Genesis 15:5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
Doing the Impossible
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Does God ever ask the impossible of you? Sometimes we think that God will never ask you to do anything that you cannot do. The truth is that God demands the impossible of us all the time. Let me give you a very simple example. The Bible says that we are to love one another. Now that may seem simple, but as simple as that is, it is impossible. I can’t love everyone. I don’t even like everyone. I would like to like everyone, but I don’t. Loving others is not natural; it is supernatural.
Does God ever expect something of us that is impossible for us? Well, ask Abram. Genesis 15:5 says, “And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them…so shall thy seed be.” God told Abram that his descendants would be just as numerous as the stars, but that was hard for Abram to see. God can see the infinite. You can only see a small representation of the limitless, numberless stars that God has created.
A God Who owns all you need is not limited by how little you have. In verse 1 God told Abram, “Fear not, Abram.” Why would Abram have been fearful? Ironically, this was right on the heels of a great victory over a powerful king. Perhaps Abram was afraid of retaliation from this defeated king.
In any event, implicit in each command God gives is a promise. Abram said, “Look, God you haven’t given me any son, and so I have one in my house, this Eliezer. Let him be my heir.” Abram almost seems to be helping God out, but God says, “No, the son I am going to give you will come from your own bowels.” That’s pretty direct.
God gives what we need. Obedience is our part. Abram was fearful of the past, a king who could retaliate. He was fearful about the future, the son he did not have. But he needed to be reminded of Who God was and what God had done.
God never expects that which is impossible from you unless it is possible with Him. That is where faith comes in. Verse 6 says, “And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” God is pleased by our faith, not by our power, and when I trust God, He gives the power that I need, I lack, and He owns.