The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"The Can and the Cannot (of God)"
Every born again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ should consider the "can" and "cannot" of God. Scripture declares both, and both serve as an important "Doctrine 101" subject in our proper understanding of the Lord and our walk with Him.
What can God do? Anything and everything that accords with His character and nature. The Psalmist declared, "The LORD is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works" (Psalm 145:17). What cannot God do? Anything that fails to accord with His character and nature, as in the Apostle Paul's declaration to Titus: "God… cannot lie" (Titus 1:2). In this dual light, we may surmise our Lord as capable of all things that align with the nature of His character.
Both truths are equally important in our understanding. Certainly, we should perceive God as omnipotent and able to do all things in the "can" of capability. "Ah Lord God… there is nothing too hard for Thee!" (Jeremiah 32:17). However, we must no less consider our Lord in terms of His "cannot" of character. "It was impossible for God to lie" (Hebrews 6:18).
Certainly, God's capability easily fits with our understanding and confidence. We rightly trust in His omnipotence. However, we must no less accommodate in our doctrine the dictates of our Lord's character that guide His doings. What if the writer of Hebrews had declared, "It is possible for God to lie"? Far more than a weakened faith would ensue. We would be left with a completely annihilated faith. Scripture calls us to "trust the Lord with all thy heart" (Proverbs 3:5). If even one speck of falsehood, disingenuousness, or lack of integrity existed in the divine nature, we could not trust Him "with all thy heart." We could not, in fact, trust Him with any of our heart. Knowing that God "cannot lie" (or commit any act of unrighteousness) assures us of His trustworthiness, and beckons us to our proper response of an unlimited and unfettered faith.
The Bible declares God to be "without iniquity" and "as for God, His way is perfect" (Deuteronomy 32:4; II Samuel 22:31). This means that anything Scripture defines as sin or wrong resides within the category of God's "cannot." James goes so far as to proclaim that our Lord cannot even be "tempted with evil" (James 32:4). No truth should more bless and assure our hearts and minds with truth. Believers trust a God who can do all things, and a God who cannot do anything that violates His moral nature. No contradiction exists in these realities, but rather confirmation of how much we can trust our Lord in the confidence He will never disappoint us. Yes, the subject of God's "can" and "cannot" occupies a perfect place in the syllabus and curriculum of Biblical Doctrine 101, and a vital truth every believer in the Lord Jesus must know and embrace.
"Thou art good, and doest good."
(Psalm 119:68)
Weekly Memory Verse
"Fight the good fight of faith."
(I Timothy 6:12)
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