Jesus can help me. Jesus alone reminds me of the story of my good friend Fred Burton. his middle ages but he had battled with substance abuse his whole life and at this particular point in his life he was very much defeated by that. And he was mentioning to his wife about the circumstances and where he was and she said to him, well the only one who can help you now is Jesus. And that was a prick in his conscience and in his heart and He went to church the following Sunday and fell under conviction of his sin through the power of the Bible and the Holy Spirit and Then in the week on his own he prayed to receive Jesus as a Savior He went to church on Wednesday night and told the pastor he said I got saved this week and the pastor said well I know you did you're here tonight and And so there's no other explanation for you showing up on a Wednesday night than that you got saved. And so Fred then entered into gospel ministry and was a pastor for many years and started a couple of different churches out in Pittsburgh in Bay Point, California. And by the time he was in my previous ministry, he was retired from gospel ministry, but he had also worked full-time as a structural iron worker. And so he was the guys that would climb those big beams without any of those ropes. You see those pictures of the guys way up there in the skyscrapers? Well, that was Fred. And so praise the Lord for the fact that Jesus alone can help us. Hey, we're gonna talk about this today. Sovereign God in hard times, making sense out of God's silence. When God is silent during a difficult trial in our lives, We begin to doubt His love or His power. And we don't understand the sovereignty of God during hard times, especially when God is silent. We'll share a surprising fact that there is one book in the Bible that never once references the word God or the name of God. And yet we cannot miss, if we're observant readers, the actions of God in that book, orchestrating the affairs of people. And so we'll eventually get there today. And so this is the title of the series, A Sovereign God in Hard Times. And today's specific message is making sense out of God's silence. All right, so here we go. Let's jump into this and we'll just go as we can. Our first point, God has a universal sovereign will. So let me just explain a couple of words in our first point. Universal meaning throughout the universe, all right, in heaven and in earth, no matter where you go. The word sovereign, all right, do you see the word reign in there? think of a king. A king, another name for a king is sovereign. And so God is as a universal king has His will for the entire universe. So that's what we mean by a universal sovereign will. And so His sovereignty stated, this is Daniel chapter 4 verse 35, I'll give you just a moment to turn over there. And this is very interesting. The most powerful king alive at this time, his name was Nebuchadnezzar. He is the one who is saying these words. And so this verse is his conclusion about the God of the Jews. All right. So the book of Daniel chapter four, verse 35. And I'll eventually get there. All right. all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth and none can stay his hand or say unto him what doest thou so God has his sovereign will his way we know that the Gospel of Matthew chapter 6 verse 10, they will be done on earth as it is in heaven. God commands the angels of heaven to do his bidding. A couple of books in the Bible tell us that they move like lightning going back and forth from his presence. He gives them a command like a flash of lightning, they're off to do it and then they're back. What next? And so he has his way and so this king, who was the power broker of the ancient Middle East, humbles himself and admits, hey, God is sovereign, and He does whatever He wants, even in the affairs of nations. And so this is the sovereign will of God stated, that He has His way and His will. I'm just gonna read to you some scriptures, and you can turn there, and if I read fast, well then I guess you're gonna have to either turn fast or listen fast. Book of Job, chapter 42, verse two. So that's right before Psalms and Proverbs. This is what the sovereign will of God involves. Job says, I know that thou canst do everything, and no thought can be withholden from thee. God, you can do everything. There's not even a thought that we can think, that we can hide from you. You know every thought. Now that's a powerful God. Isaiah chapter 14, verse 27, Isaiah 14, 27. For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? And his hand is stretched it out, and who shall turn it back? When God purposes to do something, there's no changing his mind. You cannot disannul it. You cannot divorce God from His power and His purpose. They're going to go out, His hand is going to do it. When He puts out His hand to go to work, you're not going to be able to knock His hand out of the way. You're not going to be able to stop God. He's a sovereign throughout the universe. Isaiah chapter 46 verse 10 says that this is what God is able to do. Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, my counsel shall stand and I will do all my pleasure. God has one plan. Before he ever made the universe and the world, God was able to take in the beginning and the end of all things, and everything in between. This is what we call the omniscience of God, the power to know all things. And so God knows from ancient times the things that will be yet. God knows the future. Isn't that encouraging? We sit here watching world events unfold every day. We don't know how things are going to turn out, but God in his wisdom takes all things in from the beginning to the end. It's not like God gets partway through human existence and says, uh-oh, I better figure out an alternative plan here, because things aren't going the way I thought they should go. I messed up. No, that's not God. He has power to bring things into existence that don't yet exist. No wonder why our country's forefathers believed in the sovereignty of God in the creation of this country. They really believed that God was sovereign and that God had His special hand of blessing in creating this country. You go back and you read their writings, they call it the hand of providence. They look and they praise this creator of their nation. That's why our national documents say things like, we believe all men are created equal. Because there is a God, there is a creator, there's a sovereign Lord. Then we read Daniel 4.35, but now if you wanna go over to a passage in the New Testament, Ephesians chapter one, verse 11. In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who works all things after the counsel of his own will. How many of you have ever used a financial advisor? Anybody? How many of you have ever taken the advice of a doctor? OK. How many of you have ever used the knowledge or the expertise of a plumber or an electrician? All right. See, these are areas in life. I love what Will Rogers used to say. We're all ignorant, just in different areas. OK. And it's so true. We have to rely upon the counsel, the expertise of other people to do jobs for us. That's what we pay them for, right? We pay for our ignorance, that's essentially, or our inability to do something. But this is not our God. No one ever has to instruct God or be His counselor, even though we like to try to do that sometimes. Hey God, you know what, I know better than you in this situation, you shouldn't have done it that way. Well, God doesn't need our counsel. So He works all things on the counsel of His own will. according to the purpose of Him. And God has one grand purpose for us as believers, and that is to predestinate us to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. That's a wonderful thing. You think about all of the obstacles that God must face in that process to get us to look like Jesus. I mean, right now, just sit here and let your mind bring up the things right now that you know are out of conformity with the will and the purpose of God. God is working to change those things and to mold you and to fashion and to shape you to look like Jesus, and you are predetermined to look like a son, and nothing is going to stop God from getting you there, not even you. Praise God. And so we have a sovereign God. And here's another thing. We're not just talking a distant God with a vague master plan. We're talking about a personal, loving God who thinks of you as an individual. and is working in your life his master plan to bring him glory, to exist for his purpose. This is the sovereignty of God that is stated. Then letter B up here is the sovereignty of God. Is it defied? Can we really defy the sovereignty of God? We know the Lord's prayer in Matthew 6, 10, thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as is in heaven. Well, obviously things are not done on earth as they are in heaven, right? So can we really then defy the sovereign will of God? Well, the easy answer to that is no, absolutely not. Here are some scriptural reasons for that. Proverbs chapter 21, I do want you to turn there. Please take your Bibles and go there. Proverbs chapter 21, verse 30. against the Lord. The wisest person or the wisest group of people that are alive today, they can never out-plan God. They can never come together in counsel with enough knowledge to outsmart God or to thwart God in any way. There's nothing that we as human beings understand that is going to make God not exist. Oh, now, see, we have brilliant minds in our university systems that poison the minds of our young people by saying there is no God. But that's not understanding. God just calls that foolishness. The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. There's nothing that we can understand or take counsel against him or have any wisdom that's going to thwart or defeat the Lord. Listen to, and I want you to turn to this passage as well because you're just a few chapters away, Proverbs chapter 16 verses 3 through 5. Proverbs 16, 3 through 5. Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established. The Lord hath made all things for himself, yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord, though hand joined in hand, he shall not be unpunished. Now let's just look at that for a minute. Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established. A work. some plan, some course of action that you want, if you commit that to the Lord, then he'll establish your thinking, and your thinking will be clear, and he'll help you get that course of action completed. Contrary to that, it says, the Lord has made all things for himself, yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. Now, we know that God is not the author of evil. But we sometimes look at the evil and the darkness that's in the world. And some people have a temptation to think that evil is greater than God. And that wickedness is greater than God. Or some wicked event that happens, a mass murder, bloodshed, something like that. And it's just so oppressive to us. But yet God takes such people and such events and he uses them for his own glory, his own purpose, okay? And so he makes it work for himself. And then we think of all of those who are proud in heart, all of those who say something like this, I don't need God. There is no God. And they mock God. And they ridicule the things of God. They ridicule His commands, His principles. And so then they find others that are like them. Have you ever heard that old expression? Birds of a feather flock together, okay? And so they form these grand societies and they write these books that are very intellectual and they argue against God and they rail and they rage and they're so angry against God, they join hand in hand and they've got their buddies and they feel so strong and superior And they say, nothing is gonna go wrong in life. And then Proverbs chapter two, sudden disaster and calamity will be upon them. The Lord will hold them in derision. He will laugh at their calamity. You can bind yourself with all the people who hate God and just are furious at God and throwing temper tantrums at God. You're not gonna change anything. There's a sovereign God who just laughs in heaven at your rebellion and at your foolishness. And there's nothing that's going to stop him. As a matter of fact, it says that he shall not be unpunished. There are consequences for such actions. You know, it's, Terrible thing when a child learns consequences for actions such as sticking their finger in the locket. Don't do that and they I Shouldn't have done that right? Well, that's what we as people don't defy God And we try to think we're gonna live that way and well we find out I shouldn't have done that and you'll not go unpunished. Proverbs 16, nine says, a man's heart devises his way what the Lord directs the steps. So you wanna just go ahead and plan your own life and do it your own way, like Burger King? Have it your way, all right? Well, you know, there's a sovereign God that directs your steps. The way of a transgressor is hard and God is trying to always to bring you to him So I guarantee you, wherever you think your independent steps are going, they're gonna lead right back to the presence and the conviction of God in your life. You can plan it, but God directs your steps. All right, let's look at our second point here. Not only does he have a universal sovereign will, but he has an unrelenting sovereign will. So sovereign, once again, means he reigns as king. but unrelenting, meaning without stopping. So can hard times then be included in the plan of God? Is suffering included in the sovereignty of God? Do hard times stop? God? See these are some very important questions. Now up there I know you probably are struggling to see that, but that's Psalm 115 verse 3, But our God is in the heavens, and he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. So there is a certain pleasure that God has in His counsel, in His will, in doing what He thinks is best, because He does know best, because He is an all-knowing God. So our God is in the heavens. He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased. You know, I think this is something that our young people in this country need to understand. If you look here on the table by the back table here, you'll see some different booklets. One of them is a white booklet, and I'm looking at the title right now, a little green stripe across it. I'm not reading it, I'm just, I know what it looks like, so I'm looking at that. Don't think that I can see the small print from this far away, not with these on anyway. But the title of that little booklet is, How Do I Look Now? And it's about the perception of self-image and how important that is to people. But you know what? As a young man, the first time I saw myself on video, it was our coach had secured a VCR and a VHS tape and put that in there and recorded our basketball game. And that's the first time I ever saw myself on video. And you know what happened? Here goes Brent running down the floor after we made a basket. I get to half court, and I kick myself in the back of my foot. And I go down, and I become the janitor's mop. And I clean the floor. And then I just kind of stumble and get up and run back down. And I just looked at myself, and I was like, I'm such a klutz. Look at those big old feet. Look at those big ears. Look at those dumbo shoulders. Oh, why did God make me look like that? Why did God make me that way? And then to emphasize all of the problems that young people have at that time in their life, coach says, Snow, God gave you a big backside, you better use it to block somebody out so they don't get the ball. I'm thinking, now great, now my backside's even big. And so nothing about me was right. All right. Well, you know what I learned is that I am fearfully and wonderfully made and God did whatever he wanted in making my body the way that he made it. And it pleased him to give me the body that he gave me. And I had to learn as a child of God to praise him and to accept that and to thank him for the things that he gave me. And later on, One of the great blessings in life was my wife said, wow, those shoulders are killer, you know? And so now I don't look at my shoulders and think Dumbo wings, you know, probably could fly away with them. But here, God does whatever pleases. Isaiah 43 verse 13, from eternity to eternity, I am God. No one can oppose what I do. There's no stopping God. There's no opposing Him. So that is God's pleasure. What God pleases to do, He's going to do it because it's His pleasure and it results in His glory. Then we see letter B up here, God's plan. And here's where we could find out to trust Him with our lives. Do you remember the Bible character by the name of Joseph? All right. the 11th of 12 boys, and the favorite of his father, the one who had the coat of many colors. And his brothers were enraged. He's daddy's favorite. Let's kill him. And so Ruben says, no, no, no, no, let's not do that. Instead, why don't we kill an animal and take a coat of many colors and we'll tear it and rip it up and make it look like a wild animal attacked him and we'll put blood all over it from an animal. But let's put him in a pit and we'll sell him. And his intentions were to come back later and pull him out. Maybe the mood would have changed. He's gone and his brothers sell him into slavery. And you're gonna say, wow, what great evil his brothers had planned for him. Where was God for Joseph when all of this was going on? God must have forgotten about Joseph. This is what Joseph thought about that event. Genesis 45 verse eight, so now it was not you that sent me hither, but God. And he hath made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his house and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Genesis 45, 19 and 20 through 21. And Joseph said unto his brothers, fear not, "'For am I in the place of God? "'But as for you, you thought evil against me. "'But God meant it unto good, "'to bring to pass as it is this day, "'to save much people alive. "'Now therefore, fear ye not, "'I will nourish you and your little ones.' "'And he comforted them and spake kindly unto them.'" You see, God has one plan from the beginning to the end. There's a plan of redemption of Jesus Christ on the cross, buried, risen, and ascended, and coming again. That one overarching plan that brings him glory. And little old Joseph is a little teenage boy, hated by his brothers, was part of that plan, even though he never knew it. He knew that God was in charge of his life, But as that was going on, I'm not sure that Joseph sat there and just rejoiced in the theology of the sovereignty of God at that moment. But years later, he can look back in the maturity of faith and said, okay, yeah, you were wicked men. You were bad brothers. You really were evil. You hated me so much that you did that to me. but it wasn't you, it was God. It was God who sent me to this place in advance of the calamity that would come upon the world, that would come upon our family, that would come upon you as my brothers. You were starving, but God sent me to Egypt where I rose in fame and I controlled the world's food supply. And you showed up one day, I recognized you and I provided for you. And then I eventually revealed myself to you and asked if daddy was still alive and dad was alive and I got to be reunited with him the last few years of his life. And now that dad is gone, you're wondering, is Joseph gonna get even now? Well, I'll tell you, you meant evil, but God meant it for good. And he had a plan to save many lives. The Redeemer came through the family of Israel. And so Joseph understood the sovereignty of God. And you know, his reaction to his brothers was not to be angry or bitter at them, but rather to love them. Think of that. The problems that we have with our family. Do you think for a moment that Joseph grew up in a dysfunctional family? Yeah, he sure did. But He didn't become bitter at them. He didn't become angry at them. He said, I will nourish you and your little ones. He comforted them, and He spake kindly unto them. Oh, what a beautiful example for us. When things in our family and in our lives go so wrong, and we look at people and think, oh, they're so evil. They truly may mean evil against us, but it is God who is working all things according to the counsel of his will. Listen to Jeremiah chapter 29 as he talks to the prophet Jeremiah, talks to the people of Israel. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Here's a beautiful thing. Because we know God has a plan for us individually, then we can trust him with our lives. You, you can trust God with your life. I know the plans that I have for you to give you a future and a hope. What a beautiful God, what a beautiful God. We don't need to be afraid of doing God's will. We don't need to be afraid of turning our lives over to God. You know, sometimes the children of Israel thought God had left them. They were living a rebellious life, and God had to punish them for their sin. But this is what God said, even in the middle of their punishment. I will make an everlasting covenant with them, and I will not turn away from them to do them good, but I will put my fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from me. Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul. For thus saith the Lord, like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I have promised them." We have a responsibility to our sovereign God. And that is to honor Him, to obey Him, to yield our lives to Him. You see a sovereign God chose the people of Israel for Himself. And they thumbed their noses at God and said, no, we want to live the way we want to live. And God had before brought them into the land and He set them on Mount Gerizim and Mount Emol, the mountains of blessing and cursing. And they recited and they knew what they were morally responsible for. And they went ahead and they rebelled against God. So God said, okay, This is your punishment. This is what you're due. But I will fulfill all the blessings upon you. I will turn your hearts back to me. I'll turn your hearts the way that they need to be. You see, here's when we defy a sovereign God, the answer is repentance and getting ourself back into conformity with his sovereign will. And that's what's best for our life. That's what's best for our life. You're gonna say, wow, you know, I don't know if God really understands how much pain there is in punishment. We were teaching the children in Sunday school this morning about the fall into sin of Adam and Eve. And with it, there was lots of pain. Adam would have pain in his work. Eve would have pain in childbearing. There was pain in their marriage relationship as she wanted to be a boss and he wanted to be an autocratic ruler. There was all kinds of pain. Then there was death and there was sorrow. But in all of it, God was good. He made an atonement for them and covered them in their guilt and their shame. He promised that there would be food that they would bring forth. He promised that they would have children and that one of those children would crush the serpent. So in all God's punishment, there was hope. You see, here's a good way for us to parent. When we have to discipline our children, discipline hope that if they will align themselves with God's will, things will turn out okay. Discipline them with hope. Be an encouragement even in the midst of causing pain and sorrow. Those are the consequences for sin. You know, God does know the pain that sin brings. God allowed his son to experience death. This is what Pilate said unto him, Speakest thou not unto me, knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and power to release thee? Jesus answered, Thou couldst have no power against me, except it were given thee from above. Therefore he that delivered me unto thee has the greater sin. Hey, Jesus, why aren't you answering me? Don't you know I can kill you right now, or I can let you go? Pilate, you have no authority over me. I'm the sovereign of the universe that was given to you from heaven above. But yet he tasted death for every man that we might taste life through faith. Believe on him. The apostle Paul said, for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. To the Jew first and also to the Greek. I'm not ashamed, I'm a believer in Jesus. I'm not ashamed to be a Christian. Oh, there's a lot of people that want me to feel ashamed. They want to blame this generation. They want to put the blame on me. Hey, listen, I'm not ashamed of Jesus Christ. I'm not afraid of what He did. It's His power to save me. And He did. And He will save you, too. He promises so. 2 Peter 3, 9, the Lord is not slack concerning His promise. as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering toward usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." You know what that's saying? God is long-suffering, He's long-fused. You know what? He could just and he would whack us right there, all right? I was telling you about Fred. Fred had all kinds of funny sayings. I don't know, he was from the Ozarks, and so he was an Okie, and Okies had all kinds of funny sayings. But he said, sometimes God just whacks you upside the head and gives you a hickey, all right? And that's not what a hickey was, all right? But he was talking about a bump on the head when God whacks you spiritually with a two by four, all right? Sometimes God punishes you for your sin. God is long-suffering. Sometimes He doesn't punish us right away. He gives us an opportunity to repent. Isn't that what He did for Adam and Eve in the garden? Adam, where are you? Oh, we hid ourselves because we knew we were naked. Who told you you were naked? What is it that you have done? God, in asking such a question, gave Adam an opportunity for repentance. And you know what Adam said? It's her fault. He didn't accept responsibility for what he did. Eve, what is this that you have done? It's the serpent's fault. So let's not be so hard-hearted towards God that when He convicts us of our sin that we say, that's not my fault. We blame it on everybody else. We need to take responsibility for our own actions. Wouldn't the world be a different place if people did that today? This would be a different country. So, God is long-suffering towards us. God is not willing that any should perish. You know, God loves souls. The Lord takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Well, the Bible says, neither is there salvation in any other for there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. You can't save yourself. You might as well just get out of the savior business. You can't even live your life. Why don't you just get out of the sovereign business and let God run your life. Humble yourself to him. You know, God gave us these Old Testament examples, such as Joseph, to be an encouragement to us. Romans 15, verse four, for whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. God so much wants to encourage us through the Old Testament believers. We can see that they live by faith and not by sight. Well, we still have to live by faith. And they trusted God. Oh, praise the Lord for the testimony of Joseph and the encouragement that he is to us. Now let's look at letter C. On the slide, let's look at God's power. Jeremiah chapter 32, verse 27. Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for me? Do you have some challenge right now that's going on in your life? And you're thinking, There's no way that's ever gonna change. Tell you about Bill. Left Bill a door flyer from our church on his front door. He came to church the next Sunday and he stayed for over a decade. But Bill did not have faith to believe that God could change the status quo. He had remodeled the garage as his living quarters. And he and his wife, for years, lived in separate bedrooms, fought, were angry, couldn't agree. And then one day, they got into financial troubles, had to sell their house, moved away. and following up on him after the move had taken place, hey, Bill, how's it going? Oh, pastor, you won't believe it, but my wife and I, we're going to church together again. We're sleeping together as a married couple in the same bed again. Pastor, it's wonderful. Yes, there's nothing too hard for God. He can change hard hearts in a marriage. He can change health situations, job situations. There's nothing too hard for him, he can change hearts. Ephesians 2.10, for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God has prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Hey listen, the way of a transgressor is hard, but there is a way that God has prepared for us as his children to walk in that. To walk in a life where we do good works for him, it brings him glory. and that is the path that we're supposed to be on. Oh, I'm not gonna promise it's gonna be an easy path, but I'm gonna tell you, that's the blessed path. That's where we know that we're in conformity to his will, because that's what he has planned for us to do. Psalm 138, verse eight, the Lord will perfect that which concerneth me. Thy mercy, O Lord, endureth forever. Forsake not the work of thy own hands. God has not given up on you. God is working in your life to change you today. Many years ago, there was a young 20-something young man. His name was, well, let's just call him Steven, all right? He comes in and sits down with one of my deacons, and we're confronting him. We're bringing him up on church discipline. Now, church discipline is never punitive. It's always for the purpose of restoring somebody. And the deacon just sat across from the table and said to this young man, Stephen, do you realize that from today, this day, right now, you no longer have to live in this sin. You don't have to be that way from this day forward. And what an encouragement that was in that rebuke. Yeah, you're living in sin, but you don't have to. From this moment forward, you can live as a free man, not in bondage. Well, the sad reality was he didn't take God up on that offer, and life was hard for him. But listen, the Lord has a will for your life, and He is trying to perfect that which concerns you. God has your individual best at heart and in mind. He's working in your life. God only has love for you, but He also has the power to bring about His plan for your life. You can trust a sovereign God. He is unrelentingly working in your life. He will perform that good work in you until the day of Jesus Christ. God never gives up on his children. What a great way for us as Christians to look at other people. Don't give up on them. God is working. So let's continue to love and confront and to be patient, but don't give up. Second Peter 1.3, according as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness through the knowledge of Him that has called us to glory and virtue. God has called you one day to live in glory with Him. to live in moral excellence. That's what God is calling you to. Be a morally excellent person. Be a morally excellent Christian. God has called you to that. All right, let's bring this message to a close then by looking at the third point, and that is God has an unseen sovereign will, making sense out of God's silence. Usually there's no question about the sovereignty of God when He works a miracle for us. We never question God at such moments in our lives. Have you ever noticed that? We're always so excited. But we do question where the sovereignty and God's sovereignty is when doors remain closed or we cannot see working, God's working in our lives. Here's a quote by Alexander Carson. He says, man's wisdom does not always see the providence of God arranging human actions to fulfill his purposes without miracles. So, As people, we're always asking God, show me a sign, show me a sign. You've heard that joke about the man who drowned in a flood. The waters eventually reached the top of his roof and swept him away and he died and he met God and he said, God, why didn't you answer my prayer? And he said, well, I sent you three people to rescue and you said no every time, right? Well, here, we sometimes think to ourselves, well, where was God when? God is always at work. There's like I mentioned at the very beginning, the book of Esther. Do you remember this story? How the wicked Haman hated Mordecai, Esther's uncle, so much that he wanted not only to kill Mordecai but he wanted to kill all of the Jews to commit genocide against the Jewish race. And how Mordecai goes before Esther, who has become queen, and says, you don't know if it's for such a time as this that God has put you in the place that you are. And so she went and she prayed. And then she went and she approached the king. And the king pointed his royal scepter and had favor. And we know the long story that Haman hung upon the gallows that he had created. we see that the Jews were delivered. But you know, if you just read the book with an eye of faith, you see the sovereignty of God. At work, the entire book of Esther is a biblical example of God's silent sovereignty. The name of God is never used once in the book. Yet, as observant readers, we cannot but see God working. Here are some events and questions from the book. Why could the king not sleep one night? Why did the king order that the history books of his kingdom be read to him? It's a great way to fall asleep, right? Well, why was it that Mordecai's loyalty was discovered that very night? The king questioned if Mordecai had ever been rewarded. Why was he not rewarded earlier for saving the king's life? Why does Haman at that very moment appear in the room attempting to ask permission to hang Mordecai the next morning? Why does the king ask in a cunning way what honor should be given to such a loyal man? And Haman walks in thinking, I'm the dude, the king wants to honor me. And so he says, well, why don't you put the king's best robes on and why don't you parade him around on the king's favorite horse and have somebody proclaim how wonderful this man is. And he says, great Haman, I want you to do that for Mordecai. The sovereignty of God. Why does Haman have to order Medicare? How is it that Esther is the queen? How does such a tragedy turn into triumph? Well, it's because there's a sovereign God at work in times of silence. Does it seem like God is silent to you right now? You know, we always talk about that poem, Footprints. And when life is hard we look back and we see that there was only one set of footprints in the sand and we question God and He says, well child that was then that I was carrying you. Now those are my footprints, not yours. I saw a humorous reinterpretation on that and it was drag marks in the sand. And God telling the rebellious stubborn person, that's what I was dragging you through life. Okay. And those are your marks in the sand. And so how does such tragedy turn into triumph? Well, let's go over in closing to Romans 8, 28. And you know, this verse, you've heard it your whole life, but I want you to see it one more time. because we need to be reminded of this oh so much in our lives. Romans 8, 28. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose. Do you love God? Then he's working all things together for good, called according to his purpose. You're not following God's purpose for your life. Don't expect things to work out together for good. That's just not the way it goes. But God is working all things together for good to those who love him, to those who, then we see here in verse 28, are called according to his purpose. God does have a purpose for your life. And that purpose is found here in verse 28. 29 for whom he did foreknow he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of a son that he might be the firstborn among many brethren God is predestined to get you to look like Jesus That's his calling for you in your life. Are you looking like Jesus today? Even the hard times even the silent times God is making all things work together for good to those who love God to those who are calling according to His purpose. God always orchestrates the events of our lives to fulfill His purpose, our ultimate good. Next week, we're going to look in the book of Habakkuk. We're going to view that book, but this is the prophet's closing statement at the end of chapter three, verses 17 and 18. He says, although the fig tree shall not blossom, things have gotta be pretty bad for fig trees not to put out fruit. Neither shall fruit be in the vines. The labor of the olive shall fail. The field shall yield no meat. The flock shall be cut off from the fold and there should be no herd in the stalls. Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. Hey, listen, a sovereign God in hard times making sense out of silence? Well, God might be silent to you right now, but that doesn't mean He's not working. You just don't see it. Maybe it's only decades later that, like Joseph, you can say, yes, you meant it for evil, but God meant it for good. God sent me ahead to save life. From eternity's view, will understand these things. So in closing, letter B is this, man's believing faith. Do you believe that God loves you? Do you believe that God will save you if you're not saved, if you were to call on him in faith right now? All upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Today is the day of salvation. Don't harden your heart. Don't be rebellious. Humble yourself before the Lord. Do you believe that God is working even the difficult times, believer, for your best interests, to conform you to the image of his son? Do you believe that even when it seems that God is silent to you, that you can trust him with your life and leave Those things in His control. Commit yourself to a faithful creator. I trust that you will. Trust that you'll be at peace, even in hard times, unsettling times. And know that God loves you. And so, I close with a gospel call for those who need to be saved. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved. I close with a call of repentance for believers who Give up on God. Don't give up on God. Trust him. Believe him. He's got a plan for your life. Conform yourself to the image of his son.