Examples of God's Providence

Gen 46:3  And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation.

The sons of Jacob returned to Canaan and informed him that Joseph was alive and was now the prime minister of Egypt and that Joseph had requested for all of them to go to Egypt so that he could take care of them. The famine would last another five years and Egypt looked like their only hope. But Jacob hesitated and was fearful. Should he go down to Egypt? God appeared to him and assured him that it was alright to go to Egypt. Every doubt was dispelled by this Divine manifestation.

Why was Jacob apprehensive about going down to Egypt?
1. He was already 130 years old and feared he might not make the journey.
2. He feared lest his sons should be influenced by the idolatrous ways of the Egyptians.
3. He remembered that God had said to Abraham concerning the bondage and affliction of his seed in a foreign land (Gen 15:13) and was fearful it might proved to be true.
4. He remembered that God had called his father Abraham out of Ur to come to Canaan, the Promised Land given by God to them (Gen 17:8) and he was not sure if he should leave the land of promise and settled elsewhere.

God appeared to him and removed all his fear. Jacob knew it was the will of God. He believed now that it was the Providence of God who had sent Joseph to Egypt to preserve life, even as Joseph himself had said (Gen 45:5). Jacob obeyed and left Canaan for Egypt.

Egypt was part of God’s plan in the scheme of redemption. In Egypt, the nation of Israel was born. Egypt provided the perfect environment for the nation of Israel to multiply exceedingly and at a speed beyond our wildest imaginations (Exo 1:9).

We see the Providence of God in the making. We are short sighted. But God can see the future; He has been there long before we get there. Hence, as we read the life of Joseph, we see how Providence made used of the characters of his brothers and used them for His purpose. And we see how Providence chose Joseph, a young man who was innocent, pure, holy, and steadfast in his faith, to accomplish His will.

Do you allow God to use you? If God could use the character of Joseph’s brethren, the seductress Delilah, the wicked Haman in the book of Esther, and the covetous Judah, and fit them into His divine plan, He could certainly use anyone too. Don’t get me wrong: God did not make them wicked and sinful people above all men; they were already of such devious characters and God just fitted them into His scheme of redemption. Providence uses anyone and anything that is available on hand and fit them for His purpose. God did not make Judah to be covetous; he was covetous by his own making.

God can use you. He would use the kind of character that is in you to fit in His daily providence. The question is: Are you Judah or Joseph? What kind of character will you be playing in God’s Providences?

The apostle Paul wrote concerning the church: “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour” (2 Tim 2:20).

There are many kinds of character in the Lord’s church. Some are spiritual and some are not. Some are godly and some are worldly. Some are faithful and some are not. Which part in God’s big jigsaw puzzle are you? God did not cause some to be unspiritual, worldly, or unfaithful; they become such themselves by their own choice. The question therefore is: What am I in the house of God?

You can be an instrument for good or for bad; the choice is yours. Of course, God desires you to be good and make the church grow. If you know you are unspiritual, unfaithful, worldly, inactive, and you want to be spiritual and faithful, you have to make the change yourself. Paul wrote: “If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work” (2 Tim 2:21).

Are you fitted for the Master’s use for bad or good? If you desire to be good vessels in the great house of God, you have to purge yourself and become holy and sanctified, meet for the Master to use you.

Jimmy Lau
Psa 119:97  Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.