I was asked recently if there is any possibility of looking at a current event and definitively labeling it as the providence of God. I responded that such is not possible because in providing today, God does not show His hand as He so clearly did when He, in time past, effected His Will by miracles. We cannot definitively label a good outcome as God’s providence. Even Jesus reminded us that the evil and good are often equal recipients of God’s blessings in the form of rain and sun (Mat. 5:45), and Solomon said that time and chance happen to all men (Ecc. 9:11). The follow-up question was also a really good question. It was something along the line of, “Then how are we to know if a situation is God’s providence?” The seeming thought is that if we do not know, then we might miss an opportunity to respond and use God’s helping hand effectively. There are some fundamental realities about God’s providence that will help us with these kinds of questions and concerns.
First, the fact of God’s providence is certain, whether we can track and label it or not. Mordecai’s statement to Esther is very helpful. He said, “For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this” (Est. 4:14).
Several important details about providence can be gleaned from this statement: One, Mordecai and Esther were no better than we are about identifying God’s unseen hand, hence the “perhaps.” Two, God’s providential deliverance “will arise” somehow some way, that is a certainty in the matter. Three, the variable yet to be introduced was Esther’s involvement in the providential working of God for the benefit of a nation. Esther could respond as if she had come to this place and time for this involvement, or she could fearfully refuse and likely perish. However, we see that she leaned into the boisterous wind of uncertainty, trusting that God was at work, and we know from our very informed perspective that He was at work.
Second, we do not need to accurately label a series of unfolding events as providence to know how best to respond to the situation. In the previous example, Mordecai did not say, “This is definitely God putting you in the place to do something, therefore you must do something.” The best he could offer was “perhaps.” Would knowing really impact what Esther needed to do in that situation? Not at all. Admittedly, it probably would have been comforting to know that everything was going to work out fine, but that is an unnecessary luxury for God’s people who are willing to trust and act.
An even more helpful example to this point is captured in the letter to Philemon. Onesimus ran away from his master, Philemon. While a fugitive of sorts, Onesimus encountered Paul, by whom he was taught the Gospel. Now, the new convert, Onesimus, is headed home to Philemon with a letter in hand from Paul. Consider Paul’s reasoning with Philemon about what had transpired: “For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave—a beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord” (Phe. 15-16). Notice that Paul did not say that God’s unseen hand purposefully broke your hold on Onesimus so that he could come to me and obey the Gospel. What he did say was “perhaps” this has unfolded in correlation with God’s unseen hand. Paul then proceeds to tell Onesimus how to respond to the “perhaps” of God’s providence. This advice includes receiving him as a “beloved brother” and “as you would me.” Additionally, Paul advised Philemon to allow him the opportunity to absorb any damages resulting from the incident. In reality, did Paul tell Philemon to do anything other than what might reasonably be expected as part of Christian deportment? Not really. However, the reminder of God’s active involvement with an unseen hand would certainly encourage the proper response.
For us, there are practical lessons in these accounts. We must trust that as God’s eternal purpose is unfolding in our world, God has not stepped away–He remains actively invested in the outcome. This no longer involves miraculous intervention, but it does involve His unseen hand for and through the lives of individuals, groups (i.e., congregations of God’s people), and events. Knowing that we have His help, even though we cannot see His hand, should remind us and motivate us to look at unfolding events through the lens of “perhaps.” Then, we should respond in ways that reflect our confident trust in our God, who is determined to provide. In the Colossian letter, we read:
Tychicus, a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me. I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts, with Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will make known to you all things which are happening here (Col. 4:7-9).
Did God, through a runaway slave, orchestrate the salvation of a soul and the aid of an apostle? Perhaps.
-Joey Davis