Genesis 17:1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
All of us have known people whom we felt were beyond hope, people who were too bad, too far gone, or too old. Indeed, the older a person gets without the Lord Jesus, the less likely it is that such a person will come to the Lord Jesus, but God’s grace is sufficient and it is never too late to obey the Almighty God with the everlasting covenant.
Genesis 17:1 says, “And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.” God had a claim on Abram’s life and a promise for Abram’s life, and God claimed before Abram to be the Almighty God. Indeed He is. Almighty God literally means “God all-sufficient.” So, while you lose strength and other notable things with age, God is not diminished with your age. He is the All-Sufficient God.
Notice both the promise that God had made to Abram and the obedience Abram had shown God when Abram was an old man. When Abram heard God’s promise of a son for him and Sarai, Genesis 17:17 says, “Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?” The answer is, “Is there anything too hard for God?” God was going to do exactly what He said He would. God’s work was not dependent upon Abram’s strength. Abram came to realize this, and the Bible says about Abraham in verse 24, “And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised.”
What do you get from God’s promise and Abraham’s obedience? What you get is that it is never too late to obey the Almighty God, the All-Sufficient God with the everlasting covenant. Having said that, fulfillment of God’s promise comes with faith, and complexity in our life comes from scheming. Abraham had said, “God, it seems as if You’ve had a hard time fulfilling Your promise in good time. I’ll have a son by Hagar and Ishmael can be my heir.” God said, “As for Ishmael, I have heard thee… I have blessed him,” but then God says, “My covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.”
So, we are concerned about time, but God is the Master of timing. I don’t know how far gone you feel as if you or others are, but God Almighty is all-sufficient. He is able. No matter how old you are, it is never too late to begin obedience, and it is never too late for God to honor that.