God’s sovereignty is not a painkiller.

In seasons of darkness, there isn’t a moment when you don’t wish the agony could be lifted. Suffering hurts. And in those times, the sovereign rule of God is not always accepted as the most comforting pastoral counsel. Amid anguish, to be told God is in control often brings a pang of resentment. “If he’s in control, why doesn’t he control this and make it better, now.”

God’s sovereignty is not a panacea for removing pain here and now. But it is a supreme comfort to help us endure pain. In his justice, God will bring his good order to bear on all that is not right in this world. That won’t happen “now”, but it will happen in his appointed time.

We can take great confidence in the fact suffering will not last because our God governs all things on the pillars of his irrefutable righteousness. Though the whole world may crumble around us, our pain is not greater than the sureness of God’s good purposes.

This awareness enabled our Saviour to endure the shame, scorn and immeasurable suffering of the cross. Though he knew the pain before him, and though he yearned for an alternative to that “cup”, his knowledge of God’s will allowed him to trust and be carried in the darkness of that hour.

God’s sovereignty is not a painkiller for here and now, but it is a platform on which we can stand, carried into tomorrow on the pillars of his promise.