ, who is the foundation of the school as well. We pray that thou will give to us in this school eyes to see Jesus Christ and thy works as those are revealed in all the wonders of thy creation and all of its facets. We pray thy blessing upon the teachers as they stand in the place of us as parents. Will thou give to the teachers strength to rear our children in the fear of thy name and to uncover for them the grandeur of thy works. and the glory of thee, the living God, who hath made all these things. We pray that thou remember our school board, giving unto the board much wisdom for their decisions for the operation of the school. Remember our administrator and the operations of the school. Well, thou remember all the staff, the many who volunteer their hours and their days here and there for the running of the school and its smooth operation. We see in all of this thy hand, for thou dost distribute to all according to thy dispensing, and thou dost cause us to use the gifts that thou hast given for the advantage and salvation of our fellow members. And especially, Father, remember our children, on whose behalf the school is raised, will thou bless our covenant seed and cause that they might be prepared to serve thee in the calling that thou shalt give them in the station which thou wilt have them to occupy and that in these years of their schooling they are well prepared to live as citizens of the kingdom of heaven in the midst of their callings in this earth. We pray, Father, that thou wilt also remember The children of her who is our member who attend Heritage Christian School, will thou keep them and bless them. We thank thee for the glorious promise of the gospel of Christ that thou dost gather the lambs in thine arms and carry them in thy bosom and thus gently lead those that are with young. We pray, Father, that thou will remember our covenant seed. Pray that thou remember us as a congregation also in all of our family relationships, as our hearts yearn upon family members who walk astray. We beseech thee, Father, that thou will turn the hearts of our loved ones, if that could be thy will. In many cases, we see such hardness that we would almost despair, but we know that thou art powerful and able to do all that thou dost will. and exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, we beseech thee that thou will turn them, if that could be thy will. And wilt thou give us contentment, Father, with thy will, knowing that thy will is best, and that not our will, but thy will must prevail, and that if our will prevailed, then certainly all things would be in upheaval, and all things would be destroyed. We thank thee that thy will, which is only good, is sovereign, and that thou doest all thy good pleasure. This too is our desire for When our hearts yearn upon our loved ones, we find that the heart of the Lord Jesus Christ yearns upon Thee above all, and we thank that Thou hast counted His yearning as ours, and that by His Spirit Thou dost also give us that yearning for Thy glory and for the doing of Thy will. We pray, Father, in our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. We pray that thou wilt bless the worship for the glory of thy name. O thou cause thy servant to speak thy truth. O thou cause us to hear the glad tidings of salvation. We pray, Father, that we might go to our homes with comfort and peace and enter into our callings in this week with the strength of thy gospel and the strength of our Savior. Forgive the sins we have committed, blot them out in our Savior's blood. Will Thou keep us also from sin and give to us a fruitful life of gratitude and good works. Hear this our prayer and answer us in mercy, for Jesus' sake. Amen. We worship the Lord now in the giving of our offerings. The first offering is for the building fund and the second is for the school fund. Okay. We return to Psalm 9. Psalm 9, We'll finish the psalm now singing verses 15 through 20. 15 through 20, in which we see God's judgment upon those who oppose His cause and the blessing and protection and remembrance of those who are poor and needy. Verse 18, and God's testimony to all that the cause of man does not prevail and that he frightens the heathen by his tokens to show his cause alone prevails. We'll sing 15 through 20 of Psalm 9. are sunk in the pit, which they themselves prepared. And in the net which they have laid, their own feet fast are stead. The Lord is by the judgment known, which he himself hath wrought. The sinner's hands to make the space wherewith themselves are caught. ♪ They who are wicked into hell ♪ ♪ Each one shall turn and weep ♪ ♪ And all the nations that forget ♪ ♪ To seek the Lord most high ♪ The expectation of the poor shall not be lost. Arise, or let not men prevail, judge even in thy sight, that they may know themselves but men, the nations born of thee. We turn in God's word this evening to several passages concerning God's providence, beginning with Hebrews 1. Hebrews 1. Hebrews 1, verses 1 through 4. God, who at sundry times and in diverse manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds. who being the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the majesty on high, being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they." Then we turn to Revelation 4. Revelation 4. At the end of Revelation 4 we see the purpose of creation and by implication therefore the purpose of God's providential upholding of that creation as the exalted church in heaven gives praise to God for that creation. We'll read just verse 11 and then go on to some verses in Revelation 5. Revelation 4 verse 11. Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created. Then we go on to Revelation 5. In Revelation 5, we have an account of what happened in heaven at Jesus' ascension, when after 40 days after His resurrection from the dead, He ascended into heaven and sat at the right hand of God. He took the book of God's counsel and is himself responsible to execute the contents of that book. That is, Jesus exercising that power of God's providence. Revelation 5 verses 1 through 10, And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, who is worthy to open the book and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders saith unto me, weep not. Behold, the lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne, and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne. And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof, for Thou wast slain and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred and tongue, And people and nation and has made us unto our God kings and priests and we shall reign on the earth And then finally we turn back to Romans 8 Romans 8 And at the end of Romans 8 we have the advantage of knowing God's providence in this firm persuasion that nothing shall separate us from God's love. Verses 31 through 39 of Romans 8. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. This is the word of God, holy and inspired. May he bless it to our hearts this evening. On the basis of those passages and many others, we have the instruction of the Heidelberg Catechism in Lord's Day 10. Lord's Day 10. Question 27. What dost thou mean by the providence of God? The almighty and everywhere present power of God. whereby, as it were by his hand, he upholds and governs heaven, earth, and all creatures, so that herbs and grass, rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, meat and drink, health and sickness, riches and poverty, yea, and all things come, not by chance, but by his fatherly hand. What advantage is it to us to know that God has created, and by his providence doth still uphold all things? That we may be patient in adversity, thankful in prosperity, and that in all things which may hereafter befall us, we place our firm trust in our faithful God and Father, that nothing shall separate us from his love, since all creatures are so in his hand, that without his will, they cannot so much as move. Beloved congregation and our Lord Jesus Christ, this evening, The catechism in Lord's Day 10 teaches the doctrine and the gospel of God's providence. The truth of God's providence is that he upholds and governs all things by his hand so that there is nothing in your life, not one thing, that has ever come to you or that shall ever come to you by chance, by the victory of the devil, or by any other power than by the power of Jehovah God in Jesus Christ. The doctrine of providence is that everything that has happened to you and everything that shall happen to you, God did. And God did all those things as your father. The Heidelberg Catechism and its explanation of this providence of God refers to the hand of God, that hand of His power, and it calls that hand of God to you, His fatherly hand. The fatherly hand of God has sent all things that have ever befallen you and that ever shall befall you. That means that this doctrine of providence is of tremendous comfort for the people of God. And indeed, it is this doctrine that God's people have resorted to in times of the most fierce persecution In times when their lives were at stake, they have found their comfort in the truth, that God doeth all things for the sake of His people, so that this too, this persecution, this suffering, this death that faces them, is from the hand of Jehovah God. And the Church of Jesus Christ today still finds her comfort and peace in this truth of God's fatherly providence. So we consider this great doctrine this evening under the theme, God's Providence. In the first place, consider the meaning. In the second place, the purpose. And in the third place, the advantage. God's providence, the meaning, the purpose, and the advantage. Lord's Day 10 picks up on a word that Lord's Day 9 used. Lord's Day 9 taught the doctrine of creation as it explained that article of the Apostles' Creed, I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. Lord's Day 9, in explaining the truth of God as Maker, said in that parenthesis that God upholds and governs the same creation by His eternal counsel and providence. And now Lord's Day 10 picks up on that word providence and asks in question 27, what dost thou mean by the providence of God? That means in Lord's Day 10, we're still dealing with that great confession of the Apostle's Creed, which summarizes the Gospel of Scripture. I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth. In view in this doctrine of providence is not merely things, not merely things that happen to you, but in view in this doctrine of providence is God, God, the Almighty, God, the Father. God the maker of heaven and earth. The doctrine of providence is the continuation of the doctrine of creation, which means that in this doctrine we deal with our God who is our Father and who has made us. Question 27 then begins with that question, what dost thou mean by the providence of God? What is this providence? And we could define providence as the power of God by which he upholds and governs all things. That's a summary of what question 27 says. The providence of God is the power of God by which he upholds and governs all things." We can draw out the elements of that definition and point to the individual parts of it. Providence, first of all, simply refers to God's power If you wanted to define providence with one word, you could define it as God's power. Now it's power that does something, power that has a specific purpose, but the providence of God is that almighty power of God. That's the way the catechism defines it. God's providence is his almighty and everywhere present power. Further regarding that definition, as we pull out the different parts of that definition, God's providence is His power by which He upholds all things. That is, all things do not continue to exist simply because once upon a time they were made. but rather all things continue to exist because God at every moment by that power upholds them. God gives to them their existence in that moment. If the Lord would withdraw his hand and withdraw his power, it is not just that a creature would die, but that that creature would not be. Just as God called the things that are not as though they were when he created all things, let there be light. So God continues to uphold that light and all creatures by this sovereign power. It is God's power to uphold. Still drawing out the various aspects of that definition, God's providence is his power to govern. As the catechism says, the power of God, whereby as it were by his hand, he upholds and governs. All things happen in this world by this power of God. The rain comes by the power of God and the drought comes by the power of God. This king is installed into power by the power of God. And then that king is installed into authority by the power of God. You get sick by this power of God and you become healthy again by this power of God. God's providence is the power not only to uphold all things and give all things existence, but to cause all of these things to go the way he has determined them to go. He governs all things by this sovereign power. The Catechism describes all of that definition of providence as God's hand, whereby, as it were, by his hand. God's power is this hand of God, by which He upholds the creation, and God's power is this governing of God, whereby He causes all things to unfold, so that when you deal with the providence of God, you are dealing with Jehovah God Himself, you are dealing with His powerful hand. That's the definition of providence and that's the explanation of a few of the main points of providence. But now there are two things especially. that the catechism emphasizes, and that in fact the Belgic Confession emphasizes in its article on Providence, and that these confessions emphasize out of the scriptures. The first thing that the doctrine of Providence emphasizes is the might of God in this Providence, the absolute power of God. When we are dealing with the doctrine of providence, we are seeing how high and how lifted up God is. We are still confessing, according to that first article of the Apostles' Creed, that God is the almighty. God's providence is an almighty power. And that's emphasized in several ways in the confession. In the first place, that's emphasized by the connection of providence to creation. Look at creation and the almighty power of God involved in creation. God did what no man can do in speaking and calling the things that be not as though they were so that they existed. That is almighty power. No man can say, let there be, and there is. But God said about all things in this vast creation, in all the worlds, let there be, and there was. This Doctrine of Providence is connected to that Doctrine of Creation. In Lord's Day 9, in that parenthesis, which Lord's Day 10 picks up on, who of nothing made heaven and earth with all that is in them, who likewise upholds and governs the same by his eternal counsel and providence. The connection of providence with creation emphasizes the might and power of Jehovah God in this providence. In the second place, this might of God is emphasized in the confession by the description that is given to this power in answer 27. This power of God is called His Almighty Power. And it is called His Everywhere-Present Power. And both of those words are well known to us, Almighty and Omnipresent or Everywhere-Present. Those words are well known to us. But those words beggar the mind of a man. Those words stagger our minds. Almighty! Almighty! We can hardly even understand just the word mighty, because we are so weak and so frail. For a time we flourish and think ourselves strong, and then before we know it, we wither as the grass of the field. We simply can hardly understand that idea of might in itself, but now add to it almighty, God is almighty so that there's never any flagging of his strength. There is never any weariness in him. All men, no matter how strong they are, must sleep. But Jehovah is the one who sleepeth not and never slumbereth. Jehovah God is the almighty, all-powerful God. And it is that almighty power that he exercises in Providence. The whole of his divine being upholding and governing all things exactly according to his eternal counsel. That's the almighty power of God. And omnipresent. Omnipresent meaning everywhere present so that God is everywhere at once. God is in the heavens and God is in the earth. He doesn't need to be in the heavens or in the earth. He needs no home where he dwells. He doesn't have to have space and extent for his being to take up and in which to dwell. But he's pleased to make the heavens his throne and the earth his footstool so that God is everywhere present. God is in this room and God is outside of this room. God is with his people near and far. God is everywhere present and this power of God therefore is everywhere present power by which he upholds and governs all things. That staggers our minds. How much do you know? How much can you even see of this creation? We see what's here in this room. We maybe can imagine what's outside in the parking lot. We can imagine the street and the route home. We can think of those places we've been. But everywhere present, We can't even comprehend that in our minds. Our minds can't hold that idea of everywhere present. And yet God's power is everywhere present, upholding and governing all things by this almighty power. The catechism as it teaches the providence of God emphasizes this power, the almightiness of it, first of all, and impresses the almightiness of it upon us. Then in the second place, the catechism emphasizes regarding God's providence that it is all comprehensive. Not only is his providence powerful on the one hand, but his providence is all comprehensive on the other hand. The catechism takes some time. to list some of the comprehension of this providence. He upholds and governs heaven, earth, and all creatures. What else is there than that? Heaven, earth, and all creatures. That includes everything. That itself is all comprehensive. And then, The Catechism goes on to say, so that herbs and grass, rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, meat and drink, health and sickness, riches and poverty, yea, and all things come, not by chance, but by his fatherly hand. The Catechism takes us on a tour of the creation, shows us the fields bursting with their grain, shows us those places that are sunken in drought. It shows us the healthy in their work and their life, and shows us the sick in their hospital beds. All these things are comprehended in the providence of God. Belgic Confession Article 13 teaches that divine providence of God in the same stark terms. We believe that the same God, after he had created all things, did not forsake them or give them up to fortune or chance, but that he rules and governs them according to his holy will so that nothing happens in this world without his appointment. So far, the confession there mirrors the confession of the Heidelberg Catechism, but now the Belgic confession takes us in this comprehensiveness of the providence of God to consider the mystery of God being sovereign even over the sin of men and devils. 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. And as to what he doth surpassing human understanding, we will not curiously inquire into it farther than our capacity will admit of, but with the greatest humility and reverence adore the righteous judgments of God which are hid from us, contenting ourselves that we are disciples of Christ to learn only those things which he has revealed to us in his word without transgressing these limits. The Belgic Confession presses so deep into this doctrine of God's providence and how comprehensive this providence of God is that it confesses even the sins of men and devils are governed by Jehovah. Now he does that in a wonderful way. It's mysterious to us. He does it in a way that he's not the author of the sin. No one can charge God with the sin. No one can say to him when that man sins, but God made me do it. Though it is true that God upheld that man as that man committed his sin. Though it is even true that God governed that man in the committing of that sin, so that that man's life and breath and activity all was upheld and given to him by Jehovah, no man may say about that sin that he commits, but God made me do it. He's the author of that sin." The Belgic Confession teaches us here that Our minds, which cannot reconcile all of that, simply rest in the revelation of this in God's Word. And God has shown in His Word that He certainly does govern the sins of wicked men. When wicked men took Jesus and crucified Him, according to Acts 2 verse 23, those men's hands were wicked. They committed grave sin. the grave sin of crucifying the Lord of Glory. But Acts 2 verse 23 says about the wicked hands of those men, that even though their hands were wicked, Christ was delivered to the cross by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. God put Christ on the cross. God even used the wicked hands of those wicked men to put Christ on the cross. God was sovereign, absolutely sovereign, even over that greatest of sins, the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. And yet when all is said and done, those men could not say, God made me do it. Those men all would have to confess, my hands were wicked. I crucified and slew him with my own wicked hands. Who can resolve these things? Who can understand these things? And here the Heidelberg Catechism teaches us, we are simply children. We learn what God has revealed. And where we cannot go past, where His Word does not bring us past what He has revealed, then we go no further either. But this much is true. With regard to the comprehensiveness of the counsel of Jehovah God, of the providence rather of Jehovah God, that providence is all comprehensive, including even the wicked acts of men and devils, though God himself is never the author of sin. That truth that the Catechism and the Belgic Confession emphasize regarding the comprehensiveness, the all comprehensiveness of God's counsel stands over against the teaching that things come to us by chance or by some other power or force. whether that power or force be man's own will and man's own ability to govern his life, or whether that other power and force be fate, as men speak of it, or blind chance, as men speak of it. This truth that God's counsel is all comprehensive stands over against that theory. that all things or even some things happen by chance. There's nothing at all that happens by chance. How many raindrops fell in the last rainstorm? That wasn't chance. The number of those raindrops was not chance. Jehovah God governed and upheld every one of those raindrops. How many gallons of water poured out of the heavens upon certain places in the United States so that men and women are flooded out of their homes. The gallons of waters were not chance, but were sent by Jehovah God. Rain and drought, health and sickness, all things come not by chance, but by God's fatherly hand. The catechism emphasizes this comprehensiveness of the providence of God in connection with the absolute power of the providence of God. But now the question is why? Why must those things be emphasized? Why do we have to know that almighty power of providence and why must we know how comprehensive it is? And it is for this reason That God exercises that all-comprehensive, almighty providence for you. For you. He does all these things for you, for your good, and for your salvation. Here we come to that purpose of providence, that glorious purpose of providence. And if it was hard to understand Almighty, and if it was hard to understand Omni-Present, and if it was hard to understand God governing sin without being the author of sin, then who can understand this? That the Almighty God does everything that He does for me, for my good, for my salvation. That too belongs to the truth of Scripture. In a passage just before the one we read in Romans 8, all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are the called according to His purpose. All things God does in His almighty providence for you. There were exactly that number of raindrops in the last rainstorm for you. I don't know how, you don't know how, how exactly that number served our good, but it did. The drought that you might experience is for you, and the fruitful years are for you, and the health is for you, and the sickness is for you. All of this mighty providence of God is for you. The Heidelberg Catechism teaches that in a remarkable way, although in the translation of the Heidelberg Catechism that we have, there's something left out. In question 27, There is this line, yea, and all things come. That's after that list of fruitful and barren years, rain and drought, health and sickness, riches and poverty, yea, and all things come. And then before, not by chance, which should be these two words, to us. All things come to us, not by chance. but by God's fatherly hand." The Reformed confession about providence is that God is doing all these things in all the world, in the heavens and the earth, and among all creatures to us. He's giving them to us. And even though our translation leaves out those two words, to us, it catches the idea of it in the second to last word in that answer. Fatherly hand. They come to us. Not by chance, but by His fatherly hand. You remember that hand of God? You remember that hand that represented His providence? That hand that represented His power? That hand that upholds all things? That hand that governs all things? That hand that is almighty? That hand that has in it all things so that it's all comprehensive? That hand is Father's hand! And that means that that hand is doing everything for his sons and his daughters, for his children. Father works all things for the good and the salvation of his people. And now the question that has to be asked as we consider this purpose is how can that be? How can it be that the eternal God even thinks of me, let alone does everything for me? How can it be that His hand of providence is for me a Father's hand, and therefore is doing good to me? How can that be? And the answer to that takes us deep into the purpose of Jehovah God with His providence. The answer, how can that be, takes us into His eternal counsel, His eternal good pleasure. Yes, it is true that Lord's Day 10 does not mention that counsel. But remember, Lord's Day 10 is picking up the teaching of Lord's Day 9. And if you look at the parentheses in Lord's Day 9, when Lord's Day 9 mentions God's providence, this is what it says, who likewise upholds and governs the same by his eternal counsel and providence, so that when Lord's Day 10 picks up that truth of God's providence, it's not leaving out that matter of God's eternal counsel. And Belgic Confession Article 13 spoke of the will of God. He rules and governs them according to His holy will, so that nothing happens in this world without His appointment. Here we come deep into the purpose of Jehovah God in all things, and that purpose of Jehovah God is His own counsel, His own eternal good pleasure, His own eternal decree. And when we come to God's eternal decree and His eternal good pleasure, then we come to someone. Then we come to our Lord Jesus Christ. As we have seen many times, the Lord Jesus Christ sits at the heart of God's decree. All things were made by Christ and for Christ. so that you cannot speak of that decree without speaking of the heart of that decree and the purpose of all that decree, which is the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why the scriptures describe this providence of God as being exercised by Jesus Christ. Him who is the heart of that eternal counsel of God is also God's servant to accomplish all of God's good pleasure. Jesus Christ is the one who brings God's counsel to pass. That's what we had in Hebrews 1. Jesus Christ, after He had purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, And He upholds all things by the word of His power, Hebrews 1 verse 3. Jesus Christ is the one doing this. All that decree and good pleasure of God, He is exercising and executing through Jesus Christ. It's Father's hand that governs all things. But who is Father's hand? Father's hand is your Lord. Father's hand is your Savior. Father's hand is Jesus Christ. And that's Revelation 5. At His ascension, Jesus came to the right hand of God, where there was a book in the right hand of God. That book was written on the front and the back. Think of it as a scroll all rolled up, written on the front and the back. There's no room left to add anything more. And sealed with seven seals. And no man is worthy in the heavens or the earth who can be found to open that counsel of God and to execute it and make it come to pass. And then here comes the Lamb. Jesus Christ standing as He had been slain, ascending into heaven, going to the right hand of God and taking out of His hand that book, and one by one breaking those seals, and by that executing the entire counsel of God regarding all things. That's astounding. The mind of man We keep coming to those things that the mind of man cannot wrap itself around. Here's another one that the mind of man can simply not fathom. Jesus Christ according to his human nature. Jesus Christ as he is the servant of God. That Jesus Christ runs all things, governs all things, upholds all things by the word of his power. He is the one sending the fruitful and the barren years. He is the one sending health and sickness. He is the one sending riches and poverty. He is the one sending all things at all times. The Lord Jesus Christ is unfolding that counsel, that eternal counsel of God. He is executing all things that the Lord has decreed. Do you see now How all these things are for you? Because the Lord Jesus Christ as the purpose of God in all things is for the glory of God, for thy pleasure. Revelation 4 verse 11, they are and were created. Which means that all these things that the Lord Jesus Christ does on behalf of God in executing God's counsel must serve your salvation and must serve your good. Because you belong to Christ and the exaltation of Christ is the glory of Jehovah God. He takes pleasure in that exaltation of Christ. Christ reveals Him as the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person. All things that come to you come by Father's hand through the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's the advantage of knowing this doctrine of providence. God's providence is not merely a cold power that He executes and all things happen and that's all there is to say about it. He's in control and that's it. But God's providence is His power that He executes in all things for you, for your good and for your salvation in Christ. Most of those things you can't even figure out. You can't even draw the lines. for how this event is for my good. There are many things in your life that look like they're not for your good, but they're all for your good. Every last one of them. Because it's Father's hand, it's Jesus Christ who brings all these things. And Father loves you. The advantage of knowing this is that it sets us squarely before the Father's love And when you see the Father's love and understand that in that love He is executing everything in His eternal counsel for you, then you have this confidence, nothing can separate me from that love. Nothing can. It looks like things can. The child of God endures hardships and sufferings that come by this providence. That he has a hard time reconciling. He has a hard time dealing with. But the truth of the matter in all of these things is that those things too cannot separate the child of God from the love of God. This is a truth. This advantage of knowing God's providence is a truth that can only be known by faith. You cannot see it by sight. There is no earthly logic that will help you here. There's no rationality of man that will give you this truth. You know it by faith. For what do the scriptures say in Romans 8? What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, ye rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. And then you can go on your tour of the whole creation, the way the Heidelberg Catechism did. looking at fruitful and barren years and health and sickness and riches and poverty. You go on your tour of the whole creation. You see all of the things there. And when the Catechism took us on that tour of the creation, it was only doing what Romans 8 does. It takes us on that tour of the creation. It takes us on the tour of heights and depths. It takes us on the tour of being killed. It takes us on the tour of life. It takes us on the tour of angels and principalities and powers, things present, things to come. And as the Apostle takes us on that tour, he says, I am persuaded that none of these things shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. The fruit of that faith, as the child of God, dealing with this providence, sees his God and sees his love in Jesus Christ, in all of these things, the fruit of it then is that the child of God is thankful in prosperity, and patient in adversity. Complaint is simply driven away. When things are very difficult, for we are killed all the day long, and we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Indeed we are. But when all these things befall us, the servant is not greater than his Lord. And if the Lord endured all these things, then what a privilege for the people of God in him to endure these things too. Thankful in prosperity and patient in adversity with this firm faith that, as the catechism says, nothing shall separate us from his love since all creatures are so in his hand that without his will they cannot so much as move. There's the comfort of this gospel of providence. There's the truth that God's people can rest upon in all the afflictions of this life. All these things have come to us, not by chance, but by God's fatherly hand for the sake of Jesus Christ. To him be the glory. Amen. Our Father, which art in heaven, we thank thee for thy word to us this evening. Will thou bless it to our hearts. Will thou comfort us with the knowledge of thy providence, so that as we suffer loss and as we have gain, as we become sick and as we enjoy health, as we have fruitful years and as we have barren years, that we might have this assurance, worked by thy spirit, the assurance of this faith, that thou art our God and nothing shall separate us from thy love. Will thou give us the eyes of faith to see that all these things come to us not by chance, but by thy fatherly hand for Jesus' sake. Will thou send us home now with the gladness of our Savior, send us to our labors in the confidence of thy love, and will thou return us here on the Lord's day, the next Lord's day according to thy will, that we may again have a day of rest and a day of joy in thy gospel. Hear our prayer, forgive our sins for Jesus' sake. Amen. Psalter number 133. Psalter number 133. To all the coming race, repeat the message o'er. This mighty God of grace is ours forevermore. Yea, He, our Savior, will abide, and unto death will be our guide. The three stanzas, all three, of Psalter 133. ♪ Earth, hear my temple, Lord ♪ ♪ With thee, God, mercies bless ♪ ♪ Let earth all praise the Lord ♪ ♪ Long as my name shall last ♪ ♪ The righteous judgment of her king shall pass ♪ ♪ Let Zion and her daughters sing ♪ ♪ About Mount Zion go ♪ ♪ Her towers and ramparts fell ♪ ♪ That ye her strength may know ♪ ♪ Mark her defenses well ♪ royal palaces behold, that dearer glories may unfold. To all the coming race, repeat the message old. this mighty God of grace, his eyes forevermore. Yea, he our Savior will abide, and unto death will be our guide. Our sweet, our Lord, our Father's Son, eternal King of Kings, who only is omnipotent, The Lord bless thee and keep thee. The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee. The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. Amen.