If the believer were to try to read God’s smile by outward circumstances alone, he would be left without any clear indication of where he stood in relation to God. Since this is all that the wicked have to go by, they scoff at the idea that anyone can know that they are loved by God. They have no other way of reading God’s favour apart from outward evidences. Not seeing these, they conclude that all is random and chance. This is part of the reason why ‘man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun’. Solomon warns the unbeliever that to draw false conclusions about God’s favour is a trap which many fall into, and that we will never find the Lord by looking at providence alone. Rather we must consider the voice of conscience and reflect on how we have broken his commandments and brought his wrath upon us. Above all, we must listen to what his word says about our fallen status and our sin, and about the terms of salvation; that is a much clearer indication of where we stand than reading events. The gospel is not revealed in nature or in providence, it is revealed in Scripture alone, God’s special revelation. There we learn of God’s amazing grace given to sinners in Christ Jesus. There we discover God’s solution to the problem of sin which is not revealed anywhere else. That is a far surer indication of where we stand with the Lord. Let the unbeliever realise that he needs revelation from heaven to shed any light on the darkness of this world and its events.
How then will a man discover he is loved by God? Scripture teaches that we can know this with certainty, but how? Only by faith in God’s word can we know our privileged status. Faith is not an inferior means of knowing, or something vague compared to sight. It is the way God insists we relate to him and learn from him. We walk by faith and not by sight and therefore the unbeliever can see nothing of the grounds for any confidence in God. God allows the apparent confusion of his providence to persist up till the moment of death in order to shut out those who will not come by faith. But even though providence in this world appears a tangled web, God is able to make all things work together for the good of his elect. Though much remains mysterious even for the believer, by faith the Christian can draw conclusions from providence as interpreted by God’s promises. He can read blessing, and training, and correction in the events of life. The marvellous skill with which God arranges all things is seen in that what seems outwardly to work only for the disadvantage of the godly, is actually made to work for their eternal good. They are loved, but loved secretly in this world.
It is true that the Scripture does teach us lessons from providence in the lives of individuals in Scripture, both good and evil and in the fortunes of nations. These however are inspired interpretations of events, and it is hard to make sense of these things without the help of inspiration.