Some of Moses’ final instructions to Israel are recorded in Deuteronomy 7. In this chapter we find a rebuke for the number of times that the people had turned against God and kept His will from coming to pass.
God planned for Israel to come out of Egypt, receive His laws at Mount Sinai, and then enter into the promised land. The forty years of wondering in the desert was not part of this plan. Israel should have entered into the land within one year of their deliverance. It was their sin that kept this from happening.
Israel sent spies into the promised land and allowed fear to keep them from entering into their promised inheritance. It was their unbelief that limited God. Moses was remembering this situation in his discourse recorded in Deuteronomy 7.
And thou shalt consume all the people which the Lord thy God shall deliver thee; thine eye shall have no pity upon them: neither shalt thou serve their gods; for that will be a snare unto thee. If thou shalt say in thine heart, These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them? (Deuteronomy 7:16-17)
The question in verse seventeen appears to be one statement. If we look at the size of our problems and ask how we can overcome we will be unable to answer the question. I believe the context infers that this verse is actually providing a statement and a question:
- Israel, “These nations are more than I…”
- God, “How can I dispossessed them?”
We can limit God with our doubt. If we look at a task God is calling us to do and say we can’t do it, He will not be able to do it through us. Our unbelief would limit Him.
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. (Ephesians 3:20)
I have heard so many people quote Ephesians 3:20 with a period after the word think:
- Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.
I’ve even been guilty of quoting this verse and stopping at the word “think”. This is not where Paul stopped. The verse tells us that it is “according to the power that works in us” that God is able to do “exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think”.
The Lord prompted me recently to examine this verse more closely. I discovered that the phrase “according to” is a reference to the proportion or degree of which the power is working in us. If we have not stirred the power up with faith on the inside of us God will not be able to do “exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think”.
It is important for us to keep in mind that God needs people to channel His power through. God will always use a person but we have a freewill and our choices are able to limit His ability to work in our lives.
Over the years I’ve heard ministers talk about God moving sovereignly. God does not move without people being involved. He always speaks through a man or woman but that person must choose to allow Him to speak through them.
God raised up Moses because He needed a person He could use to deliver Israel. Moses could have refused to answer his call. We can also refuse to answer our call.
God has delegated His authority over the earth to mankind. This limited what He is able to do on the earth. He is spirit (John 4:24) and He gave this earth to men and women with physical bodies for us to rule. This is the reason that Jesus had to become a man.
Mankind was corrupt as a result of sin. Jesus had to become a physical human being in order to deal with the devil. He ministered as a man and allowed the Holy Spirit to flow through Him to the point that He was able to defeat Satan once and for all!
Satan has been rendered powerless by Jesus. He cannot do anything in our lives without our consent! For the most part it seems as if the Church is not teaching these truths and as a result Christians are providing consent when they should be standing in victory!
We will never enter into the plan of God and walk in His fullness until we recognize the power of our choices. We have the ability to limit God. He will not move through us without our consent.
God will always have a person to flow through. The question for each one of us is whether we will be willing to be that person. Do we want Him to use us? He has a plan for our lives but we have to stir ourselves and begin to pursue Him with our whole heart.
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