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ALMIGHTY GOD REIGNS
A. Introduction: For a number of weeks, we have been talking about developing the right perspective.
Your perspective is the way you see things, your view of reality. However, your perspective is limited.
1. Only God has all the facts about everything, past, present, and future, because He is Omniscient (allknowing) and Omnipresent (present everywhere at once). Almighty God sees all and knows all.
a. When you learn to see things as they really are according to God, it will help you deal with life’s
challenges more effectively. A right perspective will give you hope and peace of mind, even in
the most difficult circumstances. A right perspective is actually an eternal perspective.
b. We’ve been referring to Paul the apostle, a man who had an eternal perspective. He faced many
hardships and challenges in his life, but was able to call them all momentary and light.
1. Paul recognized that there is more to life than just this life and that the greater and better part
is ahead of us, after this life. And, in comparison to forever, even a lifetime of hardship is
small. So his hardships didn’t weigh him down.
2. He wrote: II Cor 4:17-18—For our present troubles are quite small and won’t last very long.
Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! So we don’t look
at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen.
For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever (NLT).
c. Paul didn’t deny his troubles, or the pain and hardships they brought into his life. Instead, Paul
kept his focus (his mental attention) on what he couldn’t see—things that are future, as well as
the present reality that God was with him and for him, working behind the scenes in his life.
2. Paul’s view of reality was shaped by the Scriptures. The Bible reveals unseen realities. This is
reality to according to God’s written Word:
a. Almighty God is perfectly present with you right now, loving and reigning in your life. He is
upholding all things in your life by the word of His power.
b. The Lord is causing everything to serve His ultimate purposes for His family, as He brings
genuine good out of genuine bad—some of the good in this life and some in the life to come.
c. Everything you see is temporary and subject to change, either in this life or the next. And God
will get you through whatever you face until He gets you out.
3. Last week we noted that God is with you because He is Omnipresent. Since the moment you were
conceived, He has never not been with you (Jer 23:23-24; Ps 139:7-8;15). And God with you is the
help you need, because He is the Almighty (all-powerful) God (Ps 42:5; Gen 17:1; Jer 32:17).
a. God loved before you existed. You exist because God wants you. Rev 4:11—You are worthy,
Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created everything, and it is for
your pleasure that they exist and were created (NLT).
b. Yes, you and I have gone astray from our Creator through sin. But He devised a way to bring us
back to Himself—His plan of redemption. Almighty God loved you and me enough to enter
this world and die as a sacrifice for our sin. Luke 19:10; John 3:16; I John 4:9-10
1. God is for you. His plan is directed at you, His plan to recover you from sin and restore you
to your created purpose as His son or daughter—when you return to Him. Rom 8:31
2. God is for you because He loves you. He is love and can do nothing but love. His love
doesn’t depend on your behavior or worthiness. It depends on Him, and He never changes.
4. Tonight, we’re going to look at what it means that God is reigning and upholding all things in our
lives, and answer the question: How can that be when there is so much heartache in the world and so
many things seem out of control?
B. We made the point in previous lessons that this world in its present condition (filled with pain, hardship,

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suffering, loss, and death) is not the way that God created it or intends it to be because of sin.
1. God created human beings to become His sons and daughters through faith in and dependence on
Him. He created the earth to be a home for Himself and His family.
a. When the first man, Adam, chose independence from God through sin, both humanity and the
planet were infused with corruption and death. Rom 5:12; Gen 2:17; Gen 3:17-19; etc.
b. Since that time all humans have followed Adam into sin. Everything breaks down, corrodes,
and deteriorates, and no living thing escapes old age, sickness, or death.
1. None of this surprised God. He already had a plan to recover (redeem) His family and the
family home. At the right time, God the Son (the Lord Jesus Christ) would incarnate (take
on a human nature), come into the world, and die as a sacrifice for sin. Gen 3:15; Rev 13:8
2. Through the centuries, God has been progressively unfolding His plan to recover His family
through Jesus, as He works behind the scenes in human affairs to accomplish this purpose.
2. The Bible reveals that there is an invisible dimension beyond the perception of our senses. This
dimension is populated by angelic beings, some of whom serve God and some who don’t. These
beings can and do affect our lives, which further adds to the chaos that is in the world because of sin.
a. There is an unseen counterfeit kingdom in this world, presided over by Lucifer, the first rebel.
He was a cherub, a mighty guardian angel, created by God. His name means brightness.
b. Lucifer attempted to exalt himself above the Lord, incited an angelic rebellion, and was cast out
of Heaven, God’s home in the unseen realm (Isa 14:12-14; Ezek 28:14-19; many lessons for
another day). Following his rebellion, Lucifer acquired the name Satan which means adversary.
c. The Bible reveals that Satan tempted the first humans, Adam and Eve, to disobey God. By
giving into this temptation, Adam gave up his God-given authority in the earth, Satan became the
god of this world, and his rebellion spread to earth. Luke 4:6; John 12:31; II Cor 4:4; etc.
1. Since that time all humans are born into Satan’s invisible, counterfeit kingdom and are
influenced by it, whether they know it or believe it.
2. Paul wrote to Christians: You used to live just like the rest of the world, full of sin, obeying
Satan, the mighty prince of the power of the air. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of
those who refuse to obey God (Eph 2:2. NLT).
d. The point for now is that Satan has power over humans because of sin. And much of the trouble
and pain we encounter in life is the result of actions taken by Satan-inspired men and women.
3. Jesus came to earth the first time to begin the process of reclaiming this world (the family home).
He opened His public ministry with these words: The time has come…the kingdom of God is near.
Repent and believe the good news (Mark 1:15, NIV). The word kingdom means reign or rule.
a. Jesus was born into 1st century Israel, the Jewish people group. Based on the Scriptures, they
were expecting the Redeemer (Messiah) to come. But they were expecting Him to establish a
visible kingdom on earth and overthrow the Roman government that controlled Israel at the time.
b. The religious leaders demanded to know when the kingdom will come. Jesus replied: The
Kingdom of God isn’t ushered in with visible signs. You won’t be able to say “Here it is” or
“It’s over there”. For the Kingdom of God is within you, is among you (Luke 17:20-21, NLT).
1. Right now, God seeks individual obedience to Him. When a person willing surrenders to
Jesus, He indwells them by His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, and they come under the reign of
Heaven. The kingdom (reign) of God comes into them. Where the King is, the kingdom is.
2. Paul referred to Christians as citizens of Heaven (Phil 3:20) because they are in the kingdom
(submitted to the reign of God), and the kingdom (God) is in them.
c. Satan and his kingdom had power over all of us when we were guilty of sin. But Jesus, through
His sacrificial death for our sin, has delivered us out from under the Devil’s control.
1. Col 1:13—For he rescued us from the power of darkness, and re-established us in the

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kingdom of his beloved Son. For it is by him that we have been redeemed and have had our
sins forgiven (J. B. Phillips).
2. Col 2:14-15—God…has utterly wiped out the written evidence of broken commandments
which always hung over our heads, and has completely annulled it by nailing it to the cross.
And then, having drawn the sting of all the powers and authorities ranged against us, he
exposed them, shattered, empty and defeated, in his own triumphant victory (J. B, Phillips).
c. Satan has been defeated through Jesus’ resurrection victory, but has not yet been subjugated—
forced to submit to the government of Heaven and removed from contact with God’s family.
1. That will happen when Jesus returns. John the apostle saw the completion of God’s plan in
the vision that he recorded in the Book of Revelation: God and His visible kingdom on earth.
2. Rev 11:15—There were loud voices shouting in heaven: The whole world has now become
the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever (Rev 11:15,
NLT). Rev 20:10—Then the Devil…was thrown into the lake of fire…forever (NLT).
4. Let’s talk for a moment about the Devil (Satan), his counterfeit kingdom, and its influence in the
present world. This deserves its own lesson, but for now consider these few points.
a As the first rebel in the universe, Satan is ultimately behind all the hell and heartache in this
world. However, the primary way he works on people, including believers, is through our mind,
by influencing our thoughts in an attempt to influence our behavior. Eph 6:11; II Cor 11:3
c. This is one of many reasons we why need to learn to see things the way they really are (develop
the right perspective)—so that we can recognize and resist Satan’s mental strategies and lies.
That’s what renewing your mind is all about—learning to see things as God sees them. Rom 12:2
c. We often give the Devil too much credit and power. He can bring chaos into our lives, but he
can’t permanently harm you or stop God’s ultimate plan for your life. In the life to come there
is reunion, restoration, recompense, and reward. Always face Satan as a defeated foe.
5. Right now, we need to understand that, in the face of both angelic and human rebellion, God has not
given up His sovereignty—the fact that He is God Almighty, the supreme power and authority.
a. Almighty God is fully in control and He takes what wicked men who are inspired by Satan do
and causes it to serve His ultimate purposes for a family. Paul said it this way: Rom 8:28—
And we are assured and know that…all things work together for good and are [fitting into a plan]
for good to those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose (Amp).
b. The most spectacular example of God bringing good out of bad is the crucifixion of Jesus. It
was a wicked act, inspired by Satan, and carried out by wicked men. Luke 22:3; Acts 2:23
1. We don’t necessarily think of the crucifixion as a wicked act because we know the outcome.
But it was Rom 8:28 in action. God, in His All-knowingness, knew what was going to
happen before it happened and He worked it into His plan for a family. Jesus is referred to
as “the Lamb who was killed before the world was made” (Rev 13:8, NLT).
2. Almighty God used this wicked act—the betrayal and killing of the innocent of Son of God
—to bring about the greatest good ever accomplished in the history of the world, the eternal
salvation and deliverance of a race of sinful men and women.
A. God is so big that He can take evil not of His doing and cause it to serve His purposes.
That’s how “in control” God is of His universe. Evil cannot thwart His ultimate purpose
of good for His people. God works it into His plan and beats the devil at his own game.
B. Paul wrote: I Cor 2:7-8—We speak of God’s secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been
hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this
age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory (NIV).
C. Conclusion: Almighty God is reigning in this world, despite how it looks (Ps 97:1). But His purpose

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right now is not to make this temporary life the highlight of our existence by stopping all the chaos and
problems. His purpose is to draw men and women into His invisible kingdom, His reign in their hearts.
1. We need to live with the awareness that nothing comes into our lives which surprised God or that He
is unable to use to further His purposes for His family as He brings good out of bad. Some of the
good we see in this life, the rest in the life to come.
a. Remember Joseph? His wicked brothers sold him into slavery. Over the next thirteen years he
lived as a slave, was falsely accused of rape, and unjustly imprisoned. Gen 37-50
1. But, through a series of providential circumstances he ended up second in command in Egypt
in charge of a food distribution program that saved thousands from dying during a severe
famine. Providence is the foreseeing care and guidance of God over the creatures of earth.
2. When Joseph was finally reunited with his brothers, he was able to say: Gen 50:20—As far
as I am concerned, God turned into good what you meant for evil. He brought me to this
high position I have today so that I could save the lives of many people (NLT).
b. God put off short-term blessing (ending Joseph’s trouble right away) because He saw a way to
bring long-term eternal results. Thousands heard about Almighty God through Joseph’s ordeal,
willingly surrendered to His reign, and are now with the Lord in His unseen kingdom of Heaven.
2. Back to Paul. Shortly after he wrote that he kept his mental attention on things he couldn’t see,
Paul wrote that: We walk by faith and not by sight (II Cor 5:7, NKJV).
a. In another letter Paul defined faith “the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to
happen. It is evidence of things we cannot yet see” (Heb 11:1, NLT); “Faith perceives as real
fact what is not revealed to the senses” (Heb 11:1, Amp).
b. To walk by faith means to order your life according to unseen realities, truths about reality that
are revealed to us by Almighty God in His written Word—the Scriptures, the Bible.
1. Paul would have been familiar with this statement from an Old Testament book written by
the prophet Habakkuk. The prophet lived at a time when Israel was deep in unrepentant idol
worship and all the associated wickedness, and they were about to be destroyed by Babylon.
2. Habakkuk asked God why He was going to allow people who were more wicked than Israel
to destroy the country. The Lord answered Habakkuk (many lessons for another day). But
in short, the Lord said, I know what I am doing.
A. Hab 2:3-4—(The) things I plan (for good) won’t happen right away…If it seems slow,
wait patiently, for it will surely take place…the righteous will live by faith (NLT).
B. Hab 2:14—For the time will come when all the earth will be filled, as the waters fill the
sea, with an awareness of the glory of God (NLT). His visible kingdom on earth!!
3. Habakkuk accepted God’s answered and wrote: Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
and there are no grapes on the vine; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty
and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will
rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Sovereign Lord is my strength. He will make me
as surefooted as a deer and bring me safely over the mountains (Hab 3:17-19, NLT).
3. Habakkuk faced national catastrophe brought about by wicked, Satan inspired men that permanently
altered his life. But he had hope and peace of mind in the midst of it because of his perspective.
a. The prophet realized that God is in control, and I have a future and a hope because he is my
salvation. So I will rejoice in Him (Paul wrote about being sorrowful yet rejoicing; II Cor 6:10).
b. We don’t know what the rest of Habakkuk’s life looked like after Israel was destroyed.
Whatever it was, Habakkuk is now with the Lord, enjoying the blessings of Heaven, and waiting
to return to his homeland, with Jesus when He returns to bring His visible kingdom to earth.
4. It may look like things are out of control in our lives, but they aren’t outside of God’s control and
His ability to cause it all to serve His ultimate purposes for good for His family. More next week!!