Day 9
"The king's heart is in Yahweh's hand like the watercourses.
He turns it wherever he desires.
"
Proverbs 21:1
(Yahweh is the personal name of God.Y)
My Prayer
Heavenly Father, please open my heart to understand your words as I pray this scripture to you... that we may understand how you interact with man in the invisible spiritual realm... so that those reading here may understand your words as they pray them with me... that this page may be a commentary prayer for them, and honor you.
My Lord, you decide when nations begin, when they end, and where their boundaries will be (Acts 17:26-27). According to Proverbs 21:1 above, you make up the ruler's minds to accomplish these ends for the nations… to bring prosperity or disaster, victory, or defeat. The rulers probably do not know this. But you know what the rulers will do because you have predetermined what they will do. And you make decisions regarding nations based on the evil or obedience of the nation (Jeremiah 18:5-10). So, in your word, you have revealed conditional control of the future... the condition being, the behavior of nations. I do not know when you make these predeterminations, whether before the foundation of the world, before birth, after we chose to obey you or after we choose to rebel against you.
But according to Proverbs 21:1, you control the hearts of the rulers. So, you know the future actions of rulers because you predetermine their actions.
You allow us the free will to choose good or evil. But you control the way in which we do good or evil. I praise your wisdom. I am thankful that this world is not out of control! I am also thankful that you are not an arbitrary tyrant... that you make your decisions based on our free-will decisions.
Thank you for this glimpse into the invisible spiritual realm... to know how to pray. I ask you to guide the leaders of the nations to allow the freedom to spread your word, that we may live in tranquility rather than lawlessness (1 Timothy 2:1-2).
Amen.
Author's Comment:
God is all powerful, all knowing, good and just. By His power, He controls the future to answer prayer, bless, protect, discipline, and execute judgement... all while allowing man to have free will over choices to do good or evil but not over the implementation of those choices.
God is all powerful (omnipotent) and all knowing (omniscient). He knows the future (foreknowledge), controls the future (sovereignty) and also has granted man the free will to choose. We must be very careful to understand these doctrines as scripture teaches, without thinking "beyond what is written" 1 Cor 4:6 or we will create a false doctrine of fatalism (that all events are predetermined). Click here for an in depth scriptural analysis of omnipotence, omniscience, fatalism, free will and foreknowledge.
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You are reading the Walk by the Spirit Daily Devotional Series, which is subchapter 3.7 of the free, online book Fellowship with God in the Sixth Path. In the Walk by the Spirit Daily Devotional, readers learn how to how to walk by the Spirit. Walking by the Spirit is one way the New Testament describes fellowship with God, the subject of this online book.
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