We were always taught that our God is a good God. That He is able to do more exceedingly and abundantly above all that we can hope and ask and receive. Yet sadly it must be admitted that it is very much possible to limit Him and stop us from receiving from Him. Many of us, even true long – standing believers at times fail to see beyond our present circumstances, all with our doubt and unbelief. At such times, we look more at our obstacles and become frustrated and disgusted. The unfortunate result is that have put a ceiling on the blessings we were to receive from Him. God, our Father wants us to rise above everything to believe so much that we can ask and receive anything. When we limit Him, we switch off the supply.
One glaring example we can see is of God’s own chosen people, the Israelites. Let us look again at Psalm 78:40-42…
“How often they provoked Him in the wilderness,
And grieved Him in the desert!
Yes, again and again they tempted God
And limited the Holy One of Israel
They did not remember His power
The day when He redeemed them from the enemy”
The Israelites had a torrid time in believing God. Time and time again He came to their rescue while they were on their journey to the promised land after God had rescued them from their slavery in Egypt. They were so used to the life of being a slave in Egypt. Remember their murmuring and complaining in the wilderness? We know how they cried “Where is the water? We were better off in Egypt! Again and again, they limited God all through the journey. A journey that could have been done in just 11 days stretched out to be a full 40 years, all because they placed limitations on the God who delivered them.
The story is still the same today with God’s people even after several centuries. God even sent His only begotten Son Jesus to our Messiah. The slightest test or threat to our daily lives and we are so eager to forget what God did the last time when we were in a similar situation. Remember the time when our house was to be repossessed due to unpaid mortgage? How we prayed and confessed His Word on Him supplying all our needs? Have we forgotten how our mortgage was squared off by a benefactor neighbour?
Our God is a good God. Let us not limit Him in any way. Let us remember to confess His Word over every adverse circumstance and situation we may face and not speak anything contrary to His Word. Every situation in our lives – concerning our finances, our health, our families, our children, all of these have a clear promise from God in the Bible. If only we would put them to use when the need arises.
Remember the woman with the issue of blood in Mark 5:25 – 34? The woman was bleeding for years. She had lost everything. All her money was spent on doctors. Until she chose to pursue Jesus in that crowd of people. How she believed that even if she did not receive a Word from Jesus, she could still get healed if she could only touch the helm of His garment. The moment she touched His garment out of sheer desperation! Wham! She was instantly healed. The anointing or the power of the Holy Spirit touched the woman and it healed her instantly. SHE BELIEVED SO MUCH THAT SHE DID NOT PUT ANY LIMITS ON JESUS!
We too can have the same results in our lives just like the woman with the issue of blood did. It is so easy. We simply deny putting any limits on God. Mind you, if it is there in His Word, He will surely do it. All we have to do then is only to believe.
Bible Commentator: Sunder Venkataram (Thane)
Why does God no longer speak to us like in bible times?
We understand your predicament. The problem is that the world today is so much saturated in that the Earth is sitting atop a massive pot of total sin. All we have is His Word which says that He rewards those who diligently seek Him. When we seek his first His Kingdom, meaning His way for our Living, He then starts speaking to us. You can see the lives of great men of God today like Brother Kenneth Copeland. Only the other day I was watching live a convention in which I saw him giving advice to many members of his congregation after God spoke to him by giving a word about them. God does speak. The more you get into His Word, the better are our chances of receiving a specific word from Him.