One of the most disputed topics in history, ironically enough, is history. History has enough influence in our lives to define and mold what we believe. Our beliefs can also come back and shape our perspective of historical events. It can also give us a purpose and even hope in our future, but it depends on how we look at history.
Providence is the intervention of God in time for working out His purposes. This is the Christian view of history. That God has always been at work on this world and has been guiding certain historical events for His will. Compared to a secular view of history that is defined by the Hegelian Dialectic. The Hegelian Dialectic says that in history a thesis and its antithesis will form a synthesis and result into a new thesis and the process will start over. The problem with this is that what meaning or purpose do we have if the result just starts over? The very definition of providence not only gives us a purpose but a hope in a final result, the secular one gives us no hope, no purpose.
It gives me hope not only personally but in ministry to know that God is always working and that He will always fulfill His promises. If we rely on a secular view of history we have no purpose or hope. As Paul quoted Isaiah in 1 Corinthians, “Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die.” Our view of history is complete which gives me a lot of comfort in ministry while a secularist would have a lot of explaining to do.
