The Bible Dogma Blog

Is Almighty God Mighty Enough?

When I was a boy, I had a horse named Buddy. It was a good name for a horse that had become such a close companion to me. Buddy had considerable character. He would roll on his back and let me rub his belly, bow his head to let me slip down his neck like a waterslide, and playfully chomped on my blonde hair like it was hay. But for all the years Buddy was my affectionate pal, I feared him for his massive power.  

One time, I was rushing through my barn chores to go fishing. While scrambling, I became oblivious to my goats’ growing passion to gobble the grain as they were greedily thronging Buddy’s food trough. Unaware of Buddy’s ascending anger, I stepped right into the path of his vaulting legs as I was wandering through the gaggle of goats mustered behind him. I think I orbited the moon just before crashing to the manure, writhing in pain as I gasped for air.

Similarly, I think America sees Jesus as an affectionate pal, but has no fear for his mighty power. We are oblivious to God’s ascending anger. In fact, the swift kick of God’s judgment is the only coherent explanation for our nation’s unregenerate, reprobate culture—and we’re writhing in rotting, moral manure because of it. As a nation, we’ve lost perspective on the mightiness of God.

 It reminds me of the book of Numbers when the Israelites start to greedily murmur about the days of eating meat as slaves in Egypt, despite the miraculous manna (and freedom!) that God provided on a day-to-day basis. And since they denied God’s unobscured acts of mighty love, God spoke with kindled anger to Moses saying:

“You shall eat [meat]…. until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you; because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before Him, saying, ‘Why did we ever leave Egypt?’” (Numbers 11:18b-20, NASB emphasis added).

“But Moses said, ‘The people, among whom I am, are 600,000 on foot; yet You have said, ‘I will give them meat, so that they may eat for a whole month.’ Should flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to be sufficient for them? Or should all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to be sufficient for them?” And God responds, “Is the Lord’s power limited? Now you shall see whether My word will come true for you or not” (Numbers 11:21-23).

Let’s summarize. God saves Israel from persecution and starvation in a geographical wasteland (more than 600,000 mouths daily!). They get greedy, murmur to Moses, and Moses questions God’s power. God alone had prospered Israel through miraculous blessings, yet they chose to suppress the truth by refusing reality. Consequently, they received their meat and died of plague. God gave the greedy exactly what they desired.

Here’s the lesson: sin is not only the culprit, but it is the consequence. In other words, sin is so bad that it is what God gives us as our punishment. He will give you your sin until it becomes loathsome to you—even for eternity. That’s why nobody in hell is innocent. Furthermore, God will not force anyone into heaven; He is sovereign, we are responsible. So, will you gamble your eternity to see if God’s word will come true?  

Consider this carefully: is almighty God mighty enough to conquer evil? America’s evil? Your evil?  Yes! In fact, God demonstrates his infinite power through love. The almighty Father sacrificed his almighty Son to be the substitute on your behalf. Christ guzzled the cup of God’s wrath intended to be poured out on every sinner. God’s mightiness is elevated in two ways: (1) in wrath by sentencing your evil by giving you over to it, and (2) in mercy by sentencing your evil by giving you over to Christ. Therefore, nothing escapes the mighty hand of God—not even evil. Christ alone can change your greedy heart into a grateful one.

And I have never met a person who has come to Christ and regretted it.

“Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?” (Romans 2:4).