Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
Hebrews 10:19-23 (KJV)
God has presented to us a new and living way of life. One that is filled with love, faith, hope, light, peace -life of great abundance. It is spiritual in nature, but manifests in the natural realm. We have been given access to God the Father, Himself, through Jesus Christ our Lord. He has enabled us to have a close intimate relationship with Himself. He has given us His Holy Spirit by Whom we are able to accomplish great things for His Kingdom. As it is written, âNot by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hostsâ (Zechariah 4:6, KJV), and again, âBut the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploitsâ (Daniel 11:32, KJV). We have been freely given  this new and living way of life, yet so many struggle to live it. They struggle with intimacy with God, they struggle to believe the promises, let alone receive them. Many struggle to do the exploits that the Father has called them to do. They fail to see themselves as the Father sees them. They limit Him, and in so doing, limit themselves. Are you limiting God? The question is why and how do we limit Him. Let us address some of the how and whys. It is time for all of us to stop limiting God, and move on.
One of the ways we limit is God is simply unbelief. This perhaps is the most common reason people have for limiting God. What is the root cause of their unbelief? They simply do not fully trust God. For some, they do not trust Him because they have been let down by those who are supposed to be trustworthy. For example, if they had an earthly father who had broken their trust numerous times, they would tend to view God the Father as someone who cannot be trusted as well. It is common knowledge that much the way people view of their earthly father greatly influences the way they view God the Father. If their earthly father abandoned them, they would tend to expect God to do the same. If they felt their earthly father did not love them, they would have difficulty believing the Father loves them. Love and trust go hand in hand, and if someone does not believe God loves him, he will not trust him either. A number of people have lived hard lives, and as a result, they have hardened hearts. We are exhorted in Hebrews 3:7-8, âWherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, Today if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your hearts . . .â
Some believers struggle to trust God because of an experience that took place in their walk of faith. They felt led to do a certain thing, and when they stepped out in faith to do it, it did not turn out the way they thought is should. In some cases, they felt burned. To them is was a failure, and perhaps they felt it was a false prophesy of sorts. They felt that they âheard wrong.â As a result, when the Lord asks them to do something new, they have difficult time trusting Him, or at least that they heard correctly. They equate the past with the present, hence, expecting the same results. A few things to realize about the prophetic are that sometimes what the Lord has in mind does not match the word-picture we get in our mind. Sometimes we can put a shelf life on it that is shorter than what the Lord has placed on it. Hence, when things do not happen the way we think they should, or when we think they should, it would be easy to assume we missed it. We forget that God has a purpose and a process to everything. If we remember Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead after he was in the tomb four days, it may be easier to realize that not everything is as it appears (see John 11:1-45). It is never too late for God resurrect that which is dead, nor is it too difficult for Him to restore that which was lost. It may very well be that He is not done yet.
Even if one were to miss it, we need to realize that God can put things back on track. Furthermore, we must not forget Romans 8:28, âWe know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purposeâ (KJV). He will always turn our past failures into victory if we let Him. Â In His love, God will not hang us out to dry. Â Trust Him again!
People limit God by maintaining a hardened heart. They continue to harbor bitterness by replaying their past in their minds over and over again. They continue to hold people in un-forgiveness, and fail to move forward. Some even hold God accountable for past hurts and failures. If they want to move forward, they will need to forgive the others, including God. Furthermore, they will need to forgive themselves. If you are stuck in your past, it is time to forgive, receive healing, and look forward. If your emotions overwhelm your ability to forgive, come to the throne of grace that you may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need (see Hebrews 4:16). A key is admitting to God your inability to forgive, and then ask Him for the grace to forgive. Grace is the spiritual ability given from the Lord to do those things of God that we cannot do on our own.
This is only part one in the series called, âDo Not Limit God.â Obviously there is more to come, but as a suggestion: ask the Father to show you the ways you have limited Him in your life. If we are all honest, we have limited Him. The time has come, however, to remove those limits. As the Lord reveals to you those ways, be willing to repent and receive everything He has for you. He truly loves you, and He truly wants to bless you.
