Growing with God: A daily devotional with Tonia Slimm.
Jeremiah 32:17 (NIV)
“Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.”
Jeremiah 32:17 (MSG)
“‘Dear God, my Master, you created earth and sky by your great power—by merely stretching out your arm! There is nothing you can’t do.”
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” ‘Ah Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! There is nothing too difficult or too wonderful for You—” -AMPLIFIED
“Surely if God could make the heavens and the earth by his great power and by his stretched-out arm, He could easily bring it to pass that the Chaldeans should recede from the land, Israel again inhabit it, and the purchase and tenure of property be unhindered.” ~F. B. Meyer
We find Jeremiah seeking the Lord’s assurance, so he prayed:
“After I had given the purchase agreement to Baruch, son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord…” -Jeremiah 32:16 (CSB)
And as he begins his prayer, we find Jeremiah beginning by giving recognition to the Lord’s omnipotence, and reminding himself that nothing is too difficult for the Lord. Jeremiah’s prayer begins with:
“Eternal Lord, with Your outstretched arm and Your enormous power You created the heavens and the earth. Nothing is too difficult for You.” -(VOICE)
Jeremiah begins by addressing the Lord. Various titles are used in the different translations:
- “Adonai, God!” -(CJB)
- “‘Almighty Lord.” -(GW)
- “Oh, Lord God.” -(ICB)
- “O Sovereign Lord!” -(NLT)
- “Eternal Lord.” -(VOICE)
The point is, each of these titles conveys the mightiness of the Lord. He is Sovereign, over all. He is Almighty, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent. He is Eternal, everlasting, the First and the Last. Jeremiah declares what he knows is true about the Lord God.
He then goes on to mention that it was the Lord who created the heavens and the earth, as well as everything in them. And He did so by His outstretched arm. What is the significance of God’s outstretched arm, which we find mentioned throughout Scripture? “
“God’s outstretched arm is a reference to God’s sovereign involvement in the world attended by mighty displays of power.” ~https://www.gotquestions.org/God-outstretched-arm.html
We are reminded that God did not create the world and everything in it, and then take a step backwards, saying que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be. He tenderly cares for each part of His creation, and is Sovereign over all of it.
Jeremiah goes on to declare that, “Nothing is too difficult for You, God.” or “Nothing is too hard for You.”
“Is not that a grand sentence? “There is nothing too hard for thee.” He that could make the heaven and the earth can do anything. Surely you must say to him, as Jeremiah did, “There is nothing too hard for thee.” ” ~Charles Spurgeon
The Lord confirms what Jeremiah says by responding to him in this way in verse 27:
- “Jeremiah, I am the Lord God. I rule the world, and I can do anything!” -(CEV)
- “You know that nothing is impossible for me.” -(ERV)
- “Nothing is too hard for me.” -(NOG)
“O Lord God! You have made the heavens and earth by your great power; nothing is too hard for you!” -(TLB)
“We serve a God that does His greatest works when it becomes impossible for us.” ~Rick Joyner
Nothing is too difficult for our God, my friend. We have a tendency to focus on the impossibilities. And God reminds us throughout His Word that nothing is impossible for Him. He can and will do the hard things in our lives that we cannot do.
We need to keep things in perspective:
- The Lord created all things and He sustains all things: “It was by Him that everything was created: the heavens, the earth, all things within and upon them, all things seen and unseen, thrones and dominions, spiritual powers and authorities. Every detail was crafted through His design, by His own hands, and for His purposes. He has always been! It is His hand that holds everything together.” -Colossians 1:16-17 (VOICE)
- The Lord is our Champion: “The Eternal your God is standing right here among you, and He is the champion who will rescue you. He will joyfully celebrate over you; He will rest in His love for you; He will joyfully sing because of you like a new husband.” -Zephaniah 3:17 (VOICE)
- The Lord is our Provider: “Know this: my God will also fill every need you have according to His glorious riches in Jesus the Anointed, our Liberating King.” -Philippians 4:19 (VOICE)
- The Lord strengthens us: “I can be content in any and every situation through the Anointed One who is my power and strength.” -Philippians 4:13(VOICE)
- The Lord guides us: “I will escort the blind down roads they do not know, guide them down paths they’ve never seen. I will smooth their passage and light their way. I will indeed do it—they are abandoned no more.” -Isaiah 42:16 (VOICE)
- The Lord orchestrates everything: “We are confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live according to His plan.” -Romans 8:28 (VOICE)
- The Lord is powerful: “Our Lord is great. Nothing is impossible with His overwhelming power. He is loving, compassionate, and wise beyond all measure.” -Psalm 147:5 (VOICE)
“God is looking for those with whom He can do the impossible – what a pity that we plan only the things that we can do by ourselves.” ~A. W. Tozer
My friend, are you facing a seemingly impossible situation right now? Remember, we serve a God who can accomplish the impossible. He is Sovereign, over all things. He takes an interest in every detail of our lives. And He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. Do not limit God. Do not try to put Him in a box. Allow Him to do His work, in His time, in your life. His way is always the best way.
“God can do nothing for me until I recognize the limits of what is humanly possible, allowing Him to do the impossible.” ~Oswald Chambers
My Prayer:
Adonai Elohim, my Great Lord, I am reminded once again of your Sovereignty, of your ability to do the impossible. When I look at my situation, I see only the futility of this situation, but you see all the possibilities. YOU are the God who does difficult things, the daunting things, the laborious things, the hard things, the unachievable things. Please help me to remember that when I can’t you can. My job is just to trust you, the God who is able to do more than I could ask or imagine. Lord, I choose here and now to have faith that you will take care of everything. I choose to trust you. I choose to rest in your promises. Thank you for doing for me what appears to be impossible. “Oh, Lord God! You yourself made the heavens and earth by your great power and with your outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for you!” -(CSB)
Growing with God 