If you have been reading the Bible, primarily the Old Testament for any length of time, for study or for enjoyment you definitely have come across the word “Sovereign”. The word or term “Sovereign” is used 298 times in the New International Version of the Old Testament and only 5 times in the NIV New Testament. As in this instance if a word or a term is used so often it obviously has a significant importance we need to fully understand.
The word “Sovereign” is exclusively used referring to God and is the seventh of His absolute attributes. What do we mean by God’s absolute attributes? The following excerpt from the Foursquare doctrine book, Foundations of Pentecostal Theology explains what it means this way. “It is not easy to categorize the Attributes of God. There are clearly two general kinds, but proper words to distinguish them are hard to find. One kind, only God possesses; another kind, man may possess to a limited degree. The kind that only God has I will call Absolute Attributes; the kind that can be shared with us I will call Moral Attributes.”
When the Bible uses this term, “Sovereign Lord” it is used to clearly identify this attribute or characteristic of God. However, do we really understand what the term “Sovereign Lord” is describing or telling us about who God is? How many times when reading God’s Word, we come across a word or a term such as this one but really do not know what it means? A good example is a word that we are all familiar with is the word “Holy” as it refers to God.
1 Peter 1:15-16
15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
Revelation 4:8
8 Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.”
In many Bible dictionaries the term “Sovereign” or “Sovereign Lord” is defined under the heading as the, “SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD — a theological term that refers to the unlimited power of God, who has sovereign control over the affairs of nature and history (Is. 45:9–19; Rom. 8:18–39). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible dictionary.
When we look at the term sovereignty by itself, we discover an additional aspect of meaning and application. Sovereignty – Kingdom, Kingship, reign, realm, royal dominion, royal honor, royal accomplishments. Of which we see described in the following verses.
Psalms 47:7-9
7 For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise. 8 God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. 9 The nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham, for the kings of the earth belong to God; he is greatly exalted.
Psalms 103:19
The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
Daniel 4:17
“‘The decision is announced by messengers, the holy ones declare the verdict, so that the living may know that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men.’
Now that we have a good understanding of the definition of the term “Sovereign Lord” we now can very briefly look at how it is primarily used in the Bible.
The first time we see this term used in the Bible is by Abram in a prayer in the following verses.
Genesis 15:2
But Abram said, “O Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?”
Genesis 15:8
But Abram said, “O Sovereign Lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?”
Where did Abram obtain the knowledge about the sovereignty of God to address Him in a conversation this way? Why did not Abram address God by a different characteristic, such as, Holy God, Righteous God or Almighty God? How and or when did Abram experience God in His life that he recognized Him as “Sovereign Lord”?
In 2 Samuel 7:1-3 we read that God had given king David “rest from all his enemies” and David expressed to Nathan the prophet how he was living in luxury “while the ark of God remains in a tent.” In verses 5 to 16 God in a revelation speaks to Nathan that night tells him to let David know among many things the He has always been with him and tells him who will build the house of the Lord. In verses 18 to the end of the chapter is David’s prayer to God in response to God’s plans as revealed to Nathan the night before. In David’s lengthy prayer he addresses God using the term “O Sovereign Lord” seven times. Was David repeating this term as a habit of the way he prayed? Or each time David used this term mentioning this particular characteristic of God, was he emphasizing and acknowledging a specific point about who God is and how it applied to the point he was praying about? With a clear understanding of the meaning of the term “Sovereign Lord”, go back and read 2 Samuel 7:18-29 and see how much more meaning we have at every point in David’s prayer where he uses the term “O Sovereign Lord”.
If David had the habit of continually repeating the term “O Sovereign Lord” while he prayed or spoke to and or about God, it is not evident in the Psalms. The term “O Sovereign Lord” only appears 7 times, of which David wrote 72 to75 of them.
The sovereignty of God in relation to Jesus.
Daniel tells us in Daniel 7:13-14 in a prophetic dream of the sovereignty of God being delegated to Jesus. “13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
We see the fulfilment and acknowledgment of verse 14 in Matthew 28:18, Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Even though God’s sovereignty is not mentioned, because we now better understand the meaning of the sovereignty of God, we can easily recognize its application in how Jesus teaches us how to pray in Matthew 6:9-10. 9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. What Jesus is teaching us in verse 10 is how to pray for God’s sovereignty in every situation we are praying for.
In Revelation in the letter to the Church in Thyatira is another application of the sovereignty of God given to Jesus. Note the second half of verse 27.
Revelation 2:26-27
26 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— 27 ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery’—just as I have received authority from my Father.
The best example we have in the New Testament of the church understanding the sovereignty of God and how they applied in prayer to a difficult situation is in Acts 4:23-30. Please read starting in Acts 3:1 to 4:30 to better understand the context of the Church’s prayer.
Acts 4:24
When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them.”
What was the church acknowledging about who God is by saying “Sovereign Lord,”? What was the church recognizing about who God was in the situation they were confronting by starting their prayer with the words “Sovereign Lord”? What does stating in their prayer “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them.”, have to do with God’s sovereignty and their challenging and threating situation they were praying about?
Also, if you have not already noticed, how the church started their prayer parallels with how Jesus teaches us how to pray in Matthew 6:9-10. “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
Dr. Stanly Horton in his commentary of Acts tells us the following important points concerning the opening words of their prayer in verse 24 which begins with the words, “Sovereign Lord,”. “We can learn much from this prayer. First, as in the case of most prayers in the Bible, they recognized who God is. They addressed Him as Despota (Geek), “Sovereign Lord”. They recognized that He alone is God, the Creator of the universe and all that is in it. He therefore has all power and authority.
One of the many important points we can take away from this is, are we acknowledging the sovereignty of God not only in challenging times but also when we come to Him in our daily prayers? From what premise or foundation are we standing on when we recognize the sovereignty of God when we pray? What is the important place and truth that we spiritually, mentally and emotionally place ourselves when we acknowledge the sovereignty of God in our prayers?
There are many more important questions we must ask ourselves and points of truth we can learn about when we acknowledge the sovereignty of God when we pray, which there is not enough space in the brief article to address and discover the answers. However if we careful to listen to the Holy Spirit’s voice as we reflect at our own prayer life we will discover a treasure of truth that we have yet to experience of God’s love, authority and providence in our lives.
Pastor John
The sovereignty of God in relation to the kingdom of God.
When we study the Bible about sovereignty of God, we need to understand that sovereignty is more than just a theological term. As we previously noted it also indicates royalty. Hayford’s Bible Handbook helps us understand the scope of the royal application.
- God’s Sovereignty – Genesis 1:1, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Here we meet the Sovereign of all the universe, whose realm, reign, and regency are described at the outset.
- His realm (or scope of His rule) is transcendent; that is, not only does it include the entire physical universe, it exceeds it. He existed before all creation, He expands beyond it, and by virtue of having begotten it, He encompasses all that it is.
Isaiah 42:5
This is what God the Lord says — he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it:
- His reign (or the power by which He rules) is exercised by His will, His word, and His works. By His own will He creatively decides and designs; by His own word He speaks creation into being; and by His own works, His Spirit displays His unlimited power.
Psalms 103:19
The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
- His regency (or authority to rule) is in His preexistence and holiness. He is there before creation “in the beginning.” Thus, as its Creator, He deserves to be its Potentate (or ruler). His benevolent intent in creating things “good” reveals His holy nature (that is, complete and perfect), and thus His moral right to be creation’s King. All kingdom power and authority flow from Him.
Psalms 67:4
May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth.
