The Bible declares that God is omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient. That simply means that God is all-powerful, all-seeing, and all-knowing. These are aspects of His character that limit what He can and cannot do and yet do not reduce His perfection, worth or holiness. I wonder if you have ever considered that:
1. God cannot lie. Proverbs 30:5 tells us that “every word of God is pure, and Hebrews 6:18 declares that it is “impossible for God to lie.”
This is good news for mankind, for when God tells us that we are broken, it is the truth. When God tells us that He has a solution, well, that is truth too. When Jesus says He is going to prepare a place for us, it is true. In a world of uncertainty, charlatans, and deception, it is good to know that God cannot lie and that we can trust what He says.
2. God cannot deny His nature or change. Have you ever heard the question, “Can God make a rock so big that He can not move it?” It is a silly question, but let’s unpack it. If God used His creative power to make such a rock, He would have to deny the same power to not move it. That God is all-powerful does not mean He would do anything conceivable, but that He is able to do anything consistent with His nature.
God’s very nature is consistent and the Bible tells us that He never changes. (Mal. 3:6) This is good news for us in that we can trust Him. When He tells us He loves us, He means it. When He says that Jesus is the only provision for sin, salvation and eternal life, we can understand that it is true and that this truth will not change.
3. God cannot fail. This is a good thing because it means that God will never fail us! God has never failed those who put their trust in Him. Zephaniah 3:5 states that God never fails. Failure is something God is not capable of.
He did not fail His people Israel, protecting, providing, and guiding, even though they were rebellious and stiff-necked. He did not fail the human race as He provided His Son Jesus as a sacrifice, dying for the sins of man. God did not fail Jesus as He raised Him up on the third day. God will not fail us, nor will He put to shame those who trust in Him or call upon His name. God cannot fail, and He will not fail you!
4. God cannot make you love Him. God gives man a choice. Adam chose to sin in the Garden of Eden and Cain chose to kill his brother. The Israelites had a choice whether or not they were going to follow Moses out of Egypt and Joshua into the Promised Land.
We have a choice as well, a choice to believe that God is who He says He is, or not. We have been offered salvation and forgiveness of sins if we chose to believe in Jesus as God’s only provision for sin. We have been given a free will; we have been given the capacity of choice.
If God made us love Him, we would be no more than robots programed to say nice things to the engineering team. God does not desire that. He loves us first in hope that we will respond to that love. (1 Jn. 4:9) God can’t make us love Him, but there sure are compelling reasons to do so!
5. God cannot forgive you unless you repent. In Luke 13, Jesus refers to two terrible disasters, which had recently happened in Israel. The first was persecution where Pilate had killed some Galilean Jews who simply desired to worship God. The second was a natural disaster when the tower of Siloam fell and killed 18 men in Jerusalem. Instead of addressing the question of “Why do bad things happen?” Jesus addresses the real need of man, which is “How do I keep my soul from perishing?”
Jesus says two times, “unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” To repent means to turn from our sin and turn to God. This is a choice and this is the only way to be forgiven and have everlasting life. God cannot forgive you unless you repent.
The Galileans did not know they would die that day at the hands of Pilate. Those crushed by the tower of Siloam in Jerusalem did not know either. We are not guaranteed tomorrow, but we have today, and the Bible says, “Today is the day of Salvation.” (2 Cor. 6:2)
What if tomorrow never comes? If you believe in Him today, He will not reject you nor put you to shame. (1 Pet. 2:6)
Yes there are things God cannot do, but they are consistent with His nature, are for our benefit, and are wonderful to think about.
PD