Reflecting on the Sovereign Plan: Understanding the Decrees of God

In our cultural moment, kings are not something that we have much experience with. Sure, we all have some ideas about what a king or queen is and even have some amount of fascination with royalty in general. This can be clearly seen in the way that many people are almost overly interested in the events of England's royal house. Although the United States had broken away from England, the gossip of the English royal family is constantly in our news. That does not mean that we do not have any understanding, but rather that our understanding is often limited and secondhand. I bring this up because our topic for today is about the decrees of God. The decrees of a king are different from his laws or commandments. They are special directives that the king desires to be carried out. For earthly kings, a decree may or may not be carried out depending on a variety of factors, including things like the love his subjects have for him or the resources that he is able to provide. For example, a king could decree that a feast is to be held the following day, but if he is not able to provide the food for the feast, it is unlikely to happen. God's decrees are both similar and different and are the subject of our discussion today.

Question # 12

As we continue to look a the character and nature of God, one of the questions that we are faced with is about the decrees of God. The Westminster Larger Catechism asks;

What are the decrees of God?

The subject of God's decrees came up previously in question six but has been put somewhat on the back burner until now. The questions about who and what God is took precedence because it is impossible to righly understand the decrees of God apart from who he is. It was important that we discuss that God is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-wise, merciful, and so on before discussing how those things play out in our Lord's actions and decrees. So now we look at what the decrees of God are. The catechism answers the question by saying:

God’s decrees are the wise, free, and holy acts of the counsel of his will, whereby, from all eternity, he hath, for his own glory, unchangeably fore-ordained whatsoever comes to pass in time, especially concerning angels and men.

Much like the decrees of an earthly king, the decrees of God should be distinguished from his laws and commandments. This can be somewhat difficult since, throughout the scriptures, both are referred to as the will of God. While the decrees of God have some similarities with the decrees of earthly kings, there are also very important differences. To start with, God is all-powerful. He is the sovereign Lord of all creation. He decreed that there would be light, and there was light. He spoke, and the land brought forth living plants and animals. In Hebrews 1:3, we read, "he upholds the universe by the word of his power." Put another way, the things that the Lord decrees he will certainly bring to pass. In Isaiah 46:10, we are told that the Lord declares, "the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,"

Looking Further at Scripture

One of the scriptural references for the catechism answer is Ephesians 1:11. Here, the apostle Paul is encouraging the church by telling them, "In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will." The word counsel here might be more accurately translated as purpose or plan. Lim Jyh Jang, in his comments on the catechism, states it well when he says, "The decrees of God refer to the acts of God, by which he has from all eternity, unchangeably determined would happen in the world." One of the striking things about this idea is how much controversy this idea causes. Our sinful nature rebels against the very idea that God would determine anything. The idea is offensive, and yet when we read about it in places like Ephesians 1, it is clear that we are being told this as an encouragement. Perhaps it is not surprising that we who have not experienced persecution and hardship in the way the early church did, would not find such a pronouncement encouraging. However, it should be. It tells us that God has a plan and that his plan will never fail. It is the promise of Romans 8:28 that tells us, "We know that for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." God has a plan and a purpose for his people. He has called us according to his purpose for our good and his glory.

More than Just an End

Another error that we can fall into is to think of the decrees of God only applying to our final destiny. Again, Scripture teaches us that everything, from beginning to end, is comprehended in the decrees of our Lord. Proverbs 16:33 tells us that "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord." Put another way, the verse teaches us that even the role of the dice is a decision from the Lord. It is the Lord who brings about blessing and disaster (Isaiah 45:7, Amos 3:6). Perhaps the hardest element of all this to swallow comes in Proverbs 16:4, which states, "The Lord has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble." Everything and every one is created for a purpose. Even the wicked men and their acts serve to fulfill the decrees of the Lord. The greatest example of this comes in the betrayal of Judas. It is through the wicked act of Judas' betrayal of Jesus that our salvation is found. He betrays Jesus, an act that leads directly to the cross, which is the place of our hope and salvation. The accounts of the gospel make it clear that Judas was fulfilling what God had planned while at the same time highlighting that Judas was responsible for his actions. God is not the author of sin. Man does not need any prompting to sin. The inclinations or desires of our hearts are, after all, only evil eternally (Genesis 6:5, 8:21). But according to God's decrees, even the actions of evil men work together for the glory of God and the good of his people.

Worth Wrestling WIth

The subject of God's eternal decrees is something that is worth wrestling with. The error we must avoid is to try and bring God down to our level. What I mean by that is that we have a tendency to judge everything against our own sense of right and wrong. We read about things like the Lord hardening Pharoah's heart and think that is not fair, even though we can also read about how God used that to bring about good for his people. He uses it to teach the people, both Israelites and Egyptians, an important lesson. It is through those events that the Passover is established, which points to the final Passover lamb, who is Christ our savior. Even a brother being sold into slavery by angry and jealous brothers is part of God's decrees. Joseph is sold into slavery by ten of his brothers, and it was by God's design so that those ten brothers, and many others besides, might be saved from famine and death. The error often comes because we cannot see the end of God's plan. We read that God has decreed the election of some and not others and say that is not fair. Here, we have to rest in God's wisdom and not our own. I do not have all knowledge and wisdom, and can not declare the end from the beginning, but the Lord does and can. As we look at the Scriptures, we can see how God has been faithful through it all. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and we can trust him to continue to do what is most wise and good. We should wrestle with these things, but should always do so while trusting in the judge of all the earth to do what is right.

Soli Deo Gloria

Eph 1:11; Rom 11:33; 9:14–15, 18; Eph 1:4, 11; Rom 9:22–23; Ps 33:11.