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Nehemiah 9:6 –Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.

The word "sovereignty", like the word "trinity", isn’t found in the Bible, but the principle certainly is. Sovereignty means, "above or superior to all others; chief, greatest; supreme. One who exercises power, a supreme ruler, the person having the highest authority.

1. This present world. Notice all the various things God created in Nehemiah 9:6. Also notice that God preservest all these things. Colossians 1:16,17 states, For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. See al the things in these verses that God has created. Note that God created all these things for himself. Verse 17 reveals that God continues to hold all things together. Daniel 2:21 states that God himself changes the times and seasons. Many believe God turned all these "mundane" tasks over to "mother nature", this verse declares that God takes care of all these things himself. And when he does that, he is not at the end of his strength at all, as he controls all these things with the power of one of his "little fingers". Job 12:9, everybody knows that the Lord created the heavens and the earth for his own good pleasure. Proverbs 16:4, "The Lord hath made all things for himself..." Nehemiah 9:6, "Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein..." Heb. 11:3, we understand by faith that God created the worlds.

2. The future world. Rev. 21:1, there is coming a day when God will destroy the present creation, and will create a new heaven and a new earth, which will be sinless.

Everything on this earth is controlled by God. How does God control?

1. Direct control. These are things that God does all by himself. God controls the "time clock" of this world, bringing to pass everything in its proper order. He created the heavens and the earth by speaking them into existence. The flood of Noah’s day came right on schedule, just like Abraham was born at the right time. Jesus was born of a virgin right on schedule, and the church was organized on schedule. The tribulation and the second coming will happen according to the set time. The new heaven and the new earth will be right on schedule.

2. Indirect control. These are things that God allows man to have a part in. God does these things as a result of faithfulness, or to teach faithfulness.

In Daniel 6:22, God allowed wicked men to cast Daniel into the den of lions, but God closed the mouth of the lions so they wouldn’t eat him. God allowed this event to show the faithfulness of Daniel and the power of God during trying circumstances. When King Darius cast Daniel’s accusers into the den of lions, the judgment of God upon wickedness is revealed.

In Luke 22:31-34, Jesus told Peter of Satan’s desire to sift him as wheat. Peter was sure he was strong enough to resist Satan’s attack. But before the cock crowed, Peter had denied Jesus three times. God allowed this to teach Peter and us not to trust ourselves, but to trust God.

Other examples of God using wickedness to teach lessons of faithfulness would be when God used Nebuchadnezzar (606 B. C.) to destroy Israel, and when God used Titus (A. D. 70) to invade and destroy Jerusalem.

1. God controls the climate. We are in the habit of saying, "It" rains, but this is not so. Matthew 5:45 says that God sends rain on the just and the unjust. Acts 14:17 proclaims that God sends the rain, and the fruitful seasons. Daniel 2:21 says that God not only changes the seasons, he sets up kings, and gives wisdom and knowledge.

2. God controls all tribulation. Tribulation is not meant to harm us, but to cause us to draw near to the one who can take care of the impossible problem. In Psalm 31:15, David had trouble. He didn’t try to solve the problem himself, but called on God, who could help him. In John 9:1-3, the disciples came upon a man who was born blind. They asked Jesus who had sinned that the man was born blind. Jesus replied that nobody had sinned, the man was born blind that the works of God might be revealed in him. When Jesus healed this man, it revealed that Jesus was of God. Jesus doesn’t heal today like he did when he walked on this earth, but when sickness comes, he is still able to guide us and give us comfort as we accept his will for our lives.

3. God controls our death. God turned every possession of Job over to Satan, Job 2:6, but Satan couldn’t touch his life. So it is with us, Satan wants us dead, but God keeps us alive.

Eph. 1:5-11 declares that God saves according to his own good pleasure. Many people believe that God controls creation, but they refuse to believe that God also controls salvation. This is no infringement on "free will". There is a difference between "free will" and "free agency". Every person’s will is bound into sin, therefore they do not really have free will, but every person has free agency, because all are completely responsible to God for their wickedness.

John 3:3, a person must be "born again" to see the kingdom of God. Jesus compares the spiritual birth to the natural birth. A person doesn’t choose his parents, his nature, the color of his hair, the color of his skin, his place of birth, his time of birth or his way of birth. The same is true for the spiritual birth. The circumstances are left to God. The lost person must realize they have nothing whatsoever to do with their salvation, it is completely in the hands of God. As long as the sinner depends on himself for any part of salvation, he will not be saved. But when the sinner gives up, Jesus is there to save him.