God is the God of Impossible Things

The Christmas season should be a time that we remember God that He is the God of impossible things, and that through Him all things are possible:

“With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

Knowing that God can do the seemingly impossible should give us great hope, and we should  celebrate the hope we have through Jesus Christ.

However, if it’s been a particularly tough year, you may feel like you don’t have much to hope for anymore. This time of year may illuminate your losses – whether it’s a loss of a loved one, a job, a home, or a relationship. Either way, it’s easy to lose sight of what we have, and instead focus on what’s missing in our lives.

“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” Psalm 42:11

Is God Still Good?

Whether in a season of abundant blessing, of waiting, or of grieving, we must always consider the question: Is God still good?

No matter what my circumstances, no matter if God allows everything dear to me to be removed from my life, can I still say that God is good?

There is one particular man in the Old Testament, Job, that was “blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil” (Job 1:1). God blessed Job greatly, and He had everything good going for him. But Satan wanted to use Job to prove a point to God.

He said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face” (Job 1:9-11).

God gave permission to Satan to remove all that Job had from his life, with one exception – that Satan would spare Job’s life. You can read the entire story in the Book of Job. 

Just because you’re going through fiery trials does not mean that you have done anything wrong. It could merely mean you are being put to the test. What comes from testing is often growth:

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4

Job lost almost everything, and instead of cursing God, even at the advice of his wife and friends, he did the opposite. He praised and worshiped God, saying:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job 1:21

Job passed the test with flying colors, and God blessed him for it:

“And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job…. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before….  And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning…. And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. And Job died, an old man, and full of days.” Job 42:10-17

When you’ve survived the storm, and even as you’re counting your losses, don’t forget to praise God, because God is faithful to those that love Him.

Remember that God is still good.

God’s Plans Can’t Be Stopped

He has a plan for you, and even if things get shaky for a while, nothing in heaven or earth can stop God’s plans. 

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11

Another unstoppable plan that includes me and you and the whole world is His plan to save us from sin, death, and, ultimately, separation from Him. His plan is to restore back to us life with Him through the joy of His salvation.

Jesus Is Our Hope

The fulfilled promise of a Savior, the birth of Jesus, is reason for hope. Jesus was born into the world, just as you and I were; he struggled and suffered and bore our shame up on the cross, not so that we wouldn’t have to suffer, but so that we would have hope for a future.

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment.” Romans 5:3-5

Over the next few weeks, take time to remember why, no matter your circumstance, there is HOPE. No matter how hard this life is, know that this is not all that there is to life. There is more! There is abundant life for those that love the Lord!

God Does Impossible Things

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God….. For with God nothing will be impossible.” Luke 1:35-37

God knows the world is in deep need of being saved. Saved from itself. Saved from darkness and evil. Saved from those that wish to destroy it and the people within it. God knew when he sent his Son to be the Savior of the world, that we were desperately in need of help.

God showed all of us that He is the God of the impossible by way of His son’s birth and death. 

First, Jesus was born of immaculate conception. It was scientifically impossible for a baby to be born of a virgin in those days. Today, we have evolved to a point that it would be possible by way of in-vitro fertilization, but this is relatively recent science and technology that allows this to be possible. The first baby born by way of in-vitro fertilization was in 1978.

The second impossibility that God did by way of Jesus was that of defeating the grave. After He was crucified, they confirmed He was dead, and they put His body in a tomb. This tomb was protected by a large, heavy stone and guards because they were worried someone might try to steal His body. 

Miraculously, He rose again three days later. When some women came to adorn His body with perfumes and oils, they found that the stone had been rolled away, and all that was left behind was the strips of fabric that once were wrapped around His body. 

No other god has the power to rise up from the dead. Only the One true God can do impossible things. Scientists continue to find a scientific explanation of how this could happen, but none are more plausible than just believing that God is the great miracle worker. 

One such scientist, Daniel Gordon Ang, has worked to prove that the resurrection is real. You can read about his findings in this article,  A Scientist Looks at the Resurrection, (https://peacefulscience.org/articles/daniel-ang-a-scientist-looks-at-the-resurrection/)

In it, he says that the scientists want to find a way to explain how “Jesus experienced a resurrection which restored his body completely, such that afterwards, he was able to be seen, heard, and touched by the disciples on several occasions.”

He goes on to say, “there is strong evidence that Jesus’ resurrection happened. However, this evidence is not definitive. Alternate explanations are available. As a scientist, I understand why someone might see this and still walk away in unbelief. In my opinion, historical evidence gives us a rational foundation to trust in Jesus, but it is not enough. This is unsurprising, as the gospels themselves were not originally written for the purpose of proving skeptics wrong. Rather, they were “…written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name ” (John 20:31, ESV). If Jesus is real, then He calls us to eternal life, not rational insight.”

The Bible tells us that God is the God of impossible things, not rational things with logical explanations. If that were the case, what need would there be for faith? It is on each and every one of us to decide if we will believe what the Bible says about God, and about Jesus’s birth, death and resurrection. When you choose to believe God’s word is true, then you can easily believe that God can do impossible things in your life, too.

Will You Let God Do Impossible Things?

My hope this Christmas season is that you will allow God to love you, accept the gift of His Son if you haven’t already; that you would seek Him first in all that you do in life, and that you will allow Him to do impossible things in your life. 

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 5:13

To follow the whole series of Journey to Christmas, click here: https://jenniferjabbour.com/the-journey-to-christmas-advent-series/