In the sermon 'Of Divine Providence, 1689 SLBC, Chap. 5, Par. 6' by Eric Bechler, the focus is on God's interaction with the wicked or reprobate, contrasting it with His relationship with the elect. The sermon breaks down how God blinds and hardens the hearts of the wicked, withholding His grace and withdrawing His gifts. Examples from scripture, such as passages from Romans, Deuteronomy, and Exodus, illustrate these concepts, showing God's sovereign will and the consequences of sin and rejection of God. The sermon emphasizes that grace is neither deserved nor earned, highlighting God's sovereignty in giving or withholding it. Real-life examples, like Brother Andrew's story of smuggling Bibles, demonstrate the power of divine providence. The sermon concludes with a call to gratitude for God's grace and gifts, urging believers not to take them for granted.

Our reading this morning from the Second London Baptist Confession of 1689, again comes from chapter 5 of Divine Providence, this week paragraph 6. Whom God as the righteous judge, for former sin doth blind and harden, from them he not only withholdeth his grace, whereby they might have been enlightened in their understanding and wrought upon their hearts, but sometimes also withdraws the gifts which they had and exposes them to such objects as their corruption makes occasion of sin, and with all gives them over to their own lusts the temptations of the world and the power of Satan, whereby it comes to pass that they harden themselves under those means which God useth for the softening of others." Okay, last week our focus was on God's providence with his children, with the elect, more specifically how God allows his children for a season to fall into the manifold temptations and corruptions of their hearts. Of course this is for God's glory and for our good. This week we turn our focus to the wicked, to those not called by God to the reprobate. We will look how God will blind and harden the wicked and ungodly men, how he will withhold his grace, how he will withdraw his gifts, and how he gives them over to their own lusts.

We'll break this morning's paragraph down into six different sections. As for those wicked and ungodly men whom God as the righteous judge for former sin doth blind and harden. Let's start with God blinding the wicked. From Paul's letter to the Romans we read in 11, 7, and 8, it was just read, what then Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for, but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded. According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear unto this day.

For those who have not obtained election, they were blinded. God gave them a spirit of slumber. There are many examples of God not allowing the wicked to see something. They can look directly at it but not notice it. As a real life example for you, I don't know if anybody's heard of Brother Andrew before.

He had a nickname of God's smuggler. He started a ministry to smuggle Bibles into communist countries, and he had a special prayer he would pray before each border crossing. Lord, in my luggage I have scripture I want to take to your children. When you were on earth, You made blind eyes see. Now I pray, make seeing eyes blind.

Do not let the guards see those things you do not want them to see." And God answered this prayer over and over and over. Many times the guards missed seeing the bibles laying in the back seat or even just passed him through the checkpoints without even searching his car. Besides blinding, God can also harden the hearts of the wicked. We turn back to Deuteronomy chapter 2 where the story picks up. After the 40 years of wandering in the desert, God commanded Israel to cross over the river Arnon and contend with Sion in battle.

Moses sent messengers to the king of Sion, asking to be allowed to pass through Pesoblipe, paying for food and water. Continuing in verse 30, we read, But Sion king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him, for the Lord thy God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate that he might deliver him into thy hand as it appears this day. So God hardened his spirit and hardened his heart. The children of Israel smote him and his sons and all his people. They took all the cities and utterly destroyed the men, the women, and the little ones of every city.

None remained. God's will was done." Continuing, from them he not only withholdeth his grace, whereby they might have been enlightened in their understanding and wrought upon their hearts. Grace by definition is neither deserved nor earned. There's no obligation for God to give grace to anyone in particular. He's free to give grace or to withhold grace.

It is totally at his good pleasure. We read in Paul's first letter to Timothy in chapter 1 verses 12 through 14. I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to a service. Though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent, but I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly and unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Without God's grace and without his mercy, Paul would not have been overflowed with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

He would have remained a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent opponent. He would have died in his sin and spent eternity in hell. This is an example of God not withholding his grace. We also read in Deuteronomy 29 where God had withheld his grace from his people Israel. In this passage Moses is calling Israel to renew their covenant with God and to hearken unto him in 29 2 through 4 and Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, You have seen all the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs and those great wonders.

Yet the Lord hath not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear unto this day. With God's grace, his people would have eyes to see and ears to hear unto this day. With God's grace his people would have eyes to see and ears to hear and a heart to understand. They would have been enlightened and they would have turned their hearts to God. Besides withholding his grace sometimes God withdraws his gifts but sometimes also withdrawal of the gifts which they had.

Here in Matthew chapter 25, Matthew tells us what happens with the giving and withdrawing of gifts. In verse 29, for unto everyone that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance, but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. Sometimes the removal of gifts is due to rebellion against God or rejecting him. Other times we might never actually know. Job didn't know why God allowed Satan to attack him and his family.

But Job acknowledged God's sovereignty in chapter 1 verse 21 and said, naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked I shall return thither. The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. He recognized God is sovereign and can do as he wills. In the next section he exposes them to such objects as their corruption makes occasion of sin.

We see here in this example an expression of grief expressed by Elisha when he meets with Haziel in Damascus. This grief of Elisha comes from his knowledge of the consequences of the sin that will be put on Israel, the fruits of their corruption. In 2 Kings 8, 12 and 13, and Haziel said, Why weepeth thou my lord? And he answered, Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel. Their strongholds wilt thou set on fire.

Their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and will dash their children and rip up their women with child. And Haziel said, But what is thy servant a dog that he should do this great thing? And Elisha answered, The Lord has showed me that thou shalt be king over Syria. So we see very grievous results from falling into sin and pursuing wicked ways. In the next section, and withal gives them over to their own lusts the temptations of the world and the power of Satan.

We read from Psalm 81 11 through 14, But my people would not harken to my voice, and Israel would none of me. So I gave them up unto their own hearts lusts, and they walked in their own councils. Oh that my people had hearkened unto me, and Israel had walked in my ways. I should soon have subdued their enemies and turned my hand against their adversaries." His people, Israel, were rejecting God, So he let them do their own thing, to do what was right in their own eyes. And they suffered the consequences of doing this.

God would have subdued their enemies if they had just hearkened under him, But he didn't. What is the fruit of sin? More sin. It's a downward spiral. In Paul's second letter to the Thessalonians, he warns them about the workings of Satan, and with all the deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish, because they receive not the love of the truth that they might be saved and for this cause God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie that they all might be damned who believe not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

And finally in Paul's letter to the Romans we read earlier but I'll reread, 1, 24 through 26. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts to dishonor their own bodies between themselves, who changed the truth of God into a lie and worshiped and served the creature more than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this cause, God gave them up unto vile affections, for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature. These are the fruits of the wicked and ungodly men.

And from the final section we read, whereby it comes to pass that they harden themselves under those means which God uses for the softening of others. We see from the story of Moses and Aaron approaching Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go. God at the beginning foretells that he will harden Pharaoh's heart so that God will be glorified. The whole world will see and hear about the power and glory of God. In verse 7-3, and I will harden Pharaoh's heart and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.

After the plague of the frogs, the second plague we read in 815, but when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart and hearken not unto them as the Lord had said. And after the fourth plague, the plague of flies, after God removed them from the land in Exodus 8 32, and Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go. This is repeated over and over. God can harden and soften hearts. God is sovereign.

His decrees are immutable. Here are a few verses contrasting those that are saved and those who will perish, those who see and hear, and those who do not. From 2nd Corinthians 2, 15, and 16, for we are unto God a sweet savor of Christ, in them that are saved and in them that perish. To the one we are the savor of death unto death, and the other the savor of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things.

In Isaiah 6, 9 through 10, and he said, Go and tell his people, hear ye indeed, but understand not, and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. Finally in 1st Peter chapter 2, 7, and 8, Unto you therefore which believe he is precious, but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at the word being disobedient, whereunto also they were appointed." So we see here the contrast of the hardening and the softening of hearts. Without God's grace, this is where we too would be. It's not because we have done anything special, nor that we have done anything to deserve or earn God's grace.

It's only by His good pleasure, by His immutable, eternal, sovereign will, We have a lot to be thankful for. And hopefully we live out our lives with that in our mind, that we live it with thanks and praise and that we Don't take such good and great gifts for granted. Amen.