Proverbs 16:33 - Homilies By E. Johnson

Chance and providence

I. CHANCE IS BUT AN EXPRESSION OF HUMAN IGNORANCE . When we speak of that which is contingent, we mean something the law of which is not yet known.

II. MAN 'S CONTROL OVER EVENTS IS LIMITED . We can give the external occasion to a decision; the decision itself rests with a higher power.

III. GOD OVERRULES ALL THINGS , AND OVERRULES THEM FOR THE BEST . To pretend that we are not free is to deny our nature, and so to deny him; and it is also a denial of him to think that we can be absolute masters of our fate. Between night and day—truths that are obscure and convictions that are clear—our life is balanced. Life rests on two pillars—the providence of God and the responsibility of man.—J