In his sermon on the Second London Baptist Confession, Chapter 5, Paragraph 4, Nate Wikman explores the complex relationship between God's sovereignty and human responsibility. He highlights the difficulty in reconciling these concepts without compromising their integrity. According to Wikman, God's providence extends over all actions, including sinful ones, but the sinfulness arises from creatures, not God. The sermon emphasizes that such theological complexities should inspire humility and wonder at God's wisdom rather than doubt. Wikman uses various scriptural references to illustrate God's control over human actions and the distinct responsibility humans bear for their sins. He draws on the example of Assyria in Isaiah 10 to demonstrate God's use of nations as instruments of judgment while still holding them accountable for their actions. The sermon concludes by affirming the justice, holiness, and goodness of God, encouraging believers to worship and glory in His wisdom.

This morning's reading from the Second London Baptist Confession, Chapter 5 of Divine Providence, paragraph 4. The Almighty Power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God, so far manifest themselves in His providence, that His determinate counsel extendeth itself even to the first fall, and to all other sinful actions both of angels and men, and that not by a bare permission, which also He most wisely and powerfully boundeth, and otherwise ordereth and governeth, in a manifold dispensation to his most holy ends. Yet so as the sinfulness of their acts proceedeth only from the creatures not from God, who being most holy and righteous neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin. Before I start here, I have this in my opening notes, but I just wanted to say it twice, I guess. This paragraph of the confession, I found it to be a pretty difficult one, but at the same time one that's humbling and just causes or should cause us to glory and wonder at God and give him worship and praise for his wisdom versus as some might turn to unbelief when they can't understand the secret things of God.

But in opening, this is a particularly difficult paragraph of the Confession because it deals with two differences that cannot be reconciled in the human mind without great danger of compromising the integrity of either seemingly opposing truths. The two truths at hand today fall under the overarching themes of man's responsibility and God's sovereignty, and what we are particularly dealing with today is God's sovereignty in the evil actions of his creatures in the unbroken justice and goodness of God's character. We can summarize this in the following two statements. God orders and governs the evil actions of men, And while ordained by God, man is fully responsible for the sinfulness of his actions. I think there are many truths in the Bible that are incomprehensible to the human mind.

These include the Trinity, the virgin birth, the pre-existence of God, and many others. And these should produce humility in us rather than doubt and cause us to glory and wonder at God. This morning I'll attempt from God's Word to make clear each of these truths, but I cannot reconcile them, nor does God's Word attempt to do so either. Quoting from John MacArthur, the Bible is simply not concerned about reconciling divine judgment with any human assumptions about justice or fairness. Scripture simply explains what God did and we are to understand that it was just and fair because he did it.

So turning to the confession, sometimes we have difficulty understanding truths because they are, as Peter said of some of Paul's writings, things that are hard to understand. In other times the difficulty can come from changes in language and the meaning of words, and at times this can be true of the 1689 Baptist Confession. So to remove any confusion from this source, I've tried to paraphrase this paragraph while remaining true to the original meaning and to Scripture. The most difficult section for me to understand in this paragraph was Phrases 11 and 12, in that not by a bare permission which he most wisely and powerfully binds, and otherwise orders and governs, in a manifold dispensation to his most holy ends. I spent some time going over this in my mind and referred to Webster's 1828 dictionary for the definitions of manifold and dispensation.

Well, most everyone will know what manifold means. With the older English words, it's helpful sometimes to have a definition in your mind. And according to Webster, the definition of the word is, quote, of diverse kinds, many in number, numerous, multiplied, exhibited or appearing at diverse times or in various ways. So I found it easy to think of this as in terms of an open display. The word dispensation was a little more difficult and it has four meanings according to Webster.

The first being the act of distribution. The second, the dealing of God to his creatures, distribution of good and evil and divine judgment. Third, the granting of license or license itself. And four, that which is dispensed or bestowed. To the context of this paragraph, in supporting places in the Bible have made the third definition, which was the granting of license or license itself, appear to me to be the intent behind the use of the words in the confession, because we're dealing with God's right or authority to accomplish His will and His ways.

So I've paraphrased paragraph four in this way. God's power, wisdom, and goodness are seen in His providence to the extent that even Adam's fall and the sinful actions of men and angels are governed by his sovereignty. The sovereignty over sinful actions is not simply or only by permission, but is ordered and governed by God in an open display of God's license and the accomplishment of his purposes, all of which are just and good. Notwithstanding this all-encompassing sovereignty of God, the sinfulness of the evil deeds comes only from the creatures and not from God, who because of his holy and righteous character is not and can never be the author or approver of sin. So as previously mentioned, we have two seemingly opposing truths, and I summarized those earlier as God orders and governs the actions of evil men, and while ordained by God, man is fully responsible for the sinfulness of his actions.

So when faced with two truths that can seem in contradiction, we need to examine God's Word as it touches each of these and pray for humility and understanding, but also recognize that we will never fully understand all of God's revelation in this life, and this is a good segue into Romans 11, 32 through 34, where we are reminded of the infinite wisdom of God and the unsearchableness of His judgments. For God has committed them all to disobedience that he might have mercy on all. Oh, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God, how unsearchable are his judgments in his ways past finding out. For who has known the mind of the Lord or who has become his counselor?" So let's now briefly examine some verses on God's sovereignty over men. Proverbs 21, 1 says, the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, and like the rivers of water, he turns it wherever he wishes.

Psalm 105, verse 25, he turned their heart to hate his people to deal craftily with his servants. Exodus 9-12, but the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not heed them just as the Lord had spoken to Moses. So here we have three verses showing God holding the heart of man in his hand and ordering man's actions. But in my mind, one of the clearest sections of scripture on the issue is Isaiah chapter 10 verses 5 through 16. So go ahead and turn there with me.

I'm just going to read through that. It's a little bit of a longer passage. But Isaiah chapter 10 verses 5 through 16. Woe to Assyria, the rod of my anger, in the staff in whose hand is my indignation. I will send him against an ungodly nation, and against the people of my wrath I will give him charge, to seize the spoiled, to take the prey, to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

Yet he does not mean so, nor does he think in his heart so, but it is in his heart to destroy and to cut off not a few nations. For he says, are not my princes altogether kings? Is not Calno like Harkamesh? And is not Hameth like Arpad? Is not Samaria like Damascus?

As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols whose carved images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria, as I have done to Samaria and to her idols, shall not I do also to Jerusalem and to her idols? Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has performed all his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem that he will say, I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the glory of his haughty looks. For he says, by the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom for I am prudent. Also I have removed the boundaries of the peoples and have robbed their treasuries, so I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man. My hand has found like a nest the riches of the people, and as one gathers eggs that are left, I have gathered all the earth, and there is no one who moved his wing, nor opened his mouth with even a peep.

Shall the axe boast itself against him who chops it, or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it, as if a rod could wield itself against those who lifted up, or as if a staff could lift up as if it were not wood. Therefore the Lord, the Lord of hosts, will send leanness among his fat ones, and under his glory he will kindle a burning like the burning of a fire." So John MacArthur has an excellent article in this passage, and I'll quote a few sections from that this morning. On that he says, Now here you have a divine decree in action. God grabs Assyria by the nape of its national neck and assigns them to be the instrument of his fury against the godless people of Judah who have rejected and rebelled against him. And then he says in verse 7, yet it, Assyria, does not so intend nor does it plan in its heart.

Assyria is the instrument of God's judgment, and the Assyrians themselves are clueless about it. It was never Assyria's purpose, motive, or intention to serve God." So we have from scripture God's governing the actions of men, and now we'll see man's responsibility for those actions. As we just read in Isaiah, God pronounces judgment on Assyria and her king for their wicked destruction of Jerusalem. Returning to the article from MacArthur, he writes again, although God controls by divine decree and sovereign power everything that goes on in the world according to his own purposes, that does not remove one iota of culpability from those who do evil. Evil-doers do not do evil because they are forced to but by their own evil intent.

So God will judge them both for the act and the motive as well as for their failure to give them glory and to worship Him. And Isaiah never makes an attempt to resolve or explain away what man would regard as a judicial paradox. Scripture gives no indication that God's wrath against Assyria was anything but just and appropriate. The Bible is not simply concerned about reconciling divine judgment with any human assumptions about justice or fairness. Scripture simply explains what God did and we are to understand that it was just and fair because he did it." End quote.

So now let's turn to Romans 9, 17 through 21 which says, For the scripture says to the Pharaoh, for this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show my power in you, and that my name may be declared in all the earth. Therefore he has mercy in whom he wills, and whom he wills he hardens. You will say to me, why then does he still find fault, for who has resisted his will? But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing form say to him who formed it, Why have you made me like this?

Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel, for honor and another for dishonor? While this section from Romans is more on God's electing some to mercy and others to judgment, it does show that God still holds man responsible for his deeds. And again, this goes back to an apparent contradiction, that God ordains the actions of men and yet man is responsible for those actions. So here John Calvin is helpful writing, quote, hence man stumbled according as God had ordained, but he stumbled through his own fault. Calvin describes the reconciliation of God's sovereignty and man's responsibility as one of the many secrets of God, and that it, quote, should not pain us to yield our minds to God's boundless wisdom and leave him to his many secrets.

Further on, he continues, although in God's eternal providence man was created to experience his present misery, he nevertheless owed its substance to himself and not to God, for he is lost For no other reason than that from the pure nature which God gave him he has fallen into evil." End quote. I think Calvin has given us an apt summary of how we should understand sovereignty and responsibility. But before we end I'd like to read through some verses touching on God's holiness, goodness, and justice. Now I have a lot of verses here so you don't have to turn them to the mall, but I would like to read through them as we wrap up. So, on the holiness of God, Isaiah 6, 3, And one cried to another and said, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts.

The whole earth is full of his glory. Hebrews 7 26, for such a high priest was fitting for us who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, has become higher than the heavens. Revelation 4-8, the four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within, and they do not rest day or night, saying, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come. And on the goodness of God, Exodus 34, 6, and the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abounding in goodness and truth. First Chronicles 16, 34, O give thanks to the Lord for he is good, for his mercy endures forever.

Psalm 25, 8, Good and upright is the Lord, therefore he teaches sinners in the way. Psalm 33, 5, he loves righteousness and justice, the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. And on the justice of God, Job 34, 12, surely God will never do wickedly, nor will the Almighty pervert justice. Psalm 711, God is a just judge and God is angry with the wicked every day. Isaiah 30, 18b, for the Lord is a God of justice, blessed are all those who wait for him.

In Isaiah 61, 8, for I the Lord love justice, I hate robbery for burnt offering, and I'll direct their work and truth and will make with them an everlasting covenant. So an ending definitely a lot to think about in this paragraph of the confession, and these deep truths should lead us to wonder and glory at God and worship. Now if any of the Covenant-ed heads of households have a comment or something to add, you may do so at this time.