Is Anything Too Hard For God?
The Human Side of Faith
We talk about faith, about being people of faith, we read about the heroes of faith in scripture, and there are people around us that we look up to in our own lives as heroes of faith, but the truth is, FAITH IS HARD.
If faith is the “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see,” (Hebrews 11.1, NIV), then let’s just be honest for a moment and confess that sometimes faith is hard. It’s hard to believe, to have full confidence in God, who we cannot see. And because faith is hard sometimes, we’re afraid. Because life is hard. And there’s a lot to be afraid of. If it’s impossible to please God without faith (Hebrews 11.6), then what do we do when we struggle to find faith?
Many times, when we talk about faith, we talk about the goodness and the greatness of God. And we should. We talk about the heroes of faith, the men and women in scripture who seemed to be full of faith and do great things for God, and we should.
But what we sometimes forget is that there is a very human side of faith. That faith, even for the heroes of faith in scripture, was not always easy.
Is anything too hard for God?
Some of you may remember this, but in 2020 something happened that had a significant impact on the world.
I remember our family was on the way home from a Spring Break camping trip, and we had stopped in Waco for lunch. We had been away from the world for a week, so when we heard something about a pandemic, we didn’t have a clue what was happening. All of a sudden, Spring Break got extended for an extra week, the NBA cancelled their season, and then… well, you know how the next few weeks and months played out after that.
In the middle of all the uncertainty, confusion, and fear… I don’t know if you remember this, but there was a song that started to make it’s way around the world. It was written in 2015 by a Nigerian worship leader named is Sinach. She’s a singer and a songwriter.
She had written this song out of a time of deep prayer and personal devotion seeking God’s guidance in her own life. In that time of prayer, she was reminded of the story of Abram, how when God called him (Genesis 12), He called him to leave the place where he was, his place of comfort, and go to a land that God would show him.
God didn’t tell him where he was going, He just invited Abram to join Him on the journey. And… Abram did. And over and over again throughout scripture, Abraham is held up as an example of faith. He’s called the father of all who believe. (Romans 4:11, 16; Galatians 3:7, 29)
For Sinach, it was a powerful moment of personal reflection, how God had promised to make a way for Abram and show Abram the way. And she felt as if God had made a way for her at this point in her life, but that God was reminding her that He is still the Way Maker.
In that moment of prayer, she began to write this song in 2015 that just a few years later, would give hope to a whole world that was facing uncertainty and fear like never before….
Way Maker, Miracle Worker, Promise Keeper, Light in the Darkness, My God, that is who You are…
Everybody Struggles with Faith
We live in a world full of uncertainty, anxiety, and fear. And there are times in all of our lives when we feel that fear rising and we’re wondering if we can trust God to make a way, or to make a way again.
In faith we believe that nothing is too hard for God.
But sometimes we wonder.
Sometimes, we struggle with faith.
Want to know a secret? Everybody struggles with faith.
If you’re here today and you don’t believe in Jesus, you’re not sure what you think about God, then this isn’t a struggle for you. In fact, it may be the reason you refuse to believe. And I get it. I understand. This is the reason some people walk away from faith and it’s the reason some chose to never believe.
Why pray to a God you cannot see and ask Him to do impossible things when you don’t believe he will answer those prayers and you don’t believe He can do the thing you were hoping for and you would be praying for if you believed?
Faith is hard. It doesn’t necessarily make sense. And truth be told, 9 times out of 10 a lot of us, even those of us who do believe in God, are going to take matters into our hands anyway. Why wait on God when we can try and fix it, whatever it is, by ourselves? We’ve got the money, the connections, the ability to make our own way.
That is, until we don’t.
So we don’t turn to God, wait on God, or depend on God until… until prayer is our last resort and He is our last hope.
And if we’re being honest, this is the human side of faith. Sometimes it’s hard to believe in and depend on what we cannot see.
Abram’s Faith
If it helps, you should know that this has been true for people of faith for a long time. And if you’re struggling with faith today, you should know you’re not alone. In fact, you might find yourself in good company.
The same Abram that inspired Sinach to write the song Way Maker has helped encourage millions of people who have struggled mightily with faith.
His story begins in Genesis 11.
We’re told that Abram’s dad decided it was time for the family to move and so they left “Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Harran, they settled there.” – Genesis 11.31
Then in Genesis 12, Abram has this encounter with God. We don’t know much of anything about Abram at this point, we don’t know what he believes about God, but in Genesis 12.1-2 we read about this encounter:
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation.” – Gen 12.1-2a, NIV
“So Abram went.” – Genesis 12.4a, NIV
You can just imagine how this conversation might have happened that night in the kitchen. Abram comes home after a long day and sees his wife Sarai over by the kitchen sink and tells her, “Honey, we need to start packing. We’re moving tomorrow.”
Sarai: “Moving?! Where are we going? We just got the white picket fence up. I’m getting to know the neighbors and just got invited to play Bonko on Tuesday nights. I don’t want to move.”
Abraham: “I’m sorry honey, but we have to move.”
Saria: “But why?”
Abram: “Because God told me it’s time to move.”
Sarai: “Well, can you at least tell me where we’re going?”
Abram: “No.”
Sarai: “Why not!?”
Abram: “Well, I don’t know where we’re going. God just said to start walking and He will let us know when we get there. And by the way, God said he’s going to make me into a great nation, so I guess we’re having kids soon, too!”
I’m pretty sure Abram slept on the couch that night! 🙂
It took faith for Abram to follow God’s leading, to just start walking and to trust that God had good plans for his life. But that’s what Abram did. And it took faith. But just a few short verses later, we find this man of faith in a world of trouble because of his lack of faith.
Abram’s Lack of Faith
As they’re on the journey, Abram realizes they are about to enter Egypt. Abram realizes this could be a problem. His wife, Sarai, is beautiful. And Abram thought that if the Egyptians saw Sarai’s beauty they would kill him so they could have her.
So he convinced Sarai to lie, to say she was his sister, not his wife. Why? Because, he was afraid.
Fear can make people do funny things, it can even make people lose faith. The Pharaoh of Egypt found out what had happened. Abram had been right about one thing, when the Egyptians saw Sarai’s beauty, she was taken into Pharaoh’s court. But then, God sent disease and plagues on Pharaoh’s house. When he realized what had happened, he ordered that Abram and Sarai be escorted out of Egypt immediately!
Abram’s story has barely begun and already we see God’s promise, Abram’s faith, and Abram’s doubt.
Which, by the way, may sound a little like your story, too. Every story of faith has these same three ingredients: God’s promise. A person’s faith. And, doubt.
God’s Promise, Abram & Sarai’s Impatience
God has promised Abram FOUR different times that he is going to have a son. It’s a promise Abram and Sarai can barely believe.
Genesis 12.2-3
“I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others… All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”
Genesis 13.14-16
…the Lord said to Abram, “Look as far as you can see in every direction—north and south, east and west. I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants as a permanent possession. 16 And I will give you so many descendants that, like the dust of the earth, they cannot be counted!“
Genesis 15.5
Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!”
Genesis 17.4-6
“This is my covenant with you: I will make you the father of a multitude of nations! What’s more, I am changing your name. It will no longer be Abram. Instead, you will be called Abraham, for you will be the father of many nations. I will make you extremely fruitful. Your descendants will become many nations, and kings will be among them!“
In the middle of all the promises from God that they would have a son, Abram and Sarai got tired of waiting. And they did the same thing we all do when we get tired of waiting on God, they took matters into their own hands.
About eleven years after the initial promise from God, Abram slept with one of Sarai’s servants, a woman named Hagar, and she had a son named Ishmael.
But Ishmael was not the son that God had promised.
Thirteen years after Ishmael was born, twenty four years since the first promise, Abram, now named Abraham by God, has yet another encounter with God.
Three Visitors
Fast forward to Genesis 18…
1 The LORD appeared again to Abraham near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. One day Abraham was sitting at the entrance to his tent during the hottest part of the day. 2 He looked up and noticed three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he ran to meet them and welcomed them, bowing low to the ground.
3 “My lord,” he said, “if it pleases you, stop here for a while. 4 Rest in the shade of this tree while water is brought to wash your feet. 5 And since you’ve honored your servant with this visit, let me prepare some food to refresh you before you continue on your journey.”
“All right,” they said. “Do as you have said.”
This story as a bit of a strange start. It’s a hot day and Abraham is trying to find a little relief from the heat in the shade of his tent when all of a sudden he sees three visitors in the distance.
At this point, we don’t know who these visitors are, but Abraham seems to have some idea that these are no ordinary guests. He runs to meet them and insists on feeding them and refreshing them before they continue on their journey.
6 So Abraham ran back to the tent and said to Sarah, “Hurry! Get three large measures of your best flour, knead it into dough, and bake some bread.” 7 Then Abraham ran out to the herd and chose a tender calf and gave it to his servant, who quickly prepared it. 8 When the food was ready, Abraham took some yogurt and milk and the roasted meat, and he served it to the men. As they ate, Abraham waited on them in the shade of the trees.
Just notice the extravagant hospitality Abraham has offered here. He hasn’t just offered them some bread crumbs and a glass of water. No! He has prepared a feast for them and has taken on the role of waiter as they enjoy their meal.
And then, the story takes a turn…
9 “Where is Sarah, your wife?” the visitors asked.
How did these visitors know about Sarah, or even know her name? These visitors are not your everyday ordinary men.
“She’s inside the tent,” Abraham replied.
10 Then one of them said, “I will return to you about this time next year, and your wife, Sarah, will have a son!”
And here, for the fifth time, Abraham is given the promise that he and Sarah will have a son. This is a promise they were first given 24 years ago by God. At that time, Abraham was 75 years old. Now, he’s 99! Sarah is 89!
Sarah was listening to this conversation from the tent. 11 Abraham and Sarah were both very old by this time, and Sarah was long past the age of having children. 12 So she laughed silently to herself…
Wouldn’t you? If you’re Sarah in this story, wouldn’t you laugh. Sometimes we give Sarah a hard time for laughing, but it is almost comical. When the promise first came, she was 65 years old. She was past her child bearing years then! Just a chapter before, Abraham had had the same belly laugh moment:
Genesis 17.17
Then Abraham bowed down to the ground, but he laughed to himself in disbelief. “How could I become a father at the age of 100?” he thought. “And how can Sarah have a baby when she is ninety years old?”
Abraham laughed at the thought. Sarah is laughing at the thought. It seems impossible. It seems TOO HARD. It seems as if there is no way this could be true.
Sarah is still laughing when she thinks to herself…
Genesis 18.12-13
How could a worn-out woman like me enjoy such pleasure, especially when my master—my husband—is also so old?”
13 Then the LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby?’
And two things shift right here.
First, we learn that One of these three visitors is the LORD himself. YHWH. God. Abraham was right, these are not ordinary every day visitors. God has come to meet with him.
And second, The LORD God asks a pivotal question in the next verse that reveals the tension on the human side of faith.
God asks,
14 Is anything too hard for the LORD?
That’s the question we’re all asking, isn’t it?
That’s the question you’re not sure how to answer.
Is anything too hard for the LORD?
If you say YES… there are some things that are not going to change, that are impossible to change, there are people that are never going to be different, situations that will always be this way or that way, then… truthfully… what you’re saying is that God is not God. That some things and some people are hopeless.
If you say NO… nothing is too hard for the LORD, He can do anything, in any place, with any one, in any time. If you say this, that all things are possible with God, then you allow for the possibility for God to break through your own rwithsibilities new possibilities that may lie outside anything you could have asked for, dreamed, or imagined.
So maybe the real question for you is something like this:
What do you need God to do for you that only God can do for you that you’re afraid is too hard for God?
After God asked that question of Abraham: “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” God gave Abraham and Sarah the promise again. He said…
I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
15 Sarah was afraid, so she denied it, saying, “I didn’t laugh.”
But the Lord said, “No, you did laugh.”
And that’s how the story ends. It’s an awkward ending. There’s no bow at the end of the story. It ends with God’s repeated promise, Abraham and Sarah’s disbelief, and then Sarah lying about laughing.
Abraham and Sarah seem to be not so much examples of faith as they are disbelief.
Yet, they are remembered as people of incredible faith.
Fast forward to the New Testament and this is how they are remembered down through history…
11 It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise. 12 And so a whole nation came from this one man who was as good as dead—a nation with so many people that, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, there is no way to count them.
Hebrews 11.11-12
Here’s some Good News for you today…
Nothing is too hard for God.
God’s promises are not dependent on your faith. God’s promises are wholly dependent on HIS FAITHFULNESS.
And even when we can’t believe it, evenn when we doubt His promises over and over and over again, even when we lie and when we laugh and when we fail to have faith because of all the fear, God is faithful and kind. And His promises never fail.
And even in the midst of our failure and fear, our doubt and disbelief, God is faithful.
He has given US a son. His name is Jesus. And His name means, Yahweh saves.
There will be times when we have to suffer through our own seasons of barrenness, sadness, discouragement, and doubt. Abraham and Sarah certainly did. But my prayer for you today is that you would return to God’s promises for you and that you would put your hope in Him.
Way Maker
In 2020, a little song written by a Nigerian worship leader for her home church became a global anthem as videos went viral of people singing this song in their living rooms, balconies, hospitals, and in the streets. It was being translated and sung in multiple languages giving hope to people literally around the world. It was awarded the song of the year by the Dove Awards in 2020.
Way Maker, Miracle Worker, Promise Keeper, Light in the darkness,
My God, that is who You are.
You are,
Way Maker, Miracle Worker, Promise Keeper, Light in the darkness,
My God, that is who You are.
If you need God to make a way for you today, can I invite you to come and pray. Ask Abraham & Sarah, nothing is too hard for God.
Want more from this Series… Click here.
