Trusting God by Jerry Bridges
Week 4: Chapter 3 — God's Sovereignty and Secundary Causes
Read Chapter 3 of Trusting God. Key passages: Psalm 104:14; Job 1–2; Amos 3:6.
Previewing Week 4 of Trusting God
Read 3 of 7 discussion questions below. Unlock the complete 14-week guide when you’re ready.
Bridges deepens the argument by exploring how God works through natural events, human agents, and even adversity — and what it means that He stands behind all secondary causes.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Bridges introduces the concept of 'secondary causes' — the natural processes, human decisions, and events through which God accomplishes His purposes. How does this concept help explain how God governs without micromanaging in a visible, miraculous way?
2.The book of Job is central to this chapter. Satan could not touch Job without God's permission, yet God did give that permission. How does the framework of Job challenge simplistic explanations for why God allows suffering?
3.Bridges points out that the same event — a disaster, an illness, a loss — can be attributed in Scripture simultaneously to God, to Satan, and to natural causes. How should this complexity shape the way we talk about suffering with people who are hurting?