THE
SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
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1.2
Meaning of Sovereignty
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Sovereignty has been defined in most English
Dictionaries as “supreme power and the right to exercise it; dominion,
independent state etc. “These are interesting definitions but the sovereignty
of God in the context of the scripture is seen in the light of God’s creation
and the control of the universe. Sovereignty of God therefore means God’s
absolute power over the universe. God is the creator of the universe and He has
the supreme power and dominion over it. God is the Alpha and Omega, He created
all things and nobody created Him. His position in the universe is
unquestionable and unchallengeable. Almost all the creation work was through
the power of the spoken words: “let there
be”, and it was so.
Man was created on the sixth day which was the last day
of God’s work of creation. Man was given authority over all other creatures.
The authority man exercise on earth is a delegated authority from God. This
authority was given to man by God when he said in Genesis 1:26-27, “Let us make man in our own image after our
likeness; and let them have dominion over fish of the sea and over the birds of
the air and over every creeping things that creep upon the earth.”
Put simply, God is like the chairman while man is on the earth as the General
Manager, overseeing the affairs of all other creatures, but still answerable to
God for all his actions on the earth. In this case, God has absolute authority
over the universe. Although God gave man authority which is subordinate to his
own, he expects man to obey him in all things.
Summary
i.
Sovereignty means dominion over a state,
kingdom or within a designated area of authority.
ii.
God is the creator of the universe. He
therefore has absolute power over it.
iii.
God has absolute dominion over man and
whatever man has on earth is provided by God. Man depends on God for his
Sustenance and existence on earth.
1.2
GOD,
THE CREATOR (Genesis 1 and 2)
The account of God’s creation of the earth, as contained
in the book of Genesis, is narrated in two ways:
First
Story
The account of the first story of the creation indicates
that God first created heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and
void and darkness was upon the face of the earth (deep); and the spirit of God was moving upon the face of the waters.
On the first day, God created light when he said “let there be light” and there was light.
God separated the light from the darkness and God called the light day and the
darkness he called night and the evening and the morning was the first day.
On the second day, God created the firmaments in the
midst of the waters, under the heaven to be gathered together into one place
and the dry land (earth) appeared. He
called the dry land earth and the waters that gathered together He called seas,
and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning was the second
day
On the third day of
creation, God created the dry ground, seas, plants, and trees (Genesis 1:9–13).
Using the foundation He created on the first day of creation, the Lord began to
form the earth into a place suitable for life. And the evening and the morning
was the third day.
On the fourth day, God
created the sun and the moon and the stars to give light to the earth. And the
evening and the morning was the fourth day.
On the fifth day, God
created the living things/creatures, the fish and all the sea creatures and the
birds of the air. God saw they were good. He blessed them and commanded them to
be fruitful, the fish to fill the waters and the seas and the birds to fill the
earth.
On the sixth day, God
created animals of different kinds. On the same day, He created man when he
said; “let us make man in our own image
and after our likeness.” So man was created in God’s image, to control all
the things created on earth and he was given the power to have dominion over
them.
On the seventh day, God
rested from the work. He, therefore, blessed the seventh day and hallowed it,
to mark the end of his work of creation.
Important
Facts about the First Creation Story
a. The Sovereignty of God was Established:
the story of the first creation established the sovereignty of God in the
following ways:-
i.
God has total power and control over all the
things He had created.
ii.
We can learn from the creation activities
that all the things God created came through the spoken word “let there be”.
iii.
It equally shows that God is the controller
of the universe.
iv.
It also shows that God is a law maker for
all the creatures He had made in the entire universe.
b. It demonstrated the nature of God: the
nature of God in the story of the first creation was demonstrated in the
following ways;
i.
God has sovereignty over all creations/God
has control over situations
ii.
God’s spoken word translated into visible
reaction.
iii.
No creature determines its own nature but
only God.
iv.
God delegates power to man. E.g. man was
made in the likeness of God to have power over all creatures.
v.
God was not created by someone. He is the
alpha and omega.
vi.
God is a man of authority, not anarchy.
vii.
Creative action did not stop, it continues
even till now with the innate power of creation.
viii.
God is a Man of Perfection at the Perfect time;
all that he created was good.
Second Story
After
the heaven and the earth and creatures might have been created, there was no
plant on earth, no rain, except the dew that watered the earth from heaven and
no man to till the soil of the land. God formed the first Man named Adam in his
own image and after his likeness (as he said in the first story) out from the
dust and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living
being. And God then created the Garden of Eden and made it a living place for a
living being (Adam). The garden of Eden was made beautifully with all kinds of
trees full with sweet fruits, flowers and rivers to water the plants and trees.
The riviers were divided into four namely:- River Pishon, River Gihion, River
Tigris, and River Euphrates. River
Pishon; it flows aroud the whole land of Havilah where there was gold. River Gihon; it flows around whole land
of Cush. River Tigris; it flows east of Assyria. Inside the graden of Eden
was tree of the knowledge of good and God commanded Adam not to eat out of it
or else he would die.
So that he should not be alone, Other living
creatures, the beasts and the brides
were created and man gave them names by which they should be called. To get a
helper fit for man, He caused man (Adam) to fall into a deep sleep and He took
a rid out of man and created a woman (Eve). Eve was called woman because she
was created out of the ribs of man .
Important Facts About the Second
Creation Story
a) The Sovereignty of God was Revealed.
The second creation story portrayed the sovereignty of God as follows:
i.
It portrays God as the creator of the heaven
and earth.
ii.
God has every control over what He created.
iii.
God saw that it was not good for man to live
alone, therefore, He made a helper for
him.
iv.
The institution of marriage was established
for the continuity of procreation.
b) The Functions assigned to man was
signified: the function assigned to man in the second
