God decrees all things, and even all sins.  Acts 2:23, "Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death." Acts 4:28, "To do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done."  If the scripture meant only that Christ's sufferings should happen by some way or other; I answer, His sufferings could not happen but by sin.  For contempt and disgrace was one thing He was to suffer.  Therefore, even the free actions of men are subject to God's disposal.  Proverbs 21:1, "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes."  See Jeremiah 52:3, "For because of the anger of the LORD this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, till He finally cast them out from His presence. Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon."  Consider that the people who did not comply with the terms of the covenant of grace is decreed (and not merely said to be allowed), 1 Peter 2:8, "A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense. They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed."  What man determines, never comes to pass, unless God determines it, Lamentations 3:37, "Who is he who speaks and it comes to pass, When the Lord has not commanded it?"  By commanding here it means willed.  Therefore, God is elsewhere said to speak, and it was done; to command, and it stood fast.  God determines the limits of men's lives.  This is exceeding evident.  Job 7:1, "Is there not a time of hard service for man on earth? Are not his days also like the days of a hired man?"  Days of a hired man signify an appointed, certain, limited time, just as Isaiah 16:14 and 21:16.  If the limits of men's lives are determined, men's free actions must be determined, and even their sins.  Yes, for their lives often depend on such acts. See also Job 14:5.[1]

       God tells us that with His absolute sovereignty He uses it in both decreeing and planning to use our sins, which come from our hearts as evil.  Yet, God plans to use them to bring about our good in the end and chiefly to Glorify His Son Jesus Christ.  Romans 8:28, "We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose."  Take for example the story of Joseph.  What finally pushed the brothers over the edge to kill their brother and sell him to the Egyptians?  It was the dream that God gave to Joseph.  Genesis 37:4-5, "But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him. Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more."  So why did God give a dream to Joseph knowing it would be the last straw to push his brother over the edge wanting to sell him away as a slave? In verse 4 Joseph brothers hated him to the point that they did not wish to speak to him.  After hearing of the dreams, which God gave him, the brothers hated more to the point of wishing to kill him. 

       The reason why God planned to give the Joseph the dreams, therefore,  planning to cause his brothers to hate him much more, was to bring about a great amount of good in the end.  Genesis 50:20 "But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive."  The better Hebrews translation of the word "meant" in this verse is planned.  The whole point is that God did not "use" or "allowed" these things, which were already in motion.  Yes, God "planned" for the brothers to sin, by giving Joseph that dream, because God planned not to merely "allow" Joseph to go to Egypt, because God "sent" Joseph there.  Genesis 45:7-8, " God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance." So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh."  Even the Psalmist teaches us the same truth, Psalm 105:17, "[God] sent a man before them -- Joseph -- who was sold as a slave."  Then even Joseph himself when speaking to the Pharaoh said this about the years of drought coming, Genesis 41:28-29,32, "This is the thing which I have spoken to Pharaoh. God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do."  The drought was by God's decree and will, Joseph in Egypt was by God's decree and sending Him there, the dream God gave to Joseph causing his brothers to be angry enough to sell Him was by God's decree and will and not mere allowance.  Genesis 50:20 "But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive."

       Romans 9:11-12, "(The children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls)... As it is written, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated."  Here God did not "allow" an evil Esau to be hated by Himself and "allow" a good Jacob to be blessed.  Indeed God chose, in His own freedom, decreeing to hate one particular person and love another, without looking upon what they have done.   Therefore, by God hating Esau it created him into a despicable sinner who sold his birthright for a bowl of soup.  Furthermore, by God loving Jacob it created him into a righteous man, although through much refining on the way. 

       Consider King Ahab in his death.  God decreed through the prophet who prophesied to Ahab saying in 1 Kings 20:42 that He would soon take Ahab's life away from Him.  Then the prophet Micaiah saw a vision of God were Ahab died in battle and the citizens scattered (1 Kings 22:17).  A righteous king would have fasted, repented and ask of the Lord what he is to do.  Ahab along with King Jehoshaphat were asking if they should go to war.  God replied back and said Ahab would die if they went.  Therefore, if Ahab went to war it would be sin, for a good King would not willfully allow is people to be scatted.  Yet, God had already decreed that He would kill Ahab.  Yet, Jehoshaphat was a righteous king who heeds the voice of God and was convincing Ahab not to go to war.  Therefore, in order for God to carry out His decree asked for a lying spirit to go down and deceive Ahab so that he would go to war, so that he would died.  1 Kings 22:23, "Therefore look! The LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has declared disaster against you." 

       Although, the lying spirit volunteered to go, still God takes the full responsibility for it by saying He "sent" it.  Both the sinning of Ahab and his death, which Ahab out of his own heart choose to go, God took full responsibility for why this happened. I say all this to just show that God's evolvement I our lives is not merely permission but direct evolvement.  Yet, for the Christian and child of God, it is all for our "good."  God is such a personal and thoughtful God that to ensure that "all things" are for our  "good", He, much like with Joseph is actively evolvement every step of the way.  Our Father loves us so much in Jesus Christ that He personally sees to it that every detail, in our lives, is by His direct plan and will so that all the good things and mercies that He wished to work in our lives is actually done.  This is the only secure and safe place for any creature to be in, the love of an infinite Being, who has infinite control to ensure this love covers our lives.  All the demons and peoples have no chance to stop all the good and good ends that our great God and Savior has planned to shower in our lives.

       Genesis 45:7-8, " God sent me...to save by a Great Deliverance."  Great deliverances only belong to a Great God, Amen!

       - Think about this: When persons are saved often times you find there are particular hard sins they once participated in that immediately at conversion are completely broken and removed.  All desires and longings are as if they never touched that sin!  This is sometimes the case with sinful addictions such as drug use.  I have known more than a few persons testifying at conversion they totally stopped a drug use, never to even be tempted with it again!

       I bring this up because why then does God not do this with every area of our lives when He saves us?  Is it a lack of power or love on His part?  No, but it is a wise sovereign choice of God.  At conversion and at different stages of our lives God sovereignly chooses, which sins to apply strong amounts of grace to our lives, by the Spirit and other areas were He withholds this grace and gives the devil a longer leash to touch us with, concerning particular sins.

       Some foolish persons think this strong sovereignty over our sin would lead us to excusing our sin and not fight against it for purity.  Yet this is the same objection Paul took from foolish persons who tried to twist this same doctrine he taught in the book of Romans.  Do not be named among such for Paul marked such as unbelievers!

       Romans 3:7, "If the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner? And why not say, "Let us do evil that good may come"? -- as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just."  If God is so sovereign and has caused that our sin abounds to His glory then let us sin more that more good may come to God, right?  This is how evil-hearted and foolish people like to twist the terrifying and beauty doctrine of God's absolute sovereignty.  As Paul said, their condemnation is just.  These are the same persons who accuse me today when I herald the truths of God's sovereignty.

       The question is this: what is the best way to look at our sin in light of God's sovereignty in it?  As do all doctrines they are all good for strengthening our faith in the gospel, strengthening our godly practice and worship toward God.  Therefore, to answer this question I will expound on my personal experience on this subject. 

       First, understand that although, we as Christians still sin, God does not look at us as little demons; nor should we.  Instead God looks at us as little Christ's.  In other words, God sees us as Christians who are betrothed to His Son Jesus.  2 Corinthians 11:2, "I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ."  As saved saints we have already been engaged to our Lord Jesus Christ.  Jesus has not united Himself to little demon sinners, but to blood purchased and blood cleansed saints.  How dare anyone say that Jesus has been wed to little demons and sinners!

       Second, God in His wisdom has ordained we go through sanctification on earth in order to prepare us to be the best-suited bride for Christ.  The Old Testament way of explaining sanctification was stated like gold and silver being refined in the furnace.  Gold would be placed in the furnace 7 times in order to remove any impurities from it so that it could be a very pure high quality gold.  God with the church and individual saints is testing and refining us to transform us into the highest quality bride for His Son, Jesus Christ.  What God is doing is testing us to push us to prove we love Him with the purest love.  We tell God we love Him above all things and so He test us and helps us become what we say we are, in love with Jesus Christ above all.  My goal now is to explain the proper way to fight sin in light of God's sovereignty in it.

       - For the most part my Christianity has been fairly easy.  What I mean by this is that God has, in His abundant kindness, given me a heart, since I was a small child, to love Him. I did not fight or ask for this God gave it to me.  I never fought obeying my parents; God gave me the heart to love them.  I was always more attentive in Sunday school simply because I wanted to know God more; I did not fight for this it was given to me.  I always knew more of God than my peers.  From reading my bible to almost any thing in life regarding loving and trusting God to living a godly life, I have had little struggle in fully embracing it all.  Even hard doctrine such as predestination and God's hard sovereignty, were given to my as a gift by God.  From the very second I read Romans 9 I fully embraced these doctrines without and fighting against it.  Doctrines like John Pipers teaching on Christian Hedonism I had discovered by myself as an eight year old boy, which God taught me in my bible reading.  Almost every biblical doctrine I know today I was not taught by man but by God in my own studies.  God has literally given the cream of Christian to me, without much fighting on my part!  He simply gave it to me.  I often times when I feel the weight of this enter into deep worship and thankfulness to my wonderful God for His steadfast love to me.  Yet, there came a day when it was different.

       In my teenage years I began to struggle with a particular sin that was defeating me and throwing me into a depression.  During this time, the Spirit of God, lead me to understand what was going on in my life.  The Holy Spirit spoke in my heart encouraging me to understand that God has been very kind to me by keeping me from so much sin but now on this one issue was loosening the protection normally given to me. 

       What God did was Sovereignly release the normal powerful grace of the Spirit that normally made obeying God in my life fairly easy.  God also lengthened the leash and brought His fence loser on this issue of my life permitting the devil to come loser in his harassing me on this sin.   This was confirmed to me when I actually saw physical manifestations of demon activity trying tempted me in my sin (which has only happened in this one issue in my life).  During this time the Spirit of Christ encouraged me in the following manner.

       I felt like Peter at the end of the gospel of John when Jesus leaned close to Peter and said three times, "do you love Me" then "feed my sheep."  I felt Jesus lean close to me putting His hand over mine and say: "Oshea do you love me."  I said, "yes you know I do with all my heart, the heart you gave me."  Then Jesus saying back, "Then pass this testing that I have placed you in and fight this sin and show me that you do love me."  I felt the ring of these word resounding in my soul, "Oshea do you love me, then FIGHT this sin."  God let me know He sovereignly placed me here, being so vulnerable, so that I could be tested.  God wanted me, whom He had kept from so much harm and sin, to show my love for Him by proving my love for Him.  God wanted me to fight for Him, by loving Jesus so much that I would be willing to cut off a hand or poke out an eye in order to be with Him who gave Himself for me in His dying love. 

       Because I knew God was sovereign in my life on this issue, it kept me from falling into despair when I seemed to fail so hard at fighting it.  I knew God was testing me in His love, and not trying to brake me waiting to laugh when I fell.  All who know God's sovereignty and mercy in their lives to their fuller extents have the most encouragement and strength to fight sin.

       For me I realized it is far less shameful to admit and face up my sinful weakness, than to not face up to them and then to fall hard to them.  I discovered in weakness to sin, placing up fences to guard one self is the wise thing to do.  I would rather deny myself certain privileges to entrapments, people and situations than to fall prey to a sinful weakness that I know I have.  I hate playing the avoidance[2] ethic, because it limits my potential for evangelism in certain ways and makes me look silly to my peers.  Yet, I know if faced with certain temptations I have a decent chance to falling to it.  I have to decide, which is more of a treasure to me, giving honor to my Lord and Savior in close communion or this world. 

       I have a sign over my door to my bedroom that says: "Remember the end of the rich young man.  Do not love this world."  In this entertainment driven culture we live in I need to hear this every day.  If I am to be refined as pure gold and ready to be united to my Lord Jesus Christ in heaven, then I must lay my head down every night with the goal that I have loved my God today and not this world.  I must face up to my weakness and place up the fences in my life that I know without I am willingly setting up myself to fail to sin.  Tiredness, friend pressure, pressure from this culture that tells me I am entitled to entertainments, I must resolve to fight against these so that my Love for Jesus Christ will be pure for Him. 

       Knowing how much Jesus Christ has forgiven me in the gospel is the bedrock of my strength to fight sin.  It causes me to love Him much.[3]  I realize I already have my God's love and therefore, I do not have to earn it but only enjoy it.  This love for my God in the gospel along side the doctrine that my God is sovereign in my battle with my sins is the greatest source from where I feel healed and find that my feeble legs are strengthen to get up to fight another day.  Fighting hard sins can bring the best fighter to their knees is helplessness and despair, but God's mercy found on the cross and His sovereign hand controlling my life is able to keep me when I feel pressed down so hard.

       I often sense the stark reality and importance to fight and guard against my sinful weakness when I turn on the news to see yet another popular church leader caught in adultery.  I wonder if they ever faced up to the little shame it takes, to admit ones sinful weakness and then to properly guard against them, even applying the avoidance ethic where embarrassingly needed.  I do not believe it takes a rocket scientist to realize it is far better to face up to the little amount of embarrassment required in confessing and fighting their sin, than not to do so and then later to be face with loud public shamefulness.  I wonder often how well they heard Jesus Christ's call to them: Do you love Me, if so then fight this sin, for I am sovereign in this, testing if your love for Me is authentic.

 [1] From the book, The Divine Decrees, published by PublishAmerica 2007, page 46

 [2] Romans 13:14, "But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh."

  [3] Luke 7:47 "Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little."