Who Shall Set Bounds to Almighty God?

"Is any thing too hard for the LORD?" -Genesis 18:14 [KJV]

A clergyman went to read prayers on a working-day. There was but one person in the church, beside himself and the clerk. On which he said to the clerk, As there is nobody else here, what signifies my reading prayers? Sir, said the clerk, Is not God present? O, said the priest, I forgot God. Do not we too often the same? Is it not hence, that our minds are exercised with doubts, fears, and distress? This question the Lord put to Sarah, when an unbecoming laugh of incredulity appeared, and this unbelieving speech dropt from her lips, Shall I, of a surety, bear a child, who am old? 

O the longsuffering kindness, the condescending goodness of our Lord! He is Jesus the Saviour, for instead of striking her dead at His feet, for her contempt of His word, He mildly reasons with her. As though He had said, Sarah, look not at yourself. Consult not flesh and blood. Judge not according to nature, reason, and the state of things. Consider the promise, look at the Promiser, the Lord God omnipotent. “Is any thing too hard for the LORD?” O think of the love of an incarnate God! This question, doubtless, broke the strong fetters of Sarah’s unbelief, for it is thus recorded of her, “Through faith, Sarah received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged Him faithful, Who had promised,” (Hebrews 11:11.) 

Here is a matter brought to pass, beyond the power, and contrary to the laws of nature. But who shall set bounds to the God of nature? O soul, whenever thy mind is puzzled with any mysterious truth of God’s word, solve the difficulty with thy Lord’s own interrogation, “Is any thing too hard for the LORD?” It is quite sufficient to silence all thy carnal reasoning, quell the risings of unbelief, and cause thee to leave all thy hard matters and difficult concerns in thy Lord’s hand. 

Never forget His everlasting love. Never doubt His almighty power. Say, thou hast a hard heart, a sea of corruptions, a storm of afflictions and temptations, potent enemies, strong unbelief; yea, say, thou hast death and hell to conflict with. Yet say not that any, or all of these are too strong for thy Lord: too hard for Him to support thee under, and save thee from. O then, in all thy straits, difficulties, and trials, never, never forget thy Lord’s question, Is any thing too hard for the Lord? Remember the eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath thee are His everlasting arms. He will speak destruction to thy foes, and salvation to thy soul. See Deuteronomy 33:27. 

 

The Lord we serve’s omnipotent, 

Let faith then trace His pow’r, 

For that’s engag’d by covenant, 

To keep us ev’ry hour. 

Whene’er strong foes do us assault, 

And sin and lust do rage. 

Lord, keep our souls from ev’ry fault, 

And on our side engage. 

 

-preacher Wm. Mason (1724-1797 A.D.)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

JESUS - Rock of Ages

Jesus remains the same in all ages. He is the One who is constant when everything and everyone else fails. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever; the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. He is our R ock [I SAMUEL 2:2 ] . In the Old Testament, in Exodus 33, Jesus is pictured as the Cleft Rock. In that chapter, verse 18 and following, Moses desired to see the glory of the Lord, but was told, "You cannot see My face; for there shall no man see My face and live.” And the Lord said, “There is a place by Me, and you shalt stand upon a rock: and it shall come to pass, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by." Notice that as Moses stood upon the rock, the Lord hid him in the cleft. This wonderfully applies to us today! Believers are both standing on and hidden in Christ [COLOSSIANS 3:3 ] . We are both in and on the Rock. As life with its many bitter events presses upon us,
Read more

CHRIST OUR ONLY AND PERFECT RIGHTEOUSNESS

" The flesh lusteth against the Spirit." —Galatians 5:17 [KJV] Christian experience fully proves this apostolic truth. Hence the children of God cannot do the things that they would: nor have we any authority from God's word to conclude this lusting ever ceased in any of the saints till they got to glory; none are delivered from it while in the flesh. For, as the renewed soul or spirit loves to enjoy spiritual and heavenly objects, so the flesh, or unrenewed part, lusts after those objects it is naturally conversant with, and from which it derives its happiness.  Here is thy conflict, O Christian. Hence the necessity of thy Lord's command, "Watch always." This is the use of the doctrine. What woeful effects have fulfilling the lusts or desires of the flesh produced in eminent saints! Thou standest by faith, be not high-minded, but fear. The conceptions of lust are the productions of sin.— see James 1:15 . The commission of sin contracts fresh s
Read more

GLORY ALONE IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST

" Lest Israel vaunt themselves against Me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me." -Judges 7:2 [KJV] Thus the Lord reasoned with Gideon. He knows what is in man. He sees the pride of the human heart: how prone we all are to boast in an arm of flesh. The Lord is jealous of His own glory. Gideon’s army of two and thirty thousand, is brought down to three hundred. By this handful of men, and no more, did Gideon gain the victory of the Midianites. The Lord’s wisdom in this was, “Lest Israel should vaunt themselves, and say, Mine own hand hath saved me.”   But I have not transcribed the text right. There are two little words of great import, which I have omitted. Mind then, O Christian— against Me. Now remember, whenever thou dost boast of thy power, thy free-will, thy human goodness, thy works, ditties, conditions, and performances in order to be saved, thou art then, as it were, two and thirty thousand strong. Thou vauntest thyself against the Lord . Thou art gloryi
Read more