Place: Lurgan Baptist 8:9:2002

Reading: Genesis 18:1-33

" IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD ?"

Robert Dick Wilson was one of the great professors at Princeton Theological Seminary in the USA One of his students was once invited back to preach in the College twelve years after he had graduated. Old Dr. Wilson came in and sat down near the front. At the close of the service, the old professor came up to his former student, cocked his head to one side in his characteristic way, extended his hand and said, " If you come back again. I will not come back to hear you preach. I only come once. I am glad that you are big- Godder. When my boys come back, I come to see if they are big-Godders or little-Godders, and then I know what their ministry will be." His former student asked him to explain and he replied, " Well, some men have a little God and they are always in trouble with Him. He can't do anything. He can't take care of the inspiration and transmission of the Scriptures to us. He doesn't intervene on behalf of His people. They have a little God and I call them little Godders.

Then there are those who have a great God. He speaks and it is done. He commands and it stands fast. He knows how to show Himself strong on behalf of them that fear Him. " You have a great God and He will bless your ministry." My .... what kind of concept do you have of God ? Do you have a little God or a great God ? It was A.W.Tozer who said, " If we would bring back spiritual power to our lives, we must begin to think of God more nearly as He is." It was Theophilus of Antioch who in the second century said this about God. " In glory He is incomprehensible, in greatness unfathomable, in height inconceivable, in power incomparable, in wisdom unrivalled, in goodness inimitable, in kindness unutterable." My .... do you have that kind of concept about your God ? I want you to meet this .... The God who is Able ! The God who can do anything He wants to do, even rejuvenate dead wombs and gave babies to couples in their nineties !

You see, here was Abraham and Sarah facing a crisis. God again promised Abraham a son this time in Sarah's hearing and she laughed to herself. ( 18:12 )

" Wherefore did Sarah laugh ? the Lord asked with convicting insight. Then he added, " Is anything too hard for the Lord ?" ( 18:14 ) And the answer to this most important question is found in ( Jer 32:17 ) " There is nothing too hard for Thee." Its very interesting to notice how and when the Lord appeared to Abraham. Do you recall that when Stephen was making his defence and recalling the history of Israel he said this,

" The God of Glory appeared unto our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia .... " ( Acts 7:2 ) So He is the God of Glory. In ( Gen 12:7 ) " the Lord appeared unto Abram and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land." So He is the God of Promise.

Do you see ( Gen 17:1 ) The Hebrew name is " El Shaddai, the all powerful, all sufficient God who can do anything and meet any need."

So our God is the God of power. Now look at ( 18:1 ) So He is the God of Fellowship as He visits Abraham as a friend. My .... are you beginning to see the greatness of your God this .... ? He is the God of Glory, the God of Promise, the God of Power, the God of Fellowship. The God who poses the question, " Is anything too hard for the Lord ?" Are you here this .... discouraged ? Are you asking the question,

Does God really care ? Is God really in control ? Does He really have the power to bring good out of

adversity ? I want you to leave this .... encouraged believing that " nothing is too hard for the Lord."

I want to suggest to you that there is:

(1) NO PROMISE TO HARD FOR GOD TO FULFIL

Someone has said that there may be at least thirty thousand promises in the Bible. And God is able to make good every single promise. " God is not a man, that He should lie, neither the son of man, that He should repent, hath He said, and shall He not do it ? Or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good ?"

( Num 23:19 ) Here, God promised to gave Abraham a son.

(a) THIS PROMISE IS STATED:

Look at ( 18:10 ) The visitors here of course were two angels and the Lord Jesus Christ in one of His preincarnation appearances. You see, the Lord had come all the way from heaven to gave Abraham and Sarah an announcement. Sarah was going to give birth to the promised son. This promise had already been given to Abraham but now it is repeated. ( 15:4 17:16 )

The promise is stated in no uncertain terms. My .... is the Word of God not replete with His promises to us ?

What about the Promise of His Presence: " I will never leave thee .... " ( Heb 13:5 ) The Promise of His Provision: " But my God shall supply .... " ( Phil 4:19 )

The Promise of His Peace: " Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you." ( Jn 14:27 ) (a)

(b) THIS PROMISE IS SCORNED:

" Therefore Sarah laughed within herself .... " ( 18:12 )

My .... the news was so incredible that Sarah laughed and questioned whether such a thing could happen to two elderly people. Abraham's laughter had been born out of joyful faith ( 17:17 ) but Sarah's laughter was marked by unbelief, even though she tried to deny it.

She was laughing at the purpose and the power of God. Have you ever done that ? The Church laughingly dismissed William Carey with the contemptuous words,

" When God wants to convert the heathen, He'll do it without the likes of you." But God had the last laugh and used Carey to confound the strong and mighty.

My .... does God keep His promises ? Does God have the power to do what He says He will do ? Yes. For what God promises He is well able to perform.

( Rom 4:20-21 ) For notice this promise is (a) (b)

(c) THIS PROMISE IS SEALED:

For we read in ( 21:1 ) we read " And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said .... for Sarah conceived." The impossible became a reality (1) A dear old saint was dying. She had been talking about how sweet it was to trust the Lord, how precious were His promises. Someone said to her, " Suppose after you die you find it is all a mistake, that the promises of God were not true, that you are not really saved after all, and that you lose your soul." She replied, " I may may lose my soul, but God would lose more." " What do you mean ? How would God lose anything ? How can that be ?" She said, " I may lose my soul, but God would lose more. God would lose his honour." How true that is ! My .... the very honour, character of God is at stake. (1)

(2) NO PRAYER TOO HARD FOR GOD TO ANSWER

Lets face it. In spite of all the reverence that surrounds it prayer suffers from a poor image. Some people dismiss prayer as a weak alternative to practical action, an alibi for doing nothing. Offering to pray for someone is often nothing but a graceful way to excuse ourselves from an awkward situation, it is an exit line. But my .... what we must realise is that prayer is not a substitute for work. Its is work. Now " Is anything too hard for the Lord ?"

in the realm of prayer ! I heard about a lady who was getting a pie ready to put into the oven when the phone rang. It was the school nurse. Her son had come down with a high fever and would she come and take him home. The mother calculated how long it would take to drive to school and back, and how long the pie should take, and concluded there was enough time. Popping the pie in the oven she left for school. When she arrived her son's fever was worse and the nurse urged her to take him to the doctor. Seeing her son like that .... upset her and she drove to the clinic as fast as she could. " Get him to bed," the doctor said " start him on this right away."

By the time she got the boy home and in bed and headed out again for the shopping centre, she was not only frayed, but frazzled and frantic as well. And she had forgotten about the pie in the oven. At the shopping centre she found a chemist, got the prescription and rushed back to the car. Which was locked. Yes, there were her keys, hanging in the ignition switch, locked inside the car. She ran back into the mall, found a phone and called home. When her son finally answered, she blurted out, " I've locked the keys inside the car." The boy was barely able to speak, but he whispered, " Get a wire coat hanger Mum, you can get in with that." She began searching the mall for a wire coat hanger which proved to be elusive. Eventually she got one. Hurrying out of the shopping mall, she halted, and stared at the wire coat hanger. " I don't know what to do with this."

Then she remembered the pie in the oven. All the frustrations of the past hour hit her and she began crying. Then she prayed, " Dear Lord, my boy is sick and he needs this medicine and my pie is in the oven and my keys are locked in the car, Lord I don't know what to do with this coat hanger.

Send someone who does know what to do with it, and I really need that person now. Amen." She was wiping her eyes when an old banger drew up in front of her. Out jumped a young man with long hair. " Young man," she said, " do you know how to get into a locked car with one of these ?" He plucked the hanger from her hand, " Where's the car ?" A couple of twists of the coat hanger, and the door was open. When she saw the door open she threw her arms around him. " Oh," she said " the Lord sent you. You're such a good boy. You must be a Christian." He stepped back and said, " No ma'am, I am not a Christian, and I am not a good boy. I just got of prison yesterday." She hugged him again.

" Bless God," she cried, " the Lord sent me a professional." Now that woman had a great prayer image. She did exactly what the Saviour said she should do. " Men ought always to pray and not to faint."

( Lk 18:1 ) Did you notice Abraham's prayer here ?

(a) HIS SPIRIT WAS EARNEST:

As he intercedes for this sinful city. " Wilt Thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked ?" ( 18:23 ) James reminds us that it is " the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man that availeth much." ( James 5:16 )

(b) HIS HUMILITY WAS PROFOUND:

Look at ( 18:27 ) God's holiness and our sinfulness, God's greatness and our nothingness are the things we need to keep in mind as we approach His throne.

(c) HIS PERSISTENCE WAS GREAT:

Six times Abraham intercedes for the wicked cities. His heart is drawn out in pity and compassion, and he pleads again and again ! My .... are you persevering with God in prayer ? Are you holding on ? Are you praying through ? " Is anything too hard for the Lord ?" (1) (2)

(3) NO PROBLEM TOO HARD FOR GOD TO SOLVE

" Is anything too hard for the Lord ?" Are there any burdens, problems, fears, challenges with which the Lord cannot deal ? Now don't tell me you don't have any problems. I don't care who you are .... everyone gets in tight places. If you say, " I never get in a tight place," then you are different from the characters of the Bible.

My .... some of them got in very tight places. You see, any believer who attempts something for God comes to great crises in his life.

(a) For Abraham it was a PHYSICAL Problem:

He expressed it in the previous chapter, he said " Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old ? and shall Sarah that is ninety years old bear ?"

( 17:17 ) Do some of you elderly folk feel like Abraham and Sarah ? Old, weak, done, with your life somewhat empty, useless, perhaps marred by faithlessness ? Will you take this word of encouragement. God can still take the aged Sarah and Abraham and work mightily through them ! For Sarah, the barren period is over.

Christian marrieds should ever remember that our children, or lack of them are in the hands of God. (a)

(b) For Habakkuk it was a THEOLOGICAL Problem:

How could God use the Chaldeans to judge a people far more righteous than they ? ( 1:12 .... 2:1 ) I wonder are there are questions of a theological nature that are you wearing you down this .... ? Why does God permit this ?

Why that or the other ? Doreen Campbell !

(c) For Daniel it was a NATIONAL Problem:

He was overwhelmed with sorrow. ( 10:2 ) Why ? Because of his nations future sufferings ! Warfare against the nation of Israel. My .... whats your problem this .... ? I do not minimise it, but ask yourself this question " Is anything too hard for the Lord ?" (1)(2)(3)

(4) NO PLACE TOO HARD FOR GOD TO REVIVE

I am told that in the Welsh revival the people of God did four things. (1) They condemned sin in themselves:

(2) They completely obeyed God in every matter:

(3) They had a compassionate burden for others:

(4) They prayed:

My .... do we not need to pray the prayer of Habakkuk in these days. " O Lord, revive Thy work in the midst of the years." ( 3:2 ) Is there anywhere too hard for the Lord ? Any home, church, town, city, too corrupt for God to cleanse ? Do you recall Nineveh ? Think of:

(a) THIS PAGAN PLACE:

A city renown for its cruelty, brutality, immorality, indecency, dishonesty and robbery. ( Jonah 1:2 )

Nahum the prophet speaking of this city said, " Upon whom hath not thy wickedness come continually."

( 3:19 ) Why would God call Jonah to this sinful city of Nineveh ? " Lord Nineveh is not on my preaching schedule. Why bother with such a pagan place ?" Is God asking you to testify in an unlikely place perhaps to an unlovely person ? Is God asking you to do something and it does not make sense ? Jonah went .... eventually and can you see:

(b) THIS PEDESTRIAN PREACHER:

Walking through the streets of Nineveh crying, " Yet forty days .... overthrown." ( 3:4 ) You say to me this .... " What can I do ?" Well, look at Jonah. Remember he had previously failed the Lord, and no doubt some people were saying that the Lord would never use him again. But one of the greatest revivals came to the city of Nineveh, and it all began with Jonah one man who repented and got right with God. Do you realise that you are important ? Do you recognise that you could be the key to an awakening in this church, in your home and community ? How did Nineveh react to Jonah's message ? We read " So the people of Nineveh believed God and proclaimed a fast." ( 3:5 ) Think of:

(c) THIS PENITENT PEOPLE:

Can you picture this scene ? One sentence and Nineveh was brought to its knees ! Did you know that the same thing happened in Ulster in 1859 ? J. Edwin Orr tells of a school boy in Coleraine who was convicted of his sin and found Christ. He returned to his class to tell his teacher, " I am so happy I have the Lord Jesus in my heart." That simple testimony convicted children and staff alike and ministers of the gospel in Coleraine were sent for to deal with seekers after Christ. One sentence anointed by the Spirit of God and Coleraine was awakened. " Is anything too hard .... Lord ?"

(5) NO PERSON TOO HARD FOR GOD TO SAVE

Now we have known some hard sinners. Some of you may be saying, " Well I am living with one." But my .... there is nobody God cannot save. Can you picture the missionary quartet of Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke going to the Gangites River looking for some fellow Jews. My .... this was a divine appointment, for

(a) A CULTURED SINNER WAS SAVED:

God selected Lydia, and like a flower her heart and the hearts of her family or household were opened to the Saviour. My .... the apostles now had the wind at their backs, but Satan was at work too. He used a demonised girl who made her masters wealthy by telling fortunes. Paul responded decisively and cast out this wicked spirit. Thus:

(b) A CAPTIVE SINNER WAS SAVED:

My .... will you grasp this principle ? For every step forward the devil will meet you half-way. But bless God, " Greater is He that is in you, than He that is in the world." ( 1 Jn 4:4 ) Paul and Silas were now in trouble. The result ? Imprisonment ! But instead of complaining or calling on God to judge their enemies, the two men prayed and praised God. You see, when you are in pain, the mid-night hour is not the easiest time in the world for a gospel concert, but God gives

" songs in the night." ( Job 35:10 ) and the outcome of it all was:

(c) A CALLOUS SINNER WAS SAVED:

As the jailor cried to God for mercy ! Different people with different experiences, and yet all of them changed by the grace of God ! My .... is anyone too hard for the Lord ? Any of the men of violence or the women of

vice ? Any of our friends and loved ones ?

" Is anything too hard for the Lord ?" Job steps forward and answers " I know that Thou canst do everything."

(42:2 ) " Is anything too .... Lord ?" Jeremiah steps forward and says, " There is nothing too hard for thee."

( Jer 32:17 ) " Is anything too .... Lord ?" Paul steps forward and says " Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think."

( Eph 3:20 ) My .... will you take it home with you this .... ? No matter what your circumstances are, " Is anything too hard for the Lord ?"