DON’T SAY GOD CAN’T
2 Kings 6:25; 7:1-2
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: I’ve Heard Crazier Things
1. When King George VI was a boy, he and his older brother Edward were standing at the window of their palace looking out on the snow-covered city. Just off the palace grounds they could see a mob of common children having a snowball fight. They longed to be in it.
2. Just then, their Governess got called away. They threw on their coats and shoes and ran out and joined in the melee. A palace window pane got broken and the group of kids were all hustled to the police station, where a sergeant began asking their names.
3. “What’s your name, boy?” he asked the first boy. “My name is Edward, Prince of Wales” he said haughtily. “A smart guy, eh?” said the sergeant. “And what is your name?” he asked to the second boy. “My name is Albert, Duke of Windsor,” said the second.
4. By this time the sergeant was furious, “I’ve never heard such a bunch of liars in all my life.” He asked the third boy, “And what is your name?” He said, “I’m sticking with the other boys — I’m the Archbishop of Canterbury!” (Treasury of Humor, Clyde Murdock)
5. In today’s passage, we’re going to hear something even more improbable.
B. TEXT
6:25 There was a great famine in the city [Samaria]; the siege [by Aram] lasted so long that a donkey’s head sold for eighty shekels of silver, and [4 ounces of dove’s dung] for five shekels. 7:1 Elisha replied, “Hear the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord says: About this time tomorrow, 12 pounds of the finest flour will sell for a shekel and 20 pounds of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.” 2 The officer on whose arm the king was leaning said to the man of God, “Look, even if the Lord should open the floodgates of the heavens, could this happen?” “You will see it with your own eyes,” answered Elisha, “but you will not eat any of it!” 2 Kings 6:25; 7:1-2.
C. WHY THE OFFICER SAID IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE
1. The officer’s perspective was the natural. He knew what would be necessary for the prophet’s prediction to come to pass.
2. A MASSIVE ARMY must come and battle and defeat the army of Aram. It would take a month to move that large of an army from Egypt and a few days more for the battle and cleanup.
3. Then messengers and money would have to be sent to Egypt, and a small fleet of ships be loaded with grain and sail back to the coast, be unloaded, and then transported by caravan to Samaria. This would take another 2 months! So abundant supplies would require about 3 months, but the prophet said, “Tomorrow!”
4. Many times WE see things as impossible to happen, simply because we’re leaving God out of our calculations. That’s why the title of this message is, “Don’t Say God Can’t!”
I. THE IMPOSSIBLE IS NOT IMPOSSIBLE
A. BECAUSE REASON CAN APPROACH FAITH
1. Achievers have learned not to wholly trust to the natural. Charles F. Kettering, the noted scientist and inventor, believed that the easiest way to overcome defeat was to ignore completely the possibility of failure.
2. To prove it, he gave a tough assignment to a young research worker at the General Motors laboratory, but forbid him to research the previous work on the subject, because an expert research team had already proven that it was impossible.
3. So the research worker didn’t know this and proceeded with the idea that he would succeed. He did succeed, because he didn’t know it couldn’t be done!
4. Similarly, Igor Sikorsky, when 12 years old, was told by his parents that human flight was impossible. Yet he built the first helicopter.
5. In his American plant hung a sign that read: “According to [modern science], the bumblebee can’t fly because of the shape and weight of his body in relation to the total wing area. The bumblebee doesn’t know this, so he goes ahead and flies anyway.” [Even Snopes confesses the math for bumblebee flight doesn’t add up.] It’s simple, yet so profound; many things are still mysteries!
6. Jesus told His disciples, “If you have faith...nothing will be impossible for you…If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes” Mk. 9:20,23.
B. MIRACLES ARE NATURAL TO GOD
1. E. Stanley Jones described the scene: Suppose a man is walking down a path through the woods. Beside the path there was a frog underneath a stone.
2. The frog wanted to lift the stone, so he strained and bulged every muscle, but he couldn't lift it. A man came along and easily picked up the stone, throwing it to one side.
3. The frog looked up with surprise, blinked his eyes and croaked, "A miracle!" A miracle for whom?
4. It was a miracle for the frog because it was something he couldn't do. But it was only normal for the man, because he belonged to a different nature.
5. Well, Miracles are normal to God! When God performs a miracle, the laws of nature are NOT violated, but superseded by a force superior to the laws of nature. [Louis Berkhof]
6. If you believe that God exists and created the universe then miracles are easy. The Flood of Noah, the parting of the Red Sea, the virgin birth, Peter walking on water, feeding 5,000 people with a boy’s lunch, and all the other biblical miracles, become not only possible, but expected.
7. Miracles are STILL NECESSARY TODAY because they meet human needs, they get people’s attention focused on God, they confirm Christ’s deity (Acts 2:22), and they build our faith (John 11:45).
II. OUR PART: TO BELIEVE FOR A MIRACLE
A. WE LIMIT GOD
1. You may say, “Ah! But if God wants to work a miracle, then there’s no way we’re going to stop Him.” Not necessarily. Psalm 78:41 tells how the Israelites “limited the Holy One of Israel.” WE - CAN LIMIT GOD!
2. Think about when Jesus came to Nazareth. He was ‘God in the flesh,’ yet the Bible says, “And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them” Mk. 6:5. Why? Because God has so designed things that OUR PART in miracles is to have faith in God.
B. WAYS WE LIMIT GOD
1. WE LIMIT GOD TO OUR EXPERIENCES – our preconceived ideas of what God will do; but God’s moving is often outside the scope of our conception:
a. Moses threw in a stick to make salty waters sweet.
b. Jesus used spittle for mud to heal a man’s eyes.
c. Elisha used flour in, to remove poison from soup.
d. A man dipped 7X in a muddy river to heal leprosy.
e. We say, “I don’t think God moves that way!” We need to take our hands off the HOW God’s going to do it and let God be a mystery! But trust Him!
2. WE LIMIT GOD BY MISPLACED TRUST...in doctors, jobs, the government, science, bank accounts, & people, instead of God.
3. WE LIMIT GOD BY SMALL VISION. Some people only bring God their big requests (as if He’s not concerned about their small ones) and others bring only their small requests (as if asking for big ones would be too much to ask). We doubt God’s generosity, goodness, & His care about the details of our lives!
4. The definition of LIMIT is “some lack in a person’s makeup which restricts the scope of his activity or accomplishment.” Just think what you could do if you served a God of miracles!
C. WHEN OUR FAITH IS TOO SMALL: HUMOR
1. 2 Guys went fishing. One fisherman was experienced, the other wasn't. Every time the experienced fisherman caught a big fish, he put it in the cooler.
2. When the inexperienced fisherman caught a big fish, he threw it back. Finally, the experienced fisherman asked, "Why do you keep throwing back all the big fish you catch?" The other fisherman replied, "I only have a small frying pan."
3. Sometimes, like that fisherman, we throw back the big plans, big dreams, miracles, and big opportunities that God gives us. Our faith is too small. What we really ought to do is get a bigger frying pan! A bigger vision! Do you need to increase the size of your faith?
III. SO...DON’T SAY GOD CAN’T!
A. GOD HAS THE POWER, THE WISDOM AND THE RESOURCES TO MEET ANY CHALLENGE THAT COMES TO YOUR LIFE.
1. Paul said, “And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Cor. 9:8 NIV. “
2. Paul said, “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? 33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” Rom. 11:33-34.
B. WHEN EVEN GOD CAN’T SAVE YOU
So when you have a bad situation & can’t see any way out & it doesn’t even look like God can save you. Ahhh...NO!
1. Your KID has walked away from God and won’t listen to you. You’ve prayed and tried everything. The devil says, “They’ll never get saved!” You need to say back to him, “Shut up devil! God has promised to save my household! All things are possible with God!”
2. Or maybe there’s not enough MONEY in the bank. You overspent at Christmas. Or maybe Covid has affected your business so bad, that you’re going under. The debt is piling up; the bills are not being paid. Your landlord and creditors are calling.
a. The devil says, “You’re going to be bankrupt! Your reputation is going down in flames! Think what your friends will say!”
b. Say to him, “Shut up devil! Don’t say God can’t! My God shall supply all my needs by His riches in Christ!”
3. For some of you, your HEALTH is impaired. Every year it gets a little more serious.
a. The devil is whispering, “You’re not going to make it through this year! You’re going to be bedridden!”
b. You need to look your fear in the face and say, “Shut up devil! God says I ‘SHALL NOT DIE, but live, and declare the works of the Lord!’” Ps. 118:17. “I will be healed because “with His stripes I am healed!”
4. God is able to take your most impossible situation and work an earth-shaking miracle for His glory!
C. WHEN GOD WORKED IN SPITE OF CIRCUMSTANCES
1. WILLIAM GURNALL was a preacher. He became sick and his ability to preach was threatened. The devil told him, “You’re through with the ministry. You’re no good to anyone!” But from his bed he wrote the classic book, “The Christian in Complete Armour” and ministered to more people than he ever did by the pulpit! The devil is a liar!
2. AMY CARMICHAEL was a missionary to India for 55 years. She had a vibrant ministry reaching the lost. But in 1931 she had an accident – she fell through the floor of an outhouse. Her hip and back were badly damaged and she was unable to walk again. It looked like her ministry was over, but it wasn’t. For the last 20 years she directed the ministry from her bedroom. She also had time to write, and she wrote sixteen books that brought worldwide fame and earned funds for her bring in numerous missionaries. Some have said she did more for God after her accident than before!
3. So when you have problems, don’t look at the circumstances, but fix your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of your faith! Have faith the Mighty God, and “Don’t Say God Can’t!”
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: How Jesus Brought Deliverance
1. Khun Paot, a 19-year-old girl, escaped Khmer Rouge rule in Cambodia after an arduous journey with 100 others through miles of jungle, canals, mountains, and rivers. They had to avoid many communist soldiers.
2. In one dark valley, at night, it was so dark they couldn't see where or how to walk. Suddenly hundreds of fireflies swarmed into view. Their glow made enough light for the people to see the path. The refugees reached the next mountain by "firefly light."
3. After Paot was transferred to the Kham Put refugee camp, she was invited to a Christian meeting. She looked at a picture on the wall and said, "I know that old man." He’s the one who led us and showed us the way to Thailand and freedom." She was pointing to a picture of Jesus. Jesus led them to freedom!
4. God wants your life to be a miraculous life. It starts by accepting Christ and letting Him bring change to make you a Christ-follower.
B. THE CALL
1. Some of you need a miracle in your MARRIAGE. The same Jesus who visited the wedding of Cana will visit your marriage too! [Slip up your hand]
2. Some of you need a miracle in your FINANCES. We serve Jehovah-Jireh, the God who provides!
3. Some need HEALING in your bodies. Jesus healed every person who ever came to Him. He will be your healer today!
4. If you need a miracle, I want you to step out of your comfort zone by standing to claim your miracle. Now, take one more step and come get in the miracle-zone/altars. PRAYER.
