Sovereignty that sings

Image Sour
Image Sour

The LORD shall reign for ever and ever. Exodus 15:18

We should not forget that this verse was a part of the Song of Moses, sung by exultant Israelites who had experienced a wonderful and unexpected deliverance from the Egyptian chariots whose horse and rider God had thrown into the sea. What this means is that their confession of God's eternal and unchanging sovereignty over all things came at the end of over 400 years of bondage and slavery. Some people will want to give that as Exhibit A that God is not sovereign. But that is not the way the Israelites saw it.

And make no mistake about it: it's not like they were unaware of the previous 400 year history. But the reality is that it was precisely that background that underlined the sovereignty of God so clearly. God's sovereignty would not have been displayed with such clarity had it not been for their long status as slaves in the land of the Pharaohs.

We can try to understand why God would allow such a state of affairs for so long, but let us not get so bogged down in that question (which we will probably never be able to answer this side of heaven) that we miss the glorious hope that God's sovereignty gives us. The fact that God is sovereign means that no matter how oppressed his people become by the wicked in this world, there will always and inevitably be deliverance - and not just any deliverance but deliverance that makes them sing.

It will be so at the end of all things. As the apostle John looks to the future of Christ's return, he sees another congregation, a heavenly congregation, singing, "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. 11:15; 15:1-4). God has not changed. The Song of Moses will be sung again and again. God was sovereign when he delivered Moses and the children of Israel from Egypt and he is sovereign today. And his sovereignty will be ultimately displayed for all his people when he makes all the kingdoms of this world subservient to Christ. Yes, my friend, there will be deliverance for you if you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, for he is the Lord who reigns now and forever.

By: Jeremiah Bass