Hello,
Someone recently said to me, “I know the Bible says that God doesn’t
give you more than you can handle.”
Well, the Bible doesn’t say that, at least I can’t find where it says
that. What the Bible says is this,
“No testing has overtaken you that is not
common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested
beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the
way out so that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Cor. 10:13)
I know that many people find comfort in this verse, but although I trust
that it is true, it isn’t the most comforting word to me when I am feeling like
I have been powerfully pummeled and I see another right jab coming my way. It lacks a ring of comfort to me
because I am not too sure that I enjoy the thought of being God’s sparring
partner who God beats down to the point of breaking, but not beyond so that we
can go at it again tomorrow.
Truthfully, I am not certain what the Biblical writer was intending with
this verse, but a God who sends his Son to die for me does not seem to be the
kind of God who “tests” me by inflicting tragedies upon me, punching me to the
point of me saying, “Uncle!”
I don’t believe that God spends his time seeing how many “punches” it
takes to bring me to my knees. It
is clear to me, however, that that is exactly what the world delights to
do. Day in and day out I hear the
world awake me with the words, “Okay. Put up your dukes!” Pressures at work and school that hit
you square in the jaw. Uppercuts
that attack your relationships. Lies
that hit you in the gut and take the breath right out of you. From the corner there are those
advising you to keep your hands up!
Take it like a man! Get up
and fight! Don’t be a sissy! And when you’ve been thrashed enough,
to the point that you can’t get up, that is when the crowd all around you
starts yelling, “Looser!”
So, to me, when I find myself beaten and bruised, gasping for breath on
the ground, I am glad to hear this verse from the Bible, “11May
you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power,
and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully 12giving
thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the
saints in the light. 13He
has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom
of his beloved Son, 14in
whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Col. 1)
When the strength to stand has been beaten out of me, when my eyes have
become so swollen that I can’t even see where to swing, when I am so pummeled
that I can’t even lift my hands…and there are days when I find myself that
way…I am glad….no not glad….elated….that God will fill me with his
strength…that God has rescued me from the clutches of the evil one….and that
through the power of his forgiveness God will send the puncher running with his
tale between his legs.
It is not my strength that I need to count on to stand and face another
day. The Bible tells me that I can
face every day with courage, with hope, and with determination because when I
stand toe to toe with the puncher, I do so with the power of God in my
being. Sure, some of the days will
be heavy weight fights, the world does not give up easily, if not at all. But, when I face those days, rather
than quivering in paralyzing fear, I can find myself looking at the puncher
square into his eyes and say, “Go ahead.
Hit me with your best shot.”, and then a smile comes to my face knowing the
power of the divine punch to which the puncher will be on the receiving end.
Someday, the puncher might just learn not to throw the first punch.
Have a great week.
God’s grace and peace, (GGAP)
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger
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