Is anything too difficult for the Lord?
Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord?…”
Genesis 18:13-14 (NIV)
Like Sarah his wife, Abraham also laughed and said, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” (Genesis 17:17). Genesis goes on to record that the Lord was gracious to Sarah and she became pregnant and bore a son who Abraham named Isaac, and Sarah nursed Isaasc, her son. (Genesis 21:1-7).
Hannah’s womb was closed by God (1 Samuel 1:5), and she was maliciously provoked year after year by her husband’s other wife, Peninnah, who had children. This went on till she wept and would not eat. In deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord and kept on praying (vv.10-12), and Eli the Priest thought she was drinking because her lips were moving but she was not speaking (v.13). In the course of time Hannah’s prayer was answered and she gave birth to Samuel.
Many years later we find a similar situation recorded in Luke 1:5-15. Zechariah, and Elizabeth, his wife, had no children and they were both well on in years. The Angel Gabriel appeared, and said to Zechariah, “…your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John… and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born.” (vv.13,15). The child became John the Baptist.
Likewise Luke records the story of Mary, a virgin, pledged to be married to Joseph, who was told by the angel Gabriel that the Holy Spirit would come upon her and she would give birth to the son of God and name him Jesus: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God… you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High… and of his kingdom there will be no end… And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son… For nothing will be impossible with God.” (Luke 1: 30-33,36,37 ESV).
There is more information you can take from these scriptural accounts, but today, whoever you are, whatever your circumstances, it is comforting to know that nothing is too difficult or impossible for the Lord.
Prayer
Thank you, Lord God, that we can take comfort from knowing that nothing is impossible for you. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Study by Mike Burrows
About the writer:
Michael Burrows is a regular reader of Word of Life, and is married to a church member who attends the Southampton congregation of Grace Communion International.
Local congregation:
Hythe & Dibden Parish Hall
West St
Hythe
Southampton
SO45 6AA
Local congregation contact:
Peter Noon
Email: southampton@gracecom.church
Word of Life contact:
wordoflife@gracecom.church