I Can Work With That

Adam and Eve sinned… and God said, “I can work with that.”
Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery… and God said, “I can work with that.”
Pharaoh hardened his heart… and God said, “I can work with that.”
The scribes and Pharisees conspired to kill Jesus… and God said, “I can work with that.”

Does this reflect your view of how God works all things together for the good of those who love Him (Rom. 8:28)?  Is God simply responding to bad things in order to salvage his plan?

If this is your view, perhaps you should reread Genesis 45:5-8 and 50:20 where Joseph declares that he was sent to Egypt because it was God’s plan and intention, and God’s action that brought it about (using the evil actions of Joseph’s brothers to accomplish his will).

Reread Exodus 4:21, 10:1, 10:20, 10:27, 14:4, and 14:8 where God repeatedly says that he is the one who hardened Pharaoh’s heart, because it was his plan from the very beginning to do so.  (God had a similar plan involving Sihon king of Heshbon, as noted in Deut. 2:30.)

Reread Acts 2:23 and 4:28 where it is clearly stated that the wicked conspiracy against Jesus was part of God’s predetermined plan.

If these evil deeds are intended and predetermined by God, does that make God the author of sin?  No!  The humans who sin commit their sin freely (uncoerced) out of their own evil intentions.  However, the fact of their evil deed is not just known by God, but is planned by God, and in God’s plan, he is working something good in spite of the evil intentions of the human actors.

One thought on “I Can Work With That

  1. I don’t disagree with anything you wrote. Furthermore, it is good to be reminded of the sovereignty of God. To be sovereign means there is no higher authority (person, group, or code) to which the sovrereign one is accountable. Nonetheless, I brelieve we should continue to maintain that the interaction between God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility is mysterious.

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