Sovereignty Before Creation
Having shown that sovereignty characterizes the whole Being of God, let us now observe how it marks all His ways and dealings. In the great expanse of eternity, which stretches behind Genesis 1:1, the universe was unborn and creation existed only in the mind of the great Creator. In His sovereign majesty God dwelt all alone — before the heavens and the earth were created, before there were any angels to hymn God's praises, no creatures to occupy His notice, no rebels to be brought into subjection. The great God was all alone amid the awful silence of His own vast universe.
But even then, God was sovereign. He might create or not create according to His own good pleasure. He might create one world or one million worlds, and who was there to resist His will? He might call into existence a million different creatures each differing from the others, and possessing nothing in common save their creaturehood — and who was there to challenge His right? If the mighty God chose to have one vast gradation in His universe, from loftiest seraph to creeping reptile, from revolving worlds to floating atoms, instead of making everything uniform — who was there to question His sovereign pleasure?
Sovereignty in the Heavens
Behold then the exercise of divine sovereignty long before man ever saw the light. With whom took God counsel in the creation and disposition of His creatures? Turn your eye to the heavens and observe the mysteries of divine sovereignty which there confront the thoughtful beholder:
But why should they? Why should the sun be more glorious than all the other planets? Why should there be stars of the first magnitude and others of the tenth? Why such amazing inequalities? Why should some of the heavenly bodies be more favourably placed than others in their relation to the sun? And all we can say is: “For Thy pleasure they are and were created” (Revelation 4:11).
Sovereignty in the Earth
Come now to our own planet. Why should two thirds of its surface be covered with water, and why should so much of its remaining third be unfit for human cultivation or habitation? Why should there be vast stretches of marshes, deserts, and ice-fields? Why should one country be fertile and another almost barren? Why should one be rich in minerals and another own none? Why should the climate of one be congenial and healthy, and another uncongenial and unhealthy? Why should one be constantly troubled with earthquakes, and another be almost entirely free from them?
Because thus it pleased the Creator and Upholder of all things.
Sovereignty in the Animal Kingdom
Look at the animal kingdom and note the wondrous variety. What comparison is possible between the lion and the lamb, the bear and the kid, the elephant and the mouse? Some, like the horse and the dog, are gifted with great intelligence; while others, like sheep and swine, are almost devoid of it. Some are designed to be beasts of burden, while others enjoy a life of freedom. But why should the mule and the donkey be shackled to a life of drudgery, while the lion and tiger are allowed to roam the jungle at their pleasure? Some are fit for food, others unfit; some are beautiful, others ugly; some live for centuries, others a few months at most; some are tame, others fierce. But why all these variations and differences?
Consider the vegetable kingdom. Why should roses have thorns, and lilies grow without them? Why should one flower emit a fragrant aroma and another have none? Why should one tree bear fruit which is wholesome and another that which is poisonous? Why should one apple tree be loaded with fruit, and another tree of the same age and in the same orchard be almost barren?
Sovereignty Among the Angels
Consider the angelic hosts. Surely we shall find uniformity here. But no — there, as elsewhere, the same sovereign pleasure of the Creator is displayed. Some are higher in rank than others; some are more powerful than others; some are nearer to God than others. Scripture reveals a definite and well-defined gradation in the angelic orders. From archangel, past seraphim and cherubim, we come to “principalities and powers” (Ephesians 3:10), and from principalities and powers to “rulers” (Ephesians 6:12), and then to the angels themselves — and even among them we read of “the elect angels” (1 Timothy 5:21).
Again we ask, why this inequality, this difference in rank and order? And all we can say is:
Sovereignty Among Men
If then we see the sovereignty of God displayed throughout all creation, why should it be thought a strange thing if we behold it operating in the midst of the human family? Why should it be thought strange if to one God is pleased to give five talents and to another only one? Why should it be thought strange if one is born with a robust constitution and another of the same parents is frail and sickly? Why should it be thought strange if Abel is cut off in his prime, while Cain is suffered to live on for many years? Why should it be thought strange that some should be born black and others white; some born idiots and others with high intellectual endowments; some constitutionally lethargic and others full of energy?
Heredity and environment cannot account for all these variations and inequalities. No — it is God who maketh one to differ from another. Why should He? Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Thy sight must be our reply.
The Right of the Creator
Learn then this basic truth: the Creator is absolute Sovereign, executing His own will, performing His own pleasure, and considering nought but His own glory.
And had He not a perfect right to? Since God is God, who dare challenge His prerogative? To murmur against Him is rank rebellion. To question His ways is to impugn His wisdom. To criticize Him is sin of the deepest dye. Have we forgotten who He is?