Is Anything Too Hard for God?

There is quite a bit of bad news in the world these days. Destructive storms, earthquakes and other “natural” events fill much of the news reports. Meanwhile, man-made strife and conflict continue to rage in seemingly all corners of the globe.

On a personal level, we often face similar challenges that may seem insurmountable in the moment. Perhaps we face a difficult situation at work or even suffer persecution for keeping the biblical Sabbath. Through it all, God expects His people to live with an expectant hope and trust in both God’s ability to deliver and His capability to sustain us through difficulty. The prophet Habakkuk declared simply, “The just shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4). This theme is echoed in the New Testament as well (Romans 1:17; Hebrews 10:38-39).

This is nothing new. The Bible is replete with examples of real people who lived much of their lives in conflict, trial and persecution and through their experiences learned to lean on God with faith and trust (Hebrews 11). At times God allows His people to experience situations that seem impossible to manage. It is in these moments that God can and does teach us to trust and lean on Him fully.

Sarah’s great adventure

One such example involves Sarah, the wife of Abraham. Sarah’s story is one of love, heartache, adventure and intervention. With her husband, she left her homeland and struck out on what must have been quite an adventure. Sarah must have known God’s promise that their descendants would be “a great nation” (Genesis 12:2).

Their journey took them into the increasingly powerful nation of Egypt. Sarah witnessed firsthand the consequences of practicing deceit (Genesis 12:10-20). She also experienced family strife (Genesis 13). Sarah would be reminded at regular intervals of God’s promises that Abraham’s children would be numbered “as the dust of the earth” (Genesis 13:16).

And yet, despite the repeated encouragement from God, Sarah was barren. As the years passed, this must have added layers of worry, frustration and confusion to her life. Sarah even took matters into her own hand in a futile attempt to bring her own resolution to the matter (Genesis 16).

Months turned into years that grew into decades. A quarter of a century passed—Abraham was approaching 100 years of age and Sarah was 90 (Genesis 17:17). Again, God renewed His promise, telling Abraham, “Sarah your wife shall have a son” (Genesis 18:10). Sarah seemed unable to believe such a promise—after all, she was beyond the age of childbearing. After 25 years of working with this couple, God brought them to this teaching moment. God asked an intensely simple question: “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” (Genesis 18:14).

Too hard for God?

Imagine this moment. God in His patience and love had brought Abraham and Sarah to a point where they would recognize, without any doubt, that it is God who can and does deliver His people. “And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah as He had spoken. For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him—whom Sarah bore to him—Isaac” (Genesis 21:1-3).

Isaac’s birth would provide the simple answer that nothing is too hard for God. We would do well to remember this poignant question and the revealed answer. As we walk through this life, we will undoubtedly face challenging situations and even persecution. We may face situations where our faith in God’s ability to deliver and comfort will be stretched.

As Christians, we must learn to operate from a platform of faith. Notice this encouraging passage, “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. … Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:14, 16).

On occasion God may ask us, “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” Let us boldly answer with resounding, living faith: Nothing is too hard for God!

Jason Hyde attends the Louisville, Kentucky, congregation of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association, and enjoys traveling with his wife, Emily, and daughter, Ava.