By: Joel Ramirez
Children add so much perspective to life. Our three-year-old tonight managed to button up her pajama shirt with minimal help for the very first time. Like all small children coming into their independence, she will quite often reply “I can do it”. It is hard for a parent to trust a child when we hear this but then I find myself being frustrated when I must try and convince her to have that reciprocal trust. There is a difference though. I have seen my child struggle to do the things she said she could do when I know the item is too big to pick up or the task too technical to complete. I have a vantage point that the child does not. I have experience and the capability of forethought that my child does not. She only has the desire for independence. You are probably already making the comparison in your head that I am going to use. How often do we try the same with God, like a small inexperienced child pouting “I can do it!”? And how often do we underestimate God’s capabilities just as the child fails to trust the parent? Isn’t this one of the greatest struggles recorded repeatedly in the Bible?
It began in the Garden of Eden when Eve was tempted with the prospect of knowing good and evil. John was the one who put it into words through the guidance of the Holy Spirit when he wrote in 1st John 2:16 “For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.” Humans find weakness in a desire for independence in this world that God has made for us. God has gifted us with the freedom of choice, but this world can only be conquered through obedience to God. James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” This is a reassuring scripture but is often left out of context. When we compare what comes immediately before this verse the context is brought into focus. How do we draw near to God? “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”, James 4:7. It begins with submission to God which is using your independence to choose God’s way over our own. v10 concludes this guidance with “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” Once again, we use our independence to strive for humility in the sight of God and now we can successfully draw near to God. Without submission and humility, we only put space between us and God.
In the recent study of the 12 spies sent from Moses’ camp to explore the promised land, we saw how grossly underestimated God was. “Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Numbers 13:17-20. We must remember that these are men who came out of Egypt, who witnessed the plagues of Egypt, who witnessed the parting of the Red Sea and who witnessed the pillar of smoke and fire that led them to this promised land. 13: 27 shows them underestimating God when 10 of the spies returned to the camp with the report of “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there.” They continue on starting at v32 “And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were likegrasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” Why then did everyone, except for Joshua and Caleb, doubt God’s capabilities? Notice that they speak of seeing themselves and no mention of God. Just like the child who doubts the parent, they had a realization of what they were capable of and attempted to put those limitations on God. Now, put this into application when it comes to following any of God’s commandments. “Go into all the worldand preach the gospel to every creature.He who believes and is baptized will be saved;but he who does not believe will be condemned”, Mark 16:15-16. How can we doubt that God will not give us the courage and strength needed to complete this commandment? This commandment is minimal compared to what was asked of the children of Israel when God told them to go and conquer the promised land. We have an idea of our limitations and are now trying to reduce God’s power to our own capabilities.
We must ensure that we are not underestimating God and his capabilities today. We would be wise next time we are faced with adversity to remember we have the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob on our side if we are doing His will. This is the God who created the heavens and the earth as well as you and me. This is the God who the writer of Hebrews speaks of in Hebrews 13:5-6 “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” When we look at things from this perspective the reality of the any situation becomes blatantly clear. We come to the same conclusion as Isaiah and as the writer of Hebrews in boldly saying “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”