It is of the utmost importance for us to study carefully the way God works in His interactions with His earth-born children, and it is even more important for us to be guided by what the scriptures teach, as it pertains to the everyday circumstances of life. God is very practical in His instructions, and we need to understand clearly, when omnipotence can be requested, and when it can’t.
As a general rule of thumb, God does not do for the human agent, that which He has already given us the ability to perform, and there is a fine, but distinct line that is drawn between the exercise of human power and God’s supernatural power. It is therefore imperative that we study very closely His movements as we look to Him in faith, believing that he can do all things.
Whenever we find it necessary to utilize proven human methods that do not contradict what is written in the Bible, we should do so, knowing that this does not translate to a lack of faith on our part. On the contrary, faith in God is exercised when we utilize all known and God given resources and methodologies, trusting in God every step of the way, and depending on Him when all that the human agent can do is totally exhausted.
This is how intelligent faith is exercised in our individual experiences, and thus it becomes necessary to observe very carefully how the human and the Divine are interfaced in different situations. There are several instances in the Bible which clearly illustrate what is being referred to, and if we are humble enough to learn at Jesus’ feet, He would be more than willing to enlighten our hearts and minds as to the right course to pursue in the different circumstances we often find ourselves in.
Let’s start with the father of the faithful, Abraham.
When Abraham was called by God to leave his
native land of the Chaldees, he was told to go to a
place that God would show him, and in obedience to that command, he uprooted from his hometown and traveled until he came to the land of Canaan. But not long after his arrival, a grievous famine came upon the land, which threatened his camp with starvation. Now, mere human, and logical reasoning will likely conclude that since Abraham landed in Canaan on the instructions of the Almighty, that he could therefore expect food to be supplied supernaturally by an Omnipotent God who could call loaves and fishes out of thin air, and thereby supply all of their needs.
While it is true that God can actually perform a miracle like this, He usually does not choose to go that route except all available resources have been exhausted, and therefore, if Abraham could find food in Egypt, God expects him to make the journey, pay for his food, until there is no more food to be found anywhere, and then after all known sources have been wiped out, Abraham can then confidently look to heaven for bread. This action taken by Abraham would then represent a profound manifestation of faith in God. Let’s read:
Genesis 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee:
12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
12:9 And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the south.
12:10 And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine [was] grievous in the land.
The same principle of utilizing all known and available God-given methods and resources was made manifest when Christ fed the multitude with five barley loaves and two fishes. Jesus could have then have called out of thin air, curry goat and dumplings by the tons, with a side order of grilled tofu and salad, but He does not choose to do this, for it is not His customary manner of working. And therefore, true to His consistent ways, He first searches for any available resources.
After careful inquiry He finds a lad whose mother had packed him lunch and Jesus then requests that the boy offer his food so that He could do what only God can do. He then miraculously multiplies the food so that everyone ate to the full, and then He orders his disciples to gather up the fragments, so that no natural resources are wasted. Let’s read:
John 6:5 When Jesus then lifted up [his] eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?
6:8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him,
6:9 There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
6:11 And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.
6:12 When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.
The same pattern of operation is seen in the experience of the Hebrews when God fed them miraculously for forty years. They were at that time wandering in the desert, where they obviously could not grow any crops, and so God’s supernatural power was engaged in their behalf, by raining manna from heaven every morning, for four decades. But let’s observe what takes place as they stand on the borders of Canaan, which flows with milk and honey. Let’s read:
Exodus 16:35 And the children of Israel did eat manna forty years, until they came to a land inhabited; they did eat manna, until they came unto the borders of the land of Canaan.
Now that there are grocery stores like Wal-mart and Publix right across the border in plain sight, there is no need for supernatural power to continue supplying food supernaturally, and so the manna which has fallen consistently for forty years suddenly comes to a halt, so that the available human resources which God has provided, can now take up the slack where omnipotence has left off.
Here again is the same manner of operation in the life of Christ Himself, after He was born. Herod is seeking to kill Him, and Mary and Joseph are warned in a dream by God to run for their lives, because Herod is bent on murdering the young child. God does not send a chariot of fire, as He did with Elijah, nor does He send one of those mighty Seraphim who excel in strength. Instead He allows Joseph and his family to escape on a donkey at midnight, for that mode of transport was available, and therefore omnipotence is not to be summoned to do what the human agent has the capacity to do. Let’s read:
Matthew 2:13 And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
2:14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:
However, in instances where nothing else can be done to protect Himself, and Christ is walking in obedience to the Father’s command, the Seraphim are certainly going to take over where the human agent has exhausted its capabilities, and the omnipotent power of God will surely stand as a bulwark against all foes. Let’s read:
Luke 4:28 And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,
4:29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.
4:30 But he passing through the midst of them went his way.
Again the same pattern of operation is made clear in the interfacing of the human and the Divine, when Lazarus is to be raised from the dead. Let’s follow the Master closely, for if we were to understand this one important aspect of our relationship with the Lord, we can be saved from making very grievous mistakes in the future. Christ is only going to do what the human agent can’t, and nothing else, so He begins this episode with the
request that the stone be rolled away by human hands. Let’s read:
John 11:38 Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it.
11:39 Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been [dead] four days.
Christ could have commanded the stone to be removed, and angels could have moved it effortlessly, as they did on another occasion. Let’s read:
Matthew 28:1 In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first [day] of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.
28:2 And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.
28:3 His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow:
28:4 And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead [men].
But with the raising of Lazarus, there are muscular men who have been training at Gold’s gym, and so no Seraphim is going to show up to do what these men can obviously do. After the stone is rolled away by human hands, then it is now time for the human and divine to be interfaced, and so Christ proceeds to do what we cannot do for ourselves. Let’s read:
John 11:43 And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.
11:44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave clothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.
Again we see that the loosening and freeing of Lazarus devolves upon the human agent, because Christ only uses supernatural power when it is absolutely necessary. However, in modern Christianity, the devil offers a counterfeit to this pattern which has been firmly established by God, in that many preachers and televangelists are now teaching by precept and example, that God’s omnipotent power is to be at the disposal of the human agent, to be invoked at the beck and call of millions, without the human agent doing their part.
As a result we now have many pseudo faith healings, where the human agent makes no effort to stop smoking, but shows up at a stadium healing meeting, for God to supposedly exercise His supernatural power in their behalf.
Others are being erroneously taught that God is bound by His own word to heal, deliver and restore to health, because He has promised to do so. Yet the people are not taught of God’s methods of working, nor are they being made aware of the conditions that are laid down in the Bible, and as a result multitudes have subscribed to satan’s version of subjective omnipotence in our behalf, a doctrine and practice which constitutes one of the greater deceptions of our day. In order for God’s supernatural power to be displayed when it is requested, one must first adhere to, or at least be willing to follow the conditions that are stipulated in the Bible. Anything short of this represents a counterfeit method which is neither recognized, nor endorsed in the word of God. Let’s read:
Exodus 15:23 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they [were] bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah.
15:24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?
15:25 And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD showed him a tree, [which] when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them,
15:26 And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I [am] the LORD that healeth thee.
The same basic teaching is echoed in the New Testament, where the apostle James describes the conditions that must be fulfilled by the Christian, in order that the power of omnipotence be displayed in their restoration. Let’s read:
James 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
5:15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
5:16 Confess [your] faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Now it is true that at times God has manifested His power in a person without their first asking. These rare instances fall under the domain of God’s prerogative to do His good pleasure at any time, and in any place, and for anyone He chooses. Let’s read:
John 5:5 And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
5:6 When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time [in that case], he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?
5:7 The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.
5:8 Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.
But when it comes to our expectation in making requests for Divine power to be engaged in our behalf, the conditions and methods given in God’s word must be fulfilled, and when they are adhered to, the same God who delivered Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, will come through in marked ways for the deliverance of His people.
There is one more issue that must be dealt with as it pertains to the interfacing of divine and human power, and that is the issue of ignorance, where a Christian may not be aware of how the two work
together. This is a problem that must be addressed, for satan can tempt and harm us on what we do not know, hence the reason why the majority of his efforts are concentrated in getting us to neglect a study of God’s word, for he is acquainted with the scripture which says “My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge”.
The following statement taken from the book of Acts is often quoted out of context, or otherwise misunderstood to mean that the natural results of a course of action would be reversed by God, if a person does not know. Let’s read:
Acts 17:29 Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.
17:30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.
Now it is true that a person is only held responsible for what they could have known, but this fact does absolutely nothing to reverse the natural law of cause and effect, furthermore, the apostle Paul is here speaking in the context of people ignorantly worshipping idols, and has no relation whatsoever to the spiritual law of sowing and reaping. For instance there are many people who ignorantly eat the blood of animals in the form of rare steak, or pudding, which is a breaded product made with the blood of cattle or pigs.
And there are many more who eat the fat that is located between the sinews of animals. Their ignorance of what the Bible has to say on these matters, does absolutely nothing to forestall the natural, negative results which would inevitably accrue, when those items are ingested. Let’s read:
Leviticus 7:23 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Ye shall eat no manner of fat, of ox, or of sheep, or of goat.
7:24 And the fat of the beast that dieth of itself, and the fat of that which is torn with beasts, may be used in any other use: but ye shall in no wise eat of it.
7:26 Moreover ye shall eat no manner of blood, [whether it be] of fowl or of beast, in any of your dwellings.
7:27 Whatsoever soul [it be] that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
If for any reason a person were to ignorantly violate these dietary laws, the omnipotent power of God shouldn’t be expected to reverse the naturally occurring results, for this would nullify that which God Himself has spoken, and if He were to deliver everyone who is ignorant of the truths He has given, then no one will take His word seriously, and we would ultimately come to lightly regard everything He has said.
The reason why this issue of the interfacing of the Divine and the human is so critically important, is because the deceptions in our day will so closely resemble the genuine, that even the elect need to be very careful, lest they get swept away by the specious reasons of our mortal foe. This danger Christ has repeatedly warned us of. Let’s read:
Mark 13:22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if [it were] possible, even the elect.
13:23 But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture which by implication, encourages us to seek for a greater and yet greater knowledge of The Most High God, so that we do not fall a prey to deceptions of the last days in which we are currently living. Let’s read:
2nd Thessalonians 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
2:9 [Even him], whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness.
Let us therefore live soberly, knowing that God will stand up for those who accept and understand His revealed truths and methods. God bless!