LIMITING GOD

At a certain point in the Apostle Paul’s ministry, the Holy Spirit revealed to him that he must go to Jerusalem and testify to the Jews about how the gospel of Jesus Christ had transformed his life.  This was no small thing.  The Jews hated Paul, and he knew that they would use any means necessary to have him killed and silence his witness. 

 

As he sailed toward Jerusalem, Paul made stops along the way to strengthen and encourage the faith of some of the churches that he had helped to plant.  He knew that this would probably be the last time that he would see them in the flesh. 

 

One stop on his voyage was at Miletus, in present day Turkey, and close to Ephesus.  From there, he called for all of the elders at Ephesus to come to Miletus and meet with him.  He ministered to these men and exhorted them to stay faithful to the Lord.  He also said the following to them: “And now, behold, I go bound in the Spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.  But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.” (Acts 20:22-24).  Up to that time Paul had not been apprehended or placed in any chains or bonds of any kind by man’s hands, but he was “bound by the Spirit.”  This meant that he was captive to God’s will and He was dedicated to fulfilling whatever the Lord had for him even if it meant affliction, or even death. 

 

Some of Paul’s final words to these leaders of the church were very powerful.  He told them, in part, “And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the Word of His grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.” (Acts 20:32).  There is nothing more mighty than the Word of God’s grace.  By it, God spoke the worlds into existence, populated the earth with all kinds of life, and made man in His own image.  How much more is He able by that same Word to build up His people and secure for them an eternal inheritance among His sanctified ones?  Every need that we will ever have has been supplied for us through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the promises of God.  There is no limit to the supply of God’s grace that we have in Christ as long as we have the faith to believe it.  Paul tells us, “Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20, 21).  Jesus said we could move mountains, walk on water, heal the sick, cast out devils, and much more if we will only believe.  In fact, He said that we could do even greater works than He did if we have faith (John 14:12).  What God is prepared to do for His people is abundantly greater than anything that we can ask for, or even think to ask!

 

Paul was very steadfast in his confidence in the grace of God.  In Romans 8 he writes, “What shall we then say to these things?  If God be for us, who can be against us?  He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?  Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.  Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, Who is even at the right hand of God, Who also maketh intercession for us.  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:31-39).  To the Corinthian believers he also wrote, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57). 

 

There are too many of God’s children today who limit what He is able to do in their lives through unbelief.  There are many voices that tell us that God doesn’t work the same way that He did in the first century.  They say that the power the early church enjoyed was only for the Apostles and only to give the church a jump start of growth.  They say that miracles have ceased, gifts of the Spirit are no longer bestowed upon believers, and the power of the blood of Jesus to deliver souls from sin is no longer effective.  The Bible, however, says, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8).  He has never changed!  Man has changed.  Every word of the Bible is as relevant and as contemporary today as it was when it was first written or spoken. 

 

The psalmist wrote of those who would minimize the power of God when he said, “How oft did they provoke Him [God] in the wilderness, and grieve Him in the desert!  Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.  They remembered not His hand, nor the day when He delivered them from the enemy.” (Psalms 78:40-42).  We’re told that whatever is not based on faith in our lives is sin (Romans 14:23).  Not believing in God’s promises is a sure way to provoke the Lord and grieve His Holy Spirit.  The reason that the Israelites turned back and would have returned to bondage in Egypt was unbelief.  They could not believe that God would deliver them just as He had up to that point.  The reason Christians backslide and turn back to the world is because they cannot believe that God is prepared and able to deliver them just as He has all along.  We’re told to “magnify the Lord,” not minimize Him.  Instead, we magnify our problems, our fears, our doubts, and weaknesses.  The greatest deliverance in the world is when a person believes the Gospel message and places their faith in the Savior, Jesus Christ.  The transformation that takes place in his/her life is truly miraculous.  They pass from spiritual death to spiritual life and obtain deliverance from bad habits, addictions, and obsessions that have plagued them up to that time.  That is only the beginning of the work that God wants to do in us, though.  There is so much more that He has for us as we learn to follow in Jesus’ footsteps.  There is, literally, no limit to what God is willing to do for you and me.

 

Two men in the Bible who exemplify the faith that God is looking for in us today are Joshua and Caleb.  They showed extraordinary faith in the face of formidable obstacles, and, as a result, obtained extraordinary victories. 

 

When Moses first brought the Israelites to the borders of Canaan, he chose twelve men – one representative from every tribe – and directed them to go into the Promised Land.  Their mission was to bring back intelligence about the condition of the land, the size and strength of the cities, and the armies that they would face in battle when they began to conquer the land.  Joshua and Caleb were among this group of spies.

 

When they had finished their assigned task, they returned to Moses and the host of Israel to give their report about the Promised Land.  Scripture tells us, “And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.  And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.  Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak [men who were giants in stature] there.  The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.” (Numbers 13:26-29). 

 

There truly were a lot of obstacles that stood before Israel.  There were giants, there were strong, walled cities, and there were great armies; but none of these things were a match for the God Whom they served.  They only needed to remember what the Lord had already done for them in Egypt.  God had miraculously defeated the mighty army of Pharaoh with all his chariots, and drowned them in the Red Sea.  The Lord had showed many signs and wonders in Egypt to humble the king and cause him to release God’s people from bondage.  Ten of these spies had forgotten what God was capable of, and cowered in the face of these new obstacles.  The question that they should have been asking themselves was not “Am I able to move these mountains?” but instead, “Is God able to move these mountains?” 

 

The obstacles that God allows in our path are there to teach us to trust in Him.  Jesus said, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace.  In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33).  Tribulations in our life are not the exception, but the rule.  They are not an indication that we are out of God’s will any more than a smooth patch with no problems is an indication that we are especially righteous or favored.  Don’t forget that Jesus constrained His disciples into a boat and sent them out where He knew a storm was brewing.  Tribulation works patience in our character, and a whole host of other good things as well!

 

“And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.” (Numbers 13:30).  Both Caleb and Joshua were ready to trust their God and get started possessing the land immediately!  They were well able to go because they knew their God was well able to do it.  Victory was not based on their strength, determination, or abilities, but on God’s!  The same is true today.  God is scanning the earth to discover those few faithful souls in whom He can demonstrate His power and might (2 Chronicles 16:9).   

 

“But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.  And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.  And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.  And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.  And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!  And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?  And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” (Numbers 13:31-33; 14:1-4). 

 

How many people today view the Christian life in much the same way as these faithless Hebrews did?  They see the obstacles that must be overcome and declare that they are too strong for them to deal with.  They should remember that He that is in them (Christ) is stronger than any problem that they will encounter in this world, and greater even than Satan himself.  If they continue to listen to the negative reports that the enemy of their souls whispers to them, they will eventually come to believe that it would be better for them to return to their old life and their old gods.  Listen to these words of Joshua, the other faithful spy, and how they inspire faith rather than instill fear and discouragement, “Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve Him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.  And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14, 15).

 

Forty years after this incident with the spies, when Caleb was 85 years old, and the Israelites had fulfilled their time in the wilderness.  This faithful man was ready to take the land that Moses had promised to him.  It was not one of the easiest plots of ground to capture in Canaan.  What he asked for was a mountainous region where the race of giants lived, and the cities were walled and fortified!  Caleb told Joshua, “...I am this day fourscore and five [85] years old.  As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.  Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.” (Joshua 14:10-12).  Instead of being intimidated by the mountains of life, Caleb was asking for them so he could overcome them!  He was quick also to acknowledge the fact that if the Lord was with him, nothing would be impossible for him to do.  It brings to mind the words of Jesus when He said, “…If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” (Matthew 17:20). 

 

We need more Caleb’s and more Joshua’s today!  We need to hear the positive report of those who have seen the Promised Land with its dangers and obstacles yet still have confidence that they will prevail through the Lord Jesus.  We have every spiritual weapon that we need at our disposal to put the enemy to flight.  We are well able to defeat all of the forces of Canaan and take the land that our God has promised to us.  We can slay the giants of pride and of lust; we can topple the walls of envy and hate; we can move the mountains of selfishness and greed - all in the name of the Lord and by the power of His might.

 

The next time you are tempted to say “I can’t” to something that you know God is asking, remember the faith of Joshua and Caleb.  Don’t lean on your own understanding or feelings about how hard an obstacle this appears to be.  We must walk by faith, not by sight or emotions.  Trust in the Lord with all your might.  Acknowledge the fact that God is in this thing, and that He wants to deliver a victory to you.  By faith speak to your mountain and say, “I am well able to overcome it.” 

 

Be encouraged in the Lord.  He has called us blessed and highly favored, and He has adopted us into the family of God.  We must learn not to limit our God and what He is able and willing to do in our lives.  Abraham and Sarah both were barren by the time God chose to fulfill His promise of a son to them.  Paul spoke of Abraham when he wrote, “And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb: he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able also to perform.” (Romans 4:19-21).  God is willing to do no less in our lives and in our circumstances!  Let’s fight the good fight of faith, therefore, and lay hold of eternal life.