What would it mean to be a pawn in God’s chess game?

That makes it sound like God takes delight in moving us around as it pleases Him.

I never have been much of a chess player, but I do know that pawns can be expendable. They can be sacrificed for the greater good of the overall game.

I won’t go into any detail here, because it’s none of your business, but there was a season in my life when I said aloud, “I don’t know if God’s won or Satan’s won. All I know is that I lost.”

No fun. Nossir.

So if you feel like you are a pawn in God’s chess game, does that mean that you’re caught in events beyond your control, manipulated by God or Satan?

You’re probably way ahead of me at this point. I’m looking at Job again.

Job has been haunting me for weeks.

The scenario is right there in Job 1. You can click on this link if you want a refresher.

This book gets at the guts of some awfully hard questions. As in … why is there evil in the world? Why is there so much pain and suffering? Why do righteous, godly people experience such heartache? The innocent suffer – how can it be?

And so on. Right there in Chapter 1, you witness this devastating account of Job, a godly, righteous, good man, losing it all. And working behind the scenes are God and Satan. Since I’m not a theologian, I won’t get too deep in these weeds, and I’d hate to lead you wrong. At first glance, however, it looks like Job is Ground Zero for some sort of cosmic game between God and Satan.

Gotta tell ya – with my flawed human vision, I sure don’t have any easy answers. I’ve consulted commentaries and drilled deep with this. I’m just bamboozled.

Now, let’s get personal. This is for you and me.

For me to say that you or I are pawns in God’s chess game puts us in Job’s shoes. You may feel that you’re forced into a situation that you would have never chosen for yourself.

That’s not fair, now is it?

I’ll give you my upbeat, positive spin first.

There is a higher way to interpret the sorrows of life rather than evaluating them in the moment. Perhaps the awful trial you’re facing is God’s way of giving you an opportunity to cooperate with Him, serve Him, get insights into His purposes and plans, and serve Him in ways you otherwise couldn’t.

Our own schemes are inadequate, because we’d never willingly choose suffering if there was an alternate path. God wants to do something more significant than what we could come up with on our own.

We can honor God by how we live and die.

Feel better yet? See why you may not be a pawn in God’s chess game?

Yeah, I here ya. “Tony, that sounds great, and I agree, but I’m still a hurtin’ puppy.”

Fact: there are a whole lot of unanswered questions I have. We puny humans want answers. We want the “why’s” dealt with.

I look at what happened to Job in Chapter 1, and I see a lot of innocent folks dying. Why did that have to happen? In this drama between Satan and God, how can you account for this bloodshed?

To even stir the pot some more, consider: Why do some righteous people have such short, tragic lives while nasty, evil people seem to get all the breaks – wealth, long lives, all that?

Or, to get really current, how can you account for the state of our world politically, morally, in health, and in lots of other issues that seem blatantly evil?

I sure don’t have a Sunday School answer for those. Not only does it seem that we might be pawns in God’s chess game – it’s like the planet itself is a chessboard.

That, for starters, is what I don’t know. But here’s what I do know, and this is what gives me comfort, peace, and hope. I want you to experience that, too.

What seems unfair in this life will be made right in eternity.

Read that again.

Understand: there is a day certain when all our problems will be solved and all of our questions will be answered. We’re just living in the “not yet.”

Regarding Satan:

God has given him some degree of freedom. Yikes! I’m not just saying that. I see it when he’s identified as the prince of this world and as the ruler of the kingdom of the air.

Satan can, and does, use the forces of nature, plagues, and wicked people. But – God has already won. He dealt Satan a fatal blow through Jesus’ death and resurrection. Still, Satan is going to work really, really hard in this world in the meantime, spreading lies and deceit. He’ll do it until the End of Days.

So what does that mean for us, those who think we’re pawns in God’s chess game?

We live in a corrupt world. No debate there, right? But if we’re believers, we have an upper hand. While there is huge tension in living here, we are controlled by God’s Spirit. We may struggle with recognizing that, but it’s absolute fact.

Because of the Spirit’s control, we have somewhere to put our absolute trust. Move in close, class. I’m fixin’ to help somebody.

We trust God. We trust in things eternal. Things like justice, mercy, and love.

Conversely, we do not trust in the temporary things of this world – things like success, wealth, fame, or, God forbid, politics, personalities, and the state of the things we see.

You still paying attention? I mean what I’m saying. 

Want more security, hope, and comfort? Here’s ancient script – Ephesians 6:12:

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

And Philippians 3:20:

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.

For you and me both, we just need to quit paying lame lip service to the eternal truths of God and making them a reality as we look at the world around us.

If you feel like a pawn in God’s chess game, remember: He can see the whole board. We just see the square we’re perched on.

Be blessed.