Jesse Duplantis - If youve got a mountain, Gods got a word

The Sovereignty of God

Dr. Jesse Duplantis

Contents

Introduction
1 Does Everything Good and Bad Come from God?
2 Sovereignty and Healing
3 What Is A Sovereign Act of God?
4 The Lessons of Job, A Godly and Prosperous Man
5 When God Gets the Blame
6 Jesus, the Light of the World

Introduction

"My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of My lips."

Psalm 89:34

When bad things happen and people don't know what to say, there is a word that inevitably comes up to explain the problem away. It is sovereignty.

Sovereignty is a theological term which refers to God's right and power to do whatever He wants to do.

When healing doesn't manifest or when babies die and hurricanes blow houses away, Christians will often site "the sovereignty of God" as the reason for the tragedy. "He's God," they say. "He's sovereign and can do whatever He wants to do." That sounds good enough, doesn't it? But, there is a real problem with this kind of thinking.

You see, if you believe that God doesn't keep His Word and that He will break His promises, then sovereignty as a reason for tragedy makes real sense.

But, if you believe that God is righteous and just, that He will honor His Word and His promises to you, then this kind of reasoning falls to pieces with even the smallest amount of scripture. The Bible itself is filled with promises and stories of how God honors His Word.

God is sovereign and has unlimited power, no doubt about it. Yet, He has chosen to limit Himself to what He will and will not do concerning mankind, and He spelled it out in His Word. This makes Him sovereign, outside of His Word.

Can God do anything? Yes. Will God do anything? No. God has already said what He'll do in many situations in the Holy Bible. God has chosen to bind Himself with His own Word, and that's what makes Him so worthy of our trust.

God promises, "My covenant will I not break,

nor alter the thing that is gone out of My lips" (Psalm 89:34). We know that He can't lie, and we know the father of all lies is the devil (See Titus 1:2; John 8:44). Yet, people still talk about God as if He breaks promises on a whim. This is not true.

God is a promise-keeper, not a promise-breaker.

I'm going to share some truth with you about God and His unchanging Word on healing, the story of Job, God's wrath, and babies that die too young. My hope is that you will come away with a greater understanding of the faithfulness of your Father, God.

Chapter 1

Does Everything Good and Bad Come from God?

Traditional thinking says that everything good comes from God and everything bad comes from God. But, if that's true, what is the devil doing?

Twiddling his thumbs in hell?

Many people have ignorantly blamed God for killing babies, sending sickness and withholding healing from believers, instead of holding the true culprit responsible for killing, stealing, and destroying lives.

Even in the Old Testament, it is clear that most people were in the dark about God. They thought that God did everything good as well as everything bad.

They really didn't have a revelation of the devil and his works.

In the New Testament, Jesus came on the scene to let us know the truth about God and the devil.

We needed somebody to come down here and wipe out our sin so we could see clearly and really know God on a personal level. That someone who did this for us was Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus redeemed man from sin and gave us victory over satan. Jesus washed away the sin-barrier between God and man with His shed blood (Matt. 26:28; 1 John 1:7; Heb. 9:14; Eph. 1:7, 2:13; Col. 1:20).

Yet, before Jesus ever went to the cross, He taught us some valuable lessons about life's ups and downs. Jesus revealed more about the devil than was previously known through His teachings and His life examples. He was revolutionary in every way.

Jesus was the first to shine a bright light on the devil's work within the earth. He said,

"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the Good Shepherd: the Good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep" (John 10:10-11).

Jesus exposed the devil. It was as if He was saying, and I'm paraphrasing here: 'There's a devil roaming the earth. He's trying to kill you, steal from you, and destroy you. He's bad and wants to take your life. But I am good and I want to give you a good life.

I want to guide you and nourish you like a Good Shepherd. In fact, I love you so much that I'm going to die for you.'

Jesus Exposed Demons

When Jesus came on the scene, He didn't watch idly as satan tormented and afflicted people. He did something about it. He had compassion on the people.

He spoke truth. He went around doing good deeds.

He also did miracles. He healed, He raised the dead.

He delivered all that were oppressed by the devil.

"How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: Who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with Him" (Acts 10:38).

Do you ever read of Jesus putting sickness on someone? Do you ever read of Him oppressing anyone or hurting anyone? If Jesus didn't do it in His life, what makes you think that He'll do it now? After all, isn't it good to heal? Isn't it good to save? Isn't it good to help others?

Ask yourself, if healing were not from God, would Jesus have done it? If deliverance was not from God, would Jesus have freed so many?

Jesus was good, and He served a good Father. He knew people would have a hard time believing that He was the Son of God, so He said,

"Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works' sake" (John 14:10-11).

In other words, Jesus wants us to believe that He is completely linked to His Father, in Word and in will. Jesus also wants us to look at His works. They are a clue about Who He was when He was here on earth and what He was here for. They also give us insight into what He means to do for us today.

Jesus always spoke well of His Father, and when it was needed, He put the devil and his demons in their placeunder His feet! At one point, demons actually spoke up to Jesus and said, "...What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God? Art Thou come hither to torment us before the time?" (Matt. 8:29).

Isn't that something?! The demons thought they were being tormented! They were upset because they were finally getting a little payback, Jesus-style!

Glory! That makes me want to shout!

Not only did Jesus take authority over the devil and his works, He also told us that we could do the same. John 14:12 says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father."

Read through the Gospels again and see how much authority Jesus exercised over the devil. He didn't give him one inch! And, He never blamed His Father for anything. He only sought to bring glory to the Father and to put the devil in his place. Through Christ's great example, we can learn how to live in authority too, to rebuke and resist the devil when needed, and to always give the utmost respect to our Father, God.

God Always Keeps His Promises

One time while I was praying, the Lord spoke something to my heart that I believe may help you to understand the way He works. He said, "Jesse, My Word shall not return unto Me void. But it is very possible that My Word can return unto you void."