“My Times Are in Your Hand” (Biola) (Part 1 of 2)

If you like crap in the book, wind forces, like transfer fate or nature. We are helpless to do anything except react to whatever comes your way today on Truth for Life. Alistair Begg explains how God's word addresses these real feelings helpsthe most difficult trials or messages titled my times are in your hand and were in Psalm 31. My times are in your hand rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from my persecutors and on phrase for this morning is my times are in your hand.

My times are in your hand. Go gone. The postimpressionist painter that painted lots of very graphic pictures, particularly of women from the islands. He led a dissolute life. Although brought up as Roman Catholic and catechized, and he was not known for writing on his paintings apart from signing them. But I'm one of those most famous paintings depicting the journey of man from birth to the grave he wrote on the top corner on the left-hand corner of the right-hand corner as we would look at it in the gallery. He wrote three questions do then on new kits on new who are long new way to become from what are we, where we going. Unfortunately he had no answer for those questions. He died in his 50s as a result really have a life that was lived in excess without finding answers to those questions.

In contrast, the catechism, the Heidelberg corrupted a little asks the question, what is our only hope in life and death provides the answer that we are not our own belonging body and soul both in life and death to God and to our Savior Jesus Christ.

You see, one of the distinguishing marks of the Christian of a Christian worldview is to be found in the way in which he or she views the passing of time and the ordering of the events of life to think Christian lady is to have a radical shift in the way in which we view all of these issues and to be able to affirm my times of God are in your hands is a Christian thing to do and someone just to say three things on the strength of that this morning so this morning is about the Ford were laying down the foundation it to say, my times are in your hands means what it means. Number one that I am not trapped in the grip of blind forces. I am not trapped in the grip of blind forces.

They put me in the philosophy house. I don't know if you knew that you had a philosophy house, but I am in the philosophy house is quite wonderful. I got in there and I said to myself I don't know what I think about this and then I said, I think, therefore I am. And I will have this morning I said what a piece of work is man how noble in reason how infinite in faculty and foremen moving our expressing admirable no no I didn't I didn't at all but but Paul was invited to the philosophy house in Athens and when he got there. Remember that some of the thinkers were dominated by the thoughts of a man called Zeno he lived in the fourth century and he taught that the events of the world are determined by a merciless cold and impersonal fate and he also taught that instead of trying to struggle with the head and struggle with the circumstances to change them. What you really need to do is simply accept things in a spirit of resignation case Arras or whatever will be will be this blind impersonal force which the Stoic actually believed to direct the affairs of life was in essence a personification of nature of nature.

And so, although they didn't have the weather forecast the way we have the weather forecast the least. I assume they don't they didn't have some particularly pretty little girl sitting out there trying to come up with what you say in Southern California by the weather you know is that I was with the easiest job in the world but anyway that's by the way, but but when when she sits there and she says let's see what mother nature has for us today that is in some sense an expression of the notion that somehow or another. There are forces over which we have no control for those you love James Taylor to be familiar with this song Gaia and that whole philosophical basis where individual cells make up a single global organism that constitutes the air and we somehow or another are all caught up inside of the David Wells commenting on this kind of things as contemporary spiritualities take many different forms.

Hinduism New Age Kabbalah radical environmentalism. All the self-made spiritualities have in common a view of reality that is pantheistic. All of them assume in one way or another that nature encloses and contains the sacred. See, for example, Avatar. The assumption is that the way we make contact with God is by finding him within ourselves, but we say my times are in your hands are not held in the grip of dark deterministic forces, nor secondly am I tossed about on a notion of chance.

Epicurus who followed later on is best known for his ethics, namely good good good is what brings you the greatest pleasure he really should've lived in the 60s.

As I lived in the 60s so that he could have turned on and tuned in and dropped out because his underlying philosophy declare that everything happens by chance and since there's nothing before birth and there is nothing after death. The best you can do is live the life of old King Cole, who was a merry old soul. If you remember from your days in your nursery old King Cole was a merry old soul and a merry old soul was see the golfers pipe in the middle of the night and he called for his fiddlers three and it goes on from there is really not very is it is not very biblical as an approach by legislator although Epicurus and his followers did not actually follow their views to their logical and absurd conclusion.

Others have done so. So, for example, Sartre. In his novel nausea. You will remember, describes his character for Quentin walking in the city park and being overcome by what he referred to as the nausea of the meaninglessness of life and as he looks around he concludes that every existent is born without reason prolongs itself out of weakness and dies by chance he really should've put out on a T-shirt. You know, it would've been wonderful when it just on the back of a T-shirt as you get up in the morning and to remind yourselves you pull it over your head.

I'm born without reason I prolong myself out of weakness and I die. By chance have a good day. I see the absurdity of that, you can embrace the philosophy but you can live with it for more than five minutes now without jumping off a bridge will end up moving from existentialism into nihilism. You will be with Woody Allen who is a poster boy for nihilism.

Not only is God dad what you can get a plumber when you need one. That kind of thing.

That sense of absolute absurdity is an old film nihilism of the dead boy society, captured it fairly well. Robin Williams taking those fellows out into the corridor showing them all the faces of the people who were the students of an earlier era and suggesting to them that they seize the moment sees the day is antenna biblical Jesus said sufficient under the days the evil there is not what he said no, he's saying that is Williams is saying what Nietzsche was saying, namely that there is nothing yesterday. There is no tomorrow. The. Therefore, you only have the now Jesus is saying the known matters because of what happened yesterday and because of what I have for you tomorrow. Listen to Nietzsche there remains only void man is falling. His dignity is gone is volumes are lost. There is no difference between up and down.

It is become chilly and the dark Knight is closing in, and he goes on to say just move among the everyday citizens and you will discover one that people rarely read to that they seldom think and three that they snatch pleasures at random to relieve the monotony and drudgery of their life's what a statement and Try it out. Sit and watch as the world goes by looking at all these lonely people.

Where do they all come from many of them have have embraced these philosophies without understanding the either believe that somehow or another they have no control over anything that is going on around them. They are predetermined.

They are hardwired in some way tracked. They are enclosed they are encapsulated in, under the rule of malevolent forces or that the whole thing is a sick joke that there is no reason for them showing up, and there is no place for them to go and into that world.

The Christian believer, the buyer only student goes out to to serve in the realm of science goes out to serve in the realm of commerce goes out to move amongst these people in the arts and plan whereas the reason for the hope that we have we have an opportunity to say to them, I got another take on this. I actually believe something that was said a long, long time ago by a fellow on one occasion when he was having a bad day on the road a little song. Most of it was a dirge but I had a nice little part in it and when he got to the nice parties that I trust you got my times are in your hands so I'm not held in the grip of dark forces. I'm not tossed around in the sea of chance, but I am being trained in the school of God's providence. I am being trained in the school of God's providence. Second question in the catechism is what is God, the answer is God is the creator and sustainer of everyone and everything. He is eternal, infinite and unchangeable in his power and perfection in his goodness and glory in his wisdom, justice and truth. Nothing happens except through the end and by his will. Nothing happens except through him and by his will. So, when men and women are smothered by existentialism. Some embrace the superficiality of hedonism. You as a believer embrace the truth that God is not abandon the world that he is made for that is deism, nor is he confused with his nature that I mean with nature itself with creation not easy confused with creation, for that would be pantheism, but rather he is working within his creation to manage everything according to his plan. So we teach our children and our grandchildren before there was time before there was anything there was God and that God is the creator and sustainer of everyone and everything so you may teacher grandchildren to saying you know but you probably shouldn't if I were a butterfly. I thank you Lord for my nice wings. This is an old song.

You only know if you're as old as me and and and if I were Robin and the tree. I thank you Lord that I could see is this a strange thought that if you'd been here like 40 years ago. The band would've been leading this kind of stuff, you know, and you would get a chance to do the actions and if I were a fuzzy was he bear right thank you Lord for my fuzzy was he air but I just thank you father for making me me because you gave me a heart and you gave me a smile and you gave me, Jesus, and you made me your child and I just thank you father for making me me you have put my eyes on the phone, not my visit at exactly as you designed you have determine my DNA.

You are sovereign over my gray matter capacity you are in charge of the balance of my habitation.

You are sovereign, just as we been singing this morning, no matter how bad the sadness is, no matter how great deep, the overwhelming flood is I have to come back to the fact that my times are in your hands on being schooled in the school of your providence burped off the systematic theologian defines Providence as the continued exercise of the divine energy, whereby the creator preserves all his creatures is operative and all that comes to pass in the world and directs all things to their appointed and Packers as God is completely in charge of his world, his hand may be hidden, but his rule is absolute and what is he doing well is working everything out, in conformity with the purpose of his will. What is the purpose of his will to put together a people that are his very own from every tribe, language's nation, tongue so long and to unite them in their avowed commitment to the lordship and kingship of Jesus.

No matter where they are in the entire universe, and one day that company will be assembled, and on that day, they will declare salvation belongs to the Lord who sits upon the throne to the Lamb who sits upon the throne and in the process of moving his children to that ultimate end. He has one single purpose in view and let me tell you what it is. This is what God is seeking to do in your life in a phrase he is seeking working to make you like his son Jesus. That's what he's doing. That's the significance of Romans 828 and we know that in all these things, God is working them together for the good of those who left him been called according to his purpose. You, but what about the fight that my mother just died and she's only in her 40s. What about the fight and my sister had a stillborn child.

What about the fact that my spouse just got and ask what about the overwhelming magnitude of a world that seems to be spinning out of control. What you doing God I'm going to make you like Jesus.

If you doubt this, read your Bible.

Romans eight it is God's eternal purpose. Those he predestined he did so, so that they might be conformed to the image of his son. Second Corinthians chapter 3 what is happening to us.

We are being changed into his likeness. What is our ultimate prospect. First, John, and when we see him going to be like him, so it is his eternal purpose. It is his existential purpose and it is his eschatological purpose. So you're going to go back and do your term paper you're going to go back to whatever you've got to do the rest of the day you need to be saying to yourself routinely number one.

My times are in your hands.

They don't seem like good of the moment. I'm overwhelmed by whatever might be, but I'm I'm affirming this I I am affirming the psalmist.

This truth and I'm also reminded thanks that that funny Scottish guy cape that I am also reminded of what you're doing in the midst of all this is going to make me like Jesus and you got a big job on your hands God because I'm not a lot like him just now, but you're the only one that could accomplish 03… And these are all issues of our lives are under his control. The blue the where the what the landing of my existence. So is the foundation of great comfort. We might as well believe there is no God as believe in a guard who doesn't see it doesn't hear the doesn't care. And it is an act right. I got a dozen other future. As Augustine said, when we got a guard who couldn't see us and no ice and care for us.

Jesus constantly argues from the from the lesser to the greater density memory says if you being evil or earthly know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly father give good things to them that ask you he looks around at the circumstances of his day, and he uses these elements around him in order to make his point are not two sparrows sold for a penny, you know, one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your father you kidding me, Jesus is saying that the sovereignty of God Almighty extends to the lifespan of sparrows or say some metaphor, not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your father than some of the metaphor doesn't and even the very hairs of your head are number which is easier for some heads than others. So don't be afraid you are worth more than many sparrows.

Some of you don't have to write resumes you may have begun writing resumes.

You also know your facts and got your folks to extol your virtues, and so on. I I have a suggestion for you. This just into this or not do it. I am seen anyone do it.

I've suggested a few times, but just as you're finishing up your arrested resume and if he was saying. What if you done with you being and so on. Everything tell me about yourself.

Just put right down to the bottom to say I am worth more than many sparrows just for that on the bottom and they person is interviewing you for grad school go through the thing as far as the possibly can because the grad school tells the only read it it they don't read the things probably spend an average of 1.7 seconds going through your application so there you go and and some is as a way to minute we got a weirdo here your life to live with you. I think I will interview this one and and when and when they ask you what is the spiral thing about you can tell I'm not held in the grip of blind forces. My life is not simply tossed around in the sea of chance and being schooled in the Academy of God's providence because my times are in your hands.

That is Alister Greg reminding us that all of us are being trained in the school of God's providence listening to Truth for Life. If you're a student dealing with doubt, wrestling with objections to Christianity from some of your fellow students, or even from professors. We want to recommend to you a book titled surviving religion 101 letters to a Christian student on keeping the faith in college.

This is a book that will help you overcome any doubts you might have also given the confidence to explain why you believe the things you believe in, it will help you do it with kindness and with compassion while you're at school. Your Christian faith is can be put to the test. The book surviving religion 101 anticipates the kinds of questions you can be asked like why do you believe Jesus is the only way to salvation. Why would a loving God allow suffering?

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This book will give you clear helpful answers so you won't be caught off guard requester copy of the book surviving religion 101 when you donate it's easy. Click the image you see on the app or visit our website Truth for Life.org/donate and if you're away at school and you have not yet downloaded the Truth for Life mobile app you'll find it free in your app store. The app provides daily Bible teaching from Alister over three gives you a complete online ESV Bible, and it provides access to Alister's entire teaching archive the Truth for Life app is a great way for you to learn from the Bible on your own schedule.

Whatever you have a break from studying now here is Alister to close with prayer are gone now. Father, we thank you this morning that you are a sovereign God and a compassionate father and that you are the friend of sinners and we discover that you are a God who is come sneak in, as it were, under the radar of our rebellious hearts and open them up to the truth and reality of your gracious plan for us.

I pray particularly Lord for some were going through it here today, perhaps even say no God, just give me just give me something just just a phrase dumped on don't load me down while they may Psalm 3115 your help and encouragement to such a one, and we ask you to help assess the hours of the day unfold that we might be a help and not a hindrance to each other as we seek to live out the truths that we now affirm hear our prayers and let our Christ come unto you, for Jesus sake. Amen. I'm Bob pain is God's sovereignty excuse us from personal responsibility well.

No course not, but find out why you join us tomorrow for part two of my times are in your hand Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life or the learning is for