The Sovereignty of God in the Book of Acts

Dr. Couch, I have been fascinated with so many verses on the sovereignty of God in the book of Acts. I didn't realize how prevalent that subject was throughout the Bible. ANSWER: My favorite verse on God's sovereignty in relation to our life, and even our death, is found in Acts 13:36. In fact, this is one of my theme verses in the NT. Paul said, "For David after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep, and was laid among his fathers, and underwent decay." David died only after God was through with his ministry, not any sooner or later! God is in charge of our existence. Now He may give us medicine and doctors to keep us going, in this generation that we are living in, but even that is part of His plan. It is no accident that we are so blessed. We will still die when He says it is time! Another heart-stopper on God's sovereignty is 4:27-28. God gathered together all of the actors involved in the crucifixion of Christ to cause them "to do whatever Thy hand and Thy purpose predestined to occur." The word predestined means to "before encircle." God's plans were put into place eons in the past. He is now carrying out what He designed to happen. The verb "to occur" means "to come about, to happen, to become." God makes things happen; He is in charge! Even though human beings are active, and responsible, we are not the first cause of all things—God is! I heard recently about a pastor who was teaching the sovereignty of God from Romans 9. About four couples just "walked." They left the church! Their egos could not tolerate the doctrine of God's sovereignty! In my opinion, they left the church out of their ignorance and evil hearts. They did not want God to be God! And, they disrespected the pastor's authority and failed to try to understand what the Bible was teaching. Another passage about God's sovereignty and His working in our lives comes from James 5:13-16. James says we should not put weight on our own plans for next year, because we are just a vapor, "that appears for a little while and then vanishes away." He then adds, "What you ought to say is, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and also do this or that.'" If the Lord wills is the key! James implies that it is our arrogance that denies His sovereignty! He then states: "But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil" (v. 16). I have two sayings for my students: "Who do we think we are?" And, "Who is in charge?" The answers are obvious. We are nothing, and God is in control! Thanks for asking. Dr. Mal Couch