Today’s post is sponsored by P&R Publishing and written by Carolyn Whiting. Get your copy of Stephen Charnock’s Divine Providence: A Classic Work for Modern Readers here.
In a letter to his sister, Oswald Chambers wrote, “I believe that Jesus Christ our Lord has all power in heaven and on earth; do you? I find most people believe that He has all power in heaven but are not so sure about the earth.”
Does this describe you? Creation and providence are the two ways God implements his eternal decrees. We live in the majesty and beauty of God’s creation; we can study, touch, smell, and taste it. But how do we experience God’s providence? How can we know that our sovereign Lord manages every detail of our lives? And how do we reconcile his sovereign rule with the seismic shifts taking place in the world today?
Stephen Charnock’s Divine Providence turns to Scripture to leave us without a doubt: God rules the world. Nothing takes place in the world without his knowledge, nothing is done in the world without his will, and nothing exists without his care and power. None other but God touches hearts and turns them to do what pleases him: “In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind” (Job 12:10).
Charnock was a Puritan pastor who persevered in a tumultuous era of his own. His classic work is a heart-stirring call to trust in the One who orchestrates all things, past and present, good and bad. He “[teaches] us to take hold of the God of providence with both hands and cling to him with all our might––trusting that … God is holding us in his almighty hand,” writes Joel Beeke.
We can trust the providence of God, but can we know his ultimate purpose? The answer is yes! As Charnock demonstrates, God works all things for his eternal glory and the church’s good. In difficult times, what greater comfort can there be than knowing we are under the care of an infallible, unwearied, and righteous ruler of the world! He is constantly working to love, protect, counsel, and provide for his people.
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Eph. 3:20–21 ESV).
Get your copy of Divine Providence A Classic Work for Modern Readers here.
