The Riddle
I was at a Christmas party many years ago. A pastor and author was there who liked to play games with riddles. He had a good one which stumped everyone at the party.
“what’s bigger than the universe . . . dead men eat it . . . if living men eat it they die”.
You can think about that for a bit.
Luke 1:26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31 You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”
34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37 For nothing is impossible with God.”
38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
Two Points to this message: 1. Nothing is impossible with God.
SOME SCRIPTURE ABOUT IMPOSSIBILITIES
But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. Acts 2:24
God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. Hebrews 6:18
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6
23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” Mark 10:23-27
It is obvious from these passages that nothing is impossible with God.
QUESTION: Is anything difficult for God?
Chuck Smith used to say you measure the difficulty of a task not by the task itself but by the capacity of the agent doing the work. If God is omnipotent, and by any measure we might be able to apply to Him He is, indeed, omnipotent, then there is nothing that is even difficult for Him. If you accept Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”, then you should have no problem with things like a worldwide flood, the sun stopping in the sky for a few extra hours of daylight or a virgin girl giving birth to a son without any physical relations with a man. For man all of these things may seem impossible. For God they are not even difficult. This is a reasonable perspective.
Illustration: Ruth Segafus- Almost twenty years ago I was serving as associate pastor at a small church in Long Beach, California. In the morning service during prayer someone told us the story of an elderly lady who was going in for surgery that week for a mastectomy-she had breast cancer. As we were praying for her I felt that the Lord was planning to heal her. I told my wife after the service “I think the Lord is going to heal the lady we prayed for this morning”. A few weeks later she came to our evening service to tell her story. She said the morning she was scheduled for surgery she was at peace. Her husband had been a pastor about fifty years. She felt her life had already been full and complete. She prayed to the Lord, “Lord, I’ve had a good life. I’m ready for whatever you have decided. If you want to take me home, I’m ready to be with You. If you want to heal me, I’ll give you the glory. Thy will be done”. When she got to the hospital they took her to a room next to the operation theater to prepare her for surgery. A technician would take a thin metal probe and press it into her chest to direct the surgeon to the place where the tumor could be found and extracted. He was using a scanner to see the tumor and direct his work. Unexpectedly there was a clamor of activity as the nurses and technicians in the room seemed very disturbed. They brought in the surgical team. Mrs. Segafus said “I didn’t understand why everyone was so upset. I thought ‘I’m the one going in for surgery and I’m at peace. Why are all these people so stressed?’” The lead surgeon came to her and said “Mrs. Segafus, I’m sorry, we can’t do the surgery today. She said “Why not”? He said, “as the technician was placing the probe the tumor disappeared. We can’t find it. We’d like you to come in tomorrow for some follow-up tests”. They did the follow-up tests. They never found the tumor. She was already in her 70’s. God gave her a few extra healthy years and a story to tell.
Nothing is impossible with God. Nothing is even difficult for Him.
If your vision is possible for you to accomplish alone, your vision is too small.
Point 2: THE KEY THAT UNLOCKS THE DOOR TO GOD’S TREASURE OF THE IMPOSSIBLE WITHIN US:
“I AM THE LORD’S SERVANT . . . LET IT BE TO ME AS YOU HAVE SAID”
Mary’s life was transformed, and now all people call her blessed, because she was willing to humble herself before the Lord and cooperate with His plan.
-A young girl, who was becoming quite knowledgeable about the Bible because of her grandmother’s teaching, asked her grandmother: "Which Virgin was the mother of Jesus? The Virgin Mary or the New International Virgin?"’
Pastor John Roy expressed Mary's attitude like this:
"How many of us have this submissive attitude to put our lives in God’s hands? When we keep things in our hands, the outcome is predictable; but when we put things in God’s hands, who knows what can happen…maybe miracles. Yet, it is more than putting things in God’s hand; it is putting ourselves in his hands “may it be as you have said.” These are the words that serve as the prelude for miracles, “may it be as you have said.”
John Roy
http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/whatever-happened-to-miracles-john-roy-sermon-on-miracles-of-jesus-42575.asp?page=0
There is an ongoing debate on our campus (in India) about whether Christians should give bribes to public officials to get God’s Kingdom work done. (this is a debate people don’t have much in the US)
I’d like to express my opinion on that subject.
Should you pay bribes? Absolutely! If the God you serve is not capable of accomplishing His purposes without your help. My God owns the cattle on a thousand hills-He owns the hills also.
His resources are infinite.
His purpose is sure.
His power, omnipotent;
My hope is secure.
God is capable, if required, to change the heart of a public official. And I’ll tell you; if you pay that official a bribe your ministry will never change his heart.
Humble yourself before the LORD. Let Him work things out in His way and in His time. You may not be happy with His timing, but in the long run you’ll be very happy with the results.
Ravi Zacharias relates the story of a professor at the Islamic University in Malaysia, one of the oldest such universities in the World. A Muslim apologist, Ahmed Deedat was invited to speak. Dr. Zacharias relates:
"Deedat had delivered his talk at the university in his usual hate-filled style, mocking Christianity and calling it nonsensical and unlivable, among other charges. When Professor Lee, one of the few Christians in the audience, questioned his charge, Deedat called him to come to the front. Professor Lee walked forward. Deedat raised his hand and with a full swing slapped him with a stinging hit to the face. Professor Lee was nearly knocked [off] his feet. Deedat then barked, “Now turn the other cheek!” It was obvious what he was trying to do. Suddenly he paused and said, “We can do this quicker. Give me your shirt!” Professor Lee unbuttoned and took off his shirt. “According to Jesus, you should now offer your trousers, too, shouldn’t you?” Deedat said. Professor Lee turned to the audience, apologized to his students and faculty colleagues, took off his trousers, and quietly walked out of the room in his underwear. The audience was in a dazed, stunned silence. Outdone by a gentle but equally determined scholar, Deedat looked utterly juvenile and like a man who had just been hoisted on his own petard.
Dr. Lee went back to his office and put his face in his hands, his spirit swirling with indescribable emotions. He wept though he knew he had done the right thing in standing his ground. A few moments later there was a knock on the door, then another, and another, and another. When he opened the door, he saw students and colleagues lined up to apologize to him for the pain and foolishness just displayed..."
http://www.rzim.org/rzim-news/ravi-zacharias-nelson-mandela-and-the-human-struggle-for-dignity-and-freedom/
Dr. Lee’s humility lead to open doors of ministry. Are we willing to humble ourselves to such an extent so that the Gospel of Jesus Christ can be demonstrated to our generation? If we are, God can and will work through us to accomplish His purposes.
Mary was willing to humble herself, accept the change of her circumstances, accept the shame and gossip and disdain she would face. She was willing to humble herself to accept and embrace God’s plan for her life. Therefore she received the honor of being the vessel through whom God would give His only begotten Son.
What does God wish to do through you? I guarantee it’s something impossible for you, but possible for Him.
I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20
Did you figure out the answer to the riddle? I was sitting at that party, perplexed.
“what’s bigger than the universe . . . dead men eat it . . . if living men eat it they die”.
After a few hours I blurted out “NOTHING!”
My friend, the pastor and author, was stunned. He had asked that riddle to many people. No one had figured it out. After getting to the answer I felt foolish. It was actually quite simple. I shouldn’t have taken so long to figure it out.
The answer is the same to the question “what is impossible for God?”
What is your riddle this morning? What is the question to which you have no answer, the problem for which you have no solution?
Bring it to our LORD this morning.
He is the solution. He is the answer.
