Scripture Reading: Isa. 55:8-9; Rom. 9:11-12, 15-16, 18; 1 Pet. 1:3; Eph. 1:5, 9, 11; 2:8-9; 3:14-19; Phil. 4:7, 19; Heb. 6:13-14; 8:8-10; 13:20-21; 2 Tim. 1:9; 2:13
God's ways are according to His own measure. All of the work that He does has a definite measure and a definite sphere which is not limited by man. We have to learn how weak we are. We may confess that there are many things we cannot do; we may confess that we are too weak to do God's will, to fulfill His holiness, to work for Him, or to please Him. These confessions of weakness, however, will not help us to progress one inch! It has been said that confessing our weaknesses is the first step toward making progress. I admit that this confession is necessary, but this kind of confession in itself will not get us anywhere. Let me say again, I do not despise the confession of weakness, because it is very necessary. But unless one particular weakness is realized and confessed, all of our other confessions will profit us nothing. We must recognize this fundamental weakness: We are helpless in pleasing God and in laying hold of God's power to operate for us. Many of us feel that we can move God by prayer, supplication, or fasting. However, there are two problems with this thought: First, we are impotent, and second, we cannot lay hold of God to do it for us. Some of us have prayed for a year or more about certain matters and nothing seems to happen. We cry to God for revelation and no revelation comes. We feel that we have not prayed long enough or prayed earnestly enough. We feel that there must be a lack in what we have done or that there is some confession which we have not made. Nevertheless, we must be brought to the point where we not only realize our own impotency, but we also realize that we cannot lay hold of God's strength to do something for us. We cannot do it, and we cannot look to God to do it. If we have not seen this, then all of our other confessions of weakness are useless. We have to see that God does everything according to His will and thought; it does not depend on our beseeching.
This is how salvation works. Many of the verses we have read refer to the matter of salvation, stating that God has saved us according to His will, good pleasure, thought, etc. (Eph. 1:5). He works according to His own purpose, not according to what we want. God does not work according to our standard, program, or sphere, but according to His own pleasure. First Peter 1:3 says that we are saved according to His mercy. We are not saved because of our seeking but because of His good pleasure, will, and purpose. Many times we realize that God has the power, and we try to lay hold of His power or trust His power. But even our salvation is of Him, and our faith is from Him. If God wills, there is salvation and grace. Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3:16 is "according to the riches of His glory." We have to pray, but God hears our prayers because He is pleased to do so, not just because we have asked. God's response is not according to what we think; it is "above all that we ask or think" (v. 20). "For as the heavens are higher than the earth,/So are My ways high- er than your ways,/And My thoughts higher than your thoughts" (Isa. 55:9). When the five thousand were fed in John 6, they were not expecting this! They had only gone to hear the Lord speak. But the Lord thought they needed to eat as well, and He fed them. This was grace — the fullness of God. When the prodigal son returned, his thought of food was just "bread," but he got a feast instead. He expected to be a servant but instead he was a son; everything was lavished upon him. God does what will satisfy Himself. He does not do what we think He will do, but what He thinks He will do. He does that which is in keeping with His nature. In the first three Gospels we see how the Lord performed miracles in response to prayer or an appeal, but in John we see a marked difference. There is a different line running through John. The Lord shows forth His glory, moving on a different plane. In chapter two there is the miracle of turning the water into wine. When Mary said to the Lord, "They have no wine," He stopped her by saying, "What do I have in this that concerns you?" (v. 4). This means Mary had nothing to do with it. At the well of Sychar the One who asked for water produced thirst in the woman and then met her thirst. In chapter five there is the story of the impotent man who had suffered for thirty-eight years. The Lord Himself asked, "Do you want to get well?" (v. 6). It seemed as if there was not any hope in the man's heart. But the Lord said to him, "Rise, take up your mat and walk" (v. 8). Nicodemus did not come with a question. It seemed as if he only came to show forth his own knowledge (3:2). The Lord told him straight out that he must be born anew. It was the Lord who took the positive line. In the sixth chapter there is the story of the feeding of the five thousand and of the twelve baskets that were left over. In chapter nine, "He saw a man blind from birth" (v. 1). In response to His disciples' question, He said this man was blind so "that the works of God might be manifested in him" (v. 3). Without any appeal from the blind man, Jesus made clay and anointed his eyes, and the man saw. The Lord wanted to do miracles, not just in response to the request of man, but because He was God. If we recognize God, we will see that He does above what we seek or ask. I believe in prayer, but I also believe in God. There are many things that He does in order to show forth His glory. He is the Creator, and He wants to create. When the Lord was with Martha and Mary, He wanted to perform a miracle on Lazarus. Yet they were so blind. Martha did not even want the stone to be removed! The Lord initiated everything.
God's ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. He is God. When I think of this, I want to worship. If God withdrew all that He has done for us apart from our prayers, we would have very little left! We should come to Him and say, "Lord, I believe You are God." When we feel that we cannot even pray and that we have waited in vain, having no hope, let us say, "Lord, it is not my prayer that matters, only You matter. I believe in You, in Your throne, and in Your mercy." "It is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy" (Rom. 9:16). We need to see that God is bigger than our prayer and our thoughts. When we can pray, let us pray, but when we come to the point when we cannot pray, let us look to God and declare that He is God. We are so small; we need to learn to look to God to accomplish things by Himself! If God believes in Himself, then we also should believe in Him. Hebrews 6:13 says that God swore by Himself. People always swear by one who is greater than they, but God swore by Himself. He is God. Not only do we have to confess that we cannot do anything because we are so weak, we also need to confess that we cannot even grasp God's strength. God is not limited by our feeble prayers. He works above what we can ask or think. Just as the Lord's return will come at a time that we do not know, even now He comes and works when we do not know it. He supplies our needs according to His riches, not according to what we ask. Not long ago a man did a job for me. I asked him for his bill, but I could not get him to give me one. Finally, he said, "I will take what you can give me." I could have just given him a few cents, and he would have taken it. But I would have only received the glory that comes from a few cents! God cannot suffer His glory to be limited by our apprehension, conception, or thoughts of Him. Let us say to God, "Do for me what will glorify You." It is better to believe that He is God rather than spending our time crying to Him. Our prayers can come to an end and our seeking can weaken and tire us, but God cannot tire or come to an end. The measure of our conception of God is not the measure of His working. We can say, "Lord, here is a tired person who puts himself into Your hand." We can be impatient, but it will not hasten matters at all. We just need to look to Him and trust in Him. God says it is not of him who wills or runs but of Him who shows mercy. Let us humble ourselves under His hand. All of our struggles, prayers, and sighs avail nothing. He is a God who cannot deny Himself. He abides faithful.
