God Will Never Give Us More Than We Can Handle Unless We Want to Go It Alone

I came across a blog post while perusing my facebook news feed: God Will Give You More Than You Can Bear. While the blog post eventually makes it to a point of placing our cares on God, one issue really irked me. The title is a play on 1 Corinthians 10:13 which the author mentions in her blog. 

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. -1 Corinthians 10: 13

The author goes on to say that this verse is talking about escaping from temptations so that we can bear them, but she totally misses the first part of the verse, “but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able,” which is where we get the sentiment of God not giving us more than we can handle. When the going gets tough, it is easy to throw out the Word you don’t agree with. It really comes down to whether you think God is a liar or not because He clearly says He will not suffer us to be tempted above which we are able.

We see in 2 Timothy 4:3-4 how people will bend the Word to say what they want to hear:

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.  

The itching ears in this passage refer to individuals who will make doctrines that are comfortable to them. This is not the Word but the doctrines of men. In light of the subject of bearing temptations, the next verse in 2 Timothy 4 is very interesting. 

But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. -2 Timothy 4:5 

It is quite amazing that the next verse in 2 Timothy refers to enduring afflictions because it is within afflictions and tribulations we are most prone to changing the Word to fit our “reality.” Another interesting fact of this verse is that it is a command to us. There are many commands laid out by God in His Word. Some examples include:

Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you. -1 Peter 5:7

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. –Proverbs 3:6

Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. –Philippians 4:6

Every one of these verses is a command for us to go to our Heavenly Father for help.  1 Corinthians 10:13 states, “but God is faithful…” The word “faithful” implies that He is honoring effort placed by another party, the Christian. He is faithful to those who cast their cares upon God, acknowledge Him in all their ways, or are anxious for nothing. All too often, we as Christians want to believe that God should come to our level and handle our problems with no effort from us; then, at the same time we like to blame God for not handling said problems when we do not place our worries upon Him and ask Him for help. One thing we need to understand is that God cannot overstep free will. If His child wants to bear the full burden of a problem, then who is He to argue. We need to apply the rightly divided Word to realize that if we are having experiences that we feel are too much to bear then we are not casting our care upon God. We always need to remember that God is never the problem. The problem is our human inclinations.

Check out God is Not Down With The Sickness for more on God’s love versus the devil’s desire to destroy us.